Montagnais Tribe Essay

The Montagnais Tribe Summary and Analysis: a. The myth comes from the the Montagnais tribe (also known as the Naskapi Indians), who are now called Innus (they have a lot of names) b. The location of the tribe during the pre-columbian era was in eastern Canada, in what is now Quebec. When the Europeans began dominating the Montagnais’ tribal lands, the Montagnais recognized that the Europeans could be of some use to them. They became quick allies with the french, and made a compromise with them to handle all of the tribe’s fur trade in turn for protecting them against their enemy tribe, the Mohawks. c. Main characters: – Atachecam – creator of the earth, the Montagnais don’t know much about him – Messou – flooded the entire earth and rebuilt it, loves his lynxes – Muskrat – Brought back the piece of land that Messou uses to rebuild the earth – The Lynxes – Messou’s beloved pets, dumb enough to get stuc k in a lake d. The Montagnais tribe believed that the world was created by a powerful god named Atachecam. However, they don’t know how he created the earth, nor do they know much about him. One day, Messou was hunting with his lynxes when the lynxes got trapped in a lake. Messou looked all over for them, but could not find them, until a bird came by and said that he had seen the lynxes going into the lake and that they were stuck there. Messou tried to go into the lake to save the lynxes, but he overflowed the lake and flooded the entire earth. Messou tried to send a raven to retrieve a piece of ground that he could use to rebuild the earth, but the raven was unsuccessful. Then he sent an otter to retrieve some ground, with the same results. Finally, Messou sent a muskrat to get land, and the muskrat returned successfully with a piece of ground. Messou rebuilt the earth, exacted revenge on whatever had been holding his lynxes, and married the muskrat to repopulate the earth. e. The Montagnais believed that the earth, or their land as they knew it, was an island that had been created by Messou when he flooded the earth, and that all of the offspring between the muskrat and Messou became ancestors of all of the current creatures of the earth (including humans.) In other words, the Montagnais believe that they were the original people on this land. f. The myth sounds vaguely familiar to the story of Noah’s Ark; in fact, in an altered version of the Innus creation myth, the Montagnais God commanded a man to build a large canoe, and then flooded the earth. In comparison (with the first story), Messou can be connected to Noah, although Noah was not the cause of the flood that God created. The fact that Messou married the muskrat to repopulate the earth could be connected to how, in saving all of the animals, Noah was able to repopulate the earth after the flood. In this myth, there is nothing that would necessarily support the theory of the crossing of the Bering Strait, aside from the fact that there was a flood, which very well may have occurred after the Ice Age in the Younger Dryas era, but the myth can definitely support the idea that the Montagnais were an original people. It certainly can be inferred that the creation myth could hold to some level of truth, (symbolically, of course.) g. What we can learn from oral history, especially this myth in particular, is whether or not certain tribes are an original people or sub-cultures of other tribes. We may also be able to tentatively trace the immigration of these tribes back as far as the Ice Age or possibly even before. h. Bibliography â€Å"Indians and Colonists Relations.† 123helpme.com. 123helpme.com, Inc. 2012. Web. â€Å"Montagnais.† Atlantapedia.com. Atlantapedia, Inc. 2012. Web. â€Å"Montgnais Religion.† bigorrin.com. Article Archives. 2012. Web.

Has our Political System Succeeded? Essay

Our political system originally began with the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson on July 4, 1776. Following that document were the Articles of Confederation, which were adopted in 1777. This was the first attempt to set up a government. Then came our Constitution in 1787, which was made into three plans. These were the Virginia Plan, New Jersey Plan, and then the Connecticut compromise. The four things our Constitution accomplished were indirect democracy, limited government, checks and majority rule, and an outline of what the different branches of government do. Our nation’s two main parties are Republican and Democrat. The Democratic Party was founded in 1828, and our Republican party was founded in 1854. Since 1856, these have been the only major parties. Our political system has succeeded in many ways. One way would be our checks and balances within the federal government and on a local level. Provisions have been made and improved over the years to regulate proper placement of funds and equal rights with citizens. The root of our political system begins with congress. The main responsibilities of congress are making laws, overseeing the FBI and CIA, casework, representing their districts, setting an agenda, and conflict resolution. Our society has relied upon a bicameral system, where there have been a House of Representatives and a Senate for well over 100 years. Some of the responsibilities of the House of Representatives include reviewing bills and beginning the impeachment process. The Senate’s duties include giving advice and consenting on treaties, conducting impeachment trials, and appointing upper-level judicial officers. Where I feel our political system has not done so well is with bureaucrats. Bureaucracy has some positive aspects like specialization, making sure rules and regulations are carried out, and neutrality. There are two types of bureaucrats. The first one is a civil servant who is hired based on merit, and the second one is a political appointee who is selected based on whom they know. It is a common issue that bureaucrats are given too much power and that they abuse those powers, which causes flaws in our political system. It does, however, seem that bureaucrats are vital for the functioning of any political system; they are generally not well liked, though. Several attempts to reform bureaucracy have been made, such as the Sunshine laws, which are laws that dictated that agencies have to be conducted in the public eye. Sunset laws are congressional reviews that are conducted over existing programs to determine laws and their effectiveness. Privatization is another reform where the government turns over more jobs to private sectors. A good change for our society was when the Government Performacy and Results Act of 1997 was introduced. This sought to improve governmental efficiency by making agencies describe their goals and create mechanisms for evaluating their goals. Another is called the Whistle Blowers Act. This was an attempt to encourage federal bureaucrats to report any mishandling of funds, fraud, and waste going on in their own and other agencies. Out of that act, the office of special council was created. Overall, our political system has proven to be stable and has succeeded. Of course, there are going to be positive and negative aspects, but, in the end, for what our nation has had to deal with in the past 228 years, we have done far better than any other country.

Impulsive buying in luxury consumption among Chinese consumers ( table Dissertation

Impulsive buying in luxury consumption among Chinese consumers ( table of contents ) - Dissertation Example The number of affluent households (whose annual income exceed RMB 250,000) in China is expected to reach 4.4 million by 2015. With the growing affluence in China and the demand for luxury brands on the rise, marketers need to evaluate the needs and wants of the luxury consumers. Thus, with the aim to evaluate impulsive consumer buying behaviour in the luxury segment in China, three objectives were stated and all the three objectives have been met. The study finds that consumer buying behaviour is influenced by the internal and external factors. The thought process and emotions behind consumer decisions, the environmental variables, the motivations, the individual differences and personal factors influence the purchasing decisions. The Chinese consumers associate luxury goods and consumption with culture and history, although some did associate luxury with price. Most Chinese consumers demonstrate Veblen, Snob and the Bandwagon effect, while some do lay emphasis on their own thoughts and feelings (hedonists). The Chinese consumers do attach importance to price but not too much significance to the CoO (Country-of-Origin) possibly because they follow what the others do. Culture influences the psychological factors in the luxury segment. The psychological factors include perception, attitudes, and motives towards luxury consumption. Chinese society is a collectivist society where conforming to the societal norms comes naturally to people. The growing affluence has enhanced the trend towards luxury consumption. The Chinese consumers find luxury brands deliver psychological values as it enhances their self-esteem and self-confidence. Since the Chinese consumers are affluent, status-seeking behaviour was found to influence luxury consumption. Such consumption satisfies their inner drives and gives them self-fulfillment. The Chinese consumers demonstrate impulsive buying behaviour in luxury consumption. Self-esteem and enhancing social status appear to be the strongest motivators in impulse purchase of luxury goods. Because of the impulsive tendencies they may become compulsive buyers as well. The study concludes that the consumerism has changed the way people consume. The definition of luxury too needs to be redefined as it is no more the prerogative of a few. As affluence has grown consumerism and materialism has grown which in turn has changed buying behaviour. The motives, attitudes and perceptions have undergone change and this change is ongoing. Consumers are becoming impulsive in their buying behaviour and this is predominant even in luxury consumption. The task for marketers is complex in trying to segment, target and position luxury brands. However, since impulsive buying does exist in luxury consumption, promotions can be designed to stimulate impulsive buying. The study concluded by suggesting area for further research on the subject. Table of Contents Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Rationale for research 2 1.3 Research Aims and Objectives 3 1.4 Structure of the Study 4 Chapter Two: Literature review 2.1 Chapter Overview 5 2.2 Consumer buying behaviour 5 2.3 Stages of consumer buying behaviour 9 2.4 Types of consumer buying behaviour 11 2.5 Factors affecting consumer buying behaviour 15 2.6 Luxury buying behaviour 18 Chapter Three: Methodology 3.1 Research Philosophy 22 3.2 Purpose of the research and phenomena 22 3.3 Epistemology 22 3.4 Research strategy 24 3.5 Data

Scientific managers believe in business organisations without people Essay

Scientific managers believe in business organisations without people and human relations managers believe in people without organisations - Essay Example It is because of its problem solving capabilities through the application of scientific methods that it came to be put forth as a means of managing industries (Hughes 2004, p.251). Despite its falling into disuse for a number of years in main stream industries, its resilience can be seen through its being applied in different industries in the modern world as a means of boosting production. It was reported that during its initial application, this form of management became quite unpopular with workers because of the higher demand that it required of them. The initial application of scientific management creates a situation where there were threats of and at times actual strikes in a bid to remove the system from being used. This was because apart from the high demands it made from workers; it was also responsible for alienating them in such a manner that it put more emphasis on the importance of organizations at the expense of workers. Because of its stressing the importance of organizations, scientific management made it possible for the development of policies, which were designed to ensure that workers had to work for longer hours for lesser pay as a means of maximizing their potential while at the same time increasing profits. This system concentrated more on increasing worker output for so that industries could produce more goods for sale, hence creating a situation where the industry can continue to make profits while making maximum use of its workers. Scientific management came to be extremely popular in planned economies such as the Soviet Union and East Germany through the advocacy of Aleksei Gastev, who believed in the scientific organization of labour to ensure that the Soviet Union came to achieve maximum growth (Beissinger 1988, p.35). It can be said that the ideas of scientific management still have a significant influence on how management is conducted in the modern world since some companies in suc h countries

