The Yellow Wallpaper Reading Response

This is a fictional story, in classic form, has a plot, a setting, a cast of characters, and a point of view in which the story is told. The conflict of this story is the struggle of Jane against her husband and then later her struggle against the wallpaper itself. However, it is the way in which the story is told and the unexpected conclusion at the end of it that make it unique and part of the 19th century. The setting of this story takes place during the summer in a rented home that John has acquired so that the narrator may rest and get well again.The story takes place about the time in which it was written, in the late 19th century. The house is a colonial mansion, which our narrator quickly tells us she thinks is haunted. It is in a rural setting surrounded by gardens and woods with â€Å"a lovely shaded winding road† leading up to the mansion. The main setting, which the narrator describes, is the room in which she stays. She goes into explicit detail as she carefully d escribes the yellow wallpaper which consumes more and more of her attention. The wallpaper becomes a moving prison to our main character, while other characters, like John, barely seem to notice its presence.There are not many characters in this story, but each one plays a vital role in giving the reader insight into the mind of the writer and allowing the reader to come to a deeper understanding of the meaning of the story. Jennie, a flat character and foil of the main character, is the main character’s sister-in-law and is the caretaker of the home. She is the â€Å"perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper and hopes for no better profession† who serves as a substitute wife for John’s traditional family view. She is the imprisoned woman who is perfectly fine with her prison, even blaming the narrator’s sickness on her untraditional thinking and writing.John, who is also a flat character, is the main character’s husband and is the archetype of the 19th century white male. He is a successful â€Å"practical physician† who treats his wife more like a patient than he does an equal partner. John is a representative image of the dominant sunlight, which in the story keeps the woman behind strict bars and prevents her from being free or creative. Though the narrator never explicitly tells us her name, the very end of the story says, â€Å"’I’ve got out at last,’ said I, ‘in spite of you and Jane. And I’ve pulled off most of the paper, so you can’t put me back! † This is a clear indication to me that the narrator’s name is Jane, as revealed by the crazy woman (Jane) who now thinks she was the one in the wallpaper. The narrator of the story, Jane, is the main character and is a round character that is fully developed. She is representative of the woman imprisoned, unsatisfied with being merely the submissive housekeeper. Jane is like the less dominant moon, which in the story allows the bars of the wallpaper to move and free the woman in the wallpaper from her daytime prison. We are given an insight into Jane’s mind and opinions through her writings in her journal.This story is told in first-person narration. However, it is not in traditional story form, but it is constructed as if we are reading the hidden journal of the Jane who is telling, us alone, all her intimate thoughts. This also allows for the time-lapse in which the story skips over weeks at a time allowing the reader to gain an understanding of what is going on without having to read mundane and unimportant details. The chronological order of the journal also lends to it appearing as if it could be an actual journal the audience is reading.Although The Yellow Wallpaper has all the components of the average fictional story such as plot, a setting, characters, and is even told in a fairly common point of view, the brilliant writing of the story combined with the unique way in which it is presented, make for an exciting story that keeps the reader’s attention. The story is also a deep insight into the author’s world and time revealing her own personal point of view. It is this creative writing, coupled with deep meaning and veiled in captivating writing, which assures this literary work will continue to remain a hallmark of fiction.

Blue Ocean Strategy Theory and Criticism

Outline the main components of Kim and Mauborgne’s (2004) concept of ‘Blue Ocean Strategy’. Critically assess the strengths and limitations of this approach to pursuing competitive advantage. Use relevant examples to support your argument. Introduction In the contemporary hostile business environment, innovation has become part of any company’s paramount strategy for continuous survival. Nokia, despite being the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer having a large customer base, realized how lack of innovation to compete against rivals high end smart phones threatened its market presence. Kim and Mauborgne’s (2004) Blue Ocean Strategy is one of the major contributions in that context. Accordingly, this essay examines the Blue Ocean Strategy concept in the following order: First, the theory is explained with a real-life example. Secondly we look at few of its limitations. Thirdly, a critical appraisal of why this approach is better or worse off than other competing and value innovation theories is presented and finally the conclusion is drawn. Blue Ocean Strategy Theory According to Kim and Mauborgne (2004) the business universe consists of two distinct kinds of space: Red and Blue Oceans. Red Oceans  are the known market space where industry boundaries are defined and accepted, and the competitive rules of the game are known. Here companies try to outperform their rivals to grab a greater share of the market. As the market space gets crowded, prospects for profits and growth are reduced. Products become commodities, and cutthroat competition turns the ocean bloody and hence, the term  red ocean. Blue oceans, in contrast, refer to all the industries not in existence today—the unknown market space, untainted by competition. The essence of Blue Oceans is value innovation where demand is created rather than fought over. There is ample opportunity for rapid growth and profits. In Blue Ocean, competition is irrelevant because the rules of the game are waiting to be set. In contrast to Red Ocean which emphasizes either on cost or differentiation strategy, Blue Ocean suggests it is possible to attain both simultaneously. Pursuing this strategy is able to create high barriers to entry. There are two ways to create blue oceans: one is to give rise to completely new industries and the other is by changing the boundary of an existing industry. One of the classic examples of Blue Ocean strategy was Fords invention of Model T back in 1908. At that time the automobile industry in US was saturated (Red Ocean) with 500 small car companies manufacturing few expensive cars for the rich citizens only. Ford redefined the industry by the introduction of Model T car which was more robust, affordable and had less maintenance cost. With high demand and standardization in its product it was able to attain both differentiation and low cost. Thus instead of entering and competing on the same level Ford made the competition irrelevant by tapping into a whole new market or Blue Ocean within the existing industry. Limitations Some of the Blue Ocean Strategy limitation suggested by Bowman (2008) includes the cost associated with failed projects and innovations, the ambiguity in the industry definition and the methodology carried out for the theory. Other Strategy Theories and Approaches Competitive Strategy Forces Porter’s five forces viewing competition as the main issue that business out to be addressing is in direct contrast to Blue Ocean’s view of value innovation and creating new market. A recent research in the retail market by Barke (2010) suggests that Porter’s view of increased firm leading to lower profitability is in fact true but it does not go down alarmingly as suggested but rather a ‘pedestrian force’. Also Blue Ocean innovation in an existing market can last for 15 years before it to go down to a basic level (Barke, 2010). What that means is that the profit gains from innovation, in an existing market, are a lot more than previously supposed. Disruptive Innovation Kim and Mauborgne (2004) failed to identify the difficulty in adopting Blue Ocean strategy particularly for the established firms. Christensen and Overdorf (2004) spotted this issue in their ‘disruptive innovation’ model which bears similarity with Blue Ocean in that new markets can be created with the existing industry and ‘continual innovation’ is needed for survival. Broadly defining, it is a strategy which disturbs the trajectory f an industry it is heading to, instead of trying to change the whole industry and does so by targeting the so called non-consumers. Christensen argues that established firm’s strength in resources, process, and values culture can often lead to rigidity to change and adapt to threats or explore new markets. Easy jets incremental growth and rise in dominance against other airlines such as British Airways is a perfect example. British Airways tried to change its business model and copy Easy Jet’s low cost strategy but miserably failed due to its different value. Christensen and Overdorf (2000) highlight this issue about the ‘dangers of quickly imitating by established firms’ and instead urges new ‘organizational structure, acquisition’ means to tackle the issue. They further go on to say that small disruptive startups will always have an added advantage over established firms due to less stress in ‘managing resources’ and in CEO’s ‘quick intuitive decisions. ’ Their theory, thus, provide a whole new perspective in Blue Ocean Strategy model. Experience Innovation and Co-Creation of Value Prahalad (2004) argues that that today, customers want to be involved more and more in the production experience or become ‘co-creator’s’ instead of the ‘dominant logic’ of companies that decides which product to manufacture and sell as suggested by Blue Ocean strategy and other theories. According to him, this dominant logic fails to recognize threats, seize opportunities, growth and innovation. He suggests ‘value’ is created through experience of consuming the product rather than only measured by product, service or transaction (Prahalad, 2004: 173). This is what terms as ‘experience innovation’ that can be created through a paradigm known as ‘DART (Dialogue, Access and Choice, Risk Assessment and Transpercy). ’ Starbucks is a good example here – where people just don’t go to drink coffee but rather to experience of the coffee shop culture. Trends in Japanese Management While Blue Ocean Strategy emphasizes on finding a new market for competitive advantage, Clegg and Kono (2002) asserts that one of the rise of Japanese companies such as Hitachi and Toshiba was ‘developing strategic alliances and co operation with other companies’ (Clegg and Kono, 2002: 278). Further dissimilarity in Blue Ocean strategy includes Hamel and Prahalad (1989) ‘advantage of being a follower rather than a leader’ which enables companies to have a ‘strategic intent’ or a long term vision of winning and beating the biggest in the business such as Canon sought to beat ‘Xerox’ and ultimately matching global unit market share. Conclusion The competitive perspective suggests that companies should pay close attention to their existing markets when looking for opportunities for innovation; that competition is a much weaker force in terms of eroding the benefits from innovation. Disruptive innovation highlights the obstacles faced by firms in pursuing Blue Ocean but rightly urges firms to adopt this strategy for survival. With the current IT phenomena the experience innovation’s holistic view of measuring value through consumer is a new breadth of fresh air that should be included and be a part of Blue Ocean Strategy. Lastly, the trends in Japanese Management indicates that other successful strategy theories must also be considered alongside Blue Ocean as part of companies broader business plan to remain competitive.

