Accounting Internal Control

Question: Talk about theAccountingfor Internal Control. Answer: Hierarchical Process The association has two kinds of activity acquisition and deals. In these two procedures, calculated administration assumes a fundamental job through worth expansion in the field of stock upkeep. The acquisition procedure is started through the gracefully chain partners who are with long haul relationship and agreement. Flexibly chain partners are of two kinds household and worldwide. Deal is made through own outlet for retailing and institutional supplies to the lodgings and eateries. The items are short-lived in nature with the portion of non-durables. As these items are of high inclination to get died with low timeframe of realistic usability, the organization is keeping up a legitimized arrangement for acquisition and deals. The items are additionally separated into two classes premium and normal items. It is the fundamental target of the association to guarantee deals of most extreme items inside their timeframe of realistic usability, and along these lines to alleviate the like lihood of ruined inventories. So as to guarantee that, I have made an inside review to locate the likely hazard factors and with my push to discover plausible strides to relieve them through appropriate innovative arranging. The primary target of this report is to discover those dangers and fix systems to stay away from them with the current offices accessible in the framework of the organization(Handfield, 2011). Pertinent Risk Factors To discover the significant hazard factors, I need to discover them through the diagram of the hierarchical procedure. It is imperative to such an extent that the ID of dangers and to alleviate them will raise the productivity of the organization(Kannan, 2006). While experiencing the procedure, I have discovered after plausible hazard factors which may influence the presentation of the association: Nature of Products As the association isn't fabricating anything, rather is chiefly engaged with exchanging of items which are acquired from the market, there is no extent of indicating aptitudes in the space of assembling region. The association is obtaining the vegetables and organic products from the merchants of the market. As they are exceptionally transitory in nature, the primary hazard identified is the nature of the items secured from the sellers. Stock Maintenance As these items are natural items and tend to get died by specified time, stock upkeep is of high need in this fragment. As stock is adding to the current resources and hence to the working capital of the association, the effect of stock with physical quality upkeep is to be the greatest hazard factor of this business(Janiga, 2005). Danger of Spoilage This is an undeniable marvel around here. The vegetables and the natural products get ruined at the appointed time of time and to protract its timeframe of realistic usability through upkeep of stock is concerning hazard in this domain(Lenghel, 2004). Interior Controls to Mitigate Risks The general perceptions demonstrated the need of inside control in the hierarchical procedure in various levels to guarantee alleviation of recognized potential dangers. The dangers are recognized and inward control is to be practiced to limit them(Frc, 2014). Danger of Quality of Products The obtainment framework ought to have indicated benchmark to discover nature of vegetables and organic products. As the association is engaged with going to two sorts of purchasers in the structure for retail and institutional, the significance of value control is generally significant while obtaining the items from the sellers. The organization obtains materials from neighborhood just as worldwide sellers. The principle worry of value is with the neighborhood merchants. The vegetables and natural products secured from them are to be passed however quality control arrangement of the organization to guarantee the qualification of the item. For global merchants, hazard is lesser as they are composed and keep up all out quality administration identified with their procedure the board. Lower quality is engaged with loss of piece of the pie because of not going to the benchmark for quality purchasers. The institutional purchasers are worried about quality as they need to serve the items in different structures to their clients. Low quality will make them loosing their clients and pieces of the overall industry as well. Besides, if the market knows about flexibly of poor items by Fruito, the association won't have the option to maintain the business with sustainability(Ries, 2014). Stock Maintenance As the items are of transitory in nature, legitimate interior control is to be kept up for stock upkeep. Support of appropriate temperature in the stockroom is one of the huge variables identified with this. The association is to finish stock support FIFO or First in First out technique. This will guarantee legitimate moving of the inventories according to age of the items. Indenting of new items is to be made after exhaustive investigation of materials close by and the customary deals figure strategy. Over stacking of items just presses the association because of blockage of working capital and danger of spoilage(White, 2015). Decay The idea of items doesn't allow the association to keep robust stock in the distribution center. There must be appropriate deals figure which can guarantee the acquirement in genuine viable way. Danger of deterioration can be turned away through the activity of legitimate estimating. The pattern of deals got from chronicled information of bookkeeping data framework can assist the association with fixing the anticipated necessity and this inside control can guarantee alleviating the likelihood of decay. Legitimate mechanical framework like bar coding can be useful in this perspective to separate the items according to date of acquirement and date of expiry for settling on valuable choice towards the products(Watson, 2015). References: Frc. (2014). Direction on Risk Management Internal Control. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Frc: https://www.frc.org.uk/Our-Work/Publications/Corporate-Governance/Guidance-on-Risk-Management,- Internal-Control-and.pdf Handfield, R. (2011, january 16). Job of Procurement inside an Organization: Procurement : A Tutorial. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Ncsu: https://scm.ncsu.edu/scm-articles/article/job of-obtainment inside an-association acquirement an instructional exercise Janiga, D. (2005, January 05). Five keys to successful stock administration. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Plantengineering: https://www.plantengineering.com/industry-news/top-stories/single-article/five-keys-to-powerful stock administration/68b5c90e76.html Kannan, N. (2006, August 02). Diminishing Operational Risk in Business Process Outsourcing. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Sourcingmag: https://www.sourcingmag.com/decreasing operational-hazard in-business-process-re-appropriating/ Lenghel, R. D. (2004). Contemplations with respect to transitory things. Quaestus Multisiaciplinary RESEARCH JOURNAL , 132-139. Ries, H. (2014, June 26). Hazard Assessment and the Quality Management System. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Qualitydigest: https://www.qualitydigest.com/inside/quality-insider-article/chance appraisal and-quality-administration system.html# Watson, D. (2015). Helping clients oversee hazard and explain operational. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Hsb: https://www.hsb.com/TheLocomotive/ReducingSpoilageRisksInPerishableGoodsStorage.aspx White, J. (2015, August 07). Warehousing and Inventory Management. Recovered December 08, 2016, from Logcluster: https://dlca.logcluster.org/show/LOG/Warehousing+and+Inventory+Management