Case Analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analysis - Case Study Example Two thousand and five was the first time when Dietary Guideline for Americans (DGA) made a major federal nutrition policy guideline on the specified limit of the amount of sodium that should be consumed. The policy recommends that any individual of two or additional years are supposed to consume less than 2,300 mg of sodium every day. In addition, individuals perceived to be at high risk of contracting diseases caused by over consumption of sodium such as hypertension, middle-age, and older adults are recommended by the DGA to take sodium of not more than 1,500 mg a day. The analyses that have been made so far indicate that 69 % of American adults would fall under the recommended people to take low level of sodium (CDC, 2009). According to DGA, measures of salt during cooking and use at the table fairly have been stable and relatively small as compared to other amount of sodium found from other sources. In addition, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) has su ggested that platforms for reducing the salt consumption of a populace may be utmost fruitful if they are intended to focus on decreasing salt additional in the course of food processing in addition to changes in food variety. The recommendation to consume sodium that is lower than 2,300 mg every day by an organization known as the  Dietary Guidelines for Americans  is similar with the recommendations that were made by the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM’s). In their reports, it is evident that a majority of adults consume foods that have high level of potassium, water, chloride, sodium, and (IOM, 2005). In addition, their findings ascertains the necessity for public health tactics to moderate sodium consumption as well as the progress of substitute handling skills to ease the sodium content of nutrition. The IOM also emphasizes that distinct devotion should be specified to maintain texture, taste, low cost, and satisfactoriness of the end user. There has been many co ntroversy surrounding recent recommendation regarding the extension of the amount of sodium intake from groups that have the highest risk to the general American populations. According to experts, Americans need to reduce their intake of sodium, and this will promote a longer lifespan for the American population. Their recommendation is on the basis of different panels that offer their expert advice regarding human health. Studies based on the results of clinical results as well as other studies show that there are many advantages of consuming low sodium (Kovner et. al, 2011). These findings indicate that a diet that involves a low amount of sodium lowers the chances of individuals to succumb to cardiovascular related deaths. This finding serves to add strength to the recommendation by experts that Americans ought to reduce their sodium intake. It is important that people with hypertension or older individuals to consume low amounts of sodium to reduce the degree of putting their li ves at risk. Public health policies in America are then able to include not only the citizens who are at a high risk but the general American population. This is why the experts who made recommendations that Americans need to

Anyliss of Edgar Allen Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. What caused Poe Research Paper

Anyliss of Edgar Allen Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. What caused Poe to write such dark poems - Research Paper Example Critics both in history and literature have constructed a number of theories about his motivations to write as he did with some suspecting Poe’s unstable love life while others have noted substance abuse as the cause of his horror stories. To understand Poe’s literary works, it is important to be open to both theories but is evident the death of his loved ones in addition to being abused by his foster father are some of the factors that significantly influenced his works. Poe’s tragic life began when just before his third birthday, his mother died of tuberculosis living him his brother and sister orphans as their father had earlier on abandoned them (Moreno and Rigal-Aragà ³n 128). At this point in life, Poe was very young to comprehend the implication of his mother’s death in his life but in later years especially during adulthood, his reflections led him to grieve for how much better his home life would have been with both his biological parents present. The death of his mother seems to have had a psychological effect on him given that as early as age six he was afraid of the dead or dying causing him to have panic attacks whenever he passed a cemetery fearing ghosts would come after him (Meyers 76). The death of William Henry Leonard Poe also due to tuberculosis infection was the second death of those Poe loved. Poe mourned the death of his brother regretting the lack of chance for them to interact. Although Poe had an unstable rela tionship with his foster father, Poe’s mental stability and work in general was greatly impacted. Therefore, the death of his mother, brother and foster father played an influential role in the in Poe’s dark literature. Given the painful experience Poe had due to the death of those close to him, it is only natural that he would feel death as the ultimate punishment. Death is the most effective means of separating people from each other as it did to those round him. Poe therefore

Role of information Technology in the implementation of Business Research Paper

Role of information Technology in the implementation of Business Process Reengineering in government institutions in the UAE - Research Paper Example The proper implementation refers to the fulfillment of the business objective by reorganizing the whole business system. The research study also revealed that the employees’ sustainability is directly related to the dependence of the new system. The new system, which has high dependence on information technology resulted in highly successful firms in terms of employee satisfaction level. In addition to this, customer satisfaction level can also be improved with the help of proper implementation of business process reengineering. The research did not only highlight the satisfaction of employees, in fact the data analysis suggests that the overall business health improved. This improved business can be shown by comparing ‘before and after’ business performance. The overall performance of company has proved to be much better than the performance evaluated before the implementation of the business process reengineering. Therefore, as per the data analysis conducted for the research work, the business reengineering process should be inculcated among all the Govt. Institutions of the

Two Works of Art from Ancient Time and From 1000 B.C.E OR 1000 B.C Assignment

Two Works of Art from Ancient Time and From 1000 B.C.E OR 1000 B.C - Assignment Example This can be seen in the museums as they are able to collects different types of arts like in The Grande Gallerie, Louvre of France and Free Gallery of Art. They are many artists known worldwide for their intellectual artistic way of delivering message like Picasso, Leonardo da Vinci, and Alexander J. Davis who are known for their contribution in Art. Introduction Agostino Centobelli is a known sculpture in the past decade and in this context we are going to see the differences from his sculpture and Venus De Milo sculpture from Louvre gallery. They are both renowned artists in ancient craft (Tanner, 2006). Agostino was known from the cameo collection which was mainly used for jewelry which were common in Asia and Japan. It was known in the 15000bc which were used to tell manners, customs and traditions (Tanner, 2006). The sculpture of Venus De Milo which portrayed beauty and also goddess of love in the ancient period Comparison between Agostino’s and Venus de Milo’s Scu lpture The two art pieces were sculpted in ancient times from 1000b.c to 2000 B.C each using the natural color instead of using different colors. They both try to convey message to a given audience representing the culture, beliefs and traditions delivering to a bigger audience. There arts were both unique attracting people’s attention to date cutting across the world. The artists were mainly inspired by their environment and also we can see that the art are sculpted from stone. Each art has a unique message Agostino’s portraying the religion of Indians using jewelry while De Milo conveying the woman’s beauty. They both are from two different artists and were sculpted with different views in mind (Frank, 2011). Agostino’s art is more of complex comprising of different images unlike De Vinci’s which a single portrait of a lady is with cut hand. Part Two 1. The two arts use the form of sculpture as they are they are curved to bring out the different shapes. 2. They can both be seen created in the three dimensional structure as can be seen from the length, width and height used in the sculpture. We are able to see to the portrait in all dimension, front view, side view and back view. 3. Agostino’s art was with the use of stone (that is soap stone) or shells while De Milo sculpture used marble in creating. 4. From both of the art pieces we are able to see the curves used in order to bring out the figure as of De Milo and the one in cameo. They are smoothly shaped to bring out the quality of the portrait. 5. The colors used in the pieces of arts were natural colors of the materials as they only concentrated on curving and also to make it simple. In the era color was not the main reason of art but they tried to put across message to the different types of audience. 6. The curves are smooth and flowing with use of natural color. The three dimensional structure clearly tells the use of line to bring out the shape and concentra ted on making them perfect that’s why we can see its value till date. The simplicity also made the curvy areas or the portrait develop in the different decade of time (Frank, 2011) 7. They both have a subject matter as they try to give some information. This can be seen from the materials used, the portraits or rather the arts developed. 8. The subject of Agostino’s sculpture is jewelry while that of De Milo is lady’

What is the connection between drugs and crime And how can the Essay

What is the connection between drugs and crime And how can the government stop the youth crime in London - Essay Example The paper also dwelt on the issue of legalizing some of these drugs. On a final note, this paper has presented conclusions and recommendations to promote a drug free and a crime-free society. Drugs are a threat to today’s society. Because of this fact, there are numerous studies which have attempted to establish a causative relationship between drugs and crime. Indeed, there is a steady relationship between drug abuse and the growing crime rate. This is evident as we often hear about sporadic violence occurring in those neighbourhoods of our cities which have acquired a reputation for the being drug joints of the city. There is a relationship between youths getting attracted to drugs and eventually towards crime (Bullock and Tilley 2002). Researchers have always tried to find out the answer to various questions relating to this menace. However, much of their theories remain unknown to the public. This may be the reason why drug abuse as a causative agent to youth crime has remained one of the prevailing problems of this modern world. Thus this paper aims to discuss the factors why drug abuse leads to the increasing rate of youth crime all over the country. Specifically it attempts to discuss the rate of drug abuse here in UK, the nature of drugs used in substance abuse and how they affect a person’s level of functioning, mental and emotional state; socioeconomic problems which link youth crime and substance abuse together and solutions and recommendations which can help lessen substance abuse and youth crime rates. Broadly, the term â€Å"drug† is used to describe â€Å"any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function.† (WHO, 1969). Drugs are used to treat diseases, but there is a subset of drugs being termed as recreational drugs, which are chemical substances that affect

