Our Dwelling Place: The Calling of the Christian Entrepreneur Essay

The founder of local grocery chain, Ukrop’s, Joseph Ukrop was devoted to his vocation of being Richmond’s local grocer. He put community first and used his grocery stores to build community. His legacy of entrepreneurship in Richmond was characterized by a distinct commitment to the Christian principles. For example although Ukrop’s was closed on Sundays and sold no alcohol, they were still able to be a market leader in the Richmond grocery industry. In 2000, they were responsible for 38. 9 percent of the grocery sales in the local market. If Joseph Ukrop’s decided to sell alcohol and required their employees to work on Sundays, the Ukrop’s company would have compromised their proclamation of Christian faith. Ukrop’s also maintained these business practices throughout the entire time of operation. This is Hebrews 13:8-9 applied: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today and forever†. They were â€Å"not carried away by divers and strange doctrines†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 2 Ukrop acknowledged Jesus as Lord in his business. The calling of the Christian entrepreneur is dynamic. Somehow, the entrepreneur must be guided by biblical principle, be influential in the marketplace while also yield profit to be successful in business. Still, this discussion asserts that when it is the Christian’s right to exercise â€Å"dominion in the earth through stewardship and enterprise. †3 It is also that entrepreneur’s responsibility to make his or her days count by forwarding the kingdom. Psalm 90: Discussion This tension between man’s place in the continuum of God’s eternity is the theme that characterizes the Hebrew poetic text of Psalm 90. This text egins the fourth division of Psalm, authored by Moses. Historically, Psalm 90 was written after the wilderness experience of forty years; the Exodus generation had perished. According to the book of Numbers, Moses witnessed the death of 1,200,000 adult Israelites that left Egypt. This was God’s judgment for the sin of Kadesh Barnea. Kadesh Barnea provides the background for the text. At Kadesh Barnea, Moses sent out twelve spies to survey the land before the people would enter. All came back with a poor report except Joseph and Caleb who asserted that the Israelites â€Å"would be able to overcome the land. 5 The Israelite people rebelled against their leadership and created a mob, from which God had to save Moses and Aaron. Therefore, by the time Psalm 90, God punishes the Israelites for worshipping idols and forgetting the Lord thy God. According to Fructenbaum, Psalm 90 can be understood in three segments: The nature of man in contrast to the eternity of God, the reason for man’s sin and the third segment is Moses appeal to God, that He visit and return again, restoring his presence to the Israelites again. good In Psalm 90:1-2 God is the dwelling place for all generations. In Hebrew, dwelling place is â€Å"habitation or refuge. God is a protective shelter for all generations. We see that although it appears that God is far off – He is accessible, indeed. Remember that by this time, the Israelites begged Moses to tell God not to appear in person, God is also eternal. Perhaps this is one of the most complex theological concepts. In this text, the mountains are used to illustrate God’s eternity. It is through this imagery that the reader is able to experience the stability of God. 7 Mountains are a constant theme in the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. Mountains are a sign of God’s covenant with his people. So far God is a dwelling place and He is eternal. The second segment if the Psalm 90, beginning in verse 3, describes man’s finality. This is a stark contrast to God’s eternity. The Hebrew word for man means â€Å"frail,† and â€Å"weak. † Man who is weak will be destroyed. Good God is timeless: 4For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night. 5Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up. The last segment of the Psalm is Moses’ appeal to God for him to return his presence to his people: â€Å"Return, O lord  , how long? And let it repent thee concerning thy servants. † Not only should God return, but Moses asks for complete restoration and for God to bless the work of man: â€Å"Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children. And let the beauty of the lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it. A synopsis of Psalm 90 is that man God is eternal, man is finite. Therefore man should repent of his sin, turn from his wicked way and be restored to the dwelling place of the Lord God. Also, because man’s days are numbered, he should seek to be the most productive during his youth as to reflect the glory of God. There is safety and peace in God’s design. good This theme of vocation and purpose is a constant theme in the both the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. The Vocation of the Christian Entrepreneur The significance of Psalm 90 frames the meaning of vocation for the Christian entrepreneur. For the Christian entrepreneur, vocation , meaning vocare in Latin, indicates that there is a relationship between the one is calling and the one being called. 2 This call and response is affirmed in the New Testament text, John 10:27 when Jesus assures speaking to his disciples: â€Å"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. † It is also the Christian’s entrepreneur’s responsibility to fulfill God’s mandate to fill the earth. In Genesis 1-2, key tenants of the creation mandate that pronounces both our relationship and responsibility to Jehovah-Elohim (God, the Creator. ) Through worship, dominion and procreation, there exists a dynamic by which man can demonstrate the very likeness God in the earth. In text of Genesis 1-2, the capacity for humanity to innovate is authenticated. According to Genesis 1-2 and Psalm 90, humanity’s desire to deviate from this original blueprint set forth by his Creator â€Å"in the beginning,† can result in destruction. 13 Vocation outside of God’s appointment can render destruction, captivity as it did for the Israelites and the obliteration of entire generations as it did in the past for Israel in the Old Testament Hebrew text If this discussion would continue, it could explore how man is the only one of God’s creation’s that deviates from answering God’s call to produce the Creator through innovation. Even plants grow toward the light. Personal Vocation One of my mentors has taught me that your calling is something that you enjoy doing for no pay. Joseph Ukrop would close his store to help local farmers harvest their crops so they would have food through the winter. Ukrop was passionate about making sure that members of his community were fed; he cared about their nutrition. Today, the store has closed, but the Ukrop legacy of giving has lasted through their non-profit foundation. This is what I believe lies at the foundation of the Christian vocation. For many years I have searched for the thing I should be doing for the kingdom. I think it is teaching. I was a Spanish teacher in the Richmond public school system. I left teaching to pursue a career in marketing. At work, new hires get sent to me for training. I am asked to give presentations and teach the Sales division on new products. Still, I struggle with my calling to teach because it does not pay as much as I would like when I decide pursue it full time. At work, I train minimally but am paid double the salary of a teacher in Richmond, VA. However I am not content with the work I do. It seems that this door will be closed soon. On my April 23, 2012, I will be laid off after working with my current company for five years. At the same time I found out this news, I was also asked to teach at a local community college part time. I am just thankful that God was gracious enough to provide other opportunities. Some of my female co-workers have asked me to lead a Bible study after I leave. Parents still call me when their children face difficulty with Spanish before taking exams. I decided that I would start a tutoring service to supplement my job as an instructor in fall. My vocation to teach is the very thing that God has placed in me. Obeying tis call is so much better than existing outside of the dwelling place of God’s will.

POS

Disease concept note: polycystic ovary syndrome A lot of females worldwide tend to naturally shy off the topic of their genital health. They only come out of this devastating cocoon when the situation is far out of hand and beyond control, deeper analysis into this matter will add water to the myth that mortality rates in females are higher become they are ignorant of the most basic diseases. In matters pertaining reproductive health; the general public usually has very small information of the diseases that affect them (dunaif-1997). The general public is usually satisfied with knowledge of the most common sexually transmitted diseases; gonorrhea, syphilis, genital herpes and chancroid. This information is so trivial in such a vital topic. Apart from the general genitalia disease symptoms, females should be more cautious about their general health as their bodies are prone to bacteria and viruses compared to men.In this concept note I will be dissecting a not so common disease with very common symptoms that females ignore and only speak out when the symptom worsens. This note is meant to help doctors and nurses remedy the situation. To give it an authentic touch I did a web search from reputable institutions and contrasted the findings with one medical analysis I did on a patient. Signs and SymptomsIrregular menstrual cycleIrregular cycle means there is a delay in the monthly periods or having more than one menstrual cycle in a month. A female's regular cycle is usually 28 days. This statistic may differ a little bit in women as their bodies function differently despite having the same genetic traits and metabolic systems. When a patient highlights missing periods after her pregnancy test was negative most doctors are left with a wide range of diseases to ponder on. Among the common diseases that can cause delay of the menses are urine fibroids, pelvic inflammatory disease and thyroid cancer. Polycystic ovary syndrome is always denoted by delayed menstrual cycles.Acne breakoutThis is one of the most outstanding symptoms as it is accompanied by an increase in body temperature. The acne appears and disappears sporadically on the body. If a woman above 40 years complains of severe acne breakout then polycystic ovary syndrome should be tested first.Excess hair growth on the faceWomen faces are normally less hairy than men's' faces so a woman should be really alarmed when she notices rapid hair growth on her ears, nose and most of the time chin. This mostly affects women that have just hit 30 years and have contracted the disease.Restlessness and Sleepless nightsThis usually happens as patients having this disease exhibit high stress levels and cannot willingly focus on sleep or concentrate clearly. A slight interruption when the patient is sleeping makes her lose sleep completely. Rapid weight gain or weight lossDue to irregular hormone supply and imbalance, the metabolism in women will tend to change. The change will vary among the lot as they have different metabolic systems. No matter the case, drastic change in weight always mirrors unseen effects of a disease. Causes Withdrawal effects of family planning methods affect women hormonal systems and this in turn distorts the regular ovulation breakdown cycle. The effects if not medicated can be severe to the point of making the woman in question barren.MedicationFemale Patients under intense medication for long term diseases like cancer, diabetes and tuberculosis often experience delayed menses as their systems have to counter the effects of their prescribed dosages. Stress This is among the most ignored cause of polycystic ovary syndrome yet it holds bearing to a major symptom; restlessness and lack of sleep. A female's frequent exposure to stress prone environments alters the functionality of her limbic system and further her stress then menstrual pattern. Remedies There are natural and medical remedies to this disease.The natural remedies should be tested first then medical to follow later if the later has not helped relieve the symptoms. A keen analysis should be done on the patient to ascertain which Medicine prescription is suitable for her. This will prevent further severity of the underlying symptoms. Natural remedies Eating a balanced diet will help stabilize the metabolic system hence restore the females menses cycle. Pineapple and papaya fruits are a recommendation as they have bromeliad that breaks down uterus walls and flashes out any blockages along the way. A patient should also consider eating small quantities of food regulaly.Regular exercises like yoga and crossfit are good for kick starting the brain. Any workout is good as long as it is regular and comfortable.Distress and self-care will help activate the brain cells. One should at least take time and break from her regular routine. Even a 30 minute break can be very relieving. Reduce salt and caffeine consumption. These two food stuffs inhibit the production of hormones and if not moderated they tend to alter the female reproductive system Medicine recommended are tranexamic acid systematic popularly known as Lysteda. It is a miscellaneous coagulant modifier that helps in restoring back damaged cells in the body. Ethynyl estradiol commonly known as Drospirenone is a drug meant to reverse the withdrawal effects of contraceptives in women.Mineral and vitamin supplements can also be prescribed as their role is to stabilize the production of hormones in the body. References Source of remedies for polcystic ovary syndromehttps://www.drugs.com/condition/menstrual-disorderSource of detailed symptoms to the diseasehttps://rubycup.com/all-about-your-periods/irregular-periodsSource of other genital diseaseshttps://www.healthcommunities.com/menstruationInsulin resistance and the polycystic ovary syndromeEndocrine review by A Dunaif

Analysis of Cadbury Company's environmental changes in last five years Assignment

