Responsibilities of Non-Profit Health Care Organizations Research Paper

Responsibilities of Non-Profit Health Care Organizations - Research Paper Example This would involve trying to understand whether there is a better intervention strategy than closing down the clinic. The fourth step would involve identifying the ethical concepts and whether they affect the ethical thinking of management (Nelson, 2005). The other step would be to try and come up with an alternative course of action. Lastly the organization would list down the proposal and select the most appropriate one. In this case, the hospital has an option of using the resources from the other two clinics to support the operations of these clinics. With other clinics performing beyond the expectations, the management should use some of the money to ensure that this clinic is not closed down. This is because closing down the clinic will be unethical because the people have been relying on it for a long time (American College of Healthcare Executives, 2011). The three clinics are helping MMC maintain its tax-exempt status. This is because it offers services to the local population at very low costs. MMC has an option of using money saved from tax-exemption to revive the clinic or use the returns of other clinics to support the ailing clinic. I would use the money saved to support the activities of the clinic. This is because closing it down will not be an ethical intervention especially while putting into perspective the needs of the people (GAO, 2008). It is not acceptable for the hospital to offer just minor services for free in order to maintain its status. As a result, better parameters should be put in place to ensure that services rendered are worth tax-exemption. GAO. (2008). Report to the Ranking Member, Committee on Finance, U.S. Senate:NONPROFIT HOSPITALS Variation in Standards and Guidance Limits Comparison of How Hospitals Meet Community Benefit Requirements. Retrieved from United States Government Accountability Office website:

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, ex rel. MICHAEL OCONNELL v. ROBERT TURNER, Essay Example for Free

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, ex rel. MICHAEL OCONNELL v. ROBERT TURNER, Essay Opinion: mr. Justice thornton delivered the opinion of the Court: By the order of this court, the writ of habeas corpus was issued, commanding Robert Turner, superintendent of the reform school of the city of Chicago, to show cause for the caption and detention of Daniel OConnell. The petition of Michael OConnell represents, that he is the father of Daniel, a boy between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and that he is restrained of his liberty contrary to the law, without conviction of crime, and under color of the following mittimus: STATE OF ILLINOIS, COOK COUNTY. ss. Superior Court of Cook county. Of the Sept. Term, A. D. 1870. The People of the State of Illinois to the Superintendent of the Reform School of the city of Chicago: Greeting: We do hereby command you, that you take the body of Daniel OConnell, a boy above the age of six and under the age of sixteen years, who, upon due examination by the Hon. Wm. A. Porter, one of the judges of the Superior Court of Cook county, has been found, by competent evidence, to be a proper subject for commitment in the said reform school, and whose moral welfare  and the good of society require that he should be sent to said school for instruction, employment and reformation, and that you confine the said Daniel OConnell within the said reform school, according to the statute in such cases made and provided, and for so doing, this shall be your sufficient warrant. To the sheriff of Cook county to execute. Witness, Augustus Jacobson, clerk of our said Superior Court, and the seal thereof, this ninth day of September, A. D. 1870. A. JACOBSON, Clerk. The return is, that the boy had been detained by authority of the mittimus, which accompanied the petition, the original of which was filed with an endorsement thereon by the sheriff of its due execution, by the delivery of the body of the prisoner to the superintendent of the reform school. It is admitted, that the relator is the father of the boy, alleged to be restrained of his liberty, and that he is of the age stated. The only question for determination, is the power of the legislature to pass the laws, under which this boy was arrested and confined. The first act, in relation to this reform school, is a part of the charter of the city of Chicago, approved February 13, 1863, and the second is entitled, an act in reference to the reform school of the city of Chicago, approved March 5, 1867. The first section establishes a school for the safe keeping, education, employment and reformation of all children between the ages of six and sixteen years, who are destitute of proper parental care, and growing up in mendicancy, ignorance, idleness or vice. Section four, of the act of 1867, provides, that whenever any police magistrate, or justice of the peace, shall have brought before him any boy or girl, within the ages of six or sixteen years, who he has reason to believe is a vagrant, or is destitute of proper parental care, or is growing up in mendicancy, ignorance, idleness or vice, he shall cause such boy or girl to be arrested, and, together with the witnesses, taken before one of the judges of the superior or circuit court of Cook county. The judge is empowered to issue a summons, or order in writing, to the childs father, mother, guardian, or whosoever may have the care of the child, in the order named, and if there be none such, to any person, at his discretion, to appear, at a time and place mentioned, and show cause why the child should not be committed to the reform school, and upon return of due service of the summons, an investigation shall be had. HN2The section then directs, if, upon such examination, such judge shall be of opinion that said boy or girl is a proper subject for commitment to the reform school, and that his or her moral welfare, and the good of society, require that he or she should be sent to said school for employment, instruction and reformation, he shall so decide, and direct the clerk of the court of which he is judge, to make out a warrant of commitment to said reform school; and such child shall thereupon be committed. Section nine, of the act of 1863, directs, that all persons between six and sixteen years of age, convicted of crime punishable by fine or imprisonment, who, in the opinion of the court, would be proper subjects for commitment, shall be committed to said school. Section ten authorizes the confinement of the children, and that they shall be kept, disciplined, instructed, employed and governed, until they shall be reformed and discharged, or shall have arrived at the age of twenty-one years; and that the sole authority to discharge shall be in the board of guardians. The warrant of commitment does not indicate that the arrest was made for a criminal offense. Hence, we conclude that it was issued under the general grant of power, to arrest and confine for misfortune. The contingencies enumerated, upon the happening of either of which the power may be exercised, are vagrancy, destitution of proper parental care, mendicancy, ignorance, idleness or vice. Upon proof of any one, the child is deprived of home, and parents, and friends, and confined for more than half of an ordinary life. It is claimed, that the law is administered for the moral welfare and intellectual improvement of the minor, and the good of society. From the record before us, we know nothing of the management. We are only informed that a father desires the custody of his child; and that he is restrained of his liberty. Therefore, we can only look at the language of the law, and the power granted. What is proper parental care? The best and kindest parents would differ, in the attempt to solve the question. No two scarcely agree; and when we consider the watchful supervision, which is so unremitting over the domestic affairs of others, the conclusion is forced upon us, that there is not a child in the land who could not be proved, by two or more witnesses, to be in this sad condition. Ignorance, idleness, vice, are relative terms. Ignorance is always preferable to error, but, at most, is only venial. It may be general or it may be limited. Though it is sometimes said, that idleness is the parent of vice, yet the former may exist without the latter. It is strictly an abstinence from labor or employment. If the child perform all its duties to parents and to society, the State has no right to compel it to labor. Vice is a very comprehensive term. Acts, wholly innocent in the estimation of many good men, would, according to the code of ethics of others, show fearful depravity. What is the standard to be? What extent of enlightenment, what amount of industry, what degree of virtue, will save from the threatened imprisonment? In our solicitude to form youth for the duties of civil life, we should not forget the rights which inhere both in parents and children. The principle of the absorption of the child in, and its complete subjection to the despotism of, the State, is wholly inadmissible in the modern civilized world. The parent has the right to the care, custody and assistance of his child. The duty to maintain and protect it, is a principle of natural law. He may even justify an assault and battery, in the defense of his children, and  uphold them in their law suits. Thus the law recognizes the power of parental affection, and excuses acts which, in the absence of such a relation, would be punished. Another branch of parental duty, strongly inculcated by writers on natural law, is the education of children. To aid in the performance of these duties, and enforce obedience, parents have authority over them. The municipal law should not disturb this relation, except for the strongest reasons. The case with which it may be disrupted under the laws in question; the slight evidence required, and the informal mode of procedure, make them conflict with the natural right of the parent. Before any abridgment of the right, gross misconduct or almost total unfitness on the part of the parent, should be clearly proved. This power is an emanation from God, and every attempt to infringe upon it, except from dire necessity, should be resisted in all well governed States. In this country, the hope of the child, in respect to its education and future advancement, is mainly dependent upon the father; for this he struggles and toils through life; the desire of its accomplishment operating as one of the most powerful incentives to industry and thrift. The violent abruption of this relation would not only tend to wither these motives to action, but necessarily, in time, alienate the fathers natural affections. But even the power of the parent must be exercised with moderation. He may use correction and restraint, but in a reasonable manner. He has the right to enforce only such discipline, as may be necessary to the discharge of his sacred trust; only moderate correction and temporary confinement. We are not governed by the twelve tables, which formed the Roman law. The fourth table gave fathers the power of life and death, and of sale, over their children. In this age and country, such provisions would be atrocious. If a father confined or imprisoned his child for one year, the majesty of the law would frown upon the unnatural act, and every tender mother and kind father would rise up in arms against such monstrous inhumanity. * Can the State, as parens patriae, exceed the power of the natural parent, except in punishing crime? Footnotes * See the case of Fletcher et al. v. The People, holding that the father may be indicted and punished for inhuman treatment of his child. End Footnotes- These laws provide for the safe keeping of the child; they direct his commitment, and only a ticket of leave, or the uncontrolled discretion of a board of guardians, will permit the imprisoned boy to breathe the pure air of heaven outside his prison walls, and to feel the instincts of manhood by contact with the busy world. The mittimus terms him a proper subject for commitment; directs the superintendent to take his body, and the sheriff endorses upon it, executed by delivering the body of the within named prisoner. The confinement may be from one to fifteen years, according to the age of the child. Executive clemency can not open the prison doors, for no offense has been committed. The writ of habeas corpus, a writ for the security of liberty, can afford no relief, for the sovereign power of the State, as parens patriae, has determined the imprisonment beyond recall. Such a restraint upon natural liberty is tyranny and oppression. If, without crime, without the conviction of any offense, the children of the State are to be thus confined for the good of society, then society had better be reduced to its original elements, and free government acknowledged a failure. In cases of writs of habeas corpus to bring up infants, there are other rights beside the rights of the father. If improperly or illegally restrained, it is our duty, ex debito justitiae, to liberate. The welfare and rights of the child are also to be considered. The disability of minors does not make slaves or criminals of them. They are entitled to legal rights, and are under legal liabilities. An implied contract for necessaries is binding on them. The only act which they are under a legal incapacity to perform, is the appointment of an attorney. All their other acts are merely voidable or confirmable. They are liable for torts, and punishable for crime. Lord Kenyon said, If an infant commit an assault, or utter slander, God forbid that he should not be answerable for it, in a court of justice. Every child over ten years of age may be found guilty of crime. For robbery, burglary or arson, any minor may be sent to the penitentiary. Minors are  bound to pay taxes for the support of the government, and constitute a part of the militia, and are compelled to endure the hardship and privation of a soldiers life, in defense of the constitution and the laws; and yet it is assumed, that to them, liberty is a mere chimera. It is something of which they may have dreamed, but have never enjoyed the fruition. Can we hold children responsible for crime; liable for their torts; impose onerous burdens upon them, and yet deprive them of the enjoyment of liberty, without charge or conviction of crime? The bill of rights declares, that all men are, by nature, free and independent, and have certain inherent and inalienable rightsamong these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This language is not restrictive; it is broad and comprehensive, and declares a grand truth, that all men, all people, everywhere, have the inherent and inalienable right to liberty. Shall we say to the children of the State, you shall not enjoy this righta right independent of all human laws and regulations? It is declared in the constitution; is higher than constitution and law, and should be held forever sacred. Even criminals can not be convicted and imprisoned without due process of lawwithout a regular trial, according to the course of the common law. Why should minors be imprisoned for misfortune? Destitution of proper parental care, ignorance, idleness and vice, are misfortunes, not crimes. In all criminal prosecutions against minors, for grave and heinous offenses, they have the right to demand the nature and cause of the accusation, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury. All this must precede the final commitment to prison. Why should children, only guilty of misfortune, be deprived of liberty without due process of law? It can not be said, that in this case, there is no imprisonment. This boy is deprived of a fathers care; bereft of home influences; has no freedom of action; is committed for an uncertain time; is branded as a prisoner; made subject to the will of others, and thus feels that he is a slave. Nothing could more contribute to paralyze the youthful energies, crush all noble aspirations, and unfit him for the duties of manhood. Other means of a milder character; other influences of a more kindly nature; other laws less  in restraint of liberty, would better accomplish the reformation of the depraved, and infringe less upon inalienable rights. It is a grave responsibility to pronounce upon the acts of the legislative department. It is, however, the solemn duty of the courts to adjudge the law, and guard, when assailed, the liberty of the citizen. The constitution is the highest law; it commands and protects all. Its declaration of rights is an express limitation of legislative power, and as the laws under which the detention is had, are in conflict with its provisions, we must so declare. It is therefore ordered, that Daniel OConnell be discharged from custody. Discharged.