The Rise of Private High Schools Essay Example for Free

The Rise of Private High Schools Essay Intro For hundreds of years high school education has been the responsibility of the state.   Yet, in no time in history did government become so fully involved in adolescent education as after the Second World War.   The era of big government would mean big spending in various social programs, one of the most important of which would be education.   Groundbreaking advances would be seen in the instruction of various areas of education previously ignored, such as music, art and sports. Along with this involvement in the lives of their children came parents faith that in countries such as Canada and the United States, public education, most specifically high school education, would lay the ground work for a secure and prosperous future for the future adults of the nation.    It was only towards the end of the Cold War that globalization accompanied by neo-liberal economics would force Canadians to re-examine their public high schools.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The increasing importance of changing technology coupled with the general decline of public schools has caused us to look with greater skepticism upon governments ability to manage the school system in the present day.   It is for these very reasons that parents have become more open to the advantages of private education.   Despite the fact that public high schools are still largely in the hands of government in the last twenty years, we have seen a significant growth in private institution attendance.   The purpose of this work is to discuss the rise of private high school education and discuss its possible future. Literature Review Current literature supports the decline of the public high school and the rise in importance of the private school.   Aurini and Davies (2004, 2007) have done indepth investigation on areas of private schooling in Ontario such as private tutoring and home schooling and throughout their readings have upheld that private education is on the rise.   Aurini (2004) in her experience as a private tutor and in her subsequent investigation into private education has seen a notable rise in important of private education, most specifically with attitudes towards parents.   In fact Aurini (2006) goes to far as to say that appearance of private education has resulted in the re-molding of public education.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although it is clear that studies are showing the rising importance of private education they are also outlining why this is occurring.   Geiger (1994) clearly holds the belief that the globalized world and the resultant increase of demands on students and schools to keep up with technological advances is overwhelming for public schools and shrinking education budgets.   Davies (1999) adds to this argument in his analysis of religious groups and the growing acceptance by governments of their demands.   Whereas twenty years ago their was a much more melting-pot mentality surrounding different demands for schooling, with the growth of individualism world wide so comes the growth of individual education. There are numerous liberal minded authors such as Finn who believe that the answers to these problems can be given by the market.   The constant push by some scholars to consistently patch up public school problems are rejected by Finn.   He believes a more radical change is necessary to clean up public schools.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Yet, many authors continue to believe in the public school system and contend that it is an essential part of democracy and equality in a nation.   Fotopoulos (2004) claims that while individuals live in society, they are in fact social individuals and that one of the most proven methods of making them part of society is through a public school system.   Yet, other than increase school budgets it becomes more and more difficult to find solutions to the public school systems problems.   Cowley (2001), in exasperation states, â€Å"while there is agreement about the need for better schools, there is no agreement about how to improve our schools.†    Growth of Private Education Various forms of private education have expanded in impressive numbers in the Western world over the past two centuries.   What was once thought of as a luxury or an innecessity by many parents is now being reconsidered as a viable and safe option.   Canada is not the exception, although it is a notable example of how private education entities are making headway. Davies and Aurini (2004) claim that enrollment in private schools in Canada has gone from 5% to 6% during the past decade (p. 420).   Although the number in appearance may seem small it translates to a 20% growth for private schools.   In Ontario the growth is even more staggering and reached 40% with a total of 750 schools in the province (Davies and Aurini, p. 420).   Private education is gaining importance with parents of both younger and older students.   This is clearly seen in the expansion of Montessori schools as well as proprietary vocational colleges (Aurini and Davies, 2004).   In addition we should not forget about the growth of private tutoring and home schooling. Apart from the growth of private institutions it is important to take into consideration perceptions of private versus public education.   A survey taken last year found that â€Å"46% of parents would prefer to send their school age children to private schools, while 60% of Ontarians agreed with the phrase ‘private school students receive a much better education than public school students’† (Aurini, 2006, p. 108)    Trouble in Public Education As previously mentioned private education, until recently, has taken the back seat the overwhelming importance of government lead education.   An understanding of public education today and all its faults requires that we understand its history.   At the turn of the century we saw a significant rise in big government, specifically in Canada.   The culture and society that revolved around the welfare state of the post-WWII period clearly supported governments incursion into the fields of education and health, to name a few. Parents placing their children in the hands of the state held the general belief that the schools would do their best to provide equal opportunity and social mobility.   Private schools were seen to fall in the realm of those who could afford their astronomical prices. Most often private schools were identified with religion and the upper classes.   Gabbard (2004) states that public schools in American society have held such responsibilities as â€Å"equalizing gender and racial inequalities, providing the knowledge and skills that give everyone an equal opportunity to experience the ‘American Dream,’ producing a workforce with skills that enable U.S. corporations to compete effectively in the global marketplace, and preparing citizens to be effective participants in a democratic society† (p. 3).  Ã‚   There was a common desire to believe that â€Å"schools strengthen our democracy, [and] our ability to meaningfully participate in the decision-making processes that impact our communities and our lives† (Gabbard, 2004, p. 3). Whether or not public schools are still up to this task is one of the terrible questions we must ask ourselves.   Indeed, what has always been a monumental task has been further been burdened by the nature of our increasingly global, increasingly technology based and increasingly competitive society.   Geiger (1994) claims, â€Å"To succeed in the 21st century, today’s students must graduate with more than knowledge of the past.   They must have the ability to synthesize and analyze new information, think for themselves, and adapt quickly to a world where change in the constant† (p. 63).   The technological tools that are present in almost all forms of work are often not found in public schools (Geiger, 1994). Trouble in High Schools Clearly high schools are facing challenges they have not had to face in the past fifty years or that maybe they never have had to face.   Run-down buildings, over-crowded classes, school violence, and poor rural support are only some of the problems on the long list any teacher, parent or school administrator could give you.   There seems to be less schools than ever.   One report shows that,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A complete restructuring of high school facilities is needed, as the current design pushes teenagers into an environment contrary to the way they learn. The first and most important change should be a reduction in the size of high schools. Research has shown that students have better attendance, are less likely to drop out, exhibit fewer discipline problems, and perform better when attending a smaller high school† (Hall and Handly, 2004, p. 21). An even more preoccupying problem is that of violence at school.   The last few centuries has witnessed an increase in attacks of rage and a significantly more violent atmosphere.   One administrator claims that, â€Å"It was only after many years of experience and investigation that we began to understand the degree of rage todays teenagers feel and how the school system is failing them, not only academically but in just about every imaginable way† (Hall and Handly, 2004, p. 21).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While urban schools are plagued by violence and over-crowded classrooms many rural Ontario schools are lacking in basic material resources.   Low school funding seems to be a problem best known to northern boards and rural Ontario boards (Trouble in, 2004).   A study done by The People for Education shows that â€Å"Ontario’s smaller schools are less likely to have librarians or guidance counsellors, music teachers or physical education teachers. And they are much more likely to be threatened with closing† (Trouble in, 2004) . Neo-liberal education There is no doubt that current international focus on liberal economics and globalization has a significant say in where public high schools stand and where they are headed to go.   Neo-liberal and conservative ideology clearly hold the idea that most government run enterprises are bound to get caught up in inefficiency and become labeled as inadequate.   Davies and Aurini (2004) claim that â€Å"The profit motive and need to compete for student-clients is said to provide powerful incentives to improve educational services. Since such incentives do not exist in large public bureaucracies, educational businesses are more likely to deliver real results, according to advocates.† This has resulted in a rising importance of educational entrepreneurialism, mostly brought on by the changing nature of schooling and pressures in the global market place.   According to Aurini (2004) the market, as in so many areas of society, including healthcare, is attempting to weed out insufficient agents.   She states that, â€Å"The belief that competition and de-bureaucratization encourages accountability, efficiency and consumer responsiveness† (p. 476).   In addition she claims that, â€Å"For market advocates, public schools’ monopoly status and bureaucratized form and the presence of teacher’s professional associations foster apathy and mediocrity to the detriment of education consumers† (p. 476). In the presence of competition public education entities may have to admit that they no longer enjoy a monopoly.   Finn states that, â€Å"If schools want students and the dollars that accompany them, they must attract those students, and in order to attract them they have to provide quality education.†Ã‚   In addition, some research suggests that business in education is resulting in the adoption of these same practices by public institutions (Davies and Aurini, 2004).   At the core of the argument is the belief that the market and forces of the market provide better education because the private businesses have to compete with each other. Tutoring: A Growing Industry The significant growth of one sector of private education in particular provides us with significant insight on how private education has progressed over the last years.   While in the past private tutoring enterprises consisted of test-prep centers and moonlighting teachers they have now evolved into private tutoring services that may   include preschool programs, math and reading classes, and writing and public peaking programs (Aurini, 2004, p. 478).   Aurini (2004) claims these entities are a highly evolved form of tutoring, these businesses are often developed as franchises or morph into comprehensive private schools. Aurini (2004) in her two year study of private tutoring institutions in Ontario Canada shows that the significant rise in private tutoring shows a clear shift from public to private education.   According to studies the percentage of Ontario parents requesting private tutoring for their school age children has gone up from 17% in 1997 to 24% in 2003 (Aurini 2004).   In addition, the number of formal businesses that offer fuller tutoring services has grown between 200%-500% in major Canadian cities over the past 30 years, a growth that is independent of public school enrolments or economic trends (Davies and Aurini, 2004, p. 422).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In a further study done on tutoring franchises tutoring businesses are shown to be standardizing and broadening their services through franchises. In the form of what are being called learning centers, â€Å"franchises are increasingly transcending old-style test prep and homework support, and are bundling together a variety of offerings that sometimes encroach upon public school practices. A result is that learning centres are becoming increasingly school-like by providing an alternative to public education, rather than a mere supplement† (Aurini and Davies, 204, p. 419).  