Analysis of Cadbury Company's environmental changes in last five years - Assignment Example (English Tea Store 2009) John experimented with his mortar and pestle, and was proud to present a range of cocoa and chocolate drinks. His chocolate drinks had sugar in them to enhance the flavor and his precious chocolate products were sold in blocks. When customers purchased these blocks they cut a tiny piece, placed it in a saucepan, added milk or water as they desired and the delicious concoction was ready in a flash. (Cadbury Ltd 2011) The business was prospering very well and both brothers, John and Benjamin, joined together to form the company Cadbury Brothers of Birmingham. They set up an office in London and in 1854 received a Royal Warrant, the first of many, as manufacturers of chocolate and cocoa to Queen Victoria. After running the business successfully for six years, the brothers ended their partnership because John`s health was deteriorating and hence, the responsibility of running the company landed on the shoulders of John`s sons, George and Richard. Both the brother s ran the company very well and expanded the product line. They introduced Cadbury’s Cocoa Essence which marked the beginning of chocolate as it exists in today’s time. Soon, they were able to shift their operations to a larger facility. As the company continued to progress, the brothers appointed Master confectioner, Frederic Kinchelman to share his recipe and production secrets with the Cadbury workers. This resulted in the expansion of the product line as more chocolate delicacies were made available and in 1897 they introduced the first milk chocolate and from then on, after two years they were incorporated as a limited company. Cadbury merged with Schweppes in 1969 to form Cadbury Schweppe and from there on they went on to acquire Sunkist, Canada Dry, Typhoo Tea and more. The manufacture of Cadbury brands was licensed to Hershey. Also, Schweppes Beverages was created. (English Tea Store 2009) In February, Kraft Foods acquired the Cadbury Company, making it the lar gest confectionery company in the world again. From the year 1969 onwards Cadbury`s was known as "Cadbury Schweppes plc" but that was until a demerger took place in May 2008, which resulted in the separation of its global confectionery business from its U.S. beverage unit and was renamed Dr Pepper Snapple Group. Microenvironment: The microenvironment of an organization means the factors or fundaments present in its direct area of operations that has an impact upon its performance and as well as the important decisions made by the organization. These factors are comprised of the company`s: competitors, customers, suppliers, distribution channels and also the general public. (Business Dictionary 2011) Microenvironment of Cadbury: Customers: Every company treasures its customers; similarly, Cadbury`s ensures that its customers are getting delicious and premium quality products which are worth their price. People have faith in the brand name of the company and the company exerts it utmo st effort in maintaining the faith of its customers. Cadbury`s believes that Good business and Good values are directly proportional to one another. Therefore, they are committed to the implementation of their commitments and promises, so that they can value and guard the long history of trust that their consumers have in them. They listen to their consumers and respond to their needs. (Cadbury plc 2011) Roald Dahl, in his book The boy, writes that when he was in school,

Case Anaylasis of Nike Inc Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Case Anaylasis of Nike Inc - Assignment Example As a result of a fact acceptance of the single mode of connectivity which has developed on the lines of internet powered virtual platform in various corners of the world, it needs to be mentioned that the world has transformed into a single connected global entity. This has increasingly paved the way for easy synchronization of various trends related to globalization that are emerging from the different corners of the world. It is of significant interest to mention that because of the trends of globalization, there is a tremendous amount of demand that is emerging from various new as well as well established countries and economies around the world. As a result of this surge in demand, it can be said that there is a tremendous amount of business opportunity that is emerging in the global marketplace. It needs to be mentioned that many new as well as established companies that are located in various geographical locations are increasingly focusing on the process of market expansion as well as the process of entering in the new markets to capitalize on the new business opportunities. However, talking in regards to the project, it can be said that this particular research based assignment focuses on the process of providing an in-depth analysis of Nike Inc, which is considered as one of the most popular multinational brands of the division related to athletic footwear and apparel in the recent times. Existing Mission, Objectives and Strategies It needs to be mentioned that the globally popular sports company is been actively perceived as an organization that promotes highly innovative products for athletes around the world. While talking in regards to the project, the mission based issues needs to be discussed. It can be said that the mission of a company talks about the organization’s plans to achieve the goals in the upcoming short term. The mission of the company talks about the long term effort of the company to provide inspiration as well as innovation to every single athlete around the world (Nike.com, 2013). Talking more in regards to the mission of the company, it can be said that the case study highlights the issue of continuing with the legacy of Bowerman in regards to innovative thinking as well as product development that will help the athletes to simply excel in their arena. Now while talking about the company’s objectives, it can be said that the organization is more focused providing the athletes around the world with the needed motivation and encouragement that is required to excel in their field of sports. It needs to be mentioned that for the purpose of attaining significant growth in the market, it is very important to have a well crafted strategy. It needs to be mentioned that Nike in an attempt to attain significant growth in the market has designed a very effective growth strategy. It can be said that because of increase in performance of the company on a year on year basis, the sports accessories manufact urer has raised the financial target to around 28 – 30 billion USD for the financial year of 2015 (Nikeinc.com, 2011) New Mission Statement It has to be said that the

Project paper on Addison Disease Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Project on Addison Disease - Research Paper Example so leads to the secretion of androgens which are important for the normal sexual development in a person along with the proper hair distribution (GANONG, 2005). In Addison’s Disease the hormone that is initially and mainly affected is aldosterone. It is then that cortisol and the androgens follow. The laboratory findings indicate the ionic imbalance led to by aldosterone deficiency. The decreased levels of sodium arise because the ions cannot be reabsorbed due to the absence of aldosterone and hence they are lost in urine which results in low levels of the sodium ions in the blood. At the same time potassium ions which are exchanged for sodium in the kidney tubules with the assistance of this hormone do not get excreted and this results in high levels of potassium in the blood and hence the condition hyperkalemia. The retention of hydrogen ions also occurs because aldosterone plays a role in the excretion of hydrogen ions. Thus this results in increased levels of hydrogen ions and resultant acidosis. Retention of chloride cannot occur due to decreased aldosterone as well which results in low levels of chloride ions in the blood. Anot her reason for low chloride level is that there is an exchange of chloride with the bicarbonate in the cells. This is because bicarbonate is required for the compensation of the acidosis which has resulted and hence the chloride ions enter the cell and the bicarbonate ions are ejected in the extracellular compartment. The loss of chloride ions can also be associated with the vomiting episodes that the patient had. This is because the gastric juices contain a high content of chloride and prolonged vomiting can lead to a reduction in the level of the chloride ions. The low level of carbon dioxide is also because of the compensatory hyperventilation which results to overcome the metabolic acidosis. This occurs in the form of deep breaths and is referred to as Kussmaul breathing. This results in loss of carbon dioxide and hence the

Business Continuity Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Business Continuity Management - Essay Example British Red Cross is a Non Governmental Organization developed as human welfare NGO that operates nationally and internationally. The British Red Cross is an unbiased and neutral humanitarian association, operational in cooperation with the United Kingdom and out of the country, whose main task is to aid public in disaster, no matter where they are. They have a formally standard hold up purpose to the United Kingdom administration in humanitarian welfare issues. Presently they are running a worldwide voluntary system with collaboration with the global Red Cross and Red Crescent association. This whole globule network works and reacts to inconsistencies, natural tragedies and mostly in the individual tragedy. 1 By means of serving those by no options to other resources of economic assistance, the British Red Cross was responsive that the plan has positioned a standard and had elevated a number of significant inferences for its employment in four main regions: 2 The basic motive of this research is to present and evaluate and demonstrate the Stakeholder Analysis and a Business Impact Analysis (BIA). This research is initiated through a Civil Contingencies Act (2004) they work very closely with Category 1 & 2 responders and as a result they need to have a business continuity management (BCM) strategy in place so that they can continue to operate and give assistance to Category 1 responders in the event of a crisis or disaster. 3 In this section I will present the detailed study and explanation of the working structure of the British Red Cross. Here my aim is to find out the main and essential factors regarding the main function of the British Red Cross. The BRC or British Red Cross and Red Crescent association is the glob’s chief disaster handling and response association. The BRC (British Red Cross) is a main participant in the worldwide humanitarian societies. British Red Cross is an active association which arranges public for, arrangement by means

Marketing ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing ethics - Essay Example A recent McDonald's TV ad campaign entitled "Feed your inner child" is taken as an example of the ethical dimensions of marketing along the lines of the conflict between "profit" and "nutrition". It is clear that both elements should be in balance in order for McDonald's to be able to keep doing business at the same time that the consumers -children and adults- are served healthy food instead of junk food. This is a very conflictive topic, and it is a complex issue when it comes to finding an adequate solution for all parties involved. (Business Ethics, 2006). In a research study conducted by Kristen Harrison and Amy Marske (2005) for the American Journal of Public Health entitled "Nutritional Content of Foods Advertised During the Television Programs Children Watch Most" and published online by MyDNA under the title of "TV Ads Market Junk Food to Kids", the researchers found that "kids' consumption of TV ads that tout poor food choices is especially troubling because childhood obesity is on the rise, TV advertising influences children's food purchases and purchase requests, and kids see so many TV food ads a day." (Harrison and Marske, 2005). The researchers suggested that "parental involvement is the most important factor in the determination of the family diet. () Parents can work to maintain the integrity of the family pantry not only through selective shopping, but also through efforts to instruct their children about food and nutrition." (Harrison and Marske, 2005). Harrison stated that other adults should cooperate with parents in order to address the health problem of childhood obesity. In her opinion the food industry and advertisers "bear some responsibility for peddling nutritionally inadequate foods so aggressively to kids." (Harrison and Marske, 2005). The overall findings of this research study establish a significant degree of causation between childhood obesity and high levels of fast food advertising. In the article entitled "Advertising: Self Defence Tips for Parents and Young People!", Red Branch Human Performance (2006) makes the next assertion about advertisers that don't lie, but at the same time they don't tell the whole truth. Let's see: "Advertisers often don't give you the full story about their product. For example, if a manufacturer claims that their product is "virtually fat free" they usually don't mention it when the product is very high in sugar. If a product is touted as "90% fat free", it is still 10% fat...which is high enough." (Red Branch, 2006). This is a very common marketing tactics used in a wide variety of products with negative features that marketers don't want to reveal to the consumers. McSpotlight (1999) is a consumers organisation from the United Kingdom whose objective is to stop McDonald's marketing aimed at children. They hold a permanent campaign encouraging consumers to send their complains to the Independent Television Commission (ITC) based in London. McSpotlight makes a strong emphasis on the ITC Code, especially Appendix 1, Rule 5 that states the following: "Advertisements must not exhort children to purchase or to ask their parents or others to make enquiries or purchases." (McSpotlight, 1999). Along this line of thought, McSpotlight

Book of Daniel Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Book of Daniel - Research Paper Example The Commencing of counting according to the text is in the year 458 BC, which is the seventh year of the King Artaxerxes of Persia. The king, during this year, issues an order that Ezra begins his journey to Jerusalem on the first day of the first month. According to  current calendars, it would be 8th of April1. The beginning of the Christian The Christian era began soon after 457 years and nine months of this time. At around the time of 26 AD, John the Baptist  starts his assigned ministry and he baptizes Jesus who later the same year began his ministry too. The prophecy dictates that the Messiah or the anointed one’s killing would be on the seventieth week or after three and a half years. During this time, the city and the temple of Jerusalem would face destruction. Daniel was a captive of Babylon since 606 BC before he came an understanding that the captivity would last 70 years while reading Jeremiah’s prophecies. As Daniel was praying for the restoration and r edeeming of his people, the Angel of the Lord came to him and made it clear the exact time of the long- awaited Messianic Kingdom. The following is a detailed verse-to-verse, word-to-word explanation of the prophecy of the coming of the Messiah2. Verse 24 states that, â€Å"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and  thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and anoint the most holy.† The verse specifically reveals that time of accomplishment of the prophecy is 70 weeks. The number seventy is very symbolic in this text and not just a number. First, seventy is a multiple of ten and according to Genesis 31:7 signifies completeness. Secondly, seven is a number that signifies divine perfection as stated in Genesis 2:3. The punishment of sin being the suffering for 70 years and response to Peters question on Forgiveness that we s hould forgive until 70 times is a major theme in this verse. It is clear that transgression and sin will be common until the emergence of the Messianic Kingdom. According to the Hebrews, the word week meant years or weeks of days (Shabuim Yomim). Therefore, seventy weeks meant 70 times 7 or 490 years until fulfilment. Only Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled the prediction of a holy ruler in a perfect kingdom. His own people or those of the Anointed One (Acts 10:38) and the Holy one are his children, and the fruit of his travail on the cross. Through free justification by Grace and anointment under the new covenant, they become just as righteous as he is (I John 3:5-7). The spotless Lamb slain before the world began (Revelation 13:8), who from the beginning to the end of this world, all sin-ended, reconciliation and atonement achieved, Abraham rejoiced on seeing (John 8:56). According to Hebrews 3:1 the holy brethren or otherwise referred to as saints in Romans 1:7 comprise the true temple of God (I Corinthians 3:16, 17) that is also the body of Christ according to Ephesians 1:22 and 233. Coming of Messiah In verse 25, â€Å"Know, therefore, and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be