oxygen :: essays research papers fc

Oxygen   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Oxygen Atomic number8Atomic weight15.9994Melting point-218.4oC (-361.1oF) Boiling point-183.0oC (-297.4oF) Density (1 atom, 0oC) 1.429 g/lValence2electronic config.2-6 or 1s22s22p4.Oxygen is one of the must important factors that made it possible for life to exist in this planet. Oxygen is also one of the elements must found in earth. Oxygen can be found in in metals, water, and even the one thin that protects us from the powerful sunrays. Oxygen is a very unstable element, which makes it easy to make compounds with other elements creating different kinds of solids and liquids. Oxygen is found in the air as O2, and found in the ozone as O3. Oxygen is essential to all planets’ life. The Discovery of Oxygen   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On August 1, 1774, Joseph Priestly examined the effect of intense heat on mercuric oxide. He noted that an air or gas was readily expelled from the specimen. To his surprise a candle burned in this with a remarkably vigorous flame. He called this new substance dephlogisticated air in terms of the current chemical theory of combustion. When he went to Paris on 1775 he showed his discovery to Antoine Lavoisier. When Antoine examined the gas he found that dephlogisticated air combined with metals and other substance. Because some of the compounds form acids he called the gas Oxygen form the Greek words for sour and I Produce.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Oxygen in the Atmosphere   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Atmosphere surrounding the earth is a mechanical mixture of gases. The most important of these gases are oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. Oxygen is the essential element for life. It is odorless, colorless, tasteless, and slightly heavier than air. The chief commercial source of oxygen is the atmosphere. Oxygen may be separated from the mixture of gases that make up the atmosphere. This is done by physical means by subjecting air to very high pressures and low temperatures until a point is reached where it passes form the gaseous into the liquid state. Than the liquid is introduce to some warm, so that nitrogen, which has a lower boiling point then oxygen, evaporates off. Oxygen as first prepared by heating certain metals oxides, including mercury oxide. Ozone   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ozone (O3), named for the Greek word for â€Å"smell,† is a poisonous, colorless and tasteless gas with a distinctive smell. Molecules of ozone are probably the source of the smell that can be detected close to working electrical equipment such as motors and TVs.

Analysis of Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Essay

Abstract Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is a report used by cities, and local governments to provide the public with their financial records each year, while adhering to government accounting standards board (GASB) guidelines. The report presents a comprehensive picture of the reporting entity’s financial condition, it provides how funds are spent and allocated throughout the year. Introduction I will be covering the Carlsbad CAFR for year ended 2011. The Beautiful city of Carlsbad is located along the coast of southern California. Carlsbad is known for its beautiful beaches, and lagoons which cover 1,000 Acres of nature preserves and hiking trails. Its history dates back to 1700, before becoming part of the United States, it was a territory of Spain and then Mexico, the shoreline of Carlsbad’s coastal lagoon was home to the indigenous Luiseno and Diegueà ±os Indians for centuries before the arrival of  the Spaniards (City of Carlsbad, n.d.). The current population of the city is approximately 107,000 residents; total area is 42 Sq. Miles (City of Carlsbad, n.d). The cities top business consists of hospitality, life science, sporting goods and recreation, and telecommunications. The city provides a wide range of services to residents such as; police, fire, infrastructure, and general administration, the CAFR provides detailed information about how these services are funded, and the type of the governmental funds allocated for these services. The city exhibits accountability and honesty by sharing the CAFR with its residents, in turn this builds trust in the residents toward their city, trust in that their hard earn money is being used in the appropriate services, and these funds are put back in to the maintenance and development of their communities. I will be presenting an analysis of Carlsbad’s comprehensive annual financial report for year ended 2011. The report consists of three sections that are introductory, financial, and statistical. Introductory Analysis The introductory for the city Carlsbad’s CAFR begins with a five-year vision statement, it is general vision statement, I find this very encouraging, and reassuring to present it before going into depth with the report. It includes the city’s economic goal, programs, policies, and decisions to be implemented by the city’s officials; it also lists the type of leadership, the open government policy, and they type of environmental services and how they are managed. Then one can find the Letter of Transmittal presented by the city’s finance department, addressed to the mayor, city council and citizens of Carlsbad. The letter is to explain why the CAFR is prepared, what is included in the CAFR, the guidelines followed such as Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and that GASB requirements were preserved in the report; the finance department received an auditing from the independent auditing firm Mayer Hoffman McCann, they also included where the resu lts of the auditing can be located which I will cover in the financial analysis later on. In addition the letter offers an audited governments internal control and compliance with legal requirements were in place. The letter also includes a profile of the city, stating the population, geographical location of the city, a section about the city of  Carlsbad community vision, budget process that explains priority projects for the city, and budgetary controls. Followed by factors affecting financial condition, in this section there are Economic profile, long term financial planning, and cash management. Economic profile covers economic strengths and weakness of the city, the city shows improvement in most of its General fund revenues, and is expecting to increase by $ 2.3 Million or 2.1 percent in fiscal year 2011-12, also weakness in residential housing market affected by property tax and 0.2 percent decrease is anticipated in coming year (City of Carlsbad, n.d.) One of the leading factors to the economic crisis in the United States was the housing market, this had affected Carlsbad negatively, house prices fell like many cities in the country, 8 percent in Carlsbad compare to last year, and the following is a chart showing the trend in housing prices in the city (City of Carlsbad, n.d.) Long term financial planning is states that it is the City’s Council’s goal to ensure that they city remains in good financial health, and the city has taken a number of steps to attain this goal, setting forth Growth Management Plan, the plan was adopted by the citizens, the plan ensures that all the necessary public facilities are either constructed along with development or that a financing plan is in place to pay for the facilities prior to the development of the property ,to ensure this plan is effective, an Infrastructure Replacement Fund was created, this fund sets aside money on a yearly basis for major maintenance and replacement of its infrastructure(City of Carlsbad, n.d.). The creation of this fun is a brilliant idea, so when the time come to make the necessary improvement the city would have the money ready, and it would not have to transfer money from other governmental funds. As the economy expected to slowly recover, and provide to support to the largest aspect of our economy, the housing market. The General fund revenue will continue to cover the ongoing cost as seen in the following graph (City of Carlsbad, n.d). The last part of the letter was informative about cash management, major initiatives and projects. The cash management section covers the investment programs, its procedures as well as its objectives. The major initiatives  and projects section goes in to detail about the upcoming projects, it also provides developments and the maintenance of these projects that are designed to strengthen and improve the community. Followed by the letter of transmittal are the Awards and acknowledgments, the government finance officers association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) awarded the city of Carlsbad the certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting to the city of Carlsbad for its CAFR. (City of Carlsbad, n.d.). A webpage called Carlsbadistan which is dedicated to new, events, and all things Carlsbad, stated that city of Carlsbad had been awarded for the 11th time the GFOA during 2009, with this CAFR dating June, 30 2011, this award would be the 12th award received by the city. The Introductory section concludes with a list of the city’s elected officials, leadership team, chairpersons, commissions and boards, and finally an organization chart of electorate. I found the introductory section and the information presented to be very well put, educational, easy to read and follow, the statistical numbers presented in the economic section, the cash management and investments were informative. This city has earned the 12th GFOA awards received, because they simplified yet very complex information that is presented year after year in the CAFR. Financial Analysis The financial section of the CAFR for the city of Carlsbad lists and analyzes the components of financial information for the city, which helps the reader understand the financial condition of the city for the year ended and the projected budgetary for the following year. This section includes Independent Auditors’ report, Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A), and financial analysis of the city’s funds. The Independent Auditors’ report main purpose is to examine the financial information presented in the city’s financial statements, the independent auditors concluded the city’s governmental activities, business-type activities, and each major fund was represented in a fair matter, also in compliance with generally accepted accounting principles as of June 30, 2011. MD&A part includes an overview of financial statements, with a chart of the statements, it is informative about the type of financial statements such as Government-Wide fina ncial statements (â€Å"which are intended to provide  aggregated overview of a government’s net assets and changes in net assets†) (Wilson, E.R., Reck, J.L., & Kattelus), and fund financial statements, I thought it breaks down and simplifies the purpose of these statements in financial reporting. Particularly in the Changes in net assets, this has general overview revenues and expenses from 2010-2011, with 11.5% decline from previous year, 2011 revenue is 217.2 (Governmental activities 152.4 and Business-type activities), while expenses 26.1 had an increase of 1.4 %( Governmental activities 21.8 and Business activities 4.3). The chart for sources of revenue can be found in this section, the following are the sources of revenue for fiscal year 2010-2011 amounted to $217.2 Million, the breakdown was as followed: Contributions from property owners 11%, property taxes 26%, income from property & investments 5%, other taxes 4%, sales taxes 4% federal aid 4%, and finally the biggest contributor to revenue was charges for services 31%(City of Carlsbad, n.d.) The following is an overview of the Governmental and Business- type activities on page 25. Governmental activities had an increase in net assets of $21.8 Million, the increase was generated by total revenues of governmental activities of $ 152.2 Million ( $42.7 million in program revenues and $109.5 million in general revenues) offset by $130.3 million in total costs of governmental activities and $ 135,000 transfer to the solid waste fun ( City of Carlsbad, n.d.) And for those who are visual learner like me, here is the visual aid to show the breakdown of the Governmental activities program revenues and expenses (City of Carlsbad, n.d.) Business-type Activities components are water, golf course, wastewater, and solid waste, for these program revenues totaled $56.5 million for the year, and functional expenses $60.8 million(City of Carlsbad, n.d.). Financial Analysis of the city’s funds provides information regarding Governmental funds and Proprietary funds. Governmental funds are near-term, inflows, outflows and balances of spendable resources that are essential for assessing the city’s financing requirements. Under the Governmental funds one can find the General fund statement of revenue, expenditures, and changes in fund balance, the city’s revenue and expenditure for 2011 were as followed; Revenues saw an increase of 2.6% from previous year, total $111.6 Million, largest element of the revenue was taxes at $95.5 Million. Whereas  Expenditures largest element was public safety $44.2 Million, total expenses were 102.1 an there was an increase 1.0%. Ending fund balance in the statement was $13 0.4Million (City of Carlsbad, n.d.). As for the purpose Proprietary Funds in addition to operating revenues and expenses, is to provide short and long term financial information about the city’s Business-type activities, the operating revenues were $35.1 Million which exceeded operating expenses that were $747,000, this increase was due to the increase in water sales revenue to rates (City of Carlsbad, n.d.). This increase has a bitter sweet side to it, in one hand in revenue is a sign that the city is doing great under light of this depressive economy, on the other hand citizens of this could use a break from these increasing rates. Before moving on to the statements the city listed the contact information for the city’s financial management for questions about CAFR. Notes to financial Statements begin on page 59 of the report, it includes when the city was incorporated, a description and scopes of the reporting entity which have several components, I consider it a great way of presenting a conclusion for the report, it presents some of the information presents earlier in the report, such as Governmental wide and fund financial statements, the notes states why they reported and how they were reported. Also lists the type of the governmental funds included in the report such as general funds, and redevelopment debt service funds, as a reader I appreciated how each of these funds were defined and actually listed. In addition a list of the enterprise fund were introduced in this section, describing what they are for example Carlsbad municipal water district, golf course, waste water, and so on, and where are those funds allocated. Financial Standing Overview of the city’s financing over the past 10 fiscal years shows that the city has been doing great, and is experiencing a growth considering the tough economic situation the country has been facing, looking at the total net assets supports that growth. In 2002, city of Carlsbad had $740,000 in total net assets, while in 2011 the total net assets were $17Million (Carlsbad CAFR 2011, 120) I think one of the main reasons the economy in this city is holding up relatively well, is due to the housing market, the city location is the main factor why a lot of home buyers gravitate towards  it. Conclusion The CAFR for the city of Carlsbad was exceptionally interesting, informative, and easy to read and follow. Now wonder this city has earned the GFOA for consecutive 12 years. The introductory, financial and statistical sections had graphs and charts to explain and show how funds for this city was spent, which more so help the visual learners in the public to grasp the complicated accounting components of the report. References 1- The city of Carlsbad CAFR webpage http://www.carlsbadca.gov/services/departments/finance/Documents/2011%20CAFR.pdf 2- Carlsbadistan web page http://www.carlsbadistan.com/?p=5623 3- Accounting for Governmental and Nonprofit Entities(15th edition) 4- APA Reference Guide http://datel200.nu.edu/web/documents/APA.pdf