One Direction Essay

One Direction are an English-Irish pop kid band situated in London, comprising of individuals Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. They marked with Simon Cowell’s record name Syco Records in the wake of being framed and completing third in the seventh arrangement of British broadcast singing rivalry The X Factor in 2010. Pushed to worldwide accomplishment by the intensity of web based life, their two collections Up All Night and Take Me Home, discharged in 2011 and 2012 individually, broke a few records, bested the diagrams of most significant markets, and produced hit singles, including â€Å"What Makes You Beautiful† and â€Å"Live While We’re Young†. Regularly depicted as starting the resurgence in the kid band idea, and of shaping piece of another â€Å"British Invasion† in the United States, the gathering have sold more than 14 million singles and 8 million collections, as supported by the band’s the executives organization, Modest! The executives. Their accomplishments incorporate two BRIT Awards and three MTV Video Music Awards. As indicated by Nick Gatfield, the administrator and CEO of Sony Music Entertainment UK, One Direction spoke to a $50 million business realm by June 2012. They were broadcasted 2012’s â€Å"Top New Artist† by Billboard, while The Huffington Post named 2012 â€Å"The Year of One Direction†. History The X Factor, development, and record bargain In 2010, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson tried out as solo contender for the seventh arrangement of British broadcast singing rivalry The X Factor. Neglecting to advance to the â€Å"Boys† class at â€Å"judges’ houses†, after a proposal by visitor judge Nicole Scherzinger, along these lines meeting all requirements for the â€Å"Groups† classification. Consequently, the gathering got together for about fourteen days to become more acquainted with one another and to rehearse. Styles concocted the name One Direction. Simon Cowell later remarked that the presentation persuaded him that the gathering â€Å"were certain, fun, similar to a pack of companions, and sort of brave too. † Within the initial a month of the live shows, they were Cowell’s last act in the opposition. The gathering immediately picked up fame in the UK. In no time subsequently it was affirmed, One Direction had been marked by Cowell to a revealed ? 2 million Syco Records record contract. Recording for their introduction collection started in January 2011, as they traveled to Los Angeles to work with maker RedOne. A One Direction-authorized book, One Direction: Forever Young, was distributed by HarperCollins in February 2011, in this manner beating The Sunday Times Best Seller list. That month, the kid band and different competitors from the arrangement partook in the X Factor Live Tour. The visit saw the gathering performing for 500,000 individuals all through the UK. After the visit closed in April 2011, the gathering kept taking a shot at their presentation collection. Up All Night and worldwide advancement Released in September 2011, One Direction’s debut single, â€Å"What Makes You Beautiful†, bowed at number one on the UK Singles Chart, in the wake of turning into the most pre-requested Sony Music Entertainment single ever. Resulting singles, â€Å"Gotta Be You† and â€Å"One Thing†, topped inside the UK Singles Chart top ten. In November 2011, they marked a record manage Columbia Records in North America. Steve Barnett, the co-director of Columbia Records, said it was anything but a troublesome choice to sign One Direction; â€Å"I just idea there was a void, and possibly they could seize and hold it. † â€Å"What Makes You Beautiful† was discharged in the United States in February 2012, where it appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 28, turning into the most elevated presentation for a British demonstration since 1998. It has sold more than 4 million units in the US. Upon appearance in the US in February 2012, One Direction set out on a radio advancement binge, just as their first North American show visit as an initial represent Big Time Rush. They showed up on The Today Show, at the Rockefeller Center; an expected 15,000 fans dropped on the court. Basically praised for its intrigue to the young crowd, One Direction’s first studio collection, Up All Night, was discharged all around in mid 2012. It turned into the UK’s quickest selling debut collection of 2011, and beat the diagrams in sixteen nations. The collection bowed on the US Billboard 200 diagram, making One Direction the main British gathering in US outline history to enter at number one with their introduction collection. They were accepted into the Guinness World Records subsequently. Up All Night additionally turned into the principal collection by a kid band to sell 500,000 advanced duplicates in the US and, as of August 2012, had sold more than 3 million duplicates around the world. In April 2012, an American band that passed by a similar name documented a trademark encroachment claim. As per the claim, the US band had been utilizing the name since 2009, recorded two collections and documented an application to enlist the trademark name in the US in February 2011. In December 2011, One Direction set out on their first featuring UK show visit, the Up All Night Tour. In mid 2012, they declared Australasian and North American legs of the show visit, with dates from April to July 2012. The visit, bringing about 62 shows, was met with inspiration both basically and industrially. A chronicle of a show from the visit, Up All Night: The Live Tour, was discharged in May 2012. Notwithstanding the DVD besting the diagrams in twenty-five nations, as of August 2012, its worldwide deals had surpassed 1 million duplicates. One Direction’s first-authorized American book, Dare to Dream: Life as One Direction, distributed in the United States in May 2012, beat The New York Times Best Seller list. In June 2012, Nick Gatfield, director and CEO of Sony Music Entertainment UK, expressed how he anticipates that One Direction should speak to a $100 million business domain more than 2013. Gatfield kept up, â€Å"What you probably won't think around One Direction is that they as of now speak to a $50 million business and that’s a figure we hope to twofold next year†. One Direction were the greatest champs of the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards winning their three assignments on 6 September 2012, including Best New Artist. Take Me Home and world visit One Direction’s second studio collection, Take Me Home, was discharged in November 2012. Take Me Home was written in gatherings and has a normal of just shy of five lyricists for each track. Savan Kotecha, Rami Yacoub, and Carl Falk, who formed One Direction’s hits â€Å"What Makes You Beautiful† and â€Å"One Thing†, went through a half year in Stockholm creating tunes for the collection, and had the option to shape songs around their tones. One Direction started recording the collection in May 2012, in Stockholm at Kinglet Studios. Take Me Home accumulated blended surveys from music pundits. Recognition fixated on creation quality while analysis depended on its conventional, surged nature. With the collection and its subsequent single, â€Å"Little Things†, both appearing at the same time at number one in the UK, One Direction turned into the most youthful act in British outline history to accomplish the accomplishment. Take Me Home sold 540,000 duplicates in its first week in the US, appeared on the Billboard 200, and beat the outlines in more than thirty-four different nations. Furthermore, Up All Night and Take Me Home were the number three and number four smash hit collections of 2012 universally, selling 4. 5 million and 4. 4 million units, individually. One Direction performed â€Å"Little Things† at the 2012 Royal Variety Performance within the sight of Queen Elizabeth II, and featured a sold-out show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on 3 December 2012. In February 2013, One Direction discharged a spread variant of â€Å"One Way or Another† and â€Å"Teenage Kicks†, â€Å"One Way or Another â€Å", as the 2013 Comic Relief single. The band played out the melody at the 2013 BRIT Awards at which they additionally won the recently made Global Success Award. Furthermore, the Official Charts Company uncovered that One Direction have sold 2,425,000 records in the UK by February 2013. One Direction left on their subsequent show visit in February 2013, the Take Me Home Tour. The show visit comprises of more than 100 shows in Europe, North America and Australasia. Ticket deals arrived at 300,000 inside a day of discharge in the UK and Ireland, which incorporated a six date sell-out at London’s The O2 Arena. In the Australian and New Zealand markets, tickets netted US$15. 7 million, with each of the 190,000 tickets being sold for the eighteen demonstrates to be held. This Is Us, a 3D biopic movie focusing on the gathering, is to be coordinated by Morgan Spurlock, delivered by Spurlock, Ben Winston, Adam Milano and Cowell, and discharged by TriStar Pictures on 30 August 2013. Melodic style One Direction’s debut studio collection, Up All Night, is overwhelmingly a popular music record, containing components of adolescent pop, move pop, pop stone, and force fly, with electropop and rock impacts. Advanced Spy’s Robert Copsey depicted the collection as a â€Å"collection of pg pop stone with executioner choruses†, while The New York Times considered it â€Å"full of simple stone curved pop, carefree and here and there cunning. † Jason Lipshutz of Billboard recognized that the collection shows an innovation in sound that was â€Å"necessary for the rejuvenation of the kid band movement†. Their second studio collection, Take Me Home, is described by rock-acquired pop, unmistakable electric guitar riffs, brilliant synthesizers, puns for sex, a homogeneous sound and message, and the pitch-rectifying programming Auto-Tune. Alexis Petridis for The Guardian deciphered its mark sound as follows: â€Å"peppy, synth-supported interpretation of mid 80s

When to Use an Online College Research Paper Sample

When to Use an Online College Research Paper SampleWith online college research paper samples in abundance on the Internet, how can you tell the right ones from the bad? It's easy. Once you have chosen a topic that you want to write about, it's easy to narrow your choices down by using the site's college research paper sample page.In order to get an idea of what is available on the Internet, let's take a look at an online college research paper sample. The sites will usually list a variety of topics from which you can choose. Some might be related to the subject of your course, others may be more general and open-ended; still others may be specifically designed for you course.Some sites will allow you to pick a topic based on the area of study in which you are enrolled. For example, if you are enrolled in computer technology, you might choose the topic 'computer technology' instead of just 'computer.' To make sure that the site that you choose is not only reputable but also helpful, pay close attention to the topics of interest displayed.Don't forget to check out the university's website as well. If the university's website is not featured on the site, it might be worthwhile to contact the university and find out whether they would be willing to post their site on the college research paper sample. Not all universities have a website. Some even do not have a physical campus!Of course, you should also examine the site closely to see if it includes assignments, exams or other materials that would be relevant to your specific course. Remember, there is no such thing as one-size-fits-all. Sites that feature multiple resources may even be more comprehensive than some companies that just provide a single resource.Once you have chosen a sample, there are other factors to consider before submitting the material to the site. For example, don't simply hand over a pen and paper. This is a writing assignment, not just some stuff you picked up off the Internet!Additionally, a college research paper sample may be provided with two or three themes to work with. You should be able to choose a topic that you feel comfortable with. As mentioned earlier, choosing a topic is also based on the subject of your course, so it is important to find out if the site you chose provides a variety of topics for you to choose from.Using the online college research paper sample that you've chosen wisely, can help you achieve your goals. It may not be a substitute for actual hands-on experience, but it can certainly increase your ability to write effectively, both for a specific class and for general use in school.

Exploring The Negative Effects Of Maternal Obesity

Nusrat Jahan Nicole Garret WRT 102 10/21/2015 Exploring the Negative Effects of Maternal Obesity Obesity in pregnant women is a global concern. In The United States, obesity is a critical public health issue—one in every three women is obese (Masho, et al). This issue becomes crucial in the context that 36% of pregnant women in the United States are obese (Shub, et al). Studies show a strong association between maternal obesity and health risks during pregnancy and labor. In addition, a disconnect in perception and awareness exists such that most obese pregnant women who gain weight during pregnancy underestimate their Body Mass Index (BMI); and also have poor knowledge about the risk associated with obesity. In our time period, there is a significant increase in the average body index in all age groups and most commonly with the women who are entering their reproduction age. According to the article, â€Å"Weight Gain During Pregnancy†, a normal weighted gravida, or pregnant woman, has BMI of 18.5–24.9 Kg/ m2, over-weight gravida has BMI of 25–29.9 Kg/m2, and obese gravida has BMI of 30 and greater Kg/m2. Obese pregnant women face many critical health risks compare to normal weight pregnant women. In the study â€Å"Maternal Obesity a Global Health Problem and Its Implications on Maternal and Fetal Health†, by Hashmi and his colleagues, they aimed to find out if obese women were at greater risk of having adverse reproductive outcomes compared to women with a normal BMI. By usingShow MoreRelatedThe Current Canadian Health Care System Essay1103 Words   |  5 Pagesdeterminants of health. Although each determinant of health may individually have effects on health, all are interrelated to create a web of elements that form the principles of our physical and mental health (Potter and Perry, 2014 p. 10). 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The Different Types of Money in an Economy

While it is true that all money in an economy serves three functions, not all money is created equal. Commodity Money Commodity money is money that would have value even if it were not being used as money. (This is usually referred to as having intrinsic value.) Many people cite gold as an example of commodity money since they assert that gold has intrinsic value aside from its monetary properties. While this is true to some degree; gold does, in fact, have a number of uses, its worth noting that the most often-cited uses of gold are for making money and jewelry rather than for making non-ornamental items. Commodity-Backed Money Commodity-backed money is a slight variation on commodity money. While commodity money uses the commodity itself as currency directly, commodity-backed money is money that can be exchanged on demand for a specific commodity. The gold standard is a good example of the use of commodity-backed money- under the gold standard, people were not literally carrying around gold as cash and trading gold directly for goods and services, but the system worked such that currency holders could trade in their currency for a specified amount of gold. Fiat Money Fiat money is money that has no intrinsic value but that has value as money because a government decreed that it has value for that purpose. While somewhat counterintuitive, a monetary system using fiat money is certainly feasible and is, in fact, used by most countries today. Fiat money is possible because the three functions of money -- a medium of exchange, a unit of account, and a store of value -- are fulfilled as long as all people in a society acknowledge that the fiat money is a valid form of currency. Commodity-Backed Money vs. Fiat Money Much political discussion centers around the issue of commodity (or, more precisely, commodity-backed) money versus fiat money, but, in reality, the distinction between the two isnt quite as large as people seem to think, for two reasons. First, one objection to fiat money is the lack of intrinsic value, and opponents of fiat money often claim that a system using fiat money is inherently fragile because fiat money doesnt have a non-money value. While this is a valid concern, one must then wonder how a monetary system backed by gold is significantly different. Given that only a small fraction of the worlds gold supply is used for non-ornamental properties, isnt it the case that gold has value mostly because people believe it has value, much like fiat money? Second, opponents of fiat money claim that the ability for a government to print money without having to back it up with a specific commodity is potentially dangerous. This is also a valid concern to some degree, but one that is not entirely prevented by a commodity-backed money system, since its certainly possible for the government to harvest more of the commodity in order to generate more money or to revalue the currency by changing its trade-in value.

