A Random Walk Down Wall Street Book Analysis

A Random Walk Down Wall Street Book Analysis A Random Walk Down Wall Street Book Analysis Essay A Random Walk Down Wall Street Book Analysis Essay The book A Random Walk Down Wall Street offers an insight into stock investment with the author aiming at providing an appropriate advice for investors. The book has had ten editions since it was first published in 1973 by Burton G. Malkiel. The author’s main idea is to portray markets as partly efficient and to prove that investors can make appropriate individual investment decisions without the indulgence of financial experts. A Random Walk Down Wall Street Literary Analysis According to the author, the basic secret of investing is committing to stock investment in the long term or diversifying investments in case of short-term investments. The author justifies his assertions by using historical testimonies and expounding on them by using personal experiences. The book has four sections with respective chapters that elaborate on various concepts of investing. The book report will provide the author’s main idea and the insights gained. An analysis will show that Malkiel’s book offers an avenue that allows investors to make sound investment decisions by balancing their investment expectations with options available to them. Part One: Stocks and their Value This part entails the first four chapters that introduce the reader to the world of investments. The part mainly discusses concepts of asset valuation by using theoretical foundations. The author mainly uses the firm-foundation theory and the castle-in-the-air theory to expound on asset valuation. The first chapter is â€Å"Firm Foundations and Castles in the Air† and it offers an introduction to investments. It explains that the firm foundation theory argues that an investor should make investments on the basis of the actual value of the proposed investment. The author uses a real-life example that a person wishing to invest in Coke should base the investment decision on the product’s parent company, the Coca-Cola Corporation. The castle-in-the-air theory asserts that an investor should make investments as a response to actions of the masses. For this reason, the theory argues that an investor usually makes more returns by following the majority who invests based on cu rrent trends or based on the foundations of a firm. The chapter concludes that both theories are right in different investment situations. The explanations of the author of the two theories offer a background for the author to critique them in the following chapters. The second chapter â€Å"The Madness of Crowds† explains historical financial occurrences that prove that actions of the masses have significant investment repercussions. Examples of such occurrences include the Tulip-Bulb Craze, the South Sea Bubble, and the tulipomania. In the three instances, the market expanded in a speedy way and led to the overvaluation of assets. After some time, values of the assets returned to their normal valuation after one or a couple of years. A graphical analysis of the three instances showed that by the end of the overvaluation hype the values of the assets returned to the same values as before the hype. The chapter portrays that investors who just follow the masses blindly tend to lose heavily in the market. The inability of investors to resist the urge of the masses makes them vulnerable to adversities of the market. Chapter three explains the stock valuation between the 1960s and the 1990s. The chapter offers a continuation of the craze that the market experiences. The author uses various examples in the stock market to expound on the modern version of the extremity of markets. He expounds on the multiples of price earnings that formed the base of stock trading at the time. The author also expounds on the roles of underwriters in the issuance of new securities, especially their roles in misleading investors. The misleading happened despite investors having access to the guidelines offered by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. For instance, the stocks in the 1980s were overvalued. The scenario confirms the assertion of the author in the second chapter that such situations continue to recur. Another example offered by the author is the obsession of investors with blue chip companies in the 1970s. By 1980, the values of the stocks had returned to their normal prices. The cases sh ow how firms often manipulate information to increase their value so that they can attract investors. The author concludes that manipulation is inevitable because even though organizations such as the SEC provide the guidelines, they can do nothing to prevent investors from parting with their money. By offering real examples and enlightening historical occurrences, the author remains authoritative and ensures that the reader grasps the real impacts of the masses in making investment decisions. Chapter four explains the internet bubble that sufficed in the late 1990s. The author argues that the public’s obsession with the internet was fuelled by other bubbles similar to the historical ones covered in the previous chapters. For instance, the author cited the IPO mania that prompted the bubble in the 1960s. Similar instances could be seen in the internet era. The main message of the author is that people tend not to learn from past experiences. After the rise of the internet, small investors gained a platform for investments and firms gained a platform for competing with larger firms. Moreover, people became more interconnected. Due to the excitement of the availability of a new platform of trading, people engaged in stock trading by the use of brokerage firms. As a result of overcrowding, people lost money due to the eventual overvaluation and the return to normal prices. In fact, only brokers benefited. This part highlights significant historical influences of the mass mentality on investments. The main point of the author is that markets remain perfect. The assertion means that even if an imperfection comes up, the market will find a way to go back to its normal status. One of the pieces of advice one gets from the part is that investors need to combine both their intellect and curiosity to succeed in investments. The influence of crown activities was also enlightening. The provision of historical examples that led to the overvaluation of assets enables the reader to grasp the author’s main idea. The examples show that an emotional approach without much consideration towards stock investments can be detrimental for investors in the long run. One of the interesting insights from the examples that the author offers is that investors never seemed to learn. All through the 1960s to the late 1990s, economic bubbles would always recur. There would be some hype created that would i n turn entice people to spend more money on stocks. The hype occurred even after authorities such as the SEC warned investors. The above cases remind me of the 2007/2008 economic depression. The scenario was caused by a similar bubble, only that this time it was a housing bubble. The decade ending in 2006 saw prices of houses drastically rise, thus prompting homeowners to refinance their homes due to the availability of adjustable-rate mortgages extended by lenders. Due to the availability of mortgages, people could access loans at interest rates lower than market rates. However, after 2006 people could not refinance their loans because house prices started falling and interest rates rose at the same time. In effect, financial institutions could not recover their loans extended. The situation kick-started the depression that had adverse effects on investors. The situation in 2007/2008 shows that the market has not yet learned about adverse impacts of following the multitude blindly. Part Two: How the Pros Play the Biggest Game in Town This part makes up the next three chapters. The chapters mainly deal with fundamental and technical analysis techniques. Chapter five tries to expound on the extent of the efficiency of the market. It focuses on the elaboration of the technical and fundamental analysis of financial markets. Technical analysis entails studying trends in market prices of assets and then applying historical trends to predict their future prices. The method uses tools such as trend lines and charts. Fundamental analysis entails analysis of the condition of a business by examining its financial records, the market in which the business operates, and the competition. The chapter does not go into much detail about the theories with the next three chapters serving this purpose. The sixth chapter expounds on the technical analysis concept. The author asserts that technical analysis concentrates on identifying correlations. For this reason, the author seems to discredit the technique by arguing that testing the data of stock prices over time does not necessarily lead to the correct prediction of the stock prices. The author cites that the above aspect of the technique makes it spurious. He even uses a humorous example of finding a correlation in the average hemline length in fashion. He uses the example to explain that looking solely at the charts robs off one’s opportunity to see the broader picture, meaning that there would be a high probability of poor judgment. The author also touches on the random walk theory and states that the theory employs random measures to process random data. He goes on to compare the theory with a humorous example of the use of coin flips to determine future prices of stocks. The author uses more humorous examples to disre gard the theory and the technical analysis because of the theory limitation. Chapter seven concentrates on the fundamental analysis concept. Malkiel seems to support the fundamental analysis. The support, as he argues, arises because the concept bases itself on logical judgment when admitting data for consideration. Another reason the author prefers the fundamental analysis is that the technical analysis only focuses on the stock price, while the fundamental analysis focuses on the worth of the stock. Despite the support for the theory, the author finds it weak as well. The author provides situations where fundamental analysis can have flaws. The examples include random events such as the 9/11 attacks, the consideration of flawed data from firms, and poor analysis. The author also asserts that financial experts are no better than investors. He states that they only have an edge because they can access more information from companies. The author’s information on stock valuation is very insightful. Although I had some knowledge of the two techniques of stock valuation, I had not deeply analyzed them to an extent of identifying their weaknesses. However, the author’s argument convinced me of the flaws of the systems. I enjoyed humorous examples offered because it was a light way of learning about the techniques. The part of the book also offers a lot of lessons when it comes to stock trading. The first lesson is that one should purchase stocks if their expected growth of earnings is above the market average. Moreover, prospected growth should entail a period of more than five years. The second lesson is that it is too risky to purchase multiple stocks whose prospected future growth has been discounted. The last and the most significant lesson is that an investor should consider whether an asset possesses the likelihood of attracting masses to invest in them. The last lesson means that logic is the key when considering a stock purchase. Another interesting conclusion from the understanding