Farm Financial Standards Council Case Study Essay

Farm Financial Standards Council Case Study - Essay Example Activity based costing on the basis of identified and mutually agreed activities and grouped under Production Cost Centers, Support Cost Centers and Profit Centers is definitely a more logical and inclusive approach as it traces the flow of all agricultural inputs and outputs. It is similar to process costing methods used in the manufacturing industries where the cost of every subsequent department is added to the previous ones and after elimination of waste products, we are left with the final cost of the finished products as they emerge from the last department into the finished goods inventory. For a farm the finished product would be the different crops produced. Although the first solution is more amenable to the situation at John and Mary’s Farm, the second is proposed as a better starting point for any type of agricultural enterprise. The benefits of the first solution are that it uses well regarded units such as acres for corn crop and bushels for soybean marketing whi ch are logical and make very good sense (Case Study, pp 6-7). The reports generated in the first solution are also quite detailed and show quarter-wise production costs and expenses for each crop planted and reaped. There are also reports of inventories of different crops produced and sold, which includes cost per bushel or acre as well as in dollar terms. Such type of management reporting and control is a farmer’s dream. He is able to know the costs and expenses on all that he has grown so that he can price it better in the marketplace. Of course the second solution just proposes an alternative and more logical starting point for all types of agricultural enterprises, and would be an invaluable guide to using the ABC method for newly established farming organizations. It is definitely more detailed and logical. ABC information can even be used to reengineer processes and make other improvements to quality while still cutting costs (www.prosci.com/abc1.htm). 2. If the Farm Co uncil Case did not use Activity Based Costing, identify several dysfunctional decisions that could be made using traditional cost allocation. Which solution do you prefer, the initial or alternative solution proposed in the case? Explain the difference between the suggested solution and alternative solution. As we already know, activity based costing and volume based costing are the two alternative methods in use today, in many enterprises across the world. The drawbacks of the traditional or volume based costing methods are well known. It seeks to allocate indirect costs or overheads on arbitrary bases like machine hours used or labor hours consumed that are not truly representative of costs incurred on various activities or products produced (Roztocki, 1998). ABC method on the other hand focuses on indirect costs or overheads, tracing each expense to a particular cost object. It makes indirect expenses more directly attributable to products and activities. ABC is particularly pref erred when overheads are high and products are diverse. The basic premise of ABC is that cost object consume activities and activities consume resources. Resource consumption drives costs, and understanding the relationship between resource consumption and activities is critical to managing overhead. If the farm chose to use traditional costing methods instead of activity

Posthumus and Innogene Essay Example for Free

Posthumus and Innogene Essay The following passage is from Shakespeare’s ‘Cymbeline’ Act 4 Scene 2. In the quoted lines Innogen identifies Clotens to be Posthumus due to Posthumus’ garment worn by Clotens. Innogen looks at Clotens’ body and his garments and says â€Å"I know the shape of`s leg; this is his hand†. According to her, his foot is ‘Mercurial’ and thighs â€Å"Marcial’. From the first act the audience is accustomed to see a chaste Innogen who is attracted only to her husband, Postumus. However in this passage Innogene is made to speak admiring words about Clotens which is ironic to the audience. Her instant decision based on the garment is a kind of an amusement to the audience who is aware of the identity of the corpse. Innogene believes that she know Posthumus well enough to identify him without the head or the ‘jovial face’. The audience may expect better judgment from Innogene who till then did show good judgment in choosing Postumus to Clotens. This passage shows that Postumus and Clotens were more similar looking than Innogene would want to believe. These similarities are mentioned by Clotens in â€Å"I mean, the lines of my body are as well drawn as his;† in Act 4, Scene 1(9-10). She tries to see some logical reason for the gruesome murder of her husband. The first possibility that comes to her mind is Pisanio’s involvement. She suspects him to have revealed the details about Posthumous to Clotens. Everyone except Innogene knows that Pisanio has got nothing to do with this murder. Moreover Innogene is unable to think logically, for, if Pisanio was the culprit he may not have helped and sent her in pursuit of Posthumus. She concludes that Pisanio has joined with Clotens to kill Posthumus. In the passage Innogene call Clotens, â€Å"irregulous devil Clotens†. Clotens is interested in marrying Innogen. When he found out that this was not possible because she chose to be the wife of Posthumus, Clotens decided to murder Posthumus and rape her. He goes to the wilderness in search of Posthumous with pure hatred in his heart. Nevertheless he wears Posthumus’ garments while seeking out Posthumus and Innogene. This is ironic that he chose to wear the dress of his opponent in subduing him. He may have thought this would be a nice way to torture Innogene with the thoughts of her dead husband when he uses force on her. This may heighten the misery. This however goes a long way to show the cruel nature of Clotens. On the other hand the audience sees that Posthumus is aggrieved for ordering the death of his wife. He is repentant and tries to seek his own punishment by surrendering as a Roman soldier in to the hand of British troops. During the battle he takes the side of his motherland and protects it from the enemy attack, fulfilling the duty of the son of the soil. Deception in costume plays its part here again when he dresses as an Englishman and fights with Iachimo. Posthumus and Clotens are two opposite forces juxtaposed to bring out their contrasting natures to intensify the final good over evil concept. However Innogenes’ misunderstanding in identifying the corpse is the climax of this parallelism. This is an important scene in this play due to the death of Clotens and his misidentification as Postumous. Clotens has been the shadow of Posthumus throughout the play. At every mention of Posthumus there is a direct comparison drawn with Clotens as both are interested in noble Innogene. Death of Clotens signifies the death of evil and victory of good. However at this stage not all threads in the play are brought to a conclusive end. Moreover the difference between both is so strong that it needs to have a lingering effect for some time until alls well. Hence this scene is a good device to conclude the play in a progressive gradation.