Persuasive Essay On Legalizing Marijuana - 1746 Words

Legalizing Marijuana Can you imagine being just six-years-old and suffering from over three hundred violent seizures a week? From birth, Charlotte Figi suffered from a rare form of epilepsy, which caused these seizures. After trying everything to help Charlotte, her parents finally decided to try medical marijuana, and it worked! Charlotte still had seizures, but now, she had maybe two or three seizures a month instead of three hundred a week. Charlotte’s story and many similar stories, along with medical research and sound reasons, have caused the public’s opinion about marijuana to change in favor of legalizing it, and I agree. I strongly believe that marijuana, and especially medical marijuana, should be legalized across the entire†¦show more content†¦For example, much earlier in 1996, California’s Proposition 215 stated that people who are twenty-one and older could possess eight ounces of marijuana and grow six mature plants in their homes. More recently, Montana ’s Initiative said that people could possess only one ounce of usable marijuana and four plants. Within the past three years, Maryland’s House bill allowed people to have only a thirty-day supply of marijuana with the total amount to be determined. Other states, including New York, Pennsylvania, and most recently, West Virginia, followed Maryland with similar laws and requirements. For their own safety, patients need to go through the thorough task of knowing exactly how much marijuana they can legally possess and grow and which conditions are even approved for medical marijuana -- cancer, glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, or chronic or debilitating diseases, like seizures, spasms, Tourette’s Syndrome, or multiple sclerosis. Also, they must register as medical marijuana users but only in their own states because this registration is not recognized from state to state. Maryland, California, Arizona, and other states will not allow visiting patients to buy marijuana from t heir dispensaries. Obviously, legalizing marijuana, especially medical marijuana, would take a tremendous burden off the people who depend on it to improve theShow MoreRelatedPersuasive Essay: Legalizing Marijuana965 Words   |  4 PagesSunday March 29th Paper 3: Persuasive â€Å"Advantages of Legalizing Marijuana† Advantages of Legalizing Marijuana Marijuana use is on the rise, especially among teenagers and young adults. With the recent laws passed in eight states about legalizing medical marijuana , many stand divided when it comes to this never ending debate, but I firmly believe that this miracle working drug should be legalized throughout the United States. Marijuana is by far the most commonlyRead MoreEssay on Legalizing Marijuana-Persuasive Outline941 Words   |  4 PagesBilly Bob Joe Good Example Persuasive Speech Outline Purpose: To persuade my audience to: support the legalization of marijuana, because of it being able to provide many medical as well as economic benefits for the United States if legalized. Thesis Statement: Marijuana has been regarded as a harmful plant that can endanger lives and is thought to be nothing more than an extra problem to be dealt with in today’s society. However, based on its economic value and medical benefits, theRead MoreLegalizing Marijuana1592 Words   |  7 Pagesdisobey unjust laws. Martin Luther King Jr. Many people ask â€Å"why should marijuana be legalized†? when the real question that we should be asking is â€Å"why shouldn’t marijuana be legalized†?. Marijuana also known as hemp is a naturally grown plant that has been around for decades dating back to around 2697 B.C., when the Egyptians would use it to cure many common ailments, and the Chinese would use it for therapeutics. Using marijuana not only to cure common illnesses but for your pleasure as well shouldRead MoreIs There A War On Drugs?949 Words   |  4 PagesSom Altena Ms. Van dyke Sun Nov, 30 Persuasive essay Is this really a war on drugs? Is this really a war on drugs? Many people believe that cannabis became illegal because of scientific and medical and governmental examinations that prove that this substance is dangerous. Cannabis became illegal because of racism in the 1900s. People tied this drug to African Americans and Hispanics. They said that this substance made people have violent attributes. There also was a man named Harry J. Anslinger;Read MoreKeeping Marijuana Illegal2777 Words   |  12 PagesKeeping Marijuana Illegal 1 Why Marijuana Should Remain Illegal Keeping Marijuana Illegal 2 Why Marijuana Should Remain Illegal Marijuana is proven to contain more than 400 chemicals. Throughout time, it has been used to eliminate pain. Marijuana became illegal in the 1930s when it became known as an intoxicant drug and a dangerous narcotic. Along with becoming illegal came the restrictions of growth, sales, and consumption. Marijuana has many

Theories Applied For The Tv Viewers Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Theories Applied For The Tv Viewers. Answer: The various shows that are viewed on television have immense effect on the lives of the viewers and the ways by which they develop the patterns related to socialisation. The reality television shows mainly affect the daily lives and social positions of the viewers. The two major theories that are related to the ways by which these shows affect the lives of the human beings who are considered as social beings. The viewers mainly engage in the behaviours which are related to the ability to be liked and accepted in the society. The reality TV shows mainly enhance this aspect as the contestants are not only judged by their talent, they are also judged based on the levels of their likeability among the audience. The shows can also act as a platform from the traits related to the likeability of a person can be judged by the society (La Ferrara, Eliana 2016). The other way by which these shows enhance the social identities of the viewers is the journey of the contestants from ordinary peopl e to gaining the fame that they dreamt of. The reality shows also have the ability to teach many different types of skills that are depicted by the contestants on the shows. The social learning theory is mainly related to the three types influences as discussed above. This theory enables the viewers to get influenced by the various different reality shows and develop their perceptions related to these shows as well. The effect of these shows on the viewers is related to the influence they have on the entire society (DeFleur, Melvin and Margaret 2016). References DeFleur, Melvin L., and Margaret H. DeFleur.Mass communication theories: Explaining origins, processes, and effects. Routledge, 2016. La Ferrara, Eliana. "Mass media and social change: Can we use television to fight poverty?."Journal of the European Economic Association14, no. 4 (2016): 791-827.