Speech notes

Some speeches may, in fact, last those agonizing 52 minutes; however, some speeches last only moments. Remember when the dean of your college got up to Introduce the speaker? That was a speech, too. I'm sure that one was much more brief. There are three mall types of speeches that you likely see on a regular basis. Let's take a look at each of those speeches now. Informative Speeches Imagine sitting in the audience of a large lecture hall listening to your professor talk about the theory of relativity.It may sound like confusing words to many, but what he is really doing is giving an informational speech. This kind of speech is delivered mostly to convey information to the audience about something they don't already now. There are a few types of informational speeches: Speeches about objects Speeches about events Speeches about processes Speeches about concepts When a public speaker talks about things that can inspire your senses, like touch, smell or feel, it is a speech about objec ts and involves talking about things in the sensory and physical world.Maybe he is talking about the way a spider looks or the way freshly snipped herbs smell. It may even be a speech about your favorite president. Either way, the speech is written to appeal to the senses. Some speeches are written to inform people of a current or past happening. This Is a speech about an event, and it is meant to bring people up to speed on things that have, are or will be going on in the world. Upon taking the presidential oath, a newly elected president will give his Inaugural Address, where he tells the citizens of the united States his plans for his term.This speech Is done to get the nation excited about the prospect of a new president. A cooking demonstration Is a good example of a speech about processes because It instructs the audience on how to do something through a process. So, the next time you happen to pass a gourmet store and see a chef showing onlookers how to make manmade pasta, kn ow you are listening to a speech designed to show you how to do something step by step. To talk. Some are speeches about concepts, written about theoretical ideas and notions, like world peace, freedom or love.Unlike the other types of informative speeches, this type of speech is intangible. As with any of the informative speeches, they should be written as topical (or by topic), chronological (or by date) or spatial (or how things physically fit together). A writer may use a topical organization if writing about types of wines. The writer may start with a wine type, then go into region and then grape varieties. Chronological organization would most likely be used when writing about an event, such as events that led up to the Civil Rights Act.When writing about things to do in Miami Beach, a writer may break down the area to a few important sightseeing locales and then list important places of interest for each. Not all speeches are informative. For instance, persuasive speech writi ng is a little different. Persuasive Speech So, you get roped into attending a How To Get Rich in Real Estate seminar. After a few minutes, you realize that the lecture is less about real estate and more about buying he speaker's set of CDC and books on tape.Likely, this was a persuasive speech, and it is designed to change a group's thinking or behavior. This type of speech is often used in sales and advertising to get people to buy things. A persuasive speech could be an emotional appeal, where the speaker attempts to elicit sensitivity from the group, or it could be a logical appeal, where the speaker wants the audience to rely on their own reasoning to make a decision. A speech about hunger in America may pull at your heartstrings and make you quickly dial a number to send money.That is a purely emotional decision based on the persuasive talk of the speaker. Choosing a good acne cream based on product facts and before and after visuals might muster up some attention because the audience is asked to use logic to decide whether the product works. If the visuals show a clearer face after use, soundness may say the product is good. Of course, some speeches are not meant to change anything. They are mostly Just for fun, and that is when special occasion speeches are used. Special Occasion Speech So, you're the best man at your friend's wedding.That means you have to arrange the bachelor party, buy a tuxedo and worst of all -give a speech. With a lump in your throat and a shaky hand, you begin talking. What you are doing is giving a special occasion speech, and it is generally done to toast a celebration or commemorate some special event. This type of speech usually does not require major research, and there is no formal style of execution. It is done as a means of rejoicing at a fun event. The only rule to a festive get together, keep it brief, and the audience will most likely refrain from throwing things at you.

Drugs in the work place essays

Drugs in the work place essays Drug Addiction in the School and Work Place How has work efficiency changed as a result of drug addiction in the sch a couool and work place? In the 1960 and 1970's, men and women worked long hours to support their family. For many, these strenuous hours were hard to handle without taking drugs. The use of "uppers" and "downers" was then considered a way to tolerate those long work hours. To this date, the concern of drugs being used for work efficiency persists among adults who work long late hours, teens with an influenced drug addiction, and also the health concerns which occur because of the use of drugs. There are various drugs which have the effect of making the user alert or drowsy when taken. Valium and Ritalin are just a couple examples of the prescription drugs orally taken for specific effects. In the early-mid twentieth century, men and women worked overtime, or even three or four jobs, just to get through life. They got back home late at night and had to wake early the next morning to do it all again. Because of the lack of sleep, they took "uppers" in the morning to be alert and "downers" at night to get rest. Please take note that they also drank coffee throughout the day along with the use of these drugs. The adults who had children during this time greatly influenced them with the sight of their drug addiction. The adult's pill taking drew forth a curiosity in their children. They wondered what the pills do to make their parents take them every single day. At one point, the children's interest grew so greatly as to make them want to try the drugs. So the children, especially teens, began pilfering some "uppers" and "downers"out of sheer interest to experiment with them. The drugs seemed to be "cool" for the teens and their stealing of them increased greatly. They then started taking the drugs to school because of a grown addiction to them. Other teens were also ...