is that I have come to question the roles of financial advisors in aiding investors making investment decisions. The author cites that the only difference between them and investors is that they have more information. Prior to reading the book, I viewed experts as a haven and the best avenue for investors to make right investment decisions. After reading this part of the book, I realized that experts might not be significantly different from investors. I find great sense in the claim because some of the historical bubbles came up since investors had more trust in experts than in the authorities. However, despite gaining the knowledge, I partly disagree with the author’s claim because the fa ct that experts have needed information means that they are in a better position to make sound decisions. Part 3: The New Investment Technology This part entails the next three chapters of the book. The section concentrates on the modern portfolio theory that entails combining assets with different risk levels to create a positive returns diversified portfolio. Harry Markowitz came up with the theory in the 1950s, making him win the 1990 Nobel Prize. Chapter eight introduces the modern portfolio theory by asserting that it is essential for investors to diverse their investments and at the same time minimize their risks to obtain positive returns. According to the author, the risk of an asset is a significant determinant of the nature of returns. It is worth noting that the standard deviation of the stock is usually the measure of risks. The author cites that risks are inevitable irrespective of the nature of diversification. The argument of the author portrays that he partly agrees with the theory. Chapter nine expounds on the theory by explaining ideas highlighted in chapter eight. The outstanding addition to the previous chapter’s ideas is introduction of the beta factor. The author introduces the factor while explaining the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). On the basis of the model, the author argues that investors should avoid diversifiable risks because they do not have premiums. The author also argues that an investor should attain more returns by investing in high-risk assets. However, the risk should be systematic. The premium aspect leads to the introduction of the beta factor. The author explains that the beta factor explains how a stock behaves in the stock market. Specifically, it measures volatility of an asset as compared to the whole market. On the one hand, theoretical application indicates that the price of a stock with a higher beta value will rise at a higher rate than other stocks in case of a bull period. On the other hand, its price will decrease at a higher rate in case of a bear market. However, after introducing the beta concept, the author takes an unprecedented stand by claiming that beta is not a sufficient measure of the relationship between the risk and returns. Chapter ten introduces the concept of behavioral finance. The concept entails application of human cognitive and emotional concepts in making investment decisions. The author argues that behavioral traits such as being overconfident and overreacting often have an influence on investors’ decisions. After explaining the concept, the author concludes that most choices based on personal biases do not reap intended rewards in the long run. Malkiel argues that the common sense aspect of personal biases has a chance of providing a logical judgment on investments that may prove fruitful. Some of the common sense ideas include inner motivation of investors to resist investing in pricey assets in the long run and the desire to avoid overtrading. Another possible aspect of common sense is that an investor should only get rid of stocks that portray a trend of losing value. Chapter eleven entails the author providing a summary of his opinions given in previous chapters. Some of the assertions include that the market is fairly efficient and in most instances corrects discrepancies when they occur. The main attraction point is the author’s use of Benjamin Graham’s argument that investors should always invest in the long-term value stocks. The author does not seem to endorse the Graham’s argument and he goes to the extent of justifying his position. He asserts that in the long run the trends of growth and value stocks do not run parallel to market trends. However, he partly endorses the Graham’s argument by stating that value stocks often tend to perform better during extremities such as bubble and economic depression. After reading the part, I gained more information on the importance of beta. However, after the author providing a lot of information about its importance in determining the risk of an investment, it was surprising for the author to disagree with the beta factor. The author argues that particular differences in the stocks make beta more ineffective. Despite the surprise, I appreciated his insight because it provided a platform for me to read more about the relationship between beta and risk and returns. On the concept of behavioral finance, I have come across real applications of the author’s argument that personal biases affect individual investment decisions. The inner thought that there is an opportunity to make money can urge an individual to make rash decisions. Moreover, the thought of a possible loss can influence similar decisions. The significance of personal biases in investing has led to the creation of various notions in the modern investment world. Some investors have the tendency to disregard the efficient market hypothesis and endorse unproven beliefs. An example is the January effect when people tended to think that stocks perform well in January. Despite their unproven status, beliefs may make an investor invest heavily during the month. In effect, such an investor may end up experiencing losses. Part Four: A Practical Guide for Random Walkers and Other Investors This part aims at giving the reader an insight into the practical side of investing. The part also offers advice to investors by affording them strategies that they can use to choose their investment portfolio. Chapter twelve offers investors advice on how to start an investment venture. The author encourages stock investors to ensure that they have emergency funds available in case their investment decisions lead to losses. Moreover, the author argues that investors should consider investing in â€Å"insurance† investments such as bonds and real estate investments. He argues that ordinary shares and real estate investments provide a viable option for investment. He concludes with the assertion that prior research is vital for investors in coming up with the best portfolio. Chapter thirteen mainly deals with the author’s opinion on the better choice between stocks and bonds. The author argues that an investor should not entirely rely on the past performance of a stock to predict its future performance. However, he states that the past performance partially influences its future value. The author believes that investing in stock in the long run offers more returns than in bonds due to the elimination of risks. Moreover, he asserts that investing in stocks in the long run may provide the needed safety to fight inflation. However, Malkiel insists that the period cannot be shorter than a decade. He states that a shorter period than a decade is too random and investors do not have a choice but to invest in risky stocks. The assertion means that investors who intend to venture into the short-term investments have to choose between risks and adopt the one that they feel comfortable to carry. Chapter fourteen entails the author insisting that investors willing to commit their resources for more than a decade should commit themselves to stocks. He also insists that it would be better for short-term investors to concentrate on a diversified portfolio that include bonds. The author also advises short-term investors to consider retaining some of their resources as cash to cover any case of emergency. The chapter offers guidance on how investors can approach the market. Despite offering the above options, Malkiel encourages investors to venture into long-term investments. He advises investors to consider venturing into long-term stocks as a way of saving a retirement fund. Chapter fifteen is the last one in the section and the entire book. Apart from providing a summary of the book, it goes into the specifics of investing. The author argues that an investor does not have to perform an extremely detailed analysis to make an investment analysis. Instead, the author encourages investors to venture into an index fund. He encourages investors intending to purchase individual stocks to venture for the long term instead of trading them. Moreover, he asserts that investors should concentrate on stocks that have a record of good performance. Concerning managed funds, the author has reservations about them. He asserts that they may not be an advisable option because they may have misleading information. The also advises investors to purchase stocks that create positive stories about their potential to improve their value. After reading the last part of the book, I came to get the picture of intentions of the author. The first intention is to prove that the market efficiency hypothesis offers a realistic guidance in the stock market. The second aim was to reconcile market efficiency and perceptions of the market towards economic bubbles. The last aim of the author was to identify various ways of analyzing the stock market, highlight their weaknesses, and apply lessons from their weaknesses in offering investment advice to investors. The fourth part culminates his aims by combining strengths of different investments theories and techniques and avoiding their weaknesses to come up with a hybrid investment decision-making guideline. In conclusion, investors ought to read the Malkiel’s text. The book is organized in well-thought sections that cover aspects that entail financing progressively. Reading all the parts enriches a reader with information necessary in making appropriate investment decisions. The author came up with investment theories and techniques and highlighted their roles in investments. He aimed at offering the best financial advice. It is undeniable that the author believes in a partly efficient market and he justifies it by giving out real-life historical examples. The book has a lot of lessons for all investors. The main lesson is that an investor should have the courage to make investment decisions instead of relying solely on financial experts. Moreover, investors should apply logic in the decision-making. With the author analyzing crucial investment theories and concepts and then offering their critique, his aim is to communicate that none of them is efficient. For this reason, a hybrid way of the approach that entails picking strengths of the theories and techniques would be the preferable way to approach investments. Personally, I have learned that caution is the key to approaching investments. Moreover, I have learned that over-ambition or moving along with the crowds can be detrimental in some instances. I have also learned that having long-term investments is a preferable way of saving in the long run. The book also teaches that if an investor chooses to invest for a short-term period of fewer than ten years risks are inevitable. For this reason, diversification is the key. Due to the above lessons, investors, whether they believe in the efficiency or the market or not, need to read the book to expand their investment knowledge.

