Difference between Systems Design and Systems Improvement Term Paper

Difference between Systems Design and Systems Improvement - Term Paper Example The renaissance paradigm tried to account for the shortcomings of the scholastic paradigm by acknowledging scientific principles (Skyttner, 2006). This paradigm introduced the notion of careful observation of the universe, with inferences and conclusions drawn from observation. This era saw the introduction of scientific methods of considering the factors that affected humankind. For example, Skyttner (2006), states that the emergence of knowledge about astronomy greatly increased understanding of humankind as is now known. The beginning of the 18th century saw the firm establishment of the scientific world view, which was done during the mechanistic paradigm and determinism. In this era, the traditional superstitions were replaced by careful analysis of the factors in the environment, and often, the rational analysis led to scientific conclusions. The overwhelming conclusion from this age was that all factors could be rationally explained, thus the mechanistic tendency. This era was followed by the hegemony of determinism, where it was believed that all factors in the universe followed a supposed pattern. According to Skyttner (2006), this age was characterized by a belief that all events followed a specific pattern, that all factors could be explained by the principle of causality. However, the principle of determinism was disproved by Einstein, who introduced the concept of relativism. Instead of a causality principle, the relativity principle served to disprove the notions of the deterministic era. Finally, the general system theory was introduced in the 1950’s to explain the failure of previous paradigms, where the universe is interconnected by way of different systems. The interaction of these systems cannot be explained by one single factor, thus the introduction of the general systems theory (Skyttner, 2006). In this chapter Skyttner (2006) explains the different factors in the general systems theory, for example, the author defined the system as the collection of different entities that interrelate to give a whole factor.

Social Sontract Theory of John Locke Essay Example for Free

Social Sontract Theory of John Locke Essay This paper analyzes the social contract theory of John Locke and how his values are consistent with the criminal justice system and private security settings of today. It will further discuss whether or not Locke’s’ values and principles apply to both criminal justice and private security venues. I will also summarize the major differences of the social contract theories; identify the key principles associated with Locke’s social contract theory; identify how these principles are inculcated in the U. S. Bill of Rights; identify how these principles play out in the criminal justice system and security settings of today and finally describe freedom in relationship to personal rights and ethical standards and obligations. â€Å"A social contract is a voluntary agreement in which mutual benefit occurs between and for individuals, groups, government or a community as a whole. According to Locke, the State of Nature, the natural condition of mankind, is a state of perfect and complete liberty to conduct ones life as one best sees fit, free from the interference of others (Kelly, Martin.(2012)). † This does not mean, however, that it is a state of license: one is not free to do anything at all one please, or even anything that one judges to be in one’s interest. The State of Nature, although a state wherein there is no civil authority or government to punish people for transgressions against laws, is not a state without morality. The State of Nature is pre-political, but it is not pre-moral. â€Å"Persons are assumed to be equal to one another in such a state, and therefore equally capable of discovering and being bound by the Law of Nature. Given the implications of the Law of Nature, there are limits as to how much property one can own: one is not allowed to take so more from nature than oneself can use, thereby leaving others without enough for themselves (Powell, Jim. (1996)). † Because nature is given to all of mankind by God for its common subsistence, one cannot take more than his own fair share. Property is the linchpin of Locke’s argument for the social contract and civil government because it is the protection of their property, including their property in their own bodies, which men seek when they decide to abandon the State of Nature.  · Summarize the major differences of the social contract theories. The major differences between classical republicanism and John Lockes natural rights are philosophy are that classical republicanism stresses the common good or community over the natural rights stress of the individual. You look at the natural rights philosophy from what Locke would describe as a state of nature, that is, an imaginary situation where there is no government. Lock believed that there was a law of nurture to govern a state of nature; he stated, The state of nature has a law of nature to govern it which obliges everyone No one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions. â€Å"The main ideologies of the natural rights philosophy are found in the Declaration of Independence with such ideals as consent of the governed, right of revolution, unalienable rights (or rights that cannot be taken away or given up, such as life liberty and property), and overall establishes a social contract. Classical republicanism is modeled after the Roman Republic, where the government provides its citizens with liberty under government and stressed the common good, or what was best for the society as a whole (Powell, Jim.