Benefits of Microbial Fuel Cell

Benefits of Microbial Fuel Cell Jessica Johnson This report focuses on Microbial fuel cell development and how it can help us overcome the energetic issues we face currently, at the same time providing a solution to treat waste water more efficiently that the current ways we are going on about doing so. The report aim is to show the benefits of utilizing Microbial Fuel Cell to get rid of the harsh activities we use now to keep up with the modernization of the world while at the same time destroying it, by using the very germs and bacteria that we are afraid of. The research has presents examples of how the use of microbial will help us in the long run once we are able to use this technology for many more things on an even larger scale The existence of MFC has proven to be beneficial in several ways currently: Subject Matter Aim of the report Findings Introduction We as human beings see germs and bacteria as doing more harm than good, it satisfies us greatly to know that we can utilize these germs and bacteria for a greater good. As the world becomes more modernised it is imperative that we find other sources of energy that is clean, renewable and readily available at an affordable cost. Nature is the original Microbial fuel cell as it has been converting organic substrates into energy (Adenosine triphosphate-ATP) since the beginning of time. Microbial fuel cells, technology that is still in its developing stages which uses the biochemical activities of microorganisms as a resource to obtain hydrogen create electricity. Using MFCs are very beneficial to the environment as it helps in the reduction of pollution and cuts the cost of water treatment tremendously. Apart from being an energy source, MFCs also has the potential to provide sustainable power sources to isolated communities and desalinate water. Figure 1: A simple Microbial Fuel cell To most Microbial fuel cell would seem like something that is new to the world but the idea of utilizing microbes to produce energy was brought to the world in the early 1900s by Professor M. C. Potter. Potter used Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces to produce electrical energy at the University of Durham (Mercer, 2012 and Potter, 1912). During his studies, Potter discovered the ability to harness electricity from microorganisms and believed that this discovery would also benefit humans. Potter came up with the idea of creating a microbial fuel cell but lacked the knowledge of bacterial metabolism. Fast forward to the 1980s, M. J. Allen and H. Peters Bennetto further developed Potters idea along with the interest in providing affordable electricity to isolated areas, advanced technology and a better understanding electron transport chain this enabled Allen and Bennetto to create a basic design for the first Microbial Fuel Cell.   Most bacteria are made up of a lipid membrane that l acks the ability to conduct electricity, Allen and Bennetto discovered that by using electron mediators to transport electrons to the electrodes a greater electrical output created (Davis and Higson, 2007). Korean researcher B-H Kim discovered that some microorganism possessed electrochemical activity and did not require an electron mediator, this created a MFC that did not require mediators that were toxic and expensive. Recently more attention has been geared towards Microbial Fuel Cells due to their environmentally friendly operating conditions and the ability for them to utilise biodegradable substrates as fuel The bacteria in a microbial fuel cell work by oxidising and reducing organic molecules to create energy. Figure 2: shows a Microbial Fuel Cell is split into two halves, an aerobic half containing a cathode that allows oxygen. The anaerobic side contains no oxygen, the anode acts as an electron receptor for the bacterial process. Separating both chambers is a proton exchange membrane or a salt bridge, this prevents oxygen from entering the anaerobic side while simultaneously allowing hydrogen ions to pass through thus generating energy. Biocatalyst on the anaerobic side of the MFC oxidises organic substrates such as acetate therefore producing electrons and protons (Antonopolou et. al 2010). The protons are attracted to the cathode by passing through the PEM while the electrons pass through the external circuit (Rahimnejad et. al 2011). If oxygen enters the anode chamber this will prevent energy from being produced. (Rahimnejad et. al 2011) Types of Microbial Fuel Cells Single Chamber MFC Two Chambered MFC       A single chamber MFC, an anaerobic chamber that is linked to a porous cathode exposed to air and is separated by a PEM. Electrons are transferred to the cathode to complete the circuit. A single chamber MFC does not require recharging with an oxidative media and aeration makes the single chamber MFC more versatile and inexpensive to setup due to the absence of expensive membranes and cathodic chambers this creates flexible application in wastewater treatment and power generation. Figure 3: Single Chamber Microbial Fuel Cell A double chambered MFC This type of MFC contains an anodic and cathodic chamber connected by a PEM that mediates proton transfer from the anode to the cathode all while blocking the diffusion of oxygen into the anode, this system is generally used for waste treatment and energy generation. Figure 4: diagram of a double chamber microbial fuel cell Microbes Substrate Applications Escherichia coli Glucose, Sucrose Methylene blue needed as a mediator Clostridium butyricum Starch, Glucose, Lactate, Molasses Fermentative bacterium Proteus mirabilis Glucose Uses Thionin as mediator Streptococcus lactis Glucose Mediator- Ferric chelate complex Aeromonas hydrophila Acetate Mediator-less MFC Table 1: Microbes used in Microbial Fuel Cells With the help of bacteria, Microbial Fuel Cells can convert chemical energy into electricity Current and future uses for Microbial fuel cells There are current applications in which Microbial Fuel cells are involved proves it to be an ever-evolving technology that uses bacteria to generate electricity from waste and create hydrogen. By tapping into this previously unharnessed source of power, clean, sustainable energy can be produced at low cost. Wastewater treatment Microbial Fuel Cells can be utilised to treat sewage water. MFCs can kill the bacteria found in sewage. It has been proven that MFC can reduce the amount of bacteria present in wastewater by 80% (Liu 2004). The waste water is initially pre-treated to remove the toxins and non- biodegradable materials from the water. This process is deemed challenging as sewage water can be extremely toxic and polluted undergoes extensive treatment before MFC can be used to clean the water. High operational sustainability and low material costs are important characteristics for treating wastewater efficiently (Wang et. Al 2012) Sea Water Desalination Microbial Fuel Cells are capable of producing energy but at the level where we can remove salt from large amount of water. However, there is potential for such process to be accomplished, by using an adapted microbial fuel cell would make desalination of sea water possible without external electrical sources [5]. Researchers tested the process of desalination by using a desalination microbial fuel cell. This is quite different to the previous fuel cells mentioned as there is a third chamber present for the salt water in between the two electrodes. The process occurs with the positive and negative ions being attracted to the perspective electrodes as the proton electron membrane removes the salt from the water leaving it fresh. Scientists recorded that salt removal was up to 90% efficient however, higher removal efficiencies are needed to produce grade A drinking water [5]. Figure 5: Desalination microbial fuel cells Hydrogen Production With the help of a Microbial fuel cell, hydrogen can be produced. This process does require an external source of power to convert the bacteria into carbon dioxide and hydrogen gas (JD Coates). Protons are released by the anodic reaction and pass through the PEM towards the cathode, this then combines with oxygen to form water. Hydrogen created from the electrons and protons produced by the microorganisms metabolizing in a MFC can be dangerous temperature wise (Liu et al). Power source-The whole idea behind the development and advancement of microbial fuel cell technologies was mainly based on providing cheap, accessible power to remote regions of in the world like villages in Africa, where majority of the population lives without the luxury of electricity (Doty, 2008). The use of homemade Microbial Fuel Cell in Africa is very new, tests are being done with manure and dirt which would be beneficial for populations in rural areas where this can be as affordable as possible. The electrical current produced by a simple homemade MFC is enough to recharge a cell phone battery, an important communication and lighting tool to rural African communities. Efforts are being made to create MFCs that can be constructed from simple items that can be easily acquired. Materials such as soil, manure, copper wire, buckets, and graphite cloth are essential in creating a simple MFC. Conclusion Microbial fuel cells have created a promising future for human beings and the planet we live on. The research done so far and with the applications that we have currently will help aid the reduction of our need to use fossil fuels and allow us to gain energy from wastes products, bacteria ridden water, enable us to use previously salted water to drink, farm with, this will greatly benefit 3rd world countries and areas plagued with drought and provide electricity to places that do not have any. Scientists are not able to utilise MFC technology to change the world in a day but are working on ways to help make a change bit by bit. Microbial fuel cells will never could produce enough electricity to make coal-fired power plants a thing of the past but however it does have to availability to help us utilise it less hence making the world a safer place to live References Antonopoulo, G., Bebelis, S., Lyberatos, G., Stamatelatou, K. 2010. Electricity generation from synthetic substrates and cheese whey using a two-chamber microbial fuel cell. Journal of Biochemical Engineering, 50, 10-15 (article) Coates J. D. Wrighton K. Microbial Fuel Cells: Plug-in and Power-on Microbiology. Microbe Magazine, 2009. [Accessed 9th March 2017]. Dillow. C. Microbial Fuel Cell Cleans Wastewater, Desalinates Seawater, and Generates Power. Popular Science. Online: http://www.popsci.coà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹m/scitech/article/20à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹09-08/microbial-fuelà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹-cell-cleans-wastewaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹ter-desalinates-seawà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹ater-and-generates-pà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹ower, Sept. 26, 2009. [Accessed 25th, Feb. 2017]. Doty, C. For Africa, energy from dirt' New York Times, Oct. 11, 2008. [Accessed 8th, March 2017]. MURI Public Outreach: How Does an MFC Work? MURI: Microbial Fuel Cell Project. Internet: http://mfc-muri.usc.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹edu/public/how.htm. [9th March 2017]. Modified Microbial Fuel Cell Produces Electricity and Desalinates Water. FuelCellsWorks: Leader in the Fuel Cell Industry. Internet: http://fuelcellsworkà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹s.com/news/2009/08/0à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹9/modified-a-microbià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹al-fuel-cell-produceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹s-electricity-and-deà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹salinates-water/, Aug. 9, 2009. [Accessed19th, Feb. 2017]. Junyeong et al. 2009.Floating-Type Microbial Fuel Cell (FT-MFC) for Treating Organic-Contaminatedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹ Water. Environmental Science and Technology 43.5: 642-647. Zhuwei Du, Haoran Li, Tingyue Gu, A state of the art review on microbial fuel cells: A promising technology for wastewater treatment and bioenergy, 10 May 2007, Biotechnology Advances 25 (2007) 464-482, Available from http://132.235.17.4/Paper-gu/MFCreview.pdf Rahimnejad, M. Najafpour, G. Ghoreyshi, A. A. 2011. Effects of Mass transfer on performance of microbial fuel cell intech, 5, 233-250 Rahimnejad M, Najafpour G, Ghoreyshi A. A. 2011.The enhancement of a microbial fuel cell for electrical output using mediators and oxidising agents. Energy source., 33, 2239-2248 Wang. Y. P. et. Al .2012. A microbial fuel cell-membrane bioreactor integrated system for cost-effective wastewater treatment. Applied energy, 98 230-235 Liu H, Grot S, Logan BE, 2005c. Electrochemically assisted microbial production of hydrogen from acetate. Environmental Science Technology:4317-20 Picture reference Figure 1: CCU Environmental Biotechnology Laboratory http://www.eq.ccu.edu.tw/lab/lab111/public_html/06_en.html Figure 2: Frederick High School 2014. http://2014hs.igem.org/Team:FHS_Frederick_MD/Microbial_Fuel_Cells Figure 3: Figure 4: Figure 5: Stubbs, J. 2014. Bio-cathodes: powering towards clean water, energy and biomass production http://blogs.rsc.org/em/2014/01/23/bio-cathodes-powering-towards-clean-water-energy-and-biomass-production/

Diabetes Essay -- essays research papers

There are two types of diabetes: diabetes insipidus and diabetes mellitus. Diabetes insipidus is a rare metabolic disorder caused by a deficiency of the pituitary hormone, which is usually the result of damage to the pituitary gland. Diabetes insipidus is characterized by enormous amounts of urine that are produced by the body regardless of how much liquid is consumed. Diabetes mellitus results from the production of insufficient amounts of insulin by the pancreas. Without insulin the body cannot utilize glucose, thus creating a high level of glucose in the blood and a low level of glucose absorption by the tissues. Diabetes mellitus is generally divided into two categories: type I called insulin-dependent or juvenile diabetes and type II in which the onset of the diabetes occurs during adulthood. The symptoms of the type I diabetic include irritability, frequent urination, abnormal thirst, nausea or vomiting, weakness, fatigue, and unusual hunger. This type of diabetes occurs mostly in children or young adults. The type I diabetic may have an insulin reaction in an instant, seeming perfectly normal one second and becoming unconscious the next. The early warning signs of this type of reaction are hunger, dizziness, sweating, confusion, palpitation, and numbness or tingling of the lips. If left untreated, the insulin-dependent diabetic may also experience double vision, trembling, and disorientation, may perform strange actions, and may eventually lose consciousness. While experiencing any one of these symptoms, quick consumption of a piece of candy, some soda pop, or anything else that contains sugar will bring blood sugar levels back to normal.Recovery is more difficult for the diabetic whose insulin reaction is left untreated for a long period of time. An insulin reaction producing low blood sugar can be life threatening. Therefore, it is safer to "spill" small amounts of urine sugar when taking insulin.The second type of diabetes, often referred to as maturity-onset diabetes, is likely to occur in those with a family history of diabetes and is characterized by blurred vision, itching, unusual thirst, drowsiness, obesity, fatigue, skin infections, slow healing, and tingling or numbness in the feet. Onset of symptoms is usually later in life.Diet often controls this type and insulin is not usually required. Obesity is a major factor in type I... ...esults in an elevation of blood sugar. It is important to get protein from a vegetable source. CONSIDERATIONSDo not take large doses of cysteine. It has the ability to break down the bonds of the hormone insulin. Be careful not to take extremely large doses of vitamins B1 and C. Excessive amounts may inactivate insulin. They may, however, be taken in normal amounts. Type II diabetics should avoid large amounts of niacin, but niacinamide for type I diabetics slows down destruction of beta cells in the pancreas and enhances their regeneration, extending the remission time. The statements and products in this article have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration, and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease.ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF INFORMATIONFor more information on diabetes, contact the following organizations:<font size="1">American Diabetes Association1660 Duke StreetAlexandria, VA 22314(703) 549-1500International Diabetes Center5000 W. 39th StreetMinneapolis, MI 55416(612) 927-3393Joslin Diabetes FoundationOne Joslin PlaceBoston, MA 02215617) 732-2415Juvenile Diabetes Foundation60 Madison AvenueNew York, NY 10010-1550(212) 889-7575

No title :: essays research papers

Market volatility and volume may delay system access and trade executions. In addition, there is a risk that system outages may interfere with your ability to access your online account. If you experience difficulties, please contact client services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (excluding market holidays). Past performance of a security does not guarantee future results. † Offer valid for new individual and joint accounts opened with $1,000 or more by 05/31/05. Not transferable and not valid for IRAs, internal transfers, current Ameritrade clients, or with other offers. Qualified commission-free Internet equity orders must execute within 30 days of account funding. Limit one offer per client. Account must remain open with minimum funding for 9 months, or Ameritrade may charge the account for the cost of the free trades used. Ameritrade reserves the right to restrict or revoke this offer. This is not an offer or solicitation in any jurisdiction where we are not authorized to do business. Normal account opening, or margin account, requirement is $2,000. Accounts open more than 6 months with a value below $2,000 are subject to a $15 quarterly maintenance fee. Accounts with at least four executed trades in the previous six months and Beneficiary accounts are excluded from this fee. *Ameritrade subscription fees apply to NASDAQ Level II access. Access to real-time market data is subject to acceptance of the exchange agreements. Access differs for professional users. Professional subscribers can access real-time services for the following monthly fees: options quotes $32.25, NASDAQ Level I $20, NASDAQ Level II $50 (includes Level I data), AMEX quotes $43.80, NYSE quotes $127.25 and Streaming News for $99. Ameritrade is not responsible for the quality, accuracy and suitability of third-party financial or investment information or services, including market data provided by the exchanges. **Median trade time is derived from data provided by Market Systems, Inc., an unaffiliated third party vendor and dated 4th quarter 2004. Data is limited to Ameritrade market and marketable limit orders for at least 100 shares and up to 9,999 shares of NASDAQ National Market and Listed securities executed from 9:45 a.m. ET until 4:00 p.m. ET. Data excludes orders for OTCBB securities, options and any security trading in locked or crossed markets. Data may be derived from orders as measured on the first partial fill, exclusive of subsequent partial fills on the same order. Because market centers report execution time in whole seconds, many Ameritrade orders, which are executed in a fraction of a second, are calculated as taking zero seconds.