GMO food Essays

GMO food Essays GMO food Essay GMO food Essay censorship hinders our ability to fully understand the world. 1 . freedom of expression/2. effort/meaning/knowledge/3. parents should be responsible for what their children is listening or provide feedback. music can help teach adolescents about things that they cannot talk to their parents about, and censorship of music would Just make this common process more difficult to go through. music is perhaps the most accessible form of art in the world, and it is used regularly for people to cope with issues, to gain inspiration or o simply raise moral. oung, impressionable children will not be exposed to material and situations that hey are unable to process and could misinterpret. Music lyrics offend some group of people. Definition: Censorship occurs when a country or a group of people block certain material so that others cannot access it. These materials can be political, religious, sexual, violent, or economic in nature- anything that the censors or government s disagree with. The definition of censorship is the prohibition of expression which can admonish the political aspect, the social aspect, and the moral order. It is imposed by the local, national or the religious authority. Some people agree strongly with the need for censorship. They argue that it protects society. Others disagree, believing that they should be free to decide what they read, see or talk about. At the root of all of the factors that lead to music censorship is fear. There is a fear by the authorities pushing for censorship that the music will affect young people negatively and prevent them from achieving a morally acceptable life. university of Lehigh. take into consideration that no direct link between exposure to sexually explicit material and anisocial behavior or sexual violence has ever been established or proven. Restricting the purchase of displeasing recordings is censorship( Zeinert 27). :

Strategic Management and Leadership Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic Management and Leadership - Assignment Example Product mix of the company is essentially constituted of a larger percentage of beverage products followed by food items and also other exclusive coffee products. The company also exclusively works to sell equipments and accessories relating to the production of coffee thereby diversifying on its product mix. Moreover the company management works to administer the operation of the stores on their own rather than depending on franchisees. Success for Starbucks can also be measured by its market size and growth rate as the coffee brands has developed itself and become a global brands. Starbuck presently holds 30% of market share second to Costa Coffee in the UK market and market share of 74330.7% (Neate, 2012). Sales of Starbucks coffee generated 26.5million in 2012 and continued to introduce variants of different type and thus earn profits and increase market share (Restaurants Brands, 2012, p. 8) Starbucks also focuses on enhancement of market share and penetration of larger markets through focusing on conducting sales through other co-branded outlets. Similarly the company also focused on reaching to target consumer bases like youths and children in the form of conducting sales through use of kiosks. ... The marketing strategy of the firm greatly depends on activities like referrals in the form of word-of-mouth and also through the gaining in of support by other partnership companies and alliances in the industry. The company markets its message to the customers through the use of electronic mails rendered in by the people in their visits to the different stores. Further the company also works through the formation of strategic business and promotional alliances with other firms to gain on in distribution and marketing efforts (Larson, 2009, p.3-6). Another secret for the success of Starbucks in the global market for specialised coffee products counts on its enhanced social media marketing efforts. The social media networking activities of the company helps in gaining a large number of followers both in Facebook and Twitter where these people tend to post a large number of messages about their experiences on Starbucks’ products and services. The company through the use of soci al networking sites focuses on gaining a large number of potential feedbacks and recommendations. Through the use of such open communication networks the company tends to enhance its relationship with the consumers while operating in the global market. Similarly the company also encourages sharing videos and experiences on the web thereby focusing on to develop an emotional relationship with its target consumer base. Moreover the company through the use of different social networking sites focuses on empowering the consumers to render potential decisions about business, service and product development categories. These ideas being incorporated in its operational and service dimensions thereby create a sense of belongingness among the consumers relating to the

Speech about company's new policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Speech about company's new policy - Essay Example considering that as the demand for a job position increases and we need a workforce that ensures quality of production, then this necessarily calls for restructuring our policies concerning management of healthcare costs. In this regard, hence, we ought to contemplate and ask whether we should establish a policy of differential premiums for lifestyle-related risks to health or adopt a hands-off policy on an employee’s private behavior and charge the same amount for healthcare coverage across-the-board. We can decide if the first option works more suitably as we examine ways by which to implement a successful premium differentials program that includes a reward system for participative workers. Then we may also deliberate on the points of advantage with respect to the second alternative if we see in our investigation that private behavior must be further addressed so that while one choice focuses on the targeted individuals to avail the premium, the hands-off policy would apply to everyone, obese and non-obese employees alike. Eventually, as similarities and differences are drawn in this process, we can come up with a sound evaluation of which policy directs our organization’s potential to transform improper habits leading to the state of obesity. Through the policy of differential premiums, we gain the opportunity of monitoring our obese employees by making them enroll in a program that promotes cessation of drinking sodas or eating food with high content of sugar. Under this scheme, we can reasonably impose a significant periodic charge for the payment of premium provided that active participants would receive monetary incentives on exhibiting cooperation via renewed attitude and lifestyle. This setting should encourage workers to quit or reduce former inappropriate habits to larger extent and thus, improve their performance at work once health conditions have normalized. We may opt to grant them an annual bonus amount or have them obtain a couple of bucks

Professional development matrix Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Professional development matrix - Assignment Example I approach the challenging tasks with a ‘can do’ attitude. This increases my credibility among the colleagues and also boosts my own confidence level. Mostly, people favour my ideas and strategies because I am very careful and thoughtful in making decisions. I rarely jump to the conclusions. I opt to make a conclusion only after analyzing the whole scenario. When it comes to team work, my team also benefits a lot from my confidence. My potential area for development will be to manage myself in stressful situations and try to project politeness and calmness when faced with such situations. â€Å"Confidence is your ability to be successful in part as expectation based on past experiences†. Although, the past experiences play an important role in decision making, but still all events are not same. I am slow in making decisions. I step back, ponder and observe others actions and act accordingly. I have learned that people may not always agree to my point of view. Work ing in a diverse environment, my attitude must have essence of self control. I have to significantly develop my skills of communication with others and present them with my point of view. Self Management (Carnegie ,1977) Potential Learning (Schon, 1983) Reflective Thinking (Rodgers 2002) Interpersonal competency selected:- Communication Skills â€Å"Communication skills do not refer to the way in which we communicate with others. It includes the way in which we respond to each an every gestures of other†. The way we speak, our body gestures, facial expressions and tone of the voice, all these are included in the communication skills. Working in a diverse workplace, one has to be very careful about his/her way of communication. For me, the most useful and significant aspect of workplace is the way you communicate with others around you. I am good at listening and assimilating information. I always avoid conflicts and handle emotions well. I am very tactful even with the people that I don’t like. I control myself very well at times when my strategies and approaches are not given importance. On reflection, sometimes my self confidence makes things a bit problematic. My potential area for development will be managing my facial expressions. Often, I have little control over my expressions and that is a huge weak point that I plan to work on. I will start to use more firm and self assured strategies while communicating. Also, I will make it a point to ensure that I remain open and honest in my communication. Communication Skills (Pitceathly & Maguire 2002) Leadership Skills (Hollenbeck & McCall 2006) Self-Development competency selected:- Critical and Analytical Thinking I consciously make an effort to project a positive self image. I critically analyze my decisions and abilities. This helps me in accepting others views and opinion. I analyze my managerial thinking by asking my team members. This helps me in accepting new ways of management and also in changing the behaviour that is unacceptable to my team. My approaches are thorough and methodical and are always supported by my fellows and team. I need to identify my defensive issues. I will have to request for the feedback and should not fear failures. I need to share my failures and successes openly. I need to ensure that I admit my wrong decisions and

