Introduction to International Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Introduction to International Business - Essay Example This can include money or people, and most often refers to a nation offering this investment to a private or publicly held corporation that is owned by people in foreign countries, who are doing the investing (â€Å"Foreign Direct Investment,† 2011). For example, the United States may have some people who are sent to Icecreamists, an ice cream parlor in the city of London that has made headlines for serving a new flavor called the â€Å"Lady Gaga,† which is made with human breast milk (Casciato, 2011) not only to help the budding entrepreneur who owns the establishment, but also to bring new ideas home. When dealing with foreign direct investments, it is paramount that those who deal in them understand that for each nation there are precise regulations that need to be followed in order to operate there. The purpose of foreign investment regulations is to protect industries when trying to catch up to more advanced nations. In some cases, it is to prevent other nations fr om being able to get a hold of the technology, methods, and management practices that make one nation better than all others. This is why some countries allow certain industries to receive a high level of foreign direct investment, and others to receive little. A nation like Ireland, for example, is very open to foreign direct investments while Finland operates in much the opposite fashion (Chang, 2003). Foreign investment regulations vary by country. In the United States, businesses are welcoming to member who participate in the World Trade Organization (WTO) to those who prefer more secrecy. Part of the reason for this is because the United States values the world of ideas and tends to shun isolationist sentiment, which is when a nation does not want to have anything to do with any other country. The idea that one country keeps to itself while others fend for themselves does not often work because while one nation is operating to the best of its ability, the world of nations are o perating to the best of all of their collective talents. For this reason nations who have tried to live in a bubble in the past have ended up paying a price for it later. Foreign investment regulations start with the premise that a firm must be abreast of global trends in their industry. For example, if a textile company wanted to know whether or not a foreign competitor was going to expand into its market, it could try to find out from third party sources, or it could go straight to the source. After all, if a firm from Japan, China, Brazil, or any country wanted to operate in the United States, it would be very interested to get an inside look at a factory (as well as its management and other staff) to see how to be successful, possibly allowing it to capitalize on shortcomings within the operations. Doing so will also allow for a company to see how globalization affects domestic clients, meaning that when a firm travels home, the local company will want to follow their expansion, which could allow for a partnership to form in work that is either performed in the United States or other countries (Chang, 26-30). All of this is related to concerns that management will have in screening potential markets for expansion. Two of the most important concerns are the assessment of internal resources and how competitive a firm can be in the new market. For example, it would not matter that Ford Motor Company has the cash to expand into India and sell sport utility vehicles if the locals would be

Saturable Reactor Essay Example for Free

Saturable Reactor Essay Saturable reactor or magnetic amplifier is a circuit that used to control very large load of AC with very small input DC. The saturable reactor consists of three essential elements : Direct current source, magnetic core with windings, and alternating current source. How it work? The AC load circuit run on to magnetic core and the DC control circuit is also went on to the same core. Ac current flows through winding and Since this current is alternating, the flux set up in the magnetic circuit loop is constantly changing in magnitude and direction. This means the field builds up to a maximum in one direction, collapses, and builds up to a maximum in the opposite direction DC circuit will cause flux which is which is constant in magnitude and constant in direction. This means the field builds up and remains steady state. The AC flux tends to saturate and then desaturate the core because of its cyclical operation. This results in a changing inductive reactance in the load winding. The DC flux, according to it’s strength, aids or opposes the AC flux in its saturate or desaturate effects in the core. Hence, the DC flux tends to control the AC flux controlling the reactance of the load winding. The use of separate windings on a single core has distinct advantages. Load winding consists of comparatively few turns of heavy wire because of large current requirements of different loads. Control winding Ni consists of many turns of fine wire. Since magnetomotive force depends upon the number of ampere turns, a small current in the control winding produces a magnetomotive force equal to that of the load winding. Usually, DC in the order of milliamperes controls AC in the order of amperes. The following describes the steps in the operation and control of the simple saturable reactor: 1. Zero DC control current in the control loop. Since only AC current is flowing through the load windings, an extremely high inductive reactance (Xl) is present in the load windings. This is due to the high inductance (L) of the load windings and the action of the varying magnetic field produced. Extremely high inductive reactance in this winding results in a high impedance (Z) which limits the flow of AC current to a low value. This high reactance also causes a large voltage drop across the load windings in series with the load, limiting the current supplied to the load.  Since current is limited to a low value to the load, minimum power is transferred to the load since power is a function of current. 2. Increase DC control current in control loop. DC current creates a flux which, when superimposed on the AC flux, collectively saturates the core. Since the core is near saturation or fully saturated (core unable to hold any more flux lines), the inductive reactance is greatly reduced. This is due to the fact that no additional changing flux can be held by the core. With reduced inductive reactance the impedance of the load windings is greatly reduced.Large AC currents are now permitted to flow through the load. This results in maximum power transfer to the load. Decrease DC control current in control loop. With less DC current flowing there is less total flux in the core and the core desaturates. This results in the cores ability to support once again the changing flux, creating a high inductive reactance, and resulting in increased impedance in the load winding. Minimum power transfer results since current to the load is greatly reduced.

