Australian Transportation Industry

Table of Contents Introduction Background of the market Client Background Myki Onyx Recommendations and conclusion References Introduction This report is about the Australian Transportation Industry, which has several transit partners, including Onyx that endeavors to transform transportation in Melbourne.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Australian Transportation Industry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The report is divided into various segments, with detailed information about the technology and how to achieve the intended goal in the transport industry in Australia. Moreover, the status of the industry will be analyzed to ascertain the opportunities of the market. Background of the market Like most cities in the world, Melbourne has continued to improve its transport system in order to meet the needs of its people and address emerging challenges in the transport industry. Besides other factors about Melb ourne’s transport system, it is known to be the home of the largest tram network around the globe. The city is well-connected with hundreds of routes, and no other city in the country has a freeway network like the one in Melbourne (Wheeler 2008, p. 344). The city is mainly served by buses and trains, which are considered to be more effective in facilitating the movement of people within the city and connecting to other destinations in the country. The rural areas are also connected to the metropolitan through railway networks. Surveys have revealed that less than 20% of Melbourne’s population receives timely and suitable services. Even though the system has tremendously changed, Melbourne’s transportation has remained car-oriented, a trait, which continues to discourage commuters (Battellino 1997, p. 5). It is also important to note that the transport sector is partly privatized, even though the idea received immense criticism after the public found it more exp ensive to run the private system as compared to the way it had been publicly managed.Advertising Looking for report on transportation? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Based on the changing times and advancing technology, most Australians wish to see an automated system, to avoid long queues, which are common in ticketing stations. This is mainly attributed to the high population that requires efficient electronic services in most of the departments including transport. Even though the ticketing system is becoming digital, many Australians prefer a simplified system, which doesn’t require travelling cards for convenience (Explore Melbourne: Public transport information 2012). Client Background The metropolitan transport company aims at facilitating transport in Melbourne by meeting the needs of its clients. Its activities include regulation of the system, by ensuring that the people of Melbourne are served with the best transport services. Additionally, the company listens to the complaints made by commuters and makes necessary changes in order to remain relevant in the market (Wheeler 2008, p. 344). With regard to fares and ticketing, the company has been on the frontline in advocating for a payment system that is efficient and convenient to customers. This has led to the developing of ticketing systems, say Myki and Metcard. Myki is an electronic card, which is used by commuters when they are using the public transport system. The metropolitan transport company plays a major role in Melbourne, through networks, which connect the city and facilitates the movement of people from one destination to another. There is no doubt that it is a major player in the strengthening of the country’s economy (Public Transport in Melbourne 2012).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Australian Transportation Industry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Le arn More Based on the role the company plays in promoting movement of people within the city, it is doubtless that the company is in a position to accommodate an idea that promises better services. For the metropolitan transport company, Onyx would guarantee an improved ticketing system, which promotes efficiency and convenience. Myki Myki is a system used for ticketing in Melbourne and other cities in the country. Importantly, the introduction of Myki in Australia was aimed at improving the ticketing process by replacing the Metcard with a more effective system, which addresses the needs of the city. The card can be used anywhere when one is paying for public transport bills, since it stores value, and is recharged upon depletion. Unlike Metcard, Myki has a wide range of advantages (ABC News 2008). For instance, it is considered to be convenient in estimating the fare paid with regard to the distance covered and the zone of operation. By having the Myki card, one can travel aroun d the city using public transport without necessarily carrying money or purchasing fare tickets every day. In fact, the system allows auto top-ups by customers for the sake of convenience while travelling (MYKI: Myki benefits 2012). Additionally, Myki cards do not get worn out daily; they are made of plastic to allow them last long. The system also charges minimum amount of fare and is flexible in the sense that commuters decide what to spend since there are several payment modes, like â€Å"pay as you go† and the prepaid method. Some of the issues facing Myki include privacy of information, where concerns have been raised over the security of information. Additionally, the plan has taken too long to be rolled out across the city (Summers Smith 2010).Advertising Looking for report on transportation? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Onyx Onyx is determined to bring change in the lives of Australians through an improved payment system when using the public transport system, through the use of smart phone applications. This is based on the fact that Melbourne is concentrated with people who mainly use the public transport system. Moreover, this group of commuters comprises of employees, students, and visitors touring the city, who spend a lot of money in paying fare. Unlike the current and previous payment systems, Onyx will embrace today’s technology by allowing commuters to pay their transport bills using iPhones and other smart phones. This will mean that nobody will be required to carry along cards, since the payment will be made using an application on the phone, downloadable from the internet. The technology will be integrated with Myki in partnership with Google to ensure that its services are effective. The relevance of Onyx is the based on the current status of the industry and advancement in tech nology. For instance, Melbourne has the largest tram system in the world, with millions of trips and journeys being made annually (Dodson et al. 2012). As a result, Onyx aims at eliminating delays, which have been witnessed recently by the Metcard system and Myki. Additionally, no queues are expected since no payment will require the use of a common paying point, as seen with card readers used by Myki. Based on the challenges, there is no doubt that the product will be highly acceptable. Recommendations and conclusion From the above analysis, it is evident that Melbourne transport system needs a more advanced ticketing system, in order to address its current challenges. Nevertheless, Onyx has to be well marketed so that commuters can visualize the benefits of the system. This can be achieved by use of the 4 P’s of marketing in meeting the needs of the industry. The idea is feasible based on the technological advancements, which have been realized in the 21st century and the o pportunities in the Australian transport system. References Battellino, H. 1997, Mode choice for non-work trips. 21st Australasian Transport Research Forum, University of South Australia, Adelaide. Dodson et al. 2012, Transport Disadvantage in the Australian Metropolis: Towards new concepts and methods. Web. Wheeler, D. 2008, Lonley Planet Melbourne Victoria City Guide, Lonely Planet, Melbourne. Explore Melbourne: Public transport information 2012. Web. Summers, J. Smith, B. 2010, Communication Skills Handbook, John Wiley Sons, Queensland. ABC News: Myki ticket system delayed again. 2008. Web. MYKI: Myki benefits 2012. Web. Public Transport in Melbourne. 2012. Web. This report on Australian Transportation Industry was written and submitted by user Maxim Casey to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

