Macroeconomic Terms

What I took away from week two's objectives after discussing and the topics that I feel comfortable with are the relationships between productivity and the cost of production. Productivity is being able to bring forth or produce goods and services. Understanding that there are many different types of cost that business' incur during the production cycle. It's important for firms, owners or managers, etc. To know about the various costs (I. . Fixed costs, variable costs and total cost).Also that accounting focuses on explicit cost and revenue; while economics focuses on both explicit and implicit cost and revenues. The topics that I struggled with are the understanding of economies of scale, discomposes of scale and understand the shape or the different reasons that would make the curve shift. The topics relate to my field because in the healthcare industry, the company has to be productive in order to stay afloat and they are constantly looking for ways to lower the cost of services that are provided to linens in order to increase the company's overall profit.Cherishes Whittier During week one, we discuss the difference between supply and demand and the affects that it has on prices and quantity. Example of shifts in demand would be taxes, expectations, income, and other goods. Examples of a shift in supply would be price inputs and technology. I believe that I am comfortable with supply and demand; however, I struggle with the graphs and the visuals of the shift. By taking macroeconomics before this class, in ways has prepared me to have a better understanding of microeconomics and how the economy is studied.Joan Ashcan Gathering from chapter one reading, it states â€Å"a key element in getting people to recognize that lunches aren't free is the concept of opportunity cost-every decision has a cost in forgone opportunities. ‘ The economists' model which helps you understands not only the opportunity cost numerically and graphically but this model helps us understand why a person specializes in what they do. From this I can apply to why the economy is very important in my personal decision making process because, it dictates my buying power, the market and my investing power.If the economy is good, sales and Job security will be secure. Paul Parker This week focused heavily on the basics of economics. The topic that interested me most what about the supply and demand curve and what makes them change. We have so many different factors that drive consumers to buy or not buy an item. This is going to be a very interesting aspect of class as we go through the five weeks. Another interesting topic from week one was opportunity costs. We always have to make sacrifices to choose between multiple options. We have to choose the best option that will provide the most benefit at the time.

White Settlement

â€Å"What was the impact on White Settlement on Indigenous life between 1788- 1861? Describe the meeting of two cultures that we see in Bennelong and William Buckley. † 1. Early years in Sydney- Arthur Phillip and Bennelong In 1788, led by Captain Arthur Phillip (Australia’s first governor), the Europeans had arrived in Australia with the first fleet. They saw no sign of life and had no idea that the Indigenous people had been living in Australia for thousands even tens of thousands of years. But the Indigenous people were very aware that they had come and were deeply fascinated by them. At first they thought they were ghosts or evil spirits but they soon realized that these white-skinned and strangely-dressed people were planning to stay, and that they were. These â€Å"white-skinned’ people were in fact convicts who was shipped to do hard laborious work for their committed crime. Life before Europeans had settled in Australia was a very different place. There was either clear land and/or lots of bush. There were no boats, building or roads, in fact the Indigenous people probably had no idea there was such thing. This was probably why Arthur Phillip presumed the land could be theirs because no-one held sovereign right. But the Indigenous people were living there. The Indigenous people lived happily and peacefully with guidance from their elders who knew local dream time stories and customs. They comfortable living together, helping and sharing with one another and stayed alive by eating animals and berries from the bush. They didn’t need fancy clothes, building or roads unlike the Europeans to live a good life. On the 25 November 1789, Captain Arthur Phillip, captured elder Bennelong and used him as a way to learn about the language and customs of the indigenous people. Bennelong willingly liaised between the cultures, and adopted European dress and other ways. 2. Victoria- Buckley and batman After convict William Buckley’s escape from the Victorian settlement he was discovered by the Wathaurang people who thought this pale, 198cm giant carrying a spear was the ghost of one of their leaders. Buckley had arrived at Port Phillip Bay from England in 1803 with about 300 soldiers, settlers and convicts after being sentenced to transportation for life. Before the European settlement was abandoned, Buckley escaped. He wandered alone for weeks before he was befriended by the Wathaurang people. Over the next 32 years Buckley lived with the Wathaurang, learnt their language and customs, married and had a daughter. In 1835 he finally emerged to meet Batman’s colonising party and tried to work as an intermediary between settlers and aborigines, but felt he wasn’t trusted by either. 3. Overview of their decline and dispossession of land Victoria was originally the home to many Indigenous tribes that had been living there for a long period of time. Although when the Europeans settled in Australia Batman planned to negotiate his way into ‘buying’ the land of the Indigenous people. Once Batman arrived in Victoria he approached the local Indigenous leaders with a contract, to ‘buy' their land. His negotiations were successful, and he walked away with 240,000 hectares of prime farming terrain – almost all of the Kulin nation’s ancestral land even though they were technically not eligible to sell the land as it wasn’t really their land. However the transaction went ahead, and it was agreed that batman was to on a annual basis, give them 40 blankets, 30 axes, 100 knives, 50 scissors, 30 mirrors, 200 handkerchiefs, 100 pounds of flour and 6 shirts in exchange for the land. Because of this transaction between the Indigenous People and Batman the majority of Victoria’s population is, as the Indigenous people originally called us, â€Å"white-skinned†.

