Netflix Risks Essay

Netflix was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California. Netflix is a company that provides online movie rental subscription services in the United States. The company offers its subscribers access to a library of movie, television, and other filmed entertainment titles on digital versatile disc (DVD) and Blu-Rays. Its members can get DVDs delivered to their homes and can instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed to their TVs and PCs. It also partners with consumer electronics companies to offer a range of devices that can instantly stream movies and TV episodes to members’ TVs from Netflix. Netflix entered the rental entertainment industry at a time where Blockbuster was king and renting movies required the consumers to drive to the store. However, Netflix realized that through innovation there was a much more efficient and cheaper way to provide the same service than the typical brick-and-mortar companies of the time. Customers of Blockbuster and other store rental places were attracted to the new features (monthly subscription, no late fees) provided by Netflix. Through innovation Netflix basically â€Å"changed† the way movie rentals were done and eventually became the leader of movie rental industry while Blockbuster and many other companies eventually became bankrupt. Netflix’s story of success is also one of caution as Netflix realizes that they will continue to face many risks throughout their business cycle and if they don’t anticipate and/or respond correctly, they too could face the same result as Blockbuster. As of December 31, 2009, Netflix served approximately 12 million subscribers. Currently, Netflix claims on its website to have over 20 million members, making it the leader in rental movie industry. However, Netflix faces many competitors that provide similar services: Comcast, Redbox from Coinstar and even Amazon is planning on also offering streaming services to its prime members. Therefore, if Netflix is to remain as the industry leader and continue its earnings and membership growth it will have to continue to innovate with new ideas. Generally, innovation requires a huge investment from companies in their Research and Development departments. These investments can come out from the companies own cash flow or from issuing loans. In order for a Company to decide if an investment is worth the money it uses either Net Present Value or Internal Rate of Return techniques which basically state that if the return on the investment is greater than the cost, then the company should go ahead and invest. But what is the cost of the investment? If Netflix plans to borrow money, then the cost will be the prevailing interest rate at the time of Issuance of the loan plus a spread premium for specific characteristics pertaining to Netflix. This poses a financial risk on Netflix, more specifically this is called interest rate risk. Interest rates tend to be volatile and there are many different theories (expectations theory, liquidity theory, preferred habitat theory, market segmentation theory) yet nobody really knows 100% for sure if interest rates are going to go up or down and by how much. However, based on the expectations of Netflix’s analysts they have a few choices on dealing with this risk depending on their expectations. If they expect interest rates to go up, then they should issue a long term bond or note now, because if they wait and interests rates do go up then it will be more costly for them to borrow the money they need which might end up affecting the Net Present Value of their investment project. On the other hand, if Netflix expects rates to go down then it will not be a good idea for Netflix to issue out a long term bond or note because if rates eventually do drop then Netflix be essentially borrowing at a higher rate than the prevailing market rate. So what Netflix should do instead is to issue short term debt such as commercial paper and continue to roll it over until they expect that interest rates have reached the lowest and then issue a longer term bond or note depending on their investment project. Finally, the other option for Netflix is that, if they are not sure if interest rates are going to go up or down, they can still hedge against this risk by issuing a long term callable bond so that if interest rates do drop significantly Netflix can call its debt back and reissue at the lower rate. Another way that Netflix has been and plans to continue expanding its membership is by offering its services abroad. In fact, Netflix has already entered the Canadian market and is in the process of offering its services in the United Kingdom. Obviously this is great news for Netflix shareholders however going international also brings additional risks. One of the major risks that we foresee would be exchange rate risk. For example, when Netflix starts to offer its services in the United Kingdom, it will have to decide on what it will charge its British customers a month. However, it will have to do so in pounds, which is the local currency. If for example, we assume that Netflix charges its U. S. customers 10 dollars a month for its services and that it wants to charge the same real value to its U. K. customers, if the pound/dollar exchange rate is . 5 pounds for 1 dollar then Netflix would have to charge its U. K. customers 5 pounds a month. However, interest rates are constantly changing and if Netflix doesn’t do something about this risk then its cash flow would be constantly changing. For example if the pound depreciates against the dollar to . 75 pounds for 1 dollar then the dollar value from its U. K. customers’ 5 pound subscription will now be only worth $6. 67. Netflix could deal with this cash flow loss in two ways, a good way and a bad way. The bad way would be to constantly adjust the prices up and down to its U. K. customers so that the real dollar value remains about the same, however we feel that customers wouldn’t appreciate this price volatility and Netflix would potentially lose many U. K. customers. The good way for Netflix to hedge against exchange rate risk would be to enter the futures market on currencies and lock in on a pound/dollar exchange rate that way any future volatility on the exchange rate wouldn’t affect either negatively or positively on Netflix’s international cash flows. Netflix also faces several nonfinancial risks. Netflix began its ground-breaking entry into the movie rental industry with its mail order system, but the mail order system is not the sole source of its success today. In fact, Netflix’s CEO Reed Hastings has admitted that a lot of Netflix success has been due to do their online streaming content. As an actual Netflix customer myself, I admit that I spend a lot of time streaming movies and shows online, in fact if Netflix were to only offer its mail order system, I would stop being a customer. If other Netflix customers’ value their online service as much as I do then this signifies the important value that the movie streaming services has for Netflix. But what if, something happens (virus, human error, etc†¦) and Netflix’s servers go down and they are unable to operate its streaming function for a couple of days? A couple days may seem trivial however it could potentially mean an enormous amount of lost profit due to unhappy customers. In order to avoid this type of scenario of ever happening, Netflix should think of ways to confront this operational risk. One idea would be to spend money in acquiring backup servers so that if the main servers were to go down for whatever reason, Netflix would be able to switch to their backup servers and therefore customers could continue to stream their favorite movies and shows online while Netflix worked on fixing the problem with the main servers. Even though Netflix is headquartered in Los Gatos, California, it has many â€Å"warehouses† around the United States that deliver movies to customers near their locations. Because of this, Netflix faces many different types of â€Å"pure† risks depending on the location in which their warehouse is situated. Pure risk is a type of risk that involves either a chance of loss or no loss. An example for Netflix would be an earthquake in Los Gatos California, or a tornado in its warehouse in Omaha, Nebraska. Pure risks have tremendous abilities for loss because they cause both direct and indirect losses. If for example, a tornado destroys the Netflix warehouse in Omaha, Nebraska, the direct losses would be the costs of the destroyed warehouse, but at the same time there would be indirect costs such as the costs of perhaps losing customers around the Omaha area because now their movies have to ship from a different warehouse which could potentially take many more days to arrive. Unfortunately, there are no ways to prevent catastrophes such as fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, etc†¦ However, these high severity, low frequency situations are part of life and therefore a part of Netflix’s business risk. The best way for Netflix to deal with these types of risks are either to self insure by saving a certain amount of money each month or they can do an insurance transfer and pay insurance premiums but not have to worry about these pure risks. As shown in the movie â€Å"Mind Over Money†, human emotions play a major role in driving the market. Netflix should pay attention to such matters as the company could be affected by the irrational decisions people make. Investors have recently been talking about Netflix prices being over priced and it depicts a bull market. Bull markets are characterized by optimism, investor confidence and expectations that strong results will continue. It’s difficult to predict consistently when the trends in the market will change. Part of the difficulty is that psychological effects and speculation may sometimes play a large role in the markets. Therefore, similar to what is shown in the movie people will make irrational behavior and it could lead to the sudden collapse in the market for Netlix. This can be a major risk to the company. Netflix started as a mail order movie rental company in 1997 and through much innovation it was able to not only establish itself in the movie rental business but actually be a leader. Throughout its path from rags to riches, Netflix faced many types of financial and nonfinancial risks and was obviously able to overcome them to reach where it is at today. However, the risks don’t stop now and Netflix is facing strong competition from other movie rental companies and in order for Netflix to stay on top it will have to continue to be innovative and also continue to properly deal with any forthcoming risks.