George Calvert essays

George Calvert essays George Calvert was the first Lord of Baltimore. His oldest son, Cecil Calvert, was the second Lord Baltimore. George Calvert, after a visit to Virginia, petitioned King Charles I of England to grant him permission to colonize the land north of the Potomac. He died in 1632, at age 52, just 66 days before the colony's official charter was issued, but his son Cecil Calvert carried out his father's dream. Cecil Calvert had the difficult task of planning and carrying out the colonization of Maryland. He recruited settlers and arranged for the Ark and the Dove to take them to Maryland. Cecil Calvert spent a great deal of money on that first voyage. The two ships arrived at Maryland in early March 1634. Cecil Calvert supported his father's idea of making Maryland a haven for all types of Christians. He was responsible for the Act Concerning Religion, a law that tried to eliminate religious prejudice among Christian Marylanders. Because England's monarchs could not be trusted to leave the American colonies alone, Cecil Calvert spent the remaining years of his life in England protecting his ownership of Maryland. Despite a couple of interruptions, Maryland remained a Calvert possession for well over a century. Maryland's Cecil County was named for him, and Anne Arundel County was named for his wife. When Europeans arrived in the 1600's about 3,000 Indian people lived on the land that is now called Maryland. No one is certain when they met the Europeans for the first time. Some historians think that french traders ben to buy furs from the Indians that lived along Chesapeake Bay in the early 1500s. During the 1660s many land disputes arose because of settlers farming land which was close to other state=s borders. Consequently, disputes came about as to border lines. These disputes involved the states of Virginia and Pennsylvania. Over the next 100 years Maryland lost many thousand acres of land to these states. The F...

In the United States, we do not need to plan for retirement. Social Essay

In the United States, we do not need to plan for retirement. Social Security will cover our needs when we are retired - Essay Example People at large now believe that the social security funds are not enough to provide financial shelter to the retired people and one should plan for his retirement without expecting that he will get enough from the national social security fund to fulfil all of his needs of the retired life (Brown et al, p83). The national social security program relies upon the taxes of the existing working force. The danger of the fiscal imbalance always remain associated with the social security funds because the number of retired people eligible to draw the funds anytime exceed the number of the workers paying to the system. This imbalance will cause the social security funds to run in deficit and the retired people will no longer be able to draw the desired amount of funds from the funds. The economic instability drawn by the financial recession and increase in the unemployment within the country has also increased the probabilities that the national security funds will run out few years before it has been projected by the financial experts (Stephen, p1). On average, the social security funds provide $1,076 per month to over 54 million Americans (Brown et al, p83). ... ts of the social security are more than the tax payers and in the coming years it is expected to record more imbalance in the ratio of retired and tax payer people. The government fiscal deficit has been increased to $1.5 trillion in 2011 due to which the funds available to pay the retirees are also expected to shrink in the coming years (Brown et al, p83). The issue of running out of the social security fund is great point of concern for the people in United States because the generally people use to reply upon these funds to meet their needs of the retired life. The social security funds could be deem as source of getting enough for the retired life but as the economy of the country is witnessing transformational changes due to number of factors it could no longer be a wise decision to reply upon the social security funds for the retired life. The people should now focus upon their individual planning so that they could spend their retired life with peace and financial security (Br own et al, p83). When the social security program was initiated in 1980s the fund reached the level of $2.5 trillion surplus within few years and it was expected that it will sufficiently pay out the benefits to the people until 2037. The projected year of running out in deficit is still not much close but the funds are already drained and the social security funds are now not enough to pay funds to all the eligible people until and unless the fund is provided from any other source. The danger of the collapse of the national security funds could not be overlook in the current situation where there is high level of economic uncertainty, instability and unemployment in the country (Megan, p1). It has been reported by most of the credible news sources like Associated Press, BBC and CNCB that

