Women Must Unite to End War :: Feminism Feminist Women Criticism

War, war machines, jihad. These words have entered the vocabulary of everyday practice during the past twenty years. They mark a new stage in the discourse of Empire, what Hardt and Negri call a global project of network power, that knits the world together in a dynamic fabric of exchange, flows but also of conflict. 9-11 was a catastrophic example of the ways in which the threads in this fabric tighten and break. American citizens felt for the first time how the apparently innocent business of moneymaking in New York City and of policymaking in Washington DC are seen as criminal elsewhere. The daily deals struck in the financial and military-political capitals of the U.S. have direct and mostly negative consequences for most of the rest of the world. These consequences are invisible to the average American citizen, they are searingly obvious elsewhere. 9-11 has a long history going back through the Gulf War to the establishment of Israel in 1948. It is a history that spans the length of the Cold War and is witness to the growing suspicion and fear of U.S. policies in the region. Indeed, the last great battle of the Cold War took place in a dry dusty landlocked backwater called Afghanistan. Having been chosen for this showdown between the two superpowers placed Afghanistan squarely on the stage of world history. It is hard to know who got there first, to find the origins of the last great battle of the cold war. One version, which I find compelling, has it that when, on December 24, 1979, the Soviets invaded and took over rule of the country with the help of Afghan tribesmen in the north, they were not venturing into virgin territory. Six months earlier, President Carter had signed the first directive for secret aid to the opponents of the pro-Soviet regime in Kabul. Zbigniew Brzezinski claims in a Jan. 15-21, 1998 interview for the French "Le Nouvel Observateur" that the U.S. government "didn't push the Russians to intervene, but we knowingly increased the probability that they would." The CIA recruited Afghan tribesmen separated from their birthplaces by war and displaced into dehumanizing refugee camps where religious education provided their only anchor. The U.S. government armed these men with guns and capitalist ideology and they won. The U.S. declared the Soviets defeated, the cold war over, and their warriors were left to fend for themselves.

Music affect the growth of a plant Essay

Plant growth is the development of seeds of a plant, which might be surrounded by a protective and nutrient rich layer called the fruit, into plant tissue that includes roots, leaves, and the stem (along with all the cells and other things that this tissue is composed of) to create a fully functioning, living, multi-cellular, eukaryotic organism that lacks the ability to move (a plant). Their growth is affected by several factors that include soil moisture, soil pH, sunlight, nitrogen-content of the soil and more. If some these factors are affected in negative ways, then there can be some negative outcomes on the plant itself which could include death. Music might also be one of these affecting factors. In this experiment, two very young plants (pinto bean sprouts – Phaseolus vulgaris) will be planted at the same time and will have the same amount of everything; from sunlight to the amount of water they get daily. After they have grown a little and the stem has begun to emerge from within the cotyledons of the bean, they are then separated, and one plant sits in the peace and quiet as a control while the other is subjected to some serious loud music. If conditions are right, the music should stimulate the plants growth. Hypothesis If a pinto bean sprout (Phaseolus vulgaris) plant is grown in a quiet area and another pinto bean sprout is grown in an area with loud music playing, the plant in the area with music will grow to be much larger. The amount of growth will be measured with a metric ruler in centimeters Variables Independent Variables: Temperature, Light, Water: These three factors are equally distributed among both plants, so only variable that would affect plant growth is the music played. Type of Plant and soil: same type of bean sprout used for both plants as to ensure that there are no other variables other than the music being played for the plant along with the same type of garden soil Dependent Variables: The height of both plants after a day of one plant being exposed to silence and the other to music. Control of Variables: 1. Get to pinto beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) to be grown that are identical to ensure no other affecting variables in this experiment other than the music being played. 