Human Rights for Individuals with Mental Health Disabilities Essay

This article discussed key human rights points that are not essentially practiced throughout the world. Lawrence Gostin states that liberty, dignity, equality, and entitlement are those points which the World Health Organization are working on further for others to accept as human rights norms for individuals with mental health disabilities. The review will provide examples of the violation of human rights some persons with mental disabilities are exposed to. The group WHO put in place legal precedent and public pressure; created by this body of international law they have encouraged domestic governments to apply human rights principles to their policies affecting mentally disabled individuals at the national and sub-national level. Human Rights for Individuals with Mental Health Disabilities The overlooked and unspoken of disability of mental illness has been brought to the forefront with this article Lawrence Gostin has written. International Human Rights Law and Mental Disability provided great detail of how these individuals are seen, portrayed, and handled out in society. In our society mental illness is seen as instability and people continually turn their noses up in disgust when dealing with persons with such diagnosis. Many human rights are taken away from these people and can lead to some negative experiences. â€Å"The mentally disabled have ended up in prison, in equally deplorable adult homes, or on the streets, homeless and destitute,† says Gostin explaining the disregard for this demographic. As he describes this neglect I relate it to the same mistreatment to the individuals that called Willowbrook State School in Staten Island, New York, home from the 1930’s until 1987. This facili ty’s was planned out for mentally disabled children, after ping-ponging ideas of its patient focused goal from U.S Army hospital to Veteran services, Willowbrook held to its original plan. While beginning seemingly well this insane asylum took a turn for the worst and began experiencing hepatitis outbreaks, extreme overcrowding, unsanitary living conditions, and malnutrition. In 1987 after much controversy the hospital closed down. This facility was a clear example of the violation of human rights and how the mentally disabled are treated not only in society but also the neglect seen in some health care organizations. The World Health Organization, European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) are working together to change that negative connotation. These groups wish to provide all disabled people their â€Å"four interrelated human rights: liberty, dignity, equality, and entitlement.† With these values individuals can ultimately work there in a normal environment instead of being pushed into dark insane asylums. The major initiative now is to engage society as a whole in strive for public mental health. The movement of public mental health reaches to involve population based services, screenings for mental illness, and education on the topic of mental health. History shows society, government included has not treated the mentally disabled population very well, and these measures are a step closer to erasing those d iscrimination and prejudice lines. Reference Gostin, Lawrence O. (March-April 2004). The Hastings Center Report: International Human Rights Law and Mental Disability, 34.2, 11-12. Fisher, Danny (Producer), & Fisher, Jack (Director). (14 February 1997) Unforgotten: Twenty-Five Years After Willowbrook [Motion Picture]. United States of America: Willowbrook State School, Staten Island, New York City, New York.

Business Economics 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Economics 1 - Essay Example As third world countries are moving into the industrialized world, the demand is growing. As this evolution of the world is taking place, more oil is being drawn from the earth, which means one day the oil supply will dry up (Presswire). That does bring about the question of whether or not supply is an issue since we are told frequently that one day the earth will not yield anymore oil. But as the oil prices go up, one will find that it is because demand is not staying the same. This is making the aspect of supply a little less of a contributor to the increase in oil prices. When using an oil demand curve chart, the demand becomes vertical, but when looking at both the supply and demand curves, one can see that both have been increasing at the same rate for the past twenty years. Yet recently, the supply curve has not moved at all while the demand curve has increased. If supply cannot keep up with demand, then the prices will seen an increase. We probably won't see an increase in the supply aspect until supply reaches maximum production. When this maximum production or extraction of oil occurs, we will see another increase in the price of oil due to the decline of supply until true maximum production is reached. ... Chances are, the extreme fluctuations in oil prices for the past few years has been due to the fact that maximum production has been reached, which lowers demand. This decrease in demand leads to a decrease in prices just as a decrease in supply leads to an increase in prices. When these price increases happens, the economy sees a recession and when decreases occur everyone feels that all is well (valuesystem). Supply influences Unfortunately, the supply to a specific market will not be constant. There are several different factors that influence supply such as: Price: High prices will influence producers to supply more oil Cost of production: These are the costs that are associated with the productive resources used to bring the oil to the market. These costs can include labour costs, the cost of materials, etc. Technological innovations: Oil companies can reduce various costs through new technological innovations that allow them to perform in a more efficient manner at a lower cost. Objectives of the producer: A lot of times the supply of oil can also be dependent upon profit maximisation. There are certain objectives that oil companies have in mind, which can distort our perception of how the supply aspect is really working. There are also other things such as labour force and climate change that can influence supply. These are just some of the factors that can influence the supply aspect of oil that, in turn, influences the fluctuations in cost. Yet supply is only half of the equation since demand is also a very important part of the supply and demand economic theory (Souster). Demand influences Demand is the amount of goods and

Historical Background of Contemporary Labor Law Individual Assignment Research Paper

Historical Background of Contemporary Labor Law Individual Assignment - Research Paper Example The board’s decision to punish the employer under section 8(a) (1) was not approved by the court of appeal when the employer did appeal. This decision was taken to the Supreme Court, which granted certiorari and set a stage for oral argument together with Garment Workers v. Quality Mfg. Co., 420 U. S. 276. The case was ruled in favor of the board in 1975 the judge based his ruling on the fact that section 7 has a provision for statutory right of any employee to reject submitting to his or her employer in the absence of representation from the union if he reasonably has fears that this interview will lead to him or her being punished. This case was held in essence of there being a permissible construction of some form of concerted activities, which needed mutual protection that the employee was denied. An employee pursuing representation from the union has the responsibility of representing the entire labor union. The Supreme Court believed some of the cases ruled in the past h ad flaws when compared to cases arising in the current context. The Weingarten right has been extended to those employees without labor union considering that there is need to be represented by a third party who has no stake in the issue at hand for both parties as seen in Epilepsy Foundation of Northeast Ohio, 331 NLRB No. 92, 676 (2000). One of the most serious issues that the labor law seeks to guard against is the employment of minors within any form of work structure. Use of child labor in production of goods was prohibited to such an extent that even transportation and sale of such goods was to be made illegal. This was expressed under the Act of September 1, 1916, c. 432, 39 Stat. 675. This Act was however seen as being unconstitutional since it was deemed to overshadow the commerce power that Congress enjoys and interfering with such powers that is a reserve for the state. This could be well illustrated in Hammer v. Dagenhart, 247 U.S. 251 (1918) case. A certain bill had bee n filed by a father on his behalf and also as a representative of his two sons who were minors who were employee at the Cotton Mill at Charlotte in North Carolina in view of enjoining the use of Act of Congress with the intention of averting the interstate exchange of goods from child labor. It was held by the district court that the Act was quite unconstitutional and thus entered a decree that enjoined the enforcement. This ruling was based on the fact that this was not in any way meant to regulate the foreign commerce and interstate business practices; that this Act contravened the constitution through the Tenth Amendment; and that it actually does conflict with the Fifth Amendment (Justia). As seen in the case of Gibbons v. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 1, the judge ruled on the issue of commerce powers as opposed to prohibition. The powers of commerce were limited to prescribing the rule to govern commerce but not forbidding commerce from interstate transportation of commodities. This was how ever contrary to adjudged cases in the same court which had held that the regulation powers which were given to Congress did include prohibition authority when it comes to movement of such goods. The interstate transportation was only necessary in meeting harmful results which could only be achieved through forbidding use of those facilities which were used in production of such products considered as harmful. The

Discussion 6 his Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Discussion 6 his - Assignment Example A traitor who tries to gain power and authority to satisfy his personal gains cannot be regarded in any way to be a hero but a villain. It is for this reason that in my opinion, Minister Arthur Zimmermann was the villain for betraying the US by giving secret support to Mexico and wanting to put the US against her allies. 2. Search the internet for images of posters from World War I. Choose one, take an 8 1/2 x 11 inch white piece of paper and draw the poster by hand with a graphite pencil onto the paper. Take a photo of your drawing, and post it to the discussion board. Describe why the poster intrigued you, and what you learned about the image by taking a long look at it. The image above was selected due to its contrasting theme to what the president of the country at the time, who was President Woodrow Wilson, stood for at the time. It will be seen that whereas the president of the land was preaching peace and wanting the issues of the day to be settled through dialogue, there were those who were fueling the issue. The fueling of the issue took place with such posters that attributed joining the war to civilization. But on the other side of the case, one cannot deny the message of the poster, especially as dialogues broke down and it was becoming clear that America needed to join, at least for the reason of protecting its smaller allies. There are therefore so many lessons in the poster as it teaches the lesson of last resort. As depicted in the poster, war or violence must always be used as a last resort and should only be employed when there is no other alternative and once that time comes, it must be the responsibility of all. 3. Does the history of World War I teach us that it is in the best interest of the United States to fight in foreign wars and to enforce international peace treaties with our military? Write a 4-6 sentence paragraph in

Marketing Management of Nike Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Marketing Management of Nike - Essay Example Price Nike has a premium pricing strategy and its products are largely targeted towards the premium customers (Axelby, 2003:89). The company attributes and justifies its pricing strategy by providing high quality products to the customers. The formidable brand image of Nike also acts as a decisive factor in formulating the pricing strategy. Due to the formidable brand image of the product, the customer is quite willing to pay a premium for the products of the company as it has made a distinction for quality across the markets globally. Place Nike has a multi-channel distribution strategy in which the company uses both the direct as well as the indirect channel for distribution. The company ensures a combination of all vertical channels in an attempt to amalgamate them for distribution. The company has a bricks and clicks format that involves selling products through retail outlets (both company owned and multi-brand retailers) as well as through e-commerce websites. However, the indi rect form of distribution is the primary channel of sales considering the fact that it helps in providing more value to consumers. It also gives a tangible touch to the service offering generating competitive advantage (Baiker, 2007:32). Promotions Promotions are the most vital aspect of the marketing mix of Nike as it forms the only channel of communicating with the target market audience. The promotions strategy of Nike involves use of both traditional and online channels for communication. Traditional channels include advertisements on television and print media while online channels involve use of various social networking sites.... According to the research findings, it can, therefore, be said that the era of globalization has not only opened up new vistas for business organizations but has also created a high competition in the business markets with organizations reaching out to every market where opportunities are available. In this regard, ensuring a formidable positioning and a good marketing mix is an essential aspect that is needed to survive in this tough competitive environment. In order to remain sustainable in the market and stay ahead of the competitors, it is very essential to have a product mix that ensures a formidable image of the products or the brand in the minds of the target market segments. It is also very important to analyze the consumer behavior of the target market audience so as to have an idea about the needs and wants of the consumers. This is important as it defines the positioning of the brand which is very critical to the success of the company. The most important duty of the compa ny is to generate highest return to its shareholders that forms the ultimate aim of any organization. In this regard, the company has followed a strategy of expanding rapidly into international markets, and also seeks to formulate strategies such as outsourcing in a manner so as to help reduce cost and generate greater efficiency that can be ultimately generated as profits to be passed on to the shareholders.