Colonialism 2

Colonialism 2 The relationship between core and periphery nations can be observed by looking at the experiences of the people in the books, "Nectar In A Sieve" by Kamala Merkandaya and "Don't Be Afraid Gringo" by Media Benjamin. In both the books Rukmani and Elvia narrate the changes caused by the various stages of capitalism brought by Great Britain in India and by the United States in Honduras respectively. The core periphery relations between these countries lead to many societal problems and these two women deal with these problems, especially the issues pertaining to land and education.In both Rukmani and Elvia's case land was the most important resource required for producing staples, which was used as a source of revenue and food. Education, in this context refers to the level of awareness people had about the influence of core countries on the peripheral nations and how the people viewed this dependency.Montaà ±as de la Sierra de Agalta, Olancho. Hondura...Rukmani and her family lived und er a feudalistic system and the arrival of the British tannery resulted in segregated industrialization in a rice farming village which led to family disintegration, abuse of power and land and to a minor decrease in feudalism. It also led to a shift from peasantry to proletariats. Elvia lived in a semi-feudalistic system in Honduras with highly unequal distribution of land and wealth. The whole of Honduras, including various institutions like the Government and the church were under the influence of the U.S who with their political and economic influence used Honduras for the extraction of resources and also for its own political security in the North American continent.In "Nectar In A Sieve" Rukmani was married to a tenant farmer called Nathan who worked on rice fields and earned his livelihood by selling his harvest to the landlord. He did...

Gradable Words

Gradable Words Gradable Words Gradable Words By Mark Nichol Many adjectives have degrees of grade or intensity: big (adjective), bigger (comparative adjective), and biggest (superlative adjective), for examples of varying grades, or loud (adjective), louder (comparative adjective), and loudest (superlative adjective) as various levels of intensity. Others, however, have no variation: You cannot (notwithstanding the poetic license of the US Constitution’s â€Å"a more perfect union†) be perfecter than someone else or be the perfectest of all. Such terms, classified as nongradable adjectives, are called absolutes: Just as one cannot be the perfectest person, one cannot be very unique or more correct, or the most unique or correct. Despite the definitive term absolute, however, there is a little wiggle room: When absolutes become modifiers or are themselves otherwise modified, the rules are relaxed: Someone can be more uniquely situated than someone else, or more politically correct. Likewise, terms that seem absolute something can’t be more excellent or more impossible than sometime else aren’t necessarily so: You can say that an experience was quite excellent or that a task was nearly impossible. (These, however, are qualitative, not quantitative, grades. You can measure that something is hotter than something else, but you can’t quantify excellence or possibility. Probability, yes; possibility, no.) Other absolutes include references to states of being, as with alive and dead and white and black, words that express extremes of size such as gigantic and minuscule, terms that refer to polar opposites of quality, like terrible and terrific, and those that indicate outliers of emotion: furious, overjoyed, distraught. Some words that can be used in the same situations are not necessarily interchangeable: For example, as mentioned above, hot is gradable (hot, hotter, hottest, or â€Å"very hot† or the like), but freezing, even though it can be substituted, without modifiers, for hot, is nongradable: â€Å"It’s really freezing† is a plausible informal comment, but it’s not a factual statement, and â€Å"It’s more freezing than it was earlier† is illogical. Some adjectives are gradable or nongradable depending on meaning. For example, though you can refer to an elderly man who owns property as a very old landlord, it’s incorrect to use the phrase â€Å"very old landlord† to refer to a landlord you had a long time ago; the phrase â€Å"old landlord† cannot be intensified to convey a significant passage of time since the pertinent state of â€Å"landlord† (as in â€Å"my landlord†) existed. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Definitely use "the" or "a"Do you "orient" yourself, or "orientate" yourself?The "Pied" in The Pied Piper

Advertisement Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Advertisement Analysis - Essay Example The changing marketing trend over the past few years depicts that technology has contributed to increasing specificity and message conveyance through advertisements (Stuart 90-103). Advertising generally aims towards conveying the right kind of information to the public about a product at the right time and through the right medium. Pictorial advertisements convey multiple coded messages that forms a part of a brand’s marketing and advertisement strategies. Additionally, evaluation of pictorial advertisements effectively through encoding or decoding as well as sociological perspective of consumption and lifestyle helps in having a logical meaning about the message communicated (Stuart 90-103). Pictorial advertisement is an important mean of communicating information relating to products and/or services offered by an organisation to customers successfully. Pictorial advertisements aid in attracting customers towards products along with a brand. The target market also forms a vital aspect of the market communication process. For instance, advertisement for a sports car will gradually aim towards the younger generation rather than the older generation. Similarly, Apple phones being niche products gradually target high end customer rather than the mid range customers (Stuart 90-103). The product chosen is Taina (tea product). The brand wants to position the product on certain criteria and communicate related information to the customers in the form of pictorial representations. The detailed elaborations of these pictorial advertisement messages have been elaborated hereunder. Pictorial Description 1. The first pictorial description (refer to pictorial description 1 in the appendix), one can be state that the brand wants to position Taina tea product within the niche category. From the pictorial description, it can also be understood that the product represents itself as a necessary

Gas turbine science Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gas turbine science - Coursework Example .. 3 2.1.2 Compressor †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 3 2.1.3 Combustion chamber †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 4 2.1.4 Turbine †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 4 2.1.5 Exhaust nozzle †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 4 2.2 Turbofan Theory †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 2.2.1 Fluid mechanics †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 5 2.2.2 Thermodynamics †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 6 Works Cited †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 7 Gas Turbine Design One of the technological leaps in the history of science that led us to a wide spectrum of newer prospects of energy production and transportation was that of the gas turbines engines or what we simply call gas turbines. Today, they have developed into more efficient and dependable machines and have surpassed other types of mechanical prime movers, such as internal combustion engines, both in efficiency and mechanical robustness. The aim of this report is to explore the design ideas and scientific and thermodynamic principles that have helped us develop these valuable machines. Our study will revolve around the design of a turbofan that is a type of gas turbine engine commonly used in airplanes and energy production. 1. The Turbofan Turbofan is a type of gas turbine engine that itself is a common type of air-breathing engine. In order to understand its design, its construction and the function of its important components should be understood. The important parts of a turbofan are as follows: 1. Inlet 2. Compressor 3. Combustor 4. Turbine 5. Exhaust nozzle Figure 1 shows the location of each of these components in a turbofan. To understand the importance and function of every component mentioned above, we will briefly describe the working principle of a turbofan. 1.1 Gas Turbine Operation The operation of an air breathing engine can be understood by looking at the path of the air through the engine and the temperature and pressure variations that it undergoes. Figure 1: Turbofan (2-spool) schematic. (Turbofan) Air from the atmosphere is received by the engine through its inlet and is di vided into bypass stream and the engine core stream. The fan along with the compressor increases the pressure of the air in order to enable a greater air mass flow rate through the engine core, which in turn in required for efficient fuel combustion and the production of sufficient thrust. The compressed air from the compressor is brought into the combustor – or the combustion chamber – where a fine stream of fuel is added into the compressed air and ignited using a flame torch setup. The temperature of the air rises substantially during combustion and as it tends to expand, it is directed towards the turbine which uses the energy of this very hot air to drive the compressor. The rest of the energy gained by the air makes it expel the exhaust nozzle at a high speed and provides the thrust required to accelerate the plane. 2. Design issues of the turbofan Having looked into the operation and role of every component in it, we can classify the design problems of a turbofa n into two categories: 1. Aerodynamics 2. Theory or Science Now we will delve deeper into these modes of design separately and identify the design complexities and the solutions that have been proposed to them. 2.1 Turbofan Aerodynamics

Discussion 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Discussion 9 - Essay Example enty, does not have any side effects or emissions and is not going to exhaust for another few million years, scientist are attempting to mimic the process of photosynthesis to generate energy. Artificial photosynthesis was performed in Edinburgh, Scotland (September, 2011) in order to get energy, to meet the escalating demand of energy (Styring, 2012). As photosynthesis is carried out in the plant cells it is difficult to meet the energy requirement of augmenting population. Photovoltaic cells or PV cells or solar cells generate electricity using sunlight as the source of energy. These cells are made up of solar panels to trap solar energy and convert it into electric energy which is utilized for various energy requiring processes. The process is environment friendly but these solar panels have to be modified to generate large amount of energy. Physicists are trying hard to utilize solar energy to its maximum and therefore solar plants are being encouraged where large number of solar panels in wide area are being affixed to trap maximum solar energy to generate electricity. Besides solar panels, solar lighting, solar pumps, solar chargers, solar fans, solar heaters for hot water are created and encouraged to have cost-effective renewable solar energy conversion into different forms of energy such as electrical energy, heat energy etc.("Solar Panels"). Trapping solar energy to generate various forms of energy is another way to imitate the process of photosynthesis. Plants are an inspiration for humans to make maximum use of natural energy source, the solar energy in the most advantageous

Critical review of Literature Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Critical review of Literature - Research Paper Example These factors mean that interventions for alcohol dependency in children and young people have to vary slightly from standard interventions. As a public health topic, alcohol dependency in this age group is important as it can help to normalize certain behaviours (Lembke, 2011), which may further the problem. Alcohol itself is one of the biggest burdens on the NHS, as it can lead to problems with the cardiovascular and digestive systems (Lembke, 2011), as well as causing dementia and related psychiatric problems. The purpose of this research is to explore which interventions for alcohol dependency in the 10-17 age bracket are most appropriate, and should inform policy guidelines on the matter. To do this, a critical review of the literature on the topic will be conducted. In this review, primary research on alcohol dependency in young people will be explored to show some of the most important issues that this age group has with alcohol dependency. This will highlight the important areas upon which to focus when considering interventions, and suggest areas that may be missing from current knowledge. Additionally, current policy guidelines in the UK will be analysed to ascertain whether they are appropriate when considered in light of the literature review. Literature published before 2002 was excluded from the literature review as it was deemed to be irrelevant and potentially out of date, particularly the information on guidelines. Literature that was included was judged to be the most relevant amongst the search results at that time when informing the research objectives. Alcohol dependency in children and young people is on the rise in the UK (NICE, 2011), and therefore has the potential to become a serious public health issue. Bonomo et al (2004) researched the relationship between alcohol dependency in those aged 14 to 15 and their

