Operational Risk Management in Banking Sector: an Overview

ReseaRch PaPeR Commerce Volume : 3 | Issue : 1 | January 2013 | ISSN – 2249-555X Operational Risk Management in Banking Sector: An overview Keywords Rakesh Chutia Assistant, State Bank of India Margheita-786181 Dist. -Tinsukia Assam ABSTRACT Operational risk is inherent in all banking products, activities and processes and systems and the effective management of operational risk is of paramount importance for every bank’s board and senior management.With globalization and deregulation of financial markets, increased competition combined with the advent of high-end, innovative, sophisticated technology tremendous changes have taken place in the products distribution channels and service delivery mechanism of the banking sector. These have introduced more complexities into the banking operations and consequently the risk patterns and profiles of the industry have also become complex, diverse and catastrophic. The New Capital Adequacy Framework of the Reserve Bank of India requires bank to maintain capital explicitly towards operational risk.This paper tries to study the various methodologies used by the banks in their operational risk management activity and to study the regulatory framework related to operational risk management. Introduction Since the late 1990s, globalization, deregulation, consolidation, outsourcing, breaking of geographical barriers by use of sophisticated technology, growth of e-commerce etc. have significantly changed the business, economic and regulatory climate of the banking sector. These developments introduced more complexities into the activities of banks and their risk profiles.Consequently a series of high profile operational loss events at Societe Generale, UBS, AIB, and National Australia Bank etc. have led banks and their managements world over to increasingly view operational risk management as an integral part of their risk management activity like the management of market risk and credit risk. The identification and measurement of operational risk is a significant issue for modern-day banks, particularly since the decision by the  Basel Committee on Banking Supervision  (BCBS) to introduce a capital charge for this risk as part of the new capital adequacy framework (Basel II).Operational risk has been defined by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision as the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people and systems or from external events. This definition is based on the underlying causes of operational risk. It seeks to identify the causes of a loss event and at the broadest level includes the breakdown by four causes: people, processes, systems and external factors. Operational risk may materialise directly, e. g. , in electronic fund transfer (transfer of funds to the wrong person) or could result indirectly as a credit or market loss.Since there is a close linkage of operational risk with other types of risks, it is very important for banks to first have a clear understanding of the concept of operational risk before designing the appropriate operational risk measurement and management framework. Different types of operational risk in Banking Sector The Basel Committee has identified the following types of operational risk events as having the potential to result in substantial losses for banks: †¢ Internal fraud. For example, intentional misreporting of positions, employee theft, and insider trading on an employee’s own account. Externalfraud. Forexample,robbery,forgery,chequekiting, and damage from computer hacking. †¢ Employment practices and workplace safety. For example, workers compensation claims, violation of employee health and safety rules, organised labour activities, discrimination claims, and general liability. †¢ Clients, products and business practices. For example, fiduciary breaches, misuse of confidential customer information, improper trading activities on the bank’s account, mon ey laundering, and sale of unauthorized products. Damagetophysicalassets. Forexample,terrorism,vandalism, earthquakes, fires and floods. †¢ Business disruption and system failures. For example, hardware and software failures, telecommunication problems, and utility outages. †¢ Execution,deliveryandprocessmanagement. Forexample: data entry errors, collateral management failures, incomplete legal documentation, and unauthorized access given to client accounts, non-client counterparty misperformance, and vendor disputes. OPERATIONAL RISKMANAGEMENT PROCESS: Operational Risk management generally encompasses the process of identifying risks to the bank, measuring exposures to those risks), ensuring that an effective capital planning and monitoring programme is in place, monitoring risk exposures and corresponding capital needs on an ongoing basis, taking steps to control or mitigate risk exposures. †¢ Identification of operational risk. Banks should identify and assess the operational risk inherent in all products, services,activities,processesandsystems. You can read also Portfolio Management QuizzesEffectiverisk identification should consider both internal factors (such as the bank’s structure, the nature of the bank’s activities, the quality of the bank’s human resources, organizational changes and employee turnover) and external factors (such as changes in the industry and technological advances) that could adversely affect the achievement of the bank’s objectives. †¢ AssessmentofOperationalRisk. Inadditiontoidentifying the risk events, banks should assess their vulnerability to these risk events.Effective risk assessment allows a bank to better understand its risk profile and most effectively target risk management resources. Amongst the possible tools that may be used by banks for assessing operational risk are: ? Self Risk Assessment: A bank assesses its operations and activities against a menu of potential operational risk vulnerabilities. This process is internally driven and often incorporate s checklists and/or workshops to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the operational risk environment. 6 X INDIAN JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH ReseaRch PaPeR Risk Mapping: In this process, various business units, organizational functions or process flows are mapped by risk type. This exercise can reveal areas of weakness and help prioritise subsequent management action. ? Key Risk Indicators: Key risk indicators are statistics and/ or metrics, often financial, which can provide insight into a bank’s risk position. Such indicators may include the number of failed trades, staff turnover rates and the frequency and/or severity of errors and omissions. †¢ Measurement. A key element of risk management is measuring the size and scope of the bank’s risk exposures.However, there is no clearly established, single method to measure operational risk on a bank-wide basis. Banks may develop risk assessment techniques that are appropriate to the size and complexities of the ir portfolio, their resources and data availability. A good assessment model must cover certain standard features. An example is the â€Å"matrix† approach in which losses are categorized according to the type of event and the business line in which the event occurred. Banks may quantify their exposure to operational risk using a variety of approaches.Forexample,dataonabank’shistoricallossexperience could provide meaningful information for assessing the bank’s exposure to operational risk and developing a policy to mitigate/control the risk. †¢ MonitoringofOperationalRisk. Aneffectivemonitoring process is essential for adequately managing operational risk. Banks should implement a process to regularly monitor operational risk profiles and material exposures to losses. In addition to monitoring operational loss events, banks should identify appropriate indicators that provide early warning of an increased risk of futurelosses.Such indicators should be forwar d-looking and could reflect potential sources of operational risk such as rapid growth, the introduction of new products, employee turnover, transaction breaks, system downtime, and so on. There should be regular reporting of pertinent informationtoseniormanagementandtheBoardofDirectors that supports the proactive management of operational risk †¢ Controls/MitigationofOperationalRisk. Withregardto operational risk, several methods may be adopted for mitigatingtherisk. Forexample,lossesthatmightarise on account of natural disasters can be insured against.Losses that might arise from business disruptions due to telecommunication or electrical failures can be mitigated by establishing redundant backup facilities. Loss due to internal factors, like employee fraud or product flaws, which may be difficult to identify and insure against, can be mitigated through strong internal auditing procedures. The Board of Directors and senior management must make efforts for establishing a stron g internal control culture in which control activities are an integral part of the regular activities of a bank.Banks should periodically review their risk limitation and control strategies and should adjust their operational risk profile accordingly using appropriate strategies, in light of their overall risk appetite and profile. Investment in appropriate processing technology and information technology security are also important for risk mitigation. Banks should also have in place contingency and business continuity plans to ensure their ability to operate on an ongoing basis and limit losses in the event of severe business disruption.OPERATIONAL RISK MANAGEMENT APPROACHES IN BASEL II The Basel framework (2004) proposes a range of approaches for setting aside regulatory capital for operational risk under Pillar 1: The Basic Indicator Approach (BIA), The Standardised Approach(TSA)andtheAdvancedMeasurementApproach (AMA). Allthethreeapproachesdifferintheircomplexityand the banks ar e encouraged to move along the spectrum of approaches as they obtain more sophistication in their risk management practices.The Basic Indicator Approach is the simplest approach for estimating regulatory capital, wherein Volume : 3 | Issue : 1 | January 2013 | ISSN – 2249-555X banks are required to set apart an amount equal to the average over the previous three years of 15% of positive annual gross income. In The Standardised Approach, banks’ activities are divided into eight business lines: Corporate finance, Trading & Sales, Retail Banking, Commercial Banking, Payment & Settlement, Agency Services, Asset Management and Retail Brokerage.While gross income continues to be the main indicator of operational risk as under the Basic Indicator Approach, the specific amount to be set apart as a percentage of the gross income varies between business lines, ranging from 12 to 18% , as compared to the 15% overall under the Basic Indicator Approach. This approach is more refine d than the Basic Indicator Approach as it takes into the account the fact that some business lines are riskier than others and therefore a higher proportion of capital has to be set apart for those business lines.The Advanced MeasurementApproach(AMA)isbasedonthebanks’internalmodels to quantify operational risk. The framework gives flexibility to the banks in the characteristics of the choice of internal models, though it requires banks to demonstrate that the operational risk measures meet a soundness standard comparable to a one-year holding period and a 99. 9% confidence level, which means that a bank’s capital charge should be equal to at least 99. 9% quantile of their annual aggregate loss distribution.Banks are required to factor in four key elementsindesigningtheirAdvancedMeasurementApproach framework: internal loss data, external loss data, scenario analysis and bank specific business environmental and internal control factors. The methodologies under the advanc ed approach are evolving and there are a range of methods in practice in banks internationally. OPERATIONAL RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF INDIAN BANKING SECTOR: The Reserve Bank of India is the regulator and supervisor of the banking system in India and is entrusted with the task of framing the capital adequacy guidelines for banks in India under Basel II.Public sector banks, where the Government of India is the major shareholder, dominate the Indian banking system, accounting for nearly three-fourths of total assets and income. These banks are large and very old banks, operating through thousands of branches spread all over the country. The new private sector banks are fully automated from day-one and operate like other high-tech foreign banks. The private sector banks have grown rapidly since the onset of reforms and have increased their share in total assets of the banking industry, whereas the public sector banks have witnessed shrinkage in their market share.The public sect or banks have only recently started automating their processes and operations. This transition has posed significant challenges in the management of operational risk to the banks as introduction of new technology and complete overhauling of the existing systems requires a re-engineering of business processes, training of manpower, audit in a computerized environment and other related operational risk challenges. The new generation private sector banks on the other hand have to deal with the risks arising from growth at a scorchingpace.WiththereformsintheIndianbankingsectorand banks being allowed to access new markets and sophisticated products, the Reserve Bank of India has also been repeatedly advising the banks to have in place an effective and resilient control framework in place to manage operational risks. Specific guidance on management of operational risk has also been issued as per which some banks; especially the larger and internationally active banks are expected to move along the range towards more sophisticated pproaches as they develop more sophisticated operational risk management systems and practices which meet the prescribed qualifying criteria. Conclusion: ManagingOperationalRiskisemergingasanimportantelement of sound risk management practice in modern day banks in the wake of phenomenal increase in volume of transactions, high degree of structural changes and complex technological support systems. RBI expects all Indian banks to strengthen their operation risk management system and to INDIAN JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH X 7 ReseaRch PaPeR e in readiness to graduate to more sophisticated approaches of operational risk management under Basel norms. In order to derive maximum gains banks need to gear up efforts for speedy and effective implementation of comprehensive Volume : 3 | Issue : 1 | January 2013 | ISSN – 2249-555X operational risk management frameworks and thereby bring more efficiency, transparency, profitability and sustainabi lity into their operations. REFERENCE Reserve Bank of India, Department of Banking Operations and Development, Central Office, Mumbai, (2005), â€Å"Draft guidance note on management of operational risk†, 2.Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (August, 2003) â€Å"The Joint Forum Operational risk transfer across financial sectors†, 3. Usha, Janaki, Raman, (2008) â€Å"Operational Risk Management in Indian Banks in the Context of Basel II: A Survey of the State of Preparedness and Challenges in Developing the Framework†, 4. Rao, D, Tripati and Ghosh, Prodipta, (2008) â€Å"Preparedness of Indian Banks in Managing Operational Risk†, 5. Kale, Ketan and Agarwal, Mohit, Marsh India, (2011) â€Å"Operational Risk Mitigation & Basel II Accord – Challenges & Opportunities†. 8 X INDIAN JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH

A Musculoskeletal Disorder Health And Social Care Essay

Biotechnologies is the survey of the correlativities between individuals and their work scenes. This involves planing or custom-making a occupation, workplace, tools, work procedures to run into the demands of its employees, non frailty versa. Here the associated or possible jeopardies are identified and eradicated. A musculoskeletal upset ( MSD ) entails an hurt, damage or unwellness impacting the articulations or other tissues of the weaponries, legs or the back. Hence ergonomics focuses on the hazard factors that increase the happening of musculoskeletal upsets and eliminates them. Biotechnologies strive to heighten the strong points and capablenesss of workers alternatively of holding them adapt to the workplace environment. These designs take into consideration the kineticss of the work force that is their age, sex, physical strength, rational ability, work experience, cultural outlooks and aspirations. ( Bellinger, 2001 ) There are general guidelines that workers need to follow with to forestall wellness jobs that occur with computing machine use. The chair used by office workers is fundamentally the most important portion of a safe working environment and its tallness should be able to be adjusted with one manus whilst seated before any other alterations to the keyboard or proctor ‘s location is done. This should besides hold lumbar support, if there is no support shock absorbers can supply same. To accomplish this topographic point a shock absorber at the curvature of the lower dorsum and on the chair. The worker ‘s pess should rest on the floor comfortably if that is non possible usage a pes remainder to make so. Use headsets if the occupation includes the frequent usage of a phone in combination with typing or composing alternatively of a phone that needs to be supported utilizing your caput and cervix. Research different manners of headsets until one that is suited or comfy for the occupation is found. Directly in forepart of the worker the proctor should be located about arm ‘s length, which is averagely eighteen- 20 eight inches ( 46 to seventy one centimetres ) off. At below oculus degree the top of the screen should be positioned. If illuming provides a blaze and is a job exchange off all overhead visible radiations and barricade off visible radiation from the Windowss. Ensure that the most luminescent visible radiation beginning comes to the side of the proctor. Lighting should be considered in the office as they create blazes that affect the proctor screen. A blaze screen to minimise the blaze on the screen should be utilized. A light with assorted control scenes to dimmer the visible radiations with undertaking lighting can be used. A undertaking visible radiation equally distributes the visible radiation throughout the room and reduces the overall lighting to cut the blaze. All these steps are to cut down oculus strain on the computing machine user. Computer users experience ocular uncomfortableness from uncorrected vision jobs that are more marked because of computing machine use, sight alterations as one age, wrong prescription spectacless or contact lens for computing machine use, bad workstation set up and lifestyle wonts like smoke, deficiency of slumber. The worker ‘s carpus should be at a heterosexual, natural place when typewriting, avoid flexing up or down or to either side. The keyboard and proctor should be centered in forepart of the worker ‘s organic structure. Maintain an vertical place when seated, thighs should be kept horizontal with articulatio genuss and hips at the same degree and throughout working your forearms should be degree or tilted up somewhat. To help in cut downing the emphasis on your carpuss and place a wrist remainder should be used, with the custodies and carpuss kept above it. Ensure that interruptions are taken by resting the heels or thenars of the custodies alternatively of the carpus. At the side of the keyboard the mouse should be kept in an easy accessible place. The carpus should be in a natural and comfy location whilst utilizing the mouse. Tools or objects that are used for work should be kept within easy range to avoid over stretching. To avoid this base up and make for needful points that can non be accessed whilst seated. There are measurement specifications for the desk which is at least 19 inches deep, 30 inches broad and based on the workers height up to thirty four inches high. Do non hive away any points under the desk so that the legs, articulatio genuss and thighs are clear. Some chairs are excessively high and pess do non make the flat on the floor, contemplate the usage of a pes remainder. Set up work station so that one does non hold to make over their shoulder. Encourage workers to change their work undertakings. Ensure that workers take interruptions from their work to alleviate oculus strain and weariness. Provide holders for paperss to ease easiness of responsibilities public presentation. The worker should seek to avoid feeling stressed when utilizing computing machines particularly when their occupation demands do non fit their computing machine user ‘s cognition, resources and abilities. If these conditions and other more elaborate guidelines are non followed so assorted wellness jobs can happen. Harmonizing to Bellinger ( 2001 ) the following tabular array contains these wellness jobs with their preventive steps. Disorder ( Body Part Affected ) Description Symptoms Lending Factors Normally Recommended Preventive Measures Bursitis ( Joints ) Swelling or annoyance of the fluid filled sac beneath the sinews ( Bursa ) . Pain and stiffness exacerbated by motion. Injury or overexploitation during work. Often occurs in persons, who are ill conditioned, have bad position, or utilize the affected limb in an awkward position. Reduce or avoid the activity that caused the issue. Use proper placement during the activity to forestall reoccurrence. Bursitis – Shoulder ( Shoulder/Upper Arm ) Swelling of one of the Bursa, located in the shoulder between the sinews and the caput of the humerus bone. Pain and stiffness aggravated by motion. Injury or overexploitation during work or drama. Often occurs in persons, who are ill conditioned, have bad position, or utilize the affected limb in an awkward position. Reduce or avoid the activity that caused the issue. Use proper placement during the activity to forestall reoccurrence. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome ( Hand/Wrist ) Compaction of the average nervus in the carpal tunnel of the carpus. Numbness, prickling, and hurting in the carpus, pollex, index, center and pealing fingers – non the small finger. Early symptoms frequently wake people in the center of the dark. May besides include swelling, failing or awkwardness in the manus. Arm lift, adduction, and rotary motion. Reduce work done above shoulder degree. Computer Vision Syndrome ( Eyes ) Eye and vision jobs related to near work, experienced during or related to computing machine usage. Eyestrain, blurred near or distant vision, concern, dry or annoyed eyes, cervix or back achings, light sensitiveness, or dual vision. Rapid, frequently repeated finger motions, inordinate carpus divergences, inordinate or repeated forceful pinching and grasping. Swelling from next jobs may besides worsen or convey on carpal tunnel syndrome. Reduce or extinguish insistent work, wrist divergences, and forceful pinching and grasping. Avoiding or cut downing the activity that is doing the symptoms frequently alleviates symptoms in mild instances. Cubital Tunnel Syndrome ( Elbow/Ring and Little Fingers ) Compaction of the ulnar nervus below the notch of the cubitus. Often occurs in combination with median epicondylitis. Numbness, prickling and hurting in the ring and small fingers. May include awkwardness and failing in the manus. Besides frequently consequences in elbow hurting on the interior of the arm. Resting the cubitus on difficult surfaces or crisp borders, inordinate flexure of the cubitus making tenseness on the nervus. Avoid or cut down contact stressors or drawn-out force per unit area on the nervus. Avoid direct injury to the nervus. DeQuervain ‘s Disease/ Tenosynovitis ( Wrist and Forearm ) Irritation of the sinews on the side of the carpus which moves the pollex, and at the base of pollex. Pain and swelling on the side of the carpus and forearm merely above the pollex. Combined forceful gripping and manus distortion. Reduce force to custodies. Keep custodies in impersonal positions. Dry Eye Syndrome ( Eyes ) The diminution in the quality or measure of cryings that bathe the oculus. Dry, ruddy, or annoyed eyes, contact lens uncomfortableness, or inordinate physiological reaction lacrimation. Decreased wink rate. High regard angle. Dry office environment. Take a interruption every 30 proceedingss and look 30 pess off for 30 seconds. Epicondylitis Medial Epicondylitis ( Golfer ‘s Elbow ) Lateral Epicondylitis ( Tennis Elbow ) Irritation or redness of the bumps ( epicondyles ) on either the exterior or interior of the cubitus or environing tissues. Medial is on the interior of cubitus and sidelong on the exterior of the cubitus. Tenderness and hurting at the affected site. May besides include hurting in the forearm musculuss. Unaccustomed strenuous activity or inordinate emphasis of the forearm musculuss or sinews that bend or straighten the carpus and manus. Reduce or avoid activities that require usage of the flexor musculuss in a bending gesture or hold oning with the manus. Lumbosacral Strain/ Sprain ( Spine ) Abnormal divergences of alliance that cause compaction to the bony constructions and tenseness on musculuss and ligaments. Low back hurting and possible hurting in the legs. Faulty alliance, standing for long periods, unguarded forward bending, sudden forceful motion. Besides hapless conditioning, improper usage, fleshiness, and smoke. Reduce inactive burden, transporting, manual stuff handling, and hapless back positions. When lifting, usage right lifting and traveling techniques and acquire aid if an object is excessively heavy or an awkward size or form. Sciatica ( Lower Back/ Legs ) Pain along the class of the sciatic nervus, which runs from the lower back down the dorsum of the legs. Trouble extends down the posterior thigh and lower leg to the sole of the pes and along the sidelong facet of the lower leg to the back of the pes. Pressure on one or more of the nervus roots lending to the sciatic nervus. Mechanical factor of compaction or tenseness. Pain frequently occurs following an unusual motion or effort that causes a tear in one or more of the intervertebral phonograph record. Reduce or avoid manual stuff handling. Avoid lifting and distortion at the same clip. Avoid sitting in a slouched position. Tendinitis ( Joints ) Inflammation or annoyance of a sinew. Tendons attach musculuss to castanetss. Occurs most frequently in the flexor and extensor sinews of the fingers, pollex, forearm, cubitus, or shoulder. Symptoms can run from specific hurting, stiffness, stringency, and firing esthesiss to a deep, nonspecific hurting. Grasp can be impaired. Injury or overexploitation during work or drama. Often occurs in persons, who are ill conditioned, have bad position, or utilize the affected limb in an awkward position. Reduce or avoid the activity that caused the issue. Use proper placement during the activity to forestall reoccurrence. Tendinitis ( Elbow ) Elbow sinew redness. See tendinitis. Insistent forceful efforts of forearm, rotary motions around elbow joint. Reduce manus fasteners. Tendinitis ( Wrist ) Inflammation and thickener of the sinews in the carpus. See tendinitis. Forceful ulnar divergence and thumb force per unit area, insistent carpus gesture, forceful carpus extension, and pronation. Reduce repeats, hapless positions, and forceful gestures. Tension Neck Syndrome ( Neck ) Irritation of the levator shoulder blade and trapezium, all musculuss of the cervix. Causes tightening of the musculuss in the cervix. Neck stiffness every bit good as concerns. Concerns are frequently described as a force per unit area esthesis around the caput. Pain may construct and escalate at the terminal of twenty-four hours. Lateral, inactive motion of the caput and cervix – flexure or extension of the cervix. Ensure proper cervix positions, correct working highs, and adjust ocular cues. Tendinitis ( Elbow ) Elbow sinew redness. See tendinitis. Insistent forceful efforts of forearm, rotary motions around elbow joint. Reduce manus fasteners. Implementing biotechnologies into the workplace is to a company ‘s addition, it is good concern as it assists in maximising the staff ‘s potency. Not merely must direction see the demand for biotechnologies but staff must be sensitized to these preventive steps. Workers excessively must cognize what biotechnologies wholly entails and appreciate its values in the workplace. This sensitisation can happen through assorted educational preparations steps like workshops, in-services and classs. Throughout this study it has been shown how critical biotechnologies is and the wellness jobs associated to same if these preventive steps are non complied with.