Provision of Non Audit Services by the Auditor to the Audit Client Is Essay

Provision of Non Audit Services by the Auditor to the Audit Client Is a Threat to Auditors' Independence - Essay Example Introduction The value of an audited financial statement depends on the auditor’s independence. Accounting scandals such as Enron of the United States as well as HIH Insurance of Australia have created doubts regarding auditor’s independence and the value of their audit. The familiarity that is developed from the long audit tenure and the economic dependence arising from the non audit services and social bond developed between the auditor and the auditor’s client through long-term association have raised questions regarding auditor independence (Carson & Simnett, 2006). Non Audit Services (NAS) are also identified as ‘management advisory services’. Regulators believe that non audit services provided to audit clients is a serious threat to the auditors’ independence. Regulators believe that conflicts of interest occur and fee dependence has a damaging affect on auditor independence. Audit firms often defend themselves by saying that fee depende nce does not influence them and audit and non audit services are performed independently by separate staff (Houghton & Ikin, 2001). It is also opined that non auditing services help in reduction of total costs, improve technical competence and intensify competition. The audit firms, the audit clients and regulatory bodies can bring about efficient services mix through market interaction (Arrunada, 1999). 2. Literature Review 2.1 Non Audit Services of Auditors The services that external auditors provide to their clients can be categorised into consulting, tax and audit. Consulting and tax are often referred as non audit services. Section 201 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act lays down the services which the external audit firm should not perform. They cannot perform bookkeeping services related to financial statements and accounting records. They cannot design or implement financial information systems. They cannot perform valuation or appraisal services, actuarial services, management funct ions, legal services, litigation or administration related expert services. The auditor is also prohibited from providing marketing and planning related non audit services to the audit client and tax services to the management team or the family members of the team (Burke & et. al., 2008). 2.2 Threat to Auditor’s Independence It is believed that NAS services of auditors change their role from that of an outsider who can take a transparent view to that of an insider who actively participates in the decision making and acts as an advisor. The economic bond that is created between the audit client and the auditor through their contract hampers the auditor’s independence. In order to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the independence of auditors, it is essential to examine the marginal fee dependence that results from the NAS services in addition to the total fee dependence. It has been stated that auditors should factually as well as in terms of appearance, be indepen dent. NAS has an impact on the perception regarding the independence of auditors and it creates doubt regarding the authenticity of the auditor’s information (Francis, 2006). Legislations have banned the provision of several NAS by auditors for preserving the auditor’s independence. Regulators believed that auditors could go to the extent of sacrificing their independence in order to retain clients who pay large non audit fees (Defond & et. al., 2002) The various threats

THEFT FROM VEHICLE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

THEFT FROM VEHICLE - Essay Example The considerations should include C* Information such as CCTV footage capturing the potential suspect on the park should be availed to the officer on patrol. Under the Golden Hour principle the officer must take this information to further identify the suspect: statements, documents, physical exhibits from the suspect, fingerprints and other recordings such as audio and video. Police Officers and Police Staff of Requirements to Record Public Encounters. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 1(1.1) the police have been empowered to stop and search potential suspects in a fair, responsible and with respect, and without unlawful discrimination. E* Given the information provided by police intelligence, the police has the power to carry out search given the reasonable cause for suspicion. This is protected under the Code of Practice A: Police Officers of Statutory Powers of Stop and Search Police Officers and Police Staff of Requirements to Record Public Encounters. The Police and criminal Act 1984 2(2.1) (a). This is an issue of professional information and the reliability of the information dispensed to the officer. Q4 Describe the application of relevant legislation, service requirements, national guidelines and personal responsibilities (including level of training and duty of care) that relate to managing conflict In overall, and from training, a police officer must use force only when they feel they are in danger. However, under the law the police of the rank of the constable have been given discretion to determine the level of appropriateness and necessity of the use of force. G*In line with current police practice and the PACE Act of 1984 a police officer before conducting a search of a potential suspect without arrest must politely and positively identify himself/herself. The potential suspect then will be informed to raise their hands while their

Final Project on Maternity Fashion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Final Project on Maternity Fashion - Essay Example The essay "Final Project on Maternity Fashion" concerns the maternity fashion. The idea of maternity wear in the modern sense of the word came first time around the middle of the 19th century when it was thought that such unmentionable circumstances as pregnancy had better stay hidden. This idea then evolved into a whole industry curtailing to the need of the modern pregnant woman. It offers women who are pregnant comfortable, trendy and everyday maternity clothing. The most inconvenient thing during pregnancy is the process of modifying dresses to the ever increasing stomach or choosing what to wear that would not look like a tent. Today a pregnant woman does not need to wear her husband’s clothes to hide her which will male her look dowdy and uncouth. Also she does not need to wear dresses made as if there was only one standard model called pregnant and nothing else. In the contemporary world, the options for pregnant women to choose from are humongous. Maternity clothing un derstands that some women like to show off their bump while other modest conservative women might think otherwise. During the nine month period of pregnancy women undergo several bodily changes. Till the first three to four months, for most women, this change is not apparent. However, from the fourth month onwards changes become unmistakable. The belly and hips begin to enlarge, for most women, there is a swelling and the body begins to bloat. Maternity clothing is manufactured to cater for the expanding breasts.... Obviously it also caters for the bump that is sitting out in front. Amongst pregnant women, some of them might have brownish or yellowish patches known as "mask of pregnancy," on their faces. There might also be some dark lines in the center of their lower abdomen. Also there is darkening of the skin of the nipples, external genitalia, and anal region. The above symptoms are a result of changes in the hormones during the pregnancy. The pigmentation might not be even in nature; therefore, the skin may darken in the areas where the patches appear. This pigmentation cannot be prevented but its effect can be minimized applying sunscreen and avoidance of ultraviolet rays. Acne is another skin problem during this nine month cycle because the skin oil production increases. It is not only pimples which appear on the face or the body, but moles and freckles which had been lighter earlier might darken in response to this increase in oiliness. The area around the nipple also darkens in color which is permanent. But all the other skin problems disappear after delivery. SWOT ANANLYSIS S-Strengths Our maternity line focuses on developing a relationship with the customer. It is one-on-one basis, where customers' needs are individually catered. The life span our product line is not short as the clothes bought during pregnancy can also be utilized afterwards with provision of pre- and post-natal services. A customized line for our customers is also developed, to fulfill their special needs accordingly. This customization can be done on the basis of color, design, size, texture or any other feature that the customer may require. The focus is not just maternity clothing, but out brand aims at the emancipation of the pregnant women with full range of

How Roosevelt and His New Deal Prolonged the Great Depression Essay Example for Free