(1996)). † Citizens within a republic must share the same characteristics: civic virtue, moral education, and live in small, uniform communities. Civic virtue is demonstrated when a person sets aside their own personal interests to promote the common good, and thus classical republics often drastically limited individual rights. â€Å"Moral education is the idea that citizens must be taught to be virtuous based on civic religion; these virtues included generosity, courage, self-control, and fairness. Small, uniform communities were necessary to prevent factions (self-interested groups of individuals), and to prevent this, limited the degree of diversity within these communities (Kelly, Martin. (2012)). † People residing within these communities often had similar wealth, religious or moral beliefs, and ways of life. To further prevent diversity, each community has an established religion (which is prohibited in our Constitution per Amendment 1). What are the key principles associated with Locke’s social contract theory? Locke believed there also exists a Law of Nature, the basis of all morality and given by God, that compels us to not harm others life, health, liberty or possessions. For Locke, the social contract exists when mankind in the State of Nature recognizes and heeds the Law of Nature thus forming a civil society. Protection of property, both geographic and one’s own body, were key to Locke’s argument. He said that political society and government are established by mutual consent forming â€Å"one body politic under one government† united into common-wealth to protect property from those who would violate the Law of Nature. Lockes argument for the right of the majority is the theoretical ground for the distinction between duty to society and duty to government, the distinction that permits an argument for resistance without anarchy. â€Å"When the designated government dissolves, men remain obligated to society acting through majority rule. It is entirely possible for the majority to confer the rule of the community on a king and his heirs, or a group of oligarchs or on a democratic assembly (Powell, Jim. (1996)). † Thus, the social contract is not inextricably linked to democracy. Still, a government of any kind must perform the legitimate function of a civil government How are these principle inculcated in the U. S. Bill of Rights? â€Å"John Locke influenced Thomas Jefferson and our Founding Fathers while writing â€Å"the Declaration of Independence and the U. S. Constitution, Locke’s Social Contract Theory on America’s political and governmental system is undeniable (Constitution Society). † â€Å"While writing the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, drew heavily from the writings of John Locke, and placed them in the Constitution. The social contract theory infuses both these documents (Constitution Society). † Thomas Jefferson adopted Lockes ideas people had rights to life, liberty, equality, and pursuit of happiness, the responsibility of government must protect those rights, and put them in the Constitution.  · How do the principles play out in the criminal justice system and security settings? The theory does not have basis in today’s criminal justice system in that there are segments of society that believe that the law doesn’t apply to them nor does it protect them. For example, the perception is that the amount of crime in the inner city is rampant. It is widely reported on the news every night. There are always stories on these neighborhoods if and only if it is sensational and /or involves a Caucasian citizen. This argument bears out when newspapers print banner headlines about Caucasian children being missing or kidnapped. Many of the ideas formed in Locke’s social contract theory mimic the modern criminal justice system. As citizens of a society, we give up many of our rights to protect ourselves in favor or a centralized system or rule governed by elected officials.  · Describe freedom in relationship to personal rights and ethical standards and obligations. â€Å"It’s believed that values are what we learn from childhood from parents and surrounding influences of adults involved in the child’s life. Morals are the beliefs developed from that value system and how one should behave in any given situation (Banks, C. (2009)). † â€Å"Ethics on the other hand is how someone actually behaves in the situation that may test ones morals and values. Values are established by childhood upbringing and help mold them into citizens contributing to society. Those environments include home, school, church, neighbors, cultural backgrounds and social get together or parties (Banks, C. (2009)). † Most of these beliefs and patterns of behavior are established through the unconscious observations and experiences of childhood in those environments. John Locke is the creator of the concept of individual rights as the basic reason for government. The U. S. founders turned this into government for the people of the people and by the people. References: Banks, C. (2009). Criminal justice ethics: Theory and practice (2nd Ed.). Los Angeles, CA: SAGE. Constitution Society. (2007). Retrieved on February 18th 2012 from http://constitution. org/soclcont. htm Kelly, Martin. (2012). Social Contract. Retrieved on February 19th 2012. From http://americanhistory. about. com/od/usconstitution/g/social_contract. htm Powell, Jim. (1996). John Locke: Natural Rights to Life, Liberty, and Property. Retrieved on February 19th 2012. from http://www. thefreemanonline. org/featured/john-locke-natural-rights-to-life-liberty-and-property/ 1.