The 4P strategies of Wal-Mart and Carrefour free essay sample

On July 2, 1962, the first Wal-Mart store was opened by Sam Walton in Rogers, Ark. After 28 year’s development, Wal-Mart became the nations number-one retailer by 1990. Wal-Mart’s 10,900 stores under 69 banners in 27 countries and e-commerce websites in 10 countries are visited by more than 245 million customers and members each week. Wal-Mart International is currently the fastest growing part of its business and it leverages its global resources to meet local needs. With fiscal year 2013 sales of approximately $466 billion, Wal-Mart employs 2. 2 million associates worldwide(Wal-Mart,2013). 1. 1. 2The development and history of Carrefour The Carrefour supermarket company was set up by the Fournier, Badin and Defforey families who run a discount supermarket in Annecy in 1959. More than 9900 company-owned and franchise stores are run by Carrefour Group currently, and now the Group operates on three major markets: Europe, Latin America and Asia. Because its stores spread in more than 30 countries, Carrefour generates more than 55% of its sales outside France. We will write a custom essay sample on The 4P strategies of Wal-Mart and Carrefour or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page At the same time, the Group gives priority to local supply chains, So 75% of all its food products are from local suppliers in the countries(Carrefour,2013). 1. 2 Definition The competitiveness of enterprises is a competitive ability that an enterprise can be more efficient than other firms in providing products and services, and obtain profit and its development (Man, T. W. , Lau, T. , Chan, K. F. ,2002). The marketing mix of 4P strategy plays a very important role in the competitiveness of enterprises. 4P strategy has four elements. The first element is price that can be defined as the monetary amount a buyer pays for a good or service and the revenue expectation from a sale(Anderson, C. H. , Vincze, J. W. ,2004). The second element is place, which is concerned with setting an efficient way of storage and handling finished products and of making them to the target market effectively(Businessdictionaries,2013). Product , the third element,means that the anything that can be offered to a market that might satisfy the need (Kotler, P. ,Brown, L. , Adam, S. , Burton, S. , Armstrong, G. ,2007). The fourth element is promotion, which is used to describe all marketing communications activities, including personal selling, sales promotion,direct marketing, trade exhibition, public relations, advertising and sponsorship(Marketingteacher,2007). 1. 3 objectives Through the analysis and comparison of Wal-Mart and Carrefour in 4P strategy, this project can obtain the strengths and weakness of competitiveness about those two retailers. 2. 4Ps of Wal-Mart and Carrefour 2. 1 The similarities and differences about price strategy 2. 1. 1 Wal-Mart’s price strategy The major price strategy of Wal-Mart is â€Å"Everyday low prices† practice that can offer low price products to customers. In order to ensure the customers get the lowest price products, Wal-Mart improve the efficiency of logistics system and control the transportation, storage and costs strictly, so that it can get cheap goods from all over the world every day. And Wal-Mart has been insisted â€Å"Everyday low prices† for a long time, which makes customers prefer to buy things here(Mujtaba, B. G. , Maxwell, S. 2011). Further, its high quality and low price products have made itself get high reputation of its company and the loyalty of customers. Because of it, Wal-Mart could cut down the cost on advertisements and promotions and also increase turnovers of products. At the same time, in order to maintain the promise of â€Å"Everyday low prices† to customers, most of its competitors’ profits has been injured by Wal-Mart’s low price strategy(Gereffi, G. , Christian, M. ,2009). 2. 1. 2 Carrefour’s price strategy Compared with the traditional retail stores, Carrefour has a lower price, average about 5 to 10 percentage points. High quality and inexpensive price in Carrefours business strategy remains unchanged all the time. In order to reduce the cost and inventory, Carrefour constantly improves the efficiency of logistics system and try their best to decrease the price, so that it can offer low price goods for consumers(Baek, J. ,2005). What’s more, Carrefour’s everyday low prices, in fact, is the integration strategy that combines low price goods and high price goods. As for the good that customer often buy, Carrefour often provide comparatively lower price than its competitors, but other goods may be higher than its competitors(Dupuis, M. , Chul Choi, S. , Larke, R. ,2006). 2. 1. 3 The similarities and differences Similarities: Wal-Mart and Carrefour are committed to provide consumers with low price goods by improving the efficiency of logistics system. Price is the most sensitive factor for consumer’s shopping choice. Low price product is more attractive for consumers than high price product. In order to improve the sales and get more marketing share, Wal-Mal and Carrefour cut down the price as much as possible. Therefore, the price competition has become the focus of retail competition. Differences: Wal-Mart, the founder of â€Å"everyday low prices†, has insisted that all the goods remain stable of low prices for a long period of time, which can reduce the volatility of consumption demand, the cost of organizing goods, and help to realize the scale of procurement. However, Carrefour’s price strategy is that not all of the goods are low price, just for some hot-sale products but other goods’ price may be higher than other retailers. Thereby, Carrefour’s price strategy has more flexibility and adaptability than Wal-Mart. 2. 2. The similarities and differences about place strategy 2. 2. 1 Wal-Mart’s place strategy 10,900 stores under 69 banners are run by Wal-Mart in 27 countries (Wal-Mart,2013). In addition to Wal-Mart stores, community stores, discount stores and other business model, Wal-Mart has shopping plaza and Sams club stores. Sams club store is a warehouse club store, whose operating characteristic is low price. Its service objects are groups, families, small shops (Graff, T. O. 1998). While Wal-Marts online retail stores began to run in February 1996 , a limited number of goods sold online. Early 2000, the online store of Wal-Mart was revised , which had 24 categories of online goods, including clothes, appliances, toys,etc. Then Wal-Mart took all possible measures to expand its network sales market. In 2008, Wal-Mart launched the e-commerce business in the highest broadband penetration countries, Latin America and Brazil. Next, Wal-Mart launched e-commerce business in China and Japan in 2010. The constant expansion of the online business to new worldwide markets made Wal-Mart gradually improve its overall sales and marketing share(Gereffi, G. , Christian, M. 2009). 2. 2. 2 Carrefour’s place strategy Carrefour has more than 9900 stores in the world now, while it still has more than 4000 chain stores in France. With a presence in more than 30 countries, it generates more than 55% of its sales outside France. Its sales accounted for about 30% of French retail enterprise(Carrefour,2013). Several business models are established by Carrefour. In addition to Carrefours stores(Carrefour),champion supermarket (Champion),there are convenience store, warehouse style shopping mall, and so on. The operation of discount store and membership rule make Carrefour retail business into intensive development(Durand, C. , Wrigley, N. ,2009). With the rapid development of information technology in 2000, Carrefour worked with Sears and Oracle company, creating an electronic market, the worlds first retail† GlobalNetXchange. Later, Carrefour launched an online supermarket, called Ooshop(Carrefour,2013). 2. 2. 3The similarities and differences Similarities Carrefour and Wal-Mart both are in the chain business mode, and they have some same business models, such as, warehouse stores and discount stores. Those different business models can meet the demands of different customers. Meanwhile, Wal-Mart and Carrefour all developed the online grocery that can supply customers with various goods the same with real stores. So, they combine retail and e-commerce business to meet the consumers’ demands. Differences Wal-Mart and Carrefour’s business models have its own characteristics. For example, Wal-Mart has shopping plaza and Sams club stores, but Carrefour has Carrefour stores (Carrefour), champion supermarket (Champion). Their business model can reflect their own culture and history. Like â€Å"Sam’s club stores†,Sam is the name of Wal-Mart’s founderSam Walton,which allows Wal-Mart’s customers and employees to remember the great leader and it also belongs to a part of enterprise culture. 2. 3 The similarities and differences about product strategy 2. 3. 1 Wal-Mart’s product strategy The product of Wal-Mart has almost 20000 species, including food, clothing, cosmetics, appliances, toys, auto parts, and so on. It has its own brand product, which account for about 10%(Wal-Mart,2013). But not any products are allowed to be sold in Wal-Mart,because Wal-Mart will select some products that have good quality for their customers. Meanwhile, Wal-Mart lay emphasis on the quality of product. Total Quality Management is used by Wal-Mart to ensure the quality, which focuses on improving the quality of an organization’s products and services. Wal-Mart is constantly seeking the best products and the lowest price supplier from domestic and international. markets through Total Quality Management (Mujtaba, B. G. , Maxwell, S. ,2011). Therefore, Wal-Mart can provide consumers with various and high-quality products. 2. 3. 2 Carrefour’s product strategy The stores of Carrefour can satisfy all the customers’ shopping needs, such as clothing, sports equipment, auto parts, and so on. In 1976, Carrefour introduced manufacturing free concept, selling high quality and inexpensive but no brand goods, but this is a subtle challenge for people’s shopping habits. More than 75% of all Carrefour grocery products are offered by local suppliers, so Carrefour can provide its customers with local products which are from producers located close to stores. For example, 100% of all food products come from national suppliers in Turkey and Argentina’s Carrefour stores now(Carrefour,2013). What’s more, Carrefours sales have its unique side, for instance, the company launched the sale of gasoline at a low price in the parking lot (Lindgreen, A. , Palmer, R. , Vanhamme, J. ,2004). This is a kind of innovation, and it also an effective means to attract customers. It is more convenient for consumers, because consumers do not need to go to the gas station deliberately. 2. 3. 3The similarities and differences Similarities: Carrefour and Wal-Mart both can provide a variety of products that have low prices but high quality for the consumer to choose. In addition, all of them pay much attention to the development and sales of their own brand products. According to the difference of people living habits in different regions, Carrefour and Wal-Mart can provide products that can meet local consumer habits. Differences: In order to offer high quality products to customers, Wal-Mart will select the goods that have good quality before the sales. So those bad quality products cannot be sold in Wal-Mart. The selection of products can guarantee that customers get high quality products anytime in Wal-Mart. Nevertheless,various goods that have high quality or low quality can be found in Carrefour. 2. 4 The similarities and differences about promotion strategy 2. 4. 1 Wal-Mart’s promotion strategy Due to the strictly control of marketing costs, Wal-Mart also tend to be very careful in reckoning, even in some new stores opening ceremony. Therefore, the goods promotion strategy of Wal-Mart is relatively conservative. Although Wal-Mart reduces the cost and expenditure on advertising, it never be stingy on public welfare donations. A large number of long-term investment in public welfare activities greatly enhance its brand awareness and successfully created excellent brand image in consumers minds, which will eventually become the earnings and profit figures(Baek, J. ,2005).. At the same time, Wal-Mart has effectively made use of the strategy of market segmentation by partnering with National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce to cater to that group of customers, as well as employees. What it did is to correct the customers’ previous error information and position of Wal-Mart and establish a good corporate image. (Mujtaba, B. G. , Maxwell, S. ,2011). Besides,Wal-Mart attracts customers go shopping in its stores by low price but high quality products and it has also developed various ways to keep customers in their stores as long as possible, which include: exclusive concerts by various bands on Wal-Mart TV, plus in store radio and special broadcasts. The reason why Wal-Mart does this is that it believes the more time spent in its stores, the more money customers will spend (Mujtaba, B. G. , Maxwell, S. ,2011). 2. 4. 2 Carrefour’s promotion strategy Carrefour uses its best selling products for its promotion, Which not only can attract customers but also can build good image(Sunanto, S. , Tuninga, R. , Kaynak, E. , Harcar, T. , ASSOCIATION-IMDA, I. ,2009). Further, in addition to hold large-scale promotional activities at the opening ceremony and celebration occasions, Carrefour also focus on a variety of promotional methods , such as TV ads, newspaper ads and posters. Besides, Carrefour also issued a lot of direct mail advertising and promotional advertising, sending to the residents, in order to let residents know the latest promotion information and attract customers to shopping(Colla, E. , Dupuis, M. ,2000). 2. 4. 3The similarities and differences Similarities Wal-Mart and Carrefour both use their own goods for promotion. As retailer, the main purpose of customer come here is buying products. Price and quality are the main factors for the customers to buy the product. If company can make the customer know that this product in its store always have high quality and low price, customer will come to its shop automatically to buy this kind of goods, when he needs. Differences Wal-Mart is very careful in reckoning and strictly controlling the cost in its promotion. But Wal-Mart set up a responsible corporations image, through joining the community and social welfare undertakings. However, Carrefour adopts various means of publicity, such as TV ads, newspaper ads, and posters, which is a good publicity for the product and the enterprise image. 3. Conclusion