How Roosevelt and His New Deal Prolonged the Great Depression Essay Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the United States of America. His tenure ran from 1933 to 1945. Franklin Roosevelt was born in 1882 at Hyde Park, New York City. He attended the prestigious Harvard University before proceeding to Columbia Law School. President Franklin got married to Eleanor Roosevelt in 1905. Franklin Roosevelt entered into public service through politics as a member of the Democrat Party. In 1910, Franklin Roosevelt won the senate seat and become the senator of New York. A few years after the elections, Franklin was appointed assistant secretary of the navy by President Woodrow Wilson. In 1920, he was nominated by the democrats for to be there vice president. In 1932, Franklin Roosevelt was elected president of the United States of America. Heale states that the Americans were not happy with the failures of President Hoover. President Hoover failed to intervene and help save the American economy from the depression. The American citizens were thus ready for change (2007). Since they view Franklin Roosevelt as the most suitable candidate with the qualities that they desired, they voted him into presidency. His incredible and marvelous works as a governor made him the best choice for Democrats presidential candidate. By March 1933, America was hit by the worst economic depression. More than thirteen million were rendered jobless and nearly all businesses and commercial banks closed their operations. On observing this, President Franklin Roosevelt formulated the 100 Days Program which was intended to bring back the once glorious American economy back to normal. His proposal, The New Deal, which was also enacted by the US Congress as well, was meant to revive the major economic sectors of United States, especially the manufacturing, business and agricultural industries. The great depression hit America immediately after the crash of the Wall Street in October 1929. As a governor of New York, Franklin made strenuous efforts to help those who were unemployed. According to Leuchtenburg, President Franklin believed that the great depression resulted from low production in the agricultural and industrial sectors, unequal distribution of wealth, malpractices in the financial sector as well as international economic situations (2004). The New Deal proposal was to bring relief to unemployment. It was designed to help those who risked losing their homes and farm plantations. The New Deal was to bring new reforms, for example, through establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority. By mid 1935, US had achieved considerable amount of economic recovery from the depression. Hoverer, more and more businessmen and bankers were turning against Franklin’s New Deal program. According to Norton and others, the bankers and businessmen feared President Franklin’s political and economic experiments (Norton et al., 2011). In the reforms programs, President Franklin proposed that the Federal Government was to provide adequate social security to its citizens. The wealthy people were to be taxed heavily. Banks and other public utilities were to be put under new controls by the federal government. He further proposed enormous work reliefs for the unemployed. After his re-election in 1936, President Franklin formulated constitution laws that enabled the federal government to legally regulate the economy. In his New Deal proposal, Franklin Roosevelt sought through neutrality legislations that would keep United States of America out of war with Europe. However, when the Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japanese in 1941, President Franklin redirected all the resources of the nation towards global war with Japan, during the Second World War. During his presidency, America was hit by the worst economic depression ever seen in its history. According to Leuchtenburg, Franklin helped Americans regain hope and faith in themselves during the great depression (20004). Description of the New Deal According to Heale, the New Deal was an inclusive sequence programs that were designed and enacted by US Congress and signed by President Franklin Roosevelt to combat the great depression through ensuring appropriate strategies for improving the social and economic status of the American people (2007). Through the New Deal, American farmers were given the Agricultural Adjustment Act which endowed farmers with funds for agricultural activities. The National Industrial Recovery Act (NRA) was formulated to help in regulation fair competition within the manufacturing and trade industries. Furthermore, the New Deal provided Americans with collective bargaining power. Various state organizations such as the Public Works Administration (PWA), which was mandated to construct public transport infrastructure such as roads and railway lines and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) which provided re-insurance services to banks were created. Similarly, President Franklin created the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) which was meant to provide navigation services, generate hydroelectric power as well as controlling flood in the Tennessee River Valley. TVA was also responsible for regional growth and development of the Tennessee River Valley. According to Leuchtenburg, Tennessee River Valley was the poorest region in America during that time and thus President Franklin’s initiative to induce regional development in the area was incredible and of great importance to Tennessee people (2004). In order to curb high rates of unemployment, President Franklin instigated a special work program through the New Deal proposal in which jobless citizens were to perform various tasks to help in conservation and protection of the environment. The program, which was dubbed Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), enabled its members to plant trees, help in draining swamps that would otherwise be bearing sites for malaria causing mosquitoe s, restocking of rivers with fish to increase fish production and other projects that were directed towards environmental conservation. According to Heale, President Franklin’s New Deal brought more benefits to the American people through development projects and programs that were tailored towards creating job opportunities (2007). This greatly helped in alleviating poverty and eradicating the sufferings of the American people after US was hit by the great depression. Leuchtenburg asserts that the New Deal consisted of two phases. The first phase consisted of reform programs that were tailored towards recovery from effects of the great depression by supporting business and agricultural activities (2004). These programs were to help in regulation prices, reducing inflation rates and creation of job opportunities through increased public works. On the other hand, the second phase was to provide legislations for regulating social and economic growth and development. Through such legislations, huge numbers were targeted to benefit from the undertaking of president Franklin initiatives. According to historian Thomas A. Bailey, the New Deal focused on the three R’s of economic growth and development, namely; Relief, Reform and Recovery. He further explain that this three items of the New Deal entailed providing relief to the poor and unemployed citizens of US, recovering the economy for the impacts of the great depression and lastly, reforming the financial sector of the to prevent further economic depression (Norton et al., 2011). Criticism of the New Deal Although the New Deal was warmly received by many Americans, including labor unions, minority groups as well as human rights organizations, it received a variety of harsh criticisms. The major opponents of the New Deal were politicians form the Republican Party. Republicans opposed the New Deal claiming that President Franklin was misusing public funds. They accused the president for unnecessarily increasing public spending. They also claimed that the president was abusing the office of the president by centralizing the power of the executive government within a few people. Bankers, businesspersons and wealthy Americans also accused President Franklin for imposing high taxes on them. They believed that the high taxes were punitive in nature and unnecessary. Rosenbaum and Bartelme suggest that even though President Franklin faced strong opposition against his New Deal, he resolved to revive the American citizens’ trust in him by broadening his plans (2009). For instance, he proposed a legislation that would put off employers from interfering with labor unions. In addition, he introduced the federal pensions as well as unemployment insurances schemes in order to assist those who not employed. Conclusion Even though President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal received great opposition, it founded strong economic and social policies for the American people. Its legislations are still intact and used in the present America. Through the Federal Reserve System, many banks are today stable and hoard less currency. The New Deal imposed new rules and regulations that help wipe out corrupt dealings in the American banking systems. Today, individual deposits are safe and secure due to the rules that were imposed by President Franklin in his New Deal programs. This has been achieved through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Additionally, through the New Deal, President Franklin Roosevelt was able to bring about equality between men and women at the workplace. Initially, women were sidelined in the workplace. However, through a New Deal program dubbed Works Progress Administration, women and men were given equal employment opportunities with the federal government. In my view, this helped in eliminating workplace discrimination against women. Furthermore, it also helped in increasing the total income available for household consumptions, thereby improving the living standards for American families. Previously, it was only men who used to go to work and provide food for their families. However, when the great depression hit the American economy, most people lost their jobs and thus men were not able to adequately provide for their families. Through employment of women, the total income for households was incredibly increased. I would conclude that the New Deal was a great idea for the American people. Through government intervention, President Franklin was able to bring joy to the American citizens.

Value Creation and Value Capture in Corporate Governance Essay Example for Free

Value Creation and Value Capture in Corporate Governance Essay Abstract We have followed the value-based approach to investigate a major corporate governance reform affecting publically listed firms in China. The regulations required that, in each firm, the owners of non-tradable shares (block shareholders) negotiate with the owners of tradable shares (minority shareholders) to determine the compensation paid to the latter for allowing non-tradable shares to trade on the stock market. If such an agreement is not obtained, the firm is forbidden to use equity refinancing in the future. The present study emphasizes the joint effect of value creation and value capture in determining the level of compensation, and finds that firms that expect to generate higher returns from future investments but face greater constraints in seeking non-equity-based financing tend to issue higher levels of compensation. This joint effect is further moderated by factors related to investment returns and corporate governance. The empirical evidence lends strong support to theoretical predictions. This study has important implications for corporate governance in emerging markets, and the application of the value-based approach to corporate governance research in general. Keywords: Value-Based Approach, Corporate Governance, Liquidity Reform, Bargaining, China *Contact: Nan Jia, Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, Email: [emailprotected], Tel: 213-740-1045; Yongxiang Wang, Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, Email: [emailprotected], Tel: 213-740-7650. Acknowledgements: We would like to thank Olivier Chatain, Gabriel Natividad, Victor Bennett, and Joanne Oxley for their helpful comments. 1. Introduction Value creation and value appropriation are central to the question of how economic actors cooperate in value-producing activities and then compete to divide the value created – a phenomenon that is fundamental to business strategy (MacDonald and Ryall, 2004; Gans, MacDonald, and Ryall, 2008; Chatain and Zemsky, 2011). To address this question, a rapidly growing body of research supports a value-based approach based on formal modeling (Brandenburger and Stuart, 1996, 2007; MacDonald and Ryall, 2004). The value-based approach has proven to be powerful tools for advancing our understanding of a wide range of topics in strategic management, such as market competition (MacDonald and Ryall, 2004; Gans et al., 2008), firms’ resource advantages (Lippman and Rumelt, 2003), buyer-supplier relationships (Chatain and Zemsky, 2007; Chatain, 2011; Jia, forthcoming), firms’ sustainable competitive advantages (Adner and Zemsky, 2006), social network positions (Ry all and Sorenson, 2007), and team organization (Bennett, 2012). What has escaped researchers’ attention so far is to employ the value-based approach to advance our understanding of corporate governance issues. As one of the most investigated field in strategic management, corporate governance research focuses on how various governance structures align the incentives of all types of stakeholders (Daily, Dalton, and Rajagopalan 2003; Walls, Berrone, and Phan, 2012). Although theoretically speaking, inherent to many corporate governance issues is the tension between value creation and value capture, as stakeholders design corporate governance arrangements essentially both to incentivize all parties to work hard to increase the overall firm value, and to assist their competition with other stakeholders regarding sharing the value created (e.g., Tirole, 2001, Jensen, 2001), most strategy research has given overwhelming attention to the latter effect of competing over value appropriation, often called â€Å"stakeholder opportunism† (v. We rder, 2011). In particular, the research of firm governance in emerging markets has predominantly placed opportunism and misappropriation of minority shareholders center-stage, and appropriately so, as rampant expropriation of minority shareholders generates inefficiencies and stalls economic growth (Morck, Stangeland, and Yeung, 2000; Morck, Wolfenzon, and Yeung, 2005). We believe, however, that stronger protection of minority shareholders also requires incorporating the value creation perspective, to more closely link corporate governance to obtaining cooperation of all shareholders in assisting firms’ business operation in the future, instead of treating the bargaining between stakeholders merely as a zero-sum game. The following example of a major corporate governance reform in China clearly shows how focusing on expropriation in a zero-sum game alone fails to reach the insights that can be achieved by the value-based approach. Prior to 2005, all firms listed in China’s stock ma rket had two types of shareholders: owners of tradable shares and owners of non-tradable shares. Both types of shareholders enjoy the same voting rights and the same cash flow rights. The only difference between these shareholders is embodied in their names: tradable shares can be traded freely on the stock market, while non-tradable shares cannot be traded on the stock market. Tradable shares are typically held by minority shareholders including individuals and institutional investors, and non-tradable shares are typically held by block shareholders, such as other business firms and the state. The 2005 reform was orchestrated by the CSRC (China Securities Regulatory Commission, China’s SEC-equivalent) to make all non-tradable shares tradable. In it, the CSRC stipulates that, for every firm, the non-tradable shareholders negotiate with the tradable shareholders to determine the compensation received by the latter (from the former1) in exchange for enabling non-tradable shares to trade on the stock market. The failure to reach such an agreement prohibits the firm from refinancing in the stock market. Absent the value creation perspective, viewing this ownership reform as the shareholders competing only to appropriate a larger share of a fixed â€Å"pie† makes it very difficult to explain why powerful, large shareholders are willing to compensate minority shareholders. 2 Moreover, students of corporate governance in emerging markets are well versed with how block shareholders expropriate minority shareholders, and thus may expect limited compensation paid to the latter. However, such explanations are incomplete. Through the lens of the value-based approach, we argue that the reform enables competition to create as well as to appropriate value. Reaching an agreement to reform the ownership structure increases a firm’s value in the future, as it provides the firm with access to equity refinancing to fund future investments. Therefore, non-tradable shareholders’ compensation for the minority shareholders in the reform should depend on their share of the firms’ expected returns from using equity refinancing to fund business operations in the future. We show that, the compensation for tradable shareholders (minority shareholders) include some of the value that non-tradable shareholders (block shareholders) expect to gain from the firm’s future investment, because the compensation reflects how much minority shareholders could hold up the block shareholders from creating more value through future investments. Using a formal model and then corroborating it with empirical evidence, we show that non-tradable shareholders are more willing to compensate tradable shareholders to reform the ownership when the firm is more effective in investments but face greater constraints with regard to alternative financing.