2. Expose both plants to identical conditions of moisture, temperature, sunlight and have both of them grow in the same type of garden soil and they will be grown in containers with the same size as well. 3. For the plant being exposed to music, the same album is played over and over so the type of music is consistent. Materials and Method Materials 2 pinto bean sprouts (Phaseolus vulgaris) 180 ml of water 2 plant pots – top opening is 4 inch diamter 2x ‘500g’ of garden soil 500 watt stereo Metric Ruler Linkin Park Album – Hybrid Theory 100 ml graduated cylinder Method and Procedure 1. Take the 2 plant pots and fill them each with 500 g of garden soil 2. Then, take a pinto bean and plant it in each of the pots; plant each bean so that it is just barely submerged under the soil. 3. Then, take each pot to a different location, but a location in which both plants will be exposed to the same amount of sunlight, heat, etc†¦ 4. Then, just leave one plant in the serenity of its surroundings (it’s the control) and place the 500 watt stereo next to the other plant. Put the CD into the stereo and have the stereo play at about three-fourths its full volume and have it play next to the plant and have it play for a minimum of 7 hours next to the plant. Look at the diagram below for more information. 5. At noon give both plants 30 ml of water using the graduated cylinder. Do this again at 6 p. m. 6. The next day, note your observations and record your findings in a table. 7. Then feed the plants again and play the music for at least 7 hours and record the observations once more the next day. SETUP Data Collection and Evaluation Table: The effect of music on plant growth Day Plant without Music Plant with Music 1 The plant had sprouted and a small stem began to appear- 2 cm in length The plant had also sprouted and a stem larger than that of the other plant’s appeared- about 2. 47 cm 2 The plant continued to grow and the stem had reached a height of approximately 3. 22 cm. The plant’s stem also continued to grow but the stem had now reached a height of about 3. 85 cm Data Evaluation From the numbers and observations presented in the above data, that as time passed and the plants were closely monitored, the plant that had the music playing seemed to grow a lot more than the plant that grew in the quiet and serene environment; the quiet plant ended with a height of 3. 22 cm while the plant with music ended with a height of about 3. 85 cm. Conclusion and Evaluation Conclusion. In the above data, it is deciphered that plants that grow with music grow much more than plants that grow in a quieter environment. This all has to do with the fact that different factors affect or stimulate plants, and sound is one of them. And, from the data, sound is a positive stimuli as it increased plant growth in one of the plants. This verifies the hypothesis and, since there are other results on the internet as well to verify that music really does stimulate plants, the results are plausible and reliable. Limitations Not everything can go according to plan or as hoped and so these errors that occurred during the experiment provide a basis from which the experiment can be proved: 1. There was only one trial instead of several and the experiment in this one trial was over a 48 hour period and it should have been longer so that the true comparison of the difference between a plant grown with music and a plant grown without music can be easily made. 2. Only one type of music (rock) was used and so it is now unknown whether different kinds of music and sound also act as a different stimulus for the plant. Suggestions for Improvement To create a much better and more reliable experiment, the experiment should be carried on for about a 4 day period in order to acquire more results than can show the differences between plants with and without music. Then, there should be at least 3 different plants; one control, one with a type of music, and another with a different type of music. This then will help to go deeper and explore this stimulus of sound toward plants on different levels. This entire experiment should then be at least repeated one more time to ensure plausible results. Bibliography http://forums. gardenweb. com/forums/load/teach/msg0113244514471. html? /teach/msg0113244514471. html http://www. sproutnet. com/toc. htm http://www. gcagators. org/Activities/fair/jason/analysis. htm.