Biking can improve your life Essay -- essays research papers

Biking Can Improve Your Life Exercise is the most important part of a happy life. Americans are some of the fattest people in the world. We are also overly dependant on prescription drugs. These factors stretch from the very young to the elderly. Biking is a great way to introduce activity into sedentary lifestyles. With proper knowledge they will see that biking improves their life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Over the last decade children, in the United States have been gaining weight. Obesity is rapidly becoming an epidemic in our youngster’s lives.†(Spataro, 1999) With the added weight comes greater risk of diabetes, heart diseases and many other ailments. Our children must be taught how proper exercise can give them a better future. Biking is a great way to start the learning process, to introduce an active lifestyle to our children. One way to start the introduction is in the early years. They can gain a love for the sport starting very young. Parents can install child seats or pull a trailer to include them in daily workout routines. When children learn to ride a bike themselves they can accompany parents on shorter rides. Riding to a local park is wonderful motivation for a child to go a few extra miles. It is a great way for parents and children to spend quality time together. As children mature into young adults biking becomes a form of free dom and independence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Obesity of course is not just a problem for today’s youth. Obesity is...

Jk Cement Research Report

Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore PGP Program Term 1, 2012 Final Report for JK Cements – Group 2 Section 1 Business Description: JK Cements is one of the largest cement manufacturers in Northern India and the eighth largest overall India with net cement sales of 2545 crores in 2011-12. Itsmain productsinclude grey and white cement. It produced 53. 2 lakh tons of grey cement and 3. 77 lakh tons of white cement in the financial year 201112. Grey cement produced consists of Ordinary Portland Cement (â€Å"OPC†) and Portland Pozzolana Cement (â€Å"PPC†). Their cement products are marketed under the brand names J.K. Cement and Sarvashaktiman for OPC products, J. K. Super for PPC products and J. K. White and Camel for white cement products. JK Wall Putty and JK Water proof are its white cement based value-added products. Housing (74%), infrastructure (17%), commercial & institutional sector (13%) and industrial sector (6%) are the major customers of the cement industry [Refer Figure 1]. Housing constitutes a major chunk of the demand and hence rural and urban housing projects are a key resource generator. Key stock statistics and revenue/earnings data is included in the appendix [Refer Tables 1& 2]Section 2 Market Profile, Competition, Strategy, Risks A. Market Profile: The demand for cement mainly depends on the level of development and the rate of growth of the economy. The major demand drivers for the cement sector in India are housing, infrastructure and commercial construction. These are key components of the country’s GDP and hence, the average growth of the cement industry is approximately 1. 2 times the GDP growth. Significant impetus to both rural and urban housing as per capita income increases in a major driver of the industry.With the increase in national infrastructure investment, the industry is poised to expand further in spite of the worldwide economic recession. The housing sector contributes around 64% of the tot al cement demand. It also accounts for 80% of the total real estate developments in the country. Housing demand is expected to be robust backed by various measures adopted in the budget like continued interest subvention up to 15 lacs, exemption from service tax for low cost housing construction, and increase in investment-linked deduction of capital expenditure on low-cost housing from 100% to 150%.There has been a major push by the government in infrastructure development with the intended investment being US$ 1 trillion in the 12th five year plan period (2012-17), against an investment of US$ 514 billion in the 11th five year plan period. Massive investment in infrastructure would provide boost to Indian Cement industry. India is the second largest producer and consumer of cement in the world, accounting for 7-8% of the total global production with an installed capacity of over 300 Mtpa at the end of 2011-12. India’s cement industry performed better in 1 011-12, on back of robust demand revival in the second half of the financial year. The industry grew by 6. 4 per cent in 2011-12 as against less than 5 per cent in 2010-11. Total cement sales were 223. 02 MT compared with 209. 5 MT in FY11. For 2012-13, CRISIL Research estimates cement demand to increase 7-8 per cent yoy (Crisil). In the near term, demand could be a little weak because of the lower GDP growth. Given that a large part of the demand comes from the housing sector, high interest rates are not conducive to the urban real estate demand. However, in the long term, the industry is expected to grow at an average of 1. times the GDP growth rate. Growth rates of 8-9% can be targeted for the five year period given the increase in investment in infrastructure projects and increasing rural demand. Although India is one of the largest cement markets in the world, per capita consumption of cement is still low as compared to the world average as well as that of other large countries such as China and US. The Indian cement industry, thus, has a huge growth potential. Given the intense shortage of housing, this segment has been a major growth driver for the cement industry.The demand for residential real estate has only increased, fuelled by increasing urbanization, rising income levels, decreasing household sizes and easy availability of home loans. Bulk of the total shortage of 74 million units at the end of the 11th Five Year Plan (2007-2012), is expected to be generated by rural and below poverty line households. The government has launched various initiatives such as NREGS and Indira AwasYojana to improve rural income, which may increase demand for rural housing in the country. Increased infrastructure investments by the government as mentioned earlier is also likely to be a major growth area.Housing (74%), infrastructure (17%), commercial & institutional sector (13%) and industrial sector (6%) are the major customers of the cement industry. Housing constitutes a major chunk of the demand and hence rural and urban housing projects are a key resource generator. Overall industry margins and change in sales trends are mentioned in tables at the end. [Refer to Table 3 & 4]. Please refer to Table 5 for a picture of the industry growth rate based on the Free Cash Flow model where the average P/B was computed with the top 5 firms of the industry and different rates for cost of capital were assumed.This shows that the cement industry is poised for growth for whatever cost of capital that may prevail. B. Competition: Inter firm competition and rivalry in the industry is high. Large number of players, intermittent overcapacity, marginal product differentiation, high storage cost and high exit barrier in form of significant capital investment has led to high competition in the industry. Threat of new entrants is limited since it involves high capital investment, broad distribution network and oversupplied markets deter new entrants.However, given the high potenti al for growth, quite a few foreign transnational companies have made acquisitions and increased their stake in domestic companies to gain full control. There are no good substitutes for cement popular in India. However, there are eco friendly substitutes for cement which include fly ash and slag. Fly ash is the by product when coal is burnt to make electric power and slag is created when producing iron in blast furnaces. Coal fly ash, blast furnace slag and other mineral admixtures can substitute for cement, aving energy and reducing cost. Bitumen in roads and engineering plastics in building are some element of competition. Currently, the top players – UltraTech, ACC, Ambuja Cements, Jaiprakash Associates, India Cements and Shree Cement, collectively control more than half of the cement market in the country. Overall, there are 40 players in the industry across the country. (Source: ibef. org) The closest competitors for JK Cement are Shree Cements, Madras Cements, Birla Cor poration and Binani Cement. The industry has a 4-firm concentration ratio of 58. 18%. 2 C. StrategyDespite challenges, JK Cement has increased revenues and profits owing to higher realisation and volumes in both grey cement and white cement business. The company is in on its way to expanding its capacity in India to cater to the increase in cement demand. It has also diversified its product portfolio by not only limiting itself to varieties of grey cement but also extending to white cement and other value added products. Besides, the Company is also setting up a grey cum white cement plant at Fujairah in UAE to cater to GCC and African markets. The company is making efforts to reduce operating expenses which in turn would increase the ROE.Some of the efforts to reduce operating costs are: Grey Cement †¢ Implementation of CII Audit findings in phased manner to reduce power consumption. †¢ Installation of VFDs in fans to save power. †¢ Replacement of booster fans by hig h efficiency fans to save power. †¢ Installation of pfisterpump for coal firing in calciner. †¢ Replacement of Raw mill -1 separator by high efficiency separator. †¢ Dynamic separator in Coal Mill. White Cement †¢ Covered clinker storage facility for grey and white clinker. †¢ Grinding plant for dolomite for putty product. †¢ Installation of new SG Fan & Driver. The company is also making efforts to increase its capacity.The company is revisiting the size of proposed expansion plan at Mangrol, Rajasthan from earlier envisaged 3. 5 Million Tons to around 2. 5 Million Tons, on account of delay in allotment of new mining area to the Company. Viability study for 2. 5 Million Tons capacity plant is under preparation and a final decision will be taken during the course of the year. D. Risks Three most important risks: 1. Sustained economic slowdown The growth of cement industry is directly proportional to GDP growth rate. Absence of decision making at Governm ent level is affecting economic growth and may have adverse effect for the cement industry.If measures are not adopted against inflation, high interest rates, depreciating rupee, then it would impact the overall economic growth of the country resulting in dragging the sector down. 2. Unavailability of coal linkages Coal costs constitute 14-23% of cost of production of cement. The hike in coal prices is expected to hit the margins. Due to reduced supply of coal linkers from Coal India over the years; the company has to import coal at higher costs from South Africa and Indonesia. The depreciation of the rupee will also add to the increased cost of raw materials. 3.Adverse demand-supply mismatch In case, the additional capacities get commissioned ahead of schedule, then a state of oversupply would rise, consequently prices may head downwards and the sector may suffer a severe blow. Section 3 3 Trend Analysis The demand for the cement mainly depends on the rate of growth of infrastructu re, housing and commercial construction. In Indian context all these areas have been experiencing a significant growth as a result of constant growth in our GDP. As a result we can see that overall the total revenues for both the companies have been rising [Refer to Figure 2].JK Cement and Madras Cements basically cater to northern and southern India respectively. In year 2011, there is a dip in the total revenues of Madras Cement. This was result of a more acute fall in the capacity utilization observed in southern India due to low demands because of political instability in Andhra Pradesh and minimal pick-up in demand in Tamil Nadu and Kerala post elections. The two industries exhibit comparable trend as far as profit margins are concerned [Refer to Figure 4]. So, an overall analysis of cement industry in this period is required.In 2008, the dip can be attributed to reduced demands due to global recession, which reduced capacity utilization thus reducing profits. In 2011, there wa s marginally poor off take in cement demand due to passive construction activity, which lead to excess supply and utilisation fell to a 13-year low of 83. 9% for 2010-11. This has been coupled with rise in input costs, especially prices of coal and petroleum products. As a result, both the top line and bottom line have been affected. Hence this year the capacity utilization increased and the demand dropped. Section 4 Ratio Analysis [Refer Table 6] . Return on Equity : [Refer Fig. 5] ROE has been hovering around 17-20% throughout with some years seeing slight changes. Given that Index of Industrial Production(IIP) grew only by around 2. 