What Happens When We Die Religion Essay

What Happens When We Die Religion Essay Death is an issue that we all face no matter what our personal beliefs are so What Happens When We Die?, is one of the greatest questions of life. Generally we are very reluctant to think of our own expiry. Death is a great equaliser and no matter what or whom you are in life, eventually we all have to face the reality of dying. Is death the end of our consciousness and existence? In spite of hundreds years of research, Science cannot prove when or where life began. Researchers have found that the human nervous system and brain operate largely through electrical impulses. The brain requires blood and oxygen to function, when breathing, if our blood circulation is impaired, the brain simply does not function or ceases completely. Humans are a complex structure composed of many co-operating interactions within our bodies. We have a desire to understand and influence, search for explanations through our natural curiosity and yet, we are so preoccupied with the everyday concerns of our lives that death is pushed into the background until we have to face it through the loss of a loved one. Our thoughts turn to their demise and we decide whether we believe they are gone to a better pace, is there a better life after death, does death bring a new life, are our departed loved ones sleeping and awaiting reawakening, or does death signify nonexistence .(Atheist). The sheer grief and pain of death, the loss of a loved one causes suffering for those left behind. We carry out an array of customs during the burial of our dead, we commemorate them in memory of their lives as mankind has a need to go through a ritual in order to try to understand what happens when we die. Is it normal to want a future life after death or is death necessary as our limited world cannot conceivably harbinger all life eternally? We question What is Death? What is life? Is death a simple and definable end to life? Where does our spirit go when the bond between our material body is dissolved? Is death permanent? We wonder whether upon death when our physical body disintegrates what happens to our soul?. If we do return, do humans have the ability carry memories of past events into their present life?. Our attempts to understand death generate fear, controversy, self-questioning and rationalisation. In every culture when a loved one dies ceremonies are held by family and friends to reminisce about the dead. Universally, although cultures differ, praying plays a highly important part during the death ceremony. The finality of death is frightening and humankind have dealt with their loss since the beginning of time through ceremonies which us to get through what we dont understand. Death has been depicted by macabre images such as the Grim Reaper coming to take away a persons soul. The scythe is a symbol that he reaps the soul of both saints and sinner alike; The Harvest of Souls. Physical death is the Bottom of Form 1 cessation of bodily functions, when your heart stops beating, your brain stops to function and you stop breathing. It is also the severing of the connection between our spirit from our physical body and when consciousness finally leaves our human form to go to the next life. The mind or soul is not a physical part of our bodies, it is formless and a separate entity from our human body form. Questions are raised upon death; when the body disintegrates at death does our consciousness cease? This is where we search for spiritual answers through religion, creators, God, Gods and Goddesses. During our lives we seek to find answers to the many questions we have about death and man, since the beginning of time, man has tried to conceive a way to escape death. Questions range from; Is death permanent? Does our spirit carry on in another form and at a deeper level of consciousness? Can be reincarnated and come back to Earth? If we are reincarnated are all of our previous memories erased? Is there a creator who will welcome us into our new existence? Are we merely a collection of cells, molecules, skin and are we just another cycle of nature? Are we a natural part of evolution? Is there an afterlife? Is our physical demise temporary? Where, if anywhere, do we go? Scientists find it difficult to accept a life after death theory. However, they have to accept unintelligible natural phenomena and other realms of reality through their own facts based on Quantum Mechanics. Death can be considered either as the end of existence or as a transition to another state of being or consciousness. The Hindus deal with death by viewing life as an illusion and learning through the levels of reincarnation the true meaning of life and both religion and mythology concern themselves with what happens to our essence after physical death. There are many causes of death such as the natural process of aging, natural death, illness, disease, suicide, homicide, natural disasters, accidents and wars. Universally, death rituals can vary extensively depending on religion, race and culture however, rituals and ceremonies are cross cultural such preparation of the corpse for a funeral and the ceremony surrounding the disposing of the corpse. Although practices may differ from culture to culture, death ceremonies are the norm and can include a three day watch of the corpse, gathering of relations and friends to mourn their departed right through to elaborate rituals which go on for weeks. The Ancients flourished on a social structure where rites of ancestor worship and spiritual beliefs were the norm. The Celtic Druids had a strong belief in sacrifice and believed in the reincarnation of the soul into another form hence they did not fear death. The ancient Egyptians practiced forms of ancestor worship and believed in rebirth after death and considered death as merely a temporary interruption. The Mayans were a very religions people who lived in fear of their destructive Gods so their funerals were held with great respect and ceremony. Shamanism is based on the belief that spirits and invisible entities permeate our visible world. The Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and came down to earth to rid them of original sin thus saving their souls and after death, returning to God in Heaven. Jehovahs Witnesses believe that the Bible is the Manual for Life, Jesus is the Son of God however, they are not Trinitarian. On their death they sleep until God call s everyone who has departed this Earth for Judgement Day and those who lived their lives according to the Bible, will live