Abraham Lincoln, Melungeon or Myth? Essay

Some historian believe that Abraham Lincoln was born an illegitimate child to Abraham Enloe and Nancy Hanks. It is possible that Abraham Lincoln could be tied to the Melungeon heritage through both of his parents? Many growing number of historians believe that Abraham Lincoln possess many qualities that distinguishes him as a Melungeon, and in fact believe that he is a direct descendant. The questioning of his parentage generates much interest and theories in regards to this great Presidents past. Abraham Lincoln was born February 12, 1908. His father was â€Å"said to be† Thomas Lincoln and his mother Nancy Hanks. He was born in a log cabin in Sinking Springs, in Hardin County Kentucky. After the death of his mother, his father remarried a wonderful lady named Sarah Bush. Abraham loved his step-mother and became very close to her and her 3 children. Despite his relationship with step-mother Sarah, Abraham did not maintain a good relationship with his father because of his resentment he held towards him having to turn all his wages over to him by some sort of law. Because of Lincoln’s hatred of slavery, which denied to slaves the â€Å"fruits of the labor† (McPherson 3), some people believe it may have influenced Thomas Lincoln expropriation of Abrahams’ earnings. Their relationship became so strained that when his father called him to his death bed, Lincoln refused to make the 80 miles trip to see him. His father died with no goodbyes given. Despit e Lincolns troubled and humble beginnings, he was able to self-educate himself, mainly by reading lots of books and became a very successful lawyer. In the American peoples’ eyes, Lincoln’s tale of â€Å"rags to riches†, is the ultimate â€Å"American† success story (Steers, Edward). There have been many myths, hoaxes and misconceptions regarding one of our greatest President throughout the years. During his early political career there was lots negative campaigning that was used to the taint his  campaign, just like we see and hear of today. Charges of illegitimacy were often hinted at because of the negative effect it had on the accused. â€Å"Illegitimate† people were considered defective. Lincoln’s paternity has long been in question due to the knowledge that a bastard son was born to a man named Abraham Enloe (Barton 18). The mother of the baby boy was a servant girl who worked in the Enloe household name Nancy Hanks (Lincoln’s mother). The question of his parentage generated much interest because of this claim and because Lincoln himself was reluctant to comment on his father and mother. Folks believed that it served as some sort of evidence of his knowledge and shame of his illegitimate birth. Authors Kennedy, N. Brent, and Robyn Vau ghan Kennedy. The Melungeons: the resurrection of a proud people: an untold story of ethnic cleansing in America. 2nd, rev., and corr. ed. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1997. Print. Presents the question of whether or not Abraham Lincoln was Melungeon himself, making him the first Melungeon (tri-racial) President. According to Ely Gallegos (a research team member), there is a great deal of circumstantial evidence that Lincoln shared a Melungeon heritage, possibly through both parents. Lincoln’s family fits the Melungeon model very well. Lincoln’s paternal grandfather also named Abraham Lincoln, immigrated with his wife Bathsheba Herring and their 5 children to Kentucky. Why would an established settler leave the beautiful Shenandoah Valley for the wild, untamed lands of Indian-dominated Kentucky? Money? Possibly a Melungeon movement? Lincoln’s father features also fit the description of a Melungeon. His mother, Nancy Hanks was born an illegitimate child to Lucy Hanks. H istory has no record of the identity of Nancy’s father. Nancy also had many characteristics of a non-Anglo (Sandburg 30). Her hair dark, dark brown, keen little gray eyes, outstanding forehead, somewhat accented chin and cheek bones and a body of slender build. Because of the geographical location of the Lincoln’s family and outstanding questions of Lincoln’s heritage, this leads to the theory of many researchers that Lincoln could possibly be a Melungeon himself. If true, this would make Abraham Lincoln the first (tri-racial) President. Brent Kennedy, an author who wrote the book â€Å"The Melungeons†, a spent a great deal of time writing about a time of â€Å"ethnic cleansing in American† and shares details on how the Melungeons seemed to disappear during the time of the first â€Å"census taking†. Because of their tri-racial ethnicity, they  did not fit under any category listed on the Census, so for â€Å"recordkeeping† purposes, they were categorized as either melotos/white/Indian/Africa Am erican, when in fact they were â€Å"all†. Melungeons were suggested to be descendants from â€Å"tri-racial isolates† (Los Angeles Times), a mixture of whites, blacks and American Indian who historians say interbred along Appalchia’s ridges during the 18th centuries. Old documents and stories passed down throught the generations tell a tale of â€Å"Portugese† Berbers, â€Å"sheperd-like† people who came to American in ships. They were proposed to be decendants of early Portuese, Spanish, Sephardic Jewish Mulims, Moorish, and/or Gypsy/Roma colonish in the southeastern United States (Kennedy 1997; Hirschman 2005; Price 1953), that were exiled from Spain and Portugal through a religious witch-hunt know as the â€Å"Spanish Inquisition†. Many of them settled in the hills of the Appalachian Mountians. Over time The Melugeons, were pushed off their lands, denied their rights, murdered, mistreated and became an embittered and nearly defeated people. They tried to fit in with Anglo neighbors, but lost their heritaage, their culture, their names and their original religion, but not their genetic structure. Many folks who believed themselves to be of Melungeons decendant, have become a part of â€Å"on-going† research which even includes giving blood samples. There continues to be actual on-going Melungeon DNA studies still taking place still today. Lincoln’s paternity has long been in question due to the knowledge that a bastard son was born to a man named Abraham Enloe (Barton 18). The mother of the baby boy, was a servant girl who worked in the Enloe household named Nancy Hanks (Lincoln’s mother). The question of his parentage generated much interest and because Lincoln himself was reluctant to comment on his father and mother. Folks believed that served as some sort of evidence of his knowledge and shame of his illegitimate birth. During his campaign many people tried to use this information against him. They tried to discredit him, by calling him â€Å"illegitimate†. Many people still today are interested in the fact that Abraham Lincoln may been the fir st â€Å"tri-racial† President. A couple hundred years later after his birth, there are still many unanswered questions regarding Abraham Lincoln. â€Å"Robert Ingersoll said it best. â€Å"Lincoln, he proclaimed† was a not a-type, He stands alone-no ancestors, no fellows, no successors†. Even the word Melungeon became a most disparging term. To be legally classified as a  Melungeon, meant to be â€Å"Nobody at all†. What would it have meant for Abraham Lincoln, a â€Å"self-educated†, depressed human being, born in a one room cabin to illegitmate parents to be labeled a â€Å"Melungeon†? Would the American people have voted for him? Did Lincoln’s passionate spirit to â€Å"free the slaves† come deep from within or did it come from darker place then anybody could ever have imagined? Just how different would the pages of our history books read, if people would have truly believed that Abraham Lincoln was a â€Å"Nobody†, a Melungeon? Work Cited Alexander, J. Trent, Chad Berry, Beth Bissmeyer, Donna Corriher, Rodger Cunningham, Damon Falke, Steve Fisher, William Gorgy, Jesse Graves, Margaret Gregor, Elizabeth Hirschman, John Lang, Robert Ludke, Irene McKinney, Lindsey Martin, Phillip Obermiller, Eric Rademacher, Mark Roberts, Emily Satterwhite, Barbara Smith, Shilah Turner, Jennifer Westerman, David Whisnant, and Donal Yates. â€Å"Appalachian Journal: A Regional Studies Review.† Toward a Genetic Profile of Melungeons in South Appalachia 38 (2010)111. Print. Kennedy, N. Brent, and Robyn Vaughan Kennedy. The Melungeons: the resurrection of a proud people: an untold story of ethnic cleansing in America. 2nd, rev., and corr. ed. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1997. Print. McPherson, James M.. Abraham Lincoln. Oxford: Oxford University Press,2009. Print. Sandler, Martin W.. Lincoln through the lens: how photography revealed and shaped an extraordinary life. New York: Walker Pub. Co., 2008. Print. Steers, Edward. Lincoln legends myths, hoaxes, and confabulations associated with our greatest president. â€Å"Lincoln’s Father: The Paternity of Abraham Lincoln†. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2007.14-28 Print.

Camel Rating Of Brac Bank

Camels rating system is a common phenomenon for all banking system all over the world. It is used in all over the country in the world. It is mainly used to measure a ranking position of a bank on the basis of few criteria. Camels rating system is an international bank-rating system where bank supervisory authorities rate institutions according to six factors. The six factors are represented by the acronym CAMELS. The six factors examined are as follows: C Capital adequacy A Asset quality M Management quality E Earnings L Liquidity S Sensitivity to Market Risk Bank supervisory authorities assign a score on a scale of one (best) to five (worst) for each factor to each bank. If a bank has an average score less than two it is considered to be a highquality institution, while banks with scores greater than three are considered to be less-thansatisfactory establishments. The system helps the supervisory authority identify banks that are in need of attention. Origin of Camels Rating System: There were many banks rating system available in the world. However, Camels rating system is the most successful bank rating system in the world. The ‘Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System (UFIRS)’ was created in 1979 by the bank regulatory agencies. Under the original UFIRS a bank was assigned ratings based on performance in five areas: the adequacy of Capital, the quality of Assets, the capability of Management, the quality and level of Earnings and the adequacy of Liquidity. Bank supervisors assigned a 1 through 5 rating for each of these components and a composite rating for the bank. This 1 through 5 composite rating was known primarily by the short form CAMEL. A bank received the CAMEL rate 1 or 2 for their sound or good performance in every respect of criteria. The bank which exhibited unsafe and unsound practices or conditions, critically deficient performance received the CAMEL rate 5 and that bank was of the greatest supervisory concern. While the CAMEL rating normally bore close relation to the five component ratings, it was not the result of averaging those five grades. Supervisors consider each institution’s specific 3 situation when weighing component ratings and review all relevant factors when assigning ratings to a certain extent. The process and component and composite system exist similar for all banking companies. In 1996, the UFIRS was revised and CAMEL became CAMELS with the addition of a component grade for the Sensitivity of the bank to market risk. Sensitivity is the degree to which changes in market prices such as interest rates adversely affect a financial institution. The communication policy for bank ratings was also changed at end of 1996. Starting in 1997, the supervisors were to report the component rating to the bank. Prior to that, supervisors only reported the numeric composite rating to the bank. Six Factors of Camels Ratings System: Capital Adequacy Capital adequacy focuses on the total position of bank capital. It assures the depositors that they are protected from the potential shocks of losses that a bank incurs. Financial managers maintain company’s adequate level of capitalization by following it. It is the key parameter of maintaining adequate levels of capitalization. Asset quality determines the robustness of financial institutions against loss of value in the assets. All commercial banks show the concentration of loans and advances in total assets. The high concentration of loans and advances indicates vulnerability of assets to credit risk, especially since the portion of non-performing assets is significant. Management quality of any financial institution is evaluated in terms of Capital Adequacy, Asset Quality, Management, Earnings, Liquidity and Sensitivity to market risk. Moreover, it is also depended on compliance with set norm, planning ability; react to changing situation, technical competence, leadership and administrative quality. A Sound management is the most important pre-requisite for the strength and growth of any financial institution. Earning and profitability is the prime sources of increasing capital of any financial institution. Strong earnings and profitability profile of a bank reflect its ability to support present and future operations. Increased earning ensure adequate capital and adequate capital can absorb all loses and give shareholder adequate dividends. An adequate liquidity position refers to a situation, where an institution can obtain sufficient funds, either by increasing liabilities or by converting its assets quickly at a reasonable cost. 4 It access in terms of asset and liability management. Liquidity indicators measured as percentage of demand and time liabilities (excluding interbank items) of the banks. It means that the percentage of demand and time liabilities gets a bank as per its liquid assets. The sensitivity to market risk is evaluated from changes in market prices, notably interest rates; exchange rates, commodity prices, and equity prices adversely affect a bank’s earnings and capital. Process of Camels Reporting: The reporting process of CAMELS rating is given below: Figure : Reporting Process of CAMELS rating Process: 1. Data collection of reschedule status of overdue loans from CRM, Retail, SME and Ops. 2. Data collection of lending rates and deposit rates from Treasury. Data collection of average borrowed amount and rate of interest expenses from Treasury. 4. Data collection of maturity wise investments from Treasury. 5. Collect information of training programs arranged by the Bank’s training institute from Human Resources Division. 6. Collection of other required reports and statements from other divisions. 7. Preparation of CAMELS report as per guideline of BB Core Risk Management Guidelines. 8. Meeting arranged with MANCOM. 5 Camels Rating System of Bangladesh: All over the world, CAMELS rating is a common figure to all banking industry. Like all other countries, it is also used in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, the five components of CAMEL have been used for evaluating the five crucial dimensions of a bank’s operations that reflect in a complete institution’s financial condition, compliance with banking regulations and statutes and overall operating soundness since the early nineties. In 2006, Bangladesh Bank has upgraded the CAMEL into CAMELS. ‘Sensitivity to market risk’ or ‘S’ is the new rating component which is included in CAMEL and make it into CAMELS. The new rating component makes the system more effective and efficient. The new system needs bank’s regular condition and performance according to predetermined stress testing on asset and liability and foreign exchange exposures, procedures, rules and criteria and on the basis of the results obtained through risk-based audits under core risk management guidelines. A bank’s single CAMELS rating has come from off-site monitoring, which uses monthly financial statement information, and an on-site examination, from which bank supervisors gather further â€Å"private information† not reflected in the financial reports. The development of credit points examination result is ranging from 0 to 100. The six key performance dimensions – capital adequacy, asset quality, management, earnings, liquidity and sensitivity to market risk – are to be evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5 in ascending order. Following is a description of the graduations of rating: Rating 1 indicates strong performance: BEST rating. Rating 2 reflects satisfactory performance. Rating 3 represents performance that is flawed to some degree. Rating 4 refers to marginal performance and is significantly below average and Rating 5 is considered unsatisfactory: WORST rating. Table : Composite CAMELS and their Interpretation Rating Composite range Description Rating Analysis interpretation 1 1 to 1. 4 Strong Sound in every respect, no supervisory responses required. 2 1. 5 to 2. 4 Satisfactory Fundamentally sound with modest correctable weakness, supervisory response limited. Combination of weaknesses if not redirected will become severe. 3 2. 5 to 3. 4 Fair Watch category. Requires more than normal supervision. Immoderate weakness unless properly addressed could impair future 4 3. 5 to 4. 4 Marginal viability of the bank. Needs close supervision. High risk of failure in the near term. Under constant supervision/cease 5 4. 5 to 5 Unsatisfactory and desist order. Capital adequacy: Capital adequacy focuses on the total position of bank capital. It focuses on the risk weighted assets which proposed to protect from the potential shocks of losses that a bank might incur. It is assessed according to: the volume of risk assets, the volume of marginal and inferior assets, bank growth experience, plans, and prospects; and the strength of management in relation to all the above factors. The major financial risk like credit risk, interest rate risk and risk involved in off-balance sheet operations are absorbed by it. The CAMELS components are also required for Basel Committee of Bangladesh Bank. As regards the capital adequacy, they grouped the factors like a) size of the bank, b) volume of inferior quality assets, c) bank’s growth experience, plans and prospects, d) quality of capital, e) retained earnings, f) access to capital markets, and g) non-ledger assets and sound values not shown on books (real property at nominal values, charge-offs with firm recovery values, tax adjustments). Capital to Risk-Weighted Assets ratio (CRWA) is the most widely used indicator for capital adequacy ratio. According to Bangladesh Bank, a bank has to maintain a minimum capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of not less than 10 percent of their risk weighted assets (RWA, with at least 5 percent in core capital) or Taka 2 billion, whichever is higher. Basel II Basel II is a capital adequacy management framework for banks. Basel II is the second of the Basel Accords, which are recommendations on banking laws and regulations issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision; adopted by Bangladesh Bank. The main objectives of Basel II are as follows: Promote safety and soundness in the financial systems Constitute a more comprehensive and more sensitive approach to addressing risks Better alignment of regulatory capital to underlying risk Encourages banks to improve risk management These guidelines are structured on following three aspects: a) Minimum capital requirements to be maintained by a bank against credit, market, and operational risks. b) Process for assessing the overall capital adequacy aligned with risk profile of a bank as well as capital growth plan. c) Framework of public disclosure on the position of a banks risk profiles, capital adequacy, and risk management system.