A Reaction and Analysis of “Saving Grace” by Lee Smith

Lee Smith’s Saving Grace is a novel that features the story of Florida Grace Shepherd, a young Appalachian girl who is brought up in an environment that oppresses the rights and freedom of young women based on the expectations of its very religious nature. Grace, who is also the narrator of the story, tells her own tale about her quest for identity and freedom as well as her ultimate religious awakening. She shares her story as she goes through her childhood despising her father Virgil and the reality that unlike other children, she is growing with insufficient love and care from the people she expects to receive it. Grace’s childhood is bound by religious rules and codes since her father is their community's popular charismatic preacher and serpent handler. She is not free to do what other kids can do, and she is not even free to read anything except for the Bible. Grace and her siblings are not even allowed to read the newspaper as their father stresses that the only news they need to know about is the good news from the Holy Scripture (Smith, 2008). Grace also knows that she is an abused child. Aside from the insufficient affection she gets from home, she also suffers painful maltreatments from her father, whom she wants to respect and adore, but he treats her with coldness instead (Smith, 2008). Because of the absurd religious limitations that prevent her from doing what she wanted as a kid, and due to the agony that she suffered from the hands of her father acting as an honorable man, Grace grows up carrying a bitter resentment toward the home she grew up in. She also becomes pessimistic about the good possibilities in life, and she grows up envying everything that made other girls of her age happy (Smith, 2008). Smith's ability to capture the Appalachian way of life and the reality of growing up in an environment full of bizarre religious traditions has been highly regarded by her critics. Moreover, her ability to mold characters based on the known stereotypes in the society has also made her earn the admiration of critics and readers (Town, 2004). Saving Grace is seen by many as a work filled with symbolisms reflected in the names of the characters. Florida Grace Shepherd is in itself a name full of meanings. Florida is based on the place where Grace was born, while Grace stands for the Grace of God. Her last name, Shepherd, can be interpreted as a reminder of her family’s role as shepherds of their community since they represent the people's shepherd, Jesus, in the eyes of their neighbors (Town, 2004) However, while this is the popular impression about their family, Smith (2008) adds an inner conflict in Virgil’s character. Although considered as a sacred and honorable man, Virgil is inclined to bed a lot of women aside from his wife. He also seems to be incapable of controlling his emotions, particularly his bad temper and rage, which he often takes out on Grace. This sinner-saint conflict in Virgil’s character is the greatest confusion for Grace as well. Yet, despite this conflict on Virgil's personality and attitude, he is still able to win the respect of the people in their church because of his devotion and loyalty to what he preaches. Although he can be seen as a man with normal lustful desires, his ability to strengthen other people’s faith in the Lord remains unquestionable, making him respected despite his worldly sins. In the end, the readers would realize that the title of this novel completely explains Grace’s story. Aside from the fact that the story is indeed about saving the main protagonist from losing her faith and her strength to carry on with life, the title may also say that in all the obstacles and trials Grace faced, there is one saving grace which lifted her spirits up and made her hold on to her faith—her strong desire to repent, to change, and to believe that there is really a Supreme Being who governs and looks after her. The ending appears to be open-ended for the author does not clearly state how Grace chose to carry on with her life. However, as she wanted to start anew, it can be inferred that Grace has met her saving grace which made her realize that being doomed and oppressed for a long time can never be good reasons to give up; rather, they are valuable lessons she can carry with her on her journey to rebuild her new life.

