Benjamin Franklin Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Benjamin Franklin - Research Paper Example Life in Philadelphia was focused mainly on applying his expertise as a printer. It is here where he married Deborah Read in 1730 at the age of 24. The entrepreneurial skills of the spouses were enhanced through diverse businesses ranging from retail selling, bookstore, printing and contributing literary works in the Pennsylvania Gazette (US History, par. 14). One of the most famous works he published as Richard Saunders is the â€Å"Poor Richard’s Almanac† where â€Å"years later the most striking of these sayings were collected and published in a book† (Bellis, 3). In 1749, Benjamin’s scientific pursuits were highlighted as he invented diverse gadgets, to wit: the Franklin stove, â€Å"swim fins, the glass harmonica (a musical instrument) and bifocals† (US History, par. 21). He was more famously known for having conducted various experiments leading to the discovery of electricity (Bellis, 2011). In another field of endeavor, Benjamin ventured into the political arena in the 1750s. He had vast accomplishments in Philadelphia, of which the following are noteworthy: â€Å"first circulating library in Philadelphia, an academy which grew into the University of Pennsylvania., the foundation of a hospital† among others (Bellis, 5). He was likewise civic minded and envisioned to provide a more beneficial society through â€Å"the paving and cleaning of the streets, better street lighting, the organization of a police force and of a fire company† (Bellis, 5). The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) revealed that more than being a man of diverse interests, Benjamin Franklin was considered a citizen of the world for having â€Å"negotiated treaties with Great Britain, France, Germany, Sweden, and Spain and helped secure Americas place in the world. As a respected scientist and scholar, he was granted honorary degrees in England, Scotland, and America. And as an Enlightenment thinker, he exchanged letters

Oppressive to women and sexist Essay Example for Free

Oppressive to women and sexist Essay In studying the two tables, the one I did myself and the one my friend did, it became apparent that while there were some differences, many of the descriptors were similarly placed within the table. There were some differences, notably that we both thought the American belief of Muslims is that their religious is oppressive to women and sexist, but my friend also thought that Christians and Muslims had a male-dominated political environment. The other interesting similarity was that we both believed Americans view Muslim-Americans as fanatics and violent, a stereotype that is perpetuated on television and in the media. We both listed some descriptors in the Both category, notably the fact that we perceived both groups as devout, both as sexist in some respects, and both as family-oriented in nature. From the Christian table, I think that women who go to work and secular content in education are true descriptors about this group in general, while the idea of them having immodest dress and all being law abiding are obviously false. For the Muslim-Americans, I believe the idea of them having modest dress and being governed by the Qu’ran is true, but I do not think all of these people are violent and undereducated. Both my friend and myself seemed to have similar views on how America views each group but many of them were not true and not necessarily how I truly believe, but how American society wants us to believe. I believe that in our society the media plays a large role in how we view each group. Watching a religious channel and seeing the way some right-wing conservative Christians act sheds a light on how most Americans think Christians act, while on the other hand the media portrays Muslim and Arab peoples as fanatically religious and as being terrorists. These images have stuck in the minds of Americans, particularly since 9/11.

Beaches Essay -- Descriptive Personal Narrative

Beaches are beautiful forms of nature. Each one varies from another. Some can be rocky, some have white sand, some have black, some are small, and some are large. I love all sorts of beaches. Each beach I have visited has been a memorable experience, but one in particular stands out in my mind.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  During my junior year I went on vacation to a resort in Jamaica with a extraordinary beach. It was a large beach with white sand and remarkable palm trees. There was also a long row of enormous rocks that extended far out into the Caribbean Sea. I found that those rocks made a great place to walk out on to watch the glorious sunsets.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I thought this Jamaican beach was great for a couple of reasons. One reason was that it was the perfect place to watch the sunset. The other was that it was a great place to lay out relaxing and tanning during the day. Each day, I’d wake up in the morning, grab a soft white towel, and head for the beach. I was always one of the first to settle on the sand. I easily found myself the perfect spot along the crashing waves each and every day. I’d sit on that towel all day long. I got up only to run into the Caribbean Sea to cool myself off. During the day the beach truly was a great place to be, however, the late afternoon and night were beautiful beyond compare. One night in particular, the sunset was truly a memorable sight. Every sunset I’d witnessed had been great, but this particular evening was my favorite. That night I walked out onto...