Secondary legal sources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Secondary legal sources - Essay Example Based on the evidences collected and being the one representing Samatha Smith on this case, a good defense hence has to be made for her to win and get compensated for the damages she had incurred during the injury process. In the case of Garcia v. Delgado Travel Agency in 2004, the complainant, Garcia lost the case. The case fact involved Garcia slipping on a wet floor as she was entering the office of Delgado Travel Agency. On suing Delgado, her case was dismissed on the grounds that Delgado was not permanently liable for causing the wet floor and the rain that caused the wet floor. In addition, the court ruled that Delgado was not obliged under any law to continuously mob rain water (Garcia v. Delgado Travel Agency, 4 A.D.3d 204, 771 N.Y.S.2d 646 [2004] ). Therefore, due to lack of evidence of Delgado being the cause of the wet floor, it was attributed Garcia falls to be an act of negligence on her part. In the case involving Galietta v. New York Sports Club, the complainant Galietta sued New York Sports Club for injuries sustained after he slipped on a spilled liquid on a staircase. Galietta failed to provide factual evidence as to whether the spilled drink had been there with the knowledge of the management. In addition, it could not be established who actually made the spill hence could not be pinned down on the defendant. Hence due to lack of evidence, the case was dismissed (Galietta v New York Sports Club, 4 AD3d 449 [2004]). In the case between Theodouro v. Aphis Realty Inc., Theodouro was the plaintiff while Alphis Reality Inc. the defendant. Theodouro complained of having slipped and fell while he was on the dance floor and sustained serious injuries. He blamed Alphis for being negligent to the situation whereby dancers and musicians were thrown paper money and flowers. The case was dismissed based on Theodouro involvement in a dangerous activity, something which he should not have blamed the

Module 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Module 5 - Essay Example Those who finally do attain a post are called the mandarins. Literati scholars were schooled in a particular form of Confucianism known as the School of Literati. There are four arts of the Chinese scholar: qin, qi, shu (calligraphy), and hua (painting). Qin, or more precisely guqin, is the literati’s musical instrument meaning old (gu) musical instrument (qin). It is a seven stringed zither that is plucked to produce sound. Invented some 3,000 years ago, the qugin maintains its relevance into the space age; when the unmanned spacecraft Voyager was launched in 1977, it contained a recording of a guqin piece. The second art, qi, is a chess-like board game now called weiqi (‘surrounding game’) in Chinese, and go in Japan and in the Western countries. Various speculations exist regarding the origins of the game; one is that it is a fortune-telling tool employed by ancient Chinese astronomers who discern the influence exerted by the universe on an individual. In this game, black and white stones are placed on a 19 by 19 line grid. The stones are placed on the intersections of the lines; when a stone is surrounded on all four sides by an opposing color, then the stone is captured and removed from play; the game ends when there are no more possible moves. The third art is shu (Chinese calligraphy). This is the source of all calligraphic tradition in East Asia, including Japan, Korea and Vietnam. These are distinctive because they emphasize motion and â€Å"sheer life experience,† with â€Å"time and rhythm in shifting space† (Stanley-Baker, 2010). The fourth art of the literati is hua (Chinese painting). Literati paintings were prized above all academic paintings by educated people because of the painting’s goal of revealingthe inner character of the painter and how he depicts sensitivity towards the conditions of human life (Indiana University, 2012). The video chosen is centered on the design and

How does the quality of mentors reflect on student nurses grade on Essay

How does the quality of mentors reflect on student nurses grade on placement - Essay Example A mentee can even make the decision to work on an ability, during placement, that his or her mentor has identified as a personal strength even though the mentee may not completely believe this; thus improving his or her overall marketability. Research Question: How does the quality of Mentors reflect on nursing students grades on placement? Introduction In nursing, mentoring can be said to be a part of the ‘helping process’ that allows student nurses to benefit from the experience of the more practiced nurses. Mentoring allows the structural, insightful, and intentional learning which takes place in different stages. The mentor is expected to account for his or her own as well as the mentee’s experience. The professional student nurse mentor will help the student nurse to realize her potential and demonstrate how best to put theoretical issues into practice. The professional student nurse also plays a big part in determining their placements. They can establish le arning contracts for their mentees which help the student nurses to learn about how to participate in projects. Rationale Mentoring is the prime example of self-directed learning. It basically calls for a mentor and mentee to take responsibility for all the learning processes that are necessary (Carter, Hudyma, and Horrigan 2010). In most professions, including nursing, the recognized codes of ethics stress the tradition and professional requirement of passing to new learners the skills and abilities that they require in order to be competent. In a mentoring relationship between a student nurse and a certified medical practitioner is mutually defined and shared (Kenyon and Peckover 2008). Moreover, the mentor’s character plays an important part in influencing the student nurse’s selection of placement choice as well as future career. Through the study of the importance of mentorship qualities, mentors will be able to recognize the effect that their behaviors have on th eir mentees (Young and Curzio 2007). This study will also give suggestions on how mentors can alter their approaches towards student nurses so as to avail intervention strategies that will help the mentees to make more informed decisions in future. For many students to benefit the most from mentoring relationships, mentors must be able to understand when they do not make the best decisions for the situations they are in (Harwood, Reimer-Kirkham, Sawatzky, Terblanche, and Van Hofwegen 2009). They must also be able to recognize what other options they have in terms of their dealing with difficult situations, and the effects that will materialize in mentees if their behavior impacts on student nurses in a negative way (Sedgwick and Yonge 2009). Background Research studies conducted by specialists have shown that mentors play a significant role in the lives of student nurses. In addition, the individual qualities of the mentor can greatly affect how a student nurse responds to his or he r placement. For example, mentors who hold the view that supervising a student nurse’s placement is a privilege for them tend to have more influence on their mentees (Jokelainen, Jamookeeah, Tossavainen and Turunen, 2013). Understanding mentors will also seek to make sure that their student nurses acquire the required clinical skills that are required

Conceptual Art as a Response to Modernism Thesis

Conceptual Art as a Response to Modernism - Thesis Example The essay "Conceptual Art as a Response to Modernism" analyzes conceptual art. Conceptual art was a critique and a pushback against modernism, simply because modernism had a structure and a place in history and theory of art. According to Harrison & Wood, modernist art assumes the relationship between art and language and art and theory. Theoretical art, according to Harrison & Wood is post hoc, in that it builds upon tradition and what has gone before. In this sense, modernist art, while new and a repudiation of traditional art forms, still retained a semblance of previous art forms. The modernists explored the future in their art, and built their concepts on the â€Å"new man,† yet, the forms that they explored did not stray to far from traditional art, as they looked for a â€Å"different means of expression best suited to each component of his language: line, surface and color†. In other words, artists explored different ideas and different ways of creating art, and different means of expression, yet these explorations occurred within the confines of accepted art forms, such as painting, sculpture and the like. So, it is perhaps ironic that one of the fathers of the conceptual art movement was a man who was associated with modernism, and that was Marcel Duchamp. Duchamp was the first artist who conceptualized everyday items as works of art. Or, rather, he was the first artist who was able to turn everyday items into works of art, simply by stating that these items were something else entirely.