Network Security Essay

You are interested in starting your own Music Store, QualitySounds, in a suburban area of your town. You need to design and build a network and computing solution for your stores. You have done some initial planning and you will start with two stores (but you plan to add two more stores across town within one year). Your store will sell new and used music and allow customers to get â€Å"online† in your stores and download music. You also will offer classes on how to setup music downloads and configure MP3 devices. You took computer networking courses in college and you feel you can tackle this solution yourself. Upon initial planning, you have identified the following requirements for your network: * Connects three office computers and one computer used for Point-of-Sale (POS) services at each of your stores. You also want six (6) computers in the lobby/store where patrons can download music and you can run â€Å"training classes† for people to learn about using MP3 players and get other basic information. The two offices have to be connected into one cohesive network, sharing POS services and other critical company information. You also need to provide a â€Å"hand out† casual area for people to stop in and discuss music and connect wirelessly to the Internet (you might even offer free coffee to entice people to come in to your store). * Provides adequate security for all of the company communications and documents (especially sensitive sales documents). All POS services must be protected. All general network access should be segmented from the company POS services. * Fast and have additional capacity as the company grows * Provides for centralized printing * Supports the eventual addition of other stores to the network * Provides customers with a general information Website and a secure Website where clients can buy services, and products * Provides for limited downtime (24 hour downtime maximum) * Provides for centralized management and control of the computers in the two stores, so that you can maintain the network from off-site * Provides for long-term cost effectiveness * Provides a suite of software tools for the employees to effectively communicate and a POS solution for the stores The company does not have any equipment. Your plan should include a complete network and computer system that meets these requirements and future expansion plans. The two store locations will (eventually) be within a five-mile radius of each other. The locations are within a suburban area that has current technological infrastructures and related technology offerings. The stores will need a sales system and print services for invoices. Complete your proposal including costs for computing equipment, network infrastructure, network servers, printers, and related hardware, software, and accessories. Include as much detail as possible as well as justification as to your selections. Diagram and explain your physical network and computer design as well as the logical network design (server installation, domain layout, etc.). As you are a small business, cost is a major factor and should be minimized.

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International corporate reporting issues - Essay Example International corporate reporting issues The objective of this standard is to frame the foundation for the presentation of financial statements. The standard is to ensure the compatibility with the company’s financial performance in previous years as well as with that of its competitors. US GAAP is the framework that offers Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, which are used by United States organisations or the companies listed on Wall Street. This set of standards is developed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The framework is a combination of authoritative standards introduced by the responsible authorities, as well as the accepted ways to carry out accounting and reporting activities. These standards are constructed solely by input of US organisations rather than any outside influences. The key objectives of accounting standards are identification, measurement, and reporting of financial information of the organisational entities to the interested stakeholders. Financial accounting is a process culminating in the preparation of the financial reports of the organisations. These are done for the use of both the internal and external stakeholders. These financial statements include balance sheets, income statements, and statements of the owner’s equity and cash flow situation including assets and expenses. In the United States, the most significant source of influence on accounting standards is politics. The most substantial factor in the political arena is user groups. These groups include the parties most affected by accounting standards, rules, and regulations. â€Å"Accounting standards are as much a product of political action as they are of careful logic or empirical findings† (Wiley, 2002, p.14). These groups of stakeholders require accounts and re ports regarding company finances which are essential to successful business planning and strategizing. Groups know the best way to influence these standards in order to have a more favourable outcome financially is to participate in the framing of those same structures or to try to influence or persuade the authorities more directly responsible for the formulation and amending of the standards. In the US there are many authoritative bodies responsible for the formulation and development of the generally accepted financial standards; FASB is the significant and major contributor in this development. Undoubtedly, the board faces intense amounts of pressure and efforts to incorporate and influence the changes in the present standards and in the development of new ones. Moreover, the situation gets complicated with the involvement of two

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management Essay

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management - Essay Example dvantageous to tax rent rather than profits because they yield more because they can be taxed to slightly less than 100 percent and cannot distort behavior providing an ideal non-distorting tax (Passant, 2011:3). The concessionary system was used as the very first system in the oil industry especially in mining operations in Greece in 480 B.C. In modern times, the use of this method allows oil companies to explore, develop, sell and export oil from a country for a specific time. Examples of countries using this method include Kuwait, Angola and Sudan. The contract-based system of taxation is those where there are two types of systems namely the production sharing contracts and risk service contracts. The contractor has no claim or title over the oil produced but undertakes exploration. The contractor is expected to pay the government in form of tax and non-tax revenues. An example of a country using this system is the UK (Agreement, 2004:4). For the Oceania government, it should adopt the contract-based system of taxation. This system allows the state to own the reserves. The government and oil companies negotiate on how long the company will have a right to extract on the oil reserves. Despite the fact that it could be many years, exploration cannot be beneficial until it is completed. This could go into losses especially for the company doing the exploration and could save the country from such losses. The most beneficial part for the government is that it has the right to draft and negotiate a contract system that can help it maximize on the revenue and limit a company’s access to oil while at the same time create a legal regime that will allow the state to modify the terms of the contract. Back-end loading system refers to a taxation system where fiscal measures are low in terms of compensating project and sovereign risk, recoups capital outlay in a short time, maximizes the long run post tax returns and has no windfall profit taxes when prices of goods