Impact of sea power upon history Essay

Introduction â€Å"The profound influence of sea commerce upon the wealth and strength of countries was clearly seen long before the true principles which governed its growth and prosperity were detected. † (Mahan 2004) Water covers over three-fourths of the earth’s surface. The entire human civilization lives on the remaining one-fourth area of earth. And only 3% of the entire water present on the earth’s surface is fresh water. This leaves most of the remaining part of earth’s water area, as large salty water bodies everyone knows by the name of seas or oceans. These are the facts known to all, but few really come to know and appreciate the power that seas have wielded in the development of civilization. Before man ventured out into the sea for traveling, he was just a semi-barbaric creature, with limited trading and social skills. As humans decided to venture beyond to uncharted sea territories, and discovered new lands and newer civilization, the world started to get close and hence the progress of mankind, other than strictly in the biological sense, came into picture. But, progress was not the only thing which sea brought; sometimes it also brought diseases like plague and big destructive wars to people residing on its shores. This paper will analyze all these issues, and will attempt to look at the effects these events brought to the civilization as a whole. â€Å"The history of Sea Power is largely, though by no means solely, a narrative of contests between nations, of mutual rivalries, of violence frequently culminating in war. † (Mahan 2004) History of Navigation History of Navigation can be traced back to centuries. Merchants in Egypt and Mesopotamia used to build large commercial vessels to carry and trade goods, more than 5500 years ago. In Egypt, sea voyage are even recorded in hieroglyphics, which can be dated back to 3200 BCE. One can take this as the starting point to trace the beginnings of navigation as a commercial pursuit. The first Western civilization in history, which is known to have developed the art of navigation at sea were the Phoenicians, more than 4,000 years ago. The popular stories of Helen of Troy were all related to sea travel. Phoenicians were in fact the first to use Pole Star for navigation, according to some accounts. Still under overcast skies, the navigation was usually based on sheer guesswork and intuition, till in about 2000 years ago, when Chinese created the first magnetized needle compass. This technique spread across the world in about a thousand years. In 12th and 13th centuries the science of making proper nautical charts and celestial almanacs began. By the 15th and 16th centuries, aggressive exploration of the world of the world started with explorers like Columbus getting funds from their respective Emperors to explore and enslave newer lands (Spera & Strom 2002). Nevertheless, it is wrong to think that the early explorers used to sail into the unknown without any idea of their final destination. It is true though that while searching for a specific land or route, the explorers were often surprised at the new lands they discovered. This was because many times the country they were seeking was only known in legend or rumor, the most famous example being Columbus, in the recent times. While the entire world is now charted and studied thoroughly, sea does not hold any less influence. The destruction brought by Tsunami is a very recent event. And even Mahan’s lines about sea and war, mentioned above, still hold true, as the countries still are always protecting themselves against attacks from other countries. Famous Historical battles Countless battles have been fought over the sea shaping the civilization, by up throwing older empires and making newer one. One of the most famous older battles is the Battle of Thermopylae between the Greek and Persians, changing the course of the entire war. As is mentioned in the section above, the aggressive exploration started in the 15th and 16th centuries, to enslave newer and older countries. Before this the exploration of the sea was usually only trade-oriented. Many of the 16th century explorations were funded by the reigning Monarchs who wished only to increase their area of reign (Stafford 2005). Major battles that were fought in this period were between English, Dutch, French and Spanish Monarchy. The popular battles were the Anglo-Dutch war 1665-1667, war England and France against united Provinces 1672-1674, between France and the entire Europe in1674-1678, battle of the Spanish succession 1702-1713 i. e. The Sea battle of Malaga, Sea battles between Britain and Spain 1748, Seven years war which establishes the English Supremacy over the seas 1756-1763, Naval war in America and West Indies in 1778-1781 which led the way to the American Revolution etc (Mahan 2004). These wars led to the building and destruction of colonies, and in turn exposed the people in the colonies to a wide array of culture and newer ideas which were previously only prevalent in the Europe, and had led to them being superiors over other cultures. Diseases brought by sea. Diseases is not a term usually associates with the sea, even though the possibilities are huge. However, the most destructive spread of Plague can be attributed to the seas and trade routes. Plague is one of the most destructive as well as the most incomprehensible disasters for humanity. While there is no direct relation between sea and plague, yet the spread of plague with sea from one to other port cities is a very relevant domain. The earliest and the best documented history of Plague was that of the Justinianic plague in the mid-sixth century. The Justinianic plague generally followed trading routes and therefore, was especially brutal to coastal cities. This plague originated either in Ethiopia, moving through Egypt, or in the Central Asian steppes, where it then traveled along the caravan trading routes. Finally through either of these locations the disease quickly spread throughout the Roman world and beyond (Smith 1996). Another very infamous Plague closely resembling, but much more destructive was the Black Death in 1348. The effect of sea on Plague is even worse in this case. The Plague started in China and made its way west across Asia to the Black Sea by 1347. One theory states that a group of infected Tartars besieged a Genoese outpost on the coast. Tartars harassed the trapped townspeople by hurling the dead bodies of their comrades over the town walls spreading the epidemic among the Genoese. The panicked inhabitants fled the scene by ship showing up in the ports of northern Italy and bringing the Black Death to Europe (www.eyewitnesstohistory. com). Conclusion The effect of sea on mankind has both – the positive effects of exchange of trade and ideas; and the negative effects of destruction and sometimes fatal diseases. One thing is clear however, no matter what the situation was, the mankind always managed to surge ahead learning newer things and forging newer relations. This has in the end brought only positive influences to the mankind in the longer run. References Books Mahan A. T, â€Å"The Influence of Sea Power Upon History†, 2004, Gutenberg. Stafford J, â€Å"Some Principles of Maritime Strategy†, February 16, 2005, Gutenberg Magazines Spera G, Strom S. R, â€Å"The Back Page: A Brief History of Human Navigation†, Crosslink Volume 3, Number 2, 2002, http://www. aero. org/publications/crosslink/summer2002/backpage. html Journals Smith C. A, â€Å"Plague in the Ancient World: A Study from Thucydides to Justinian†, The Student Historical Journal, 1996-97, http://www. loyno. edu/~history/journal/1996-7/Smith. html Websites â€Å"The Black Death, 1348,† EyeWitness to History, www. eyewitnesstohistory. com, 2001.