Administrative Law Human Right Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Administrative Law Human Right - Case Study Example However, the modern form of the 1948 National Assistance Act made a clear distinction between a local authority with a statutory duty to arrange care and accommodation for those unable to arrange it themselves, and a private company providing services with which the local authority contracted on a commercial basis in order to fulfil its duty to arrange such care and accommodation.The issue in this appeal is whether a care home (such as that run by Southern Cross Healthcare Ltd), when providing accommodation and care to a resident (such as Mrs YL, the appellant), pursuant to arrangements made with a local authority (such as Birmingham City Council) under sections 21 and 26 of the National Assistance Act 1948, is performing "functions of a public nature" for the purposes of section 6(3)(b) of the Human Rights Act 1998 and is thus in that respect a "public authority" obliged to act compatibly with Convention rights under section 6(1) of that Act. Sections 21 and 26 of the National Assis tance Act 1948 confer statutory powers and impose a statutory duty. The duty is imposed on the relevant local authority. It may be discharged by arranging for the provision of residential care in a home run by itself, or by another local authority, or by a voluntary organisation or by a private provider such as Southern Cross. ... This is correct, but not in my view significant. The intention of Parliament is that residential care should be provided, but the means of doing so is treated as, in itself, unimportant. By one means or another the function of providing residential care is one which must be performed. For this reasons also the detailed contractual arrangements between Birmingham, Southern Cross and Mrs YL and her daughter are a matter of little or no moment. The provision of residential care is the subject of very detailed control by statute, regulation and official guidance, and criminal sanctions apply to many breaches of the prescribed standards. The issue which your Lordships must decide, as expressed in paragraph 18 of the order of Ryder J of 12 September 2006, is whether the second Respondent, Southern Cross Healthcare Ltd ("Southern Cross"), "in providing care and accommodation for YL [the appellant] is exercising a public function for the purposes of section 6(3)(b) of the Human Rights Act 1998". Bennett J held, on 5 October 2006, that it was not. The Court of Appeal, on 30 January 2007, agreed: [2007] 2 WLR 1097. But these decisions are challenged before the House by YL, supported by the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and by Justice, Liberty, the British Institute of Human Rights, Help the Aged and Age Concern England, each an independent body. It is convenient to refer, briefly, to the statutory and factual backg round to the formulation of this preliminary issue. Conclusion: These examples illustrate, I think, that it cannot be enough simply to compare the nature of the activities being carried out at privately owned care homes with those carried out at local authority owned care homes. It is necessary to look also at the reason why the person

What evidence is there for dual route model in adult reading Essay

What evidence is there for dual route model in adult reading - Essay Example on the other hand, which is the route used by the brain to be able to read new words or words that the reader has no previous experience with, or non-words, that is a string of letters which are not actually words, the brain uses phonology or the sound system of a language based on the letters being read. The lexical route is necessary for the pronunciation of irregular words, such as the word colonel, which would be wrongly pronounced using the non-lexical route. For a non-word such as spint, the non-lexical route would be used to produce a pronunciation. This paper presents evidences of the dual route model in adult reading through a review of previous researches conducted involving the dual route model. These evidences lead the author to conclude that adult reading is accomplished primarily using this model, and variations and alternatives to the model warrant further study. In an article by Gurd and Marshall (1993), mention was included regarding brain lesions sustained by previously literate adults that could result in impairments of reading and writing in patients who were otherwise cognitively intact. It goes on to mention that the paper by Castles and Coltheart (1993) should lay to rest a number of controversies regarding developmental dyslexia. They have firmly established that the functional architecture of the normal adult reading system includes two routes for assigning sound and meaning to sequences of letters. The non-lexical procedure associates each letter or letter-cluster in a string with its regular sound-value, as in traditional phonics. This letter string may be a known word or a non-word. On the other hand, the lexical procedure uses the orthography of the known word, with its known meaning and pronunciation. It was also shown that the two routes can be independently impaired in previously literate adults who have suffered brain damag e. Damage to the lexical route allowed the reader to read aloud regular and non-words well but not so

Analyse Zara Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Analyse Zara - Case Study Example Other firms also choose to outsource with the objective of enabling the firm reduce its costs through specialization and creating efficiency in the labor and resources of the firm (Porter 1996). Other firms also in the efforts to achieve the same try to gain control over the whole firms through as many departments as possible. This they are likely to achieve by the analysis of its value chain. Such firms are said to have gained such controls over the total production process by initiating in-house production hence and achievement of shorter lead times in production and supplies. Zara is one of the fastest growing cloth retailers and it holds a number of shares in the giant Spanish Inditex Group (Folpe 2000). This part of the group in the clothing industry in Spain has developed a unique business model which has enabled it to qualify as one of the vertically integrated retailers. This it has achieved through the identification of its lines of competition over the rest of the retailers . It shapes such competitive edges into strategic issues an act which has enabled the industry to obtain control of every step of the value chain while only outsourcing only cloths with a longer shelf/fashion lifetime (Birger and Stires 2006). The competitiveness and an organization’s focus on strategic issues in the modern business environment has become of age in strategic management of such organizations. A renowned author in this field is Porter through his five forces of competition where he introduced the ideas of competitive strategy, competitive forces and competitive advantage. This model is based on the fact that an organization’s internal environment that is the resources, capabilities, value addition to the value chain are the components of the organization that are most of the time used to account for its core competencies (Birger and Stires 2006). According to Porter’s model; cost and differentiation are the initial two competitive forces that resu lt into competitive advantage to any given organization. Low cost strategy is derived from the vast cost leadership strategy that is coupled with efficiency and stringent controls to costs (Folpe 2000). For example the high profitability and growth that is witnessed in the Zara industry over time is as a result of lower costs of advertising while adopting a flat organizational structure with superior organization systems and well laid down logistics coupled with efficient use of capital. All these are directed towards provision of efficiency (Porter 1996). The company also adopts differentiation as a competitive forces and strategy to make a difference in its operations. As a source of advantage differentiation ensures that unique brands of the products are offered as well as technology, customer service and products all these aimed at making the firm gain a bigger share of the market. Zara industry as one of the famous and fast growing firms in Spain is based on its strengths and s peed in designing and merchandising the products in stores. As compared to other firms in the turbulent fashion industry, Zara products are able to reach the stores in a record time of only 5 weeks as opposed to nine months of other firms in the industry (Folpe 2000). This fast response to the market is achievable due to the differentiation strategy in the

Key Terms Essay Example for Free

Key Terms Essay ACEs an entry in an objects acl that grants permissions toa user or group ACL A collection of access control entries that defines the access that all users and groups have to an object ATA A disk interface that uses parallel communications to connect multiple hard drives to a computer Authorization The process of making sure someone is who they say they are Basic Disk The default disk type, it can have up to four partitions, three primary and one extended Direct-attached Storage a computer whith hard drives stored in it Disk Duplexing Method of fault tolerance, duplicate data is stored on two disks in seperate host adapters Disk Mirroring Method of fault tolerance, duplicate data is stored on two seperate disks DiskPart. exe Command line method to do all your disk related deeds Dynamic Disk Alternative to basic disk, able to have an unlimited number of volumes Effective permissions A combination of all the permissions from various sources External Drive Array Hard disks attached to a computer through a network medium File System A part of the OS for storing and organizing files Folder redirection A useful feature that lets users save thier files to a network location LUNs An identifier assigned to a specific component within a SCSI device which enables the SCSI host adapter to send commands to that component. NAS A dedicated file server that is connected to a network and provides users with file based storage Offline Files Lets people keep copies of files on their machines so that if the server goes down they can still work Partition Style The ways disks are organized in windows RAID Multiple disks working together as pals to do great things such as fault tolerance or increases to read/write speeds SID Every active directory object gets one of these, kinda like a social security number Security Principal Whoever is an administrator assigns permissions to SATA Newer version of ATA that users serial communications Shadow Copies Makes copies of a file that users can use to restore to vaious times SCSI Lets computers transfer data to multiple storage devices Standard Permissions The common special permissions SAN A dedicated high speed network wevice that connects storage devices to servers.