Research paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 8

Research Paper Example According to the JCAHO, the tracer methodology is a process of evaluating the patient status, whereby surveyors select patients and use their records in order to assess the organizations compliance to the set standards (Joint Commission retrieved from http://www.jointcommission.org/about/JointCommissionFaqs.aspx). The surveyors are able to trace the kind of the care process that the patient received by interviewing the staff in areas whereby the patient was attended. The surveyor then follows up the treatment process and determines whether the health institution has complied with the Joint commission standards. The major intent of the follow-up is to ensure that all health organizations are delivering high quality and safe healthcare. The process serves the purpose of monitoring the patient attendance and assessing the services of the health care organization Apart from gauging the health care center, the surveyors also identify points of potential weaknesses in terms of the organizations performance. After identifying the areas of weakness, the surveyors may educate the staff in the organization and share with them the strategies used by similar healthcare organization who have achieved better standards. Tracer activities help in identifying compliance issues that are crucial in determining the organizations compliance to the joint commission. On average, a three-day hospital survey is expected to complete 11 tracers using three surveyors (Joint Commission retrieved from http://www.jointcommission.org/about/JointCommissionFaqs.aspx). The system requires that the patients selected as tracers are those who have undergone multiple and complex services so that most aspects of the healthcare are evaluated. It is mandatory that the surveyor request the permission of the patient before starting the process. Upon completion

Marketing2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Marketing2 - Essay Example Consider, then, a business which creates childrens toys which has suddenly experienced a staggering drop in sales, which is impacting the business future longevity in relation to job creation and profitability. In this situation, identifying potential opportunities to increase these lowered sales, while creating a more stable production environment, would be two sizeable goals for this marketing company. Thus, the first step in creating a competent marketing plan would involve identifying the mission and goals of the organization (Boone & Kurtz, 2007). For example, this hypothetical company might determine that its three year goal is to boost sales by 25%, while also expanding globally. Once these options are identified, the marketing plan highlights the specific steps that will be taken in order to secure these goals, while also identifying various competitor-related risks to the plan of action. A marketing plan does not only identify specific goals, it also performs a situational analysis, identifying various strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to the business. For instance, this same hypothetical toymaker may realize that its strengths are in its supportive labour force and various legislation which provides tax-related breaks for businesses wishing to go global. At the same time, it may recognize that huge levels of competition exist in a particular market environment, thus the marketing plan creates a plan of action to combat competitor activities or enhance the labour pool. The marketing plan becomes more complicated as it identifies the strategy of distribution, the appropriate target market for its toy products, and further creates a pricing plan which will work for the business needs. For instance, the leadership team at the toymaker might realize that sales have dropped because consumer attitudes toward the current pricing policy are leading to less

The American Constitution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The American Constitution - Essay Example It is undeniable that the development of American statutory ideas after the Upheaval shows a steady evolution from English thoughts. It is worth noting that the constitution is not perfect and therefore it includes a lot of concession amongst people. The constitution was not a complete achievement as it may be perceived due to the many defects associated with it. Fascinatingly when the constitutional deal was reached there was nearly no American in the political scene that raised the issue about the significance of harmonizing the three divisions of government. None of the Americans defended liberty and fairness as applied in other constitutions such as in England and Rome. The people opposed to the constitution argued that perhaps the checks and balances were not adequate enough to protect the citizens of this great nation. It was evident that the chief issue was not concerned with the appeal or perhaps the correct organization of the republican liberty and the government. The main worrying matter was how to unify the many republics of U.S. Many people believed that power may remain within the states and that the Congress would not have much power. It was clear that if the U.S was to remain a united country where the Congress has actual power then Republicans may want an entirely established body. Since the constitution is already in force and supports adoption of republican form of government by deriving their power on the approval and consensus of the citizens of America (Vile 2010, 25-38). Republicanism has played a major part in the American constitution since its revolution by emphasizing on liberty and irrefutable rights as the key values. Republicanism considered only sovereignty of the people and the fact that the people of America should be independent in their duties. Republicanism recognized that people actually had rights that could not be done away with and the need to do away with some social crimes such as corruption and greed. The citizens were considered very important and therefore they required a high level of representation and these Republican values were regarded as useful in the constitution. The heroes argued that Republicanism was very vital as far as the liberty of the people was concerned and therefore it would really liberate the Americans. However, there was no balance between republicanism principles and the democratic principles because republicanism insisted on liberty for all instead of addressing the issue of liberty to the majority people. Although the republicanism constitution successfully did away with the monarchy, there was no complete democracy for all (Bernstein 2009, 168-175). Moreover, the very people who were said to be capable of voting were denied this important right especially the blacks, the illiterate group and the female adults. Citizens did not have the so-called real property could not vote thus making the constitution very much undemocratic. The issue of unfairness in the constitutio n cannot be left untouched while looking at the incidents or the aftermath of approval of the Constitution. People were not permitted to make amendments of the constitution unswervingly unless through elected officials who did not have the people’s interest in their hearts (Vile 2010, 25-38).  

Prepare a written business plan of (THE COCA-COLA COMPANY) on the Essay

Prepare a written business plan of (THE COCA-COLA COMPANY) on the Orbis database - Essay Example Generally its products are available in bottled form or in canned form. Its carbonated soft drinks and noncarbonated beverages are very famous through out the world. The company is also engaged in activities and businesses, such as empowers its bottling partners to produce fountain syrup to sell in the restaurants, convenience store and other fountain retailers and wholesalers for the immediate consumption of the fountain syrup. Its famous soft drinks bands are- Coca-Cola, Fanta, Sprite and Diet Coke. So the company has various opportunities in manufacturing, retailing and distributing the nonalcoholic drinks, tea and coffee and juices products. To increase its business the company may take its initiative to undertake a new international business venture in any of its product and business lines in which it has a comparative advantage. It may undertake or enhance its mergers/acquisitions activities in such a location where the demand of its product is high enough or expected to increa se in future so that it can get easy market access by using its brands. If we see only its Pacific operation, we will notice that over the last 7 years, its sales have increased tremendously. This is also true regarding its assets investments. We have shown this by the figure 1 as follows: As an example, we can consider one of the new business ventures of the company, through which it plans to acquire 100 % of a fruit juice maker company of Russia, engrossing the founders and the biggest shareholders of that company, as reported by Dow Jones on March, 2010. Some other sources have informed that the Coca-Cola Company is going to take 75 % share of that Russian Company. What ever may be the position of the Coca-Cola Company, there is no doubt that this business venture will be a successful one for the company. The reason behind this is that the company has planned to take such a business expansion method in accordance its

Test Dilemma Essay Example for Free

Test Dilemma Essay Q1) How would you characterize Timberland’s exercise of its corporate power in society? Is Timberland engaging multiple stakeholders in its business operations? If so, hw? Answer: I would characterize Timberland’s exercise of its corporate power in society as â€Å"Corporate Social Responsibility†. That is, timberland is being socially responsible towards society and it is acting in a way that enhances society. By exercising its power, Timberland is practicing the â€Å"iron law of responsibility† which says that in the long run, those who do not use power in ways that society considers responsible will tend to lose it. Moreover, by acting in the general public interest, Timberland is following the â€Å"Stewardship Principle† Yes, Timberland is engaging multiple stakeholders in its business operations, starting from Timberland’s management (CEO- Jeff Swartz) who is has managerial duties at Timberland and he is personally involved in the social activities sponsored by Timberland. Timberland’s employees are main stakeholders who in addition to their job tasks at Timberland are participating voluntarily in its social activities. The community service organization (City Year) is another stakeholder which is supported financially by Timberland. Non-profit organizations which benefit from the grants Timberland makes annually are also stakeholders for the company. Other communities and society members who benefit from Timberland’s community services activities are another set of stakeholders to Timberland. Q2) Has Timberland balanced its economic and social responsibilities through its various programs, such the Path to Service program and sustainability goals?  Are the company’s programs examples of enlightened self-interest? Answer: Yes Timberland has balanced its economic and social responsibilities through its programs. Timberland holds accountable for its stockholders and at the same time recognizes its responsibility towards society and environment through the programs it implemented. This is clear in the statement of Timberland CEO â€Å"†¦While we are absolutely accountable to our shareholders, we also recognize and accept our responsibility. The programs implemented by Timberland are examples of being â€Å"enlightened self-interest†. Timberland recognizes the long-term rewards to the company from its global involvement through an enhanced reputation, customer loyalty, employee satisfaction, and global community support. That is, it is Timberland’s self interest to provide true value to its customers, to help its employees to grow and to behave responsibly as a global corporate citizen. Q3) What impact do you think the current economic recession may have on Timberland social programs? Answer: Probably the social programs will continue; however, with less grants and donation amounts and more careful expenditures on sustainability issues environmental programs.  Please note: the case is old and from my reading on the internet, it was mentioned that Timberland continued to give money and service work to City Year during the financial trouble. Q4) How would you improve Timberland’s corporate social responsibility program? Answer: †¢Create a set of Key Performance Indicators through which CSR can be measured. For example, employees’ satisfaction could be one measure of how Timberland is acting towards its environment. Another measure could be the gas emissions from their factory to see how they are affecting environment†¦etc. Improve communications with stakeholders, as an example, awareness sessions could be held with stakeholders to explain the importance and benefits of corporate social responsibility. †¢Involve stakeholders in the social responsibility programs and listen to their opinions on how to make it better. †¢Improve communications with employees, explicitly explain separation between layoffs and City Year donations, Improve internal affairs †¢Involve in some social programs targeting developed countries in the Middle East especially those which have just undergone backlash es and needs assistance to recover.