Harvard business publishing Essay

In mid-September of 2010, Emily Harris, vice president of New Heritage Doll Company’s production division, was weighing project proposals for the company’s upcoming capital budgeting meetings in October. Two proposals stood out based on their potential to strengthen the division’s innovative product lines and drive future growth. However, due to constraints on financial and managerial resources, Harris knew it was possible that the firm’s capital budgeting committee would decline to approve both projects. She also knew that New Heritage’s licensing and retail divisions would promote compelling projects of their own. Consequently, Harris had to be prepared to recommend one of her projects over the other. The Doll Industry Revenues in the U.S. toy and game industry totaled $42 billion in 2008 and were projected to increase by 4.6% per year to $52.5 billion by 2013. The market was divided into two broad segments: video games (48%) and traditional toys and games (52%). The second segment was further divided into infant/preschool toys (14.5%), dolls (14.1%), outdoor & sports toys (12.3%), and other toys & games (59.1%) including arts and crafts, plush toys, action figures, vehicles, and youth electronics. The U.S. market for toys and games was dominated by large global enterprises that enjoyed economies of scale in design, production, and distribution. Revenues were highly seasonal; the largest selling season in the United States coincided with the winter holiday period. Within the toy and game segment, U.S. retail sales of dolls totaled $3.1 billion in 2008 and were projected to grow by 3% per year to $3.6 billion by 2013. The doll category included large, soft, and mini dolls, as well as doll clothing and other accessories. The phenomenon of â€Å"age compression†Ã¢â‚¬â€ the tendency of younger children to acquire dolls that had traditionally been designed for older girls—reduced growth in the â€Å"baby-doll† sub-segment. Competition among doll producers was vigorous, as a small number of large producers targeted similar demographics and marketed their dolls through the same media. Lasting franchise value for a branded line of dolls was rare; the enormous success of Barbie ® dolls was an obvious exception. More recently and on a much smaller ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ HBS Professor Timothy Luehrman and HBS MBA Heide Abelli prepared this case solely as a basis for class discussion and not as an endorsement, a source of primary data, or an illustration of effective or ineffective management. Th is case, though based on real events, is fictionalized, and any resemblance to actual persons or entities is coincidental. There are occasional references to actual companies in the narration. Copyright  © 2010 Harvard Business School Publishing. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of Harvard Business Publishing. Harvard Business Publishing is an affiliate of Harvard Business School. Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting scale, New Heritage also had created a durable franchise for its line of heirloom dolls. But the popularity of most doll lines waned after a few years. New Heritage Dolls By 2009, New Heritage had grown to 450 employees and generated approximately $245 million of revenue1 and $27 million of operating profit from three divisions: production, retailing, and licensing. The production division, discussed further below, designed and produced dolls and doll accessories. The retailing division offered a unique â€Å"intergenerational experience† for grandmothers, mothers, and daughters, centered upon the character histories and storylines of the company’s dolls and delivered through an online website (42%), a mail-order paper catalog (33%), and a network of retail stores (25%). In fiscal 2009, the retailing division generated roughly $190 million of revenue and $4.8 million of operating profit. The licensing division was started in 1998, and represented the company’s newest and most profitable division. It sought to extend the New Heritage brand and capitalize on high levels of customer loyalty by selectively licensing the company’s doll characters and themes to a variety of media that reached the firm’s target demographic of toddler to pre-teen girls. In fiscal year 2009 the licensing division generated $24.5 million of revenue and $14.5 million in operating profit. New Heritage’s Production Division Production was New Heritage’s largest division as measured by total assets, and easily its most asset-intensive. Approximately 75% of the division’s sales were made to the company’s retailing division, with the remaining 25% comprising private label goods manufactured for other firms. Table 1 summarizes the division’s various sources of revenue and operating income. Table 1 Production Division Data: Revenue ($ millions) Operating Income ($ millions)    New Heritage’s dolls and accessories were offered under distinct brands with different price points, targeting girls between the ages of 3 and 12 years. The company’s baby dolls were generally priced from $15–$30, and were offered to younger girls in earlier stages of development. These dolls typically came with a â€Å"birth certificate† and a short personal history. Dolls in the higher-end of this category incorporated technology that produced a limited amount of speech and motion. For the 1 The division revenue figures include approximately $95 million of internal sales within divisions which are eliminated when considering consolidated revenue for the company. BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 The New Heritage Doll Company was founded in 1985 by Ingrid Beckwith, a retired psychologist specializing in child development and the grandmother of two young girls. Dr. Beckwith believed the dolls produced by the major toy companies did little to develop girls’ imagination or foster a positive self-image, so she created a line of dolls with unique storylines and wholesome themes. Dr. Beckwith’s dolls struck a chord among mothers and grandmothers who also rejected the dated, clichà ©d images portrayed by the popular dolls of the day. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 New Heritage outsourced much of its production to a select number of contract manufacturers in Asia. To ensure product quality and safety, the company maintained a fulltime staff to oversee material sourcing, production, and quality control on site at each of its manufacturing partners. Manufacturing activities that required precise tolerances or proprietary processes, along with all the creative elements (design and product prototyping, for example), were handled in-house at the company’s headquarters facilities in Sacramento, California. Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Capital Budgeting at New Heritage New Heritage’s capital budgeting process retained some of the informality that characterized the company’s early years as an innovative startup. As the company grew, deliberate steps were taken to decentralize some of the project approval process and increase spending authority at the division level. However, large and/or strategic spending proposals were reviewed at the corporate level by a capital budgeting committee consisting of the CEO, CFO, COO, the controller, and the division presidents. The committee examined projects for consistency with New Heritage’s business strategy and sought to balance the needs and priorities of each division against practical financial and organizational constraints. The committee also sought to understand project interdependencies and the potential for a given investment to strengthen the whole company, not solely the division proposing it. New Heritage’s capital budget was set by the board of directors in consultation with top officers, who in turn sought input from each of the divisions. The capital and operating budgets were linked; historically, the capital budget comprised approximately 15% of the company’s EBITDA. The committee had limited discretion to expand or contract the budget, according to its view of the quality of the investment opportunities, competitive dynamics, and general industry conditions. Before being considered by the committee, projects were described, analyzed, and summarized in self-contained proposal documents prepared by each division. These contained business descriptions, at least five years of operating and cash flow forecasts, spending requirements by asset category, personnel requirements, calculations of standard investment metrics, and identification of key project risks and milestones. Financial Analyses Financial analysis began with operating forecasts developed with oversight from New Heritage operating managers. Revenue projections were derived from forecasts of future prices and volumes. Fixed and variable costs were estimated separately, by expense category. Forecasts of working capital requirements were likewise vetted by line managers, who paid particular attention to a project’s requirements for various types of inventory. Forecasts for fixed assets and related depreciation charges were developed in cooperation with analysts reporting to the controller. HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING | BRIEFCASES Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org $75–$150 price range, New Heritage produced a line of heirloom-quality dolls and accessories. These were designed to appeal to older girls and to convey a sense of cultural and family tradition among grandmothers, mothers, and daughters. The heirloom dolls had more elaborate accessories and personal histories. Finally, the company offered a line of high-end dolls based on fictional â€Å"celebrities,† each associated with a charitable cause and embracing more contemporary fashion trends. These dolls targeted girls in the so-called â€Å"tween† age range of 8–12 years, and also were priced from $75–$150. Like the heirloom dolls, celebrity dolls also came with more elaborate stories and accessories. 