back on Earth and be reigned by a Council in Heaven. Taking the Bible as an example we determine that the word Heaven, which is used in a strictly material signification as forming a part of the created universe. In Genesis i.1, In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The ancient Hebrews, however, seem to have entertained strange notions as to the structure of the material Heaven, believing it to be a solid arch resting on pillars, and having foundations. Thus, in Job xxvi. 11, the pillars of Heaven tremble, and we are astonished at his reproof. In other passages of the Bible Heaven is compared to a curtin, or the covering of a tent, as in Ps. civ.2, Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtin. The ancient Jews believed that there were several different Heavens; the lower, the middle, and the third or higher heavens. The lower level of Heaven was considered to take in the clouds and the atmosphere; the middle as being the stellar or starry region; and the third as being the Heaven of Heavens, or the habitation of God and his angels. The word Heaven is not only used in a material but also a spiritual sense, to indicate the future abode of the righteous after death. The belief in Heaven beyond the grave, accordingly, is not limited to Christians, being a recognized creed of Heathens, Jews, and Mohammadeans. Among the ancient Romans and Greeks, the Heaven to which the good ascended was named Elysium. The precise location of Elysium was a topic of debate for generations; writers of classic antiquity declared the happiness of the souls in Elysium to be complete and allegedly, some believed that the departed souls would return to earth again. Eternal blessedness was, in view of the ancient Pagans, reserved for those who were distinguished for their exhalted virtues and who were accordingly admitted into the society of the Gods and could, at any time, return to their ancestors on this earth. Summerland, a place for resting of the soul until it is ready to continue on a journey of self, until the person learned and escalated to the higher realms of eternal consciousness. Heaven of the Hindu culture is the absorption on Brahm and of the Buddhist, annihilation or Nirwana. The priesthood of the ancient Egyptians taught the immortality of the soul under the mane of Palingenesia, or second birth, being a return of the soul to the celestial spheres; or its reabsorption into the Supreme Being. This doctrine was allegedly inculcated only upon the illerate multitudes who could form no conception of the existence of the soul without the body. The ancient Scandinavians, believed in two different heavens; one, the palace of Odin which they named Valhalla where this divinity received all of those who died a violent death; and the other called Gimli (place covered with gold), the everlasting home of the righteous where to enjoy ecstatic and perennial delights. Those received into the palace of Odin, heroes, believed that every day would be filled with fighting, eating, drinking and surrounded by virgins. Jewish Rabbis teach that there is an upper and lower paradise or heaven with a fixed pillar of Zion. On every Sabbath or festival, the righteous climb up and feed themselves with a glance of the Divine majesty until the end of the Sabbath or festival. The souls of the righteous, according to the Jewish Rabbis, do not ascent to the upper paradise immediately after they have left their body, but they are represented as undergoing a pervious kind of novitiate in the lower paradise, which is situated half way between this corporal world and the upper Heaven. Mohammadeans believe in a Heaven prepared for the blessed among the faithful; a place for those who are true to their religion and followers of the holy prophet Mohammed. Here, they shall spend eternity and shall join him in perpetual light and all heavenly pleasures, always beautiful, in their full strength and vigour, brighter than the sun, and thought worthy to see the face of the Most High God, and to adore him. They hold that there are eight Heavens of varying degrees. We have looked at varying traditions in the belief of Heaven and now shall look at the belief in Hell. Both in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures there are two words, Sheol and Hades which are sometimes translated into hell but which denote the world of departed spirits in general; while two other words Tartaros and Gehenna, signify the place of eternal punishment reserved for the unrighteous and wicked after death. The Amenti of ancient Egyptians, the Patala of the Hindus and the Orcus of the Romans, refer to a future state; but the doctrine of a future punishment is found embodied in all religious systems whether Christian, Heathen, Jewish or Mohammedean. Hell is believed to be a place of eternal torment, a bottomless pit, a worm that never dies, the fire that shall never be quenched. The Jewish Rabbis believe in an upper and lower hell. Gehennon, to which the Talmud adds seven other names, is said to be applied to seven mansions into which hell is divided. Many Jewish people believe in hell, not as an eternal dwelling-place of the wicked, but, to the Israelites at least, as a place of temporary purgatorial punishment. It is believed that the very wicked shall be eternally annihilated. The Mohammedeans, like the Jews, divide Hell which they call Gehennon, into seven portions, but they are not totally agreed as to the inhabitants of these districts. The most common opinion is that Gehennon, is destined for those worshippers of the true God who have not acted up to the principles of the faith which they have professed; the second division, called Lodha, is for the Christians; the third named Hothama, is for Jews; the fourth, denominated Sair, is destined for the Sabeans; the fifth, called Sacar, is for Magicians or Geubres; the sixty names Gehim, will received Pagans and idolaters, whilst the seventh, the most severe place of punishment within the lowest depths of the abyss, is named Hooviat, and reserved for the hypocritical professors of religion. The Hindus believe in a graduated scale of future punishments as well rewards; the less wicked being sunk into a lower position in the next birth (reincarnation), the more wicked being sent down to one or other of the innumerable Hells, to reappear, however, on earth, in mineral, animal, and vegetable forms before they rise to the human, the most wicked of all beings doomed to experience the misery and woe and perdition until the time of the dissolution of all things. The Buddhist tradition has a system of