Minimum Wage Debate in the US

Minimum Wage Debate in the US Minimum wage has been a subject of sustained and polarizing debate in the realm of U.S. labor economics right from the time the Department of Labor came into existence in 1913 (Neumark, Salas Wascher, 2014). The debate is older than the official federal minimum wage legislation, which came into force in 1938. Nonetheless, despite the massive attention this subject has elicited over this lengthy period, a consensus concerning the effect of minimum wage on employment is not in the vicinity. Experts have argued plausibly both in favor of and against minimum wage laws. Even so, this paper seeks to add its voice to this debate by arguing that minimum wage laws are necessary because they speed up economic recovery after recessions, safeguard workers from exploitation, and attempt to bridge the income inequality crisis the country is presently witnessing. Annotated Bibliography Meer, J., West, J. (2015). Effects of the minimum wage on employment dynamics. Journal of Human Resources. Retrieved from http://people.tamu.edu/~jmeer/Meer_West_Minimum_Wage.pdf In this journal article, the authors advance a familiar argument in the field of labor economics. In their view, an increase in minimum wage or the existence of laws that specify a particular minimum wage serves to reduce employment growth over a lengthy period. Apparently, the reason most studies that seek to establish a relationship between minimum wage and employment dynamics fail to do so due to the methods they employ. An example is the use of state-specific time trends (p. 1). Thus, the authors utilize state panel administrative employment data to arrive at their finding. Reportedly, the finding is in agreement with a number of other empirical findings. This journal article does not seem to agree with the position outlined in the thesis statement. However, a source, it will help in the development of the argument by bringing in the perspective of those opposed to minimum wages or their increase. A comprehensive and fully developed argument is one that pays attention to the opposing sides argument. This article and others that make similar arguments will serve to create this balance. Neumark, D., Salas, J. I., Wascher, W. (2014). Revisiting the minimum wage-employment debate: Throwing out the baby with the bathwater? ILR Review, 67(3 suppl), 608-648. This article revisits the minimum wage employment debate, apparently after a period of the authors abstinence from this area of focus for some time. According to the article, the minimum wage debate is age old, but in recent times, emergent literature is increasingly propagating the idea that new research in this area is inaccurate. The reason behind such claims is that the new research employs methods that critics say do not consider spatial heterogeneity. The article explores the research designs more closely and concludes that indeed, there is a cause for concern with these new researches. The research designs they employ are faulty. Through such designs, the studies indicate that minimum wage has not interfered with employment noticeably. In contrast, a link exists between minimum wages and employment rates. This article achieves its purpose by considering a number of other studies in the minimum wage debate. The studies it examines are those that claim to find no significant relationship between minimum wage and employment and those that criticize such studies. Insofar as the minimum wage debate is concerned, this article is informative due to fact that it gives the debate a historical context that many article fail to capture. It explains when and how the debate started as well as how it has developed over the years. Despite not taking a clear stand on whether minimum is bad or good, it is a great resource for the upcoming paper due to its informative nature. Orrenius, P. M., Zavodny, M. (2008). The effect of minimum wages on immigrants employment and earnings. ILR Review, 61(4), 544-563. In this article, the relationship between minimum wage laws are examined with the intent of determining the nature of impact such laws have on minimum wage earners. In contrast to natives, immigrants, who constitute the majority of minimum wage earners, are likely to be impacted more by minimum wage laws. Immigrants are often less educated, possess limited English language skills, and less connected socially. Although no direct indications of adverse effects of minimum wage laws on employment among minimum wage earners were established, there is a possibility that such laws influenced the settlement decisions of some immigrants. Trends seem to indicate that they preferred states in which the minimum wage bar was not high. In this article, the minimum wage debate is approached from a new perspective, the perspective of the minimum wage earner. Evidence suggests that although many may assume that minimum wage earners would rush to high minimum wage states, they actually tend to prefer low minimum wage states. The rationale behind this kind of disharmony is that when the minimum wage is high, employers tend to seek experience or higher levels of education. Based on what the article was investigating, immigrants will obviously shy away from such states. Thus, since this whole debate is about minimum wage, the article does well to approach it from the perspective of those groups that fall in the category of minimum wage earners. In other words, it is possible to determine how they feel about the whole issue. This unique approach will help diversify the argument. Pollin, R., Wicks-Lim, J. (2016). A $15 US minimum wage: How the fast-food industry could adjust without shedding jobs. Journal of Economic Issues, 50(3), 716-744. In this article, the possibility of adjusting from the current minimum wage to a minimum wage of $15 per hour without reducing the labor force is examined with fast food restaurants in mind. Apparently, fast food restaurants are the leading employers of minimum wage earners and those who earn below minimum wage. Thus, if they can adjust from the current minimum wage of $7.25 to $15 hourly, then any other employer can. This scenario is projected over a 4-year period with a two-step increment. It is achievable through turnover reductions, trend increases in sales growth, and modest annual price increases over the four-year period (p. 717). And fast food restaurants will not need to lower their profits to make the adjustment. The article is also unique in its approach to the debate. It does not preoccupy itself with whether the increase of minimum wage is bad or good. Instead, it seeks to demonstrate through a breakdown of relevant figures that it is possible for fast food restaurants to accommodate a minimum wage of $15 per hour without eating into their profits. The authors make an effort to be quite thorough in their analysis as well as breakdowns. The practical nature in which tackle this issue proves beyond doubt that a higher minimum wage is possible in America and stands in support of the argument of this project. Highly paid employees are prone to working hard and more effectively. Watanabe, M. (2013). Minimum wage, public investment, economic growth. Theoretical Economics Letters, 3(05), 288. In this article, the author argues in favor of minimum wage increases citing poverty reduction, and reasonable living as its direct outcomes. Despite there being divergent views on the same, through a two-period overlapping generation model, (p. 288) the author endeavors to show that the negativities associated with minimum wage increment can be countered with increased productivity among workers. Moreover, the study establishes that minimum wage increases have a positive on economic growth. This article also argues in favor of the position that is outlined in the thesis statement. This means it will in the development of a strong argument to show that despite the widespread claims that minimum wage increment has negative effects, there is actually a lot of good it can help achieve. The level of language and engagement with the technical economics in this article demonstrates the authors expertise in this field. As a consequence, this article gives an authoritative argument backed by facts and adequate examples. This will serve as a very important resource during the actual writing of the final paper. References Meer, J., West, J. (2015). Effects of the minimum wage on employment dynamics. Journal of Human Resources. Retrieved from http://people.tamu.edu/~jmeer/Meer_West_Minimum_Wage.pdf Neumark, D., Salas, J. I., Wascher, W. (2014). Revisiting the minimum wage-employment debate: Throwing out the baby with the bathwater? ILR Review, 67(3 suppl), 608-648. Orrenius, P. M., Zavodny, M. (2008). The effect of minimum wages on immigrants employment and earnings. ILR Review, 61(4), 544-563. Pollin, R., Wicks-Lim, J. (2016). A $15 US minimum wage: How the fast-food industry could adjust without shedding jobs. Journal of Economic Issues, 50(3), 716-744. Watanabe, M. (2013). Minimum wage, public investment, economic growth. Theoretical Economics Letters, 3(05), 288.