Analysis of Knowledge Based Economies

Analysis of Knowledge Based Economies DEFINITION AND THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY â€Å"The weakness or even complete absence,of definition, is actually pervasive in the literature†¦ this is one of the many imprecisions that make the notion of â€Å"knowledge economy† so rhetorical rather than analytically useful† [1] 1. What is Knowledge Economy or Knowledge Based Economy? As Keith Smith puts it rather succinctly, the question itself comes across as rhetorical. There is no dearth of publications, texts or studies on Knowledge economy, but defining it has seldom been the prominent feature of such literature. This may be attributed to the fact that the concepts of knowledge economy or knowledge worker are difficult to pin down. As a report of CERI Washington Forum, June 1999 put it â€Å"the science of describing, understanding, and measuring knowledge will always be an imperfect one. The knowledge identified in this forum turned out to be capricious: sometimes sticky, often slippery, rarely tangible, frequently tacit, and extremely heterogeneous†.[2] This has resulted that the knowledge economy and knowledge worker are often taken as self-evident and in some cases are not tested against hard data. This also then implies that Knowledge is an abstract notion, which is constantly and continual ly being defined. â€Å"Knowledge† is perhaps the simplest of words and yet one of the most cumbersome to explain. This is primarily due to its paradoxically straightforward and simple syntax and yet its profound vastness in terms of its semantics, as its concept has evolved and escalated over millenniums of human existence. Albeit the abstractness and the intangibles associated with knowledge economy, there emerge certain definitions which aid in the understanding of the concept. 2.  Defining Knowledge.â€Å"Knowledge† can briefly be described as a person’s understanding of something or the information he/she has about something. Knowledge is what is known. It is a ‘noun’ that has synonyms, such as ‘cognition’ and ‘noesis’. Like the related concepts of truth, belief, and wisdom, there is no single definition of knowledge on which scholars agree, but rather numerous theories and continued debate exists about the nature of knowledge. In fact â€Å"knowledge† has numerous meanings, as given in dictionary. Oxford Dictionary defines knowledge as awareness, familiarity, facts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education; person’s range of information; or the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject[3]. It is the state of knowing something, the familiarity, awareness or understanding acquired through experience or study, the sum of what has been perceived, discovered or learned, or simply, the specific information about something or someone. Peter F. Drucker has also given a functional definition of knowledge, referring to it as information that changes something or somebody – either by becoming grounds for actions, or by making an individual (or an institution) capable of different or more effective action. But finally, in a more global sense, one might say that knowledge is reliable information that can be put to work in the service of all men, and which can be communicated in comprehensible ways, so that people everywhere can become more self-reliant and self-sufficient. 3.  Knowledge as an Economic Good. It is common knowledge today that disparities in the productivity and growth of different countries have less to do with their lack or abundance of natural resources than with their ability to improve their quality of human resources and other factors of production. The World Development Report 1999 states: ‘For countries in the vanguard of the world economy, the balance between knowledge and resources has shifted so far towards the former that knowledge has become perhaps the most important factor determining the standard of living more than land, than tools, than labour’. Today knowledge and technology are two of the key-factors of production. In fact, knowledge is considered to be the basic form of capital, and economic growth is understood to be driven by the accumulation of knowledge. 4. A knowledge based economy therefore can be defined as an economy that creates, disseminates uses knowledge to enhance its growth development. A country’s success in the knowledge-based economy depends on the creation, acquisition, dissemination application of knowledge. Knowledge creation depends on the intensity of research development (RD) conducted in a country, the availability of human resources needed for RD. 5. Knowledge acquisition is reflected in intellectual content embedded in imports from other knowledge-based economies. Linguistic skills will help to plug into the global knowledge network. Knowledge dissemination depends on the resources allocated to develop information infrastructure, basic information technology (IT) linguistic skills to tap into the information -communication technology (ICT) network. 6. Finally, knowledge application is reflected in an economy’s job market that demands and allows workers to apply knowledge extensively and its ability to create new business models for generating, acquiring, diffusing applying new ideas processes. 7. The best exponent of knowledge economy and its theory has been Peter Drucker. He apparently first used the phrase â€Å"the knowledge economy† in his 1969 book The Age of Discontinuity.[4] Thirty-two years later, still going strong, Drucker wrote in the November 2001 edition of The Economist: ‘The next society will be a knowledge society. Knowledge will be its key resource, and knowledge workers will be the dominant group in its workforce. Its three main characteristics will be:- (a) Borderlessness, because knowledge travels even more effortlessly than money. (b) Upward mobility, available to everyone through easily acquired formal education. (c) The potential for failure as well as success. Anyone can acquire the â€Å"means of production,† i.e., the knowledge required for the job, but not everyone can win.’[5] 8. But because of the varied ways in which knowledge-economy is interpreted, testable definitions of this term are difficult to state. Some more definitions of Knowledge based economies are given below:- (a)  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The idea of the knowledge-driven economy is not just a description of high-tech  industries. It describes a set of new sources of competitive advantage, which can apply  to all sectors, all companies and all regions, from agriculture and retailing to software and biotechnology† – Charles Leadbeater[6] (b)  Ã¢â‚¬ËœWe define the knowledge-economy as production and services based on knowledge intensive activities that contribute to an accelerated pace of technical and scientific advance, as well as rapid obsolescence. The key-component of a knowledge- economy is a greater reliance on intellectual capabilities than on physical inputs or natural resources’- Carlaw, Oxley Walker, 2006.[7] (c)  An economy whose growth momentum and competitive advantage are driven by dynamic investment in intellectual capital and innovative R D, with deep structural, institutional and organizational implications. [8] 9. Reading through these definitions, a few essentials of a knowledge-driven economy become quite clear ie:- (a) Innovation is a permanent feature. (b) It is an economy of networks at different hierarchical levels. (c) It embodies new forms of organization that involve industrial cooperation, polarization and relations between public and private sectors. (d) Human-capital plays a fundamental role, and the capacity to learn is more important that the level of knowledge. (e) Codified and distributed tacit-knowledge is useful. (f) Proliferation of information-related activities is evident in all sectors of the economy. Tratitional versus Knowledge Based Economy.The basic difference between a traditional knowledge-based economy is that the former depends on quantitative factors such as labour, raw materials, premises bulk transportation, among others, whereas the latter relies more on qualitative factors, namely, qualifications, RD good infrastructure. Resource-driven economies sometimes depend on a protectionist environment, whereas knowledge-based economies thrive in a friendly open policy environment, on innovation qualified lab. If the economy means traditionally the science of rarity; resources rarity versus multiple and unlimited needs, the knowledge economy in light of digital technology is an economy of abundance. This is attributed to the fact that knowledge cannot be consumed or exhausted. Rather it multiplies through the transfer to other knowledge. Whereas traditional economy resources are consumables and finite. 10.Pillars of Knowledge based Economy. There are four pillars of a knowledge based economy on it rests, sustains and prospers. These four pillars carry the equal amount of responsibility and are therefore the roots of knowledge based economy. These are:- (a)  Information Infrastructure.It deals with things like effective communication, information processing and spreading knowledge.(World Bank Team 2006) (b)  Economic and Institutional Regime (EIR).It provides benefits in terms of finance for the creation and development of knowledge and also for Knowledge reuse. (c)  Education.This pillar is one of the most important since well educated and skilled people are the main sources for using and creating knowledge effectively. (d)  Innovation.It consists of design, development and diffusion of a technology which is new to society concerned.[9] CHAPTER III KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMIES OF THE WORLD AND INDIAN CONTEXT â€Å"Throughout all the years and in everything we do, we have focused most of all on the development of human capacity, beginning with our own professional staff, and leveraging their expertise to enrich the Arab community. We have embraced the concept of the ‘knowledge worker’ and have sought to empower our people and the Arab world’s people to dream, to imagine, and to create.† Talal Abu-Ghazaleh[10] The Singapore Study.â€Å"ALTHOUGH the pace may differ, all [rich] economies are moving towards a knowledge based economy.† The OECD made this claim in 1996 and few disagree.Case in point is Singapore. The Singapore economy grew at an average annual rate of 8.5 % from 1965 to 1997 before the regional financial crisis of 1997-98. It overcame the crisis but then had to reinvent itself in order to meet the challenges of the twenty first century and maintain its record of sustained, rapid growth. Small size clubbed with lack of natural resources brought in critical labour shortages cost rise. This forced an upgrade with focus shifting to knowledge operations. Today Singapore’s status as a most admired knowledge-based city reflects how government policies have successfully negotiated the current global network economy to suit economic changes. Since the independence of Singapore in 1965, the government has successfully deployed technocrats, mainly economists and engineers wh o use their professional and technical skills in government to create and manage economic systems that will further the general good. And government policies at each phase of Singapore’s development have contributed to crafting the Singaporean culture. In recent years, for examples, Singapore’s commitment to knowledge-based economy (KBE) development has won her recognition for being the most admired knowledge city (MAKCi) in the World Capital Institute and Teleos ranking for the two years running in 2007 and 2008. With a population of 5 million and a per capita income of US$48,979[11], the government has successfully funded the growth of industrial parks focused on nurturing innovation in technology and biotech. Singapores universities receive extensive support from the government, helping to make the country an attractive destination for multinationals seeking a well-educated workforce. It has been ranked consistently amongst the top 25 in the World Bank’s Knowledge Economy Index (KEI) in recent years, numbering 23rd in 2012 World Bank comparisons. In a recent survey conducted by its Boston Consulting Group (BCG) consultants, Singapore was featured as one of the world’s most innovation-friendly countries in terms of both inputs (government policies supporting education, workforce quality, infrastructure, and trade) and performance (RD results, business performance, employment growth, and other impacts of innovation). It was ranked as number two in the Global Competitiveness Inde x of the World Economic Forum for 2012 – 2013 behind Switzerland and ahead of Finland, Sweden and the Netherlands[12] and number 4 in the Bloomberg’s Best Countries for doing Business Ratings for 2014[13]. The impressive economic growth record of Singapore in the last four decades has been achieved through continuous industrial re-structuring and technological upgrading (Wong, 2001).Singapore has continuously relied primarily on knowledge transfers through MNCs and foreign talents (Toh et al., 2002). Since the late 1990s, the Singapore government has forged an environment that is conducive to innovations, new discoveries and the creation of new knowledge and one that harnesses the intangibles such as ideas, knowledge and expertise (Ministry of the Arts and Information, Renaissance City Report, 2000). The Singapore experience, however, represents one of few examples of how knowledge can become the driving force of economic growth and transformation. Singapore’s i nformation society development trends have been shaped by its developmental state (Wong, 2004) and in the past decade, the Singapore government is keen to use content and creativity to enter the next wave of development in the so-called ‘creative economy’. [1] Keith Smith. What is the Knowledge Economy? Knowledge Intensity and Distributed Knowledge Bases,  Institute for New Technologies Discussion Paper 2002-6, The United Nations University,  June 2002). [2] John F. Kennedy and Europe by Douglas G. Brinkley and Richard T. Griffiths and Theodore C. Sorensen [3] Oxford Dictionary p 419. [4] Peter F. Drucker, The Age of Discontinuity: Guidelines to Our Changing Society (New York: Harper and Row, 1969). [5] Peter F. Drucker, â€Å"The Next Society,† The Economist (November 1, 2001), http://www.economist.com/node/770819. [6] Charles Leadbeater Welcome to the Knowledge Society, theguardian.com, http://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/feb/01/livingonthinair.extract [7] Beyond The Hype: Intellectual Property And The Knowledge Society/Knowledge Economy Kenneth Carlaw, Les Oxley, Paul Walker, Article first published online: 30 AUG 2006 in ournal of Economic Surveys Volume 20, Issue 4, pages 633–690, September 2006. [8] Business Outlook Michel Henry Bouchet CERAM International Workshop Seminar (2008) [9] http://ratnadholakia.blogspot.in/2010/01/what-is-knowledge-economy.html [10] Talal Abu-Ghazaleh is the chairman and founder of the international Jordan-based organisation, the Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization. [11] Singapore Yearbook of Statistics, 2012 [12] WEF: The Global Competitiveness Index Report, 2014-2015, Table 3, page 12. [13] http://www.bloomberg.com/slideshow/2014-01-21/best-countries-for-business-2014.html#slide18