Obesity in Developing Countries

Obesity in Developing Countries Overweight and Obesity: The emerging Trend of Childhood Malnutrition in Urban Centre in Nigeria Abstract Background: Overweight and obesity initially thought to be the problem of the developed countries is rapidly rising in the developing countries constituting a high proportion of nutritional problem in these countries. Several factors, including changing life style and improved economic power are believed to contribute to this trend. This pattern if unchecked is known to lead to several medical complications and hence the need to assess the burden of this condition, factors contributing to the rise and possible ways of reversing the trend. Method: Four hundred and twenty primary school children from public and private schools were selected using multistage stratified random sampling. Relevant information were obtained using a questionnaire, and anthropometric indices were recorded. Data obtained were analysed using SPSS version 16, and frequencies were compared using Chi square. Result: Seventy three (17.4%) of the pupils were found to be overweight/obese. Pupils from private school accounted for majority of these cases with 28 (13.3%) and 29 (13.8%) of them being overweight and obese respectively. High socioeconomic class and consumption of energy dense diet were significantly associated with high prevalence of overweight/obesity (P Conclusion and Recommendation: Prevalence of overweight/obesity among primary school pupils is quite high in Lagos, Nigeria. High socioeconomic class, consumption of energy dense food and lack of adequate physical activities appear to be major factors contributing to this high prevalence. Introduction of daily school meal and mandatory physical activity in all the schools would go a long way in imbibing healthy eating and life style pattern into these children. Public enlightenment and campaign on the importance of healthy life style and complications associated with overweight and obesity would probably reverse the trend. Key Words: Overweight, Obesity, Primary School Pupils Introduction Malnutrition is a serious public health problem that is caused by either deficient or excess intake of nutrients in relation to requirements. Under nutrition (Nutrient deficiency) has been the prevalent type of malnutrition in developing countries like Nigeria.1-3 This has been attributed to the synergistic interaction between several factors, most importantly, inadequate nutrient intake and infection.4-6 This is not the case with developed countries like the United States of America (USA), where over-nutrition is a major challenge amongst the school aged children. Studies done in the USA on the overweight status and eating patterns among adolescents showed that the prevalence of over-nutrition was higher amongst those from a low socio-economic class.7-9 Recently, overweight thought to be the problem of the developed world is spreading to the developing world.10 Several studies in Africa and other developing countries have documented an emerging trend of malnutrition with overweight and obesity increasing at an alarming rate in comparison to under nutrition.10-12 However, in these developing countries, contrary to the finding in USA, overweight and obesity appear to be commoner among the high socioeconomic class.13-15 The effect of urbanization and the associated change in life style have been shown to contribute immensely to the current trend of malnutrition in the developing countries.16,17 However, children of low socioeconomic status from such urban centres remain significantly associated with under nutrition rather than over nutrition.18 This further underscores the central role of socioeconomic status in malnutrition. The increasing rate of overweight/obesity means that obesity-related chronic diseases are likely to become common among the children. Being overweight is known to significantly increase the risk of asthma, Type 2 diabetes, gallstone, heart disease, high blood pressure and several other diseases.19 This will further impose a great challenge to the already over stretched health care system in the developing countries. We thus aim to assess and compare the prevalence of overweight/obesity among primary school pupils attending public and private schools, in Ikeja Local Government area of Lagos and to identify common factors associated with overweight. The information generated would be useful in guiding the concerned authorities in designing appropriate interventions in the various schools. Materials and Methods Study area: The study was carried out in public and private primary schools in Ikeja Local Government Area (LGA) of Lagos State Nigeria. Ikeja is the capital city of Lagos state, the most populated and urbanized state in Nigeria with over 10million residents.20There are 114 registered private primary schools and 32 public primary schools in Ikeja Local Government Area. Study design: It is a field-based cross-sectional descriptive study Study Population: This consists of pupils in public and private primary schools in Ikeja LGA. Sample Size determination: Calculated minimum sample size for each group of school is 200 pupils. Sampling method: Multistage stratified random sampling was used. Based on the numbers of schools, three Private and two public primary schools were selected. Participants were selected randomly using the class register as a template in each of the classes of the schools selected. Exclusion criteria: children whose parents denied consent, children with obvious skeletal deformity and those with known chronic medical conditions like Chronic renal failure, heart disease etc. Ethical consideration: Ethical clearance was sought and obtained from the Ikeja LGA Education Authority. The head teachers of the selected schools also gave well informed expressive approval after receiving appropriate information. All the selected pupils were given consent form and introductory note to the study to their parents for their signature or thumb print. There was no consequence for the pupil if he or she refused to participate or parents denied assess. Data obtained were treated with confidentiality and only for the purpose of this research. Study procedure: A structured questionnaire was used in collection of