(whatever you want) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

(whatever you want) - Essay Example Because life will be less stressful, thanks to reduced traffic and a more pleasurable work environment, people will be much healthier when they reach retirement age than people in my parents’ generation. I will be able to stay active through most of my life, so when I don’t have to work at all anymore, I will still be in good shape to do things like wind surfing and skiing. Also, health will be improved if the country really turns to more green energy alternatives and the environment gets cleaned up. Less pollution in the air means we will have fewer cases of cancer and lung disease. People will be able to live much longer lives, particularly as medical knowledge and technology continues to be improved. In recent years, doctors have been taking a more holistic approach to medicine and this trend will probably continue so that a lot more will be known about human health by the time I retire. Since everyone will be living longer, either because they are able to stay healthier through most of their lives, because greater advances are made in medicine or because people won’t be as stressed out all the time, the demographic group will be very large. This may end up putting too much strain on the economy to try to maintain such a large population of retired people. For this reason, people like me who will probably be in better shape and still capable of working, might be expected to work much longer than the traditional retirement age of 65. This will probably be particularly true in fields like what I plan to go into, where work can be done from remote locations if necessary. Also, if the government decides to depend on nuclear power as a means of replacing fossil fuels, there will be a much greater chance that a dangerous accident might happen and make the atmosphere entirely toxic to people. Between that and the way that small and aggressive countries

Take home competent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Take home competent - Essay Example This helps people to live harmoniously and help each other towards achieving their dreams in life. Students studying in schools and collages from various parts will able to work together through even with difference in their culture in mind. Culture is pulled apart by several factors. These are what makes people of one place differ from those of another area based on what they practice. Language is the main cause of cultural differences. In this society, there are different ethnic speaking groups which all of them have their own unique language (Diller 2011). Some sub tribes believe they are dominant over the others, pulling them apart from the others. They cannot all speak the same language; therefore understanding each other becomes problematic in some places. Young children studying in different place from where they were born are faced with serious challenge when it gets to language issues. They are forced to undertake unites to get to know how to speak and write. This put them in back pedal gear and disadvantaged from those who understand. People who look for jobs in such places also find it hard to coup with it as they have to come to bar with the environment by first understanding the language (Diller 2011). This has been found to create gap among the citizens as they cannot work freely and harmoniously. Religion is another factor why culture is diverse in the society. Basically, there are about four major different religions. Christians, Muslims, Hindus and buddies which they all have they own believes and ways of doing things. Their values and practices are distinct such that even though all of them pray the same God; how they do it does not show that. Each one of them is guided by certain set rules which make them unique from the others. This pulls people apart since each group wants to do what is accepted in their religion and get

(whatever you want) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

(whatever you want) - Essay Example Because life will be less stressful, thanks to reduced traffic and a more pleasurable work environment, people will be much healthier when they reach retirement age than people in my parents’ generation. I will be able to stay active through most of my life, so when I don’t have to work at all anymore, I will still be in good shape to do things like wind surfing and skiing. Also, health will be improved if the country really turns to more green energy alternatives and the environment gets cleaned up. Less pollution in the air means we will have fewer cases of cancer and lung disease. People will be able to live much longer lives, particularly as medical knowledge and technology continues to be improved. In recent years, doctors have been taking a more holistic approach to medicine and this trend will probably continue so that a lot more will be known about human health by the time I retire. Since everyone will be living longer, either because they are able to stay healthier through most of their lives, because greater advances are made in medicine or because people won’t be as stressed out all the time, the demographic group will be very large. This may end up putting too much strain on the economy to try to maintain such a large population of retired people. For this reason, people like me who will probably be in better shape and still capable of working, might be expected to work much longer than the traditional retirement age of 65. This will probably be particularly true in fields like what I plan to go into, where work can be done from remote locations if necessary. Also, if the government decides to depend on nuclear power as a means of replacing fossil fuels, there will be a much greater chance that a dangerous accident might happen and make the atmosphere entirely toxic to people. Between that and the way that small and aggressive countries

Unit 7 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Unit 7 - Coursework Example In order to look at prevalence and reduction of bribery, we look at the relative benefits and costs of engaging in such practice. If the benefits of engaging in such practices are huge for a party in contrast to the costs, then the firm will likely resort to it as a rational act in line with conducting its business. Otherwise, the behavior will be discouraged as the benefits are perceived to be not worth the trouble, or costs to engaging in it. The benefits to facilitate bribery are huge for both the giver and the receiver of the bribe. The giver or the firm gets favor, maybe from the government agencies or another firm from the private sector. The receiver, maybe the government agencies or other firms, receive a sum of money in return for this favor. The main reason why it is not reduced is because these benefits are greater than the costs to participate in such practice. There are not enough punishments in order to make the benefit seem not worth the price to be paid. Apart from lack of moral integrity in some countries, why should such a beneficial behavior to these parties be discouraged if there are not enough costs to punish them? Therefore, in order to discourage bribery, the cost to parties that participate in such practice should be increased. In what form should the cost come in? The cost should come in the form of fines, as what is included in the US laws for anti-bribery. But aside from it, these costs can come in the form of damage in reputation for the parties that involve in facilitating bribery. What multinational companies and the global community can do is to raise moral awareness on a global scale while condemning such practices. This is to increase the costs to parties who are doing it, the costs in the form of damage in reputation, if the fines are not enough, for being seen as firms who lack integrity in doing business in other countries. The effects to US firms

Sustaining the natural resources with Smart grid Essay Example for Free

Sustaining the natural resources with Smart grid Essay It is easy to take electricity for granted but modern life would not be possible without it. To keep it going we need more efficient ways to manage electricity. For over a hundred years, coal and other fossil fuels have been used by power plants to produce the electricity we use every day. The grid is a network of power lines and sub stations that carry electricity from power plants to homes and businesses. Today, the grid has problems, it needs updating and is running at capacity. When power lines break or power plants cannot produce enough power, blackouts can occur and that’s a problem that can cause fatalities. Also, today’s grid often relies on a single power plant as its source and does not provide detailed information on usage making electricity difficult to manage. To address these problems in the past, we simply built new power plants but now we can work towards sustainability and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by using a smarter grid. The question is how and the answer to that question is Smart Grid. The smart grid means adding sensors and software to the existing grid that will give utilities and individual’s new information that will help them understand and react to changes quickly. For example if we consider an accident where a tree falls on a power line and one thousand homes loose power, with the current grid utility officers often physically reroute the power which takes time but with the smart grid sensors and software will detect and immediately route the power around the problem, limiting the issue to fewer homes. The price of electricity changes throughout the day but we cannot really see it with the current meters in our homes, it may be expensive during peak hours and cheap late at night. With the new smart meter at our homes, we could set the dishwasher to run when power is cheap, this provides more control over the energy bill and helps prevent black outs at peak hours. The smart grid also means new ways to use renewable sources of energy. Power generation can now be distributed across multiple sources, so the system is more stable and efficient. Its visibility to communicate and manage electricity is what makes the grid smarter and helps us avoid burning more fossil fuel in the future. The smart grid is still a few years away but soon we will be able to manage our energy bill, healthy environment and healthy economy by making more informed decisions about how we use electricity. There is an estimated thirteen trillion dollars investment required in energy infrastructure over the next twenty years. This poses a need and an opportunity to shift towards a low carbon, efficient and clean energy system, and Smart grid will be a key enabler of this transition. The three major factors which have enabled a smart grid are Information, telecommunication and power technologies; integrating these three together have made a smart grid possible. Market analysis Electricity consumption is expected to increase continuously in the worldwide as in Figure 1, as the same The U. S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is expecting total demand for electricity in commercial to grow 42 percent by 2035. Many countries developed new technology and try to use other energy instead electricity in order to save energy and reduce cost. Smart grid is an innovative technology to control and deliver electricity to customer by using digital technology that it can reduce cost electric distribution and transmission. As the end of March 2012, U. S. Department of energy has provided the smart metering close to 3 billon dollar, 1 billion dollar for electricity system, and around 0. 5 million dollar each for customer system and electric transmission. Moreover, program had been installed more than 8 percent of all electricity meter and 10. 8 million for smart meter in the United State. For example, Florida save more than 500,000 dollar annually because they enable advance metering (AMI) which make the efficient repair, servicing and billing in the Florida. Figure 1: Residential Sector Electricity Consumption per capita by country group 2002 and 2025. (Taken from Arno, A. (n. d). Residential Sector Electricity Consumption per Capita by Country Group) By end of this decade, a British consultancy also predicts that in European Union countries will be installed smart meter between 133 and 145 million of smart meter, the market will be the biggest in countries. In additions, many inventive companies are interesting to create and produce various applications that can be use on the smart grid which affects trend market. With the reduction in distribution and transmission loss benefits from smart grid, the both benefits improved in energy efficiency that is the major to drive of this market and attracts the governments of many countries define important roles into it and pass on mandates and regulation for the same. Unfortunately, the price of smart grid network is quite high that it is an obstacle in the smart grid market. Lack of interoperability of standards is huge amounts of investment happening in this market, and vast service providers who provide the service across the globe in different standards has affected the growth of any industry. Figure: 2 Smart grid technology markets in 2011-2016 (Taken from Marketandmarket. (2012). Smart Grid Technology Market Analysis Global Forecast By Hardware, Software Communication Network Technologies (2011 – 2016). As in Figure2, the global smart grid market is expected to gain until 80. 6 billion dollar in 2016 compare in 2011 which was 22. billion dollar at a CAGR of 28. 7% from 2011 to 2016. The Future trend on smart grid technology is to improve technology base on the existing technology to be more efficient of electricity and to increase the investment of governments as well as utilities. For the long run the smart grid should develop much more than Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) and Phaser Measurement Units (PMU) which combine to Smart Grid, Integration of power system to make more efficient, more renewable friendly-grid, and so on, the smart grid may be long run in the market. Staffing Profile Everybody in organization who involve with power system for example engineers, project engineers, consultants and managers have to understand smart grid and they have to train by smart grid training. The major target of training program is can make staff deal with the unexpected situation such as power failures and reduce the bad impact that might be happened in process. In course training they provide foundation of mathematic and simulations. Government in U. S. pays attention to smart grid. Recently, country around the world for example US, China, India, the United Kingdom and the European Union have introduced policies of smart grid in their country. They hope that it helps to increase level of interest smart grid and in the future, smart grid will pay an important role in the world more than today. Nowadays, the U. S. has invested in smart grid technology $7. 8 billion, China $7. 3 billion and predict in the future will spend $96 billion by 2020 because energy was expected to increase in the future. A smart grid including with a variety of control features, automations, communications and sensors. The staff have to understand the process of smart grid for protect the problem that can happened while work. Staffing profile is important for staffs who work in smart grid process. From the statistic, the business losses in the U. S. $100 billion are from electrical failures because short power disrupt. To understand the self healing grid can help to reduce the problem from blackout and sustain services and improve quality for customers. The evolutions of smart grid will gradual increase. The smart grid was initiative by use $74 million and $37 million from U. S. Department of Energy support. In the Rensselaer, N. Y. project they use $35. 5 million for initial smart grid NYIO’s new central control. Installation of capacitor thought N. Y. has involved in the project. NYISO expects that it can help to reduce power loss and save the state $9 million a year. In the project NYISO’s will connect with other network in other country like New England, the mid-Atlantic, the Midwest, and Ontario, Canada to produce broader circumstances attentiveness. From this project they expect that it will reduce electricity bills of customer to $2. 8 billion in next 20 years. The course of smart grid system technology is involved with the knowledge of smart grid. The staff has to take course and they can receive smart grid certification. In the course provides the knowledge that has an advantage to staff like introduction of smart grid in to advance knowledge for help staff can deal with the unforeseen problem. Staff will know an advantage of employ a smart grid, every element of a smart grid and the future. The course also provides staffs to know the current boundaries and restraints of power grid. In the advance course training of smart grid, staff can success of smart grid operation and infrastructure be hide the smart grid and know the systems. There will be center on information technology, hardware and software tool. Staff can understand and can improve the efficiency of the smart grid for their organization. In this course of the training is $1,595 per course which is 4 days.