Toyota Quality Management

Name of organization Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), commonly known as Toyota in the stock markets. Japanese Toyota is multinational automaker headquartered in Toyota, Aichi, Japan. The company was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda, as a spinoff from his father's company, Toyota Industries, to create automobiles. In July 2012 the company reported that it had manufactured its 200 millionth vehicle. Background/overview of organization Size of company – 300,734 employees worldwide as of 2012 Type of industry Automotive Manufacturing Product or service – Largest automobile manufacturer in the world. Brief synopsis of Quality management processes Toyota quality control, in the strict business sense, with monitoring the means of production to ensure that the finished product meets a certain standard. There are number of different elements that are important for the control quality that which includes the skilled management, knowledge of the production process, and the motivation and eagerness of the workers at all levels. In general, Toyota makes sure that the quality of automobile remains the standard across the board in the manufacturing that involves the assembly line. Quality control is the general process that seeks out to bring together a wide variety of factors which helped to meet the standard set by Toyota. Introduction to the Problem Identify the Quality Issues that need to be addressed Vehicle recalls, November 2009 through 2010, Toyota recalled more than 9 million cars and trucks worldwide in several recall campaigns, and briefly halted production and sales. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regarding the defective accelerator pedals issues in which in early 2010, Toyota paid the fines without an admission of wrong doing. The U. S. NHTSA, and Japanese Ministry of Transport have been involved in the investigations with the driver error or pedal misapplication was found responsible for most of the incidents. This included sticking accelerator pedals, and pedals caught under floor mats. Through the years Toyota Motor Corporation has seen major growth throughout their timeline hierarchy. Toyotas growth can be attributed to Toyotas company orientation and that is recognizing the consumers demands, having the right products in place to meet these demands. Opportunities Since Toyotas massive vehicle recalls, Toyotas management implemented new initiatives that included equipping all 2011 and future vehicles with Smart Stop Technology, and enhanced event data recorders. Toyota also launched a training center that will be utilized just for quality training, and training team members in customer first practices. These initiatives and training will evolve Toyota Motor Corporation back on top as the leading quality car manufacturer. Toyota is taking an approach to what it calls performance-based facilities management (PBFM). PBFM is facility management with a twist, were the focus will be on more what needs to be done, then leaving the decisions to the employees that are doing the work. This will allow Toyota to spend more time looking at the strategic planning as opposed to the micro-managing what the company has done in the past. Throughout the years Toyotas Total Quality Management (TQM) has been its strength year after year, winning numerous quality awards. Along with quality, Toyota pioneered their own lean system called Toyota Production System (TPS) which identifies and reduces/eliminates waste and variance in processes. Managing product quality was Toyota Motor Corporations claim to gaining market share over other U. S. car manufacturers but recently, during the last few years, Toyotas product quality has been somewhat dismal with over 5. 3 million vehicles recalled since 2009 and 2010 due to safety issues. Possible Quality Management Initiative Lean Principles – Today, Toyota is not so much focused on automobile production like it was back in the 1970s. Instead Toyota is focused on creating a continuous and uninterrupted flow in operations. Thus, for many of their processes, they are continually striving toward a target condition of a single or one-piece flow, sometimes known as make one, move one. Where this can be achieved, work-in process are naturally reduced and velocity is drastically increased as a result of the single-piece transfer batch size. Managing Quality – Quality is an integral focus of operations management. Quality offers companies a way of enhancing their competiveness and strategic position in the marketplace. Recently, with more and more companies accepting the importance of quality, it has become both an order qualifier and, if lacking, an order loser. Product quality was Toyota Motor Corporations claim to gaining market share over other U. S. car manufacturer but recently in the last few years the product quality Toyota hung their hat on, shattered like broken glass, and in order for Toyota Motor Corporation to regain 75 plus years of quality excellence, that was shattered these last few years, Toyota needs to recognize that it once again need to qualitatively improve on its supply chain management processes.

Outline and Evaluate Research Into Types of Attachment Essay

Outline and evaluate research into types of attachment. Ainsworth conducted a study to observe types of attachment behaviours with occur between a mother and a child. She used observation to witness these behaviours. By placing the child in a set up play room with one way glass allowed natural behaviour to be observed without interference from the psychologist. Ainsworth used several situations including a mother a child and a stranger. Firstly the mother and the child entered the room, the child was free to explore whilst the mother sat on a chair and read a magazine, a stranger enters and sits next to the mother, they engage in conversation. The mother leaves, and the child is left alone with the stranger who shall comfort and play with the child. The mother then re-enters, and the stranger leaves. The mother then also leaves, and the child is left alone. The stranger re-enters and the mother re-enter shortly after, and then the stranger leaves again. A problem with the study is it lacks ecological validity; the child may have reacted differently in settings they were familiar with, an example being their own home. The child could already be anxious due to strange surroundings and unusual behaviour by the mother, therefore leading to higher chances of stranger anxiety and other stressful behaviour. Ainsworth in her study found three types of behaviour, these were Type A – Insecure avoidant, Type B – secure and Type C – Insecure resistant. Type A showed the child being upset when mother left the room, but did not seek comfort when she returned and showed little stranger anxiety. Whereas in Type B the child used the mother as a safe base and was free to explore when she was around, showed distress when she left but still seeked comfort when she returned and showed stranger anxiety. Differently in Type C, the child’s behaviour alternated between wanting comfort and wanting space, and appeared to be angry. The psychologist did not follow all the ethical guidelines in this experiment, the child was put under great stress with the mother leaving and returning, and also in the presence of a stranger, upset the child and made it upset. The psychologist must control this by lowering the stressful situations for the child and finding alternatives. Although they did get full consent as mother of the child took part within the study, which made the situation less stressful and made the child more comfortable. Ainsworth study also lacks the explanation of relationships between fathers and siblings, the child may act differently with different people and this lacks validity as it is not a measure of general attachment.