Book Review On Life Along The Silk Road History Essay

Book Review On Life Along The Silk Road History Essay The book that I had been given for review is LIFE ALONG THE SILK ROAD. The book offers a glimpse into the character and characters of the Eastern Silk road between AD 750 and 1000. The author of the book Susan Whitfield is the director of the British Library sponsored Dunhuang project, which makes a remarkable collection of Ancient Silk Road manuscripts including those acquired by legendary explorer Sir Auel Stein, available on the internet. Her knowledge of this treasure trove of primary material shows throughout the book. She has written extensively about china and therefore is in a good position to give an account of the all the details regarding the network of roads and paths crossing central Asia and concentrates on the 8th to 10th centuries A.D. The author has an extensive research on the Mongolian Empire and middle kingdom. She has travelled to central Asia several times and has written this novel as reflection of the stories of the Silk Road. She has dedicated the book to prof.Edward Schafer whom she credits for literary excavation of this historic trade route. This book Life along the Silk Road gives a rich account of the varied history of the Silk Road. It is a good read for people with special interest in history. The book recounts the stories, the lives of ten individuals who lived along the Silk Road in different era. The tale of ten different individuals a merchant, a soldier, a horseman, a monk, a nun among others, all form a different walk of life. The author has tried to reconstruct the history of the route through the personal experiences of these characters. The region covered in the book corresponds to modern day eastern Uzbekistan, western China, Mongolia, south to the Himalayas and including Tibet. Today that region is largely occupied by Turkic peoples, mainly the Uighur, as well as Chinese colonists and is more Islamic than not. In the time period covered by the book it was more Indo-European in character, mainly Buddhist, and a great deal more cosmopolitan, with many towns and cities home to Turks, Indians, Chinese, Tibetans, and Mongolians as well as followers of Manicheism, Zoroastrianism, Nestorian Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and shamanism. Many Silk Road towns, once some of the most populous cities in the world, now have largely been reclaimed by the desert sands due to a decline in population and a drop in the water table, a land now rich in archaeology but vulnerable to thieves looking for artifacts to sell on the black market. The major source of information for this book and indeed much of the scholarship done on this region and era comes from the over forty thousand documents uncovered in a Buddhist cave complex outside Dunhuang, now in Gansu province, China. Sealed up in the eleventh century, it was uncovered by accident in 1900. Though many of these precious scrolls, paintings, and sculptures have been lost since then for various reasons (and others tainted by the existence of forgeries), more than enough remained; the importance of the Dunhuang documents cannot be overstated. A whole field of study, Dunhuangology, grew up around the study of the documents. Not only were there many Buddhist texts, but as paper was rare and often recycled (and once Buddhist scripture was written on paper it was considered nearly blasphemous to destroy at that point), many non-Buddhist writings were preserved, unique in providing glimpses into the lives of everyday people. First chapter of the book was the most informative and wide ranging. It takes reader back in 2nd century and helps in understanding what events took place for which during the mid 8th century when the silk route was as its peak. In this chapter reader learns that there was not one Silk road but multiple paths and that also it was not only silk that was traded along it, horses, salt, wool, jade were also major trade items. The distances covered by the merchants around 3000 miles was indeed a challenge for them. Though Silk Road was of major important for centuries by the end of 10th century trade became increasingly maritime in nature. Following the introduction chapter, author begins to tell tale of ten individuals. The author diligently combines information from texts and archaeological discoveries with her own imagination in order to describe her characters and their families and acquaintances to discuss events in which they participated or which they observed and to indicate their feelings and thoughts. Each tale is full of information about material life that is detail of clothing, eating habits and other details gives the reader a feel for the place and time. The stories along with the numerous pictures present in this book give the reader and insightful into the life of ordinary men and women on the Silk Road era. Following the lives and stories of the Merchant, the Soldier, the Monk, the Courtesan, and others, Susan Whitfield brings the dramatic history of pre-Islamic central Asia down to a human scale, describing the battles of conquest and trade with the details of everyday life. One significant point that can be grasped from the book is the history of Central Asia over this period characterized by a complex succession of power struggles. The lives of ten individuals in this book were greatly affected by the rise and fall of Chinese, Tibetan, Uighur, Arab, and the other powers (such as autonomous city-states like Samarkand) that continually fought for control of the eastern Silk Road. when an empire was not defeated on the battlefield it could collapse or fall into chaos due to serious internal disturbances, such as a 755 rebellion led by a general of the Chinese army against the Tang dynasty and when earlier that same year the Tibetan emperor was murdered during a revolt by his ministers. From the 11th century onwards the culture of the region changed and the Road declined as Islamic culture overtook Chinese influence and the sea route grew in importance. With the rise in sea explorations, overland trade routes became sea routes with Marcopolo set sail to trade the Indians, who were renowned for the spices, textiles and ivory products. Towns near present day Afghanistan saw abandoned villages and the trade declined. The author of the book has presented history in a vivacious manner. At some pages reader may feel elated by a time machine: one hears the sounds, smells the smells and hears the multilingual crowds in the capital of Changan or the various desert posts. The major quality of the book is that it is written not only from Chinese point of view but also contains ample information about the people of central Asia. It is not important to have knowledge about the history of china in order savor the stories in the book. Small and fine details about different characters in the books give the reader a feel as if one is itself present there. The wealth of historical data present in the book which one would like to read in one sitting is an inhuman undertaking given the sheer joy and shock of all the little anecdotes, background facts and human insights. For a student like me it is easy to understand history through understanding the lives of the people who lived there and then instead of going through the tedious information regarding the places and dates of battles and monarchial successions. Traditional histories are normally about who won the battle where. But after having read this book I can fittingly say that the author has conscientiously tried to accommodate people like me by showing Central and Eastern Asias history during the prime days of the Silk Road through a series of brief vignettes representing the lives of various types of people who lived then. I found the writing style of the author quite stiff and solid but the technique she used to present the glorious history is quite effective and fascinating. Her depiction of the Silk Road through her unique style drew me in with everyday detail from the period. She presented the greater historical details, like Chinese dynastic changes and which nations gained superiority a t what time, into a context I could understand and enjoy reading. Apart from the above mentioned qualities there are some problems in the book as well though relatively minor is nature. First of all it should be stated at the outset that this book is, in fact, generally unsuitable as a resource for scholars or teachers, for it is in essence a work of historical fiction. While the book may indeed offer the reader images of life along the Silk Road, it cannot be considered an accurate scholarly resource, since it does not make clear to the reader what is imaginative and what is not. Secondly then trouble with names and terminology emerges almost from the outset, after stating that she will employ k rather than q in Turkic terms and names (i.e., Kocho rather than Qocho), since that will make them more accessible to English speakers, the author then informs the reader that she will use Beshbaliq (not Beshbalik, as one would expect) for the city known in Chinese sources as Beiting, this certainly makes understanding more difficult. Thirdly as one would expect in a book intended for the general market, this work contains neither annotation nor a bibliography, although it does offer suggestions for further reading (pp. 226-29). The book has numerous illustrations, including color and black-and-white photographs, and maps. It also has a Table of Rulers, 739-960 (pp. 230-31) that containsfor no clear reason other than much of it has been taken directly (and not without the introduction of errors) from one of Whitfields sources (6)Frankish and Byzantine monarchs as well as those of the Islamic world, China, Tibet, the Turks and Uighurs. There is an index of subjects and proper names as well. In the end I ill just like to conclude by saying that for the general reader, this book may well serve as an engaging and lively evocation of its subject. For the scholar, teacher, or serious student, however, its problems are sufficiently great as to limit its utility.

Stability for the Children Leaving the Foster Care System Essay

Twenty four thousand children each year age out of the foster care system (Fowler, Toro and Miles 1454). Of that number about half of them are African American, followed by Caucasian and then the other minorities. There are many problems facing these children that are placed in the foster care system. Of course the obvious is that they need a place to live while they are under the age of eighteen also that they need love and support from the people that are around them. Another little known problem is that these youths face once they leave the foster care system many find themselves without a permanent housing, housing that they can finally say that it is there’s and no one is going to take away from them. This paper will cover over why this is a problem for them and some ideas from which we can try to make some changes for the better. For years we have had a need to find housing for children that did not have any place to turn to. In recent years our country has taken up the slack for doing this very thing. In the past these children were seen after by mostly Catholic orphanages forced into hard labor and even had to beg for the money, also called alms, so that they could have necessities. These places were run by the priest and nuns that lived on the premises. Often these children had little food schooling or clothing to call their own. The orphanage that was in Galveston in the early 1900s was run by 3 nuns and 2 priest to the 90 children that were housed their. Obviously these children received very little quality time with any adult figure. Now a days it has gotten a little better, while they do not have many orphanages any more and they have been replaced with foster homes. Youths get more one on on... ...ouses than any other race in America. This has to have contributed to the high numbers of African Americans in the penal system. There absolutely need to be some more cultural sensitivity awareness training on the part of not only the Social Workers that make the determination to remove these children from their homes, but also on the part of the government that oversee these different agencies so that this overrepresentation of this certain population will be reduced. The steps needed are classes that will make these workers more aware of what to expect upon entering these homes and how the people that they encounter my be different and how to decipher with more accuracy if the children really are in life threatening danger. All of these this will contribute to the overall mental and physical well being of these children entering and exiting the foster care system.

Technology is a Friend of Humankind Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive

Technology is a Friend of Humankind Technology is important in our world today. Terry Tempest William’s â€Å"The Clan of One-breasted Women† is about women having breast cancer because of bomb testing from 1952- 1961 in Utah. In this case technology has a negative effect on the human race. On the other hand, â€Å"The Technology of Medicine† by Lewis Thomas is about money and the technology of medicine. There are three different levels of technology in medicine according to Thomas and they are â€Å"nontechnology,† â€Å"halfway technology† (582), and â€Å"technology of modern medicine† (583). It is obvious that technology benefits humankind with cures for diseases and prevention of sickness. Without technology, medicine would not be as advanced and there would not be as many medical procedures as there are today. By using technology, doctors have found out how to prevent certain diseases or viruses by immunizations. In fact, the human race needs to have technology to advan ce the medical field, as disclosed in Richard Selzer’s â€Å"Sarcophagus† about surgery, from the doctor’s point of view, showing all of the technology he uses during procedure. All these essays have examples on how technology benefits human kind. Therefore, technology is a friend of humankind, when used with restrictions, because it has made improvements in medicine and has proved its usefulness in hospitals. There is no doubt that technology has to be used with restrictions because of what has happened with the bomb testing in Utah. Between the 1950s and 1960s the government decided to test nuclear bombs in a deserted area in Utah. Because of testing this technology out it has cost a whole clan of women to be diagnosed with breast cancer. As Williams puts it, â€Å"Children grow... ...es. Though technology has gotten humanity far, there is still a lot more information to be discovered. Without medical technology, many people would have died of diseases because of inadequate treatment. Therefore, technology has been a friend of humankind and will continue to be even a greater friend in the future. Works Cited Klass, Perri. â€Å"Macho†. The McGraw Hill Reader. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 577-580. Selzer, Richard. â€Å"Sarcophagus†. The McGraw Hill Reader. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 564-570. Thomas, Lewis. â€Å"The Technology of Medicine†. The McGraw Hill Reader. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 581-585. Willams, Terry Tempest. â€Å"The Clan of One-breasted Women†. The McGraw Hill Reader. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 598-604.