8%, it appears that JK and Madras have both done well. However, 2010-11 was a bad year for JK Cements. Their Net Operating Profit plummeted by 39% when compared to the previous year while the same for Madras Cement was only around 27%. This was mainly on account of reduction in sales realisation and substantial increase in the prices of petcoke and fu el resulting in higher input costs (Annual Report 2010-11).This caused the ROE of JK to fall by almost 600% from the previous year. 2. Basic DuPont Model Analysis : [Refer Fig. 4,5 and 6] ROE = Asset Turnover * Profit Margin Asset Turnover of JK is consistently higher when compared with Madras Cements – 42. 46% higher in 2006-07 while this is 39. 87% in 2012. This is because JK’s total fixed assets is lesser than Madras’ by almost 50% while sales of Madras Cements is higher only by around 2025% on an average . However, the low profit margin throughout has been causing the Return on Equity of JK to be lower than that of Madras Cements.The profit margin has been very low in all the years from with the worst hit being in 2011 – reason explained in step 1. Also the Net Financial Rate has dinted the net profit due to expansion efforts coupled with the dim outlook in the industry. A ray of hope for JK would be to perform product differentiation with the white c ement – wall putty market ; it has done right by expanding the white cement units in overseas ; the demand for interior and decor is bound to increase in the near future. 4 3. Advanced DuPont Model Analysis with RNOA & Leverage : [Refer Fig. & 12] It can be seen that the Operating Spread of JK is going negative for 2010-11 & 2011-12 showing that their Financial Rate is on the rise which is due to debts from increased expansion plans. This, along with the increased leverage from high borrowing, has reduced the already low RNOA to yield a poor ROE value. In the same while, for Madras Cements the spread has been positive – in fact, it has never gone negative for them, despite their large debt. Madras Cements has been affected only by the overall increase in costs in the cement industry and not by the leverage effect which JK has suffered from.The leverage effect has beaten JK again in 2011-12 ; though their RNOA has increased by 177% from the previous year and long-term d ebt has actually reduced, the Interest Rates on loans have seem to have gone up – leading to a 117% increase in the NFR. Thus the negative operating spread has again caused JK’s ROE to fall below the RNOA – Madras Cements has remained stable in this period – registering a higher ROE than RNOA due to the positive spread. Again, this shows that Operating Margin of JK is low when compared with the cost of capital. 4. Analysis of Turnover ratios [Refer Fig. 9 & 0] Inventory Turnover and Debt Turnover of JK is considerably higher than that of Madras Cements leading to a better operating cycle. Low inventory holding and low receivables isa positive trend for JK Cements and it should continue this. 5. Analysis of Liquidity and Long-term Solvency : [Refer Fig. 8,11] The Quick Ratio of JK is consistently higher than Madras Cements for all the 5 years taken into consideration – hence the liquidity position of JK is better than that of Madras Cements. The cap ital structure seems more of debt financing in the recent years – owing to expansion plans.However increase in interest rates would make JK vulnerable to low margins which is already discussed in the advanced model. Section 5 – Conclusion – – – The cement industry is estimated to grow as can be seen from the CRISIL analysis quoted in section 1; housing and infrastructure demand are expected to increase – hence JK is bound to do well The cost reducing efforts of JK and the product differentiation into white cement are expected to increase profit margins. The Asset Turnover values of JK are also higher than its competitor. Hence increase in ROE is expected in coming years.The reduced operating cycle of JK shows a positive trend vis-a-vis its competitor. P/B value of JK is 1. 18 while industry average (top 5 firms) is 2. 76 (refer to table on Growth of Cement Industry). Hence JK stock seems to be undervalued [Refer Table 5] JK has declared 50% dividend for the current year and has consistently declared dividend for the past 5 years. However, the inherent risks in the industry – from global crises like the Euro crisis and flagging coal availability pose concerns for the successful implementation of plans.Further, the continuous expansion plans of JK leading to higher debt and hence higher interest rates (which can rise based on RBI measures to contain inflation) cause concern for the profit margins which can again reduce. The positives seem to be strong as JK is trying to stabilize its expansion plans. Hence an acute negative view point would not be correct. Hence we suggest a buy/hold after doing the above analysis. 5 References : – Crisil. (n. d. ). Retrieved August 21, 2012, from Crisil Web site: crisilresearch. com – Dion Insight. (n. d. ). Retrieved August 21, 2012, from Dion Insight Web site: https://insight. ionglobal. in/Insight/Industry. asp? pageLink=IndProfile&Ind=151 – equitymaster. com. (n. d. ). Retrieved August 21, 2012, from equitymaster. com: http://www. equitymaster. com/research-it/sector-info/cement/Cement-Sector-AnalysisReport. asp – Gupta, N. (n. d. ). Ernst & Young. Retrieved August 21, 2012, from Ernst & Young Web site: http://www. ey. com/Publication/vwLUAssets/cementing_growth/$FILE/cementing_growth. pdf – India Brand Equity Foundation. (n. d. ). Retrieved August 21, 2012, from India Brand Equity Foundation Web site: http://www. ibef. org/industry/cement. aspx – Jagdesh Sunku. 2006). Advantages of using fly ash as supplementary cementing material (SCM) in fibre cement sheets. 10th Int. Inorganic Bonded Fibre Composites Conference, (pp. 25-32). Sao Paulo. – JK Cement Annual Report 2010-11 & 2011-12. JK Cement. – moneycontrol. com. (n. d. ). – PlanningCommision. (n. d. ). Planning Commission. Retrieved August 21, 2012, from Planning Commission Web site: http://planningcommission. nic. in/plans/mta/11th_mta/c hapterwise/chap14_invest. pdf 6 Appendix A Division Figure 1: Division of customers of cement industry into major sectors Major Major customers of cement industryCommercial & Institutional 13% Industrial 6% Infrastructure Infrastructure 17% Housing 64% Figure 2: Total revenue for JK Cement & Madras Cements Ltd. (Revenue in crores)(Before 2005 financial financial statements for JK Cement wasn’t prepared. It was then treated as a division under JK Groups for financial purposes) Total revenue 3,500. 00 3,000. 00 2,500. 00 2,000. 00 1,500. 00 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 1,000. 00 500. 00 0. 00 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 7 Figure 3: Change in sales % change in sales 60 50 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 40 30 20 10 0 -10 -20 2003 2004 005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Figure 4: Profit Margin Profit margin 25. 0% JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 20. 0% 15. 0% 10. 0% 5. 0% 0. 0% 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Figure 5: Return on Equity ROE (%) 60 JK Cement 50 Madras Cements Ltd. 40 30 20 10 0 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 8 Figure 6: Asset turnover Asset turnover (%) 110 JK Cement 100 Madras Cements Ltd. 90 80 70 60 50 40 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Figure 7: Return on Net Operating Assets RNOA (%) 40 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 30 20 10 0 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12Figure 8: Debt – Equity Ratio Debt – Equity Ratio 2. 5 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 2 1. 5 1 0. 5 0 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 9 Figure 9: Spread Operating Spread 0. 5 JK Cement 0. 4 Madras Cements Ltd. 0. 3 0. 2 0. 1 0 -0. 1 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2010-11 2011-12 -0. 2 Figure 10: Holding period Operating Cycle (days) 120 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 100 80 60 40 20 0 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 Figure 11: Quick ratio Quick Ratio 2 JK Cement Madras Cements Ltd. 1. 5 1 0. 5 0 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 10 Figure 12: Net Financial Rate NFR 0. 18 JK Cement 0. 6 Madras Cements Ltd. 0. 14 0. 12 0. 1 0. 08 0. 06 0. 04 0. 02 0 2010-11 2011-12 11 Appendix B: (Tables) Table 1: Key stock statistics Stock Report| 24 July 2012 |Symbol : JKCEMENT (NSE); JKCEM (BSE); ISIN NUMBER INE823G01014 J K Cements Stock Price (closing) Investment Style 213. 30 (as of 20 July 2012) Large CAP Sector Cement Summary : JK Cements is one of the largest cement manufacturers in Northern India ; it is the second largest white cement manufacturer by production capacity in India Key Stock Statistics 52 Wk Range 95. 80 to 219. 70 (BSE) 25. 36 8. 41 11,839 EPS (Twelve Month Trailing)P/E (Twelve Month Trailing) 10K investment 5 yrs ago Credit Rating Long Term Bank facilities Short Term Bank facilities Common shares outstg. 69927250 Market Cap Yield (%) Dividend rate per share 1491. 55 Crores 2. 34 5 A+(CARE) A1+(CARE) Table 2: Earnings per Share Earnings Per Share of 10 each ( ) June Q1 September Q2 2011-12 7. 14 0. 51 2010-11 4. 22 -2. 98 2009-10 10. 04 9. 35 December Q3 6. 22 0. 26 6. 65 March Q4 11. 49 7. 66 6. 28 Year 25. 36 9. 16 32. 32 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Table 3: Industry Margins OPM(%) GPM (%) NPM (%) Mar ‘12 21. 78 21. 49 9. 14 Dec ‘11 19. 65 18. 45 10. 13 Industry MarginsSep ‘11 15. 66 13. 6 5. 05 Jun ‘11 24. 41 22. 48 11. 76 Mar ‘11 22. 46 20. 9 11. 92 Dec ‘10 17. 18 15. 32 5. 84 12 Table 4: Industry sales Mar ‘ 12 Industry sales (in crores) % change Change in industry sales (quarter)(%) Dec ‘ 11 Sep ‘ 11 Jun ‘ 11 Mar ‘ 11 Dec ‘ 10 20841. 87 17953. 16 15649. 20 17017. 73 17388. 15 14201. 79 16. 09026 14. 72254 -8. 04179 -2. 1303 22. 43633 Table 5: Industry Growth Projections (for different values of ‘r’) using Free Cash Flow Model Company Name Ultratech Ambuja ACC Shree Cements Madras Cements India Cements JK Cement Average P/B ratio as on 26/08/2012 3. 66 3. 64 . 5 4. 55 2. 19 0. 68 1. 14 2. 765714286 ROE (from March 2012 BS) Cost of Capital (%) Growth (%) 19. 02 15. 28 18. 42 10. 55 18. 78 7. 21 13. 75 14. 71571429 10 11 12 13 14 7. 329288 8. 895631 10. 46197 12. 02832 13. 59466 Table 6: Ratio Calculations Ratios Profit Margin (%) Asset Turnover (%) ROE (%) Return on Assets (%) Net Operating Profit Margin (%) Net Operating Asset Turnover (%) Return on Net Operating Assets (%) = NOPAT/Avg. Net Operating Assets JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras CementJK Cement 2011-12 8. 154156 12. 06512 77. 80004 55. 62438 17. 04343 20. 87036 6. 343937 6. 711146 10. 83703 15. 17511 139. 8798 83. 81691 15. 15882 2010-11 1. 654139 7. 964254 79. 85371 47. 82047 3. 49563 12. 67786 1. 320891 3. 808544 4. 320325 11. 0728 126. 2029 68. 65512 5. 452374 2009-10 10. 84236 12. 59667 88. 57764 56. 65368 22. 29768 25. 09332 9. 60391 7. 136478 12. 51604 16. 10394 160. 5309 81. 84813 20. 09211 2008-09 8. 421552 14. 40591 94. 35595 63. 17162 16. 78291 32. 91344 7. 946235 9. 10 0446 10. 11265 17. 00776 212. 7993 93. 59998 21. 51965 2007-08 16. 62175 20. 30998 107. 4567 75. 2185 41. 51821 50. 27496 17. 86118 15. 31816 17. 88877 21. 64552 209. 9905 128. 6868 37. 5647 Madras Cement 12. 71931 7. 602044 13. 18078 15. 91926 27. 85493 13 Interest Coverage (%) Leverage – Measure 1 Debt-Equity Ratio Current Ratio Quick Ratio Debt Turnover Debt Collection Period (days) Inventory Turnover Inventory Holding Period (days) Operating Cycle (days) NFO NFE NFR Op. Spread FLEV*Spread ROE = RNOA + FLEV*Spread (Advanced Dupont Analysis) JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras CementJK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement JK Cement Madras Cement 392. 0551 615. 8751 2. 686571 3. 109805 0. 837413 1. 0309 99 1. 197299 0. 601965 0. 833253 0. 343679 35. 22924 16. 62681 10. 21879 21. 65177 5. 924257 5. 223089 60. 76712 68. 92473 70. 9859 90. 57651 401. 46 1719. 03 68. 278 101. 808 0. 170074 0. 059224 -0. 01849 0. 067969 -0. 01548 0. 070076 13. 61077 19. 72691 254. 5852 468. 6705 2. 646419 3. 328794 1. 150731 . 609198 1. 367937 0. 931981 0. 916991 0. 599238 33. 11155 15. 49891 10. 87234 23. 22745 7. 497843 4. 941565 48. 01381 72. 85141 58. 88615 96. 07886 802. 04 2307. 32 62. 958 81. 466 0. 078497 0. 035308 -0. 02397 0. 040713 -0. 02759 0. 065515 2. 693658 14. 15354 666. 585 579. 4166 2. 321729 3. 516204 0. 939762 1. 647142 1. 144753 1. 00381 0. 764784 0. 639154 30. 43733 22. 88671 11. 82758 15. 72965 8. 619538 5. 233222 41. 76558 68. 79127 53. 59316 84. 52092 705. 23 2034. 43 34. 363 98. 455 0. 048726 0. 048394 0. 152195 0. 083413 0. 143027 0. 137394 34. 39482 26. 92014 619. 7696 717. 6917 2. 112058 . 616684 0. 580401 1. 954809 1. 968687 0. 982285 1. 675142 0. 628742 30. 17987 33. 40915 11. 92848 10. 77549 10. 69177 6. 127751 33. 67075 58. 74912 45. 59923 69. 52461 -143. 99 2006. 67 28. 147 65. 807 -0. 19548 0. 032794 0. 410675 0. 126398 0. 238356 0. 247085 45. 35528 40. 62774 851. 7743 1451. 897 2. 324494 3. 28205 0. 626681 1. 714777 1. 762163 1. 019801 1. 467784 0. 702189 26. 72182 31. 59228 13. 47214 11. 39519 10. 49671 6. 782897 34. 29647 53. 07467 47. 76861 64. 46986 37. 91 1183. 64 20. 216 26. 782 0. 533263 0. 022627 -0. 15762 0. 255922 -0. 09877 0. 43885 27. 68721 71. 73993 14