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting New Heritage assigned discount rates to projects according to a subjective assessment of each project’s risk. High-, medium-, and low-risk categories for each division were associated with a corresponding discount rate set by the capital budgeting committee in consultation with the corporate treasurer. Assessments of each project’s risk were made at the division level, but subject to review by the capital committee. Factors considered in the assessment of a project’s risk included, for example, whether it required new consumer acceptance or new technology, high levels of fixed costs and hence high breakeven production volumes, the sensitivity of price or volume to macroeconomic recession, the anticipated degree of price competition, and so forth. In 2010, â€Å"medium†-risk projects in the production division received a discount rate of 8.4%. High- and low-risk projects were assessed at 9.0% and 7.7%, respectively. Projects that created value indefinitely, given continuing investment, were treated as going concerns with a perpetual life. That is, NPV calculations included a terminal value computed as the value of a perpetuity growing at a constant rate. However, to preserve an element of conservatism, the capital committee generally insisted on relatively low perpetual growth rates – lower than New Heritage’s historical growth and lower than near-term growth forecasts for a given division. Investment Opportunities in the Production Division Emily Harris was focused on two of the production division’s most attractive current proposals. The first involved expanding the successful Match My Doll Clothing Line to include matching allseason clothing for tween girls and their favorite dolls. The second involved a new initiative, the Design Your Own Doll line, which employed web-based doll-design software to let users â€Å"customize† a doll’s features to the customer’s specifications. Match My Doll Clothing Line Expansion The Match My Doll Clothing line originally consisted of a few sets of matching doll and child clothing and accessories for warm weather. It quickly became successful after the daughters of a few celebrities were spotted and photographed wearing items from the line, and girls’ magazines included some of the line in â€Å"what’s hot to wear† sections. Given recent publicity, Marcy McAdams, the brand manager responsible for the line, believed the timing was perfect to expand. Specifically, McAdams proposed to create an â€Å"All Seasons Collection† of apparel and gear covering all four seasons of the year. She expected the new offerings to be at least as profitable as the existing line, since its current popularity would make it possible to maintain premium prices. She also hoped to take advantage of off-peak discounts offered by some suppliers and contract manufacturers as they tried to smooth their capacity utilization. In the same fashion, McAdams argued the expansion would help reduce, or at least not exacerbate, the seasonality in New Heritage’s sales and earnings. BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Operating projections for a given project were used to develop cash flow forecasts that would underpin calculations of net present value (NPV), internal rates of return (IRR), payback period, and other investment metrics. Cash flow forecasts were intended to capture the incremental effect of a proposed project on the firm’s cash flow for each year within the forecast period. That is, each project’s cash flow forecasts excluded non-cash items, such as depreciation charges, and nonincremental items such as sunk costs (i.e., costs that would be incurred regardless of whether a given project was undertaken or not). The cash flow forecasts were computed on an after-corporate-tax basis, but excluded all financing charges. Some elements of the cash flow forecasts were prepared with assistance from treasury analysts, but most of the necessary adjustments were well understood by division staff. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 To exploit the current popularity of the original Match My Doll Clothing line, especially given the fickle nature of children’s fashion trends, McAdams believed the opportunity had to be exploited without delay. Her investment proposal contained relatively large outlays for R&D, market research, and marketing to maximize the probability of quick acceptance and longer-term success for the follow-on line. Upfront investment expenditures are summarized in Table 2. Table 2 Match My Doll Clothing Extension Outlays The R&D and marketing expenditures would be deductible for tax purposes at New Heritage’s 40% corporate tax rate. The property, plant and equipment was expected to have a useful life of 10 years; the associated depreciation charges, shown in Exhibit 1, were based on the modified accelerated cost recovery system (â€Å"MACRS†) allowed by the IRS. Working capital requirements, shown in Table 2 for 2010 and in Exhibit 1 for subsequent years were based largely on recent historical experience with the original Match My Doll Clothing line. Finally, given the proven success of Match My Doll Clothing, Harris believed the project entailed moderate risk—that is, about the same degree of risk as the production division’s existing business as a whole. Design Your Own Doll This initiative targeted existing New Heritage customers, many of whom owned several of the company’s heirloom dolls. The company’s research showed that, when asked what features (e.g., appearance, ethnicity, â€Å"life story,† etc.) New Heritage should give to future dolls, loyal customers’ responses had a high correlation with their own personal data. That is, girls wanted dolls like themselves. Further research suggested that many loyal customers would purchase yet another doll if they could customize the doll’s features to create a â€Å"one-of-a-kind† addition to a girl’s or family’s existing collection of dolls. It also promised to increase the girl’s pride in and identification with the doll, both because of their shared features and because of the girl’s participation in creating the doll. This in turn further cemented customer