Effects of Corporate Scandal on Governance in the UK

Effects of Corporate Scandal on Governance in the UK 1.1 Introduction The aim of this thesis is to examine the evolution of Corporate Governance in the United Kingdom and the affects which corporate scandals had on it. This aim is achieved through the following objectives: The development of Corporate Governance in the United Kingdom. The affect of corporate scandals on stakeholders. Corporate scandals and Corporate Governance. Corporate Governance has been a source of discussion among investors and entrepreneur and it has gone through many changes in recent years. It is defined as the structures and processes for the direction and control of companies (World Bank, 2005). The importance of Corporate Governance came into enlightenment after the collapse of high profile organisation such as Robert Maxwell (Parkinson Kelly, 1999). These corporate failings lead to UK Corporate governance being improved (Iskander Chamlou, 2000). The Dramatise change in Corporate Governance affected many big organisations with a number of challenges. But the key aspect of Corporate Governance is Risk-taking is fundamental to business activity (Spira Page, 2003), which means risk taken by the organisation must be controlled properly and from here Risk Management comes in. To select Corporate Governance as a dissertation topic large amount of research activities with many sources of literature is being used. One of the major problem realised with this topic was, there was ample amount of literature available and that to is very difficult to select the most appropriate one. But problem was solved by concentrating on academic literature, which is mentioned in brief in this dissertation. The structure of this dissertation is as follows, chapter one will focus on literature review, which will provide some basis knowledge for this dissertation. The main aim of the literature review is to highlight the various factors associated with the evolution of Corporate Governance. This section will also include Corporate Governance in the USA which will only give some idea how the legislation is different in two countries. Secondly we will discuss some scandals (Arthur Andersen and Robert Maxwell). The purpose of choosing these two case is to show by which Corporate Governance reached the stage of maturity. Robert Maxwell scandal which occurred in the UK and Arthur Andersen scandal occurred in the United States, which will be the second chapter of this dissertation which actually gave the birth to Corporate Governance. And the last part of the dissertation which is third and final chapter will describe some limitation and conclusion. Chapter 1 Literature Review The aim of this section is to provide an overview in order to analyse different aspect of Corporate Governance and scandals which are linked with the aim and objective of this dissertation. This part of the dissertation will describe about, what Corporate Governance actually is, discussing definitions. Further it will present back ground, development of Corporate Governance in UK, need for Corporate Governance and Corporate Scandals. What is Corporate Governance? Corporate governance is a field in economics that investigates how to secure/motivate efficient management of corporations by the use of incentive mechanisms, such as contracts, organizational designs and legislation. This is often limited to the question of improving financial performance, for example, how the corporate owners can secure/motivate that the corporate managers will deliver a competitive rate of return, www.encycogov.com, Mathiesen [2002]. Corporate governance deals with the ways in which suppliers of finance to corporations assure themselves of getting a return on their investment, The Journal of Finance, Shleifer and Vishny [1997, page 737]. Some commentators take too narrow a view, and say it (corporate governance) is the fancy term for the way in which directors and auditors handle their responsibilities towards shareholders. Others use the expression as if it were synonymous with shareholder democracy. Corporate governance is a topic recently conceived, as yet ill-defined, and consequently blurred at the edge. Corporate governance as a subject, as an objective, or as a regime to be followed for the good of shareholders, employees, customers, bankers and indeed for the reputation and standing of our nation and its economy Maw et al. [1994, page 1]. Corporate Governance is the structures and the process for the direction and control of companies (World Bank, 2005). This definition only explain the involvement of Corporate Governance, however it fails to explain in depth about Corporate Governance. The other definition says the system by which companies are directed and controlled (Cadbury, 1992, Coyle, p4). The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, 1998) explain Corporate Governance in more details it says A set of relationships between a companys board, its shareholders and other stakeholders. It also provides the structure through which the objectives of the company are set, and the means of attaining those objectives and monitoring performance are determined (United Nations, 2003, p1). If we look at the definition provided by the OECD (1998) we can say Corporate Governance involve number of parties such as stake holder, share holder and board, and the goal of an organisation can be achieved by using Corporate Governance. And lastly we can say Corporate Governance measures the performance of the company. Background Many large organisations in UK suffered because of the Corporate Governance and this was the main reason for the number of changes in it throughout the years. One of the secondary reasons for this change was the economy and society as well. In this section we will focus on this area, the change occurred in this area and the impact of these changes on corporate world. Dubbed the Enron of England, the South Sea Bubble was one of historys worst financial bubbles (Stock Market Crash! 2006). This was started in 1711, when a war felt Britain in arrears by 10 million pounds. And this debt was financed by the South Sea Company at 6% interest. A part from the interest, Britain also gave the right to trade exclusively in the South Seas. The failure of the South Sea bubble was the expectation of the directors lying about the profits, as the South Sea Company issued stock to finance its operation. Interested Investors quickly realised that company is having monopoly in the market, so the share price increased drastically from the scratch. Speculation became rampant as the share price kept skyrocketing (Stock Market Crash! 2006). And after certain period the management realized that the company share was overvalued. Well we can say that this point in time this happened because there was none of the guidance documents which are available today. Cadbury Committee told this initiative and they produce the first guidance document in the UK, which was chaired by Adrian Cadbury (Cadbury, Report, 1992). The Cadbury Committee Report included a number of financial aspects of corporate governance i.e. the role of the board, auditing and reporting of financial information to shareholders (Cadbury Report, 1992). Cadbury Committee Report was structured in such a manner that the organisations can easily follow it. Here are some outlines of Cadbury Committee Report, Section 4 deals with the structure of board, and there should be executive directors and independent non-executive directors. Section 4.11 explains the purpose of having non-executive directors. The responsibilities of directors which are mentioned in section 4.28. Internal control is discussed in section 4.31 of the Cadbury Report (1992) which provided guidance on keeping records of accounts and reducing the chance of fraud (Cadbury, 1992). Section 4.33 which explain about Audit committee and there relationship with the board members and the appointment of external auditors. However Cadbury Committee report fails to unveil directors remuneration, which leads to the introduction of the Greenbury Report. The chartered Institute of Management Accountants (1999) explains the purposes of having Greenbury Report, to encourage more transparency with the organisation. It provides guidance on directors salaries, bonuses, and also accountability (Chambers 2002). Section A of the Greenbury Report discusses about the directors remuneration and directors remuneration should be decided by a remuneration committee. This committee should include non-executive directors who will decide upon the remuneration of the directors (Greenbury, 1995, section A1). The remuneration committee should provide report to shareholders which are discuss in Section B of the Greenbury Report disclosure and approval provisions (Greenbury, 1995, section B). Section C of the Greenbury Report discuss the performance of the company with there directors. The performance- related component of remuneration should be plan to align the interest of Directors and shareholders and to give directors enthusiastic incentives to execute at the highest levels (Greenbury, 1995, section C). Section D of the Greenbury Report discusses service contracts and compensation (Greenbury Report, 1995, Section D). This part focus on, how much compensation a director is entitled in the event of lea ving the company before his/ her contract expires. This means that shareholders know accurately how much it would cost them if they are firing any one of there director or directors. Hampel and the Broadening of Control Hampels Committee on Corporate Governance (1998) resulted in both a step fore and a step back from the earlier Cadbury report. Hampel elaborated the concept of internal control business risk assessment and response, financial management, compliance with laws and regulations and the safeguarding of assets, including the minimising of fraud (Hampel, 1998, pp. 53-54). The authors clearly stated that They are not concerned only with the financial aspects of governance (Hampel, 1998, p.53). Hampel took a broad view of internal control, stating that it is the responsibility of directors to establish a robust system of risk management, to recognize and appraise potential risks in every aspect of the business operation. The control concept of Hampels was welcome by many organisations, which also include the Association of British Insurers (ABI) which recognise it a realistic approach that motivated companies to deal with their compliance with the new corporate governance requirements (Fagan, 1999). Neil Cowan, Vice President of the European Confederation of Institutes of Internal Auditing, say that Hampels view of risk management represented a welcome restatement of that part of a Boards prime responsibility for devising a strategy that will ensure the companys continued existence (Cowan, 1997). The Turnbull Report A committee chaired by Nigel Turnbull produce a new report titled, Internal Control: Guidelines for Directors on the Combined Code, under the support of Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW, 1999), it was published less than two years after the Hampel Committee on Corporate Governance was published. The document issued by Turnbull committee filled may gaps left by Cadbury and Hampel. The report was drafting by the recommendations of the Combined Code and the underlying Hampel recommendations that directors review all controls. The main aim of the report as agreed by large organisation including ICAEW and the London Stock Exchange was to provide guidance to the listed companies and to implement the requirements in the Code relating to internal control. But the main purpose of the report was giving the relaxation to companies to explain their governance policies, the guidance obliged the board to report on the effectiveness of the companys system of internal c ontrol. This centre on internal control is attached to the idea of a dynamic company, which requires non-stop monitoring and auditing. The Report states that: A companys objectives, its internal organisation and the environment in which it operates are frequently developing and, consequence, the risks it faces are frequently altering. So there should a sound internal control system which depends on a regular assessment of the nature and extent of the risks to which the company is exposed. As profits are, in part, the prizes for successful risk-taking in business. Internal Control purpose is to help manager and control risk appropriately rather than to eliminate it. (ICAEW, 1999, p.5, para.13). Turnbull Committee involve two steps to interpret, firstly to identify the risk and how the risk is managed and evaluated. Secondly, assess the effectiveness of the internal control system, it procedure and effectiveness. Some other report which focuses on Corporate Governance in UK are Rutteman Report 1994 on Internal Control and Financial Reporting, Myners Report 2001 on Relationship between institutional investors and companies, Tyson Report 2003 on Recruitment and development of non executive directors (Chartered Institute of accountants for England and Wales, 2006). Why use Corporate Governance? The argument that the company should be subject to legal regulation at least some of their actions tends to be couched in term of Market failure. Companies are recognized to have characteristics, particularly the scale and scope of their operations, which make the market governance of their actions imperfect. The purpose of the regulation is to iron out those imperfections and to restore market governance. Now in some cases this may mean very extensive legal regulation indeed, and in exceptional cases, particularly in respect of the so-called natural monopolies, an acceptance that market governance must be abandoned in favour of economy governance. This is a topic, which is growing in importance following a number of high profile failures. In UK stock market as per Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance,1992 all listed companies need to publicly state whether or not they comply with Corporate Governance. If the Investors they are not fulfilling this requirement, they may full loss as this is an incentive for the listed companies to use Corporate Governance otherwise investors may choose to invest elsewhere. According to James Madison (Bavly, 1999) No man is allowed to be judge in his own case, because his interest would certainly bias his judgement and, not improbably corrupt his integrity described by James Madison (Bavly, 1999). Because of the Corporate Governance, companies are run in a fair and efficient manner to maximise the wealth of the organisation rather than maximise the profit and that no one person should have too much control. The Institute of Chartered Accounts for England and Wales (ICAEW, 2002) discuss the importance of Corporate Governance in more details, ICAEW (2002) explain that because of the corporate scandals, Corporate Governance came into motion or it can also be said corporate scandals is the main driver for Corporate Governance as it highlights what can actually happen and also the devastating affects. The ICAEW (2002) also indicated that because of the awareness and the increased knowledge of shareholders have lead to companies to improve there presentation in the market and also to improve the way in which they operate in order to attract investment. Shareholder influence affect the structure of an organisation (Investments) so they having a positive impact on Corporate Governance as it is a key driver for the implementation of Corporate Governance to many companies. Iskander and Chamlou (2000) explain that, to increase the market value and the market share good corporate Governance is essential. This is a key subject to consider because if the management is not performing efficiently and effectively, then money is going to be spent on agency problems, which arise. However with good Corporate Governance the board is working more consistently. Coyle (2003/2004) explains that there is also a difference of interest between directors of a company and its shareholders. The directors need to earn more benefits and high remuneration whereas the shareholders want the company to be earn more profit or to maximise the profit of an organisation so that they can cover there cost of capital. Corporate Governance allows shareholders and Directors to set criteria to come to an friendly agreement. This allows to set out exact guidelines to each other thus reducing conflict. (PriceWaterHouseCooper, 2004) The above figure is taken from a survey conducted by PriceWaterHouseCooper in year 2004, undertaking 134 executives. The executive were ask, what was the main reason for the failure of Corporate Governance. 