The Past America and Beyond

The end of the Second World War has brought so many changes in international relations, political, economical and social changes. The most important and most influential of these is the rise of two super powers in the world: the United States of America and the USSR. The emergence of these two states has brought so many political and economic changes that became influential from the past decades until the present.The rise of the US government into power has become massive and became the indicative factor in settling international relations. The events that took place after the Second World War created massive impact on policy formations in the international arena. The Cold War for example, has been the biggest offspring of the war. Consequently, from the Cold War emerged different political and economic changes that from the past decades until now have still served their purpose, and until this era have played as decisive factors in creating foreign and domestic policies.  For the purpose of this paper, we shall be studying events that happened in the following decades: 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The events that will be tackled are those events that tool place that have had great and influential changed in American policy, and those that are until now still prevalent in international relations.1950: The Rise of the American DreamThe years from the 1950s have highlighted the growth of the American community. Central to this interval is the modernization of the American life, the development of more modernized society, and the peak of what they called the â€Å"American dream†. During these years were the improvement in technology, infrastructures, and the rise of mass cultures.The emergence of this abrupt modernization in American society was a response to the slump that was caused by the war. This response created a boom in American economy. High consumer spending became the coping mechanism of the civilians to recover from the war, which in turn also brought in higher government spending, a booming military industrial sector, which became the offset for a prosperous economy (Leffler, 1994).The rise of this modern industry for the American society was a fulfillment for their American dream. Every society and every individual were accountable for their own changes and emancipation. Their goal was to create a society that was free, modernized, superior and on top of every nation. Moreover, this economic boom and high consumer spending brought in the development of new innovations and quality inventions that enhanced not only the purpose that it must serve, but also took note of its aesthetic factors.The rise of the automobile industry for instance is a good example of the general idea that this occurrence has made a strong impact on. The emergence of their automobile industry is a starting point and an important facet in the current economic trend that the US has subliminally inculcated towards the people around the glob e. (McKinlay, 1993) This emergence has brought in the culture of planned obsolescence, which is now an important factor in the success of globalization and modernization, not only of the American society, but as well as to their allies that follow their trails.1960: The Era for Civil EmancipationFollowing the modernization of the American society, was the rise of the various legal fights against racial discrimination. The postwar era created an avenue for greater equality for the black Americans. This era highlighted the establishment of various associations that fought for civil rights and equality. Further, aside from the African American rights, the Latin civil society also gained consciousness towards their own civil rights.Aside from the civil anti-segregation fight of the blacks and the latinos, their political and economic power were also empowered in the new era of southern racial relations. The rise of several personalities highlighted this fight during the era. Martin Luth er King Jr., served as an influential icon in the fight for justice and equality among the blacks and the whites. And consequently, his influence became rampant that further rallies turned into crusades of trying to overpower the black discrimination. (Badger and Ward, 1996)Following the strong movements for civil rights, John Kennedy upon the start of his term as president legalized a civil rights act. The Civil Act Right of 1964 embodied provisions that prohibited any display of discrimination by race, color, religion, sex and nationality. In addition, the Voting Acts Right of 1965, which increased black voting by a large percentage. (Branch, 1988).This challenge of fighting racial discrimination during this era encouraged a lot of changes in the society, politics and economics. This era exemplified strong resistance of the blacks from further discrimination. However, even though the efforts were strong, nonetheless, the black community has never achieved full redemption against d iscrimination. Although in this contemporary era where there are black personalities that emerged triumphant and successful within the fields that they chose, today, discrimination against blacks is rampant and their economic conditions are never emancipated as most of the black population still lives in poverty.1970: The Economic Turmoil and Political DeteriorationThe 1970’s was an advent of return to conservatism. During the administration of Richard Nixon, he administered policies that were geared towards the establishment of countering running liberal programs. In contrast to liberalist programs, he favored â€Å"income strategy† which initially encouraged individual initiative, personal freedom and lessened government bureaucracy.However, Nixon’s attempt in reversing liberal ideas became detrimental to the economy. The stagflation in the economy forced Nixon to adopt liberal remedies. This economic recession in US caused a decrease in the demand for goods, workers were laid off resulting to an increase in the unemployment rate, and manufacturers were forced to cut prices in their products and reduce wages for their workers in order to preserve profit margin.   During his first term was mostly concerned with finding solutions on how to end the Vietnam War. As a whole, his first term was satisfactorily carried out. And despite the economic stagflations that US experienced during his term, the American community was nonetheless contented with his regime.Despite the moral controversies and the economic downfall that US experienced during Nixon’s administration, nonetheless he still won the presidency during the next held elections. However, this triumph has caused Nixon to become complacent in running his government, and abuse of power rendered him detrimental setbacks in his governance. His second term however was battled with controversies including the Watergate scandal. He used his powers to eliminate radical counterculture à ¢â‚¬â€œ from media practitioners who criticized them to anti war activists. (Nixon Presidency).These occurrences during the era marked certain importance in the US history. The lesson of how they dealt with the Vietnam aggression is an important benchmark in their history. It has proven significant policy changes that are currently affecting how US has played with regards to foreign aggressions.1980: New American InfluxThe 1980s was highlighted by international migration. At the peak of this era, America was occupied by â€Å"Americans† of international decent. A large percentage of America was occupied by Asian Americans, as well as Latinos which enlarged the foreign immigration.This influx in fact prompted the government to legislate acts that shall restrain illegal migration to control the influx of foreign nationals inside the borders of the US. The Immigration and Control Act of 1986 limited and tightened border security. However, the law also provided amnesty for immigr ants who arrived earlier than 1986 and allowed them to become legal residents. (Immigration and Control Act of 1986)This event lead to the internationalization of the American community. This further opened links towards global relations, it shaped American society in such a way that they can directly create relationships amongst neighboring countries. This paved the way for an easier connection in the global world which made it easier for them to penetrate and dominate international relations. In addition, the end of the cold war became beneficial to the American community as it increased global responses in the Americanization of the world. And thus, the fall of the Soviet Union nonetheless provided a larger array of development and opportunities for political and economic domination around the globe.1990: The New Globe1990s was started at the height of Bill Clinton’s leadership. During his administration he focused more on domestic issues rather than following the usual in ternationalist trend. And during this era, America has experienced a rather powerful economic expansion, with little economic inflation. This economic rise in the country allowed them to decrease public debts and budget deficits.Clinton pushed his leadership towards the independent states of American communities. During his leadership, he passed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The organization of NAFTA linked US closer to Canada and Mexico which provided larger trade opportunities and generated greater jobs (Remarks from President Clinton†¦)These occurrences eventually lead to the strengthening of US economic and political relationship with other allies. This created a world order that is closely linked towards one another. The improved ties between countries made specific changes and opened up better opportunities for their market.The turnouts during this era were important and delicate part of the developments that the US has gone through in the following yea rs. The end of 1990s marked the start of the Bush era which turned out to be an offset for the start of the 19th century. The series of events that took place in the 1990s are still prevalent in the contemporary times, wherein the global community that were started in this decade eventually elevated to form a stronger link in global relations. Hence, the 1990s was a starting point for the current trend of globalization.2000 and BeyondThe events that took place from the 1950s towards the 1990s proved to be benchmarks for the current international trend. The modernization in 1950s, the emancipation of civil rights in 1960s, the economic downfall of 1970s, the influx of international immigrants in the US during the 1980s, and the establishment of the new world order in the 1990s became integral to the emergence of US as they developed to become the international leader and authority based on economic, political and military supremacy.These occurrences are pillars of the economic and po litical activities of the current US society. The continuing influence of the US over other countries shall prove their supremacy and moral ascendancy in the international relations. The 1990s most importantly had a very distinct impact on the US development and how they were able to gain world power.Globalization as an offspring of the establishment of new world order is the most significant factor in the world domination. The US’ continuing influence in the globalized community shall always prove to be beneficial to their existence. The US policies and impositions towards their allies are so integral that these policies are geared towards further empowerment of their society.   In the future, America is still seen to post political, economic and military supremacy over other countries. Although there are current aggressions against several nations posting ideologies different from that of the Americans, still, the American prevalence is still evident and their allies have been expanding and further growing in strength in the absence of a strong contender that shall challenge their world leadership.ReferencesBadger, Tony and Ward, Brian. (1996) The Making Of Martin Luther King And The Civil Rights Movement. Washington Square: New York University.Branch, Taylor. (1988) Parting the Waters: America in the king Years, 1954-1963. New York: Simon and Schuster.Immigration and Control Act of 1986. Retrieved November 16, 2007 from http://www.oig.lsc.gov/legis/irca86.htmLeffler, Melvyn and Painter, David. Ed. (1994) Origins of the Cold War: An International History. London: Routledge.‘Remarks of President Clinton in Signing of NAFTA† The White House: Office of Press Secretary. (14 September 1993) Retrieved November 16, 2007 from http://www.multied.com/Documents/Clinton/SigningNaFTA.htmlMcKinlay, Alan. (1993) Strategy And The Human Resource : Ford And The Search For Competitive Advantage. Oxford: Blackwell.Nixon Presidency. Retrieved November 16, 20 07 from http://nixon.archives.gov/thelife/apolitician/thepresident/index.php