Reactive Oxygen Species Essay -- Biology, Lipids, Proteins, DNA

The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is an unavoidable consequence in aerobic organisms as by products during metabolic respiration (Han et al., 2007, Je et al., 2009). These highly reactive ROS can be considered as strong oxidants and have been shown to induce damage in all cellular macromolecules, such as lipids, proteins and DNA. Over the years dietary polyphenols have been widely studied for their biological activities including antioxidant activity (Ahn et al., 2007, Heo et al., 2009, Kang et al., 2005, Li et al., 2009). Polyphenolic compounds are naturally occurring compounds containing phenolic functionality and this large diverse group of secondary metabolites are exist both in terrestrial and aquatic environments (Shibata et al., 2002, Susanto et al., 2009). Beside the strong antioxidant properties, these naturally occurring polyphenols are known to have numerous biological activities such as anti inflammatory (Ryu et al., 2008), anti allergic (Lee et al., 2009), anti bacterial (Al-Mola, 2009, Suffredini et al., 2004), anti-plasmin inhibitiory (Fukuyama et al., 1990), matrix metalloproteinase inhibitory (Kim et al., 2006) and anticancer (Kong et al., 2009). The high antioxidant power of polyphenols is generally believed to responsible for these activities. Therefore it is very clear that the possibility of use this active compounds in many industrial applications as functional ingredients. Phlorotannins (brown algal polyphenols) are polyphenolic compounds found exclusively in brown seaweeds. Phlorotannins, a subgroup of tannins, are produced entirely by polymerization of phloroglucinol units (Kang et al., 2007, Koivikko et al., 2005). During last two decades, the roles and functions of phlorotannins have been ... ... available proteases and carbohydrases. Further they reported that Alcalase and Viscozyme extractes were more effective than the other extracts tested. With these significant results it is clear that EAE affords big advantage over commonly used classical extraction technique. Taken together, enzyme treatment previous to extraction has resulted in improved yields in the case of bioactive components from seaweeds. In all instances mentioned above, hydrolytic enzymes have been used in different combinations as agents that interact on cell walls, breaking down the structural integrity rendering the intracellular materials more exposed for solvent extraction. Since EAE has attracted growing interest in the extraction of biologically active components, the technique could be explored as a mean to enhance the extraction of particular metabolites from seaweeds. Reactive Oxygen Species Essay -- Biology, Lipids, Proteins, DNA The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is an unavoidable consequence in aerobic organisms as by products during metabolic respiration (Han et al., 2007, Je et al., 2009). These highly reactive ROS can be considered as strong oxidants and have been shown to induce damage in all cellular macromolecules, such as lipids, proteins and DNA. Over the years dietary polyphenols have been widely studied for their biological activities including antioxidant activity (Ahn et al., 2007, Heo et al., 2009, Kang et al., 2005, Li et al., 2009). Polyphenolic compounds are naturally occurring compounds containing phenolic functionality and this large diverse group of secondary metabolites are exist both in terrestrial and aquatic environments (Shibata et al., 2002, Susanto et al., 2009). Beside the strong antioxidant properties, these naturally occurring polyphenols are known to have numerous biological activities such as anti inflammatory (Ryu et al., 2008), anti allergic (Lee et al., 2009), anti bacterial (Al-Mola, 2009, Suffredini et al., 2004), anti-plasmin inhibitiory (Fukuyama et al., 1990), matrix metalloproteinase inhibitory (Kim et al., 2006) and anticancer (Kong et al., 2009). The high antioxidant power of polyphenols is generally believed to responsible for these activities. Therefore it is very clear that the possibility of use this active compounds in many industrial applications as functional ingredients. Phlorotannins (brown algal polyphenols) are polyphenolic compounds found exclusively in brown seaweeds. Phlorotannins, a subgroup of tannins, are produced entirely by polymerization of phloroglucinol units (Kang et al., 2007, Koivikko et al., 2005). During last two decades, the roles and functions of phlorotannins have been ... ... available proteases and carbohydrases. Further they reported that Alcalase and Viscozyme extractes were more effective than the other extracts tested. With these significant results it is clear that EAE affords big advantage over commonly used classical extraction technique. Taken together, enzyme treatment previous to extraction has resulted in improved yields in the case of bioactive components from seaweeds. In all instances mentioned above, hydrolytic enzymes have been used in different combinations as agents that interact on cell walls, breaking down the structural integrity rendering the intracellular materials more exposed for solvent extraction. Since EAE has attracted growing interest in the extraction of biologically active components, the technique could be explored as a mean to enhance the extraction of particular metabolites from seaweeds.