37% of the executives replied because of the compliance failures and 26% replied because of the poor management and also because of the poor leadership. The conduct of senior executives was also a major risk according to 15% of directors. The figure clearly shows that Corporate Governance strongly focuses on activities such as leadership of executives. Corporate Governance in the USA Corporate Governance in the United States of America (USA) is different in some way from United Kingdom, however there are some similarities. In America the first Corporate Governance documents, was Treadway Report (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, CIMA, 1999). It emphasis on auditing, which it stressed must be separate from directors (CIMA, 1999). There are many forces that have led to the development of corporate governance in the U.S. as it appears now. The problem of the corporate governance in U.S is that there is not a set of laws or regulation to decide how organization matters are to be addressed. There are two side-by-side laws first is Federal law and Second is state laws, and traditionally corporate governance is a matter of state, so it is determine by the sate laws. This recommendation of corporate governance was aimed at reviewing the performance and profitability of companies through an independent organization in order for shareholders to have a true pic ture of how the company is performing. The Committee of Sponsoring Organisations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) then produced a further document on Corporate Governance which was based on Internal Control (CIMA, 1999). This was designed to discuss how a company should be run and appropriate controls, which would ensure this. After the corporate scandal of Enron, the Sarbanes-Oxley statute is really a federalization of corporate law. Sovereign of written statutes and regulations, the U.S. is a common law system so a great deal of the law on corporate governance comes through judicial decisions. The United States of America introduced corporate governance legislation in 2002, the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX). High profile corporate collapses due to a number of circumstances including financial reporting irregularities leading to a lack of investor confidence and public trust. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) which is the regulating body of the Financial Services sector in the UK did a number of things in reaction to the Enron scandal (Rouston, 2003). Rouston explains that the FSA conducted a review of listing rules and looking further into the matter of accountancy and auditing (Rouston, K, 2003). However in the USA the response to the growing number of Corporate Scandals and most recently the Enron scandal the USA was different than the UK. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was introduced in 2001 as a direct response to a number of corporate failures (Matyjewicz and Blackburn, 2003). The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002) was useful as it meant that Corporate Governance would have to be taken seriously and that there would be company on the stock exchange who did not comply with SOX (2002). Although the UK does not have legislation many companies do use corporate governance, the Combined Code, in order to attract investors (Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance, 1992). The three reasons for the development of Corporate Governance in USA:- (The Continuing Evolution of Corporate Governance in the United States- Thomas A. COLE Chairman, Executive Committee, Sidley Austin Brown Wood LLP) Capitalistic view has clearly prevailed with specific regulations imposed relating to the treatment of employees and such. The second factor in the development of U.S. corporate governance is that there are very widely held corporations. Another factor that has shaped corporate governance is the rise of the institutional investor. Paying for Good Governance One of the survey done by Mckinsey Company in 2000 all the investors are willing to pay more for a company with good board governance. Nearly 83% in latin America, 81% in US and 89% in Asia they consider that there should be proper control upon the working of the organisation. Source: Mckinsey company, Investor opinion (2000) Corporate Governance: A Mandate for Risk Management? Risk Management is described as identifying and managing a firms exposure to financial risk. Corporate Governance as describe above is a set of rules, procedure and structures by which investors, who invest in an organisation assure themselves that they are getting pre-determined return and they also ensure themselves that there investment is used and invested in efficient portfolio and the managers are not misusing there investment. It is at the top of the international development agenda as emphasised by James Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank: The governance of companies is more important for world economic growth than the government of countries. This section will focus the connection between risk management and Corporate Governance. Corporate Governance and Risk Management are strongly linked and the two are used in conjunction with one another to help companies in the running of a smooth and well-organized business. One of the main reasons for the implementation of Corporate Governance is to stop Corporate Failings and Turnbull highlights that that drive the business forward, some risks should be taken (Chartered Institute Internal Auditors for UK and Ireland). And is said to calculate risks the use of risk management is essential because even the smallest risk can create big problem for companies. CIMA (1999) explain number of factors which link Corporate Governance with Risk Management, good corporate Governance reduces risks. The purpose of the risk management is to eliminate risk. Risk Management as described by Coyle (2003/04) identifying, assessing and controlling the risks facing a business, and with incorporating risk issues into decision making processes (Coyle, B, P2). And if we compare the definition provided by the (Cadbury, 1992, Coyle, p4) The system by which companies are directed and controlled both the definitions aim to protect the organisation and their investor (equity or debt) and also ensure the smooth running if the organisation. There have been many changes in issues Corporate Governance and Risk Management from the Cadbury Report of the early 1990s to the more recent Turnbull Report of 1999. Well it is now clear to all the boards of directors there responsibility to ensure that all possible threats to an organisation have been systematically identified, carefully evaluated and effectively controlled. Corporate Scandals The Corporate Scandals were occurring on a frequent basis in the 1980s 1990s (The international Corporate Governance Review 2003). This was considered as a worrying condition for investors and companies. Short et al (1998) suggested that corporate scandals can occur for a number of reasons one of the reason given by them was creative accounting, which can explain as not doing the accounts properly and hiding the problems or risk through which the company is exposed. And the investors believe that company is performing and working in a good condition and there investment is safe. They also explained that dishonest of directors also played a vital part in corporate scandals, this can be in many ways such as hiding the fact and telling shareholder that the company is doing well. Nathanson (2002) explain corporate scandals often have elements of political blame. Nathanson explain this by taking the example of Heaths Government in 1972 as they made a drive for growth. Which mean high share prices which affected the economy which was growing at round 5%. And some companies such as Slater Walker went bankrupt (Nathanson 2002). One of the interesting question to analyse is How do (the suppliers of finance) make sure that managers do not steal the capital they supply or invest it in bad projects (Licht, 2003). To protect Investors is the overall main purpose of Corporate Governance and this statement shows the overall purpose for the Corporate Governance. The scandals not only affected the shareholders of the organisation but it also harm the staff, usually financially. So the whole organisation was effected by the Corporate Scandals. One of the article printed in Financial Times in year 2002, which explain the former employees pension which was previously worth $450, 000 is now worth $12,000, this is because of the collapse of the company, and financial time total blame corporate governance (Financial Times, 2002). This shows how the collapse of a massive company such as Enron can have on one individual employee. However we should also understand that shareholder are not only one who are affected by this disaster but it also affected such as the financial services market, a decline in confidence in the market, and the government as it is poor publicity. (Market and opinion research International, 2003) The figure 3.2 highlights that confidence in UK organizations is in-fact fairly high when comparing the above data it is clear that in-fact confidence is rather high with 47% disagreeing that an Enron could occur and 35% strongly disagreeing. But the fact is that only 4% of the directors who were interviewed believe that it was likely or highly likely. To conclude this, now the directors are confident after the effective corporate governance that there wont be another Enron Scandal occurs in the UK. Maier (2005) suggested of the failure of the corporate governance is corporate scandal. And because of these corporate scandals investor loose there confidence over the market (Maier 2005). Because of these corporate scandal government introduce the Cadbury Report (1992) to increase the confidence of the investor (Cadbury Report 1992). The USA also acted in a similar way to the Enron scandal by introducing the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002). It appears that corporate scandals have many bad affects but they are a key driver for Corporate Governance. Can directors be trusted to tell the truth? Agree: 17% Disagree: 65% Are directors paid too much? Agree: 75% Disagree: 11% Can firms pension promises be trusted? Agree: 34% Disagree: 43% Can accountants be trusted to check results? Agree: 37% Disagree: 39% (BBC Business, 2002) The above figure was taken from BBC business survey which was conducted in 2002 by surveying 2000 members of the UK public. The survey was conducted soon after the corporate scandals which were because of the failure of the Corporate Governance. When analysing the figure the general public of UK totally lost confidence from the companies and only 17% of the citizen respondents that they trust Directors. So we can conclude by saying that corporate governance is a prime factor or this also be explain as a key element which not only enhance investors confidence but it also promote competitiveness and ultimately the whole economy benefits. The governance of companies is more important for world economic growth than the government of countries (James Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank). Cultural, political and economic norms affect the way in which a society approaches corporate governance and its affects on board leadership, management mistake and accountability. The challenge in front of the policy maker is to reach a balance of legislative and regulatory reform, taking into consideration the best practice to promote enterprise, enhance competitiveness and stimulate investment. Conclusion There are clearly many factors which act to provide incentive for institutions not to involve themselves in Corporate Governance issues. Whilst the level of monitoring by institutions is greater than that commenly supposed, such monitoring tends to be carried out in private, and, as Black and Coffee (1994) note, for most British institutions, activism is crisis driven. Furthermore, it is unlikely that behind the scenes monitoring is satisfactory, particularly from the point of view of the public, as it enhances the belief that institutions and company management are all simply part of the same old boy network, a belief illustrated by the debate concerning the high level of directors remuneration. The increase in number of informations and guidance has increased the knowledge of the companies and has also made the corporate practices more sophisticated. If we go through Cadbury committee report there was lack of internal control however Turnbull report lifted the veil and this report emphasized on internal control as part from other controls. Other countries such as the USA are different from Great Britain, the USA introduce Corporate Governance Legislation called the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Although the United Kingdom do not have Corporate Governance legislation as such companies feel obliged to follow guidance if wish to attract investment (ICAEW, 2005). Corporate Governance is very much important for these days for the companies who work either in public sector or private sector as it has been highlighted in previous high profile corporate scandals, such as Enron, that lacking of Corporate Governance companies are exposed to being involved in a Corporate Scandal (ICAEW, 2005). Corporate Governance is now becoming a culture of companies in Britain and it is more often used than ever before. Large corporate scandals in the USA, such as Enron, have an affected other countries which also include the UK. Corporate Governance is closely linked to Risk Management; so it is essential to go through the key component in the risk management regime. Chapter 2 Case Studies In order to see the poor performance of Corporate Governance and lack of Corporate Governance legislation it is useful to use the case study approach. It was very important for the dissertation as it highlights the real life example of the poor performance of Corporate Governance. A case study can be defined as a research study which focuses on understanding the dynamics present within a single setting (Eisenhardt 1989, p65). This technique (Case Study) was introduced in 1934 as per the Oxford English Dictionary (2006). According to Stake (1993) the purpose of using two case studies was to see how the failure of corporate governance and there affect on the companies in different ways. One of the key objectives of including these cases is to see the affect of corporate scandals and how they can happen and this aim can be assisted by the case study technique. There are a many limitations however; the company scandals are in different sectors of the economy. The approach of case study is having number of advantage and number of disadvantages as well. By using case studies, comparisons can be drawn, comparing one corporate scandal with the other company scandal (Jankowicz, 2005). It must be noted that when comparing the different corporate scandal they are often very different but the