The Change in Scrooge’s Character :: A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens Essays

The Change in Scrooge’s Character How does dickens show the change in scrooge’s character in ‘A Christmas Carol’, look closely at the language used and how this influences the reader In 1843 Charles dickens wrote ‘A Christmas Carol’ partly to make people aware of the terrible conditions of the children of the poor. In 1843 he visited the field lane ragged school and was appalled by what he saw there/ ragged schools catered for the very poorest, hungry children who roamed the streets, trying to teach them the basic skills of reading and writing. He had also been shocked by a parliamentary report by the children’s employment commission. Dickens was the most popular novelist of the day and he soon realized that far more people would take notice of the terrible conditions of the poor if he wrote about them in a story. ‘A Christmas carol’ was published on 17th December 1843 and by the 24th he had sold 6,000 copies. Dickens called it a most prodigious success., the greatest, I think, have ever achieved. ‘A Christmas carol’ is still widely read today and appears in many versions including illustrated re-telling of the story for young children. Hardly a Christmas goes by without a version of ‘A Christmas carol’ appearing on TV in one form or another. The name of the main character, scrooge, has come into general use in the English language meaning ‘a miserly or mean person’. In ‘A Christmas carol’ Dickens shows scrooge as an evil, nasty man by using a long list of adjectives, he’s described with this sentence â€Å"Oh! But he was a tight fisted hand at the grindstone, scrooge! A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and as solitary as an oyster† Another way to show this is the way he talks to people, e.g. when his nephew invites him to his Christmas party but he turns him down and calls Christmas a ‘Humbug!’ and even worse, when 2 charity workers ask him for a donation for the poor children, he says send them to the work houses, if they would rather die they better do it, and decrease the surplus population. This shows how much of a cold hearted, covetous sinner he is. Dickens makes us feel like he’s an evil man, he’s selfish and says he’d rather the children die than donate his money to charity. When the ghost of Marley visited scrooge in the night, he was shocked, he first saw Marley’s face as the doorknob, then he was frightened further when the ghost of Marley opened the door from the outside when