relevant information required to meet the objective of the study. All the participating pupils were interviewed at school, while the section to be completed by the parents were sent through their wards and were returned the following day. Information obtained included socio-demographic data like: age, gender, parents’ occupation, average monthly income and educational attainment. Information on dietary intake include type of diet, frequency and 24 hours dietary recall. Involvement in exercise and physical activity were also sought. Socioeconomic status was assessed using the model by Ogunlesi et al 21, while the dietary pattern of the child was assessed using food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Weight was measure using a bathroom weighing scale with sensitivity of 0.5KG while height was measure using a stadiometer. Nutritional status was determined using the Z- score system in accordance with National Centre for Health Statistics/ World Health Organization (WHO) reference value.22 Data analysis: The data obtained were entered into and analysed using EPI INFO version 3.5.1. Tables were used in data presentation. Chi square and Fisher’s Exact test were used in comparing frequencies. RESULTS A total of 420 children were studied, 210 pupils from each group. The children from the private schools were younger with a mean age of 7.7Â ±1.9 years as against 10.3Â ±2.6 years for those in public school (t=11.58, p=2=305.34, p= The dietary pattern among the two study groups were significantly different; 90 (42.9%) pupils from the private school consumed beef daily as against 49(23.3) from the public schools. Similarly, approximately half 103(49.1) of the pupils from the private school eat white bread daily as against 45 (21.4%) from the public schools. Seventy five (35.7%) and 29 (13.8%) eats eggs while 44(21.0) and 11(5.2%) eat fried plantain and yam for public and private schools respectively. Again 25 (11.9%) and 13(6.2%) from private and public schools consume at least a can of coke/Fanta daily. These differences were all statistically significant P= Regarding extracurricular activity, the pupils in public schools engaged more in physical activity compared to those in private schools. One hundred and thirteen (53.9%) pupils from the public schools trek daily for a distance of at least one kilometre as against 8 (3.8%) pupils from the private schools. Similarly, 77(36.7%) pupils from the public schools engage in competitive sports daily as against 33(15.7%) from the private. The difference between the two groups regarding physical activity was statistically significant P= Table II shows the distribution of the study population by BMI percentile. The nutritional status varied significantly between the pupils from the public and private school. While under-nutrition was the predominant form of malnutrition in the public schools 33(15.7%), overweight and obesity predominated in the private schools 57(27.1%). Table III below show the effect of various studied variable on BMI percentile. The highest frequency of overweight was observed among those aged 5-6years while the least frequency was among those aged 11 and above. This pattern was statistically significant (X2=21.90, p= 0.01). Although more female pupils when compared to male pupils, were found to be overweight, but this was not statistically significant. More than half (50.9%) of the pupils of low socioeconomic class were undernourished while majority of overweight children (76.7%) were of high socioeconomic class. This pattern was statistically significant (X2=150.0, p= Discussion The overall prevalence of 17.4% for overweight and obesity in this study is quite alarming though similar to the findings from previous studies.6, 12, 23 Owa et al12 reporting from Nigeria in 1997 found a prevalence of 18% for obesity among children aged 5-15 years using fat mass percentage and body mass index based on the US standard. Similarly, Mogre et al23 reported a prevalence of 17.4% for overweight and obesity from Ghana in 2013 among school aged children (5-14 years). This finding from this study and the others above further support the rising trend of overweight and obesity among children in developing countries and that the burden of the problem might not be different from that in the developed countries.24 However, other studies have found much lower prevalence for overweight/obesity. Adegoke et al 14 in 2009 reported a prevalence of 3.1% for overweight/obesity from Ile-Ife South West Nigeria using anthropometry, while Alkali et al 15 in 2015 reported a prevalence of 6.5% from Gombe in North East Nigeria. These lower prevalence reported by Adegoke et al(14) and Alkali et al15 may be due to the difference in socioeconomic status between the study-populations, while greater than 86% of our study population were either of middle or upper socioeconomic class, 48.2% of those studied by Adegoke et al14 were of low socioeconomic class with only 19.6% belonging to the upper class. Although Alkali et al15 didn’t give socioeconomic distribution of their study population but Gombe located in the North East of Nigeria is a small town with small scale businesses and subsistence farming as major occupation compared to Lagos which is the most industrialized City in Nigeria. Furthermore, we studied children in primary schools alone but Adegoke et al14 as well as Alkali et al15 studied both primary and secondary school children. It has been severally documented that prevalence of overweight/obesity decreases in children with advancing age.25,26 In contrast to the developed countries where overweight/obesity is commoner among the low socioeconomic class7-9, majority 56 (76.7%) of these overweight children in this study were of high socioeconomic class. This pattern is similar to findings from other studies from other developing countries13-15,27. This fact was further confirmed by the significantly higher incidence of overweight/obesity among pupils from Private schools compared to those from public schools. In Nigeria, Privates schools particularly in the urban centres charge exorbitant fees affordable only to the rich while public schools are usually free and attended by the low socioeconomic class. In this study, 83.8% of the pupil in public schools were of high socioeconomic class