eight principal narakas, or places of torment, all of them situated in the interior of the earth and so enclosed it makes it impossible for escape. Gnostics, (gnosis, knowledge), the general name applied to various classes of pagans or heretics, arose in the early period of the Christian Church. They derived from the school of philosophy and denoted a higher and esoteric science which was designed to express the superiority of their doctrines to those of the Pagans and Jews. The systems of Gnosticism were various, all of them referable to two fixed historical centres, Syria and Egypt. Hence, there was a marked difference between the Syrian and the Alexandrian Gnosis, the former being characterized by a predominance of Dualism, the latter by a predominance of Pantheism. It is impossible to even cursorily examine Gnosticism in the diversified aspect which is assumes, without being at almost every point reminded of the old religious systems of Asia, Buddhism, Parsiam and Brahmanism. Gnostics believed in intuitions and symbols rather than conceptions. In the eye of the Gnostic everything became hyposaterized, which, to the Western thinker existed only as a conception. The foundation of most of the Gnostic systems lies in the idea of two different and opposite worlds, the one region of light, the other the region of darkness; one a region of purity and the other of sin; a superior world and an inferior world. The primal source of being was the Bythos (like the Brahm) of Hinduism in which was an invisible, incomprehensible being, enjoying perfect quiescence and from whom all emanations proceeded. Following their line of thought, they alleged the God or Jehovah of the Jews to be Demiurge, and the law they promulgated in the Old Testament to be inferior and imperfect whereas, the law which Christ promulgated in The New Testament was the expression of the mind of the Bythos or Unknown Father. Most Gnostics reportedly believed that salvation rested merely on knowledge; and that a man who possessed knowledge needed no more. The realisation of human mortality lives with each and every human being and ghost stories, spirits and hauntings have been a part of our history, handed down from generation to generation. We are taught about spirits, Witches, Angels, Demons, Gods and Goddesses and the paranormal world is rich in psychics, supernatural events, divination and with people who have real experiences with the paranormal such as out of body experiences, direct interaction with ghostly phenomena and near death experiences. Sceptics cannot ignore or dismiss paranormal occurrences just as Science cannot explain the unexpected e.g., apparitions, ghosts, hauntings, orbs or the supernatural. To sum up, no matter what our personal faith, belief, religions, culture or race, it is up to you whether you believe that the evidence is strong enough to justify your belief in paranormal, the supernatural and an afterlife. Near death experiences (NDE), the age-old debate, have been occurring for centuries. In the year 360 BC, Plato writes about a soldier named Er who recalled his NDE. Near death experiences are quite common and have been recorded through history. You may have heard someone who nearly died saying that they experienced their whole life flashing right before their eyes. NDEs have been a part of mankinds existence for thousands of years, as some ancient civilizations have recorded these supernatural encounters. With this history, many different explanations have come as to what could be the cause, or if the afterlife is real. Millions of cases are documented worldwide of NDEs, or near-death experiences. As they are such a common occurrence, Scientists have conducted research into thousands, if not millions, of cases. During the past 30 years, near-death experiences have been the focus of intense Scientific studies at Universities and Medical Centres around the world and they can no longer dismiss this phenomenon as hallucinations, chemical changes in the brain just prior to death, or as a pharmacologically induced experience. Science has questioned and studied NDEs experiences and one thing agreed on by all those involved in research is that near death experiences really do exist. No two near death experiences are the same; they are as unique and as individual as the person who goes through this experience. People who suffer severe trauma, clinical death, or those who nearly die, have reported similar traits during their near-death experience and many believe it to be very real and have significantly changed the views on life, spirituality and particularly their views on death. Some common experiences do occur however, not all NDEs follow a pattern. Common traits that have been widely documented with NDE include: Feelings of Peace and Terror: These feelings may include acceptance of death, total calmness, feelings of peace, being emotional and physically comforted. The person sees a bright light filling the room which they interpret as Heaven or God. Then there are those cases documented of people who do not have a feeling of peace, did not meet with family or friendly spirits. Rather, they experienced terror as while being attacked and upset by demons. (OBE): Out-of-body Experiences: The person feels that they have left their physical body. They observe from above, often describing the sight of doctors working on him. In some cases, the subjects spirit then flies out of the room, into the sky and sometimes into space. We have all heard stories about someone on the verge of death seeing a bright light at the end of a long tunnel, revealing that they have entered another dimension or realm, seeing spiritual entities and deceased family, friends and loved ones. The persons spirit may take a bit of time to look around and then notice a bright light. The light may start out to be small and then become larger as the spirit of the person moves toward it. In some cases there is not a tunnel, but a very bright light that fills the room. The light is brighter than anything the person has ever experienced on Earth, but they are not bothered by the it. General feelings that people experience include euphoria and report floating feelings and beautiful visions of scenic places. The majority of people who experience near-death say they feel very happy with a wonderful sense of calm and belonging. Another Realm or Dimension: Other people that experience NDEs say that they are led to another realm, most have positive experiences however, a few have reported a negative experience in which they get a feeling of loss of control and