Ã‚   They attribute this expansion to the fact that franchising is the next obvious step in a successful business and they add that, â€Å"Service industries with many franchises such as coffee and fast food have likely grown much faster than industries marked mainly by a series of small independents†Ã‚   (Davies and Aurini, 204, p. 423).   As high school students are one of the largest groups using tutoring services, this subtle shift from public to private education is bound to have long-term consequences. Ethnicity and Individualism It has clearly been shown through data and example that private education has made great inroads in the education market, largely due to the failures of High schools and other educational entities to keep up to the demands of our fast paced, technology driven society.   It is important to note that while technology is clearly a part of globalism’s demands on high schools, individualism and multiculturalism also play an important role in the weakening of the public high schools.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While in the past it was common for religious groups to make demands on public government on term of their religion, it is now common for ethnic groups to make these same demands.   Davies (1999) states that, â€Å"Rather than presenting their cause as religious revivalism and morality in public education terms with little efficacy in todays political culture-the coalitions are evoking the idioms of multiculturalism, minority rights, and school choice† (p. 3).   Some religious groups have requested that Quebec, â€Å"embrace the reality of group based diversity in its schools, and they couch this tenet in the language of multiculturalism. The coalitions are united in an understanding of multiculturalism in which religious minority communities require separate education† (Davies 1999, p. 15).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although Canada had never been the melting pot that the United States has been education has been fairly homogeneous.   This is important because it shows the growing importance on individuality in Canada’s education system.   In Canada this is particularly important as one of the country’s core tenets has been unity in diversity.   Canada’s long standing respect for cultures has been a core element of its foundation from the beginning.   Having Quebec as an outspoken and integral culture within Canada may have even sensitized us to an even greater extent than other western countries.   That these demands may not be met by public high schools is of course essential to the legitimization of private schools. Intensive Parenting and Individual Children Canadians are having less and less children.   Whereas in the past families consisted of an average of three children many couples are opting to have one or two children.   This most likely is as a result of global factors and heightened individualism in parents living in an extremely materialist society.   The result of global parents and less children is an intensive style of parenting that requires them to be present in every aspect of their child’s life.   The psychology, health and education of Canadian children is under a microscopic lens. Private institutions cater to this new breed of parent using such slogans as calls â€Å"to ‘develop you child’s gifts and talents’† (Aurini and Davies, 2004, p. 420).   Customized education is guaranteed to secure your child with a future in a global economy that seems to becoming increasingly competitive and fast paced.    As Aurini and Davies have observed â€Å"education has become the medium to advance upon or maintain a socioeconomic position as economic prospects for those without credentials deteriorate. Higher education is increasingly sought after throughout Canada† (Davies and Aurini, 2004, p. 420).   They add that this is â€Å"creating a generalized culture of educational competition. From younger ages, more youth are being encouraged to view school as a competitive arena in which they must strive to get ahead† (Aurini and Davies, 2004, p. 420). The most obvious result of this is the re-entry of schooling into many homes.   The number of home schooled children has increased in significant amounts over the last years. Aurini and Davies (2007) claim that while years ago home schooling was â€Å"dominated by a coalition of religious fundamentalists and experimental ‘unschoolers’ a variety of subgroups are now emerging, with very different goals that range from nurturing minority identities, to meeting special educational needs, to simply seeking a superior form of education† (p. 462).   While home schooling only affects 2% of students in Ontario it is â€Å"‘shedding its image as a social or educational aberration’† (Aurini and Davies, 2007, p. 462). In addition, while home schooling was badly seen for many years, most specifically with regard to its legal standing, recent legislature have given it a new level of legitimacy.   These new policies allow boards of education to â€Å"deem that children are receiving satisfactory instruction at home simply by accepting notification from parents†Ã‚   (Aurini and Davies, 2007, p. 4).  Ã‚   In addition the provincial government no longer asks home schoolers to strictly adhere to traditional schooling methodes, and now recognize home schooling as an adequate alternative to that taught at public schools. While many scholars argue that home schooling is a result of government intervention and badly run schools Aurini and Davies take a different stand point.   Clearly the neo-liberal outlook on home schooling is that a badly funded and organized public schools are not providing children with the education that parents would like them to have.   A second explanation is that a fast paced economy is requiring a different type of education for its future workers.  Ã‚   According to this argument, â€Å"the ‘new economy’ is raising credential requirements and intensifying labor market competition† (Aurini and Davies, 2007, p. 4). Aurini and Davies (2007) argue that the distinctive trait of home-schooling has to do with the ability of children to better express themselves in a home environment.   They claim that, â€Å"rather than seek instrumental advantages, many of its practitioners aim to remove children from market (and bureaucratic) settings, reasoning that they are too precious to be entrusted to the care of others† (p. 4) What Can be Done? Canadian public high schools are no doubt moving into an era where shrinking budgets and mounting outside pressures are causing numerous problems within.   Schools are in disrepair, teachers are underpaid, and classes are overflowing.   Cowley (2001) states in frustration that, â€Å"Parents want better schools. Students want better schools. Teachers, counsellors, principals, superintendents, members of local school boards, and officials in the Ministry of Education want better schools. Taxpayers and employers want better schools.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   And we may well be going in a vicious circle.   It is clear that high schools and other public schools need more money to keep up.   Finn states that the call is the same every year.   It is for â€Å"smaller classes, more teachers, more teacher training, more technology, more special programs, more hours in the day, more days in the year, et cetera.† He further claims that â€Å"In both Canada and the United States, this has long been our chief approach to making schools better. It is like our chief approach to making lots of things better: install a larger engine, replace the tires, and add more chrome.†Ã‚  Ã‚   Yet, how is this possible when in the example of the United States per pupil spending has tripled since the 1950s (Finn).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Public schools have had no choice and will have no choice but to change to meet ever increasing demands placed upon them.   And as they change the private schools will become more and more necessary to parents seeking the education that their children need to survive in the future.   Some believe that the very creation of private schools will force and overall change in education on both ends.   Autini (2006) believes that the advent of private education has resulted in the re-molding of public education.   The interjection of private schools onto the field of education has resulted in the altering of old public school tenets. While private education entities adopt public school models such as credentialed teachers, age-defined grades and courses such as math and science they, â€Å"are also seen to ‘loosely couple’ by avoiding stark performance indicators such as standardized tests and y embracing broad, often vague goals such as socialization and inclusion† (Aurini, 2006, p. 83).   In addition, â€Å"these strategies permit schools to integrate a variety of objectives and ward off inspection that would otherwise expose inefficiencies and inconsistencies† (p. 84). Private educators legitimize these alterations by relying on arguments of increased individualism and technical advances (Aurini, 2006, p. 83).   They claim to be satisfying consumer demand for more individual education programs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is also important to note that many private high schools have not been successful when competing with public schools (Aurini and Davies, 2004, p. 423).   In fact the history of performance contractors is sometimes one of â€Å"rapid ascent quickly followed by failure† (Aurini and Davies, 2004, p. 423).   It appears as though business are more successful when they don’t have to come up against public, free educational options such as preschools, colleges and private tutoring enterprises.   As tutoring is a form of supplementary education that does not compete directly with public schools it is exempt from this type of market competition from public schools (Aurini and Davies, 2004).   This of course is important to take into consideration when discussing high schools in Ontario, which remain over 90% public.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Conclusion Whether private high schools are successful or not it is clear that they are not only affecting the market but the whole of the education system in Canada.   Their rise in the previous years from institutions created with skepticism to viable alternatives to public education is significant.   Clearly the degradation of public high schools is closely linked to the neo-liberal economic model calling for less government and more markets.   It is a model that claims to know the answers to our future and to the future of our children.   Market competition will make for a better school system with more individual choices.   Private high schools mix well with the current individualistic tendencies shown in parents and students and which so clearly fit in with the core tenets espoused by private institutions. As we have seen in this work private high schools are not always the best high schools, neither socially nor economically.   The best schools may be the ones that allow for the greatest insertion into our ever-changing society by it’s students.   Fotopoulos, in an (2004) claims that, culture in general and education in particular play a crucial role in the determination of individual and collective values. This is because as long as individuals live in a society, they are not just individuals but social individuals, subject to a process that socializes them and induces them to internalize the existing institutional framework and the dominant social paradigm. (p.15) Social apt students are often the most successful students.   It might be relevant to discuss just how much individualism is good for us, our society and our schools. References Aurini, J.   (2006).   Crafting Legitimation Projects: An Institutional Analysis of Private   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Education Businesses.   Sociological Forum   21, 83-111 Aurini, J.   (2004).   Educational Entrepreneurialism in the Private Tutoring Industry:   Ã‚  Ã‚   Balancing Profitablity with the Humanistic Face of Schooling.  Ã‚   The Canadian Review of   Ã‚  Ã‚   Sociology and Anthropology   41, 475-492. Aurini, J Davies, S.   (2007)   Choice without markets: homeschooling in the context of   Ã‚  Ã‚   private education   British Journal of Sociology of Education 26, 461 474 Aurini, J Davies, S.   (2004).   The transformation of private tutoring: education in a   Ã‚  Ã‚   franchise form.   Canadian Journal of Sociology 29,   419- Cowley, P.   (2001).  Ã‚   Report Card on Ontarios Secondary Schools: 2001 Edition.   The   Ã‚  Ã‚   Fraser Institute   http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/shared/readmore.asp?sNav=pbid=239 Davies, S.   (1999).   From Moral Duty to Cultural Rights: A Case Study of Political   Ã‚  Ã‚   Framing in Education   Sociology of Education 72, 1-21. Finn, C.   (2001)   â€Å"Reinventing Public Education Via the Marketplace.† The Fraser Institute   Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/shared/readmore.asp?sNav=pbid=270 Fotopoulos, T.   (2004).   Democracy, Paideia and Education: Culture, the Dominant Social   Ã‚  Ã‚   Paradigm, and the Role of Education   In Ross, W. E.   Defending Public Schools. (15-29).   Ã‚  Ã‚   Westport, CT.:Praeger. Gabbard, D. A.   (2004). Welcome to the Desert of the Real: A Brief History of What   Ã‚  Ã‚   Makes Schooling Compulsory   In Ross, W.E.  Ã‚   Defending Public Schools.   (3-14).   Ã‚  Ã‚   Westport, CT.: Praeger. Geiger, K.   (1994).   Rethinking American Schools in the Psot-Cold War Era: Introductory   Ã‚  Ã‚   Remarks from the NEA President.   Financing Education   33, 63-66 Hall, E. and Handley, R.   (2004).   High Schools in Crisis: What Every Parent Should   Ã‚  Ã‚   Know   Westport, CT.: Praeger Ross, W. E.   (2004).   General Editors Introduction: Defending Public Schools, Defending   Ã‚  Ã‚   Democracy   In Ross, W.E.   Defending Public Schools.   Westport, CT.: Praeger.   4 Trouble in Ontario’s small schools   (2004). People for Education   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.peopleforeducation.com/releases/2005/sept21_04.html