as against 1.9% of those in public schools. Several factors could be responsible for this increasing pattern of overweight/obesity among the affluent class in the developing countries. In the first place, the parents of these children are likely of the working class with little or no time to plan and prepare healthy food for them.28 It is also known that such parents in an effort to compensate for the deficient care constantly provide junk food and snacks for these children.29 Nutritional habit and pattern have been shown to influence the nutritional status of the society.30 These are further driven by aggressive advertising practises, relatively low cost of energy dense food and improved purchasing power which are now most prevalent in developing countries and conducive for the development of overweight and obesity and subsequently the associated morbidities.31 This is in agreement with the finding in this study from Lagos, the most urbanized State in Nigeria, in which Children from the private schools and of high socioeconom ic status significantly consumed food of high energy density such as soft drink, egg, white bread, etc when compared to those from the public and low socioeconomic status. Sedentary life style has been well documented as a cause of overweight and obesity29,32,33 in children. Pupils from the private schools were significantly less involved in physical activities when compared to those from the public schools but engaged more in indoor activities like television viewing and computer games. Similar to previous studies, this practise was significantly associated with overweight and obesity. The low level of physical activity among those in private schools could be due to several reasons. Most of these children are usually driven in car to school by their parents or use the school bus. This is in contrast to the public school which lack school bus and majority, 53.9%, of the pupils trek to school daily. Secondly, while most public schools are usually sited in a planned location with enough space for sporting activity the same cannot be said of the private schools which do not have enough space for outdoor activities with only 15.7% of the pupils engaged in competitive sports. Pressure on the pupils from affluent society for good academic performance including regular extra lessons at home after school hours could also contribute to lack of outdoor activities at home. In this study, overweight and obesity were higher among the younger age groups compared to the older pupils with the highest frequency of 18.2% among those aged 5-6years. Similar pattern of decreasing incidence with advancing age among children less than 13 years was also observed in a study from India25 and Saudi Arabia26. However, other studies have found a contrary pattern: increasing incidence with advancing age34. The reason for this variability in finding is not clear. Females had slightly higher prevalence of overweight and obesity when compared to the male, though this difference was not significant. This is similar to the finding of Mohana et al 35 from India. The effect of gender on overweight and obesity in children remains inconclusive, while several studies have found significantly higher prevalence among the female gender 34,36-38 others have reported significantly higher prevalence among the males.39-41 The reason for this variability is not clear but studies with higher female prevalence have suggested cultural factors as a possible explanation as female children in certain society mostly engage in indoor activities. Conclusion and Recommendations The prevalence of overweight and obesity among children living in urban centres in developing countries like Nigeria is quite high and is comparable to that in the developed country. This problem is mainly a problem of children from high socioeconomic status. Dietary pattern and sedentary life style are important factors contributing to the high prevalence among these group of children. In contrast, under-nutrition has remain a major problem among the low socioeconomic status. We recommend introduction of school meal program in both the public and private school to augment calorie intake among the public school children and modulate same for those in private schools. Provision of sporting facilities must be made mandatory requirement for registering of private school and if already a requirement must be enforced on new and existing private schools. Finally, public enlightenment on the medical implications of overweight/obesity in children should be aggressively pursued by the relevan t agencies before the complications begin to set in. Conflict of Interest The authors had no conflict of interest whatsoever to declare

The Music Lessons Essay -- essays research papers

In the play â€Å" The Music Lessons† by Wakako Yamauchi two of the main characters are in engaged in a dialogue which is common for a mother and a daughter to have. In act two, scene four, Chizuko and Aki seem to express frustration to each other after Aki coming home late after a music lesson with Kaoru.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Chizuko knows something is very wrong for her young daughter spending so much time with a grown man, causes her to be so upset with Aki: â€Å"CHIZUKO: I mean other people! How do you think it looks: you all the time in a man’s room?† (2,4). For a mother, trying to get through to her daughter is a very frustrating task. It’s hard for Chizuko to show Aki that all her frustration is in the best interest for her: â€Å"CHIZUKO: I have lots to worry about. I got to see you have enough to eat, give you an education, see you’re dressed decent-so people won’t say, â€Å"Those kids don’t have a father.† See you’re not left with debts, like what happened to me. See you don’t make a mess (of) ...† (2,4). Chizuko is trying to protect her young daughter, she is afraid that Aki is going to get hurt if she pours all her emotions towards this grown man, by Aki not understanding this Chizuko becomes angry: â€Å"CHIZUKO: I know you don’t care ... right now. I’m just saying you shouldn’t let your emotions run away with you† (2,4). Chizuko feels that Aki should be spending time with kids her age: â€Å"CHIZUKO: If you want a friend to talk to, find someone your age who can understand you...