The History of the IRA essays

The History of the IRA essays Northern Ireland has been plagued by bloody and virtually ceaseless violence for the better part of the last hundred years. The conflict in Northern Ireland is a combination of religious strife between Catholics and Protestants, nationalism versus colonialism and a search for a true Irish identity that has been elusive since the colonization of Ireland in 1603. Republicans in Ireland seek a unified Ireland, one that is free from the imperialistic hands of the British crown. In hopes of achieving this goal, the Irish Republican Army has waged a violent and bloody campaign against both Protestant unionists in the North and the English themselves. From 1920 until 1998 the IRA methods of terror instilled fear in the people of Northern Ireland while the division within its population grew deeper. The Belfast Agreement of 1998 represents the most promising opportunity for a peaceful political resolution and an end to IRA violence in Northern Ireland because the recent approach towar ds peace contrasts the approaches taken in previously failed attempts. The process of politics in Northern Ireland bears the scars of long years of violence. The republicans, unionists and the British have all suffered high casualty rates from political and religiously motivated aggression. During the eighty or so years of violence there have been only two respectable attempts to establish a platform of peace that would satisfy each of the three key actors in this conflict. Each of these moves for peace crumbled because they were constructed on a weak and susceptible foundation. As Irish history demonstrates, reaching a peaceful solution will require a foundation that satisfies the needs of all those involved. Politics in Northern Ireland has never been a process. There, politics has been a zero-sum game with all the spoils going to the victors, with a huge dose of fatalism and frustration residing with the vanquished (Arthur & Jeffe...

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult - Essay Example splays a character that is funny and thoughtful, as she is the only member in the family who seems to bring color and life to her family that has been immensely devastated by Kate’s illness. The first part of the novel reveals how Anna displayed her inquisitive nature. Unlike other kids who by and then accept the common notion that they were brought to earth because of their parents’ love for each other, Anna had asked the reason for her existence beyond the surface-level inquisition. She went on by saying that if outside creatures, such as an alien, see children in this world, they might assume that these kids were born out of a drinking spree or a mishap in the use of artificial birth control (Picoult 7). This lamentation is a no-nonsense gibberish for Anna because all her life, her existence was literally for a purpose. Her character is always inquisitive by asking, proving, and confirming the nature of her existence. With those questions, she was also able to formulate her own sensible answers. Furthermore, her inquisitive nature was also displayed many times in the book, particularly when she sought the help of Campbell Alexander, the lawyer she wished to de fend her on court. She was initially declined, but her inquisitive nature made their conversation going and eventually earned the approval of Alexander to serve as her lawyer. Anna Fitzgerald also displayed her impressive intelligence. This observation is evident when she effortlessly elaborated the cases that she thought would be related to her possible case. More importantly, her intelligence was seen in the entire book as she managed to bring to the court a family issue that has been overlooked by her parents due to their seemingly myopic view to Kate’s condition. Only Anna understood her role in the family. Her character was more of a legal fighter, and her intelligence to understand all aspects of her existence made her see things through the lenses. Anybody can rarely find such bold and

Donner party film research Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Donner party film research - Movie Review Example PatrickBreen left for US to live the life of his chosen religion which was catholic. Lansford Hastings saw US as a still undeveloped country which could be made very useful and profitable. Conversely, amajority of the people went to the US as an obvious destiny which was referred to as manifest destiny(The Donner Party). This destiny was a belief that American pilgrims were destined to develop the whole continent thus saw it as their justifiable land. This plus the idea of riches that awaited them with the discovery of gold them fuelled the desire to travel to California. George Donner and Jacob Donner were brothers who were already successful before they left for California. In fact the Donners are the mastermind of this journey and their opulence is portrayed in the type of wagons they hires for the family. They have three wagons each for their families.George Donner was motivated to travel by the gold discovery and free land in California. 2.Who was Alexis De Tocqueville? What was his reason for coming to America? Was De Tocqueville’s opening commentary in the film about the American people accurate at that time? Explain in some detail. Is De Tocqueville’s critique still relevant in American society today? Alexis De Tocqueville was a sociologist and political theorist of French origins. His reason for coming to America was to study the prisons of America. The study which led him to write his most acclaimed work ‘democracy in America’. Alexis opening commentary in the film was ‘American’s chase prosperity with great intensity until death eventually halts them in their tracks’(The Tragic Story of the Donner Party). Alexis opening commentary in the film was very accurate at the time this is because the Donner party scrambled to get to California in order to get more free lands, riches and other wealth they had heard of before. Some people even were already successful like the Donner family but their greed led them to travel and most of