Chemical Properties of Silicon and its Uses

Chemical Properties of Silicon and its Uses Silicon and its Chemical Properties: Role in Architecture and Construction Introduction Silicon ranks seventh as the most abundant element in the universe and second most abundant element in earth with 27.7% composition of crust by mass (Exley, 1998). Silicon is a metalloid of atomic number 14 and chemical symbol Si discovered by Swedish chemist, Jà ¶ns Berzelius in 1823. Natural silicon contains three isotopes: 92.2% of Si-28, 4.7% of Si-29 and 3.1% of Si-30. Pure silicon exists in either shiny, crystalline dark grey or amorphous powder forms. In the period table, silicon is situated under germanium in group IV. It is usually tetravalent, though sometimes exhibits bivalent properties in compounds (Exley, 1998). Silicon exists in many dioxide forms and in natural silicates. It is present in rocks (as silicates), cement, sand, glass, silicone and ceramics (Exley, 1998). It is also a semiconductor commonly used in electronics like computers where they are formed as wafers in computer chips. Silicone is category of polymers with silicon in structure, alternating with oxygen atoms (Moretto, Schulze, Wagner, 2005). Chemical Properties of Silicon The electronic configuration of silicon is given as 1s22s22px22py22pz23s23px13py1 usually represented by [Ne] 3s23px13py1. First, second and third ionization energies are 786.3 kJ/mol, 1576.5 kJ/mol and 4354.4 kJ/mol, respectively. Ionization energy refers to quantity of energy that an isolated, gaseous atom in the ground electronic state has to absorb in order to discharge an electron, resulting in a cation. Based on its electronic configuration, silicon forms tetra-positive ions of Si+4 by loss of 3s23px13py1 electrons (Exley, 1998). Silicon bonds with hydrogen to form hydrides represented as Sià ¡Ã‚ µÃ… ¸+ Hà ¡Ã‚ µÃ… ¸- in organo-silicon chemistry. It also reacts with strong alkalis to form silicate and hydrogen gas. Si(s) + 2KOH(s) + H2O(l) -> K2SiO3 (s) + 2H2(g) Si(s) + 2NaOH(s) + H2O(l) -> Na2SiO3 (s) + 2H2(g) At 4500C silicon react with oxygen to form silicon-dioxide (silica) (Iler, 1979). Si(s) + O2(g) -> SiO2 (l) It reacts with halogens to form tetra-halides. Si(s) + 2H2(g) -> SiH4 (s) Silicon reacts with metals to form siliodes. 2Mg(s) + Si(s) -> Mg2Si(s) Silicon reacts with hydrochloric acid on heating to form hydrogen gas. Si(s) + 3HCl (aq) -> SiHCl3(s) + H2(g) Molecular silicon has the ability to stabilize positive and negative charges and the ability to affect bond strength and lengths in molecules. In organosilicon compounds, due to the relative inertness of the Si-C bond, the Si-X bond is usually much more readily cleaved. Organo-chlorosilanes, RnSiCl4-n, rapidly hydrolyse to RnSi(OH)4-n which are condensating, e.g.: 2Me3SiCl + H2O > 2Me3SiOH + HCl Me3SiOH + HCl > Me3Si-O-SiMe3 + H2O Silylation reaction is given by Me3Si-X + RO-H > RO-SiMe3 H-X, where X is Cl, Br or I. Stabilization of ÃŽ ±-silyl carbanions in organic silicon compounds occurs due to (p-ÏÆ'*)Ï€ overlap of p orbitals of carbon which is highly polarized bond of ÃŽ ± metalloid species with ÏÆ'* antibonding species near carbon-silicon bond. This is observed in 2,2-diphenyl-1-(trimethylsilyl)cyclopropane (Mark, Allcock, and West, 2005). Figure 1 Stabilization of ÃŽ ±- silylcarbanion The ÃŽ ²-effect of silicon is its ability to stabilize a ÃŽ ²-positive charge. Electronegativity of silicon puts high charge density on carbon-silicon bond that facilitates conjugative stabilization of the p orbital polarized carbon-silicon bond. In anchimeric assistance in the process of solvolysis of (bromoethyl)trimethylsilane, maximum stabilization of ÃŽ ²-positive charge occurs when there is co-planar orientation of the empty p orbital and the carbon-silicon bond (Sekiguchi, Kinjo, Ichinohe, 2004). Role of Silicon in Architecture and Construction Silicon compounds play a major role in architecture and construction. Silicon is the principal constituent of natural stone, glass, concrete, sand and cement (Ca3SiO5) used in building. Sand (SiO2) is the main component in glass (Uhlmann, Kreidl, 1991). Asbestos used in roofing is a set of silicon compounds. It is important thermal insulation. The strength of asbestos makes it useful as addition to concrete, asphalt, vinyl materials in roof shingles, pipes, siding, wall board, floor tiles, joint compounds and adhesives. It should be used with care because of its health hazards (Brodeur, 1985; Kozumbo, Kroll, Rubin, 1982; Selikoff, 1978; Wayne Crump, 2003). Common minerals present in asbestos are serpentine chrysotile ((Mg,Fe)3Si2O5(OH)4); and amphiboles tremolite (Ca2(Mg5.0-4.5Fe2+0.0-0.5)Si8O22(OH)2); actinolite (Ca2(Mg4.5-2.5Fe2+0.5-2.5)Si8O22(OH)2); cummingtonite ((Mg,Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2); grunerite (Fe2+,Mg)5Si8O22(OH)2); richeckite (Na2(Mg,Fe2+)3Fe3+2Si8O22(OH)2) and anthophyllite ((Mg, Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2). Silicon organic compounds like polymers (silicones) act as bonding intermediates between glass and organic compounds, form polymers with useful properties such as impermeable to water, flexible and resistance to chemical attack. Silicones are used in waterproofing treatments, moulding compounds and mould-release agents, mechanical seals, high temperature greases and waxes. Silicone sealants are used in high performance buildings due to their good performance and long lasting capabilities. It has low temperature flexibility and high temperature stability. Silicone enable amazing feats of architecture and the preservation of our most treasured landmarks – as well as making our homes more comfortable and energy efficient (Moretto, Schulze, Wagner, 2005). They can solve structural glazing and weatherproofing; energy efficiency in buildings; improve in-shop productivity and reduce material waste; extend building life and reduce life cycle costs; help realize sustainable development and achieve design freedom. Silicone sealants outperform and outlast organic weatherproofing materials. They enable innovative applications that would otherwise be impossible. For example, only structural silicone sealants have the long-term adhesion, compatibility, and strength required for structural glazing and protective glazing applications, making sheet glass skyscrapers a reality. Silicones are also inherently waterproof, and provide greater UV stability, temperature and weather resistance then organic materials. And, because they last longer, they can be replaced less often – reducing lifetime costs and contributing to sustainability. Conclusion It is concluded that silicon and its compounds have many uses in architecture and construction. More building materials with silicon as part of their structure are being developed for structural and other construction applications. Research in architecture and construction should focus on silicon and its compounds as an important frontier in developing the industry. Reference Sekiguchi, A., Kinjo, R and Ichinohe, M (2004). A stable compound containing a silicon-silicon triple bond. Science Vol. 305, No. 5691, p. 1755–7. Moretto, H-H, Schulze, M., and Wagner Gebhard (2005) Silicones in Ullmanns Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. Kozumbo, W. J., Kroll, R. and Rubin, R. J. (1982). Assessment of the mutagenicity of phthalate esters. Environmental Health Perspectives, No. 45, p. 103–109. Mark, J. E., Allcock, H. R. and West, R. (2005). Inorganic Polymers. Oxford University. p.155. Wayne, B. D. and Crump, K. S. (2003). Final draft: technical support document for a protocol to assess asbestos-related risk. Washington DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. p.474. Selikoff, Irving J. (1978). Asbestos and Disease. Elsevier. pp.20–32. Brodeur, Paul (1985). Outrageous Misconduct: The Asbestos Industry on Trial (1st ed.). Pantheon Books. Iler, R. K. (1979). The Chemistry of Silica. Plenum Press. Uhlmann, D. R. and Kreidl, N. J. ed. (1991). Optical properties of glass. Westerville, OH: American Ceramic Society. Exley, C (1998). Silicon in life: A bioinorganic solution to bioorganic essentiality. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry Vol. 69, No. 3, p. 139.

The Importance of Effective Listening Skills in the Workplace Essay

The Importance of Effective Listening Skills in the Workplace Every business consists of a variety of communication activities such as listening, speaking, questioning, gathering and participating in small work groups. The listening skill is one of the most important aspects of communication process. It helps to understand and read the other person’s message. Effective listening skills create positive workplace relationships which influence our opinions and responsiveness to one another. There is a big difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is a physical ability that the ears receive feelings and transmit them to the brain while listening is a skill. Listening skills allow one to make sense of what another person is saying. In other words, listening skills let you to understand what someone is "talking about†. It requires concentration so that your brain processes meaning from words and sentences. Listening and understanding what others communicate to us is the communication process needed for interpersonal effectiveness. If you listen well, you will understand the meaning of the message. If you are unfocused, you will not know most of what the other person is saying. However, there is a range of listening skills that can be learned to develop the communication effectiveness. Firstly, encouraging listening points to the listener that is willing to do more than listen. Usually it provides feedback that supports speakers to say more. Fur...

Understanding Generalized Anxiety Disorder Essay -- Biology Essays Res

Understanding Generalized Anxiety Disorder Anxiety is a common occurrence and emotion in everyday life. Yet there are several individuals today who suffer from great pangs of anxiety and feelings of panic at such extremely high levels that it becomes quite debilitating. A normal, everyday environment can become so overwhelming that the day itself can stop dead in its tracks while the sufferer rides through the wave of intense emotions and thoughts which seem to be going a million miles a minute and showing no signs of stopping or slowing down. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is one of a multitude of Anxiety Disorders that affect many people around the world. An individual suffering from GAD differs from anyone else dealing with natural anxiety due to the chronic and exaggerated worrying that can occur on a daily basis. The worries and anxieties usually are not provoked by anything, and finding the source of the worries is usually quite difficult. They are associated with daily things, such as but not limited to, health, money, family, or work. People with GAD cannot alleviate their concerns and usually become so overwhelmed by the anxiety that getting through the day and doing their usual activities proves too difficult.(1) As a disorder, GAD is diagnosable. However, it is usually a difficult thing to do since GAD, unlike many of the other Anxiety Disorders out there, does not have any definite symptoms like a "panic attack". Individuals are diagnosed with GAD when they spend at least six months worrying excessively about a number of everyday problems and the worrying happens more often than not. Other symptoms of GAD may include: Trouble falling or staying asleep, muscle tension, sweating, nausea, gastrointestinal... ...and problems that can go on with the brain show how delicate a human's mentality and stability is, and how vulnerable it seems to be to the rapidly changing times and developments of society. It seems to be the nature of the brain and mentality to be slow in adjusting to the various new outputs that are created as society and the world progresses. Will science be able to find a way to make the brain adjust and accept change more quickly? This can be seen as a task similar to making evolution as fast as the first world's rate of development. References 1)http://www.nimh.nih.gov/anxiety/anxiety/gad/gadinfo.htm 2)http://www.adaa.org/AnxietyDisorderInfor/GAD.cfm 3)http://www.nimh.nih.gov/anxiety/anxiety/gad/gadfax.htm 4)http://psychcentral.com/disorders/sx24t.htm 5)http://www.buspar.com/whatis.htm 6)http://www.anxietynetwork.com/gawhat.html