The Rise and Fall of ABC Learning

Q1: The aspects of the business strategy of ABC Learning resulted in increased business risk for the company including: the rapid expansion of market share, over-indebt, and blinding overseas investment. Rapid expansion of market share: ABC, which at its peak had almost 2200 centres in four countries, also had a flawed strategy to handle significant and rapid growth. When A. B. C. Learning Centers listed on the stock exchange in March 2001, it was a tiny operation with a market capitalization of just $25m. But five years later that number is approaching $2. bn as the company has quickly become Australia's leading operator of childcare centers. ABC pursued acquisition after acquisition – buying up as many existing centers as they could, and expanding their appetite by establishing more and more sites off the back of increasing debt. The company's acquisitions are getting larger so there is always a risk with this strategy that they will pay too much for a business or be unable to integrate it effectively. This meant that every new ABC sign that appeared on the horizon – equated to more and more debt. Ultimately ABC could no longer sustain their rapid expansion. With a falling share price and closer examination of their books it became clear ABC’s true value was significantly lower than previously thought. Over-indebted: In 2005, in order to satisfy the expansion plan, raising capital for domestically and globally expansion was done through issuing shares to public. ABC borrowed an enormous amount of money from Australian big four banks: CBA, NAB, Westpac and ANZ). In the wake of the global financial crisis, it couldn’t refinance its huge debts, so the administrators were called in. In the end, ABC got too big for its own good, also made itself to the end. Blinding oversea investment: After becoming the dominant player in the domestic market, ABC Learning has pursued an aggressive overseas expansion. The high levels of debt and dilutive capital raisings that have been required to fund its international ambitions have not pleased investors, and doubts about the company’s ability to repeat its local achievements in the US market have weighed on the share price. As the case told, artificially create apparent shareholder value may be misleading to potential investors in the company. Q2: Intangible assets are defined as identifiable non-monetary assets that cannot be seen, touched or physically measured, which are created through time and/or effort and that are identifiable as a separate asset. There are two primary forms of intangibles – legal intangibles (such as trade secrets, copyrights, patents, trademarks, and goodwill) and competitive intangibles (such as knowledge activities, collaboration activities, leverage activities, and structural activities). Legal intangibles are known under the generic term intellectual property and generate legal property rights defensible in a court of law. Competitive intangibles, whilst legally non-ownable, directly impact effectiveness, productivity, wastage, and opportunity costs within an organization – and therefore costs, revenues, customer service, satisfaction, market value, and share price. ABC Learning valuated billions of dollars worth of now discredited intangible assets that made up most of ABC’s balance sheet. It increased profits rapidly through acquisitions, and cause the underlying problem when valuated the assets it acquired. Especially given that 70 per cent of its assets were intangibles. The inherent risk associated with the valuation of the assets was enormous and should haven been a red flag,’ said Dr Ross. In other words, it means that ABC did not have a particularly strong balance sheet. The company lists total assets of $4. 5 billion – of which, more than $3 billion relate to intangible assets (which are predominantly child-care licences and a small amount of goodwill). As a result, ABC has negative net tangible assets. Q3: Principle-based: Accounting standards may take the form of general principles, relying on interpretation and judgment by the financial statement preparers before they can be implemented. Historical cost depreciation provides a better example of a principles-only standard. Whereas, Rule-based: Alternatively, standards may take the form of a series of rules, limiting the flexibility and use of judgment allowed in their implementation. Rules-based standards often provide â€Å"bright-lines† tests which can easily be avoided. As a result, representational faithfulness may be avoided and a low degree of comparability will often result. Numerous exceptions may also result. The advantage of principle-based accounting standard is potentially very flexible with those new and changing products and environments. As such, they should also require less maintenance. For this case, applying principle-based accounting standard would be more flexible with changing conditions, and the trade-off for this flexibility is that strong enforcement is needed to keep the auditors honest; the accountants should be more latitude to address unique situations, and it may reduce manipulation of the rules as it provides financial statements which reflect much closer to the firm’s actual performance. While the rule-based accounting standard may include a lack of flexibility, hence require almost continual maintenance at times. Therefore, the fundamentally change from â€Å"bright-line† rules-based accounting