Managing Change by Managing Risk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Managing Change by Managing Risk - Essay Example Technological development means keeping the technology up to date for the company in order to remain competitive in the market. Competitive environment forces the companies to retain good quality of the products and services in order to improve customer satisfaction. 3.2 Internal Forces of Change Internal forces of organizational change include such forces, which force the change to occur inside the company. These changes are very significant in order to increase employee satisfaction and employee commitment towards their job responsibilities. The changes include change in the working atmosphere, change in employment rules and regulations, and change regarding employee retention strategies. 4. Risk Management Harrison (n.d.) states, â€Å"Change is inherently ambiguous, and those who deal creatively with change will have a high tolerance for uncertainty†. In case of organizational change, we can say that organizational change needs proper management of risks in order to be suc cessful. Francois (n.d.) states, â€Å"A change management process is a series of business practices used to control and manage change within a large system or organization†. Risk management is one of those business practices that are needed to implement organizational change. â€Å"Much of risk management work is focused on the management of risk in a 'business as usual' and relatively stable environment† (Anderson 2004). Risk management is a process, which is used to identify and measure the risks being faced by a company or a firm. Risk management refers to the concept of keeping the risks under control so that they do not create any kind of dangerous situation for the company. This process of... According to the research there are two types of organizational change, which include external and internal forces of change. External and internal forces of change not only result in altering organizational policies concerning various business activities but also influence major functions of management. The external forces of change include competitive business environment, technological development, and political and social environment of an organization. Technological development means keeping the technology up to date for the company in order to remain competitive in the market. Competitive environment forces the companies to retain good quality of the products and services in order to improve customer satisfaction. Internal forces of organizational change include such forces, which force the change to occur inside the company. These changes are very significant in order to increase employee satisfaction and employee commitment towards their job responsibilities. The changes incl ude change in the working atmosphere, change in employment rules and regulations, and change regarding employee retention strategies. Changes are inevitable in every company or organization whether it belongs top construction industry or some other industry. Managers need to consider several issues related to different business activities before planning to bring some change to the organizational policies. Risk management also plays a key role in change management. Some of the risks related to construction companies include design assumption risk, structural development procedures, fire risk, and environment uncertainty risks.

Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 31

Reflection - Essay Example Diversity also offers a rich mix of characters in a diversified community to promote interactions of people’s strengths and weakness in an organization. A multi-cultured community therefore has an advantage of effectiveness and efficiency in generating solutions to problems, especially if the differences are managed effectively. The interview also established that the benefits of diversity apply across different fields. The interview changed my thinking over superiority issues across diversity. I previously focused on major traits across cultures and believed that people’s potentials depend on their cultural orientations but the interview changed my thinking. I, however, know understand that each culture is rich in potentials and that diversity is not the basis to determining an individual’s ability. Learning of the advantage of integrating cultural features in a multi-cultured community for effectiveness has also informed me that diversity is important and organizations should promote it. I appreciate cultural differences and try to learn more about each culture because of my change in thinking. I interact with people from different culture, with honesty, and even try to incorporate their traits in my life and activities. My attention has therefore shifted to developing diverse relationships that I currently work on. The important information that I learnt about diversity, from the cultural immersion, is the role of diversity decision making. While different cultures have different approaches to decision making, each approach is not perfect but integration of positive elements from each culture improves decision-making process, leading to informed decisions. The knowledge has developed a new perspective in me and I will in future incorporate perspectives from different cultures while making decisions. I will identify individuals from each