Instructor’s Resources Essay

1.Philosophy Behind the Strategic Management Course Strategic Management is the capstone course for business administration majors. Students learn new strategy formulation, implementation, and evaluation concepts and techniques. Students use this new knowledge, coupled with knowledge acquired from other courses, to chart the future direction of different organizations. Strategic Management students analyze firms in different industries, make objective strategic decisions for companies, and justify those decisions through oral or written communication. Students recommend strategies for the organizations studied and specify how those strategies could best be implemented. Strategic Management is a challenging and exciting course for students. Strategic Management is an interesting course to teach because the problems and issues of strategic management cover the whole spectrum of business, including finance, marketing, management, management information systems, production operations, economics, and statistics. Strategic management is an emerging and rapidly developing discipline. Weighing the pros and cons of alternative strategies entails a total enterprise perspective and a talent for judging how all relevant factors fit together. This is quite a contrast to other required and elective courses, which are generally concerned with a narrower, more specialized body of knowledge. Although the features of Strategic Management pose an instructional challenge, there is plenty of opportunity to make the study of strategic management the best course in the business curriculum. There are different ways to teach a good course in Strategic Management. Some instructors supplement the text with a management simulation game; some instructors assign outside readings; some use experiential exercises in class; and some instructors invite guest speakers to class. Most Strategic Management professors use cases. The amount of class time devoted to lecture and case analysis varies considerably among instructors. If you are experienced in teaching Strategic Management, you may have resolved many pedagogical issues to your own satisfaction. However, if this is the first time you are teaching Strategic Management, then the information provided in the next few pages could help you structure your own course. 2.Importance of Strategic Management Cases Strategic Management cases represent the most commonly used method for applying strategic-management concepts and techniques in different types and sizes of organizations. A Strategic Management case typically describes the external conditions and internal situation facing a firm and presents sufficient information to develop, analyze, and choose among alternative  strategies. Strategic Management can be a very exciting course with the use of just text and cases alone. The 29 Strategic Management cases in the Thirteenth edition of Strategic Management represent the most up-to-date compilation of cases ever assembled in a policy text. The cases cover a broad spectrum of business and industry situations. All of the cases in this text are undisguised. The cases are about real organizations and real people. Most of the cases concern well-known firms. Using the cases in this text, students do not have to put themselves back in time to understand the economic and political conditions surrounding the strategic decisions to be made. Students can go to their college library and easily find additional information to supplement all of the cases in this text. Students find current cases more interesting, more exciting, and more realistic than older cases. This fact adds a great deal of life and realism to Strategic Management when the Strategic Management text is used. All of the cases in this text have been class tested to ensure that they are interesting, challenging, and effective for illustrating strategic-management concepts. I believe you will find the collection of cases to complement any approach you use in teaching Strategic Management at the undergraduate or graduate level. You will also find the teachers’ notes in the Case Solutions Manual to be exceptionally well done. The 29 cases in this text are listed along with the respective case authors and their school affiliation. The industries represented by the cases are also given. The cases are listed below in the order in which they appear in the text. The case manual contains information about the topics that the individual cases cover. Cases Included in the Thirteenth Edition of the Textbook 1. Walt Disney Company — 2009, Mernoush Banton 2. Merryland Amusement Park — 2009, Gregory Stone 3. JetBlue Airways Corporation — 2009, Mernoush Banton 4. AirTran Airways, Inc. — 2009, Charles M. Byles 5. Family Dollar Stores, Inc. — 2009, Joseph W. Leonard 6. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. — 2009, Amit J. Shah and Michael L. Monahanat 7. Whole Foods Market, Inc. — 2009, James L. Harbin and Patricia Humphrey 8. Macy’s, Inc. — 2009, Rochelle R. Brunson and Marlene M. Reed 9. Yahoo! Inc. — 2009, Hamid Kazeroony 10. eBay Inc. — 2009, Lori Radulovich 11. Wells Fargo Corporation — 2009, Donald L. Crooks, Robert S. Goodman, and John Burbridge 12. Krispy Kreme Doughnuts (KKD) — 2009, John Burbridge and Coleman Rich 13. Starbucks Corporation — 2009, Sharynn Tomlin 14. The United States Postal Service (USPS) — 2009, Fred and Forest David 15. National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK) — 2009, Kristopher J. Blanchard 16. Goodwill of San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin Counties — 2009, Mary E. Vradelis 17. Harley-Davidson, Inc. — 2009, Carol Pope and Joanne Mack 18. Ford Motor Company — 2009, Alen Badal 19. Kraft Foods Inc. — 2009, Kristopher J. Blanchard 20. Hershey Company — 2009, Anne Walsh and Ellen Mansfield 21. Johnson & Johnson — 2009, Sharynn Tomlin, Matt Milhauser, Bernhard Gierke, Thibault Lefebvre, and Mario Martinez 22. Avon Products Inc. — 2009, Rochelle R. Brunson and Marlene M. Reed 23. Molson Coors — 2009, Amit J. Shah 24. PepsiCo — 2009, John and Sherry Ross 25. Pfizer, Inc. — 2009, Vijaya Narapareddy 26. Merck & Company Inc. — 2010, Mernoush Banton 27. Nike, Inc. — 2010, Randy Harris 28. Callaway Golf Company — 2009, Amit J. Shah 29. Chevron Corporation — 2009, Linda Herkenhoff A question that arises concerning cases is the appropriate number of cases to cover in an academic term. That can vary depending on factors such as whether a Strategic Management simulation game is used, how many written  comprehensive case analyses are assigned, whether the class is divided into teams of students, and whether outside readings, class speakers, or videotapes are used. I personally find 10 cases to be an appropriate amount to cover, as indicated in the course syllabus presented in a few pages. 3.The McDonald’s Cohesion Case This edition features a new Cohesion Case on McDonald’s Corporation. The Cohesion Case allows students to apply strategic-management concepts and techniques to a real organization as chapter material is covered in class. This integrative or cohesive approach readies students for case analysis. The Cohesion Case provides a continuous illustration of the interdependence of parts of the strategic-management process. Assurance of Learning Exercises at the end of each chapter apply concepts to the Cohesion Case. 4.Assurance of Learning Exercises This is about the only Strategic Management text that offers strategic-management Assurance of Learning Exercises both on-line and at the end of chapters. The end-of-chapter Assurance of Learning Exercises are designed to get students involved, to increase students’ interest in the course, and to aid students in learning how to apply important concepts and techniques. The Assurance of Learning Exercises allow students to test newly learned theories, concepts, and analytical techniques. The exercises also help students make the transition from school to work more easily. The Assurance of Learning Exercises can be used for homework assignments, individual class work, group assignments, or extra-credit work. They offer a great change of pace in class. On average, there are five exercises at the end of each chapter. A couple of the exercises apply chapter material to the McDonald’s Cohesion Case. At least one exercise applies chapter material to the student’s own college or university and at least one exercise instructs the student to contact or visit a local business to explore important strategic-management topics. You will not be able to do all of the Assurance of Learning Exercises, due to time limitations in class, but take the time to do as many as possible. I personally devote about 15 minutes of each class to Assurance of Learning Exercises and assign students one exercise homework assignment for each class. Ask students to put answers to the Assurance of Learning Exercises either in their notes or on a separate sheet of paper rather than writing in the text itself. This would present a problem in usage of the text in later semesters if answers to the exercises were written in the text. The Assurance of Learning Exercises Included in the Thirteenth Edition Chapter 1: Exercise 1A: Gathering Strategy Information Exercise 1B: Strategic Planning for My University Exercise 1C: Strategic Planning at a Local Company Exercise 1D: Getting Familiar with SMCO Chapter 2: Exercise 2A: Evaluating Mission Statements Exercise 2B: Writing a Vision and Mission Statement for McDonald’s Corporation Exercise 2C: Writing a Vision and Mission Statement for My University Exercise 2D: Conducting Mission Statement Research Chapter 3: Exercise 3A: Developing an EFE Matrix for McDonald’s Corporation Exercise 3B: The External Assessment Exercise 3C: Developing an EFE Matrix for My University Exercise 3D: Developing a Competitive Profile Matrix for McDonald’s Corporation Exercise 3E: Developing a Competitive Profile Matrix for My University Chapter 4: Exercise 4A: Performing a Financial Ratio Analysis for McDonald’s Corporation Exercise 4B: Constructing an IFE Matrix for McDonald’s Corporation Exercise 4C: Constructing an IFE Matrix for My University Chapter 5: Exercise 5A: What Strategies Should McDonald’s Pursue in 2011-2013? Exercise 5B: Examining Strategy Articles Exercise 5C: Classifying Some Year 2009 Strategies Exercise 5D: How Risky Are Various Alternative Strategies? Exercise 5E: Developing Alternative Strategies for My University Exercise 5F: Lessons in Doing Business Globally Chapter 6: Exercise 6A: Developing a SWOT Matrix for McDonald’s Exercise 6B: Developing a SPACE Matrix for McDonald’s Exercise 6C: Developing a BCG Matrix for McDonald’s Exercise 6D: Developing a QSPM for McDonald’s Exercise 6E: Formulating Individual Strategies Exercise 6F: The Mach Test Exercise 6G: Developing a BCG Matrix for My University Exercise 6H: The Role of Boards of Directors Exercise 6I: Locating Companies in a Grand Strategy Matrix Chapter 7: Exercise 7A: Revising McDonald’s Organizational Chart Exercise 7B: Do Organizations Really Establish Objectives? Exercise 7C: Understanding My University’s Culture Chapter 8: Exercise 8A: Developing a Product-Positioning Map for McDonald’s Exercise 8B: Performing an EPS/EBIT Analysis for McDonald’s Exercise 8C: Preparing Projected Financial Statements for McDonald’s Exercise 8D: Determining the Cash Value of McDonald’s Exercise 8E: Developing a Product-Positioning Map for My University Exercise 8F: Do Banks Require Projected Financial Statements? Chapter 9: Exercise 9A: Preparing a Strategy-Evaluation Report for McDonald’s Corp. Exercise 9B: Evaluating My University’s Strategies Chapter 10: Exercise 10A: Does McDonald’s Have a Code of Business Ethics? Exercise 10B: The Ethics of Spying on Competitors Exercise 10C: Who Prepares a Sustainability Report? Chapter 11: Exercise 11A: McDonald’s Wants to Enter Africa. Help Them. Exercise 11B: Does My University Recruit in Foreign Countries? Exercise 11C: Assessing Differences in Culture Across Countries Exercise 11D: How Well Traveled Are Business Students at Your University? 5. Description of the Supplements for the Thirteenth Edition Supplements are available for adopting instructors to download at www.pearsonhighered.com/irc. Registration is simple and gives the instructor immediate access to new titles and new editions. Pearson’s dedicated technical support team is ready to help instructors with the media supplements that accompany this text. The instructor should visit http://247.pearsoned.com/ for answers to frequently asked questions and for toll-free user support phone numbers. Supplements include: Instructor’s Manual—This manual includes lecture objectives, outlines, and answers to all end-of-chapter material and Assurance of Learning exercises. In addition, several supplemental Assurance of Learning exercises and answers are included. Case Instructor’s Manual—this solutions manual includes abstracts, discussion questions, and audits for each case. PowerPoint Presentations – The PowerPoint slides highlight text learning objectives and key topics and serve as an excellent aid for classroom presentations and lectures. Test Item File – This test bank features for each chapter on average 50 True/False questions, 50 Multiple-Choice questions, and 10 Essay questions with page references and difficulty level provided for each question. The Test Item File has been written specifically for this edition and is provided in MS Word, so that instructors can easily incorporate select questions into their own tests. TestGen (test-generating program) – The test bank is also available on TestGen, a test-generating program that allows instructors to add, edit, or  delete questions from the test bank; analyze test results; and organize a database of exams and student results. Videos on DVD—The DVD contains video segments that illustrate the most pertinent topics in management today and highlight relevant issues in the news, demonstrating how people lead, manage, and work effectively; ISBN 0-13-612547-6. Video Guide – The video guide provides a brief summary of each clip and suggested questions for discussion followed by possible answers. MyManagementLab – MyManagementLab provides help beyond homework with a range of assessment options and tutorial resources that help students learn from their mistakes. Allowing you to teach a course your way, use this as an out-of-the-box resource for students who need extra help, or take full advantage of its advanced customization options. For more information, go to www.mymanagementlab.com.