standards to principles-based accounting standards help prevent another ABC-like fiasco. The dangers in removing â€Å"bright-line rules† describes as follows: it is more difficult to audit relative to compliance, and concern over consistent and reliable interpretations across entities. In this case, the system may be less regulated, and to the extent that they rely on individual judgment to interpret and implement the standards, there is a danger that they can be used to manipulate financial results. Q4 Agency cost of debt refers to an increase in cost of debt when the interests of shareholders and management diverge. In this case, the relevant agency cost that lenders face may include large dividend payments that result in less money in the bank for loan repayment and new debt competes with old debt for repayment. Because the lack of symmetry information desires between the management of ABC learning and lenders, managers intended to maximize their personal wealth which may mean lenders’ welfare is not maximized. Based on the hypotheses that the higher the debt equity ratio the more likely managers are to use accounting methods that increase income, managers of ABC Learning may violate debt arrangements by manipulating equity. Moreover, the lenders are likely to face risk shifting in this case. Therefore, agency cost happens when ABC Learning engages in behaviors that benefit more than lenders. For lenders, they could minimize the agency cost in shortening debt maturity, it can reduces the agency cost of borrowing in two ways. First, the increase in equity value from increasing the risk of he firm's assets is a decreasing function of debt maturity (Barnea, Haugen, and Senbet, 1980). Second, shortening the maturity of debt reduces the likelihood that a firm will have to exercise an option to invest before outstanding debt matures (Myers, 1977). They also can set up a debt covenant to mitigate the risk, and from a lender’s perspective, not only does a covenant reduce default risk but is also mitigates the debt-equity agency cost. Often, individual stockholders as owners of a corporation do not have direct control over the agency contract, but as stockholders they do have certain rights granted to them. Q5: It seems that previous and current auditors had divergent opinions about the company. The new audit team from Ernst ; Young took a very different view from ABC’s previous auditors from Pitcher Partners in several aspects such as the treatment of revenues and earnings, the valuation of intangible assets, for example, after taking over the Pitcher Partners’ place, Ernst ; Young did not allow ABC to place the same high value on the licenses to run childcare centers as Pitcher Partners had done. Ernst ; Young disputed the Pitcher Partners work and the situation escalated to the extent that the ABC board was forced to call in another accounting firm, KPMG, for its opinion. One of the reasons for divergent opinions of auditors is the accounting policy choice, The accounting policy choice research area investigates the inter-relations among the contracts existing between various stakeholders of the firm, the associated economic incentives of the contracting parties, and the consequent accounting choices made by managers to influence the payoffs to the various contracting parties. The other reason is the degrees of concern of the company are different, in other words, the extent of knowledge for the auditors are different, Pitcher Partners did not have a deep knowledge of the Full Operational Status of the company, so they can not valuate the objective value on the childcare licenses. The recommendations of CLERP 9 to promote auditor independence as follows: Non-audit consultancy income for auditors has been limited and must be clearly disclosed. Auditors must provide their firms with a declaration that they are free from any relationship that may interfere with their independence. And the audit partner must rotate off a company’s audit after 5 years( or 7 years in the case of small or rural firms). Reference list: Accounting Policy Choice, viewed at 10/05/2010. http://www.business.uq.edu.au/display/research/Accounting+Policy+Choice Adam Schwab, ABC learning the hard way as profits  slump, 26 February 2008, viewed at 10/05/2010. http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/02/26/abc-learning-the-hard-way-as-profits-slump/ Ken L, John H, John S, Jennie R, 2009, Company accounting, 8th edition, John Wiley; Sons, Australian,p149. Jeremy Sammut ; Gaurav Sodhi, The ABC of child care policy failure, viewed at 9/05/2010. http://www.cis.org.au/executive_highlights/EH2008/eh71308.html John C. Easterwood , Palani-Rajan Kadapakkam, Agency conflicts, issue costs, and debt maturity, viewed at 10/05/2010. http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=LnzP1BQzKTGJxN2BX6hnvcHzdJcSYW2TGPQNtZLgNtR20dwgMfgc!783601474!-129296667?docId=5000275458 Natasha Bita ; Andre Fraser, Imploding as easy as ABC, November 15, 2008, viewed at 10/05/2010. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/imploding-as-easy-as-abc/story-e6frgaio-1111118041306 Tim Searles, Not so easy at ABC, 3 Mar 08, viewed at 9/05/2010. http://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/articles/A-B-C-Learning-Centres-Limited-ABS/Not-so-easy-at-ABC.cfm?articleID=391596 Understand The Difference Between Principle-based Versus Rule-based Accounting Standards, November 10th, 2006, viewed at 10/05/2010.