Blackboard Inc. :: Essays Papers

Blackboard Inc. It is a growing trend in today’s society in that the internet is spreading. It is more common for a young child before the age of 10 to use the internet more than an adult beyond the age of 25. [1] The internet and age of computers have enabled students and adults to search for information more efficiently. Everything possible can be found online by just a click of a mouse. It is fast, reliable, and functional in many settings, school for one. Education has taken a turn, online, in adapting to the advances with the internet. Colleges and Universities have taken advantage of their student’s use of online services and have taken school beyond the classroom. Educators are realizing the importance of computer programs, such as Blackboard, to achieve new goals in education. Internet use is not solely for those just in college as numbers show that those not attending college use the internet just as much. Researchers say that about half, 51.5 %, of 18-24 year olds use the internet and are not in school. Now those who are attending a college or university between this age group are more likely to use to the internet, numbers show that 85% of students do so.[2] It is reasonable to say that college students will most likely use the internet more as classes and school work can be provided via the internet. Schoolwork has been able to appear on the internet through a program called Blackboard. It has become the leading provider of Internet infrastructure software for e-Education in today’s society as it is widely used across many campuses. Blackboard was created in June of 1997 from students and faculty at Cornell University. Their intend was to develop an online software program which would advance online education and be capable for other institutions to use as well. Two other important people in the creation of Blackboard would be two education consultants, Matthew Pittinsky and Michael Chasen. Their job was to lead the Educause IMS standards group for online education technology as they had formally created Blackboard LLC.

Images and Imagery of Blood in Shakespeares Macbeth :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Imagery Of Blood In Macbeth Macbeth, the dramatic play written by William Shakespeare has many good examples of imagery, especially blood. The imagery of blood is very important in 'Macbeth'. It symbolizes honor and bravery and also deceit and evil.   The play opens with the weird sisters talking about meeting again and talking about Macbeth. A war has just ended, making Macbeth a Brave hero because he is the general of the Scottish army and they won. Macbeth is the thane of Glamis, and then becomes the Thane of Cawdor. The weird sisters make many predictions to Macbeth, all of which come true. Macbeth makes the last prediction come true by killing King Duncan. In the beginning of the play blood is something of honor and bravery and symbolizes good and victory. The blood on Macbeth's sword after the war shows him to be a brave hero because of the enemy he killed. He is known as "Brave Macbeth" to everyone including King Duncan. His bravery earns him the title of Thane of Cawdor, because the thane of Cawdor was executed for treason. The blood at the beginning of the play earns Macbeth respect and a title. Macbeth is feeling very guilty about the murder of King Duncan and Banquo. " With all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas in carnadine, making the green one red", shows the great guilt that blood represents at this point in the play. What Macbeth means is that with all of the water in the ocean could not wash his hands clean from the deed he has just done. If he where to try and wash his hands in the ocean it would turn it red because there is so much blood on his hands. Not only does Macbeth feel guilty about the Murder of King Duncan but he also feels very guilty about the murder of Banquo. He sees Banquo's ghost and his bloody head. Blood represents a lot of guilt for Lady Macbeth near the end of the play. During the play Lady Macbeth is the one who tries to keep Macbeth sane and keep from breaking. She tells him that he is not a man and things around that nature to try and help he be stronger and stay in control about the murder of King Duncan.