falling into a deep bottomless chasm. Near death experiences moves the person beyond this natural world and into worlds unseen, usually commencing with a tunnel of light which they are compelled to enter. This bright light pulls them into another realm and, as they leave this world behind, they experience sightings of spirits, family and their departed friends. Lastly, they experience a life review, where one sees their entire earthly life in fast forward. Once on the other side, they have reported being surrounded by entities, some of them they knew were dead and others who are there to talk to them. Some report being told certain things and are asked to go back to their bodies. The most common report for survivors of outer body experience(OBE) is that people feel they have been given a glimpse into Heaven as they encounter beings of light, or other representations of spiritual entities. Spiritual Beings and Entities: When a person experiences NDE most report that the feeling surrounding the spiritual beings and entities are pleasurable, and they feel completely disassociated with their physical body, have the ability to see through walls and they relate stories about what was happening outside the room where their physical body was pronounced clinically dead. Some report the transcendental or mystical elements emit a sense of complete peace and contentment and, on their return after communication with the spirits or entities, it has been reported by many people and they describe a male voice telling them that it is not their time and to go back to their earthly physical body. Returning to the Physical Body: On returning to their physical body, in most cases, they have a sense of being reborn, seeking to learn more about themselves, are stronger, self confident and pursue a life of truth with heightened appreciation and contentment. The typical near-death survivor emerges from their experience determined to live life to the fullest and most do not fear death. Negative NDE Experiences: Unfortunately, for others, the experience may not be a positive one. Some people have said they have increased fear, suffer from depression, and focus more on death. However, thankfully, it is a very small percentage that experience negativity after recovering from their NDE. Many survivors of NDE struggle with a fear of mental illness, ridicule and fear of rejection. Problems associated with negative experiences of NDE include depression, isolation, with a difficulty in explaining their experience to their family or to the medical profession and angry due to their difficulty after this experience to return to their previous beliefs. Those who experience a negative NDE can become very distressed, retreat into themselves, take years to adjust a near-death experience, believe that their experience was a hallucination rather than a real experience, fear to seek help or counselling and may feel that they have lost control over their minds. For these people, their mental stability is challenged as is their belief systems. The effects of those who experience negative NDE are often life-altering. No Scientific explanation to date can account or explain all of the aspects of near death experiences, why they happen or what are the causes and effects. NDEs follow a broad general pattern that crosses cultures; they remain in memory for decades as being realer than real. Scientists have delved into various forms of studies and a couple of examples include; lack of oxygen is not a factor in all NDEs, nor is the presence of drugs or medication responsible. Sceptics have a big problem with the belief in Near Death Experience because it is impossible to define the line between when life and death occurs. Definitions of death can vary from continent to continent and from culture to culture e.g.; what makes a person?, Define the soul or spirit in a person? and as none of this can be proved scientifically. However, this does not discount the real fact that many sincere and honest people have near-death experiences and that Scientists and Medical Practitioners have investigated the phenomena with no solid result or evidence to refute their experiences.

Atwood :: Character Analysis, Kat, Disintegration

Atwood uses symbolism to convey how a person’s personality can disintegrate by living in a repressive society. In the beginning of the story, Kat goes through a surgery to remove a large ovarian cyst which she keeps and names â€Å"Hairball†. This large cyst is in fact, a symbol that represents Kat’s personality disintegration. Most cyst that develop in the human body are dysfunctional, and Kat can be seen as a dysfunctional woman when she decides to keep this cyst. â€Å"The cyst turned out to be a benign tumor. Kat liked that use if ‘benign,‘ as if the thing had a soul and wished her well† (304). This specific passage shows the readers how Kat is slowly loosing her mind by thinking that her cyst has a soul of its own. In addition, she humanizes her cyst by naming it â€Å"Hairball† and by giving it human characteristics: â€Å"Hairball’s baby teeth glint in the light; it looks as if it’s about to speak† (312). More over, Hairball is described as having baby teeth which can represent how it is like a baby who still developing. This developing cyst can also symbolize how Kat is trying to develop her own personality. However, this becomes a challenge for her because she lives in a society where male domination is present. She works as a photographer for an avant-garde magazine, and tries to express her ideas, but the men whom she works with don’t let her do so. Kat trying to develop her personality within her society leads her to become lost, and back to becoming dysfunctional just like a cyst trying to be a tumor. The author uses Hairball as a symbol to highlight how Kat’s personality disintegrates by living in a society where gender inequality is supported. Characterization plays an important role when conveying how one’s personality can disintegrate by living in a restrictive society. Although Kat is slowly loosing her mind, in the story, she is portrayed as a confident woman who tries to strive for excellence. This can be seen when she wants to name the magazine â€Å"All the Rage†. She claims that â€Å"it’s a forties sounds† and that â€Å"forties is back† (311). However the board of directors, who were all men, did not approve. They actually â€Å"though it was too feminist, of all things† (311). This passage not only shows how gender opportunities is apparent in the society Kat lives in, but also shows the readers why Kat starts to loose her mind.