Basic Facts About the Vietnam War

Basic Facts About the Vietnam War The Vietnam War occurred in present-day Vietnam, Southeast Asia. It represented a successful attempt on the part of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam, DRV) and the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam (Viet Cong) to unite and impose a communist system over the entire nation. Opposing the DRV was the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam, RVN), backed by the United States. The war in Vietnam occurred during the Cold War and is generally viewed as an indirect conflict between the United States and Soviet Union  with each nation and its allies supporting one side. Vietnam War Dates The most commonly used dates for the conflict are 1959-1975. This period begins with North Vietnams first guerilla attacks against the South and ends with the fall of Saigon. American ground forces were directly involved in the war between 1965 and 1973. Vietnam War Causes The Vietnam War first began in 1959, five years after the division of the country by the Geneva Accords. Vietnam had been divided into two, with a communist regime in the north under Ho Chi Minh and a democratic government in the south under Ngo Dinh Diem. In 1959, Ho commenced a guerilla campaign in South Vietnam, led by Viet Cong units, with the goal of reuniting the country under a communist government. These guerilla units often found support among the rural population who desired land reform.   Worried about the situation, the Kennedy Administration elected to increase aid to South Vietnam. As part of the larger goal of containing the spread of communism, the United States endeavored to train the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and supplied military advisors to aid in combating the guerrillas. Though the flow of aid increased, President John F. Kennedy did not wish to use ground forces in Vietnam as he believed their presence would cause adverse political consequences.   Americanization of the Vietnam War In August 1964, a US warship was attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. Following this attack, Congress passed the Southeast Asia Resolution which allowed President Lyndon Johnson to conduct military operations in the region without a declaration of war. On March 2, 1965, US aircraft commenced bombing targets in Vietnam and the first troops arrived. Moving forward under Operations Rolling Thunder and Arc Light, American aircraft began systematic bombing strikes on North Vietnamese industrial sites, infrastructure, and air defenses. On the ground, US troops, commanded by General William Westmoreland, defeated Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces around Chu Lai and in the Ia Drang Valley that year.   The Tet Offensive Following these defeats, the North Vietnamese elected to avoid fighting conventional battles and focused on engaging US troops in small unit actions in the sweltering jungles of South Vietnam. As fighting continued, leaders Hanoi contentiously debated how to move forward as American air strikes were beginning to severely damage their economy. Deciding to resume more conventional operations, planning began for a large-scale operation. In January 1968, the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong commenced the massive Tet Offensive. Opening with an assault on US Marines at Khe Sanh, the offensive featured attacks by the Viet Cong on cities throughout South Vietnam. Combat exploded throughout the country and saw ARVN forces hold their ground. Over the next two months, American and ARVN troops  were able to turn back the Viet Cong assault, with particularly heavy fighting in the cities of Hue and Saigon. Though the North Vietnamese were beaten with heavy casualties, Tet shook the confidence of the American people and media who had thought the war was going well. Vietnamization As a result of Tet, President Lyndon Johnson chose not to run for reelection and was succeeded by Richard Nixon. Nixons plan for ending US participation in the war was to build up the ARVN so that they could fight the war themselves. As this process of â€Å"Vietnamization† began, US troops started to return home. The mistrust of Washington that had begun after Tet increased with the release of news about bloody battles of questionable value such as Hamburger Hill (1969). Protests against the war and US policy in Southeast Asia further intensified with events such as soldiers massacring civilians at My Lai (1969), the invasion of Cambodia (1970), and the leaking of the Pentagon Papers (1971).   End of the War and the Fall of Saigon The withdrawal of US troops continued and more responsibility was passed to the ARVN, which continued to prove ineffective in combat, often relying on American support to stave off defeat. On January 27, 1974, a peace accord was signed in Paris ending the conflict. By March of that year, American combat troops had left the country. After a brief period of peace, North Vietnam recommenced hostilities in late 1974. Pushing through ARVN forces with ease, they captured the Saigon on April 30, 1975, forcing South Vietnam’s surrender and reuniting the country.   Casualties United States: 58,119 killed, 153,303 wounded, 1,948 missing in action South Vietnam 230,000 killed and 1,169,763 wounded (estimated) North Vietnam 1,100,000 killed in action (estimated) and an unknown number of wounded Key Figures Ho Chi Minh – Communist leader of North Vietnam until his death in 1969.Vo Nguyen Giap – North Vietnamese general who planned the Tet and Easter Offensives.General William Westmoreland – Commander of US forces in Vietnam, 1964-1968.General Creighton Abrams – Commander of US forces in Vietnam, 1968-1973.