Location Privacy in Wireless Networks

Location Privacy in Wireless Networks ARUN TEJA KANUKOLU Introduction: In the past decade we have an enormous development of different wireless technologies a lot of wireless technologies like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth are being implemented. With the development of wireless technologies and the convenience they provide in the aspects of space and time they are being widely used and there comes numerous security issues. A lot of work has been done in the areas of wireless network security but all of which has done only on securing the content or data that is being transferred between devices. The Location privacy has been ignored from the initial stages of development of wireless networks. If the location privacy has been ignored, the users of the wireless networks has to face serious problems. The attacker may not steal data because we use a lot of security techniques like encryption to protect the data but the user and the physical location of the user is always in danger. The attacker may take advantage of this and may threaten him physically or mentally. In order to preserve the location privacy of the user, here I propose a transactional based model in which all the send and receive operations performed from an user are not related to each other hence the location privacy is preserved. TRACKING THE USERS LOCATION: Many localization algorithms have been implemented and are in use which can be used to trace the approximate location of the user based on the packets sent and received. A users many transmissions will simply be correlated if all the transmissions come from an equivalent supply address, and therefore the aggressor will read the supply addresses from every packet. During this section, we have a tendency to demonstrate another supply of knowledge by assumptive that associate degree aggressor cannot decode a users packets, however still needs to be ready to track users around the network. For instance, a user could use sturdy coding, or the aggressor could have insufficient sophistication to create custom Hardware for packet secret writing, however will live the signal and noise levels at a spread of locations. Existing localization algorithms permit every transmission to be narrowed right down to a specific location. These individual transmissions will then be correlate using a quality model, as we have a tendency to describe below. Here I discuss some of the existing algorithms. LOCALIZATION USING RSS (received signal strength): Received signal strength is the reliable and free of cost way of tracking the user’s location. Where, PT Transmitted power calculated in dB RSS is the received signal strength in dB P(d0) is the Path loss in dBm at a distance of d0 N is the Path loss exponent There are several other ways of tracking the user location. Many of the previous researchers used the probability functions to find the location of the user. Although the exact location cannot be found using these probability models an almost approximate location can be easily found. Suppose we trace a location and there are 10 suspects, we can filter them to find the original wireless user that is being attacked. Controlling access at base stations: Since the readying of base stations has an associated price, the network operator should be stipendiary for the employment of the network. One way of achieving this results to want every licensed network node to carry a bit of secure hardware with a isosceles key shared by all network users. A network of affordable size cannot utterly believe on this mechanism to stay a determined aggressor from collaborating in the network. As a result, we have a tendency to explore techniques for confirmative that a user is a component of the network. We use blind signatures in an exceedingly manner that parallels their use in electronic cash: a legitimate user generates variety of public keys, each of that we have a tendency to decision Associate in Nursing identity. The user blinds them (so the network supplier will sign them while not seeing them), and presents them to the network supplier. The network supplier signs these keys and returns them to the user, United Nations agency unblinds them. every key signed in this manner could be a kind of certificate that proves that the identity corresponds to a legitimate user, although the actual user cannot be determined. Secured routing: In order to forestall a malicious node from disrupting routing, the ad hoc networking analysis community continues to explore secure routing protocols Any of those protocols might be slightly modied to figure inside our spec. Depending on user necessities, AN anonymous routing protocol, such as ANODR, might give additional fascinating properties. To show however wed adapt a secure routing protocol to our design, we must take into account AN on-demand routing protocol. We must allow a base station to reply to any Route Discovery; but, because there are a restricted range of base stations and their keys are easily pre-distributed, they will simply send and demonstrate RREPs. We should additionally adapt the prevailing protocols to settle on routes which will traverse  a base station; in hop-by-hop routing, one technique is to own  a node forward the packet to the nearer of the destination node or the  nearest base station, unless the packet is distributed by a base station, in  which case we tend to neer route it to a base station. once a base station receives  a packet, it forwards it to the suitable base station supported  the destinations geographical address. the bottom station with that  the destination is associated then encapsulates the packet so forwarding  nodes apprehend that the packet has already traversed the bottom  station. Periodic protocols will use constant forwarding logic. UNLINKABLE WRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS: In this section I propose a transaction based model in which any send and receive functions are not co-related to each other which preserves the location privacy of the user hence our goal is accomplished. Location can only be tracked if the senders address is the same for a period of time. We create a phenomena called random silent period for a node. In that time the sender will not send any thing. The mobile node keep on changing its addresses between different transactions it performs. It can be in synchronization with the base station and mobile station. When a user starts data exchange between other node, it keep on updating the change of address for every send and receive operation and it also makes aware of the new change in address with the receiver. For this system implementation, we should make changes in everything like user registration with the base station and addressing and giving the access to the mobile users. For addressing these nodes we completely change our ip addressing scheme from ipv4 to ipv6. If we use the ipv4 addresses, they are limited in number and hence they may cause collisions. These ipv6 addresses comprised of base station addresses and a reference variable to the users identity. A legitimate user generates variety of public keys, each of that we have a tendency to decision AN identity. The user blinds them so the network supplier will sign them while not seeing them, and presents them to the network supplier. The network supplier signs these keys and returns them to the user, UN agency unblinds them. Every key signed in this method could be a certificate that proves that the identity corresponds to a legitimate user, although the actual user cant be determined. REFERENCES: http://www.comm.toronto.edu/~kostas/Publications2008/pub/proceed/133.pdf http://www.seas.ucla.edu/~wouyang/Received%20Signal%20Strength-Based%20Wireless%20Localization%20via%20Semidefinite%20Programming.pdf http://www.ee.washington.edu/research/nsl/Imote/vanderstoep_thesis.pdf http://jeroendoggen.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/ecumict2010presentation.pdf

the presidency :: essays research papers

The Presidency - The powers of the presidency are described very briefly in Article II of the Constitution. Specific powers include: - Chief Administrator - Commander-in-Chief - Chief Lawmaker - Chief Diplomat - Chief of State - In addition to those enumerated powers, presidents have claimed they have certain inherent powers to do whatever has to be done to fulfill their responsibilities as leaders. - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln all expanded on their enumerated powers, setting a precedent for later presidents to do likewise. - Because the U.S. has become such a powerful nation, presidents have become more powerful people. They are now considered world leaders as well as national leaders. - They have also become party leaders,have to be strong communicators in the age of mass media, and serve as lobbyists for their legislative goals. - One explanation for expansion of presidential powers is that sometimes Congress lets a president take responsibility for unpopular actions, such as going to war. - America's strongest, most powerful presidents have emerged during periods of crisis, such as a war or depression. Lincoln and FDR are examples. - Popular presidents are also likely to become more powerful, because citizens trust them with power. - President Lyndon Johnson was a strong president because he believed that government should play a strong role in alleviated the nation's problems. - President Reagan, on the other hand, advocated a smaller role for government so didn't encourage national government involvement in problem solving. He was, however, known as a great communicator. - A successful candidate for the presidency must put together a winning coalition of supporters and must win 270 electoral college votes, which means winning the popular vote especially in large, highly populated states with large electoral college votes. - Although American presidents have huge responsibilities, they also have many resources to help them carry out those responsibilities. These include: - The Executive Branch establishment, which includes the White House staff, key aids (such as the chief of staff and national security advisor), and the Executive Office of the President, which consists of the OMB, Council of Economic Advisors, etc. - The Vice-President, who has only become a real resource since Jimmy Carter started using his V-P, Walter Mondale, more than any previous president. - The Cabinet, consisting of the heads of the major executive branch departments. - First Ladies sometimes serve as advisors to the president.