loyalty. The customization process would begin with a new section of New Heritage’s website, where proprietary design software enabled the customer to select physical attributes of the doll such as hair color, hair length & style, skin color, eye shape, eye color, and other facial features. The software could combine selected features and produce a photo-realistic image showing the finished doll with user-selected accessories. The customer could zoom in or out on the image and rotate it to see different aspects. The software made it easy to try out different combinations of features and accessories before making a purchase. Elizabeth Holtz, brand manager for heirloom dolls, was very excited about the project. She observed, â€Å"A girl’s relationship with her favorite doll is often partly mommy and partly big sister. Either way, having your doll look more like you is really powerful. And there’s excitement in the experience: exploring the website, naming the doll-to-be, selecting her first outfit†¦even the anticipation of waiting for the new doll to arrive. I really think this is big.† Holtz also believed that the dolls could command a premium price. â€Å"Customers will naturally expect to pay more [for a HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING | BRIEFCASES Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org Initial Expenditures ($ thousands) 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting custom doll],† she said. Market research with focus groups revealed significant enthusiasm for the product concept and supported the notion of premium prices. The web-based software tools and order entry system required New Heritage to make significant modifications to its existing technology infrastructure, expand its webhosting capacity, and modify the terms of its third-party service agreements to ensure a higher level of service quality. The majority of the R&D expenditures shown below were related to software development, hardware upgrades, and web design. The development time involved, including product testing, was expected to be approximately 12 months. Initial outlays, some of which occurred in 2010 and some in 2011 As with Match My Doll Clothing, the required R&D and marketing costs would be tax deductible. Manufacturing equipment had to be ordered by the end of 2010 to be ready for production at the beginning of 2012. While New Heritage had the option to pay for custom equipment in quarterly installments, the firm could get a substantial discount by paying for the equipment up front, in 2010. Figures in Table 3 and Exhibit 2 reflect the discounted cost of the equipment. To support the forecasted level of sales, substantial investment in working capital (primarily work in process inventory of partially manufactured dolls) would be required beginning in 2011. And still more equipment would have to be purchased and installed no later than 2014. In years 2015 and following, investments in working capital and equipment would revert to patterns familiar from the production division’s traditional lines of dolls. To complete development work, Holtz planned to use some of the company’s existing IT staff. The majority of the work would take place during calendar 2011. The number of people and their fully loaded costs are shown Table 4. These costs were not included by Holtz in the initial outlays shown in Table 3 or in the forecasts presented in Exhibit 2. The development personnel Holtz needed were considered â€Å"corporate† resources and were almost certainly available to work on the project. Table 4 Design Your Own Doll Development Personnel, ($ 000s) Application Development Personnel Costs: Web Application Developers Database Manager Systems Integration Specialist Total Cost BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact info@thecasecentre.org However, even a limited degree of customization increased manufacturing complexity and expense. Further, because of the low production runs and volume, fixed costs on a per unit basis were expected to be relatively high. Consequently, the breakeven volume for the project was also expected to be high. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 Finally, Holtz needed to give Harris her assessment of the project’s riskiness. On the one hand, Design Your Own Doll had a relatively long payback period, introduced some untested elements into the manufacturing process, and depended on near-flawless operation of new customer-facing software and user interfaces. If the project stumbled for some reason, New Heritage risked damaging relationships with its best customers. On the other hand, the project had a relatively modest fixed cost ratio, and it played to the company’s key strength—creating a unique experience for its consumers. Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Emily Harris still needed to complete her review and financial analysis of the two proposals. McAdams and Holtz were in frequent touch with Harris and both had offered to respond to any questions she might have about the proposals: the business case, the financial projections, the operating details, or anything else. Harris expected that she would indeed have some follow-up questions as she worked through her financial analyses. She also knew that her final recommendation might disappoint some executives within the division, who would scrutinize it closely. It had to be well-supported.