Battle of Midway

The Battle of Midway, which took place in the Pacific from June 4-7, 1942, is considered to be the most decisive battle between the American and the Japanese naval forces during the Second World War. The stunning defeat suffered by the Japanese Navy resulted to the loss of four of its large carriers and effectively loosened Japan’s stranglehold over the Pacific region. This development enabled the Allied Forces to seize the initiative in the region (Naval Historical Center 2005).The decision to attack and capture Midway was part of the Japanese campaign in the region which started in December 1941 with the outbreak of the war in the Pacific, the purpose of which was to seize American, British, and Dutch territories located in Southeast Asia and the Pacific (Naval Historical Center 2005). Japan first surprised the American Fleet which was stationed at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Then on December 10, the Japanese forces occupied Guam. Wake was the next to fall, on December 23, 1941. On February 15, 1942, Singapore also fell to Japanese hands (Geocities.com). Then the Japanese also seized Malaysia, the Dutch East Indies, the Philippines, and other groups of islands located in the western and central Pacific. It was only the first phase of the Japanese campaign in Asia and the Pacific and it was easily completed without much opposition from the surprised Allies by March 1942 (Naval Historical Center 2005). On January 23, 1942, the second phase of the Japanese campaign was planned by order of the Japanese Imperial Headquarters. Its objective was to effectively isolate India and Australia from the war.For this phase to be completed, the Japanese forces planned to launch offensives aimed at capturing vital bases located in the Solomon Islands and Papua-New Guinea. Their intention was to utilize these bases to support their planned campaign against Samoa, Fiji, and New Caledonia. During the first half of March, after successfully occupying the northern coa st of Papua-New Guinea, the next objective of the Japanese forces was to seize Port Moresby which was nearer Australia, being situated in the southern coast.Their plan was to launch an amphibious assault in order to capture the Port (Naval Historical Center 2005). At the outset, however, phase two of the plan of the Japanese Imperial Headquarters which was to occupy the islands of Fiji and Samoa was opposed by the Commander-in-Chief of Japan’s Combined Fleet, Admiral Yamamoto Isoruku, who believed that the two islands were not strategic enough to merit Japan’s attention and resources. Instead of Samoa and Fiji, Admiral Yamamoto Isoruku wanted to seize the island of Midway located in the Central Pacific.Although the General Staff of the Japanese Armed Forces was inclined to decide in his favor, the plan of attack which was presented by his staff did not prove plausible enough for the General Staff, thereby eliciting objections from some of its members. Because of these objections, Admiral Yamamoto threatened to resign his commission if his plan was not approved (Microworks. net). However, Yamamoto’s plan suddenly became acceptable to the General Staff after the Imperial Japanese Navy, whose primary task was to protect the Home Islands, suffered what was considered to be its most humiliating defeat of the war.The date was April 18, 1942 and the occasion was the attack on several Japanese cities and towns, including Tokyo and Yokosuka, which was carried out by â€Å"eighteen B-25 Mitchell medium bombers† which took off from the U. S. carrier Hornet. Although the bombers, which were commanded by Lt. -Col. James H. Doolittle, were not able to inflict considerable damage, the attack left the Japanese in fear of similar occurrences in the future which might result to the Emperor’s palace being hit.The attack also demoralized the members of the Japanese Armed Forces. Because of this, Admiral Yamamoto’s threat of resignation wa s treated seriously and his plan of attacking Midway was accepted in full by the General Staff (Microworks. net). Admiral Yamamoto’s plan, as presented and approved by the Naval General Staff for implementation on May 5, would involve the whole Combined Fleet. It consisted of â€Å"seven battleships, ten carriers, some two dozen cruisers, and more than seventy destroyers† which, at the time, were distributed among six fleets.According to Yamamoto’s plan, he would lead the â€Å"main body† of the force which would consist of three of Japan’s most powerful battleships: the Nagato, Yamato, and Mutsu. Hosho, a light carrier with eight attack planes on board for anti-submarine duties, would be supporting the three battleships. Several destroyers would serve as a screening force for the â€Å"main body† (Microworks. net). The second element would be the â€Å"Aleutians Strike Force† under Vice-Admiral Hosogaya Moshiro. It was composed of th e light carrier Ryujo and Junyo, a cruise liner which was converted into a carrier.This force, which also included the battleships Hyuga, Yamashiro, Fuso, and Ise, would be protected by a number of destroyers and cruisers. Another element of the Combined Fleet, the Second Fleet, was commanded by Admiral Kondo Nobutake. Aside from the battleships Haruna and Kongo, Admiral Kondo Nobutake, whose primary responsibility was to provide protection for Rear-Admiral Tanaka Raizo’s â€Å"Invasion Force,† also had at his disposal the light carrier Zuiho and a big complement of cruisers and destroyers (Microworks. net).The pride of the Combined Fleet was, however, Vice-Admiral Nagumo Chuichi’s â€Å"First Air Fleet. † According to historians, this fleet was already known to sow fear among the enemy ranks because of its role in the attack of Pearl Harbor and in every major operation since conducted by the Japanese Navy. This imposing force consisted of two heavy cruis ers, two battleships, and a squadron of destroyers (Microworks. net). However, what really made this fleet a force to reckon with were the Japanese Navy’s six heavy carriers, namely: Akagi, Soryu, Kaga, Hiryu, Zuikaku, and Shokaku.For this particular mission, however, the carriers Zuikaky and Shokaku could not participate in the action because of the heavy damage which they suffered during the earlier â€Å"Battle of the Coral Sea† (Geocities. com). The plan called for a diversionary attack against the Dutch Harbor facilities of the United States Navy in the Aleutian Islands so that the American forces, especially their carriers, would be forced to leave the vicinity of Midway in order to defend Alaska.This diversionary attack would be conducted by the â€Å"Aleutians Strike Force† under Vice-Admiral Hosogaya Moshiro. After luring the Americans away, the planes from the carriers of the Combined Fleet would conduct an air strike against the American defenses in M idway. At the same time, the forces of the Combined Fleet would prepare to ambush the American ships once they go back to defend Midway. After sinking the American ships, the Japanese, using their seaplanes, would immediately occupy some parts of Aleutian Islands such as Kiska and Attu, including Kure Island, and Midway itself.Admiral Yamamoto also wanted to decimate the American naval forces by putting in place a submarine cordon near the islands of Hawaii so that a weaker American fleet would make contact with his â€Å"main body. † This plan was approved by the Naval General Staff under the leadership of Admiral Nagano (Microworks. net). Historical observers, however, noted two significant defects in Admiral Yamamoto’s plan. The first defect was his failure to appreciate the true worth of the aircraft carrier in the conduct of naval operations.He did not realize that his carriers could be devastating without getting dangerously near the enemy ships by simply dispatc hing their aircraft complement. Since he was not convinced of the carrier’s importance, Yamamoto considered his battleships to be more valuable than the carriers relegating the latter to a supporting