How soon should the US pull out of Afghanistan Essay

How soon should the US pull out of Afghanistan - Essay Example America's pledge in Afghanistan is primarily a question of responsibility the United States must take for the chaos that was bear out of years of negligence and under-resourcing for the period of the Bush period.In light of all we know regarding Afghanistan after nearly eight years, it shows solid ground for President Obama to direct the United States to pull out of Afghanistan is because the public is exhausted of war.The United States policymakers have to; assess all actions in opposition to America's global concerns and the probable prospective costs. In Afghanistan and Pakistan, economical strategies don't have a positive record of achievements."America should do no more than what can be done from offshore, using intelligence, drones, cruise missiles, air strikes and small, effective Special Forces units, focusing on the porous 1,500-mile boundary with Pakistan."As conveyed by the President of the Centre of a New American security, John Nagl. He stated that, America hasfundamenta l national security interests in Afghanistanthat makes fighting there crucial. The key objectives of the campaign are preventing Afghanistan from again serving as a shelter for terrorists with global reach and ensuring that it does not become the medium for a larger regional security meltdown. Afghanistan also a known foundation that United States uses to attack al-Qaeda forces inside Pakistan and thus assists in the broader operation against Afghanistan's terrorist organization one that we evidently must win (Stephanopolous, 2009). The United States policymakers have to; assess all actions in opposition to America's global concerns and the probable prospective costs. In Afghanistan and Pakistan, economical strategies don't have a positive record of achievements. The drone attacks are affecting the sentiments of the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan and are also greatly undermining the popularity of America. Hence, the relation of Pakistan and America is at stake. Background: As Kristol stated in his article; referring to the Op-ed's columnist George F. Will's article in which he discussed about the Afghanistan and Afghanistan's casualties he was not happy about the length of America's long shot there the dismissive of the involvement of America's NATO allies, disdainful of the Afghan central government, and struck by the country's diffident. Kristol share many of these opinions. However they are just views. It would be better to find a major change in America's nationalized security strategy on disputes--especially if they are advocating an amendment from a policy that's been sustained for eight years by a bipartisan accord, and that engages the area that was the platform for Sept. 11 (Kristol, 2009). According to a latest Rasmussen Report, a public telephone surveyed that twenty percent (20%) of United States voters say all American troops should be brought back from Afghanistan instantly. An additional 17% oppose an instant withdrawal of United States services but believe a solid timetable should be established to bring all troops home within a year. Fifty two percent (52%) see no need for a removal or a timetable right now. Eleven percent (11%) is indifferent or uncertain. Democrats are much more strongly in support of pulling out the troops, which poses perhaps a greater concern to President Obama with some in his party already discussing a possible challenge to him for the party's presidential recommendation in 2012 (Kristol, 2009). America should operate its war on terror from abroad and in order to do that it has improved its relation with Pakistan as Kristol admits in passing what seems to be an additional important national interest Pakistan, "a nation that actually matters." (Kristol, 2009). Alternative Option: The prime mistakes United States made in Iraq were the postponement in decision making and the reliability of required resources. United States managed to turn that mission around and accomplish victory because Washington

Motivation and Management (Argentina Suites) Essay

Motivation and Management (Argentina Suites) - Essay Example ew of the case indicates that the primary cultural and social institutional challenges/problems confronting Argentina Suites is the absence of an organisational culture, as would promote both organisational commitment and ethical behaviors among employees, and a leadership vacuum. Arguing that Argentina Suites’ problem primarily stems from the absence, or nature of its organisational culture, necessitates the definition of the latter and an explanation of its importance. The concept of organizational culture is of singular importance within organizational framework, insofar as it embraces and articulates specific organization’s unique set of ethos. That ethos is the primary force shaping and directing the level of formality operative within an organization; the degree of loyalty employees exhibit towards it; and the ethical standards and behavioural norms that supposedly guide the actions of employees. Indeed, as MacMohan and Harvey (2007) contend, an organization’s culture simultaneously functions as the foundations upon which employees base their behavior and the environment within which organisational commitment and loyalty are born. As such, it is the framework within which an organisation’s social and institutional characteris tics are defined and, accordingly, can function to either motivate organisational success or determine failure (MacMohan and Harvey, 2007). In direct reference to Argentina Suites, the absence of an organisational culture is evident in the behavior of employees. Irrespective of the fact that the majority cannot seem to articulate the requirements and responsibilities of their job, the fact is that they do not even adhere to those responsibilities which they know to be an integral part of their job description. Hence, the front of the hotel is often left unattended and employees regularly leave their posts. Added to that, employee behaviors and decisions have, on occasions, been incontrovertibly unethical and have, as