Medical Marijuana Essay

â€Å"Marijuana is the finest anti-nausea medication known to science, and our leaders have lied about this consistently. [Arresting people for] medical marijuana is the most hideous example of government interference in the private lives of individuals. It’s an outrage within an outrage within an outrage†. Peter McWilliams Author and Advocate for Medical Marijuana Medical Marijuana has found its place once again as the medical plant that is recognized for its healing potential and properties. How the Government has suppressed its positive potential and healing powers for over 25 years. With the help from many patients, loved ones, research departments and advocate groups to get the Government’s attention to see and understand that the terminally ill and the sick should not be treated as common criminals. They are only trying to find some peace and serenity in their last days. The struggle and fight that has been going on for the last 25 years against the Government. The people were finally heard, with the legalization of Medical Marijuana. The Government wants to regulate everything for their own best interest, the positive effect of decriminalizing marijuana for the terminally ill and the positive economic benefits for our community. Cannabis Sativa, Marijuana, Weed, Herb, Mary Jane these are just a few names that this little 5 leaf plant goes by. How could this life saving and healing plant get such a bad reputation? When clearly it has nothing but positive powers, people all over the world have been using marijuana for thousands of years. Cannabis has been around since the Garden of Eden, it is even mentioned in the Bible. Yes in the Bible, in Exodus (30:22-23) â€Å"Holy anointing oil, as described in the original Hebrew version of the  recipe in Exodus (30:22-23), contained over six pounds of kaneh-bosem, a substance identified by respected etymologists, linguists, anthropologists, botanists and other researchers as cannabis, extracted into about six quarts of olive oil, along with a variety of other fragrant herbs. The ancient anointed ones were literally drenched in this potent mixture† (Bennett, 2010). â€Å"Marijuana proponents suggest that the recipe for the anointing oil passed from God to Mos es included Cannabis, or kaneh-bosem in Hebrew. They point to versions calling for fragrant cane, which they say was mistakenly changed to the plant calamus in the King James Version of the Bible† (Kari, 2011). Cannabis was good enough for God and Moses, then how come it is not good enough for us now? The United States Government wants to be in control and regulate everything we do as a United State Citizens. Marijuana was once considered a pharmaceutical medication used for a wide verity of reasons. In fact cannabis has a deep rooted history in what is now known as the United States of America. â€Å"Christopher Columbus brought Cannabis Sativa to America in 1492† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). â€Å"From 1000 to 1500, the use of marijuana spread further. In 1619, a law passed in Jamestown Virginia Colony, which required farmers to grow hemp. The French and British grew hemp in Colonies of Port Royal, Virginia, and Plymouth. Marijuana also became a major trade item between Central and South Asia during this time† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). The United States also had Presidents’ who grew cannabis. Yes Presidents’, â€Å"in Mount Vernon, George Washington grew hemp as his primary crop in 1797. Also Thomas Jefferson grew hemp as a secondary crop at Monticello. In 1840, medicines with a cannabis base were available in U.S. pharmacies. Hashish was available in Persian pharmacies† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). Therefore when did it become a crime to cultivate, possess, consume, and dispense marijuana? â€Å"In 1906, the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed in the U.S. and the Food and Drug Administration was formed. This was the first time drugs had any government oversight† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). â€Å"In 1930, The Federal Government gave control of illegal drugs to the Treasury Department, they created the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. Harry Anslinger a prohibitionist became the first commissioner  in 1930, he held that position until 1962. Anslinger declared war on drugs and effectively shaped America’s view’s and thought’s about marijuana† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). â€Å"October 2, 1937, Anslinger got Congress to enact the â€Å"Marihuana Tax Act†, which is to imposed registration and reporting requirements and a tax on the growers, sellers, and buyers of marijuana† (Eddy, 2010 p.2). In Eddy’s report he also writes that â€Å"Dr. William C. Woodward, legislative counsel of the American Medical Association (AMA), opposed the measure. In oral testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee, he stated that â€Å"there are evidently potentialities in the drug that should not be shut off by adverse legislation. The medical profession and pharmacologists should be left to develop the use of this drug as they see fit. Two Months later, in a letter to the Senate Finance Committee, he again argued against the act: â€Å"That there is no evidence, however, that the medicinal use of these drugs [cannabis and its preparations and derivatives] has caused or is causing cannabis addiction. As remedial agents they are used to an inconsiderable extent, and the obvious purpose and effect of this bill isto impose so many restrictions on their medicinal use as to prevent such use altogether. Since the medicinal use of cannabis has not caused and is not causing addiction, the prevention of the use of the drug for medicinal purposes can accomplish no good end whatsoever. How far it may serve to deprive the public of the benefits of a drug that on further research may prove to be of substantial value, it is important to foresee†. â€Å"Despite the AMA’s opposition, the â€Å"Marihuana Tax Act† was approved, causing all medicinal products containing marijuana to be withdrawn from the market and leading to marijuana’s removal† (Eddy, 2010 p.2). October 2, 1937, â€Å"On the very day the â€Å"Marihuana Tax Stamp Act† was passed; the FBI and Denver police raided the Lexington Hotel and arrested two people: Samuel R. Caldwell and Moses Baca. Three days later, Caldwell, a 58 year old unemployed laborer, became the first person in the U.S. to be convicted of selling of marijuana without a tax stamp. He was sentence to four years oof hard labor in Leavenworth Penitentiary. Presiding Judge J  Foster Symes, had previously stated that he considered Marijuana to be the worst of all narcotics and vowed to impose harsh sentences for violations of the â€Å"Marihuana Tax Act†. Caldwell was also fined $1,000 for the two marijuana cigarettes that were found in his possession. Baca, who was his customer, was found guilty of possession of Marijuana and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Both men served their full sentences. Caldwell died a year after his release† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). This is why that â€Å"we the people† stood up, banded together, and formed  Organizations. People became spokespersons, advocates, â€Å"a voice for the cause†. Take for example, Peter McWilliams. He is the man I quoted in the beginning. â€Å"Peter was a self-help author, who advocated for the legalization of marijuana. He wrote over 40 books including â€Å"How to survive the loss of love†, â€Å"Ain’t nobody’s business if I do†. Along with poetry and how to use microcomputers. In 1996, he was diagnosed with AIDS and non- Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Like so many patients suffering from cancer or AIDS, he had extreme difficulty on keeping down the drugs that controlled his illnesses. He began to smoke marijuana to control the drug-induced nausea. It saved his life† (US: The Life and Death of Peter McWilliams, 2002). â€Å"NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, was founded in 1970, as a nonprofit public-interest advocacy group whose mission is to end marijuana Prohibition† (Historical Timeline Medical Marijuana, (n.d.), 2011). â€Å"In 1971, President Nixon declared war on drugs. In 1972,†The bipartisan Shafer Commission [National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse], appointed by President Nixon at the direction of Congress [and chaired by former Pennsylvania Governor Raymond Shafer], considered laws regarding marijuana and determined that personal use of marijuana should be decriminalized. Nixon rejected the recommendation, but over the  course of the 1970s, eleven states decriminalized marijuana and most others reduced their penalties† (Busted: â€Å"America’s War on Marijuana.