Cost Control and Cost Reduction

PRINCIPLES OF COST CONTROL 1. 1 Introduction Cost is important to all industry. Costs can be divided into two general classes; absolute costs and relative costs. Absolute cost measures the loss in value of assets. Relative cost involves a comparison between the chosen course of action and the course of action that was rejected. This cost of the alternative action – the action not taken – is often called the â€Å"opportunity cost†. The accountant is primarily concerned with the absolute cost.However, the forest engineer, the planner, the manager needs to be concerned with the alternative cost – the cost of the lost opportunity. Management has to be able to make comparisons between the policy that should be chosen and the policy that should be rejected. Such comparisons require the ability to predict costs, rather than merely record costs. Cost data are, of course, essential to the technique of cost prediction. However, the form in which much cost data are recorded limits accurate cost prediction to the field of comparable situations only.This limitation of accurate cost prediction may not be serious in industries where the production environment changes little from month to month or year to year. In harvesting, however, identical production situations are the exception rather than the rule. Unless the cost data are broken down and recorded as unit costs, and correlated with the factors that control their values, they are of little use in deciding between alternative procedures. Here, the approach to the problem of useful cost data is that of identification, isolation, and control of the factors affecting cost. . 2 Basic Classification of Costs Costs are divided into two types: variable costs, and fixed costs. Variable costs vary per unit of production. For example, they may be the cost per cubic meter of wood yarded, per cubic meter of dirt excavated, etc. Fixed costs, on the other hand, are incurred only once and as additional units of production are produced, the unit costs fall. Examples of fixed costs would be equipment move-in costs and road access costs. 1. 3 Total Cost and Unit-Cost Formulas As harvesting operations become more complicated and involve both fixed and ariable costs, there usually is more than one way to accomplish a given task. It may be possible to change the quantity of one or both types of cost, and thus to arrive at a minimum total cost. Mathematically, the relationship existing between volume of production and costs can be expressed by the following equations: Total cost = fixed cost + variable cost ? output In symbols using the first letters of the cost elements and N for the output or number of units of production, these simple formulas are C = F + NV UC = F/N + V 1. Breakeven Analysis A breakeven analysis determines the point at which one method becomes superior to another method of accomplishing some task or objective. Breakeven analysis is a common and important part of cost cont rol. One illustration of a breakeven analysis would be to compare two methods of road construction for a road that involves a limited amount of cut-and-fill earthwork. It would be possible to do the earthwork by hand or by bulldozer. If the manual method were adopted, the fixed costs would be low or non-existent.Payment would be done on a daily basis and would call for direct supervision by a foreman. The cost would be calculated by estimating the time required and multiplying this time by the average wages of the men employed. The men could also be paid on a piece-work basis. Alternatively, this work could be done by a bulldozer which would have to be moved in from another site. Let us assume that the cost of the hand labor would be $0. 60 per cubic meter and the bulldozer would cost $0. 40 per cubic meter and would require $100 to move in from another site.The move-in cost for the bulldozer is a fixed cost, and is independent of the quantity of the earthwork handled. If the bulldo zer is used, no economy will result unless the amount of earthwork is sufficient to carry the fixed cost plus the direct cost of the bulldozer operation. Figure 1. 1 Breakeven Example for Excavation. If, on a set of coordinates, cost in dollars is plotted on the vertical axis and units of production on the horizontal axis, we can indicate fixed cost for any process by a horizontal line parallel to the x-axis. If variable ost per unit output is constant, then the total cost for any number of units of production will be the sum of the fixed cost and the variable cost multiplied by the number of units of production, or F + NV. If the cost data for two processes or methods, one of which has a higher variable cost, but lower fixed cost than the other are plotted on the same graph, the total cost lines will intersect at some point. At this point the levels of production and total cost are the same. This point is known as the â€Å"breakeven† point, since at this level one method is as economical as the other.Referring to Figure 1. 1 the breakeven point at which quantity the bulldozer alternative and the manual labor alternative become equal is at 500 cubic meters. We could have found this same result algebraically by writing F + NV = F' + NV' where F and V are the fixed and variable costs for the manual method, and F' and V' are the corresponding values for the bulldozer method. Since all values are known except N, we can solve for N using the formula N = (F' – F) / (V – V') 1. 5 Minimum Cost Analyses A similar, but different problem is the determination of the point of minimum total cost.Instead of balancing two methods with different fixed and variable costs, the aim is to bring the sum of two costs to a minimum. We will assume a clearing crew of 20 men is clearing road right-of-way and the following facts are available: 1. Men are paid at the rate of $0. 40 per hour. 2. Time is measured from the time of leaving camp to the time of return. 3. Total walking time per man is increasing at the rate of 15 minutes per day. 4. The cost to move the camp is $50. If the camp is moved each day, no time is lost walking, but the camp cost is $50 per day.If the camp is not moved, on the second day 15 crew-minutes are lost or $2. 00. On the third day, the total walking time has increased 30 minutes, the fourth day, 45 minutes, and so on. How often should the camp be moved assuming all other things are equal? We could derive an algebraic expression using the sum of an arithmetic series if we wanted to solve this problem a number of times, but for demonstration purposes we can simply calculate the average total camp cost. The average total camp cost is the sum of the average daily cost of walking time plus the average daily cost of moving camp.If we moved camp each day, then average daily cost of walking time would be zero and the cost of moving camp would be $50. 00. If we moved the camp every other day, the cost of walking time is $2. 00 lost the second day, or an average of $1. 00 per day. The average daily cost of moving camp is $50 divided by 2 or $25. 00. The average total camp cost is then $26. 00. If we continued this process for various numbers of days the camp remains in location, we would obtain the results in Table 1. 1. TABLE 1. 1 Average daily total camp cost as the sum of the cost of walking time plus the cost of moving camp.Days camp remained in location| Average daily cost of walking time| Average daily cost of moving camp| Average total camp cost| 1| 0. 00| 50. 00| 50. 00| 2| 1. 00| 25. 00| 26. 00| 3| 2. 00| 16. 67| 18. 67| 4| 3. 00| 12. 50| 15. 50| 5| 4. 00| 10. 00| 14. 00| 6| 5. 00| 8. 33| 13. 33| 7| 6. 00| 7. 14| 13. 14| 8| 7. 00| 6. 25| 13. 25| 9| 8. 00| 5. 56| 13. 56| 10| 9. 00| 5. 00| 14. 00| We see the average daily cost of walking time increasing linearly and the average cost of moving camp decreasing as the number of days the camp remains in one location increases.The minimum cost is obta ined for leaving the camp in location 7 days (Figure 1. 2). This minimum cost point should only be used as a guideline as all other things are rarely equal. An important output of the analysis is the sensitivity of the total cost to deviations from the minimum cost point. In this example, the total cost changes slowly between 5 and 10 days. Often, other considerations which may be difficult to quantify will affect the decision. In Section 2, we discuss balancing road costs against skidding costs.Sometimes roads are spaced more closely together than that indicated by the point of minimum total cost if excess road construction capacity is available. In this case the goal may be to reduce the risk of disrupting skidding production because of poor weather or equipment availability. Alternatively, we may choose to space roads farther apart to reduce environmental impacts. Due to the usually flat nature of the total cost curve, the increase in total cost is often small over a wide range o f road spacings. Figure 1. 2 Costs for Camp Location Example.