Jack and Simon in Chapter Three of the Lord of the Flies Essay example

Jack and Simon in Chapter Three of the Lord of the Flies In the Lord of the Flies, William Golding makes many contrasts between his symbolic characters. For example in chapter three, 'Huts on the beach', many contrasts and similarities are made between the two characters Jack and Simon. These descriptions give an idea to their personality and feelings. The description of Simon in the jungle, and Jack in the woods highlights many of their differences. Jack is alone and descriptions like, 'with flared nostrils', and 'ape- like' suggest he is behaving like an animal. Jack's appearance is also starting to resemble animals, as his hair has grown, 'longer', and his skin darker with, 'a mess of dark freckles'. Simon's appearance is described similarly to jacks. He has ' a coarse mop of black hair,' which was 'long' Simon on bare feet, like jack and he has dark skin and only wears, 'the remains of shorts'. This shows that both characters do not take much care in their appearance. In this sense, living on the island has effected them both in the same way. Jack has changed in himself by becoming less prim and proper. He has started to swear, become more dirty and tatty, 'streaked with brown earth' and he is wearing only, 'tattered shorts', these factors all show how jack is loosing his inhibitions and that from the start of the book he has changed greatly. The settings of the wood and jungle are quite similar, although the way Golding presents them greatly changed the perception of Jack and Simon. Simon, in the jungle is presented in an attractive way by descriptions like, 'the scent of ripeness' and, 'flower and fruit grow together on the same tree'. When Simon walks past the candle buds, the quote, 'the ... ... but it is evident that he has much wisdom, and says well thought through comments. An example of this is when Jack and Ralph are speaking, and Simon abruptly joins in their conversation by saying, 'as if it was not a good island'. This is meant in a way to try and make Jack and Ralph consider the point. Then he goes on to say, 'as if the beastie, the beastie or the snake- thing was real'. Simon unlike Ralph and Jack, does not find the beastie a threat, and does not seem scared or frightened about it. Jack and Ralph both like having the role as leader, and have a want for power over the lives of the group. Jack says to Ralph, ''you're chief. You tell 'em off', in a harsh tone, showing he is jealous about Ralph being leader. Simon, unlike Jack and Ralph shows no desire to be leader. This reinforces the idea that Simon could be compared to Jesus figure.

Leadership Essay -- Interpersonal Trustworthiness

The problem to be investigated is how the gap of trust between leaders and followers, weakens employees’ commitment, harms wealth creation, and produces augmented transaction expenses in organizations all over the world (Caldwell, Hayes & Long, 2010). Scandals involving large corporations in recent years have led to calls for more attention being given to ethical behavior within companies, particularly among company leaders. A research area of interest is how ethical behavior among leaders impacts the environment of an organization and the behavior of its staff, including employees’ organizational dedication (Organizational Behavior Application Guide, 2011). Trust between leaders and a follower is essential for a company to be successful. If the followers don’t feel as if they can trust the leaders then there will not be open lines of communication within the company and without those nothing can get accomplished. Leaders today’s face the challenge of earning the trust and commitment of staff members if they want to steer their companies to success in a highly aggressive international framework. Interpersonal trustworthiness is a personal evaluation of the probability that another person can be trusted to respect responsibilities intrinsic within an apparent social contract. The connection amid leader behavior and leader trustworthiness becomes a function of each person’s theoretical thinking as followers infer the understood and explicit elements of the social contract and the values that social contracts include. More and more, scholars have recognized the leader–follower connection as a chain of psychological contracts that increase to the level of a covenantal association (Caldwell, Hayes & Long, 2010). Leaders e... ...ched and that no matter what they do, right or wrong, someone always knows about it. Unethical behavior is something that is not easily overlooked or forgiven in the business arena and once a breach has been identified it takes a big toll on the company and reputation for a long time to come. Organizational behavior is always in the spotlight and should be carried out in the most ethical way possible. The opportunities and benefits that are lost in the end from leaders who are not ethical are tremendous to most companies. Many times the damage that is done is beyond repair and sometimes costs the company its existence in the end. It is very important that organizations make sure that they have good ethical policies in place to guide leaders in the decisions that they make since they not only affect them personally but affect the company as a whole.