Banyan Tree Case Essay Example for Free

Banyan Tree Case Essay Banyan Tree is founded in 1992 by Ho Kwon Ping.The first Banyan Tree opened in 1994 in Phuket Island.The resorts were designed to blend into the natural environment. Corporate Strategies  K. P. Ho thinks that company should consider the physical and human environment when making business decisions Business Strategies Goals : â€Å"one of the top two or three dominant players in a global space which is very niche but nevertheless very global† K. P. Ho said. Scope : Banyan Tree provides a luxury retreat for guests. The Banyan Tree target market is narrow and affluent. Competitive Advantage : Banyan Tree goes into locations that are not heavily developed and create sustainable resorts. Logic : Banyan Tree intends to expand locate in diverse locations Differentiation : Focus through a differentiation Environmental Analysis Sociocultural Factors Terrorist attacks September 11,2001 and the Bali bombings The SARS outbreak of 2003 Economic and Natural Factors The Asian Financial Crisi of 1997 The Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004 Porter’s Five Forces Model Customer Buying Power Tends to be moderate Customers are few in number High buying power Few readily avaible Supplier Bargaining Power Tends to be high Due to the unique locations and high quality products Only a limited number of suppliers available to provide these products and services Entry Barriers Tend to be high Large capital requirements and government regulations Substitutes Due to Banyan Tree’s niche market and concept it is important for them to be aware of readily available substitutes Rivalry Among Existing Firms Banyan Tree Competition Aman Resorts Como Hotels Six Senses Hotels One and only Resorts Angsana Competition Four Seasons Shangri-La Hotels Strategic Direction Mission Statement We want to build a globally recognized brand which by inspiring exceptional experiences among our guests,instilling pride and integrity in our associates and enhancing the physical and human environment in which we operate, will deliver attractive returns to our shareholder. Vision Statement To build on its brands, Banyan Tree and Angsana to create a diversified group of niche resorts and hotels in strategic locations throughout the world, which would be complemented by residence and property sales,spa and gallery operations. Organizational Resource Analysis Strengths Well known and reputable brand name Strong brand identity Brand visibility Customer Loyalty Weaknesses Lack of knowledge of target market in global Small talent poot to choose from because properties are in remote locations Organization Resource Analysis Physical Unspoiled,unique locations Outstanding facilities Sustainability Sensitive design Human CEO is a major source of competitive advantage Well trained and motivated employees Corporate Partners such as American Express,Citibank etc. Financial Profits have risen significantly since the 2004 Tsunami High price to cost ratio Strong links to financiers General Organizational Resources Brand and organizational reputation Aspirational brand position Knowledge and Learning Entrepreneurship strategy Diverse culture

Stock Market Shocks: The Great Depression and Recession

Stock Market Shocks: The Great Depression and Recession Stock Market Shocks during the Great Depression and the International Financial Crisis. ABSTRACT: This paper inspects the impact of stuns saw in the Stock Market on yield and vocation. Amid the Great Depression. We display three principle discoveries. Initially, an unfavorable budgetary stun prompts a decrease in the assembling divisions yield and vocation that crests around 11 months a short time later. Next, this stun has a much more noteworthy effect on the durables area than the nondurables division. Last, The Stock Market related to the economy shortcoming in 1933 and 1934 may have controlled the recuperation from the Great Depression. The discoveries propose that Stock Market shortcoming added to the length and profundity of the Great Depression. On the other hand, the spread of the worldwide Financial Crisis of 2008/2009 was quick, and affected the working and the execution of Stock Market. Because of the significance of this sensation, this study plans to clarify the effect of the emergency on securities exchange conduct also reliance through the investigation of the intr aday unpredictability transmission. Finally, comparing and contrasting the impact of the Great Depression and the Global Financial Crisis on the Stock Market Variables. I. Introduction: Recent occasions have highlighted the impact of monetary framework or the Stock Market disturbances on the macroeconomy. An extensive ensuing writing has analyzed this channel with an accentuation on the impact of disturbances to the saving money framework. (Romer, 2003) Notwithstanding bank disappointments, the Great Depression was additionally a time of noteworthy money related business to a stock stress, which may have added to its seriousness. (Romer, 2003) Roused by this perception, we present confirmation relating Stock Market shocks to real economic outcomes. We look at the impact of stuns reviewed in the Stock Markets utilizing vector auto-relapses (VARs) on month to month information for yield, job, wholesale costs, and a budgetary business sector variable. (Richardson G. , 2006). On the other hand, the recent worldwide Financial Crisis has impressively influenced the Stock Market and is viewed as the most destroying emergency since the Great Depression of 1929. (Treichel, 2 012).As per information from the World League of Exchanges, toward the end of 2007 the world value market promotion was more than $66 trillion and forcefully declined in 2009 to remain at $48 trillion a drop of 21.5%, which is equivalent to 27% of worldwide GDP for 2009. (Treichel, 2012) This emergency, which fundamentally started in the US market, spread quickly what's more perilously to created and developing budgetary markets and to genuine economy as far and wide as possible. (Colander, 2009) This paper will significantly examine the crucial consequences of the Great depression and recent Financial Crisis on the Stock Market. LITERATURE REVIEW These sources talk about circumstances and end results of the Great Depression which happened around the 1929 until mid-1930. Here, the creators investigations and specifies a portion of the circumstances and end results of this dejection that influence the United States as well as different countries too. It will likewise be survey a few measurements and actualities began by the Great Depression. (Foreign Affairs, 2007) The Global Financial Crisis is an essential part of Financial markets is to direct assets to their generally gainful utilizes, and when this capacity is traded off, profit endures and could have long term impact. The most immediate genuine impacts of disturbances in Stock market are on capital reallocation amid and after the severe crisis. (ORGANIZATION, 2010) The Great Depression as indicated by Temin and White, the first keeping money and banking emergency was brought about by exacerbating essential components, instead of disease among banks. Temin (1976) contends that the Stock Market Crash, the Dust Bowl, and the following monetary, rural, and modern discouragements decreased the estimation of bank's ventures and raised suspension rates. (Richardson, 2007) The exploration has demonstrated that the connection between the three securities exchange lists have been stronger amid the Financial Crisis that broke out mid-2007 than before the emergency. This outcome is clarified by the way that speculator alarm now and again of Crisis is more exceptional than energy Communicated amid development periods. (Gammoudi, 2009) II. The Great Depression. The Great Depression from 1929 to1939 was the longest enduring and deepest financial downturn in the historical backdrop in the Western industrialized world not only in the United States. (Rodney, 2008) In the United States, the Great Depression started not long after money markets accident of 1929, which delivered Wall Street into a frenzy and wiped out a huge number of financial specialists all over the world. (Edwards, 2005) Throughout the following quite a while, customer spending and venture dropped, bringing about steep decreases in modern yield and climbing levels of unemployment as falling flat organizations laid off specialists. (Edwards, 2005) By 1933, when the Great Depression arrived at its nadir, approximately 13 to 15 million Americans were unemployed and about a large portion of the nation's banks had fizzled. (Pells, 2014) In spite of the fact that the alleviation and change measures set up by President Franklin D. Roosevelt helped reduce the most exceedingly ter rible impacts of the Great Depression in the 1930s, the economy would not completely turn around until after 1939, when World War II kicked American industry into high apparatus. (Richardson G. , 2006) The Stock Market Variables. The month to month stock unpredictability measure utilized as a part of the study breaks even with the month to month normal of unquestionably the everyday stock returns less the normal stock return for that month. (Chin, 2010) Figure 1 exhibits the monetary variables utilized in the study. Stocks rose significantly through the 1920s. It started to decrease pointedly in the fall of 1929 and arrived at its most reduced point in June 1932. (Chin, 2010).At its trough, the share trading system had declined by more than 83% percent from its top quality. In spite of the fact that the share trading system enhanced with the economy, it didn't come back to its pre-great Depression top level until World War II. The way for stock value developments recommends that the specialist sharp decrease in total assets may have exacerbated the Great Depression. Figure 1: (Chin, 2010) The Effect on the durable and nondurable good sectors. Stock and Financial stuns ought to have a more prominent impact on the durables merchandise part than the nondurables area. (Chin, 2010) We gather information on the yield and livelihood of these divisions to look at whether monetary stuns had a more prominent effect on the durables sector. (Chin, 2010) Figure 3 plots the employment and output of these two segments over the example period. Employment and output of the durables part declined steeply over the Great Depression, tumbling from top to trough by around 77 and 57 percent, separately. In correlation, the nondurables part was less influenced amid the Great Depression. (Romer C. D., 2003) Figure 2: Durable and nondurable good sectors. (Chin, 2010) III.The Financial Crisis The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) or worldwide economic crisis is generally accepted to have started in July 2007 with the credit crunch, when a loss of certainty by US speculators in the estimation of sub-prime home loans brought about a liquidity emergency. (Kapoor, 2010).This, thus, brought about the US Federal Bank infusing a lot of capital into money related markets. By September 2008, the emergency had compounded as securities exchanges around the globe slammed and got to be very unpredictable. (Kapoor, 2010) Effect of recent financial market disruptions The VARs amid the Great Depression to study the impact of the Financial Market sector stuns amid the fall of 2008. Budgetary markets were subject to a progression of unforeseen occasions amid this period, which prompt sharp unfavorable developments in stock costs and credit spreads. (Chin, 2010) The past results propose that these stuns may have a noteworthy effect on the genuine economy. Table 1 displays the evaluated impact of monetary business developments amid September and October, 2008. (Chin, 2010). The evaluated impact on yield and occupation are accounted for at the crest drive reaction time of 11 months and further on at year and a half. (Chin, 2010) The outcomes show that the Stock Market interruptions are evaluated to have a monetarily expansive impact on the assembling sector. At the top, these advancements are assessed to result in output and aggregate hours decreases in the fabricating segment of around 16 and 12 percent, i ndividually. These negative impacts are normal to be very constant, enduring admirably into 2010. (Chin, 2010) Table 1: (Chin, 2010) The Financial Crisis and the Behavior of Stock Prices As the explore of the impact of the late Financial Crisis on the conduct of stock costs utilizing the day by day returns of thirty one noteworthy US stocks over the 2007/08 period. (Rodney, 2008)Unequivocal mean day by day returns tumbled to negative levels, unequivocal instability surged more than two hundred percent, relationship between stocks debilitated and the danger lessening advantage of portfolio expansion rose. Beta danger expanded fundamentally for monetary stocks and the significance of business danger for them dropped. (Colander, 2009) IV. The differences between The Great Depression and Financial Crisis. The Monetary Policy and Deficit Spending Firstly, the Stock Market Crash is one of the causes of the Great Depression. But, in 2007 Crisis the mortgage issues was responsible for implementing the Financial Crisis. (Cukierman, 2009) Therefore, not the Stock Market. Before the Great Depression, the United States was under the extremely thrifty authority of the Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge organizations. (Cukierman, 2009) Both made solid strides to somberness and keeping up fiscal obligation. The comprehension of financial arrangement was straightforward: the central government ought to be run on an adjusted plan. The immense part the central government now plays, particularly as to Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, and military spending with respect to the deficient expense rates we craving, is unsustainable. In any case, amid a financial emergency, private spending dissipates. This is tricky in light of the fact that shopper spending speaks to 70% of the United States economy. (Cukierman, 2009) In the 1930s, ther e were various economists who contended strenuously for a do-nothing arrangement. Yet as the Great Depression delayed and fallen in 1937 when preservationists were fruitful in having the national government slice the monetary allowance shortage (it tumbled from 5.5% of GDP in 1936 to 0% in 1938) they lost believability. Economists today for the most part accept that it was the extraordinary shortfalls coming about because of World War II that really finished the Great Depression. (Colander, 2009) GDP Growth Gross Domestic Product (GDP) development is presumably the best consider figuring out what constitutes a melancholy versus a subsidence. The most oversimplified meaning of a subsidence is when monetary development contracts for two quarters straight; notwithstanding, the seriousness is measured in genuine decay, not just by the refinement in the middle of positive and negative development. (Edwards, 2005) The economy was moderating in 2007, and fell by -0.7 and +0.6 in the first and second quarters of 2008, separately, however then tumbled off a bluff. The third and fourth quarters of 2008 were -4.0% and -6.8%, individually, taken after by -6.40% and 0.70% in the first and second quarters of 2009. (Colander, 2009) The fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 were the first progressive quarters subsequent to the Great Depression that maintained development beneath -5.0%. (Edwards, 2005) Conclusion The relative comparison did in this paper was coordinated to check the conduct of the most synthetic and collected marker accessible between the Great Depression and the Financial Crisis. The Great Depression was additionally a time of noteworthy money related business to a stock stress that ranked as the deepest financial downturn in the historical backdrop of the industrialized world. The Great Depression started not long after money markets accident of October 1930, which delivered Wall Street into a wiped out a huge number of financial specialists. In addition to the impact on other variables at its trough. Firstly, the share trading system had reduced by more than 82 percent from its top quality and the everyday stock returns less the normal stock return for that month. Secondly, the impact on the durables and nondurables good sector that significantly had a crucial effect on employment and output of the durables part declined steeply over the Great Depression, tumbling from top to trough by around 77 and 57 percent. On the other hand, The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) or worldwide economic crisis is generally accepted to have started in July 2007 with the credit crunch that recently had prompt of a sharp unfavorable and downturns of developments in stock costs and credit spreads on recent financial market disruptions. Finally, the analytical comparison between the Great Depression and the Financial Crisis on the Monetary Policy and Deficit Spending that actually both made solid strides to somberness and keeping up fiscal obligation. Finally, the GDP Growth that presumably considered figuring out what constitutes a melancholy versus a subsidence between the Great Depression and the Global Financial Crisis.