Nucor – Porter’s 5 Forces

NUCOR AT A CROSSROADS CASE ANALYSIS NUCOR’S SUSTAINED PERFORMANCE RECORD PORTER’S 5 FORCES ANALYSIS †¢ Supplier Power: With the eventual exit of integrated steel companies from buying scrap, the options available with suppliers to sell, reduced. Nucor started several small plants that were close to suppliers ; customers, thereby reducing transportation costs. Also, the sites chosen had inexpensive electricity. Their employee-centric policies resulted in them having lowest attrition levels ; a steady supply of new employees. Thus the supplier power was moderate-low. Buyer Power: Although Nucor employed the latest technology ; competitive prices, with imported steel available, the buyers had more options to choose from. However, Nucor’s customer service was a differentiator that buyers were willing to pay for. Hence, the Buyer power was mildly unattractive. †¢Barriers to Entry: Minimill business was a capital-intensive business for a new player. Also, for existing integrated steel makers, their reluctance to adapt to newer technology ; smaller scale discouraged them to get into the market of the minimills. Thus it was mildly attractive from Nucor’s point of view. Threat of Substitutes: With wide availability of substitutes such as aluminum, plastics ; advanced composites, the demand for steel had stagnated. Hence, the threat of substitutes in the future was highly unattractive. †¢ Degree of rivalry: The integrated steel makers didn’t threaten Nucor’s business. Nucor always had the cost advantage ; efficiency coupled with superior technology ; innovation. However, this was challenged by the global steel makers which resulted in lowering of prices ; lower margins. The only differentiation for Nucor was its highly sought-after customer service.Thus the degree of rivalry was high. Thus overall, Nucor had sustained performance so far, due to its technology innovation, lean operations, high efficiency, strong emp loyee relations ; superior customer service. However, going ahead, with availability of substitutes ; growing threat of equally good foreign steel makers, the sustainability is in question unless Nucor innovates ; strategically aligns itself to the changing demands of its customers. FUNCTIONAL FIT †¢ Low Cost Focus Strategy: Nucor adoption of organic growth helped in bridging the gap between the company and its customers.Mills were set up near the Vulcraft operations and Vulcraft in turn ensured speedy delivery of the products to its customers. The company was also able to bring down the fixed order processing costs by using computerized order entry and billing systems. With the help of competent distribution and other measures, the company was successful in raising the willingness of the customers to pay even if the price was increased. Also, the company focused on the low end segment. †¢ Organizational systems / Procedures: Nucor had a flat organizational structure. They decentralized the plant-level decision making to the respective plant managers.This led to a lot of autonomy ; faster decision making thus providing them an advantage over the competitors. The performance measurement was more quantitative in nature for the plant managers, where they had to meet specific revenue targets. The Nucor management supported creativity ; risk taking as they firmly believed in innovation ; improvisation. There was a relatively high degree of inter-plant communication vis-a-vis consolidation of orders, sharing of deliverables, etc. Thus the plants didn’t entirely work in isolation, although the structure was decentralized.At the plant level, there were conscious efforts to treat all levels of employees at par ; make all of them feel equally important ; relevant to the organization. †¢ Performance Measurement: The performance of the plant manager was more quantitative in nature. However for those of the other employees, it was a mix of qualitative as well as quantitative. This is because of their emphasis on productivity ; quality. The reward / compensation were more group based rather than individual based, encouraging teamwork. †¢ Values / Culture Review: Employee focus was the hallmark of Nucor.They encouraged risk taking, creativity ; innovation. Their policies didn’t allow for much differentiation between different cadres. Their flat structure had decentralized decision making, they provided employees a sense of belonging / ownership with the organization. The all-cash incentives were regularly doled out ; were directly performance linked – quality ; quantity-wise. Their strong employee-bonding started right from the time the plant was constructed, till retirement. They didn’t believe in firing ; during lean times, would rather cut back on working hours, than fire people.The end result was that they not only had a highly productive, motivated, experienced ; non-unionized work force, but their e mployee turnover was much below the industry average ; they had many people willing to work for them. Their high human capital was a clear differentiator ; advantage over the competition in the steel industry. Thus, Nucor’s approach of controlled growth, focus on technology ; innovation, high employee productivity coupled with a dedicated workforce, decentralized ; quick decision making, have resulted in a sustained growth ; success of Nucor.For sustainability in the future, Nucor will have to continue to focus on technology ; innovation as it has been its point of differentiation among its competitors. TETRA-THREAT FRAMEWORK FOR SUSTAINABILITY ANALYSIS: Threat of Imitation: †¢ The advantage it derived from a flatter decentralized structure ; a motivated workforce, was hard to imitate, as it would mean reorganizing the organization ; it would take much longer to be effective. †¢ Nucor constantly innovated ; used latest technology. Hence, even though a competitor cop ied its technology, it would take time for it to implement it ; in that while, Nucor would have moved n to a newer technology. †¢ Costs of imitation in this case are the capital investments that would have to be made ; the economies of scale that will have to be achieved. Threat of Substitution: †¢ The internal threat of substitution by means of resource substitution is very little, as the employee attrition rate is very low compared to industry level ; the services offered to customers is of high value for the customers. †¢ External threat of substitution is high due to emergence of aluminum, plastics, etc as cheaper substitutes for steel.But as Nucor is focused on innovation, it can counter this by itself moving towards these substitutes or coming up with further innovative ways to make steel which can compete with the substitutes. However this