†, 2010). â€Å"Possession of marihuana for personal use would no longer be an offense, but marihuana possessed in public would remain contraband subject to summary seizure and forfeiture. Casual distribution of small amounts of marihuana for no remuneration, or insignificant remuneration not involving profit would no longer be an offense† (Busted: â€Å"America’s War on Marijuana.†, 2010). 1973,â€Å"The Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (BNND) and the Office of Drug Abuse Law Enforcement (ODALE) are merged to form the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)† (420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.), 2010). â€Å"In November, 1976, a Washington, DC man [Robert Randall] afflicted by glaucoma employed the little-used Common Law Doctrine of Necessity to defend himself against criminal charges of marijuana cultivation† (US v. Randall). â€Å"On November 24, 1976, federal Judge James Washington ruled Randall’s use of Marijuana constituted a medical necessity, Judge Washington dismissed criminal charges against Randall. Concurrent with this judicial determination, federal agencies responding to a May, 1976 petition filed by Randall, began providing this patient with licit, FDA-approved access to government supplies of medical marijuana. Randall was the first American to receive marijuana for the treatment of a medical disorder† (National Institute on Drug Abuse [NIDA] 1998).  1978, â€Å"New Mexico passed the first state law recognizing the medical value of marijuana  [Controlled Substances Therapeutic Research Act]. Over the next few years, more than 30 states  passed similar legislation.† (Scott, 1994). â€Å"Voters in California [pass] a state medical  marijuana initiative in 1996. Known as Proposition 215(45 KB), it permits  patients and their primary caregivers, with a physicianâ €™s recommendation, to possess and cultivate marijuana for the treatment of AIDS, cancer, muscular spasticity, migraines, and several other disorders; it also protects them from punishment if they recommend marijuana to their patients† (Joy, PhD. & Mack, 2011) The New England Journal of Medicine publishes an editorial written by Jerome P. Kassirer, MD, titled â€Å"Federal Foolishness and Marijuana.† The article states: â€Å"Federal authorities should rescind their prohibition of the medicinal use of marijuana for seriously ill patients and allow physicians to decide which patients to treat. The government should change marijuana’s status from that of a Schedule I drug (considered to be potentially addictive and with no current medical use) to that of a Schedule II drug (potentially addictive but with some accepted medical use) and regulate it accordingly† (Kassier, 1997). In January 2004, California passed SB 420, which states the guidelines for growing marijuana. Yes this bill also went through the court system. In May 2008, second district court of appeals ruling in Kelley case that the possession limits set by SB 420 violate the California Constitution because the voters approved Prop 215 can only be amended by the voters. With Prop 215 you can legally be in possession of marijuana and with SB 420 you can legally grow. This has drastically reduce crime in our cities and form a more productive society through its positive uses. In 2013, medical marijuana is a thriving and growing business for all those involved from the growers, to the â€Å"caregivers clubs† with their green cross symbols above their doors (yes like the Red Cross, but green) making it possible for the medical community, and the consumer to know they have found the right place. As of this date there is a total of 18 states and DC now known as Medical Marijuana States. With 11 more states pending legalization to legalize medical marijuana. Now legal for others to seek and receive this healing and lifesaving plant. Since the Government has allowed each state to listen to its people, and as it stands today marijuana is legal and available for all those who have a recommendation card. Now it is not a crime for the terminally ill and sick to gain access to the medication that they so greatly need to function on day-to-day bases. You might wonder, â€Å"How do I know so much or even care  about marijuana being legal†? I am also a member, because I have a recommendation card. I have had mine for about a year now. My doctor prescribed it for me when I told him I was depressed (over the death of my baby boy Marshall) and I did not want to take any manufactured manmade pill and have to worry about the side effects. Medical marijuana has done the trick for me, I take as need by my doctors’ direction. I have to say, that it has saved me. Also The Government, State and City get to collect the taxes and the dispensaries make their money and the clients get their much need lifesaving medication. Crime is down and people are employed, and the Government gets to have their say, but in the end â€Å"We the People† were finally heard, and this little plant is finally back where it belongs. To quote one of my favorite comedians: ~It’s not a war on drugs, it’s a war on personal freedom it’s what it is ok, Keep that in mind at all times. Thank you†~ ~ Bill Hicks~ References Bennett, C. (2010). Historical Timeline Medical Marijuana. Retrieved from http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceid=000143 Eddy, M. (2010). Medical Marijuana: Review and Analysis of Federal and State Policies.. Retrieved from Federation of American Scientist/Congressional Research and State Service Reports: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL33211.pdf Hicks, B. (1996). Lateralus (Album). Retrieved from Tool (Group) Joy, PhD., J., & Mack, A. (2011). Marijuana as Medicine Beyond Controversy, 200. Retrieved from http://www.brainz.org/420-milestone-history-marijuana Kari, S. (2011). Historical Timeline Medical Marijuana. Retrieved from http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceid=000143 Kassier, J. P. (1997). Federal Foolishness and Marijuana. Retrieved from http://www.brainz.org/420-milestone-history-marijuana McWilliams, P. (1996). Quotes by Peter McWilliams: Finest Quotes. Retrieved from http://www.finestquotes.com/author_quotes_authors-Peter+McWilliams-page-0.html Scott, E. (1994). Marional: The Little Synthetic That Couldn’t. Retrieved from http://www.druglibrary.org/significate-legal-cases.htlm 420 Milestone History Marijuana, (n.d.). (2010). Retrieved from http://www.braniz.org/420-milestone-history-marijuana Busted: â€Å"America’s War on Marijuana. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org Historical Timeline Medical Marijuana, (n.d.). (2011). Retrieved from http://www.medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceid=000143 National Institute on Drug Abuse [NIDA]. (1998). Retrieved from Provision of Marijuana and Other Compound for Scientific Research – Recommendations of the National Institute on Drug Abuse National Advisory Council, NIDA website US: The Life and Death of Peter McWilliams. (2002). Retrieved from http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n948/a03.html