Law of torts Essay

The word tort is of French origin and is equivalent of the English word wrong, and the Roman law term delict. It is derived from the Latin word tortum, which means twisted or crooked. It implies conduct that is twisted or crooked. It is commonly used to mean a breach of duty amounting to a civil wrong. Definition: a tort is defined as a civil wrong for which the remedy is a common law action for unliquidated damages and which is not exclusively the breach of a contract or the breach of a trust or other merely equitable obligation. A tort arises due to a person’s duty to others in generally which is created by one law or the other. A person who commits a tort is known as a tortfeaser, or a wrongdoer. Where they are more than one, they are called joint tortfeaser. Their wrongdoing is called tortuous act and they are liable to be sued jointly and severally. The principle aim of the Law of tort is compensation of victims or their dependants. Grants of exemplary damages in certain cases will show that deterrence of wrong doers is also another aim of the law of tort. OBJECTIVES OF LAW OF TORTS. i. To determine rights between parties to a dispute. ii. To prevent the continuation or repetition of harm e. g. by giving orders of injunction. iii. To protect certain rights recognized by law e. g. a person’s reputation or good name. iv. To restore property to its rightful owner e. g. where property is wrongfully taken away from its rightful owner. CONSTITUENTS OF TORT To constitute a tort or civil injury: 1. There must be a wrongful act or omission. 2. The wrongful act or omission must give rise to legal damage or actual damage and; 3. The wrongful act must be of such a nature as to give rise to a legal remedy in the form of an action for damages. The wrongful act or omission may however not necessarily cause actual damage to the plaintiff in order to be actionable. Certain civil wrongs are actionable even though no damage may have been suffered by the plaintiff. 1. Wrongful act. The act complained of should, under the circumstances be legally wrongful as regards the party complaining, i. e. it must prejudicially affect him in some legal right. This must be an act or an omission. 2. Damage. The sum of money awarded by court to compensate damage is called damages. Damage means the loss or harm caused or presumed to be suffered by a person as a result of some wrongful act of another. Legal damage is not the same as actual damage. Every infringement of the plaintiff’s private right or unauthorized interference with his property gives rise to legal damage. There must be violation of a legal right in cases of tort. The real significance of legal damage is illustrated by two maxims namely: Injuria sine damno and Damnum sine injuria. Damnum is meant damage in the substantial sense of money, loss of comfort, service, health or the like. By injuria is meant a tortuous act. Injuria sine damno. This is the infringement of and absolute private right without any actual loss or damage. The phrase simply means Injury without damage. The person whose right is infringed has a cause of action e. g. right to property and liberty are actionable per-se i. e. without proof of actual damage. Example: Refusal to register a voter was held as an injury per-se even when the favorite candidate won the election Damnum sine injuria This is the occasioning of actual and substantial loss without infringement of any right. The phrase simply means Damage without injury. No action lies. Mere loss of money or moneys’ worthy does not constitute a tort. There are many acts, which though harmful are not wrongful, and give no right of action. i. e. damage without injury. 3. Remedy. The essential remedy for a tort is action for damages, but there are other remedies also e. g. injunction, specific performance, restitution etc. Further, damages claimable in tort action are unliquidated damages. The law of tort is said to be a founded of the maxim- Ubi jus ibi remedium i. e. there is no wrong without a remedy. Other elements of tort In certain cases, the following may form part of requirements for a wrong to be tortuous. 1. Voluntary and involuntary acts: acts and omissions may be voluntary or involuntary. An involuntary act does not give rise to liability in tort. 2. Mental elements: Plaintiff may be required to show some fault on the part of the defendant. Fault here means failure to live up to some ideal standard of conduct set by law. To determine fault, the following may be proved:- a) Malice: In the popular sense, malice means ill-will or spite. In Law, it means i) intentional doing of a wrongful act and, ii) improper motive. b) Intention: i. e. where a person does a wrongful act knowing the possible consequences likely to arise, he is said to have intended that act, and is therefore at fault. c) Recklessness: i. e. where a person does an act without caring what its consequences might be, he is at fault. d) Negligence: i. e. where the circumstances are such that a person ought to have foreseen consequences of his act and avoided it altogether, he would be at fault if he bothers not. e) Motive: Motive is the ulterior objective or purpose of doing an act and differs from intention. 3. Malfeasance, misfeasance and non-feasance: ‘Malfeasance? refers to the commission of a wrongful act which is actionable per-se and do not require proof of intention or motive. „Misfeasance? is applicable to improper performance of some lawful act, for example, where there is negligence. ?Non-feasance? refers to the omission to perform some act where there is an obligation to perform it. Non-feasance of a gratuitous undertaking does not impose liability, but misfeasance does. Distinctions between Contract and Tort. 1. In a contract the parties fix the duties themselves whereas in tort, the law fixes the duties. 2. A contract stipulates that only the parties to the contract can sue and be sued on it (privity of contract) while in tort, privity is not needed in order to sue or be sued. 3. In the case of contract, the duty is owed to a definite person(s) while in tort, the duty is owed to the community at large i. e. duty in- rem. 4. In contract remedy may be in the form of liquidated or unliquidated damages whereas in tort, remedies are always unliquidated. Distinctions between Tort and Crime 1. In tort, the action is brought in the court by the injured party to obtain compensation whereas in crime, proceedings are conducted by the state. 2. The aim of litigation in torts is to compensate the injured party while in crime; the offender is punished by the state in the interest of the society. 3. A tort is an infringement of the civil rights belonging to individuals while a crime is a breach of public rights and duties, which affect the whole community. 4. Parties involved in criminal cases are the Prosecution verses the Accused person while in Torts, the parties are the Plaintiff versus the Defendant. GENERAL DEFENSES IN TORT Generally, a plaintiff has to prove his case in a court of law and if he does so successfully, judgment is passed against the defendant. The defendant on the other hand may defend the case against himself successfully, thus making the plaintiff’s action fail. There are some general defenses which may be taken to tortuous liability. 1. Volenti Non fit Injuria The general rule is that a person cannot complain for harm done to him if he consented to run the risk of it. For example a boxer, foot baler, cricketer, etc.cannot seek remedy where they are injured while in the game to which they consented to be involved. Where a defendant pleads this defense, he is in effect saying that the plaintiff consented to the act, which he is now complaining of. It must be proved that the plaintiff was aware of the nature and extent of the risk involved. There are however some limitations to the application of the maxim of volenti non fit injuria: -First, no unlawful act can be legalized by consent, leave or license. -Secondly, the maxim has no validity against an action based on breach of statutory duty. -Thirdly, the maxim does not apply in rescue cases such as where the plaintiff has, under an exigency caused by the defendant’s wrongful misconduct, consciously and deliberately faced a risk, even of death to rescue another from imminent danger of personal injury or death, whether the person endangered is one to whom he owes a duty of protection as in a member of his family, or is a mere stranger to whom he owes no such special duty. -Fourthly, the maxim does not apply to cases of negligence. -Lastly, this maxim does not apply where the act of the plaintiff relied upon to establish the defense under the maxims the very act which the defendant was under a duty to prevent. 2. Inevitable Accident. This means an accident, which cannot be prevented by the exercise of ordinary care, caution or skill of an ordinary man. It occurs where there is no negligence on the part of the defendant because the law of torts is based on the fault principle; an injury arising out of an inevitable accident is not actionable in tort. 3. Vis Major (ACT OF GOD). This is also an inevitable accident caused by natural forces unconnected with human beings e. g. earthquake, floods, thunderstorm, etc. 4. Necessity: Where intentional damage is done so as to prevent greater damage, the defense of necessity can be raised. Sometimes a person may find himself in a position whereby he is forced to interfere with rights of another person so as to prevent harm to himself or his property. The general rule is that a person should not unduly interfere with the person or property of another. It is only in exceptional cases of imminent danger that the defense of necessity maybe upheld. It is based on the principle that the welfare of the people is the supreme law. Whether the defense of necessity would extend to inflicting injuries to the person is debatable. 5. Self Defense Everyone has a right to defend his person, property and family from unlawful harm. A person who is attacked does not owe his attacker a duty to escape. Everyone whose life is threatened is entitled to defend himself and may use force in doing so. The force used must be reasonable and proportionate to that of the attacker. Normally, no verbal provocation can justify a blow. An occupier of property may defend it where his right or interest therein is wrongfully interfered with. However, in protecting one’s property, he cannot do an act which is injurious to his neighbour; neither can he adopt a course which may have defect of diverting the mischief from his own land to the land of another person which would otherwise have been protected. 6. Mistake The general rule is that a mistake is no defense in tort, be it a mistake of law or of fact. Mistake of fact, however, maybe relevant as a defense to any tort in some exceptional circumstances e. g.malicious prosecution, false imprisonment and deceit. Thus where a police officer arrests a person about to commit a crime but the person arrested turns out to be innocent the police officer is not liable. Mistake however, cannot be a defense in actions for defamation. 7. Statutory Authority When the commission of what would otherwise be a tort, is authorized by a statute the injured person is remediless, unless so far as the legislature has thought it proper to provide compensation to him. The statutory authority extends not merely to the act authorized by the statute but to all inevitable consequences of that act. But the powers conferred by the legislature should be exercised with judgment and caution so that no unnecessary damage is done, the person must do so in good faith and must not exceed the powers granted by the statute otherwise he will be liable. 8. Novus Actus Interveniens. This is when a chain of events results from a tort so that the loss suffered is not within the scope of those that would naturally occur from the first tort. To refer to a novus actus interveniens is in fact merely another way of saying that the loss was not reasonably foreseeable. This however, does not become an excuse if: – a). An act done in the agony of the moment created by the defendants tort. E. g. If you threw a lighted firework into a crowded market place. Several people threw the firework from their vicinity until it explodes on another? s face. b). Where the intervening act is a rescue. 9. 9 Contributory negligence The defendant may rely upon this defense if the plaintiff is also to blame for his suffering. The defendant must prove that: – The plaintiff exposed himself to the risk by his act or omission. – The plaintiff was at fault or negligent. – The plaintiff’s negligence or fault contributed to his suffering. This defense does not absolve the defendant from liability. It merely apportions compensation of damages between the parties who contributed to the loss. This defense is not available if the plaintiff is a child of tender age. TRESPASS Trespass as a wrong has a very wide application. It could mean unlawful presence in another’s closure or land or premises, offence to the body of a person or even mean wrongful taking of goods or chattels. To constitute the wrong of trespass, neither force nor unlawful intention not actual damage nor breaking of an enclosure is necessary. Every invasion of private property, be it ever so minor is a trespass. Trespass may take any of the following three forms: a) Trespass to land. b) Trespass to person, and; c) Trespass to goods. TRESPASS TO LAND Trespass to land may be committed by any of the following acts: – a) Entering upon the land or property of the plaintiff b) Continuing to remain in such land or property on expiry of license i. e. Permission to be in it. c) Doing an act affecting the sole possession of the plaintiff, in each case without justification. d) By throwing objects into another’s land. e) By using the right of entry for purposes other than for which it was allowed. Generally, trespass to land is a civil wrong. However it may give rise to criminal proceeding; It is important to note that trespass to land is actionable per se, that is, without proof of special damage. In other words, it is not a defense that no damage has been caused by the trespass. Remedies for Trespass to land. 1. Defense of property: He may have to use force till he gets possession but not unnecessary amount of force of violence. This is called remedy of ejection. 2. Expulsion of trespasser especially in case of continued trespass. 3. Distress damage feasant: He may seize and retain them impounded as a pledge for the redress of the injury sustained. 4. Damages: This means recovery of monetary compensation from the defendant. 5. Injunction: This may be obtained to ward off a threatened trespass or to prevent a continuing trespass. 