would mean further investments in technology ; infrastructure ; training of employees. Threat of Holdup: †¢ Nucor has a strong vertical integration ; the market for the suppliers is limited as the integrated steel makers are no longer in its market. So threat of holdup from suppliers is low. †¢ It also adds value with superior customer service, which the buyers are willing to pay for.But the buyers do have option to opt for imported steel. Thus, Nucor will have to sustain the additional value it generates for its buyers. Threat of Slack: †¢ Nucor has optimized the technology that is available for manufacture. It also has a dedicated skilled workforce. However it has not fully exploited these to venture into newer steel markets or into a Joint Venture with foreign steel makers who could provide newer technology. However its organizational structure ; policies are suited for sustained growth. UNCERTAINITIES AND RISKS ASSOCIATED 1.Technological threat: CSP would become obsolete in 10-12 years time, as new technology of casting even thinner slab was already under way. This posed risk and unce rtainty to Nucor’s heavy investment in CSP, but adoption of this technology could give it the first mover advantage also. 2. Quality: SMS’s pilot plant ran only 7 minutes and produced 12 tons per charge due to space constraints. It wasn’t clear if it could take the load from continuous operations and sustain the wear and tear. The components had to operate with more than 96% reliability for it to be cost-effective. 3.Raw Material: Nucor used scrap as its raw material, and the uncertainty of the scrap prices could make the project not viable. If scrap prices rose above $ 140 per ton, Nucor might have to shift to Direct Reduced Iron as raw material which would require major changes in facility and operations. 4. Competition: Other minimills will also adopt CSP in a few years and hence Nucor may not be able to bask in the glory of first mover advantage. It wasn’t even clear if first mover advantage would offset the huge costs this project entails. 5. Company : They didn’t have the expertise in flat rolled products which had to be acquired.Integrated mills adopting CSP were a major threat as they already had the expertise in flat rolled production. 6. Operations: CSP plant was very large and more complex. It couldn’t have been located in rural areas, where Nucor have till now established their plants, hence would require new strategy to cater to these plants. 7. Growth: Nucor was concerned that it would have to enter the high end market if it plans to build more plants with CSP technology and that would require products with superior quality ; reliability of delivery, which CSP did not guarantee for such products.Moreover the high end market demanded relationship based marketing which involved the customers at early level of development of product, which would be difficult. 8. Resources: If Nucor pursued both the projects i. e. CSP and joint venture with Yamato Kogyo, then it would have to stretch its financial resources an d raise equity or debt for huge capital expenditures for the initial years. But, according to its policies, Nucor restricted its debt/equity ratio to less than 30 % and did not issue new stock. So the problem of raising funds for the two projects is a matter of concern.PROJECT FEASABILITY ? Financial Decisions Assumptions: †¢ The new project technology will become obsolete in 10 to 12 years of time, so assuming that this project will last for 12 years of time including 2 and half years of startup time and two years for full capacity utilization. Assumed that 50 % of capacity will be utilized in 3rd yr, 80% in 4th yr and full from 5th yr onwards. †¢ The capital expenditure of $280mn takes place in phase wise manner with $70mn today, $170mn in first year and $40mn in second year with additional $30mn in second year for startup cost.Working capital of $30mn will also be divided in 3 years based on their capacity utilization. †¢ The revenues and costs are adjusted with an inflation of 3. 5% each year. †¢ The rising scrap prices are also taken into consideration. †¢ Assuming that reduction in labor costs and savings in energy will be absorbed by inflation. †¢ Depreciation taken around 13% w. r. t. given data (Done by WDV method). †¢ Tax rate taken around 44%. †¢ Assume salvage value equal to the book value at the end of the project life. †¢ As the industry is stable, so taken beta value (=0. 95) around market beta (=1). Keeping the Debt/Equity ratio to be around 15%, according to existing capital structure policies. The Capital budgeting of the project leads to the following analysis: IRR=11. 8%, NPV =$18mn and ROC=26. 5% The Expected rate of return of the project is more than the WACC (10. 19%) and NPV;gt;0, though it is not very high. The project is therefore financially viable and can be adopted. ? Industry Opportunities: †¢ As the market for low end products was beginning to reach saturation, CSP was a great opp ortunity for Nucor to enter into flat rolled products.It could easily enter into the low end of the flat sheet market, consisting mostly of construction applications, where low price was key differentiator. †¢ Its internal sales (Vulcraft division) could be 100,000 tons of flat sheets each year to produce steel deck. †¢ Moreover, it could enter into the high end market after some years by expanding its capacity, which will make it possible for Nucor to compete with US integrated mills and capture their market share. †¢ The threat of ocean freight imports could be mitigated by the reduced costs. Construction industry offers good opportunity as it takes high priced products from the integrated steel mills and CSP will give Nucor the cost advantage to charge lesser price and hence be able to sell its products. ? Operations: †¢ CSP would lead to savings in casting operations, labor costs and energy costs. †¢ Nucor would be able to achieve economies of scale at a reduced output as compared to the US integrated mills. The yields will be higher and the operating costs will reduce. ? Technology: †¢ Nucor had the drive to embody technological advances.It invested heavily in upgrading its capacity. Its investment levels were 2. 9 times its depreciation charges, wherein the three largest integrated firms had a ratio around 1. 6. Through CSP, Nucor will gain the first mover advantage for atleast a few years. †¢ Hazelett Caster wasn’t as effective as CSP. Also, there were some operational constraints with Hazelett approach like expensive conveyor belts, reduced product quality and increased maintenance costs. Conclusion: Taking all the business and financial aspects into consideration, Nucor should go ahead with this technology.