The Likeliness of Being Different

Based on every class, every story, and every essay I've sat through learning or writing about Human Development, I don't think I can fit the term into the simple definition that it is the unfolding of the human potential in each person's unique environment. It just feels like so much more. Among the many things that have been engraved in my mind about the subject, the idea that everything is due to our genes and environment fascinates me the most. Development starts at conception, and because of that everything that happens in during our lifetime is a contribution to our development as human beings. Frances Klagsbrun's article â€Å"Long-Term Marriages† tries to explains the secrets being long lasting marriages. The article resembles our first assignment where we had to go out and interview couples about their marriage recipe. Klagsbrun clearly writes from a North American point of view. She divides the â€Å"secrets† into eight categories: an ability to change and tolerate change, an ability to live with the unchangeable, an assumption of permanence, trust, a balance of dependencies, an enjoyment of each other, a shared history that is cherished, and luck. If we compare said article to Nicholas D. Kristof's â€Å"Who Needs Love! In Japan, Many Couple Don't,† we can see how these secrets are relevant to just one certain culture, or certain types of people. Japanese marriages, as one of the interviewee said aren’t made out of love: â€Å"Love marriages are more fragile than arranged marriages. † The article shows how wives aren't told ‘I l ove you' or complimented for a good dinner, or shown any affection, and they aren't happy. Instead, Japanese marriages, are long lasting, not because of the categories Klagsbrun told us about, but because divorce is looked down upon, and Japanese people don't want to be gossiped about. These two articles show how marriage does have a common universal goal. Marriages want to last â€Å"forever. † But, the recipe on how to make that delicious long last marriage varies from culture to culture. f In â€Å"Relationships,† a chapter of Human Aging, the authors discussed how friendships work across cohorts. People with friends, regardless of their age, have more social support and, as a result seem to enjoy better health and lower mortality rates. The article stresses how different genders deal with friendships. Women tend to develop a more sentimental attachment to friends, while men depend on friends to be active with. One interesting thing about people is that the number of friends they have stays relatively stable throughout their lifetime. If they had a lot of close friends in their young adult days, then they will tend to have a large amount of close friends, as they grow older; if they had a few close friends in their young adult days, then they will more than likely have a few close friends as older adults. One of the things that differ between older people and younger people is the number of people in their lives. Older people reduce the number of people in their lives who do not provide emotional closeness and focus more on those who do. Younger people don't focus on people who offer that kind of reward, and that is a difference among cohorts. However, some things stay the same even across cohorts: Both younger and older friends maintain a strong emotional attachment. Younger and older friends trust and understand one another. These aspects of friendship always seem to be present and are found in cross-sectional and longitudinal comparisons. It seems to me, that as we develop, we realize that some of the â€Å"friends† we have aren't necessary. They don't offer us anything, and when I say, â€Å"offer† I don't mean gifts and trips, I mean those other sentimental things like confidence, love, life experience, etc. As we age, we realize that it's necessary to cut those people who aren't benefiting our lives, and keep those who do, in. Those who we chose to keep in our lives help us achieve our human potential, hopefully. As a society, we seem to be easily impressed with high I. Q. In his article â€Å"What's Your Emotional I. Q.? † Daniel Goleman tells the story of a bus driver who was very cheerful and good at his job. He engaged with riders by greeting them with a happy smile. Then he switched over to a story of a straight A Florida High School student who really wanted to go to Harvard Medical School. Once he got an 80 on a quiz, and his reaction was to stab his teacher. The article suggests that I. Q. doesn't determine all of the success waiting in someone's future, just about 20 percent. As a North American society, what help us achieve our human potential are other things like self-awareness, mood management, self-motivation, impulse control, and people skills. Like we learned in class – these types of test tell us how someone performs on a test. A longitudinal study was made with children from the 1960s to test their self-motivation. The study tested preschool children with a marshmallow. They were told right before being given the marshmallow that, if they waited for the experimenter to come back, they'd get 2 marshmallows. Some kids settled for the quick one-marshmallow while some waited for the experimenter to come back, to get two. Some of the kids closed their eyes to keep themselves from being tempted into eating the marshmallow. When these children became adolescents, the same characteristics were seen in them. The ones who had waited for the experimenter to come back were more socially competent and self-assertive and better able to cope with life's frustrations, while the others who hadn't waited were more likely to be stubborn and stressed. In the end, this article explains that I. Q. isn't what's important, but rather the emotional intelligence that helps us achieve our maximum human potential. Lou Ann Walker's â€Å"We Can Control How We Age,† presents three projects that were started in the 1920s and followed throughout a lifetime. There were different types of people involved, of different ages and from different places in North America. There were a total of 824 men and women. The study divided the individuals who were now between the ages of 60 and 80 into two categories, the â€Å"Happy-Well† and the â€Å"Sad-Sick. † This was one of the most interesting articles I read. The study interviewed and studied these people from different cultures and age groups, and regions, and gender to see how they had lived their life and how they controlled how they aged. The study did come up with a list of successful strategies that worked across cultures and various differences. An example was how people who stopped smoking before 50, lived longer, and those who were in happy marriages, and healthy and optimistic. All of those factors contributed to a long life, full of health. Despite the differences in culture or cohort, it was the similar life choices that led the people in the study to age well. Lastly, I looked at â€Å"How different religions pay their final respects† by William J. Whalen. This article goes to show that we are so different even though we all go through similar events. Our cultures influence our lives and who we become as people, and how we depart from the world, as well. The article looked at ifferent religions like Judaism, Christianity, Parsi, Mormons, Muslims and even Atheists to see different ways they say goodbye to the dead. Many religions prohibit embalming or cremation, or simpler things like music at funerals. I decided to end with this article because it's the end. I always think about what my funeral will be like. I'm an Evangelical Christian since birth, but I'm not an active member of the church at the moment. Funerals follow the religion of the person who died and say a lot about who that person was. Burying the dead is a common event, but it's done in many different ways depending on our culture. It's interesting how we all, as human beings, tend to go through the same things. There are events that are involved in all cultures like marriage, births, deaths, and rites of passage. There are certain relationships that develop like friends and marriages. There's work involved. There's aging. And emotions are all among these events and relationships. But how we get to these events and how we develop these friendships vary so widely. There's no right way or wrong way of living life, I think, but in the end, it really is about achieving that goal of being the best you you can be, the ultimate human potential.