The Nuclear Family is No Longer the Norm in Modern Britain :: Sociology

In this essay, I am going to be talking about nuclear families not being the norm anymore. A nuclear family is a family that consists of the mother, father and the child/children. A heterosexual relationship between the mother and father, which would be based on love and compassion. The mother’s role includes cooking for the family and looking after the children. The father’s role includes providing for the family and acting as a role model towards the children. The children are offspring of both the mother and the father. Years ago, nuclear families were the norm in Britain. It was required that the relationship between a couple should be armoured by marriage. Although this point isn’t really believed anymore, some people still follow it-e.g. -Christians believe that couples should get married before they have any sort of sexually relationship, or even children. If your family wasn’t nuclear, you were considered as different to the society. You would even be treated differently. Not having a nuclear family would be a single mother with children, or a single father with children (though in some cases the adult could be a widow/widower). Another way of not being a nuclear family would even be being single/not married! In those days they used the word spinster for single women. (The word is not really used today, as it can be offensive to single women, although some cultures still choose to use it.) Nowadays, nuclear families are NOT the norm AT ALL. In fact, there are so many different types of families. There are single parent families, adopted families (where the child/children has been adopted), foster families (where the child/children has been fostered), gay and lesbian families, reconstituted (otherwise known as stepfamilies) and many many more. Personally, I think that the reason why nuclear families are no longer the norm in modern Britain is because of the different ways of life people have and the different views to life that people have. For example, single people could decide to have a child and not

Craig Ventors First Cell

Cr Craig Ventor first first self-replicating, synthetic bacterial cell ROCKVILLE, MD and San Diego, CA (May 20, 2010)— Researchers at the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), a not-for-profit genomic research organization, published results today describing the successful construction of the first self-replicating, synthetic bacterial cell. The team synthesized the 1. 08 million base pair chromosome of a modified Mycoplasma mycoides genome. The synthetic cell is called Mycoplasma mycoides JCVI-syn1. and is the proof of principle that genomes can be designed in the computer, chemically made in the laboratory and transplanted into a recipient cell to produce a new self-replicating cell controlled only by the synthetic genome. This research will be published by Daniel Gibson et al in the May 20th edition of Science Express and will appear in an upcoming print issue of Science. â€Å"For nearly 15 years Ham Smith, Clyde Hutchison and the rest of our team have been working toward thi s publication today–the successful completion of our work to construct a bacterial cell that is fully controlled by a synthetic genome,† said J.Craig Venter, Ph. D. , founder and president, JCVI and senior author on the paper. â€Å"We have been consumed by this research, but we have also been equally focused on addressing the societal implications of what we believe will be one of the most powerful technologies and industrial drivers for societal good. We look forward to continued review and dialogue about the important applications of this work to ensure that it is used for the benefit of all. † According to Dr.Smith, â€Å"With this first synthetic bacterial cell and the new tools and technologies we developed to successfully complete this project, we now have the means to dissect the genetic instruction set of a bacterial cell to see and understand how it really works. † To complete this final stage in the nearly 15 year process to construct and boot u p a synthetic cell, JCVI scientists began with the accurate, digitized genome of the bacterium, M. mycoides. The team designed 1,078 specific cassettes of DNA that were 1,080 base pairs long. These cassettes were designed so that the ends of each DNA cassette overlapped each of its neighbors by 80bp.The cassettes were made according to JCVI’s specifications by the DNA synthesis company, Blue Heron Biotechnology. The JCVI team employed a three stage process using their previously described yeast assembly system to build the genome using the 1,078 cassettes. The first stage involved taking 10 cassettes of DNA at a time to build 110, 10,000 bp segments. In the second stage, these 10,000 bp segments are taken 10 at a time to produce eleven, 100,000 bp segments. In the final step, all 11, 100 kb segments were assembled into the complete synthetic genome in yeast cells and grown as a yeast artificial chromosome.The complete synthetic M. mycoides genome was isolated from the yeast c ell and transplanted into Mycoplasma capricolum recipient cells that have had the genes for its restriction enzyme removed. The synthetic genome DNA was transcribed into messenger RNA, which in turn was translated into new proteins. The M. capricolum genome was either destroyed by M. mycoides restriction enzymes or was lost during cell replication. After two days viable M. mycoides cells, which contained only synthetic DNA, were clearly visible on petri dishes containing bacterial growth medium.The initial synthesis of the synthetic genome did not result in any viable cells so the JCVI team developed an error correction method to test that each cassette they constructed was biologically functional. They did this by using a combination of 100 kb natural and synthetic segments of DNA to produce semi-synthetic genomes. This approach allowed for the testing of each synthetic segment in combination with 10 natural segments for their capacity to be transplanted and form new cells. Ten out of 11 synthetic fragments resulted in viable cells; therefore the team narrowed the issue down to a single 100 kb cassette.DNA sequencing revealed that a single base pair deletion in an essential gene was responsible for the unsuccessful transplants. Once this one base pair error was corrected, the first viable synthetic cell was produced. Dr. Gibson stated, â€Å"To produce a synthetic cell, our group had to learn how to sequence, synthesize, and transplant genomes. Many hurdles had to be overcome, but we are now able to combine all of these steps to produce synthetic cells in the laboratory. † He added, â€Å"We can now begin working on our ultimate objective of synthesizing a minimal cell containing only the genes necessary to sustain life in its simplest form.This will help us better understand how cells work. † This publication represents the construction of the largest synthetic molecule of a defined structure; the genome is almost double the size of the previou s Mycoplasma genitalium synthesis. With this successful proof of principle, the group will now work on creating a minimal genome, which has been a goal since 1995. They will do this by whittling away at the synthetic genome and repeating transplantation experiments until no more genes can be disrupted and the genome is as small as possible. This minimal cell will be a platform for analyzing the function of every essential gene in a cell.According to Dr. Hutchison, â€Å"To me the most remarkable thing about our synthetic cell is that its genome was designed in the computer and brought to life through chemical synthesis, without using any pieces of natural DNA. This involved developing many new and useful methods along the way. We have assembled an amazing group of scientists that have made this possible. † As in the team’s 2008 publication in which they described the successful synthesis of the M. genitalium genome, they designed and inserted into the genome what they called watermarks.These are specifically designed segments of DNA that use the â€Å"alphabet† of genes and proteins that enable the researcher to spell out words and phrases. The watermarks are an essential means to prove that the genome is synthetic and not native, and to identify the laboratory of origin. Encoded in the watermarks is a new DNA code for writing words, sentences and numbers. In addition to the new code there is a web address to send emails to if you can successfully decode the new code, the names of 46 authors and other key contributors and three quotations: â€Å"TO LIVE, TO ERR, TO FALL, TO TRIUMPH, TO RECREATE LIFE OUT OFLIFE. † – JAMES JOYCE; â€Å"SEE THINGS NOT AS THEY ARE, BUT AS THEY MIGHT BE. †-A quote from the book, â€Å"American Prometheus†; â€Å"WHAT I CANNOT BUILD, I CANNOT UNDERSTAND. † – RICHARD FEYNMAN. The JCVI scientists envision that the knowledge gained by constructing this first self-replicatin g synthetic cell, coupled with decreasing costs for DNA synthesis, will give rise to wider use of this powerful technology. This will undoubtedly lead to the development of many important applications and products including biofuels, vaccines, pharmaceuticals, clean water and food products.The group continues to drive and support ethical discussion and review to ensure a positive outcome for society. Funding for this research came from Synthetic Genomics Inc. , a company co-founded by Drs. Venter and Smith. Background The research published today was made possible by previous breakthroughs at JCVI. In 2007 the team published results from the transplantation of the native M. mycoides genome into the M. capricolum cell which resulted in the M. capricolum cell being transformed into M. mycoides. This work established the notion that DNA is the software of life and that DNA dictates the cell phenotype.In 2008 the same team reported on the construction of the first synthetic bacterial ge nome by assembling DNA fragments made from the four chemicals of life—ACGT. The final assembly of DNA fragments into the whole genome was performed in yeast by making use of the yeast genetic systems. However, when the team attempted to transplant the synthetic bacterial genome out of yeast and into a recipient bacterial cell, viable transplants could not be recovered. Ethical Considerations: Since the beginning of the quest to understand and build a synthetic genome, Dr.Venter and his team have been concerned with the societal issues surrounding the work. In 1995 while the team was doing the research on the minimal genome, the work underwent significant ethical review by a panel of experts at the University of Pennsylvania (Cho et al, Science December 1999:Vol. 286. no. 5447, pp. 2087 – 2090). The bioethical group's independent deliberations, published at the same time as the scientific minimal genome research, resulted in a unanimous decision that there were no stron g ethical reasons why the work should not continue as long as the scientists involved continued to engage public discussion. Dr.Venter and the team at JCVI continue to work with bioethicists, outside policy groups, legislative members and staff, and the public to encourage discussion and understanding about the societal implications of their work and the field of synthetic genomics generally. As such, the JCVI’s policy team, along with the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), were funded by a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for a 20-month study that explored the risks and benefits of this emerging technology, as well as possible safeguards to prevent abuse, including bioterrorism.After several workshops and public sessions the group published a report in October 2007 outlining options for the field and its researchers. Most recently in December of 2008, JCVI received funding from the Alfred P. Sloa n Foundation to examine ethical and societal concerns that are associated with the developing science of synthetic genomics. The ongoing research is intended to inform the scientific community as well as educate our policymakers and journalists so that they may engage in informed discussions on the topic.About the J. Craig Venter Institute The JCVI is a not-for-profit research institute in Rockville, MD and La Jolla, CA dedicated to the advancement of the science of genomics; the understanding of its implications for society; and communication of those results to the scientific community, the public, and policymakers. Founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph. D. , the JCVI is home to approximately 400 scientists and staff with expertise in human and evolutionary biology, genetics, ioinformatics/informatics, information technology, high-throughput DNA sequencing, genomic and environmental policy research, and public education in science and science policy. The legacy organizations of the JCVI are: The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR), The Center for the Advancement of Genomics (TCAG), the Institute for Biological Energy Alternatives (IBEA), the Joint Technology Center (JTC), and the J. Craig Venter Science Foundation. The JCVI is a 501 (c) (3) organization. For additional information, please visit http://www. JCVI. org. Media Contact: Heather Kowalski, 301-943-8879, hkowalski(AT)jcvi. org