Existence of God Argumentative Paper Essay

There are many different types of arguments for the existence of God. With each argument there is a conception presented of God. For each argument there are different approaches. I will be focusing on the Cosmological and Teleological Arguments. Teleological Arguments are known to be arguments from divine, arguing from order in the universe to the existence of God (1).With the ordering of the universe, created by an intelligent being, they hold that it is ordered towards a purpose or an end. The Cosmological Argument â€Å"is the argument that the existence of the world or universe is strong evidence for the existence of a God who created it. It is a first caused argument where the existence of the universe, the argument claims, stands in need of explanation, and the only adequate explanation of its existence is that it was created by God† (1). Behind this argument, it holds that though the universe still needs explanation for its existence, the existence of God Himself does not. In the article McCloskey is critical of these arguments for God’s existence supporting his stance by offering the problem of evil as reasoning to not believe. He believes the belief in the existence of God is not a source of strength and security (2). However, if we are to use the Cumulative Case approach we can have successive truths. This case cumulates the Cosmological, Teleological, as well as, the Moral Arguments together. It gives us the conclusion of a personal, moral, intelligent creator of the universe as the best explanation for the universe we experience (3). McCloskey maintains that the Teleological Argument is not satisfactory and that it can be rejected simply by rejecting its premise. The premise holds that there is in fact evidence of purpose and design. McCloskey says though, that there were many things that were considered evidence or proof, prior to evolution, but those very things are now not being considered as so. Thus, in order to be a proof, there has to be given indisputable examples. Given that the Teleological Argument, presenting disputable examples, says McCloskey, there is no proof. There can be no form of argument with evidence of an intellectual design and/or designer. I would have to argue with McCloskey by using the â€Å"fine-tuning argument.† Within the universe is nothing short of precision, not only of natural laws, but the beginning stages and state of the universe. These both are pointers to an intelligent Creator. The universe is finely-tuned maintaining physical constants of nature (5).The strength of gravity should be considered. With the occurrence of the Big Bang. The gravity had to have precision because even with a little more force used on either side, it would not have occurred as the Big Bang, but the Big Crunch. Even with the slightest change in gravity, it could change the world into something completely other than what we know. That which is being offered as evidenced cannot be questioned. If we were to give to evolution as truth, there is still no grounds for believing it is true. It does nothing but in the end support the theist position, and shows that evolution needs teleology. McCloskey’s main objection to theism is the presence of evil in the world, â€Å"No being who was perfect could have created a world in which there was unavoidable suffering or in which his creatures would(and in fact could have been created so as not to) engage in morally evil acts, acts which very often result in injury to innocent persons† (1). With this problem on McCloskey’s mind, he holds it to the theists. He still wonders how the theist does not take this to mind seeing that it goes against the perfection of the divine purpose. There can be no grounds in a belief of a perfect being. Even if all reason was thrown out, he says the theist at best could only present a pool of beings full of â€Å"concern, dismay, and anxiety, rather than comfort and security† (1). There is a logical problem of evil and there is logical inconsistency when there is both the existence of God and of evil. The atheist holds that there is severe contradiction between claiming God is good, yet evil exists. Mackie, an atheist, says â€Å"†¦the contradiction does not arise immediately; to show it we need some additional premises†¦these additional principles are that good is opposed to evil, in such a way that a good thing always eliminates evil as far as it can, and that there are no limits to what an omnipotent thing can do. From these it follows that a good omnipotent thing eliminates evil completely, and then the propositions that a good omnipotent thing exists, and that evil exists, are incompatible†(8). There exists two kinds of evil. There is â€Å"human evil,† and â€Å"natural evil† in which atheist claim are both forms of needless suffering. The logical problem of evil claims the â€Å"tension† between simultaneously having evil in the world, while also having a perfect God. This would without a doubt be a logical contradiction according to the atheist. There is also the evidential problem of evil. With this claim, there is not contradiction, but the fact that evil exists, if give grounding evidence for being able to reject that God is all-powerful. It is a weaker version of the former, and claims that it is highly unlikely that an all-perfect God exists. Plantinga responds with trying to defend that it is reasonable to believe in God, even without evidence. His positio n is known as â€Å"Reformed Epistemology†. In order for his view to hold he would have to reject the Evidentialist Credo., which he claims rests on Classical Foundationalism. This led him to his positive view, or â€Å"Reformed Epistemology.† This holds that a belief in God is â€Å"properly basic.