Hitler Essay -- essays research papers

INTRODUCTION Hitler was an incredibly gifted person. He was an intelligent speaker, as he managed to sway 14.7 million people to vote for him even though his ideas were unpopular. Hitler was able to take over half of Europe with a country that was heavily in debt and had poor morale. He even negotiated to surpass all levels of government and declare himself dictator. Hitler was a gifted painter although most, if not all, of his works were never published. His paintings were done in watercolors and mostly of landscapes. He was painting even after the year of 1919 when politics became his overwhelming concern. Hitler was an extremely bright child. He even said, "The school work was ridiculously easy, leaving me so much free time that the sun saw more of me than my room...† Although as he got older his marks started to slip and the teachers began to get a bad impression of him, he was still very bright (one cannot become stupider). He eventually went on to join the army and become a semi-successful soldier (on the account that he was merely wounded and not killed). CHILDHOOD The Hitler family consisted of the mother, Klara, the father, Alois, and two children, Alois and Angela. Klara gave birth to a baby boy named Adolf on April 20, 1889 at the Pommer Inn. The Hitlers soon moved to Braunau. His godparents were Mr. and Mrs. Prinz and Maria Matzelbeger. As a child little Adolf was babied and his mother protected him from his father, Alois Hitler. Alois was quite a tyrant, but he usually ignored Adolf. In 1892 Adolf's father earned a promotion and the family was forced to move to Passau. Here Hitler enjoyed playing Germans and French or cowboys and Indians. At about this time, in 1984 Klara gave birth to another boy whom she named Edmund. Hitler was no longer the baby but his father had been transferred to Linz the year before so everything was going well for young Adolf. After a year of living without dad the Hitler family moved to Hafeld where Alois Sr. had purchased a house. A month after his arrival Hitler entered the little county school at Fischlam bei Lambach on May 1, 1895. On June 25, 1895 Alois retired at 58 to a life of leisure and beekeeping. Now Alois could devote more of his time to disciplining Adolf, so poor lit... ...face of the planet and eventually have a master race. He would have also liked to take over Russia but he attacked too early in the war and made foolish decisions about the time of year in which to attack. So although he reached the goal of killing 6 million Jews and conquering a good portion of Europe he was morally wrong and was eventually defeated. CONCLUSION Hitler was a man of many talents and gifts. He struggled through hardship and poverty to triumph and to become both the most famous and the most infamous man in history. He died tragically at the low point of his life, maybe regretting the mistakes he made. The world would be a very different place if it weren't for him, and although the things he did were wrong the human race benefited from his actions. For he taught us not to act at the last moment when people are suffering, and he showed the German people that they could be a nation and stand strong against the power of the world. He also taught the countries of the world to forget their differences and to act against a common evil. And he taught us hardship and suffering. Something that will make the human race stronger in the long run.

DNA Fingerprinting :: Technology, Science

DNA Fingerprinting It is widely known that each individual has a DNA profile as unique as a fingerprint. Actually, over 99% of all 3 billion nucleotides in human DNA which we inherit from each parent are identical among all individuals. However, for every 1000 nucleotides that we inherit there is 1 site of variation or polymorphism, in the population. These DNA polymorphisms change the length of the DNA fragments produced by the digestion of restriction enzymes . The resulting fragments are called restriction fragments length polymorphisms. Gel electrophoresis can be used to separate and determine the size of the RFLPs. The exact number and size of fragments produced by a specific restriction enzyme digestion varies from individual to individual. DNA fingerprinting has proved valuable, not only for convicting felons and exonerating the innocent, but also for establishing maternity or paternity and proving family relationships. More exotic uses include the identification of missing children in Argentina, soldiers killed in war, and even the body of Nazi physician Joseph Mengele, the so-called "Angel of Death." The way it started: The fundamental techniques involved in genetic fingerprinting were discovered serendipitously in 1984 by geneticist Alec J. Jeffreys of the University of Leicester in Great Britain while he was studying the gene for myoglobin, a protein that stores oxygen in muscle cells. He found that the myoglobin gene contains many segments that vary in size and composition from individual to individual and that have no apparent function. Jeffrey called these segments minisatellites because they were small and they surround the part of the gene that actually serves as a genetic bluprint.

Essay --

In the eyes of society, every great leader has flaws, but one to many can lead to failure. â€Å"I have lived long enough, both in years and in accomplishment.† In the long run, Julius Caesar was a great leader and came extremely close to success but died at the hand of his supporters. The biography â€Å"Caesar† by Adrian Goldsworthy accurately explains Caesar's life in the Mediterranean world. This work brings all aspects of Caesar's character into a single novel. Julius, born in July 100 BC, was a Roman general as well as a statesman. He played a critical role in the events which led to the fall of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. Julius was deemed to be one of the greatest military minds in history. The quote â€Å"I came, I saw, I conquered† is not only commonly know, but it accurately explains Julius' life. Caesars was born into a family of patricians, which was a ruling class in ancient Rome. Little of Caesar's childhood is recorded. His father, also of the name Gaius Julius Caesar, governed the province of Asia. His aunt, Julia, married Gaius Marius, a prominent figure in the Roman Republic and his mother Aurelia Cotta, came from a very influential family. It is said that Julius always had a fire burning in his heart to lead like his father, so after his father died in 85 BC and when he reached the age, he became what he was. Julius was an ambitious man. He came to be leader of the Roman Republic. He worked all the time to become a dictator trying to change the Roman Republic into an empire, as it was deteriorating as a Republic. This is admirable. Caesar's son, Augustus, had ended what Caesar began. An empire. Even though sources claim that over a million enemies were killed during his campaign, Julius was never ... ...it. If I was not able to find evidence of the conspiracy, then I would make sure he would understand to deploy dozens of guards to stop the assassination from ever occurring. Caesar's life was an interesting one. Not yet at age twenty, he avoided execution, he was decorated for valor in battle, and he was captured by pirates. His affairs were frequent and his magnetism allowed him to seduce many of his political opponents' wives, including the lovely Cleopatra. He was the most interesting man in the world, and the autobiography â€Å"Caesar† depicts his life in the Mediterranean world accurately. I loved reading about Caesar's life and although the book was from my perspective, boring, as a form of entertainment, I found it to be a great source for learning about Julius Caesar, as it is a biography. Though, Julius always said, â€Å"Experience is the teacher of all things†. Essay -- In the eyes of society, every great leader has flaws, but one to many can lead to failure. â€Å"I have lived long enough, both in years and in accomplishment.† In the long run, Julius Caesar was a great leader and came extremely close to success but died at the hand of his supporters. The biography â€Å"Caesar† by Adrian Goldsworthy accurately explains Caesar's life in the Mediterranean world. This work brings all aspects of Caesar's character into a single novel. Julius, born in July 100 BC, was a Roman general as well as a statesman. He played a critical role in the events which led to the fall of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. Julius was deemed to be one of the greatest military minds in history. The quote â€Å"I came, I saw, I conquered† is not only commonly know, but it accurately explains Julius' life. Caesars was born into a family of patricians, which was a ruling class in ancient Rome. Little of Caesar's childhood is recorded. His father, also of the name Gaius Julius Caesar, governed the province of Asia. His aunt, Julia, married Gaius Marius, a prominent figure in the Roman Republic and his mother Aurelia Cotta, came from a very influential family. It is said that Julius always had a fire burning in his heart to lead like his father, so after his father died in 85 BC and when he reached the age, he became what he was. Julius was an ambitious man. He came to be leader of the Roman Republic. He worked all the time to become a dictator trying to change the Roman Republic into an empire, as it was deteriorating as a Republic. This is admirable. Caesar's son, Augustus, had ended what Caesar began. An empire. Even though sources claim that over a million enemies were killed during his campaign, Julius was never ... ...it. If I was not able to find evidence of the conspiracy, then I would make sure he would understand to deploy dozens of guards to stop the assassination from ever occurring. Caesar's life was an interesting one. Not yet at age twenty, he avoided execution, he was decorated for valor in battle, and he was captured by pirates. His affairs were frequent and his magnetism allowed him to seduce many of his political opponents' wives, including the lovely Cleopatra. He was the most interesting man in the world, and the autobiography â€Å"Caesar† depicts his life in the Mediterranean world accurately. I loved reading about Caesar's life and although the book was from my perspective, boring, as a form of entertainment, I found it to be a great source for learning about Julius Caesar, as it is a biography. Though, Julius always said, â€Å"Experience is the teacher of all things†.