The role of Antithesis in the novel To kill a Mocking Bird Essays

The role of Antithesis in the novel To kill a Mocking Bird Essays The role of Antithesis in the novel To kill a Mocking Bird Paper The role of Antithesis in the novel To kill a Mocking Bird Paper The masterpiece exposes not only deep social message but also ills of the society, as the writer in various ways reveals the eternal and global robbers such as the problem of good and evil, the problem of racism (black or white), the problem of morality and judging system. The idea of Social Inequality is centered around the whole excerpt. The events Of the novel are perceived through the eyes of the first person narrator (l punched Gem; shut my eyes; I saw Tactics pushing papers from the table into his briefcase) from the SCOUts point of view which produces a peculiar effect because Scout observes the events from her childhood, as she understood them at the time, rather than imposing an adult commentary. This makes the narrative respective naive: often we get descriptions of events just as she experiences them, without commentary on what they mean. The tone of the text is rather elevated and tense which is due to the choice of lexis (we had never seen him sweat, jury seemed to be attentive, we exchanged horrified glances). The extract combines narration with description and elements of dialog and monologue (the usage of rhetorical questions and possession, the repetition Of such phrases as black or white, all men are created equal helps to create emotional atmosphere and to emphasize and to keep in mind the importance of these phrases). The whole text contains the abundance of thematic judicial terms and clicks such as: the jury, corroborative/medical evidence, on trial of life, with the court ; s permission, guilty, the testimony, cross examinations, victim, offense, the defendant etc. The symbols which are used in the text are worthy of notice. The title VETO Kill a Mockingbird has very little literal connection to the plot, but it carries a great deal of symbolic weight in the book. In this story of innocents destroyed by evil, the mockingbird comes to represent the idea of innocence. To kill a mockingbird means to destroy innocence. Tom Robinson serves as a perfect example of this symbol. The sentence this case is as simple as black and white strikes the reader with its symbolic features. The usage of such stylistic devises as simile case as simple as black and white based on the antithesis black and white reflects the problem of racism and at the same time the problem of morality and immorality / (good or evil). On the one hand Males Lowell is rather speaking name due to the fact that surname Lowell is consonants with the word evil: they are homophones. The connection of two pairs of antithesis innocence- evil and Tom Robinson- Males Lowell brings to light the problem of morality. On the other hand from the very beginning of childhood we got used to understand that dark and black is something evil and white is good and always wins the everlasting battle. If we consider this fact, the reader can arrive at the idea that black people are evil and white are good. From the text this opinion is brightly expressed by the jury. He walked slowly up and down in front of the jury, and the jury seemed to be attentive. I guess it was because Tactics was t a thundered. All these stylistic devices such as the antithesis up and down, the assonance of the sounds: a/o/I/, rhythm was because/ and the Indianapolis (the jury) reveal the indirect meaning. The usage of the constriction Seemed to (be attentive) signifies that the juries have already made their final decision about this case and no one even Tactics- the fighter for the truth can change the course of events. They are truly believe that a lie as black as Tom Robinson ;s skin. A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson. The foreman handed a piece of paper to Mr..

energy crisis essays

energy crisis essays Late in the autumn of 1973, energy (or the lack of it) grabbed headlines like never before. It was not until the war between the Arab countries and Israel that the United States noticed a sharp decrease in our oil supplies. This was due to the fact that we - the U.S. - were supplying aids and weapons to Israel. Arab, who produced the majority of the worlds oil, decided to punish us by cutting off our oil shipments. In November of the same year, President Nixon appeared on live television to inform the United States public about the crisis. He informed the people they were going to have the most crucial energy shortage since World War II. In order to conserve energy there were a few emergency polies being enforced. These new rules were said to help everyone get through the shortage, but they ended up having the opposite effect. A few of the policies included lowering highway speed limits to 55 miles per hour in hopes of saving gasoline. Also, factories worked shorter shifts and air travel time was cut by about 10 percent. During this time, children were effected a lot. Nixon ordered that clocks were not to be turned back an hour late as they usually were in October. Instead, the U.S. was to stay on summers daylight savings time in order to conserve energy. Therefore, kids had to go to school when it was still dark. Some children carried with them flashlights. Christmas was a very sad time in 1973. People were unable to use Christmas lights or any other electronic decorations in order to save energy. The President announced that because of the crisis, the lights of the national Christmas tree would not be turned on. Increase of prices made it hard for families to buy things and pay bills. Demand for oil created hardships for gas station owners as well. There were long lines of cars snaking for miles, and impatient drivers starting fights and sometimes shooting one another. ...