status. In addition, because of the slowness of his big battleships, the other ships which composed the Combined Fleet were forced to keep pace, effectively affecting their maneuverability (History Learning Site 2009).The other, more significant and consequently more fatal, defect of Yamamoto’s plan was the fact that his diversionary attack against the American facilities in the Aleutian islands was bound to fail because the Americans were already aware of it and in fact, knew that his real objective was Midway. Because of this knowledge, American ships were not lured to the defense of Alaska and instead waited to ambush Admiral Yamamoto’s fleet (History Learning Site 2009).The Americans knew of Yamamoto’s plan to attack Midway through two naval intelligence stations. One was operating out of Melbourne, Australia while the other was based at Pearl Harbor. These intelligence facilities were able to intercept radio communications which helped them not only to pinpoint the locations of the major fleets of the Japanese navy but also to study their operational patterns. Based on these, the Americans were able to predict the future operations of the Japanese forces (Naval Historical Center 2005).As early as May 25, the Americans were already aware of Yamamoto’s intentions and prepared accordingly. Their three carriers which were at sea at the time were immediately ordered to return to Pearl Harbor. The carriers USS Hornet and USS Enterprise which comprised Task Force 16 (TF 16) arrived on May 26. USS Enterprise of Task Force 17, on the other hand, came back on May 27. However, since it suffered major damage during the â€Å"Battle of the Coral Sea,† USS Yorktown had to undergo urgent repair to prepare it for another battle.The r epair that was supposed to be completed in three months was rushed in only three days to enable the carrier to participate in the â€Å"Battle of Midway† (Geocities. com). Meanwhile, over in Midway, the Americans scrambled to strengthen their defenses. Six brand-new â€Å"Avenger† torpedo planes which missed their mother carrier (USS Hornet) were deployed to Midway. Then seven F4F-3 and another twenty F2A-3 Marine fighter planes were also added to Midway defense, in addition to 27 dive-bombers, 23 army bomber planes, and 32 reconnaissance planes (Geocities.com). On May 29, TF 16 under the overall command of Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance sailed out of Pearl Harbor to prepare for the battle. It was composed of the carriers Enterprise and Hornet, with a screening force composed of four heavy cruisers (Minneapolis, Pensacola, New Orleans, and Northampton), two light cruisers (Vincennes and Atlanta), and a total of nine destroyers. On the other hand, TF 17, which was under the command of Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, was not able to sail until after the completion of the repair of USS Yorktown on May 30.The screening force of TF 17 was composed of Portland, which was a heavy cruiser, a light cruiser (Astoria), and six destroyers. The mission of TFs 16 and 17 was to lie in wait for the Japanese naval fleet (Geocities. com). The diversionary attack on Dutch Harbor was launched by the â€Å"Aleutians Strike Force† under Vice-Admiral Hosogaya Moshiro at 0243 hours on June 3. The attacking force consisted of a total of 35 planes: twelve dive-bombers and six Zero fighter planes from the light carrier Junyo and eleven torpedo bombers and six Zero fighters from the light carrier Ryujo.Although the Americans defended with heavy anti-aircraft fire, the Japanese attackers were able to kill more than twenty American sailors and soldiers in the course of shooting up their army barracks, a radio station, and a tank farm. The â€Å"Aleutians Strike Force,â₠¬  however, did not succeed in its actual mission which was to lure the American naval forces present in the area away from Midway. What happened was that one Zero fighter plane which made an emergency landing was later recovered by Americans who later discovered the one weakness of the plane: â€Å"a very light armor protection.† This weakness was later exploited by the Americans to defeat the Zeros which earlier terrorized the skies over the Pacific (Geocities. com). Meanwhile, the attack on Midway took place early morning of June 4 – the first day of the Battle of Midway. A total of 108 planes took part in the first attack. Thirty-six were fighter planes (nine each from the four carriers) while the remaining 72 were bombers. The other Japanese bombers were kept in reserve in the four carriers just in case a second attack would be needed or if American ships showed up.While the attack on Midway was ongoing, the Japanese fleet also dispatched three reconnaissance pla nes to search around in case American naval fleets showed up to intervene. At almost the same time, the American defenders in Midway launched six â€Å"Wildcat† fighters to patrol the skies and 11 reconnaissance planes to search for the Japanese fleet. Two of the reconnaissance planes of the Americans spotted the Japanese fleet at around 0530 hours and 0552 hours, respectively. By 0600 hours, Midway dispatched all of its bombers to launch an attack against the Japanese carriers.The Americans, however, were almost annihilated by the anti-aircraft guns of the carriers and the more superior Zero fighters of the Japanese (Geocities. com). In the end, the Americans were aided by their more superior intelligence. While the Japanese reconnaissance planes finally spotted the American fleet, they were not able to identify the kinds of ships composing the American fleet. In other words, the Japanese commanders did not know whether carriers were part of them. In contrast, the Americans knew with certainty that the four heavy carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy were in the Japanese fleet.In the final analysis, the defeat of the Japanese came as a result of their indecision whether to arm their planes with bombs for the Midway attack or torpedoes needed to attack the American ships, especially their carriers (Geocities. com). In the absence of an intelligence regarding the composition of the American fleet, Vice-Admiral Nagumo Chuichi, the commander of the â€Å"First Air Fleet,† decided to load his planes with bombs so that the second attack on Midway could be launched. He thought that if the American fleet did not have any carrier with it, the attack on Midway should take precedence.When the report from their reconnaissance planes came in at 0820 hour stating that the American fleet included a carrier, Vice-Admiral Nagumo Chuichi changed his decision and ordered that the bombs be replaced with torpedoes so that an attack against the American fleet could be launched. Unfortunately, he could not immediately dispatch his planes because he still had to wait for the planes from the Midway attack to return safely to the carriers, otherwise all the returning planes would have to ditch because they could not land on the carriers.This moment of confusion left the Japanese fleet without any aerial defense and allowed the Americans to attack the Japanese carriers. In the end, all four heavy carriers of the Japanese were sunk, while the Americans lost only USS Yorktown. The Japanese never recovered from their loss in the Battle of Midway after which, they lost the supremacy that they were enjoying in the Pacific and ultimately lost the Pacific War (Geocities. com). Bibliography Geocities. com. â€Å"The Battle of Midway. † http://www.geocities. com/Athens/Rhodes/8384/midway. html (accessed April 15, 2009). Microworks. net. â€Å"Stopping the Tide: The Battle of Midway, 4-6 June 1942. † http://www. microworks. net/PACIFIC/battles/ midway. htm (accessed April 15, 2009). Naval Historical Center. 2005. â€Å"Battle of Midway: 4-7 June 1942. † http://www. history. navy. mil/faqs/faq81-1. htm (accessed April 15, 2009). Trueman, Chris. 2009. â€Å"Battle of Midway. † http://www. historylearningsite. co. uk/battle_of_midway. htm (accessed April 15, 2009).