Policy brief Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Policy brief - Essay Example There is an acute shortage of nursing faculty across all the states in the US as Fox (2013) reports "Shortage of professors is curbing the capacity of nursing schools to crank out graduates with advanced degrees†. More baccalaureate degree-holder nurses are required from the view point of achieving higher enrollees for doctoral programs as well. IOM say that almost half the nursing workforce is likely to retire in couple of years. The proportion of ageing population over age 65 is steadily going up creating further strain on quality care. Reforms in healthcare system will bring millions of people under healthcare system requiring more nurses to provide needed healthcare in hospitals. It is important to note that the US Army, Air force, and Navy need nurses with baccalaureate degree. Even the Veterans Health Administration too needs nurses with a baccalaureate degree for further advancement in the job. According to Lavis et al. (2009), it is important to know whether increasing the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree to 80 percent by 2020 is an important issue for policy makers in the process to enhance healthcare for people. This issue is highly relevant in the sense that baccalaureate degree-holder nurses by 2020 in the US is important for several reasons that include changing demographics where in proportion of aged above 65 is steadily increasing due to rising age at birth in the US and secondly the goal is to enhance quality care for its citizens. Baccalaureate degree nurses (BSN) play an important role in preventive care. Being trained in public community health and management the BSN nurses are more suited for several functions that include manager, patient educator, public health, discharge coordinator. Obama administration lays a special emphasis on preventive measures and Public Health Departments are provided increased funding support from the administration. The BSN-prepared public health nurses are most suited for

E-commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

E-commerce - Essay Example Although new e-commerce start-ups involve a lot of risk, extending a traditional business with e-commerce capabilities can still prove to be very profitable. Besides generating additional revenues, it can enhance brand name awareness and recognition for your business. Hence if a business is planning to move towards ecommerce, the article mentions some of the strategies that they should plan to follow. At the first step, a company needs to synchronize their strategies and make the ecommerce website fix in the overall strategic plan. They should make sure that the physical and electronic businesses complement each other rather than competing with each other. Secondly, a business needs to analyze its competitors and look at the kind of user interface and experience they are providing to their customers. The business also needs to focus on the customers and look into the experience they need to provide to the customers. Depending on whether it is a b2b or a b2c business, the business needs to provide an appropriate interface on the website so that it is easy for visitors to use the website. Personalization is an important concept in today’s ecommerce websites. The basic idea of personalization is to cater to the needs of every visitor individually and to make them feel. Besides this, the website should take appropriate measures to ensure safety and security on the website. Often companies who have outsourced the website development and maintenance to other companies have little or no knowledge about the underlying technologies. The article mentions that is important that companies have a knowhow of the software and hardware platforms, and t. It is not enough to create a website. The company also needs to promote it by publishing the website address on all its advertisement and notices. They also need to the search engine ranking of the website. Lastly, before

What do you think is the most significant change in correctional Essay - 1

What do you think is the most significant change in correctional policy in the last 100 year and why important - Essay Example In this system, culprits were sentenced to a fortification in a city square. â€Å"Punishments ranged from physical torture to corporal infliction of pain which were executed in public† (Latessa). However, in the southern states of America convicts were used to provide labor for the state and to the rich private entrepreneurs. Duffee asserts â€Å"Inmates were often held in chains where they worked together in private sector while living in poorly managed camps owned by rich businessmen†. The suffering, torture and other forms of mistreatment inflicted on the prisoners prompted political and human rights activists into action and immediately called for observance of human rights. This effort saw stoppage of prisoners’ labor in private firms. In addition, correctional facilities had to be established at a central location to ensure that basic facilities were availed in response to the convicts’ demands and reasons for the riot. Prisoners were subjected to a fairly just treatment and allowed to wear clothes though chained onto rings around their ankles. Several other changes in policies have taken place since then, with the most outstanding change in policy taking place after the First World War. Currently, the new prisons structures in the world have a provision for inmates’ education as well as other important facilities. But what goal should education serve in the prisoner’s life? Sutherland asserts thus â€Å"the objective of prison education in its broadcast sense should be socialization of inmates through varied impression and expressional activities, with emphasis on individual inmate needs†. Therefore the aim of educational programs in penal institutions should be to equip prisoners with necessary skills and the ability to view life in a positive attitude. The changes witnessed today is a product of political and human rights activism that