Incident 2 Organizational Behavior Essay

Mental Ability We know people with higher levels of mental ability are able to process information more quickly, solve problems more accurately, and learn faster, so you might expect them also to be less susceptible to common deci- sion errors. However, mental ability appears to help people avoid only some of these. 74 Smart people are just as likely to fall prey to anchoring, overconfidence, and escalation of commitment, probably because just being smart doesn’t alert you to the possibility you’re too confident or emotionally defensive. That doesn’t mean intelligence never matters. Once warned about decision-making errors, more intelligent people learn more quickly to avoid them. They are also better able to avoid logical errors like false syllogisms or incorrect interpretation of data. Cultural Differences The rational model makes no acknowledgment of cultural differences, nor does the bulk of OB research literature on decision making. But Indonesians, for instance, don’t necessarily make decisions the same way Australians do. Therefore, we need to recognize that the cultural background of a decision maker can significantly influence the selection of problems, the depth of analysis, the importance placed on logic and rationality, and whether organizational decisions should be made autocratically by an individual man- ager or collectively in groups. 75 Cultures differ in their time orientation, the importance of rationality, their belief in the ability of people to solve problems, and their preference for col- lective decision making. Differences in time orientation help us understand why managers in Egypt make decisions at a much slower and more deliberate pace than their U.S. counterparts. While rationality is valued in North America, that’s not true elsewhere in the world.

Do You Think Mankind Is Born Evil or Good?

Do you believe that mankind is born good or evil? I believe that mankind are born to be good, but to be taught good or evil as they grow up. It depends on how their life was or how their parents taught and treated them. There is no such as thing being born evil only being born innocent. When people are born into this world, they are born innocent and new. Innocence, to me can be seen as good. They are babies, knowing nothing, not even evil . Then they grow and learn and begin to think about behavior.The things they are taught as they are young, and the people they know do much to shape their personalities and awareness. People become aware of what is good or bad partly through experience and mistakes in early stages of childhood development, partly through what they are taught, and partly through their own conscience telling them. If you think back to the first punishment you remember having, do remember why it happened? Do you think what you did was evil? Evil has to do with the hea rt and mind choices we make in thought and in deed.I believe that we are all born innocent, but are able of giving in to evil, especially in weak moments. Those who continue fighting against that evil, no matter how hard it may be or how many times we may fail, are still fighting the good fight. As I have expressed through my paper, mankind is not born evil, but they are born innocent. Not knowing a thing, good or evil. Evil grows in you as you grow up and make mistakes in your childhood. Trying to fight the bad and attempting to be good is innocent. Most bad or evil choices are made by your conscience. So Mankind is not born evil, but good.