Map of World Hotspots

Map of World Hotspots Most of the worlds  volcanism  occurs on plate boundaries. Hotspot is the name for a center of volcanism that is exceptional. Map of World Hotspots Click the image for the full-size version. Image courtesy Gillian Foulger According to the original theory of hotspots, from 1971, hotspots represent mantle plumes- blobs of rising hot material from the base of the mantle- and make up a fixed framework independent of plate tectonics. Since that time, neither supposition has been confirmed, and the theory has been greatly adjusted. But the concept is simple and appealing, and the majority of specialists are still working inside the hotspot framework. Textbooks still teach it. The minority of specialists seeks to explain hotspots in terms of what I might call advanced plate tectonics: plate fracturing, counterflow in the mantle, melt-producing patches and edge effects. This map shows the hotspots listed in an influential 2003 paper by Vincent Courtillot and colleagues, which ranked them according to a set of five widely accepted criteria. The three sizes of symbols show whether the hotspots had high, medium or low scores against those criteria. Courtillot proposed that the three ranks correspond to an origin at the base of the mantle, the base of the transition zone at 660 kilometers depth, and the base of the lithosphere. There is no consensus on whether that view is valid, but this map is handy for showing the names and locations of the most commonly mentioned hotspots. Some hotspots  have obvious names, like Hawaii, Iceland and Yellowstone, but most are named for obscure ocean islands (Bouvet, Balleny, Ascension), or seafloor features that in turn got their names from famous research ships (Meteor, Vema, Discovery). This map should help you keep up during a talk aimed at specialists.

Bangalore Exploring an alien city Essays

Bangalore Exploring an alien city Essays Bangalore Exploring an alien city Essay Bangalore Exploring an alien city Essay How exciting would that be, the moment I imagine of starting a life in Bangor, my dream city. Strange thoughts filled in my mind, anticipating the outcome. I started my Job search and found the Job market quite responsive. I got the first call, then one and then another for the Job opportunity as filtered by me in Nikkei and monster. Well!! Now its the time to take it all at my stride. And finally, there it is. To my utter surprise and Gods blessings, I got my first break in a privately owned company located near my PEG at Grammarian. My Joys knew no bounds! Of course, now I am employed, I can try out many places, the food delicacies, the enchanting city life, different attires, and ways of grooming myself at my best. Oh, I loved the taste of yummy birdbrains, bar pap, panaches , sizzlers and the rocking time I had in barbeques nation on a grand office gala party. The colors of freedom taking its toll! I can do anything which I desire! But of course, I always make it a point to share those experiences with my family and keep them informed about my move. Enjoying the posh lifestyle, I came across many friends from diverse ultra and origin. Each day is happening and inviting something new, and I loved the newness protruding into my life. Transforming myself from a typical village looking girl to chic look lass had a lot added benefits! Right from a single Faceable update to a status change has its impact so much so that I bagged 80 likes for my new pick update!! And comments with posts flooded my inbox. A new look and a new girl in town, I had many things in my mind to do, to enjoy! So many invites to add me in Faceable. Oh! I am loving it! Talking about the city, the city is clean and its people ere are quite helpful, welcoming and compassionate, despite the auto rickshaw pullers who annoy the new bees and charge high on fares. Being a victim of overcharging, I still recall the fights I encountered such cumbersome situations with the rickracks. Vendors such as catwalks, pain purr Wallas, Juice/corn sellers, or the ice cream Wallas wont bother you much for chillers, unlike other places. And one thing I noted here, no question of bargaining!! If you like, you pick at the price fixed. No arguments and no word of mouth! Strange enough, sometimes it astonishes me to mind that all the Archie rich, elite class dwells in the city clearly manifesting the extravagant touch in the air. Once your wallet is full, you will find it easy to go, else be in limits. Coming across the travels and tours in and around the city, I visited Nadia hills, Tip sultan palace, and Moser. I was so charmed by the malls and the parks which beautify the city more. There are many other places yet to be visited, to be seen. Exploring the city itself is so fun and exciting . I have still much more to find out and explore. Bangor Exploring an alien city By shabbiness

Canada's Prosperity at Risk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Canada's Prosperity at Risk - Essay Example The country at the focal point of the study happens to be Canada. Canada is one of the most developed and richest countries in the world. The country is blessed rich natural resources and has a diverse and highly educated population. However, the country is going through a phase of change and facing certain challenges on various fronts which could reduce the prosperity of the nation. (Cowan, 2005). Based on in depth research it has been decided that the country faces prosperity challenges in the domain of infrastructure, innovation, demographics, natural resource, government regulation and politics. From an infrastructural point of view it is to be said that the cities of Canada are at the cross roads. The government of Canada does not have any strong agenda on the infrastructural commitments. From the perspective of innovation the prosperity of the country is threatened on three fronts such as the global competition, demographics and productivity. There is very little doubt over the fact that China has a population which is highly educated and skilled. But from a demographic perspective off late the country has been facing a problem of aging population. As mentioned before, Canada has been blessed with rich and large amount of natural resources. Such resources are used for the production of energy which also happens to be a major contributor to the overall GDP of the country. But the growing demand of power has been creating a misbalance in the ecosystem. Also another major problem faced by the country has been the fact the present government regulations are believed to be quite complex and lack robustness. On the political fore front there lie various political complexities especially in the domain of taxations. The present looks to critically analyze all the cause and effects of the challenges mentioned above and looks to propose probable recommendations to over the challenges (Henry, 2008). Cause and effect From the perspective of innovation one of the majo r challenges faced by the country is the transformation face of the global economy. The global economy is still looking to recover from the after effects of the 2008 recession. Also the economy is going through a transformation phase due to the rise of the emerging economies like china, India, Brazil, etc. This most certainly creates opportunities for the exporters and investors of the country. But the continuous expansion of information and technologies would lead to a high value knowledge network. As a result each and every Canadian enterprise is faced with new levels of intense competition. Just like some of the other developed countries one of the major problems faced by the country is of aging population. The increasing number of proportion of senior citizens would add to the demand of the demand of services in the public domain, especially health care. Also aging the population would mean that there would less number of working and taxpaying Canadians. However, the biggest cha llenge would come in the form of its effect on the labour market; which would be discussed later (Burgemeister, 2003). Also the innovation of the nation would depend upon the growth of the productivity. However, the recent performance of Canada leaves a lot of scope for improvement. Over the last decade or so the productivity grew by just 0.7 percent. This is far below as compared to other developed countries like USA if the rate of growth in productivity in the near future then the potential economic growth of the

Wounding With Intent and Malicious Infliction of Grievous Bodily Harm Essay

Wounding With Intent and Malicious Infliction of Grievous Bodily Harm or Wounding - Essay Example This paper illustrates that because Stan did not intend to cause grievous bodily harm but only intended to instill fear in Helen, his mental state is insufficient to establish the mens rea requirement for wounding with intent. Malice, however, which is the required state of mind for malicious infliction of grievous bodily harm or wounding, can be inferred by the defendant’s conduct and is unrelated to his motive, according to the leading case of Re A (children) (conjoined twins) [2000] 4 All ER 961. While Stan claims that he did not intend to inflict bodily injuries, and his motive was to make her afraid rather than to hurt her, general malice can be inferred by his act of throwing a bottle directly at Helen. Thus, the mens rea requirement for the lesser offenses of malicious infliction of grievous bodily harm or malicious wounding is all that can be established from the facts. Depending on whether or not Helen’s injuries were a wound or were grievous under the Offences Against The Person Act of 1861 s.20, Stan may have committed a malicious infliction of grievous bodily harm or malicious wounding. The Act prohibits the unlawful and malicious wounding of another person (meaning the â€Å"breaking of the continuity of the whole of the outer skin, or the inner skin within the cheek or lip†) as well as the unlawful and malicious infliction of grievous, or serious, bodily harm (a jury question). If both a wound and grievous bodily harm exist, R v McCready [1978] 1 WLR 1376 mandates that the correct charge is unlawful wounding. The bottle that Stan threw at Helen caused a deep cut that required stitches. Thus the breaking of the skin requirement for unlawful wounding is clearly met. Grievous bodily harm may also be present since such a deep cut is arguably serious according to the plain meaning of the word, but this question does not need to be addressed since the holding in McCready requires that the charge be unlawful wounding under s.20 if a wound is present. Thus, the crime that Stan probably committed is malicious wounding.