6. Action for recovery of Land: In case the plaintiff is wrongfully dispossessed of his land he can sue for the recovery of the land from the defendant. Defenses against Trespass on land. i. Statutory authority: Where the law allows entry upon land. ii. Entry by license: Where entry is authorized by land owner, unless authority is abused. iii. Adverse possession: Where land has been peacefully possessed for over 12 years without disturbance. iv. Act of Necessity: Example is entry to put off fire for public safety is justifiable. v. By order of court of law: This may be in execution of court order e. g. by court brokers. vi. Self-defense: a trespasser may be excused as having been done in self-defense or in the defense of a person’s goods, chattels or animals. vii. Re-entry on land: A person wrongfully dispossessed of land may re-take possession of it if it? s possible for him to do so peacefully and without the use of force. In this case, he will not be liable for trespass to land. viii. Re-taking of goods and chattels: if person unlawfully takes the goods and chattels of another upon his own land, he impliedly licenses the owner of the goods to enter his land for the purpose of recaption. TRESPASS TO PERSON Any direct interference with the person (body) of another is actionable in the absence of any lawful justification. Trespass to person includes assault, battery and false imprisonment. Assault Assault means conduct or threat to apply violence on the person of the plaintiff in circumstances that may create apprehension that the latter is in real danger. It is committed when a person threatens to use force against the person of another thus putting the other person in fear of immediate danger. Examples: Shaking of fist, pointing of a gun menacingly at another, letting go a dog fiercely etc. It is important to note that not every threat amounts to assault. There must be the means of carrying out the threat and the capacity to effect the threat. The person threatened must be put in fear of immediate danger. An assault is a tort as well as a crime. The intention as well as the act makes assault. Mere words do not amount to assault unless it gives the user? s gesture such a meaning as may amount to assault. Battery Battery means the actual application (use) of force against the person of another without lawful justification. It is immaterial whether the force is applied directly or indirectly to the person. But there must be actual bodily contact between the plaintiff and the defendant. Examples: – striking of another person or touching another person in a rude manner, pouring water on or spitting on another person. Assault and battery is actionable per-se (damage does not have to be proved). False Imprisonment False imprisonment means total restraint or deprivation of the liberty of a person without lawful justification. The duration of the time of detention is immaterial. False imprisonment may be committed even without the plaintiff’s knowledge e. g. by locking him up in his bedroom while he is asleep and then reopening the door before he has awoken. In such a case the plaintiff may still sue. It is not however necessary that the person’s body should be touched. A person is not only liable for false imprisonment when he directly arrests or detains the plaintiff, but also when he actively promotes or causes the arrest or detention of the person. Defenses to assault battery & false imprisonment a). Volenti non-fit injuria: A person who has voluntarily consented to come into actual bodily contact with another e. g. in sports, etc cannot later complain against another person who touches him in the course of playing the game. b). Private defense: A person is within his legal rights to defense himself, his property or his family. But he must use reasonable force in doing so. c). Legal authority: A police officer has statutory authority to arrest a person in the preservation of public peace. Here reasonable force may be used to effect such arrest. d). Forceful entry; The rightful owner of property is entitled to use reasonable force to prevent forcible entry on his land or to repossess his land or goods, which are wrongfully in the possession of another. e). Parental authority: People such as parents, teachers, etc can inflict reasonable punishment for the correction and benefit of the children. Thus a parent exercising parental authority can chastise or even lock-up a child reasonably without being guilty of assault, battery or false imprisonment , nor would a school-teacher. TRESPASS TO GOODS A person can sue for trespass to goods where there is wrongful interference with goods, which are in his possession. Such interference includes wrongful conversion, actual taking of or a direct and immediate injury to the goods. The tort of trespass to goods is meant to protect personal property. To constitute the tort of trespass to goods, the plaintiff must show: – 1. That at the time of trespass, he had the possession of the goods. 2. That his possession had been wrongfully interfered with or disturbed. Trespass to goods are of three categories namely: – 1. Trespass to chattels. 2. Goods Detenue and; 3. Conversion. Trespass to Chattels It means interference with goods, which are in the actual or constructive possession of the plaintiff. It may involve: – Removal of goods from one place to another, – Using the goods or; – Destroying or damaging the goods wrongfully. For an action to be sustainable: – The trespass must be direct. – The plaintiff must be in possession of the chattel at the time of the interference. – The tort is actionable per-se. Detenue This means wrongful withholding or detention of goods from the person entitled to their immediate possession. For example: If A lends his book to Band B refuses, to return it to A, A is said to have committed the tort of Detenue. Conversion This means dealing with goods in a manner that is inconsistent with the right of the person in possession of them. This tort protects a person’s interest in dominion and control of goods. The plaintiff must be in possession or have the right to immediate possession. For example: If A intentionally sells B’s goods to C without any authority from B, A is guilty of conversion. Acts of conversion may be committed when property is wrongfully taken, parted with, sold, retained, destroyed or the lawful owner’s right is denied. Defenses to trespass to goods. Limited defenses are available to a defendant against a wrong to goods. The defendant, however, can claim the right of lien. He may also claim other general defenses like statutory or judicial authority. Remedies to trespass to goods. i. Recaption: The plaintiff can recapture his goods that have been wrongfully taken away from him provided he uses reasonable force. ii. Order for specific restitution: The court may also order for specific restitution of the goods where damages is not adequate a remedy. iii. Damages: The plaintiff is entitled to claim the full value of the goods and damages for any inconvenience suffered by him. OCCUPIERS LIABILITY At common law, an occupier owns a common duty of care to his invites or invitee while within their premises and is generally liable for any injury to them or damage to their goods by reason of condition to their premises. The law relating to occupiers liability in Kenya is contained in the Occupiers Liability Act Cap 34 laws of Kenya. The object of the Act was to amend the law relating to liability of occupiers and to others for injury or damages resulting persons or goods lawfully on any land or other property. Under the Act, an occupier owes a common duty of care to all invitees and their goods. However the common duty of care may be modified or restricted by agreement. The occupier is not liable where the accident occurs through the defective work of an independent contractor provided he can establish that the contractor was efficient as far as he was able and that he had inspected the work done. Defenses An occupier may escape liability if the injury or damage is occasioned by danger of which the occupier had warned the invitee. The occupier may escape liability in respect of any damages caused to the invitee if occasioned by the fault of an independent contractor. The common duty of care does not impose on an occupier any obligation in respect of risks willingly accepted by the invitee. The occupier owes no common duty of care to trespassers and is not liable for any injury or damage they may suffer while in his premises. NEGLIGENCE Negligence means the breach of a duty caused by the omission to do something, which a reasonable man would do, or doing of something, which a prudent and reasonable man would not do. Negligence consist of neglect to use of ordinary care or skill towards a person to whom the defendant owes the duty of observing ordinary care and skill, by which neglect, the person has suffered injury to his person or property. The plaintiff suing under tort of negligence must prove that: 1. The defendant owed him a duty of care, The circumstances must be such that the defendant knew or reasonably ought to have known that acting negligently would injure the plaintiff. A road user owes other users a legal duty of care. An inviter owes his invitees a legal duty of care. A manufacturer of products owes a legal duty of care to consumers. As a general rule, every person owes his neighbor a legal duty of care. The standard of care expected of the defendant is that of a reasonable man. This is a man of ordinary prudence. A reasonable person is an objective stand created by law for all circumstances. Where professionals or experts are involved, the standard of care is that of a reasonably competent expert in that field. There are some circumstances however where not even a reasonable person could have foreseen the plaintiff suffering any loss, in which case, there is no liability upon the person who has committed the injurious act. 2. There has been a breach of that legal duty of care. The plaintiff has to prove that there was a duty imposed by common law, statute or otherwise, upon the defendant and that the defendant was in breach of this duty. However, at certain times, negligence is presumed without proof of breach of duty by the plaintiff. This is in the case of res-ipsa loquitor. RES IPSA LOQUITOR As a general rule, the burden of proving negligence lies with the plaintiff. He must prove that the defendant owed him a duty of care, that the defendant has breached that duty and that he has suffered damage. However, in certain cases, the plaintiff’s burden of proof is relieved by the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor. Where it is applicable Res ipsa Loquitor means that ‘thing or facts speaks for themselves’. This for example, occurs where an accident happens in circumstances in which it ought not to have occurred e. g.a car traveling on a straight road in clear weather and good visibility suddenly swerves off the road and overturns, where a barrel of flour suddenly drops from a warehouse, etc. Such an accident ought not to have occurred except for the negligence of the defendant. Res ipsa loquitor is a rule of evidence and not of law. It merely assists the plaintiff in proving negligence against the defendant. Before it can be relied upon, three conditions must be satisfied, namely: a) The thing inflicting the injury must have been under the control of the defendant or someone whom he controls. b) The event must be such that it could not have happened without negligence and; c) There must be no evidence or explanation as to why or how the event occurred, as the accident is such as in the ordinary course of things does not happen if those who have the duty use proper care. 3. Damage: For the plaintiff to succeed in claim of Negligence, he must prove that he suffered harm, loss or prejudice, unless this is presumed as in the case of Injuria sine damnum. No damage, no negligence. Defenses to Negligence 1. Contributory negligence: This defense is available to the defendant in circumstances in which the plaintiff is also to blame for his suffering. The effect of this defense is to reduce the amount recoverable by the plaintiff as damages by the extent of his contribution. Liability is apportioned between the parties. 2. Volenti non fit injuria: This is the doctrine of voluntary assumption of risk. 3. Statutory authority: The defendant must prove in this defense that he acted in accordance with the provisions of the Act. VICARIOUS LIABILITY Vicarious liability means the liability of one person for the torts committed by another person. The general rule is that every person is liable for his own wrongful act. However, in certain cases a person may be made liable for wrongful acts committed by another person. For example: An employer may be held liable for the tort of his employees. Similarly, a master is liable for any tort, which the servant commits in the course of his employment. The reason for this rule of common law is that: As the master has the benefit of his servant’s service he should also accept liabilities. The master should be held liable as he creates circumstances that give rise to liability. The servant was at mere control and discretion of the master. Since the master engages the servant, he ought to be held liable when gagging a wrong person. The master is financially better placed than the servant. It must be proved that a person was acting as a servant and that the said tort was committed in the course of his employment before a master can be sued for a tort committed by his servant. MASTER AND SERVANT A servant means a person employed under a contract of service and acts on the orders of his master. The master therefore controls the manner in which his work is done. The concept of vicarious liability is based on the principle of equity that employee is normally people of meager resources and it is therefore only fair that the injured person is allowed to recover damages from the employers. Therefore a master is liable for the torts committed by his servant. To prove liability under master-servant relationship the servant must have acted in the course of his employment A master is liable whether the act in a question was approved by him or not. It is immaterial that the alleged act was not done for the benefit of the master. But the master is not liable for torts committed beyond the scope of employment. INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR An independent contract means a person who undertakes to produce a given result without being controlled on how he achieves that result. These are called contract for service. Because the employer has no direct control of him, he (the employer) is not liable for his wrongful acts. a) However, there are certain cases (exception) under which the employer may still be liable. These are: – a). Where the employer retains his control over the contractor and personally interferes and makes himself a party to the act, which causes the damage. b) b). Where the thing contracted is in itself a tort. c) c). Where the thing contracted to be done is likely to do damage to other people’s property or cause nuisance. d) d). Where there is strict liability without proof of negligence STRICT LIABILITY Strict liability means liability without proof of any fault on the part of the wrongdoer. Once the plaintiff is proved to have suffered damage from the defendant’s wrongful conduct, the defendant is liable whether there was fault on his part or not. Strict liability must be distinguished from absolute liability. Where there is absolute liability, the wrong is actionable without proof of fault on the part of the wrong-doer and in addition, there is no defense whatsoever to the action. Where there is strict liability, the wrong is actionable without proof of fault but some defenses may also be available. Defenses i. Acts of God: Act of God is a good defense to an action brought under the rule. ii. Plaintiffs’ Fault: If the escape of the thing is due to the fault of the plaintiff, the defendant is not liable. This is because the plaintiff has himself brought about his own suffering. iii. Plaintiff’s consent or benefit: That the accumulation or bringing of the thing was by consent of the plaintiff. iv. Statutory authority: That the thing was brought into the land by requirement of an Act of parliament. v. Contributory negligence: if the plaintiff was also to blame for the escape. vi. Wrongful act of third party: the defendant may take the defence of the wrongful acts of a third party though he may still be held liable in negligence if he failed to foresee and guard against the consequences to his works of that third party’s act. DEFAMATION Defamation means the publication of a false statement regarding another person without lawful justification, which tends to lower his reputation in the estimation of right thinking members of society or which causes him to be shunned or avoided or has a tendency to injure him in his office, professions or trade. It has also been defined as the publication of a statement that tends to injure the reputation of another by exposing him to hatred, contempt or ridicule. Following are the essential elements of defamation: – i. False statement: The defendant must have made a false statement. If the statement is true, it’s not defamation. ii. Defamatory statement: The statement must be defamatory. A statement is said to be defamatory when it expose the plaintiff to hatred, contempt, ridicule or shunning or injures him in his profession or trade among the people known to him. iii. Statement refers the plaintiff: The defamatory statement must refer to the plaintiff.