PI2 Example

PI2 Example PI2 – Essay Example PART A Question 2005 = 11,933 – 11,062 * 100 = 7.874% increase 11,062 2006 = 9,181 – 11,933 * 100 = 2.306% decrease 11,933 2007 = 6,141 – 9,181 * 100 = 3.311% decrease 9,181 2008 = 8,334 – 6,141 * 100 = 3.571% increase 6,141 Question 2 Using the current trend for Micro Chip Computer Corporation as a basis, I do not think that the company achieved its sales target of 10% growth in 2009. This is because in 2008, the company only had a 3.571% increase and the previous years prior to that had recorded a decrease in sales. Therefore, there is no indication of a constant growth in sales over the years and so it would be difficult for the company to make a 10% increase in sales in 2009. The actual sales figure for 2009had the company made a 10% increase would be: 110% * 8,334 = $ 9,167 It would be quite difficult for the company to hit this target in 2009 since there is no indication of such a significant growth in sales over the prior years. Therefore, my view is that, at the very best the company can only improve on 2008’s sales growth from a 3.571% increase to probably 5% or 6%. This would be the best case scenario given the information on previous years. PART B Question 1 Percentage of sales (%) Sales increase by 20% Sales $8,334.00 100 10,000 Cost of Sales $5,458.00 65.5 6,549 Gross Margin $2,876.00 34.5 3,451 Operating expenses: R & D $525.00 6.3 630 Selling, General, and Administrative $691.00 8.3 829 In†process R & D †Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬  Restructuring costs †Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬ Ã¢â‚¬  2 200 Total Operating Expenses $1,216.00 1,659 Operating income $1,660.00 1,792 Total interest and other Income net $194.00 2.3 233 Income before provision for Income taxes $1,854.00 2,025 Provision for income Taxes (15%) $278.10 303.75 Net income $1,575.90 1,721.25 Question 2 The results in question 1 show that a 20% increase in sales consequently leads to an increase in net income. This is true since increase in sales revenue produces more income for a company and therefore the net income would also increase. The assumption for question 1 is that the 20% increase in sales leaves all other factors constant, therefore resulting in a proportionate change in all other items in the Statement of Operations with respect to sales. This assumption is however not reasonable since if the sales revenue for a company increases by 20%, it mean that there are other costs that were incurred in order to increase this sales revenue. For example advertising, sales and marketing costs should probably have been incurred so as to improve the sales figure over the next year. References Drur.y C, (1998). Costing an Introduction 4th Edition, Thomson Learning. Drury C, (2008). Management and Cost Accounting, Chapman and Hall 7th Edition. Horngren, CT, Foster, G and Datar S.M (2001). Cost Accounting:A Managerial Emphasis 10th Edition Prentice Hall of India; New Delhi, Robert Kaplan & A A Atkinson (2004). Advanced Management Accounting, 2nd Edition Prentice-Hall