How Wars And Terrorism Affect Lebanese Vacation Industry Tourism Essay

How Wars And Terrorism Affect Lebanese Vacation Industry Tourism Essay Introduction The purpose of this thesis is to discuss how the Civil War (1975-1990), the July 2006 war, the assassination of Prime-Minister Rafic Hariri and terrorism acts like September 11, has affected tourism in Lebanon. Lebanon attracts tourists from every place in the world. Its adorable weather, natural sightseeing, rich traditions and culture and engaged financial trade market have created an environment ready to be enjoyed by foreigners visitors. Lebanon, was known as the Switzerland of Middle East before civil war (1960-1965). After that period the country had this image destroyed by that conflict and it has been hit by negative publicity due to a series of circumstances beyond its control, for example the September 11 act as well as foreigner media spreading the bad news and horrific pictures to all over the world (Kamalipour, 1995). The Lebanese Government has invested and worked on big projects in order to accelerate the progress in rebuilding the countrys infrastructure expecting that action would bring the tourism back to its peak. However the impressions of violence and terrorism, lack of security, language, ruins perceptions, and cultural barriers, low standard of accommodations, and inappropriate infrastructure still deters people from visiting Lebanon (Kanso, 2005). The war and terrorism affected not only the Tourism sector, but also the Economic one, leaving a big financial debt to Lebanon since there were no more income from the tourists and from the service-oriented businesses, according to data collected from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) (Economy Watch, 2009). One of the possible solutions that will be discussed in this study is the use of several communication tools within marketing advertising since the focus on reliable mass-media is crucial, such as: newspapers, radio, magazines, the Internet and the television. Stressing on the fully recovering of the tourism in Lebanon in order to leave the image that the war created behind, massive good publicity is essential to spread these messages and offering promotional advantages as part of a destination marketing communication campaign as well. This paper will also cover another alternatives in dealing with this challenge such as: promoting Lebanon as a tourist destination, reestablish the Lebanese title of the Switzerland of the Middle East and rise the tourism flow, so consequently improving the countrys economy. The promotion and restoration of Lebanon involves many factors not just physical but also political and in order to achieve the expected goals, a list of specific and several objectives has to be developed. Bringing Lebanon back to its old position as the top first tourism destination in the Middle East was a long run process, although not impossible to achieve. The study will cover the essential role of Tourism in Lebanons economy, development and stability as well the difficulties that the country passed through: from overcoming obstacles, political problems and traces from the war to a 1st tourist destination title achieved in 2009 (The New York Times, 2009). Methodology The methodology used to perform this study was done in 3 phases. 1) First was the collection of secondary data from the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism. 2) Intense workloads on articles, research on publications, books and news about the topic monitored by our supervisor. 3) Finalizing by analyzing, interpreting and writing the findings, outcomes and possible solutions. Tourism Scenario In the Middle East Middle East Tourism has experienced a significant growth in 2009 keeping its bright spot towards the rest of the world (AMEinfo, 2009). Data collected from STR Global (Smith Travel Research) between 1st January and 31st December 2009 proved the statistics: the Middle East hotels had reached the highest occupancy rate, average room rates profit and revPAR revenue per available room globally in 2009, according to Deloitte, the business advisory firm (AMEinfo, 2010). Even though the global economic crisis, followed by the H1N1 had slowdown the number of tourist arrivals in the Middle East, the UNWTO predicts a growth rate more than double to this region by 2020 compared to the other worldwide destinations (Bundhun, 2009). Middle East have been investing a lot of effort in order to attract all kind of tourists from leisure to business travelers. Monumental constructions, huge attractions, fantasy lands, rich culture and peculiar traditions are some of their special characteristics. The air traffic in the Middle East has also increased, and a good example of that is that its duty free spot was the only compared to other nations to show a significant growth in the region (Ligaya, 2009). Taking the example of Lebanon, in 2009 the country showed a considerable growth (2.000.000 arrivals approximately), due to several factors as: peace, stability and the fast development of several locations surrounding Beirut and other cities (Lebanese Ministry of Tourism, 2009). Lebanon Overview of the Country Civil War (1975-1990) There is no agreement between scholars and researchers on what was the real cause of the Lebanese civil war , but all what is sure that the war started in 13 April 1975 after the failed attempt to assassinate the leader of Maronite Pierre Gemayel and the ex-president of Lebanon by Palestinian gunmen which ended by the death of his bodyguard Joseph Abu Assi (Ghazi, 1997). In response to this crime, the massacre or Ain-el-Remmaneh incident happened, when a bus with Palestinian passengers was shoot on its way back from a conference to the refugee camp in Ain-el-Remmaneh which was a Christian part located in the east of Beirut , killing 26 Palestinians (Ghazi, 1997). In addition to the assassination of the ex-president Pierre Gemayel and the Ain-El_Remmaneh incident, the distinctions between the Christians and Muslims raised due to 2 factors: 1) the Maronites power was controlling the country 2) the lack of interest in the development of the Muslims areas. These were convenient reasons to start the civil war in Lebanon. The civil war started in 13 April 1975 after this incident between the Christian and the Palestinians. It lasted for 17 years. One year after, in June 1976 the Syrians joined the civil war in order to support the Christian against the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Progressive Socialist Party which was under the Druze command. In January 1989 six-member committee on Lebanon were chosen by the Arab League which was guided by the Kuwaiti foreign minister to find a solution and stop the civil war. After several discussions, the committee organized a conference of Lebanese parliamentarians in Taif, Saudi Arabia, to study the Taif agreement which was approved later by the Lebanese deputies after coming back to Lebanon from the conference (Ghazi, 1997). The goals of the Taif agreement : Stop the Civil War Decide the Arab identity of Lebanon Make sure that Lebanon is an independent, sovereign, free country and final homeland for all the Lebanese. Clear the nations political organization as a parliamentary democracy. Make the socio-economic system a free economy (Krayem, 2003). Significant achievements have been recognized after signing the Taif agreement: The war was finished. Most of the Lebanese citizens got back to their normal daily life. State institutions restored their autonomy. The army was now integrated. The economic decline situation was controlled (Krayem, 2003). The 1975 1990 civil war destroyed Lebanons infrastructure and damaged its economy. And since Lebanons economy and the flourishing of its touristic sector is so correlated to its political stability, the tourism sector was totally ruined 180,000 visitors in 1992 one years after the end of the civil war compared to 2.4 million visitors before the civil war . The Lebanese government has been stressed with the renewal of domestic manufacturing, mainly the tourism sector which make 20 % of the countrys GDP before the civil war (Ladki Sadik, 2004). Tourism before the Civil War Lebanon The Switzerland of MIddle East The Lebanese title Switzerland of Middle East came due to the 30 years of abundance and prosperity, that the country experienced before the civil war (1975-1990). The tourism was one of the most important source of income to the countrys economy, besides the magnificent growth in agriculture. By that time, before the war, the country was worldwide well known for its financial, banking and business polo tourism. And Beirut as a trendy, modern and one of the most open-minded city in the region, was considered to be the Paris of Middle East (Lebanese Global Information Center, 2005). Tourism during the Civil War As we can see from the graph during the civil war Lebanon went through inflation and in the 1990 post-war period the inflation started to decrease. The same with the exchange rate which start to grow after the civil war stopped . Tourism after the Civil War After the end of the war in 1990, the country was ready to start its reconstruction, beginning by the government: electing a president(for the parliament and for the republic), followed by the re-structure of the army. In 1992, after the election of prime minister Rafic Hariri, a real economic plan was designed and proposed, known as Horizon 2000: The plan, known as Horizon 2000, actually consists of securing, over the period 1995-2007, a cumulative volume of public investments of $ 18 billion. These investments are estimated according to a econometric simulation model to generate during the same period in the private sector investments of $ 42 billion. These investments are expected to maintain an average annual GDP growth rate of 8 per cent. This in turn should raise Lebanons income level to the upper limit of the middle-income countries (Norkonmaa, 1995). The Ministry of Tourism started on a large assortment of actions between 1993 and 1994: Reactivating plans and deals with bordering countries to switch over travel tours were used to attract a lot of visitors a year Looking for industrial and financial support from regional and international organizations to accomplish development projects Structure a tourist database to present statistics on the percentage of travelers and visitors of tourist positions and follow up of the business performs in the industry Six tourism bureau in Arab and western centers resumed their activities after they were closed for a period of time Cheering the reinstallation of the local and the international festivals. Instruct employees for all the jobs which is related to the tourism sector like hotels, restaurants and all the attraction places. They opened Jeita grotto now being operated with recent technology Excused broken tourist services from taxes (Kanso, 2005). Between the 1991 and 1996 the development and the reconstruction process achieve significant levels, reaching an average of 6.5 percent growth in the GDP. Most of these construction was from huge sums of private investment, from the Lebanese emigrants and Gulf Arabs who were assigned to rebuild the inhabited and marketable buildings destroyed during the war (Republic of Lebanon, 2010). In 1996, Hezbollah the political and Islamist military organization decided to support the Ministry of Tourism in order to help the reinvigoration of the roman temple of Baalbek in Beka Valley, a major tourist destination in Lebanon. This measure was part of their strategic plan, in order to change their image towards tourist and citizens, and reinvent them not only as political group but as secure and indigenous social and cultural organization. However the United States government continued to intercept their citizens from traveling to Lebanon, whilst Hezbollah is still armed (Theodoulou, 1996). According to Heyer, in the year of 1999, the revenue generated from tourism activities contributed 7.3% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and an average growth of 14 percent between 1995 and 1999 proved Lebanons tourism was back on track (Heyer, 2009). However due to Israelian air strikes, the industry sector was prejudiced again in 2000 (Heyer, 2009). Because of Lebanons problem during several wars and conflicts, several Gulf cities as Dubai, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi replaced Beirut as a main playground destination in the Middle East, specially among the wealthy Arab tourists (Middle East, 2000), increasing significantly the tourism in these areas, leaving Lebanon years away far from development. The 15 years war, besides destroying physically the country, almost killed completely its economy. The tourism which was one of the main supports of direct income, was vanished for a long period and the political and government sectors collapsed. Besides the lives lost and those one injured, the damages, financially analyze were about U$ 5 billion (Norkonmaa, 1995). After the war stopped the tourism started developing again, and this time the country started receiving a special kind of tourist called the curious tourist. People who went to Lebanon they wanted to see the post war consequences, how is the life after the war and how the building were looking like (Raschka, 1992). The Russians arent coming, but the French, South Africans, Japanese, Greeks and Colombians are. They are all flocking to see what post war Lebanon looks like (Raschka, 1992). Lebanon lost a lot of tourists due to the war. The main reasons were that they were afraid to go there and also because everything was damage and destroyed. There was nothing to do there as an attraction but destruction. Tourists from the other countries were still few. The US is not encouraging Americans people to go and visit Lebanon because of its bad image created by the civil war. Before the civil war statistics showed that Lebanon had two million visitors in 1974, and after the war in 1992 (the first year after the war) Lebanon had 175,000 visitors, which was a big difference (Raschka, 1999). According to Abdul Hamid Fakhoury, President of Middle Eastern Airlines, his airline alone used to carry 1.2 million passengers, 85 per cent of whom were foreigners compared to 800,000 passengers carried in 1993 less than 25 per cent of whom were foreigners. All the industry in Lebanon such as Hotels, Port, Airport, and Travel agencies were affected by the civil war. According to the Lebanese Hotel owners Association 145 hotels were damage and in Beirut the number of hotel had fallen from 130 to 44 and the contribution of tourism to GNP which was 20 % before the civil war declined to 7.4% in 1977 visitors spend only 469272 nights in Beirut 1979 compared with 2307122 nights in 1974 which is the period of the civil war. The Middle East Airline lost a lot of profit LP14m in the 1975 and PL69.1m because of the civil war and in 1982 they were obliged to close for 115 days and five aircraft were destroyed. According to the Yearbook of tourism Statistics the number of visitors to Lebanon from 1998 to 2000: (World Tourism organization, Yearbook of tourism Statistics, 2004) The war not just disallowed Lebanon from following a violent tourism rules that assemble the ever-changing wants of the international tourist but from the other side formed a lot of problems like: All the tourism