†Some object to these claims, saying that evil is logically required for good and is needed for us to see the good. Evil is a means and will cause good. There is given the â€Å"free will† defense that is meant to try and answer the problem of evil. Either this would come about by humans free will resulting in a greater good and that evil is ascribed the humans and not God. However, those who oppose this, bring up the issue of natural evils. Mackie stands his ground that God should have given human beings free will in such a way that we always chose the good. The atheist propose God did not create men to choose between right and wrong, and that God is morally inconsistent. In response, the free will theodicy attempts to defeat the former by claiming the suffering of the innocent is justified because of the existence of free will. We as humans have misused our free will, thus what is known as ‘moral evil.’ Other sufferings from evil come from the natural evils. While McCloskey challenges the free will defense, Plantinga proposes the law of non-contradiction. He argues for there could be logically possible affairs whereby God would be unable of creating a world of both evil and autonomous humans (9). Evans puts it simply, â€Å"It does not seem to be true that a good being always eliminates evil as far as it can. What is true, perhaps, is that good being always eliminates evil as far as it can without the loss of a greater good or the allowance of a worse evil† (1). McCloskey objects to the cosmological argument claiming, â€Å"mere existence of the world constitutes no reason for believing in such a being†(1). There has been great objection to this however because of the fact of contingent objects. God is the â€Å"first cause,† the one who began it all. Because there is not explanation for contingent beings, if God is a necessary being, He is the necessary cause of the existence of creation and we as beings. God has no cause, otherwise He would not be God. It is the very existence of the world that implies the existence of God. The â€Å"laws of nature† imply the existence of a lawgiver, God. This position was held by Aristotle, holding firmly against the possibility of infinite regress. The argument from contingency suggests that it is possible the universe might not have existed, thus needing explanation of why it does in fact exist. In essence, it must have a cause. This leads to the belief in â€Å"necessary being,â⠂¬  meaning a being that needs no explanation. The temporal cosmological argument holds that the beginning of the universe was either caused or uncaused. However, objectors to this say we cannot actually claim whether the universe â€Å"had to exist.† Also, a â€Å"necessary being† comes into question. The refuters say this line of argument does not give enough explanation of why there could not be more than one cause. There is no ground for putting God as the first cause or prime mover. Time and causality as we know it cannot be grounds for explaining the beginnings of the universe. However, those objecting to McCloskey, hold if there were a being like the universe, then he would exist in time, thus he himself came into existence. But, the ultimate cause must not have come into existence. For it to be an ultimate cause, the ultimate Creator must be outside of time. (10).What McCloskey fails to realize, is that not every argument is going to capture every aspect of God. There are many different arguments that go abo ut doing that. If God does not exist, then all has no hope of immortality. Life, the world, and everything in it is meaningless. There would be no purpose or significance to anyone or anything. This leaves us with no ultimate meaning without immorality and God. Would we be able to say there was any purpose or meaning to someone who lived just to die? To be born just to pass out of existence? Lane says that it is not just each individual person that is headed towards the grave, but the universe itself is headed for extinction. This all in all is hopeless. Dying man, in a dying world. If this is the case, the small details in life do not matter, it does not make a difference. Our behaviors, our choices do not matter. Dotoyevsky said â€Å"If there is no immortality then all things are permitted† (11). Without God, there is no accountability, morality, or sense of right and wrong. Even more so, in a universe without God, good and evil do not exist (11). However, if we were to say there were no God, we would still be without purpose because we would just be accidental. We would just be accidents of chance. The only view that can save the human race from itself is a theistic view (11). The only thing going for an atheist is living with the fact of the absurdity of life. Such a view makes it impossible to live a fulfilling, happy life. For the atheist, absurdity of life and creating meaning for one’s life is a contradiction. A major disadvantage of atheism is that no one has hope or faith for reward of good or and punishment of evil. A believer’s hope is this, Christ. Ephesians 3:11 tells us that God had a purpose I mind before He created. Man within his own voluntary will would be able to love and choose God. Nature alone points to God. Humanity and the universe itself does not have to exist. Both are not self-existent but caused. There is no explanation for their existence. Within a Christian world view, life is not meaningless and pointless ending at the grave. We have hope in the resurrection and of eternal life. God and immortality are both necessary for a meaning full life (11). Bibliography 11- Craig, William Lane. â€Å"The Absurdity of Life without God.† In Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics, by William Lane Craig, 71-90. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2008. 1-Evans, C. Stephen, and R. Zachary Manis. Philosophy of Religion: Thinking About Faith. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009. 8- Kunkle,Brett. â€Å"The Logical Problem of Evil.† Truth Never Gets Old. April 21, 2009 2- McCloskey, H. J. â€Å"On Being an Atheist.† Question (1968): 63-69. 5- Biologos. â€Å"What is the â€Å"fine-tuning† of the universe, and how does it serve as a â€Å"pointer to God?† 9- http://kevinfannystevenson.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-being-theist-response-to-h-j.html 10- http://www.existence-of-god.com/first-cause-argument.html