Military service for 18 year olds essays

Military service for 18 year olds essays The September 11 terrorist attacks and the subsequent War in Iraq has focused attention on the all-volunteer nature of the United States Armed Forces. The United States Army is suffering from a drought of junior officers, such as lieutenants and captains. This decrease is happening precisely at a time when the United States is increasing its military commitments all over the world, such as Iraq, Afghanistan and in other Various solutions have been offered towards beefing up the United States armed forces. Some suggest allowing women to serve in combat duty. Others have proposed increasing education and other benefits for enlisted soldiers. Still others suggest returning to the military draft. In the face of the strong need for more personnel, however, many have called for raising the age of required military registration for young men This paper argues that military registration needs to be a choice open to all young men, starting at age 18. After all, at this age, young men are legally recognized as adults. They have generally graduated from high school, are allowed to vote and could legally be tried as adults. It stands to reason that they could make an informed decision regarding The current system of conscription in the United States is dubbed the "Selective Service System" (SSS). The current system is an offshoot of the Military Selective Service Act of 1967, which established a draft lottery. Men were required to register with the SSS boards within 30 days before and after they turn 18 ("Selective Service"). By 1973, by abolishing conscription, the United States Congress effectively abolished the draft, creating the "all-volunteer" military. Though the current system of registration was reinstated for 18-year-old males, serving in the military remains voluntary ("Selective Service"). Though voluntary in nature, many groups con...

Ration Analysis in Decision Making Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ration Analysis in Decision Making - Assignment Example The healthcare company that is going to be evaluated in this report is Cameron Memorial Community Hospital. The financial statements of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital are illustrated in Appendix A and B. The tool that is going to be used to analyze the financial statements of the company is ratio analysis. The Cameron Memorial Hospital was founded in 1926 by Don F. Cameron. The hospital is a 25 bed Critical Access Community Hospital. â€Å"CMCH is a comprehensive healthcare system that services the Tri-State Area of Northeast Indiana, South Central Michigan and Northwest Ohio† (Cameronmch). Some of the services offered at Cameron Memorial Community Hospital include radiology, sleep center, surgical services, occupational health, and hospice care. There are over 100 doctors working at Cameron Memorial Community Hospital. In order to comply with its civic duties and social responsibility the hospital created the Cameron Hospital Foundation. The 2010 fiscal year of Cameron M emorial Community Hospital started September 30, 2009 and ended September 30, 2010. In 2010 Cameron Memorial Community Hospital generated total revenues of $41.94 million (In). The company’s revenues increase by 4.98% in comparison with fiscal year 2009. The total expenses of the hospital in 2010 were $41.10 million. The net margin of the company in 2010 was 4.51%. The net margin is an absolute measure of profitability. It is calculated by dividing net income by total revenues. In order to determine whether the net margin of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital is good or not we must compare it to the industry standard. A good database that has information regarding the industry standards across different industries is the Dun & Bradstreet database. The health care industry net margin industry standard is 4.2% (Dun & Bradstreet). The net margin of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital was above the industry standard by 0.31%. The table below illustrated a ratio analysis of Camer on Memorial Community Hospital in 2010. Cameron Memorial Community Hospital 2010 Net Margin 4.52% Return on Equity 7.30% Return on Assets 4.12% Debt Ratio 2.29 Current Ratio 1.97 Working Capital $4380419 Debt to 'Equity 0.77 The return on equity of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital in 2010 was 7.30%. The return on equity metric measures how effective a company was at generating profits from its total equity. The formula to calculate return on equity is dividing net income by total equity. The industry standard return on equity is 9.2% (Dun & Bradstreet). The return on equity of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital in 2010 was 1.90% below the industry standard. The return on assets of the company in 2010 was 4.12%. The return on assets metric can be calculated by dividing net income by total assets. The industry standard return on assets is 4.30% (Dun & Bradstreet). The return on assets ratio measures how effective a company was at generating profits from its total assets. The retur n on assets of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital was 0.18% below the industry standard. The debt ratio measures a company’s ability to pay off its long term debt. The debt ratio is calculated dividing total assets by total liabilities. The debt ratio of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital in 2010 was 2.29. The general rule for a debt ratio is that a debt

Personality Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Personality Development - Essay Example While some psychologists believe that cognition is the only way to explain or predict personality differences within people, others believe that our personalities develop in differing ways. Whichever theorist you side with, however, it remains that cognition does play a part in the development of the personality, how big a part depends on your views. Cognition, being the mental process of knowing, and dealing with such things as awareness, perception, and reasoning, among others, is an important part of who we are and how we develop. Our personalities come from this perception of our world, what we think, what we feel, how we cope; it all stems from our awareness and how we put this awareness to use. Environmental factors, such as where you live, what you eat, the quality of the air that you breathe, etc, and biological factors, such as your genetic makeup and your pre-natal development play a part in how you process your environment and therefore play a part in the makeup of your personality development. If you happen to have been born prematurely, for example, and your parents both carried a lot of recessive genes and they were passed on to you, and you lived in an area of town close to smokestacks or a lot of overhead wires, your development, and that of your personality would differ from someone born at full term, with no genetic problems, living out in the fresh country air. How you are raised and where you are raised, and your genetic blueprint all have a bearing on how you perceive your world, and hence, how your personality has formed. Evolutionary, biological and environmental factors can result in the development of an aggressive personality. In the study of evolutionary psychology, we learn that it is a combination of a lot of