Frostbite Chapter 16

Sixteen LISSA FOUND ME LATER IN the day. I'd fallen asleep after Mason left, too dejected to leave the bed. Her slamming of the door jolted me awake. I was happy to see her. I needed to spill about the fumbled thing with Mason, but before I could, I read her feelings. They were as troubled as mine. So, as always, I put her first. â€Å"What happened?† She sat on her bed, sinking into the feather duvet, her feelings both furious and sad. â€Å"Christian.† â€Å"Really?† I'd never known them to fight. They teased each other a lot, but it was hardly the kind of thing that could nearly bring her to tears. â€Å"He found out†¦ I was with Adrian this morning.† â€Å"Oh, wow,† I said. â€Å"Yeah. That might be a problem.† Standing up, I walked over to the dresser and found my brush. Wincing, I stood in front of the gilt-framed mirror and began brushing out the snarls acquired during my nap. She groaned. â€Å"But nothing happened! Christian's freaking out over nothing. I can't believe he doesn't trust me.† â€Å"He trusts you. The whole thing's just weird, that's all.† I thought about Dimitri and Tasha. â€Å"Jealousy makes people do and say stupid things.† â€Å"But nothing happened,† she repeated. â€Å"I mean, you were there and- hey, I never found out. What were you doing there?† â€Å"Adrian sent me a bunch of perfume.† â€Å"He- you mean that giant box you were carrying?† I nodded. â€Å"Whoa.† â€Å"Yeah. I came to return it,† I said. â€Å"The question is, what were you doing there?† â€Å"Just talking,† she said. She started to light up, on the verge of telling me something, but then she paused. I felt the thought almost reach the front of her mind and then get shoved back. â€Å"I've got a lot to tell you, but first tell me what's up with you.† â€Å"Nothing's up with me.† â€Å"Whatever, Rose. I'm not psychic like you, but I know when you're pissed off about something. You've been kind of down since Christmas. What's up?† Now wasn't the time to get into what had happened on Christmas when my mom told me about Tasha and Dimitri. But I did tell Lissa the story about Mason- editing out why I had stopped- and simply driving home how I had. â€Å"Well†¦Ã¢â‚¬  she said when I finished. â€Å"That was your right.† â€Å"I know. But I kind of led him on. I can see why he'd be upset.† â€Å"You guys can probably fix it, though. Go talk to him. He's crazy about you.† It was more than miscommunication. Things with Mason and me couldn't be patched up so easily. â€Å"I don't know,† I told her. â€Å"Not everyone's like you and Christian.† Her face darkened. â€Å"Christian. I still can't believe he's being so stupid about this.† I didn't mean to, but I laughed. â€Å"Liss, you guys'll kiss and make up in like a day. More than kiss, probably.† It slipped out before I could stop it. Her eyes widened. â€Å"You know.† She shook her head in exasperation. â€Å"Of course you know.† â€Å"Sorry,† I said. I hadn't meant to let her know I knew about the sex thing, not until she told me herself. She eyed me. â€Å"How much do you know?† â€Å"Um, not much,† I lied. I'd finished brushing my hair but began playing with the brush's handle in order to avoid her eyes. â€Å"I have got to learn to keep you out of my mind,† she muttered. â€Å"Only way I can ‘talk' to you lately.† Another slipup. â€Å"What's that supposed to mean?† she demanded. â€Å"Nothing †¦ I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She was giving me a sharp look. â€Å"I†¦ I don't know. I just feel like we don't talk as much anymore.† â€Å"Takes two to fix that,† she said, voice kind again. â€Å"You're right,† I said, not pointing out that two could fix that only if one wasn't always with her boyfriend. True, I was guilty in my own way of locking things up- but I had wanted to talk to her a number of times lately. The timing just never seemed to be right- not even now. â€Å"You know, I never thought you'd be first. Or I guess I never thought I'd be a senior and still be a virgin.† â€Å"Yeah,† she said dryly. â€Å"Me either.† â€Å"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?† She grinned, then caught sight of her watch. Her smile fell. â€Å"Ugh. I've got to go to Priscilla's banquet. Christian was supposed to go with me, but he's off being an idiot†¦.† Her eyes focused hopefully on me. â€Å"What? No. Please, Liss. You know how I hate those formal royal things.† â€Å"Oh, come on,† she begged. â€Å"Christian flaked out. You can't throw me to the wolves. And didn't you just say we needed to talk more?† I groaned. â€Å"Besides, when you're my guardian, you'll have to do these things all the time.† â€Å"I know,† I said darkly. â€Å"I thought I could maybe enjoy my last six months of freedom.† But in the end, she conned me into going with her, as we'd both known she would. We didn't have much time, and I had to do a rush shower, blow-dry, and makeup job. I'd brought Tasha's dress on a whim, and while I still wanted her to suffer horribly for being attracted to Dimitri, I was grateful for her present now. I pulled on the silken material, happy to see the shade of red was just as killer on me as I'd imagined. It was a long, Asian-style dress with flowers embroidered into the silk. The high neck and long hem covered a lot of skin, but the material clung to me and looked sexy in a different kind of way than showing a lot of skin did. My black eye was practically nonexistent by now. Lissa, as always, looked amazing. She wore a deep purple dress by Johnna Raski, a well-known Moroi designer. It was sleeveless and made of satin. The tiny amethyst-like crystals set into the straps sparkled against her pale skin. She wore her hair up in a loose, artfully styled bun. When we reached the banquet room, we drew a few eyes. I don't think the royals had expected the Dragomir princess to bring her dhampir friend to this highly anticipated, invitation-only dinner. But hey, Lissa's invite had said â€Å"and guest.† She and I took our places at one of the tables with some royals whose names I promptly forgot. They were happy to ignore me, and I was happy to be ignored. Besides, it wasn't like there weren't plenty of other distractions. This room was done all in silver and blue. Midnight blue silk cloths covered the tables, so shiny and smooth that I was terrified to eat on them. Sconces of beeswax candles hung all over the walls, and a fireplace decorated with stained glass crackled away in one corner. The effect was a spectacular panorama of color and light, dizzying to the eye. In the corner, a slim Moroi woman played soft cello music, her face dreamy as she focused on the song. The clinking of crystal wineglasses complemented the strings' low, sweet notes. Dinner was equally amazing. The food was elaborate, but I recognized everything on my plate (china, of course) and liked all of it. No foie gras here. Salmon in a sauce of shiitake mushrooms. A salad with pears and goat cheese. Delicate almond-stuffed pastries for dessert. My only complaint was that the portions were small. The food seemed more like it was there to simply decorate the plates, and I swear, I finished it in ten bites. Moroi might still need food along with their blood, but they didn't need as much as a human- or, say, a growing dhampir girl- needed. Still, the food alone could have justified me coming along on this venture, I decided. Except, when the meal ended, Lissa told me we couldn't leave. â€Å"We have to mingle,† she whispered. Mingle? Lissa laughed at my discomfort. â€Å"You're the social one.† It was true. In most circumstances, I was the one who put myself out there and wasn't afraid to talk to people. Lissa tended to be shyer. Only, with this group, the tables were turned. This was her element, not mine, and it amazed me to see just how well she could interact with royal high society now. She was perfect, polished and polite. Everyone was eager to talk to her, and she always seemed to know the right thing to say. She wasn't using compulsion, exactly, but she definitely put out an air that drew others to her. I think it might have been an unconscious effect of spirit. Even with the meds, her magical and natural charisma came through. Whereas intense social interactions had once been forced and stressful for her, she now conducted them with ease. I was proud of her. Most of the conversation stayed pretty light: fashion, royal love lives, etc. No one seemed to want to spoil the atmosphere with ugly Strigoi talk. So I clung to her side for the rest of the night. I tried to tell myself it was just practice for the future, when I'd follow her around like a quiet shadow anyway. The truth was, I just felt too uncomfortable with this group and knew my usual snarky defense mechanisms really weren't useful here. Plus, I was painfully aware that I was the only dhampir dinner guest. There were other dhampirs, yes, but they were in formal guardian mode, hovering on the periphery of the room. As Lissa worked the crowd, we drifted over to a small group of Moroi whose voices were growing louder. One of them I recognized. He was the guy from the fight that I'd helped break up, only this time he wore a striking black tuxedo instead of a swimsuit. He glanced up at our approach, blatantly checked us out, but apparently didn't remember me. Ignoring us, he continued on with his argument. Not surprisingly, Moroi protection was the topic. He was the one who'd been in favor of Moroi going on the offensive against the Strigoi. â€Å"What part of ‘suicide' don't you understand?† asked one of the men standing nearby. He had silvery hair and a bushy mustache. He wore a tux too, but the younger guy looked better in one. â€Å"Moroi training as soldiers will be the end of our race.† â€Å"It's not suicide,† exclaimed the young guy. â€Å"It's the right thing to do. We have to start looking out for ourselves. Learning to fight and use our magic is our greatest asset, other than the guardians.† â€Å"Yes, but with the guardians, we don't need other assets,† said Silver Hair. â€Å"You've been listening to non-royals. They don't have any guardians of their own, so of course they're scared. But that's no reason to drag us down and put our lives at risk.† â€Å"Then don't,† said Lissa suddenly. Her voice was soft, but everyone in the little group stopped and looked at her. â€Å"When you talk about Moroi learning how to fight, you make it sound like an all-or-nothing matter. It's not. If you don't want to fight, then you shouldn't have to. I completely understand.† The man looked slightly mollified. â€Å"But, that's because you can rely on your guardians. A lot of Moroi can't. And if they want to learn self-defense, there's no reason why they shouldn't do it on their own.† The younger guy grinned triumphantly at his adversary. â€Å"There, you see?† â€Å"It's not that easy,† countered Silver Hair. â€Å"If it was just a matter of you crazy people wanting to get yourselves killed, then fine. Go do it. But where are you going to learn all these so-called fighting skills?† â€Å"We'll figure the magic out on our own. Guardians will teach us actual physical fighting.† â€Å"Yes, see? I knew that was where this was going. Even if the rest of us don't take part in your suicide mission, you still want to strip us of our guardians to train up your pretend army.† The young guy scowled at the word pretend, and I wondered if more fists would fly. â€Å"You owe it to us.† â€Å"No, they don't,† said Lissa. Intrigued gazes turned her way again. This time, it was Silver Hair who regarded her triumphantly. The younger guy's features flushed with anger. â€Å"Guardians are the best battle resources we have.† â€Å"They are,† she agreed, â€Å"but that doesn't give you the right to take them away from their duty.† Silver Hair practically glowed. â€Å"Then how are we supposed to learn?† demanded the other guy. â€Å"The same way guardians do,† Lissa informed him. â€Å"If you want to learn to fight, go to the academies. Form classes and start at the beginning, the same way the novices do. That way, you won't be taking guardians away from active protection. It's a safe environment, and the guardians there specialize in teaching students anyway.† She paused thoughtfully. â€Å"You could even start making defense part of the standard curriculum for Moroi students already there.† Astonished stares fell on her, mine included. It was such an elegant solution, and everyone else around us realized it. It gave no party 100 percent of its demands, but it met most in a way that didn't really harm the other side. Pure genius. The other Moroi studied her with wonder and fascination. Suddenly, everyone started talking at once, excited about the idea. They drew Lissa in, and soon there was a passionate conversation going on about her plan. I got shuffled to the edges and decided that was just fine. Then I retreated altogether and sought out a corner near a door. Along the way, I passed a server with a tray of hors d'oeuvres. Still hungry, I eyed them suspiciously but saw nothing that looked like the foie gras from the other day. I gestured to one that looked like some sort of braised, rare meat. â€Å"Is that goose liver?† I asked. She shook her head. â€Å"Sweetbread.† That didn't sound bad. I reached for it. â€Å"It's pancreas,† said a voice behind me. I jerked back. â€Å"What?† I squeaked. The waitress took my shock for rejection and moved on. Adrian Ivashkov moved into my line of sight, looking immensely pleased with himself. â€Å"Are you messing with me?† I asked. â€Å"‘Sweetbread' is pancreas?† I don't know why that shocked me so much. Moroi consumed blood. Why not internal organs? Still, I repressed a shudder. Adrian shrugged. â€Å"It's really good.† I shook my head in disgust. â€Å"Oh, man. Rich people suck.† His amusement continued. â€Å"What are you doing here, little dhampir? Are you following me around?† â€Å"Of course not,† I scoffed. He was dressed to perfection, as always. â€Å"Especially not after all the trouble you've gotten us into.† He flashed one of his tantalizing smiles, and despite how much he annoyed me, I again felt that overwhelming urge to be near him. What was up with that? â€Å"I don't know,† he teased. He looked perfectly sane now, exhibiting no trace of the weird behavior I'd witnessed in his room. And yeah, he looked a lot better in a tuxedo than any guy I'd seen in there so far. â€Å"As many times as we keep seeing each other? This is, what, the fifth time? It's starting to look suspicious. Don't worry, though. I won't tell your boyfriend. Either of them.† I opened my mouth to protest, then remembered he'd seen me with Dimitri earlier. I refused to blush. â€Å"I only have one boyfriend. Sort of. Maybe not anymore. And anyway, there's nothing to tell. I don't even like you.† â€Å"No?† asked Adrian, still smiling. He leaned toward me, like he had a secret to share. â€Å"Then why are you wearing my perfume?† This time, I did blush. I took a step back. â€Å"I'm not.† He laughed. â€Å"Of course you are. I counted the boxes after you left. Besides, I can smell it on you. It's nice. Sharp†¦but still sweet- just like I'm sure you are deep down inside. And you got it right, you know. Just enough to add an edge†¦but not enough to drown your own scent.† The way he said â€Å"scent† made it sound like a dirty word. Royal Moroi might make me uncomfortable, but smartass guys hitting on me didn't. I dealt with them on a regular basis. I shook off my shyness and remembered who I was. â€Å"Hey,† I said, tossing my hair back. â€Å"I had every right to take one. You offered them. Your mistake is in assuming me taking one means anything. It doesn't. Except that maybe you should be more careful with where you dump all that money of yours.† â€Å"Ooh, Rose Hathaway is here to play, folks.† He paused and took a glass of what looked like champagne from a passing waiter. â€Å"You want one?† â€Å"I don't drink.† â€Å"Right.† Adrian handed me a glass anyway, then shooed the waiter away and took a drink of the champagne. I had a feeling it wasn't his first of the night. â€Å"So. Sounds like our Vasilisa put my dad in his place.† â€Å"Your †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I glanced back at the group I'd just left. Silver Hair still stood there, gesticulating wildly. â€Å"That guy's your dad?† â€Å"That's what my mom says.† â€Å"You agree with him? About how Moroi fighting would be suicide?† Adrian shrugged and took another sip. â€Å"I don't really have an opinion on that.† â€Å"That's not possible. How can you not feel one way or another?† â€Å"Dunno. Just not something I think about. I've got better things to do.† â€Å"Like stalk me,† I suggested. â€Å"And Lissa.† I still wanted to know why she'd been in his room. He smiled again. â€Å"I told you, you're the one following me.† â€Å"Yeah, yeah, I know. Five times- † I stopped. â€Å"Five times?† He nodded. â€Å"No, it's only been four.† With my free hand, I ticked them off. â€Å"There was that first night, the night at the spa, then when I came to your room, and now tonight.† The smile turned secretive. â€Å"If you say so.† â€Å"I do say so†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Again, my words trailed off. I had talked to Adrian one other time. Sort of. â€Å"You can't mean †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Mean what?† A curious, eager expression lit his eyes. It was more hopeful than presumptuous. I swallowed, recalling the dream. â€Å"Nothing.† Without thinking about it, I took a drink of champagne. Across the room, Lissa's feelings burned back to me, calm and content. Good. â€Å"Why are you smiling?† Adrian asked. â€Å"Because Lissa's still over there, working that crowd.† â€Å"No surprise there. She's one of those people who can charm anyone she wants if she tries hard enough. Even people who hate her.† I gave him a wry look. â€Å"I feel that way when I talk to you.† â€Å"But you don't hate me,† he said, finishing the last of his champagne. â€Å"Not really.† â€Å"I don't like you either.† â€Å"So you keep saying.† He took a step toward me, not threatening, just making the space between us more intimate. â€Å"But I can live with that.† â€Å"Rose!† The sharpness of my mother's voice cut through the air. A few people within earshot glanced over at us. My mother- all five angry feet of her- stormed up to us.