which was going to Lebanon transfer to Cyprus, Turkey and Egypt. A lot of European countries presented their nation a choice of incentives to promote national and local tourism. Tourist imitation of overcome towns, cities and war crimes have continued sturdy. All of these problems lead the tourist to think thousands of times before traveling to Lebanon and make the trip to Lebanon undesirable. Terrorism 9/11 Attack in the U.S.A. The terrible terrorism attack against the twin towers in New York City had a huge impact in political, social, cultural and economical sectors around the whole world, specially in the Arab Countries. After the incident, Middle East region was completely marginalized and stereotyped as a place full of terrorists, war and bomb-men willing to kill. (Kifner, 2004). The easy in-flow tourism between the USA and these countries was banned for a while and severe restrictions and security matters were adopted in order to avoid new attacks. (Kifner, 2004). Consequently, Europeans and Americans were not coming anymore to the Middle East after the attacks and the arabs were not going abroad to Europe and USA because of constant suspicion, airport prejudice and streets attacks. (Kifner, 2004). Due to this invisible barrier imposed by the American government, the wealthy Saudis and gulf arabs had to look for another place to spend their vacation time, once that even in their home country was not safe anymore because of security situation and compounds attacks (Kifner, 2004). So Lebanon was the choice of the majority of them, receiving huge real state development and international consulting companies. The country started experiencing a real tourism booming, and billions of dollars were passing through Lebanon. The Gulf Arabs chose Lebanon not only for vacation, but also for construction, building their multi-millionaire holiday-mansions everywhere in the country such as in the mountains, by the beach and in downtown Beirut (Kifner, 2004). In addition to that, big luxury hotel chains started occupying those empty areas where before were just ruins from the war and begin to build their resorts, hotels and Villas, increasing the value of the area by attracting new tourists (Kifner, 2004). In the airline industry, the increase was also significant. Middle East Airlines, the Lebanese airline company, had its first profit since its foundation. Surprisingly the attacks in the USA helped Lebanon a lot in its tourism reconstruction. The Oslo agreement between Israel and the Palestinians raised hopes for a new era of tourism and prosperity in the area, with travelers making a circuit of historic and religious sites in the previously hostile countries (Kifner, 2004). Since the period where Beirut was known as Paris of the Middle East, before the civil war in 1990, the country didnt host this amount of investment and development. Prime Minister Rafic Hariris assassination Rafic Hariri, was a well-known lebanese entrepreneur, business-man and philanthropist. He was elected the Prime Minister of Lebanon in 1992, right after the civil war, being the one responsible for the physical and economic reconstruction of the country in the following years, until his resignation in 2004. His considerable accomplishments while Prime Minister made him a politician icon all over the world, specially among the Lebanese citizens (Rafic Hariri The Official Website). No single individual has played a bigger role in rebuilding the credibility of Lebanons economy around the world (Hennock, 2005). Being the most wealthy man in the country U$4 billion fortune -, helped Rafic Hariri to start Lebanons reconstruction with significant sponsors. He used his influences and business networking contacts to attract powerful friends from France, the Guld and Saudi Arabia and potential investors to Beirut, accelerating the economy again (Hennock, 2005). For Mr. Hariri, there was no queue of importance for the countrys needs during the post-war era. He initialized a massive reconstruction process effort, declaring everything as priority for the rebuilding process, such as: hospitals, schools, infrastructure (water, phones, electricity) and the economy. During May of 1994, The Prime Minister had a belief that if the downtown of Beirut was rebuilt, the life would be back to Lebanon. So he started a project to revitalize the Central District of Beirut (BCD), in order to achieve this goal. And after 16 years of the beginning of this project, the downtown in Beirut is still the core place of tourism in Lebanon, being the the meeting point for all foreigners, Arabs and Lebanese people. In addition to that it is the financial district and the countrys institutions polo location (Rafic Hariri The Official Website). Since the tourism of Lebanon is directly linked to the economy of the country, the Prime Ministers actions was crucial for the number of visitors to increase. The development of the tourism industry (as well as that of other sectors) was held back over the past few years because of the political stand-off between Mr Hariri and the president, Emile Lahoud, which was a reflection of the deeper struggle over Syrian domination of Lebanon (Business Middle East, 2005). Mr. Rafic Hariri was assassinated on February 14 of 2005. An explosion was detonated against the Prime Minister convoy next to Beiruts marina, right after he had left the Parliament. Besides him, another 20 people died during the attack, which since today has no authorship proofed (Rafic Hariri The Official Website). After his tragic death, the government decided to rename Beiruts International Airport with his name, since its upgrade was a project of the Prime Minister. The re-emerging tourism industry in Lebanon suffered a significant setback recently with the massive explosion that killed Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri and damaged a handful of Beirut hotels (Middle East, 2005). Even though Lebanon was down 10% in the tourism sector in 2005, more than 1.2 million tourists visited Lebanon (Martin Frost, 2006). Terrorism acts in Lebanon .. Why terrorism attacks Tourism? There are several motives to explain the fact that terrorists are attracted by the tourism. The first reason is that the tourism is the main source of income of many countries all over the world, so by damaging it, the core function of the economic basis of the nation stop working. Second, the tourism attractions are the best way for the terrorists to get their message delivered through out media coverage, getting the attention that they need. And third, this industry hasnt focus too much dealing with security matters because they believe that a simple security presence will push away the tourists (Tarlow, 2003). On the other hand, the implementation of security measures is not a cheap action, rising then the need to build a relationship between private and public sectors in the tourism industry. In addition to that the hospitality first obligation is the guest protection. Security must be developed in all segments, as technological investments, education and staff training. Security plus service and value for money will become the basis for 21st century success (Tarlow, 2003). Finally and perhaps the most important point, is the adoption of a risk management control. Avoiding unforeseen circumstances are less costly to the business. Well prepared companies face better the risks then others without any sort of management plan (Tarlow, 2003). July 2006 War This war is known as 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War. It started on 12 July 2006 and ended in 8 September 2006. The clash started when Hezbollah traversed into Israel and attacked an Israeli Defense Force (IDF). They killed three of the armed and kidnapped the other two and they went back with the prisoners to the south of Lebanon. After that the leader of Hezbollah Hassa Nasrallah announced that the prisoner were taken for the purpose of exchange hostages with Israel. From the other side the Israels Prime Minister Ehud Olmert stated that the response would be an act of war on Lebanon and assure that will be a sturdy war. Tourism Before July 2006 War After all the damages that were caused by the civil war, Lebanon rebuilt and developed its tourism from 1992 until 2005. Lebanon was again backing to the world tourism map. The country was ready again to receive over 830,000 visitors in 2001, a growth of 13% over 2000. Everything started again, occupancy in the hotels was very high, and tourists from all over the world were in the streets visiting the new Beirut. The government rebuilt everything. The restaurants started opening again every year; festivals were taking place in different areas like in Baalbek or Beit el Dine. During summer all the private beaches received a lot of clients from all over the world to enjoy the pleasant climate and a suntan. Most of the tourists were from the gulf countries. They usually come to Lebanon to spend their holidays and to enjoy the food, weather and of course the hospitable people. Some of them bought apartments and villas in Lebanon, so they can come whenever they want. All the restaurants in the downtown were crowded, and all the sightseeings and attractions were fully booked. Anyone who might want a special place, booking in advance is mandatory. The traffic in the city was significantly big. Cars were taking hours to move from one place to another. Consequently, taxi drivers were getting advantage of this situation because they started having an increase on their income with the tourists. So tourism in Lebanon prospered again after 17 years of war and damages. Unfortunately 1991 was not the last war in Lebanon. In July 2006 Lebanon had a conflict with Israel. Tourism During July 2006 War During the 2006 war everything change and all the hope disappeared. Reservations in the hotels were canceled, everything started to close and the tourists who already had their trip planned to visit Lebanon changed their flights and went back home or some of them changed their plan by going to The streets were completely empty, with no activities in the restaurants, nightclubs and pubs. Tourism After July 2006 War The 2006 war caused a lot of impact on Lebanons economical, environmental and of course on the tourism industry. The infrastructure was damaged specially in the South where the conflict was. The unemployment rate increased since most of the industries closed their doors and fired their employees. Lebanon got again the marginalized image of war and insecurity. Tourists got scared from coming to this country again. Lebanons tourism went back to zero point again. One of the most important impacts that this war left was in the environment. Israeli jet bomb the fuel tanks at the Jiyeh power station situated thirty kilometers south of Beirut leading to drip 10,000 to 15,000 tons of fuel into the Mediterranean sea reaching twenty- two areas over an extend of 150 kilometers out of Lebanon, in Syria seashore and Turkish and Cypriot water. It took almost two months for the Lebanese government to start the cleaning procedure. In the mean time most of the oil sank down and destroyed all the sea life killing the fishes that were the source of livelihood of a lot of Lebanese families. From he other side it affected the beach resorts occupancy, where most of the tourists Lebanese used to spend their summer time. Before the war started in July 2006 the hotels were almost fully booked, there were no available places or empty flights to come to Beirut. The prices started increasing due to the high demand. The Lebanese Ministry of Tourism was expecting more than 1.6 million tourists. The industry employed over 150000 people. During the war the priority of the government was in how to create a better image for the country and construct better infrastructure by improving the public transportation system, bringing more investment to the country. This would help to reduce the external debt. Unfortunately the priority of the government after the war had to change from improving to rebuilding the suburbs of Beirut, because Israel missed had destroyed them all. The small enterprises were highly affected by this war. Their owners who had taken loans from the bank to build their businesses were now accumulating debts due to the lack of economic activity in the city. Present days The huge investment of several luxury hotel chains into the region has bring Lebanon back on the destination scenario. The investors are now willing to inject capital in the country as they are optimist concerning the development of the economy. Beirut is now experiencing a boom in the tourism sector and Lebanons image nowadays has been all over the world again, but not because of its conflicts, destruction, kidnappings or wars, but because of its beauty, diversity, rich culture, cuisine and trendy characteristics. Beiruts sizzling nightlife, from gritty to glam, helped drive a record tourism year in 2009. Overcoming a reputation as a Middle East trouble spot, Lebanon welcomed nearly 2 million visitors last year, a 39% increase over 2008. It was the No. 1 destination for tourism growth in the world, according to the World Tourism Organization. (USA Today, 2010) The tourism in Lebanon in the year of 2009 experienced a significant growth. And according to the Ministry of Tourism, this happened because the war has cease bringing back stability to the country. Core companies from the hospitality sector are supporting and investing hard and closely to keep Lebanons image an position as first class destination and business polo in the Middle East. Besides that, there are several facilities that the country offer to the tourists, such as: -Direct air links to worldwide destinations. -Easy access to the country. -Ideal strategic location. -Archaeological and historical sites. -Beautiful and amazing natural sceneries. -Modern International Airport. -First class hospitality infrastructure. -Excellent services quality. -Cutting edge telecommunications and utilities. -Buzzing business, shopping and leisure environments. -Friendly, open minded and genuinely welcoming people (Lebanese Ministry of Tourism, 2010). In addition, another awards were received by the country, rising its image positively towards the world as a must-go tourist destination. In 2006 Travel and Leisure magazine ranked Beirut as the 9th city to visit in the world on its annual report. The Clemenceau Medical Center was ranked one of the 10 best hospitals for medical tourism in 2010 by the Medical Travel Quality Alliance. Jeita Grotto was selected to proceed in the competition of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. In 2009, the NY Times ranked Lebanon as the #1st on its 44 places to go list. From a non-existing tourism activity after war, to one of the 1st spots in the world, the country starts from scratch to rebuild his reputation, economy and tourism. Increase of 38.91% in comparison with January last year 2008 when the total number of visitors reached 1,332,551 visitors. Also an increase of 43% in the number of visitors from Arab countries that reached 785,985 visitors during the Year 2009, compared with 549,463 visitors for the last year 2008 (Lebanese Ministry of Tourism, 2010). Conclusion Although the conflicts and war has ended around 4 years ago, the image that Lebanon is a hazard country still persists. Tourists usually tend to point out the lack of security, inst