Early English Law Essay

Early English law sought not only to deter crime and immoral behaviour but to exert social control, particularly over the lesser mortals, nothing changes. Crimes committed in early England are not much different to the crimes committed today, although the punishments given are very different. Our methods today for punishment no longer use barbaric methods such as hanging, stoning, burning, drowning, decapitation and the breaking of the neck for serious crimes nor do we amputate , blind, scalp and brand for the lesser crimes committed. Instead we send offenders to prison for the serious crimes and fine/community service for the lesser crimes committed. Abduction, murder, rape, robbery, damage to property and assault are still punishable today but adultery and slaves are no longer offences due to society changes. To exert social control early English law stated â€Å"any person who tried to escape pursuit or to act in self-defence could be cut down irrespective of the magnitude of the suspected offence or the age or sex of the suspected offender† this can be said for today if a suspect were to run from a crime. In Aethelbert’s codes that all men were not equal before the law, and even less so in the case of women does not extend to today as far as the law is today, all men and women are equal regardless of colour, race, age or gender. Early English law did not have prisons and fines were determined by social status, the higher up the person was the less they had to pay. The king did not have the expense in maintaining prisons as as far as he was concerned compensation rather than incarceration was eminently satisfactory method of dealing with crime. Substantial proportion of fines and confiscations were claimed by him, crime did pay as far as the crown was concerned. Today, fines could not be considered for crimes such as rape and murder. Another method of early English law social control was that of hanging, stoning, burning, drowning, decapitation and the breaking of the neck these would be done in public and people would come to watch the executions. Also, mutilation of limbs carried scars and offenders would have to live with this for the rest of their lives. This helped to exert social control as the executions and mutilations would act as a deterrent in that no one would want this to happen to them. None of these methods are done today. It is clear to see that there are no real comparisons to early English law and the law today. Today we have prisons and use fines to exert social control. We no longer use barbaric methods to enforce the law. Sentencing, fines and community service today should be enough to discourage from people offending although in all societies offences do happen as they did back in early England but today we tend to help the offenders by counselling, fining and giving back to the community as in community services, whereas early England the punishments were grotesque. Death, mutilation and maiming were acceptable methods of punishments and social control.

James Dickey Essay

James Dickey (1923 – 1997) is one of the outstanding modern American poets. His criticism provides a scope of ideas on what humanity has gained throughout the twentieth century. His viewpoint is likely to amaze an observer by constant critical notes on what is universally called â€Å"amenities of life.† Thus, the figure of James Dickey cannot be underestimated in terms of his poetical style and criticism of perpetually developing progressive life of the mankind during the twentieth century. His inclinations to make people understand the charms of primitivism and animalism were straightforward. He could put his reasoning over the entire life through the eyes of animals and nature. Thus, the environmental problem of humanity and morality worried him much. It is reflected in his poetry by making emphasis on the significance of return to the nature in order to think like a â€Å"child of nature.† Dickey’s main motivation for claiming the importance of return to primitivism was not spontaneous. He had got through participation in World War II and Korean War (Thesing and Wrede 151). In this respect the poet was highly depressed by losing his older brother. In fact, it turned into a cycle of poems on the main themes of family, survival, spiritual rebirth, love, war and some other (Vaughan 115). With multiple poems included in the compilation The Whole Motion, Dickey described war as the source for cruelty and disfigured estimation of humanity at large (Thesing and Wrede 153). In this very collection one embraces the evolution of Dickey as a poet. The author followed a specific for Modernism feature of the stream-of-consciousness technique. He introduced it in personal evaluation of human civilization, as a self-destructing unity of people. Moreover, Dickey was trying to make a set of interrelated topics interwoven in terms of their collision and approach toward the concept of a â€Å"natural man.† Attacking the problem of civilization, James Dickey is likely to blame world’s progress on the example of his best-known poem The Firebombing: The enemy-colored skin of families Determines to hold its color In sleep, as my hand turns whiter Than ever, clutches the toggle – The ship shakes bucks Fire hangs not yet fire In the air above Beppu For I am fulfilling An ‘anti-morale’ raid upon it (Kendall 511). Based on this single excerpt from the poem, Dickey brings the main problem of the mankind to notice. It is grounded on misunderstanding of where the edge between morality and violence takes place. The author perceives an enormous and ominous power of violence supported by humanity. He understands personal helplessness. Thus, he had no choice but to reflect his rumination in the form of a holistic criticism of the civilization and its consequences. Hence, Dickey is constantly critiquing civilization, and it feels like he never repeated the same theme colored by a banal estimation. It is also included into The Sheep Child. His poetic language was easy to comprehend. Thus, the readers and followers can easily take Dickey as he is. As a matter of fact, born in Atlanta, Georgia, Dickey was loosely related to the concept of nature as he lived, studied, and worked for some period of time in the south of the USA (O’Briant 158). His â€Å"southern† origin and what he once experienced in person gave him motivation for teaching the audience being glowering toward what the civilized life had fallen into (James Dickey 1). In this respect the primitivism and the concept of the â€Å"natural man† are the paramount alternatives represented in his poetry.

My Name Is Asher Lev

Name: Waleed Khokhar Date: 11/13/12 Word Count: appx 900 Which character intrigues you the most? The protagonist and narrator of the book, â€Å"My name is Asher Lev† Asher Lev’s story begins with him as a young boy from a Jewish family. A young boy who lived in conservative community that was strict and fascist in nature when it comes to religion. Two conflicting forces play an important role in Asher Lev’s story. One, Asher Lev’s up tight and all- encompassing religious community, and the other his intense passion and desire to create art.Throughout Asher Lev’s life as a young child and as an adult, he had to trade-off between his love of creating art and/or following his family and community religious traditions. How Asher grows up with such intense friction in his mind of these two subjects is something important to elucidate. The decisions he made and the actions he took shaped his future. Asher grew up in an old-fashioned Jewish community of L adover; a community filled with narrow-minded people who did not want to look at the world beyond their realms. Due to this, Asher Lev was always in conflict with himself, his family and the community.As Aryeh, Asher Lev’s father said, â€Å"If you were a genius in mathematics, I would understand. If you were a genius in writing, I would also understand. If you were a genius in Gemorra, I would certainly understand. However, a genius in drawing is foolishness, and I will not let it interfere with our lives. Do you understand me, Asher? † (pg. 136). Asher’s father always condemned his work and wanted him to give up art. However, art surrounded and reflected in every part of Asher’s life. It is interesting to see even under immense pressure of his father Asher continued to draw.Usually, kids become rebellious if restricted. In this case, Asher just suppressed his feelings and confined to himself. Asher’s personality is the most mesmerizing in this bo ok. Living in a strictly religious family as boy and continually opposed by several people on creating art, Asher still managed to pursue his passion. It was a marvel in its own. Nonetheless, these two aspects of life balance out each other and play the most apprehensive part in his life. Asher’s creativity is one of the reasons he was able to continue with his work.One can see this when Asher uses common life material and create tools to paint (citation required). It is obvious that Asher possessed the gift of drawing.. Another aspect one needs to look at is Asher’s desperation and his urge to find such creative ways to express him in form of art. He was burning with desire to express his emotions by drawing. On one occasion, his strong influences lead him to steal paints from a shop. However, ethics and morals from his family teachings embedded in him evoked his conscience, and he eventually returned them.Such endeavors, at such a young age, living in such ascetic so ciety requires a lot of guts. It brings the crisp and twist in a story and binds a reader to discover of what lies ahead. In addition, it is hard to ignore how a young child with such creativity uses such ingenious ways to pursue his passion as Asher uses ashes to paint. It reminds me of a famous idiom ‘necessity is the mother of invention’. In the beginning, Asher did not understand his cravings as a child and innocuously doodled which turned into structured drawing later in his life.Furthermore, an on-going friction permeated inside Asher. He was confused with what was allowed to draw and what was deemed intolerable in his community. This is most evident when Asher’s father would not come to Asher’s art exhibitions, which displayed nude and crucifixion pictures. Asher justified such painting by saying (Book 11, pg. 303), â€Å"A naked women is a women without clothes. A nude is an artist's personal vision of a body without clothes. † â€Å"Is suc h a personal vision important in your art? † â€Å"That's what art is, Papa.It's a person's private vision expressed in aesthetic. † This brings Asher in the contradiction to his upbringing, what his beliefs were and what the world of art wants. It is astonishing for a reader of how Asher well aware that his father reproved nude paintings and yet without hesitation he invites his father. An analysis to this could be that Asher was so lost in the hymn of his passion that his childhood values were fading away. Whether these values would instill in Asher is something that intrigues a reader to continue with the story.Additionally, Asher’s interaction with an artist named Jacob Kahn, who immensely drew Asher towards new dimensions of art played the most significant role in this story. Asher learns different styles of painting and hones his skills under Kahn’s mentorship. Working with Kahn once again Asher faces the dilemma of whether to follow his religious te achings or follow the eccentric ways of world of art. Kahn played a pivotal role in Asher’s life and persuaded him to draw nude and crucifixion pictures, which were against Asher’s religion, Asher hesitant but open to learn suppressed his feelings and drew.Here once again, Asher prioritized art over his family and religion. In contrast, it is evident that Asher has not completely strayed away from his religious teaching as he continued to observe his Jewish dietary laws when he was away at Kahn’s beach house. Likewise, Asher leaves the reader tangled that whether he would lean back to his childhood education or ensue the world of art. Finally, the most controversial side of Asher becomes flamboyant when he drew his mother’s picture in form of crucifixion and invited his parents to his exhibition.Asher was well aware that his painting would bring great pain to his family and his community as crucifixion in Judaism is a taboo. Asher knowing the consequences will be dire yet he prioritized artistic world over Jewish world. From Asher’s point of view, this drawing only portrayed his emotions and it was targeted toward world of art where it carries a different meaning and only artists understand its value, whereas, Jewish community was naive of language of paint. Asher motive to invite his parents to gallery is questionable.A concern that arises is why Asher would invite his family to his exhibition. Did he deliberately want to inflict pain to his family and finally part away or was it another episode of innocence. The most bewildering scenes of this book which must have left several readers confused was in the ending chapter of the book where Asher stood thinking about his decisions in his life. Asher had to decide whether he wanted himself or religion; himself or family; and/or himself or art.Similarly, the writer has portrayed Asher’s uncanny nature and it leaves many questions in a readers mind. The book concludes in ma ny ways unresolved, as Asher was not fully comfortable with the decisions he had made. My Name is Asher Lev ends with protagonist banished from his people as Rebbe asked him to leave. So far, there are no means to conclude that Asher had embarked himself away from his family and community. No conclusive or unanimous consensus about Asher’s future choices