Conrail Case

Conrail G455: Corporate Restructuring Team 7 1) Why does CSX want to buy Conrail? In an industry beset by limited options to consolidate domestic rail traffic, CSX looked at Conrail as an avenue to increase market share and gain access to the North East rail network. With air travel, road travel and trucking taking an increasing share, significant revenue growth became difficult. As Conrail became profitable, Congress explored ways of privatizing it, giving CSX an opportunity to acquire Conrail.Though Conrail suffered from performance inefficiencies it had certain strengths relative to CSX and Norfolk with respect to highest revenue per mile of track operated, per carload originated etc. Conrail with operating revenue of $3,686 million and 29. 4% of Eastern rail freight traffic was attractive enough for CSX to consider the merger. The joint entity would have $8. 5b in rail revenue and would control the Eastern market with a market share of 70%.CSX estimated the acquisition to also cr eate synergies resulting in consolidation of overlapping operations and not only increase the joint entity’s revenue through service improvements, but also the operating incomes through economies of scale. Cost synergies was expected to help in increasing the annual operating income by $370m and revenue increases was expected to help increase annual operating income by $180m. (Based on valuation of synergies, taking PV of terminal value, we estimate the gains in Operating Income to be equal to $3,047. 13. CSX expected the acquisition to improve the joint entity’s competitive position vis-a-vis Norfolk Southern as the joint entity’s rail networks would facilitate long-haul, contiguous and therefore low cost service. As Norfolk Southern lacked access to Northeast market it would be less able to provide long-haul routes from South or Mideast. The purchase of Conrail would thus provide CSX with control of the Eastern rail network. From a financial perspective, the p rojected revenue gains and cost savings was expected to make the joint entity become more efficient than Norfolk Southern.Likelihood of a rival (Norfolk Southern) acquiring Conrail, resulting in competitive disadvantage for Conrail was also a factor. 2) Based on multiples and a premiums paid approach, how much should CSX be willing to pay for Conrail? We took Sales, EBITDA, Book Value Multiples and Four week acquisition Premiums from Exhibit 6. We use number of Conrail’s shares outstanding as 90. 5 million at the share price of $32. 46 from the same Exhibit 6. Conrail's Value Sales EBITDA Book Value Premium % $3,722 $1,017 $32 $6,516 Multiples High Low 3. 6 1. 7 13. 1 8. 5. 5 1. 7 73. 0% 34. 0% Conrail Market Price Low Average $ 1,032 $ 3,712 $ 3,350 $ 5,465 $ (301) $ 5,398 $ 8,731 $ 9,986 High $ $ $ $ 8,104 8,028 10,862 11,273 See ‘Calculations’ spreadsheet for details. As the Conrail is fairly attractive resource for CSX it should be willing to pay on the high side of the Conrail Market Price. We have highlighted the High Price in the above table. We 2 have also calculated the price by various methods (sales ratio, EBITA, etc). The price calculated by these methods is reasonably close to the bid price of CSX.Within the high price too, there seems to quite a difference in valuations. The multiple analysis methodology assumes that all companies within an industry have similar characteristics. As expected there is wide variance is between low, high and average. Within the rail industry there is wide variance in capital structures, profitability etc, which is reflected in Conrail Market Price. Other than multiple and premium methods, CSX should be detailed financial analysis based on synergies etc. to come up with the price. The synergies given in the case are stated as â€Å"Gains in Operating Income. This is not an unambiguous term. For purposes of this and subsequent questions, assume that these synergies are net of costs (COGS and Capita l Expenditures) and the after-tax payment to bondholders. The term operating income is likened to net income or the taxable income to stockholders. Further assume that none of these acquisitions will affect the acquirer’s equity cost of capital. 3) Based on the data in Exhibit 7 and the definition of operating income gains given above, how much should CSX be willing to pay for Conrail? Support your answer with appropriate analysis.According to operating income gains we can value a firm’s market price as its pre-merger value and the present value of gains in operating income. Let’s assume that value of Conrail before the merger is equal to its market cap. Then taking Conrail share price as $71. 94 (average of year end and high stock price) and number of shares outstanding as 90. 5 million shares (Exhibit 6) we get Conrail market value equal to $6,510. 57 million ($71. 94 x 90. 5 million). We assume G =3%, MRP = 7%. We take risk free as 30-year maturity US Bonds r ate, which is 6. 3% (Exhibit 8); merged CSX-Conrail equity beta as average of CSX and Conrail equity betas, which is 1. 33. rE = rf + MRP ? E = 6. 83% + 7% x 1. 33 = 16. 11% Now we can find Conrail’s synergy value as present value of gains in operating income. 1997 Total Gain in Operating Income Total Gain in OI after 40% Tax Gain in OI (discounted @ rE) $ $ $ 1998 $ 88 $ 12. 80 $ 7. 15 $ $ $ 1999 396 237. 60 176. 26 $ $ $ 2000 550 330. 00 210. 84 2001 $ 567 $ 340. 20 $ 187. 21 Value of estimated gains = $671. 46 Terminal value = $2,673. 83 Present value of Terminal Value = $2,365. 67 Conrail’s Synergy Value is equal to $3,047. 13.See ‘Calculations’ spreadsheet for details. The maximum price, which CSX should be willing to pay for Conrail is $6,510. 57 + $3,047. 13 = $9,557. 70 3 The optimal price of the merger is somewhere in between of $6. 5 and $9. 5 billion. We’d advise a price closer to Conrail’s market value rather than the average of t hese two figures. In this case both Conrail and CSX shareholders win from the merger. If they take price closer to the high CSX shareholders can lose due to over estimated synergy gains. 4) Analyze the structure of CSX’s offer for Conrail. CSX offered a two-phased deal for Conrail worth $8. 3 billion at the nnouncement. CSX would purchase 90. 5 million (100%) of Conrail shares to complete the deal. In the first phase, CSX originally offered $92. 50/share for 40% of Conrail’s shares. This front-end offer would be completed in two stages for regulatory reasons, purchasing 19. 7% in stage one and the other 20. 3% once approved by the shareholders. Once all of phase one was completed, CSX would purchase the remaining 60% of Conrail’s shares by exchanging shares in a ration of 1. 85619:1. 0 (CSX: Conrail), yielding shareholders roughly $89. 07/share (blended value) based on recent Conrail and CSX stock performance.In addition, the merger agreement contained provision s related to break-up fees, lock-up options, poison pills, and â€Å"no talk† clauses. These provisions provided some level of protection against advances from NorfolkSouthern or other competitors looking to purchase Conrail. Notably, the no-talk clause required Conrail to abstain from any conversations related to buy-out with other firms; though this could be disputed where the board’s fiduciary duty to protect investors superseded said restrictions. 5) Why did CSX make a two-tiered offer? What effect does this structure have on the transaction?Pennsylvania’s fair value statute required all bidders holding 20% or more of stock to offer the same price to all shareholders unless target shareholders agreed to explicitly nullify this position. Also the same statute limited any shareholders (with a 20% or larger stake) voting rights unless management approved it. Finally, the law required management to consider and protect the interests of employees and the communit y. This two-tiered structure affected the timing and the cost of the deal. As a result of the deal’s structure, Norfolk Southern had two opportunities to block with a hostile takeover driving up the price of the acquisition.By close of business prior to the shareholder votes to opt-out of the fair value statute, CSX’s bid was up to $110/share, resulting in an offer that was $321,500,000 more than originally planned for the remaining 20. 3% in phase I. The structure of the deal also allowed CSX to pay for 40% of Conrail in cash (in two phases) while paying for the remaining 60% of the target with CSX stock. This meant that changes to CSX or Conrail’s stock price prior to the transaction completing could impact the cost of the entire deal 6) Why did Norfolk Southern make a hostile bid for Conrail? Conrail is considered a â€Å"scarce jewel†.Conrail was the sole class I railroad serving the Northeast market of the United States with control of 29. 2% of the rail freight market east of the Mississippi river. Although Conrail was inefficient and not very profitable, its revenue per mile of track operated, per carload originated, and per ton originated were the highest in the industry. If the merger between CXS and Conrail succeeded, Norfolk Southern would be negatively impacted with estimates of up to $320 million by 2001. This is clearly a battle Norfolk can not afford to lose as it may impact its very existence in the long run. 7) How much is Conrail worth? In a bidding war, who should be willing to pay more, Norfolk Southern or CSX? Again, note the previous definition of operating income when interpreting the data in Exhibits 6a and 6b. We use the same logic of gains valuation as we did it in question #3. Assumptions for CSX-Conrail Merger: We assume the same G =3%, MRP = 7%. We take risk free as 30-year maturity US Bonds rate, which is 6. 83% (Exhibit 8); merged CSX-Conrail equity beta as average of CSX and Conrail equity betas, whic h is 1. 33. rE = rf + MRP ? E = 6. 83% + 7% x 1. 33 = 16. 1% Now we can find CSX-Conrail synergy value as present value of gains in operating income. 1998 240 144. 00 (66) 210. 00 1999 521 312. 60 (123) 435. 60 323. 14 $1,260. 76 $5,086. 73 $4,655. 08 $5,915. 84 $12,426. 41 2000 $ 1,811 $ 1,086. 60 $ (189) $ 1,275. 60 $ 400. 60 2001 $ 752 $ 451. 20 $ (196) $ 647. 20 $ 356. 15 Total Gain in Operating Income Total Gain in OI after Tax (40%) CSX Total Loss in OI CSX Total gain in OI from merger Total Gain in OI (discounted @ rE) Value of estimated gains in OI Terminal Value of estimated gains in OI PV of TV Total value of gains in OI for CSX Value of Merger for CSX $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ 180. 87 Assumptions for Norfolk Southern–Conrail Merger: We assume the same G =3%, MRP = 7%. We take risk free as 30-year maturity US Bonds rate, which is 6. 83% (Exhibit 8); merged Norfolk Southern–Conrail equity beta as average of Norfolk Southern and Conrail equity betas, which is 1. 23. rE = rf + MRP ? E = 6. 83% + 7% x 1. 23 = 15. 41% Now we can find Norfolk Southern–Conrail synergy value as present value of gains in operating income. 1998 $ 231 $ 139 $ (130) $ 269 $ 233 1999 $ 429 $ 257 $ (232) $ 489 $ 367 $1,468. 67 $6,044. 6 $5,531. 72 $7,000. 39 $13,510. 96 2000 $ 660 $ 396 $ (308) $ 704 $ 458 2001 $ 680 $ 408 $ (320) $ 728 $ 410 Total Gain in Operating Income Total Gain in OI after Tax (40%) Norfolk Southern Total Loss in OI Norfolk Southern Total gain in OI from merger Total Gain in OI (discounted @ rE) Value of estimated gains in OI Terminal Value of estimated gains in OI PV of TV Total value of gains in OI for CSX = Value of Merger for CSX 5 From the calculation above we see that value of Conrail acquisition is much, over 1 billion higher for Norfolk Southern than for CSX.Moreover, the loss in acquiring Conrail leads to significant loss in revenues and market share for both of bidders but more for Norfolk Southern. Not surprisingly that they have seri ous intention to wage a bidding war. 8) As a shareholder, would you vote to opt-out of the Pennsylvania anti-takeover statute? In the case of conrail as a shareholder, we would not vote to opt-out of the Pennsylvania antitakeover statute. The PA statute provides Conrail shareholders with a fair value statute provision on their stock ownership.Specifically, bidders holding 20 percent or more of a company’s stock are required to offer all shareholders the same price unless the target shareholders opt-out of the statute. The CSX two-staged offer had a blended value which clearly demonstrates that Conrail shareholders would have been given different pricing for each stage in the offer. The poison pill provision under the CSX and Conrail merger agreement does not give Conrail shareholders the rights to buy discounted shares since the merger agreement required Conrail to suspend its poison pill.Therefore, the poison pill favors the acquirer and not the Conrail shareholders. Finally , as a shareholder, the best strategic position is to allow the bidding war to commence and observe how CSX and Norfolk Southern compete against one another for the Conrail business. It is obvious that there will be an acquisition and it is obvious based on both acquisition proposals, that each company will issue multiple offers in an effort to acquire Conrail due to its strategic location in the Northeast United States. In general, however this statute could be disadvantageous to shareholders in certain cases.The statute tries to protect the interests of employees and community where the target company was located in addition to meeting their fiduciary duty to the shareholders. The statute frees companies from any obligation to sell itself to the highest bidder. Conrail used the statute to blunt Norfolk’s offer though it was better for shareholders. The ‘fair value statute’ aspect helped the shareholders of Conrail (as parties in support of merger still needed 1 4. 6% of acquisition shares to vote in favor of opting out. ) 6