The Ideas of Hypocrisy, Prejudice and Dignity in Harper Lees To Kill A

The Ideas of Hypocrisy, Prejudice and Dignity in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird In Maycomb, the town in which Harper Lee's book 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is set, hypocrisy and prejudice are prevalent in most of its citizens. Although many of the characters morals are admirable, you soon realise that what people say and what people do are not always related. Mrs Grace Merriweather falls into this category. She is seen to be 'the most devout lady in Maycomb' and her eyes 'always filled with tears when she considered the oppressed' yet she is just as prejudiced to the black citizens or 'darky's' as the majority of the ladies of the 'Maycomb Alabama Methodist Episcopal Church South' are. Mrs Merriweather appears to be the most hypocritical character in this chapter. Throughout, she contradicts herself - she tells Scout about 'those poor Mrunas' and how she made a 'pledge in her heart' to help them and then shortly after she complains about how 'there's nothing more distracting then a sulky darky.' This is particularly un...

Jonathon Livingston Seagull Essay

1. The fictional book, Jonathon Livingston Seagull written by Richard Bach, sold over a million copies during its debut in 1970 and stayed on The New York Times Top Ten list for 38 weeks in a row. The story focuses on Jonathon the seagull’s passion for flying and his belief that there is more to life than scavenging for food. Bach explores the idea that there is more to this life than what meets the eye and the extreme satisfaction you receive when doing something you are great at and have a passion for. 2. The setting of this story takes place on some sea shore where thousands of seagulls live. The sea shore setting described in the book really helps to paint a picture of what Jonathon and this flock of seagulls experienced daily, â€Å"It was morning, and the new sun sparkled gold across the ripples of a gentle sea.†(Bach pg 3) 3. Jonathon Livingston Seagull is the protagonist in this story with his strong drive and persistence to be different from the flock and to be his own seagull. The antagonists in the story are the Elders of the flocks of seagulls because they are very closed mined leaders and they force Jonathon and other seagulls to be outcast from society and ban them to a life of isolation and despair. Chiang was an Elder Gull that taught Jonathon very specialized flying techniques and improved his skills and taught him things about life. When Jonathon was outcast from the gull community everyone in the community thought that Jonathon was a reckless and irresponsible seagull, so when Jonathon finally returned to the community and everyone saw how amazing his flying skills were they changed their minds and many of them asked to be taught by Jonathon himself which was breaking the gull community law, This is an example of foil characters. â€Å"His thought was triumph. Terminal velocity! A seagull at two hundred and fourteen miles per hours! It was a breakthrough, the greatest single moment in the history of the flock, and in that moment a new age opened for Jonathon Gull.† (pg 16-17) 4. The plot of this story is a traditional plot type. The story ends with the last words of his Jonathon’s teacher, â€Å"Keep working on love.† Through his teachings, Jonathan understands that the spirit cannot be really free without the ability to forgive, and that the way to progress leads for him, at least through becoming a teacher, not just through working hard as a student. So, if any seagull believes that it is free to do what it wants to, it becomes Jonathan the seagull, for whom, possibilities were endless. Every law is an illusion. Once we become conscious of this, our existence gets a new meaning. a. The biggest conflict was Jonathon going against the norm of the seagull community and ultimately getting expelled from the community for his irresponsible acts. â€Å"For his reckless irresponsibility†, â€Å"Violating the dignity and tradition of the Gull family.† (pg 24) b. The situation at the end where Jonathon returned to the breakfast seagull flock was significant because it demonstrated forgiveness and compassion. These gulls hated Jonathon and wanted nothing to do with him and yet he still had the courage to forgive them and even teach them how to fly like he does. â€Å"You have to practice to see the real gull, the good in every one of them, and help them to see it in themselves.†(pg 89) 5. -This book was definitely one of the more inspiring books that made me think out of the box that I have read in quite some time. For example, I really liked one of the messages that implied that if you want to have a fulfilling happy meaningful life you need to stop following the crowd and make your own path even if there are consequences. If you find something that you are good at and enjoy doing stick with it and master it and watch how it will shape you life. -This story uplifted my spirits and motivated my behavior change in several ways. For example, Jonathon Livingston Seagull is a great example to me because not only does he go against the norm and try to learn everything about his passion in life, he also learns forgiveness and compassion for the other seagulls of the community and wants to teach them how to live a wonderful life. I have noticed in my life that I am most happy when I have found something that I love to do and also when I am helping others find that same thing or serving them in some manner and I think Jonathon mastered this aspect of true charity. â€Å"You have to practice to see the real gull, the good in every one of them, and help them to see it in themselves.†(pg 89) 6. In conclusions the book had both strong and weak contributing factors. The strong factors were that it had a very unique, interesting story line that kept the reader interested enough to keep reading. Bach also used implied messages of inspiration and important values in this life which in my opinion was very cool and had a strong plot. Some of the weak factors were that the book almost needed to be read straight through in one sitting to really get the message and make sense. It was not very challenging to read which could be good and bad. The setting was not very descriptive, it basically just took place either in the air or on the sea shore. I think the proper age group for this book would be late high school students and college students and even young adults. Richard Bach impacted me by creating a plot and story line that delivers a messages that anything is possible in life as long as you want it enough and practice at it thus, I am now interested in making some changes in my life. Works Cited Back, Richard. Jonathon Livingston Seagull. New York: Scribner, 1970.

What Half Life Means for Evolution

Perhaps the most widely used evidence for the theory of evolution through natural selection is the fossil record. The fossil record may be incomplete and may never fully completed, but there are still many clues to evolution and how it happens within the fossil record. One way that helps scientists place fossils into the correct era on the geologic time scale is by using radiometric dating. Also called absolute dating, scientists use the decay of radioactive elements within the fossils or the rocks around the fossils to determine the age of the organism that was preserved. This technique relies on the property of half-life. What Is Half-Life? Half-life is defined as the time it takes for one-half of a radioactive element to decay into a daughter isotope. As radioactive isotopes of elements decay, they lose their radioactivity and become a brand new element known as a daughter isotope. By measuring the ratio of the amount of the original radioactive element to the daughter isotope, scientists can determine how many half-lives the element has undergone and from there can figure out the absolute age of the sample. The half-lives of several radioactive isotopes are known and are used often to figure out the age of newly found fossils. Different isotopes have different half-lives and sometimes more than one present isotope can be used to get an even more specific age of a fossil. Below is a chart of commonly used radiometric isotopes, their half-lives, and the daughter isotopes they decay into. Example of How to Use Half-Life Lets say you found a fossil you think to be a human skeleton. The best radioactive element to use to date human fossils is Carbon-14. There are several reasons why, but the main reasons is that Carbon-14 is a naturally occurring isotope in all forms of life and its half-life is about 5730 years, so we are able to use it to date more recent forms of life relative to the geologic time scale. You would need to have access to scientific instruments at this point that could measure the amount of radioactivity in the sample, so off to the lab we go! After you prepare your sample and put it into the machine, your readout says you have approximately 75% Nitrogen-14 and 25% Carbon-14. Now it is time to put those math skills to good use. At one half-life, you would have approximately 50% Carbon-14 and 50% Nitrogen-14. In other words, half (50%) of the Carbon-14 you started with has decayed into the daughter isotope Nitrogen-14. However, your readout from your radioactivity measuring instrument says you have only 25% Carbon-14 and 75% Nitrogen-14, so your fossil must have been through more than one half-life. After two half-lives, another half of your leftover Carbon-14 would have decayed into Nitrogen-14. Half of 50% is 25%, so you would have 25% Carbon-14 and 75% Nitrogen-14. This is what your readout said, so your fossil has undergone two half-lives. Now that you know how many half-lives have passed for your fossil, you need to multiply your number of half-lives by how many years are in one half-life. This gives you an age of 2 x 5730 11,460 years. Your fossil is of an organism (maybe human) that died 11,460 years ago. Commonly Used Radioactive Isotopes Parent Isotope Half-Life Daughter Isotope Carbon-14 5730 yrs. Nitrogen-14 Potassium-40 1.26 billion yrs. Argon-40 Thorium-230 75,000 yrs. Radium-226 Uranium-235 700,000 million yrs. Lead-207 Uranium-238 4.5 billion yrs. Lead-206