Mahatma Gandhi Research Paper

Aroused by the massacre of Amritsar in 1919, Gandhi devoted his life to gaining India’s independence from Great Britain. As the dominant figure used his persuasive philosophy of non-violent confrontation, he inspired political activists with many persuasions throughout the world (Andrews 23). Not only was Mahatma Gandhi a great peacemaker, but also his work to achieve freedom and equality for all people was greatly acknowledged. Gandhi’s unconventional style of leadership gained him the love of a country and eventually enabled him to lead the independence movement in India. Mohandas Gandhi, later called Mahatma Gandhi, was born on October 2,1869 in Porbandar, which is the present day state of Gujarat, India (Andrews 17). He grew up in a very controlled family that had an alliance with the family ruling Kathiawad. He was engaged to two other women who both died, then he eventually married Kasturba at the age of 13. Gandhi sailed to England to attend University College in London to study law (Kamat’s Potpourri). In 1891, he was able to practice in the British bar. Gandhi went back to India and tried to authorize a law practice in Bombay, with very little achievement. Two years later, an Indian firm with curiosity in South Africa had an office in Durban where Gandhi was commissioned as legal advisor. This is where he lived for twenty years once he began his job doing labor on the sugar estates in South Africa (Moreorless). As soon as he arrived in Durban, he found himself being treated as if he was not human. The Africans forbade fundamental individual rights and political rights from the Indian immigrants. This conduct resulted in Gandhi’s outburst in fury towards the African’s reactions to Indian immigrants to South Africa. He then began a civil right’s campaign, which resulted in the development of his passive resistance policy, which eventually inspired thousands. The Union of South Africa government adjusted Gandhi’s demands, which included recognition of Indian marriages and abolition of the poll tax (Kamat’s Potpourri). When this man saw how terrible people were being treated because of diversity he said, â€Å"†There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever,† (Gold 231). By saying that, he meant that no one should worry about where hey stand in society or how they are judged because in God’s eyes everyone is perfect and everyone is equal therefore, no one who has any faith in God should be worrying about their so called â€Å"imperfections. † This great man struggled to gain the important rights for all Indians, and this is where it all began. Once Gandhi’ s mission in South Africa was complete, he returned to India and became involved in the home ruling movement. He was concerned with excessive land tax and discrimination, so he organized protests by peasants, farmers, and urban laborers to help them stand tall and fight for what they deserved (Gold 57). During World War I, Gandhi had an active part in recruiting campaigns by launching his new movement of non-violent resistance to Great Britain (Byers 202). When Parliament passed the Rowlatt Acts in 1919, Satyagraha, which means insistence on truth, spread throughout India, recruiting millions of followers. British soldiers massacred Indians at Amritsar as a demonstration against the Rowlatt Acts. In 1920 the British government failed to make peace, which resulted in Gandhi organizing a campaign of non-cooperation (Andrews 103). There was chaos in India as the public office resigned, courts were boycotted, and children were taken out of schools. Sitting Indians, who ignored police officers when told to move, even if they got beaten, blocked the streets. Gandhi was arrested, but the British soon were forced to free him. India’s economic independence was made of Gandhi’s Swaraj (self governing) movement. Because of this, India boycotted all British goods and British industrialists were left in extreme poverty across India. To save the country, Gandhi brought back cottage industries. He started to symbolize the return of simple village life by using a spinning wheel. â€Å"Gandhi became the international symbol of a free India. He lived a spiritual and ascetic life of prayer, fasting, and meditation,† (Andrews 126). He refused material possessions, and wore the lowest-class clothing and supported himself on only vegetables, fruits, and goat’s milk. Fellow Indians looked at him as a God-like force, often referring to him as Mahatma (which means great-souled). Gandhi's ahimsa (idea of nonviolence), was essentially the way of life in the Hindu religion. Since India followed Gandhi’s ahimsa with such support, Britain would soon understand that violence is useless in this country and leave. In 1921, Gandhi received complete leadership from the Indian National Congress, the group that started the movement for nationhood. But, the Indian population could not understand why the whole world wasn’t practicing and showing the ahimsa (Kamat’s Potpurri). Because of this, many armed revolts broke out against the British. Gandhi eventually admitted that his campaign was a failure, and quickly tried to end it. Gandhi was then seized and imprisoned by the British government in 1922. He was released in 1924, and distanced himself from being involved in any politics and instead focused on getting the Indian community closer (Gold 149). Unavoidably, he was brought back into the political forces. In 1930, a new campaign of civil disobedience was called to the Indian population saying they should refuse to pay taxes, especially on salt (Moreorless). The campaign was the famous march to the sea, where thousands of Indians followed Gandhi from Ahmedabad to the Arabian Sea, and made salt by evaporating sea-water. Gandhi was again arrested, but released in 1931 as he stopped the campaign. In 1932, Gandhi started new civil-disobedience campaigns against the British. Since he was arrested twice, the Mahatma fasted for long periods many times. These fasts were very useful against the British because revolts would have broken out if Gandhi had died. In September 1932, while in jail, Gandhi performed a â€Å"fast unto death† in order to help the Hindu Untouchables. (Byers 202). The British considered the Untouchables as a separate part of the Indian government and tolerated their injustice. Although Gandhi was a member of the upper caste, he strongly believed in removing this unjust caste system. In 1934 Gandhi resigned from politics, being replaced by Jawaharlal Nehru. Gandhi continued teaching ahimsa and traveled across India. He was known for his dedication and political power. Since he was viewed with such great esteem, the British had to wait for Gandhi’s approval to limit the home rule in 1935. In 1939 he returned to politics and designed his first act manipulate the ruler of the state of Rajkot to change his autocratic rule (Moreorless). The colonial government had to intervene because the fast caused commotion across the country. When World War II broke out, the Congress party and Gandhi refused to support Britain in the war unless they were given complete independence. The British refused their proposal. When Japan entered the war, Gandhi still refused to allow India to fight in the war. He was imprisoned in 1942 but was freed after two years due to his bad health (Kamat’s Potpourri). By 1944 the British agreed to allow Indian independence only if the two nationalist groups, the Muslim League and the Congress party, resolved their issues (Andrews 178). Gandhi was strongly against the dividing of India but in the end had to agree, hoping that peace would be accomplished after the demand for Muslim separation was achieved. India and Pakistan split to two separate states when India gained its independence in 1947. Gandhi begged Hindus and Muslims to live together peacefully during the riots. Mahatma fasted until the riots stopped (Moreorless). He also fasted successfully on January 13, 1948, to bring about peace, but twelve days after that fast ended he was assassinated by a Hindu on his way to an evening prayer (Byers 203). Gandhi's death was a worldwide devastation that left the population in shock. In the United Nations there was a day set aside to mourn for Gandhi and remember his acts of nonviolence for eternity. All countries sent their apologies and reassured that he would never be forgotten. The teachings of nonviolent movements were inspired in other countries, as well as the U. S. A. â€Å"under the civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. and in South Africa under Nelson Mandela,† (Moreorless). Gandhi was the most inspirational leader in the twentieth century because of his unique tactics of protesting and making peace worldwide. The most persuasive ways of accomplishing change in social issues came from his idea of civil disobedience and nonviolence, which advised freedom movements around the globe (Moreorless). This political leader and peacemaker will always be remembered as a successful man who impacted many to be non-violent. This accomplishment is a great achievement because without this concept India may still have been fighting for independence. Gandhi said, â€Å"The† (Moreorless) and that is what Gandhi chose to do. By doing favors for other people he was able to find out who he was, he found out he was the Mahatma because he truly did have a great soul.