Beer and Food Essay

Abstract As a consultant for many restaurants in California, I find myself re-visiting the establishments with a vast food menu and a wide variety of different beers that I can enjoy simultaneously. I prefer to engage myself in restaurants that are optimistic in their location, core values, menu selections, and bar environment. Not only is it important to sell good food and drinks, it is also fundamental to have team members that have integrity in their jobs. I was hired for a restaurant in Claremont, Heroes and Legends (131 Yale Ave.), in order to evaluate their many beer selections in comparison to their menu offerings. My purpose in evaluating this restaurant is to enlighten other potential guests of suitable beer choices that will cut, complement or contrast their food preference in the establishment. I feel it is my duty to also inform the restaurant of the several food and beer items they offer that may open conversation for server suggestions ultimately lead to a great guest experience. Right in the heart of downtown Claremont there is a trendy restaurant by the name of Heroes and Legends bar and grill. This establishment seems to appeal to a demographic of all ages. With a brick-laid exterior and a name like Heroes and Legends, one would expect advertisements of stouts, porters and fine meats- drinks and foods of a rustic, colonial motif. Walking into the establishment I was immediately told that there was a self-seating method. The feel of the restaurant was warm and upbeat, welcoming a friendly and social attitude. One main focal point upon entering is the bar. Easy to find, it has stool seating and a well-varied selection of beers on tap. Eager to know all the beer selections, I opened the small ringed book sitting on my table. I counted a total of forty-seven beers that were being offered on the list. Some of these beers were of special availability, therefore the waiters and waitresses encouraged us to enjoy them while they last. Each one of these beers had a special quality to them. Of course the taste, alcohol percentage, and size are all special qualities, but each type of beer was served in different glassware. Some of the beers are served in a pint, medium, or large glass. Other beers are served strictly in pint glasses or 11oz glasses only. For example, Premium Belgian imports are served in 11oz flare glasses only, while other beer choices are served in medium schooner glasses or large 34oz mugs. As I scanned the beer menu, I was greeted by a server named Mike whose tasks also involved working behind the bar. To my surprise, this establishment does not designate one server to one section of tables; rather, each server helps one another with every task. Whether it is taking a drink or food order, or running the food out to the table, the restaurant had a total team effort feel. The menu had many food items varying from fish n’ chips to hearty entrees like sirloin steak and carried enough beers for customers to enjoy. As this was my first visit to Heroes and Legends, I asked my server to enlighten me with the establishment’s top 6 items on the menu. The waiter began with the top-selling Chicken Quesadilla, which was chosen to start off my meal. For one order of this appetizer, it is priced at $11. 95. Served hot with grilled chicken, sliced mushrooms, tomatoes, and onions topped with Cheddar and Jack cheeses with a side of guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. I paired this appetizer with a Hoegaarden Witbier for its smooth, refreshing, and crisp finish that won’t overpower the food. The Hoegaarden has a coriander and orange peel flavor, and a dry/sour aftertaste. It isn’t overly sweet, but was flavorful paired with the appetizer. Priced at $7. 25, it was served in a pint glass and has an ABV of 5%. Pairing with a different beer I would recommend the Paulaner Hefe-Weissbier made by Paulaner Brewing Company in Germany (ABV 5. 50%). Paulaner’s Hefeweizen has a banana and clove aroma, but has a better kick regards to taste because of the balanced and prominent taste of banana, clove, wheat, and caramel sweetness. It is a light beer that is high on carbonation, drinks smooth and is creamy- perfect for a poultry appetizer. Next, Mike recommended the New York Steak (14 oz. medium-rare) with a side of steamed vegetables and a baked potato topped with sour cream and chives. I paired the steak with a Belgian-style ale known as St. Bernardus Abt 12 Quadrupel. It had a total ABV of 10% priced at $7 and was served in a flare glass. This beer has a sweet, light-roasted malt, clove, banana, and candy sugar flavor with a subtle bitterness towards the end. It is remarkably flavorful which complements any robust, gamey meal such as the New York Steak. This Quadrupel isn’t quite as bold as other dark beers, but its smooth, full-body and rich taste made this pairing a satisfying meal. Another beer to go with Heroes’ New York steak would be the Dunkel Lager by The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. It is dark yet light-bodied and smooth with an ABV of 4. 90%. Its initial taste of dark toast is mildly sweet and continues with bitter coffee and dark chocolate. It then finishes with a slight spicy presence which is perfect for any dish involving red meat. Among other recommendations, the waiter suggested the L. A. #19 Pastrami. Pricing at $12. 45, Mike described that it is served hot with Russian dressing, zesty coleslaw, Swiss cheese, mounted over rye bread and is served with a choice of sides, one being curly fries. The seasoning on the curly fries and the coleslaw on the sandwich calls for a beer that will cut from the saltiness. It paired wonderfully with an IPA such as Dogfish head 90 minute IPA (ABV of 9%) which was served in a pint glass priced at $7. A perfect suggestion for this pairing would be Russian River’s triple IPA, Pliny the Younger (ABV 11%). This IPA is extremely hoppy. With a strong scent of pine cone and a balanced blend of citrus and herbs it would do well to cut through the salt and fattiness. Other top-selling items were a couple of Heroes’ best-selling burgers. First was the California burger (priced at $18. 95). This burger is definitely a mouthful consisting of caramelized sauteed mushrooms, Applewood smoked bacon, pickle chips, whole leaf lettuce, tomato, avocado, cheese, onion, and pesto mayo topped on top of flame-broiled Angus chuck patty on a wheat bun. Containing bold greasy, flavors from the bacon and mushrooms I paired this selection with Stone Smoked Porter. It is an American Porter by Stone Brewing Co. with an ABV of 5. 9 % served in a choice of a pint, medium schooner glass, or large 34oz mug. The smoked malt in the beer complemented the large pieces of bacon. Like the Stone Porter, I suggest Hill Farmstead Brewery’s Everett Porter. It has an ABV of 7. 50% with a taste of roasted malt, dark chocolate and brown sugar on the finish which complements the mushroom taste. No hint of booze or hops on the flavor profile leaving the beer very drinkable and smooth. Either porters will do fine in cutting through the greasy flavors. The next Burger Mike suggested was the famous Heroes Kobe Burger. This 10 ounce Kobe beef burger is topped with lettuce, pickle chips, and Thousand Island dressing on an onion bun and priced at $13. 95. This burger seems simple; therefore, I would pair it with a beer extravagant with flavor such as Rouge Double Chocolate Stout. This is an imperial stout priced at $7. 00 with an ABV of 8. 7%. The choice side, specifically curly fries dipped in ketchup, complimented the stout due to the sweetness of the ketchup. The burger, having an onion bun, gave the beer a great contrast, therefore causing the sweet taste of the beer to counteract the wholesome onion flavor. A similar beer not offered at Heroes would be Alesmith Speedway Stout Vanilla and Coconut (ABV 12%). It has the same flavor profile but the amazing blend of vanilla, coconut, dark chocolate, coffee and toasted malts in the background gives this beer a very creamy, rich taste. It is also incredibly well balanced with no alcohol presence making it a great smoked meat or dessert beer. The last best-selling food item served as a lunch entree is the Beef Brisket Sandwich. It consists of tender, thin-sliced and slow-cooked brisket. Due to the large amount of beef, I would recommend a beer that provides cut or contrast. To contrast and cut the flavor of the protein which is salty and greasy, I recommend a dark, bitter and full-bodied beer. From their in-house selection, a mixture of the Stone Smoked Porter with the Stone IPA would pair well. The IPA will provide a refreshing citrusy and hoppy taste with higher alcohol content while the Smoked Porter will provide the dark, smooth, chocolate-coffee, smoky flavor. Combining both these beers into one drink will provide the contrast and cut needed to pair perfectly with the beef brisket sandwich. A beer not offered in this establishment that could also be considered is the Lost Coast Alley Cat Amber (ABV 5. 50%). This beer is well-balanced, full-flavored amber ale, providing an assertive and balanced blend of malts and hops, and will contrast the high protein flavor of the beef. Table 1 Food Heroes and Legends Beer Outside Beer Chicken Quesadilla Hoegaarden Witbier Paulaner Hefe-weissbier New York Steak St. Bernardus Abt 12 Quad Olde Mecklenburg Dunkel Lager LA Pastrami Dogfish head 90 minute IPA Russian River Pliny the Younger (Triple IPA) CA Burger Stone Smoked Porter Everett Porter Kobe Burger Rogue Double Chocolate Stout Alesmith Speedway Stout – Vanilla & Coconut Beef Brisket Sandwich Mix: Stone Smoked Porter with the Stone IPA Lost Coast Alley Cat Amber Everyone was satisfied with the in-house selection of beers but some recommendations were made. Many of the brand recommendations were Paulaner Brewing Co. , Russian River, The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, Hill Farmstead Brewery, Alesmith Brewery, and Lost Coast which had produced beers that paired great with our meals. Generally, the 6 new brands were chosen either for similarity in taste and/or better taste, or business-related. For example, The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery is a newcomer in the brewing business. They were chosen due to their highly regarded beers and as a method of marketing strategy. OMB’s beers are only sold and distributed in North Carolina, but if Heroes and Legends carried one of their beers such as the Dunkel Lager in the West Coast customers will rush to try this new â€Å"rare† beer. It’s a great way to bring publicity about the OMB name to the West Coast as well as increase Heroes’ daily volume of customers. Some decisions were easier than others such is with Alesmith Brewery: their beer had a similar taste and profile as Rogue’s Double Chocolate Stout. All in all, Heroes and Legends’ beer selections were vast enough for me to have many options. As far as marketing techniques for beers at Heroes and Legends, a new strategy could be applied. Currently, tin and neon signs decorate the cluttered walls from corner to corner. It is overwhelming and lacks any description of each beer’s content. One good technique for introducing new beers is to have a specific beer on special every week or month- a â€Å"beer of the month† approach. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to have the servers make recommendations as a customer’s order is placed. Many of the recommended in house beers were great. Because the selections are already satisfying, our out of house beers resembled them. Therefore, it would not prove difficult to supplement our recommended beers into the current beer list. That is to say, advertising would not have to change much at all. In conclusion, blah blah something concluding this paper. Works Cited BeerAdvocate. (2013). Dunkel Lager – The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. BeerAdvocate. Retrieved from http://beeradvocate. com/beer/profile/19247/54854 Benitez, T. (2013). Beer and Food Pairings [Editorial]. Men’s Fitness. Retrieved from http://www. mensfitness. com/nutrition/what-to-eat/beer-and-food-pairings Brewers Association. (2013). Celebrating the Best of American Beer. CraftBeer. com. Retrieved from http://www. craftbeer. com/beer-and-food/pairing-tips/pairing-chart Zagat. (n. d. ). Heroes and Legends. Menu. Retrieved from http://www. zagat. com/r/heroes-and- legends-claremont/menu Appendix Key Learnings Briana While doing this project I learned about the different tastes of certain beers in comparison of being on tap or in bottle. In my visit to Hero’s and Legends Bar and Grill, I learned that they do not carry any beers in bottle, only on tap. That night I ordered Rouge chocolate stout. I am a fan of most Rogue beers, specifically Dead Guy Ale. I enjoy Dead Guy Ale equally in bottle or on tap, but for some reason the Chocolate Stout didn’t excite me as much as it does in a bottle. While drinking it on tap, the beer did not have a finishing taste as it does in bottle. The strong chocolate taste was not as evident. Also, the bottom of the glass from the tap stout did not have residue of chocolate as it will when I buy a bottle and pour it into a glass myself. Therefore, I learned that I would most certainly, from now on, favor certain style beers out of the bottle, rather than on tap. Kayla I’ve learned that it’s not just the taste of the beer that sets it apart, but how it smells, looks and the dynamics of pairing it with food. I used to choose a beer based on its alcohol content and name. If it sounded unique, I would order it. Then I’d discern whether I liked the beer or not by how smooth it is and whether I liked the flavor. I never understood what each name meant, for example Pilsner or Dunkel. For the longest time my struggle trying to figure out which beer to order was like trying to find a new computer – I was inadequately informed and there are so many options. Thanks to this class, I don’t have to blindly choose my beers anymore. I can read their labels and, based on what type of beer it is, have a good image of what it looks like and how it will smell/taste. Omar Through this project I learned to start looking at which beer will go well with my food and not just order a random beer. By selecting a pairing of my choice I learned what to look at when pairing beer with food. Michelle The task of pairing food and beers may come off as overwhelming. It is important to remember that if it taste good to you, then that is what truly matters. In the vast market of craft brews (over 2,100 breweries as of 2012) pairing can be simplified to three key roles of beer- cut, contrast, and compliment. When finishing this assignment, it became evident that one beer can pair well with several different food options. For example, a nice whit beer can cut a fatty burger and then compliment a banana split. I feel, that after experimenting, my options have only been expanded for food and beer pairing and now there is an eagerness and excitement to put my knowledge to the test. More beer tasting!