Report about Comparison of Three Different Sources of Information

ABSTRACT Information security and reliability is one of the most important factors considered when selecting a communication channel. The channel must ensure that the information is free from distortion. In this report, three sources of information are analyzed, their advantages and disadvantages evaluated and a recommendation finally made about the most appropriate source that can be used to handle information about climatic change and adaptations. INTRODUCTION This report aims at analyzing a newspaper article, journal article, and a policy report. After the analysis, a conclusion is made about the reliability of the articles. When looking at the newspaper, factors like the information sources are considered. We also look at the writer and the professionalism in the article. All these factors are considered in the cases of policy article and journal article. LITERATURE REVIEW A newspaper is usually used to report on events. Such events or news are normally not first hand information and their reference citation not a requirement. A newspaper is thus suitable for current affairs. A policy article, unlike the newspaper, is written by an expert. However, it undergoes the same political influence as that of the newspaper. A journal article is written by an expert and analyzed properly. Truth is its major concern. METHODOLOGY In this report, similar information that is contained in three different articles is scrutinized for reliability. The truth in all the three articles is justified and then a conclusion drawn about their reliability. We have found out that newspapers are normally for current affairs and always have political influence; policy documents also have political influence though they are written by experts. However, journals lack political influence. ANALYSIS From the research, we have found that newspaper articles are usually not first hand information and have no proper reference. The context within which such articles are written usually lack and the method of data collection not considered. The speed with which they are written makes it completely difficult for a substantial research to be carried out so as to verify some information. Newspaper is thus suitable for very current affairs. Policy reports, as opposed to newspaper articles, are written by professionals and the arguments are clear with strong bases. However, like newspapers, they suffer from political bias. Like policy reports, journal articles are also written by professionals. In these articles, truth is of utmost importance. Thorough scrutinizations of such articles by other professionals make it possible for the truth and accuracy to be maintained. Such articles are very reliable. CONCLUSION Considering the advantages and disadvantages of the above types of articles, it is clear that journal article is the most reliable. This is due to its key aim: to tell nothing but the truth. The proper scrutiny they are subjected to by other professionals makes it completely impossible for lies. Journal article is thus the most reliable in handling issues like the climatic change and adaptations.

Pollution Is A Major Public Health Crisis - 1573 Words

Introduction Water, it is one of the most significant source to mankind and our planet. While it exists, so does everything else along. However, in today’s epidemic, there has been certain factors that have risen to awareness whether we can the water today is beneficial or not? In other words, the health risks against water contamination have risen in the past few decades; all from what you may ask? Well, it could be for various factors and perspectives; either environmental or materialistic. Pollution is a major public health crisis in the world. (Friis, 2012). It is one of the conflicts that contribute to various aspects of an individual’s life, whether it is their health or environmental life. Methods Materials In order to collect†¦show more content†¦Why is that you ask? Water pollution, which not has caused water contamination but also hurt the quality of healthy water. Approximately two thirds of the Earth s surface is covered by water, while less than a third has land. As Earth s population continues to grow, people are putting ever-increasing pressure on the planet s water resources. Nevertheless, our oceans, rivers, and other inland waters are being squeezed by human activities—not so they take up less room, but so their quality is reduced; hence poor water quality meaning water pollution. The oceans on the global are our most important factor in providing water. Not only do they provide as a source for us to live on but also has life among it. Various species live among the ocean such as fish, sharks, whales, otters, plants, etc. Yet, why is it that we don t keep our most important water resource clean towards its environment? Water contamination is an epidemic that is still rising in our world and creating multiple struggles, even towards survival. One the most ways our environment suffers is through chemical wastes that led to water contamination therefore lowering water quality. Among several water habitats and sources, many come in contact of hazardous chemicals (Chia, M. , Kwaghe, M, 2015) For instance, through natural and anthropogenic sources, chemicals contact our water supply; nevertheless this leads to drinking water being dangerous in

Cost Accounting and Managerial Accounting

Question: Discuss about the Cost Accounting and Managerial Accounting. Answer: Introduction In this report, the discussion is focused on the subject area of cost accounting. During the report, mainly the answers of four different questions are given. The first question discusses about the use of managerial accounting information in strategic decision-making. The second and third questions focus on the different types of cost allocation and preparation of budget. In the fourth question, different approaches of performance evaluation and control are discussed. Critical evaluation of the use of managerial accounting information for the strategic decision-making Managerial accounting information is very much useful in the strategic decision-making in different types of organization. The managerial accounting information provides the knowledge regarding the cost structure of the organization (Collier 2015). This information helps the higher authority to understand whether the organization is operating cost effectively or it has exceeded the budget. On the other side, in case of private or public limited companies, the management of the organization can take the decision regarding the business diversification or merger and acquisition (Butler and Ghosh 2015). At the same time, in case of partnership or private and public limited companies, the managerial accounting information helps in taking the pricing decision and future marketing strategies. Selection and application of different types of cost allocation There are different types of cost allocation systems and those are absorption costing allocation system, variable costing allocation system and activity-based cost allocation system. Absorption costing allocation is such a technique of cost allocation in which the costs are allocated internally by using the financial accounting techniques (Fanelli et al. 2015). In this type of cost allocation technique, the costs allocation is not disclosed publically. Variable cost allocation system is more or less similar to the absorption cost allocation system. However, main difference between these two allocation systems is that in case of variable cost allocation system, the fixed manufacturing costs are not allocated (Kaplan and Atkinson 2015). On the other side, the activity based cost allocation system, allocates the costs based on each activity takes place during the business operations. Role of absorption cost allocation system Role of variable cost allocation system Role of activity based cost allocation system The absorption cost allocation system helps the management in taking the internal overall costing strategies. The variable cost allocation system helps the management in identifying the variable costs in the organization and taking the strategies for controlling such costs. Activity based cost allocation system helps in identifying the costs of each activity separately. With the help of this, the management can identify in which area the company is incurring more costs and can taken necessary strategy for controlling the costs. Design and preparation of budgets and feedback analysis Budget can be of different types like, cash budget, sales budget, production budget and many more. However, the design and preparation style of different budget are different (Strumickas and Valanciene 2015). Here, the design and preparation of cash budget are shown below: There is a company namely ABC Ltd, which needs to prepare cash budget for first three months of 2017. The cash budget is shown below: Particulars January 2017 (in $) February 2017 (in $) March 2017 (in $) Opening cash balance 1000 3000 5900 Cash received: Cash received from sales 7000 8000 10000 Total cash received 8000 11000 15900 Cash payments: Payment of wages and salaries (2000) (2000) (2000) Tax payment (700) Payment of miscellaneous expenses (3000) (3100) (3700) Total cash payments (5000) (5100) (6400) Closing cash balance 3000 5900 9500 In the above table it can be seen that in the third month, the cash payment of the company increased due to the payment of tax and increase in the miscellaneous expenses. However, the closing balances are expected to be increased. From the above table, the management can take the decision of controlling the cash payment in the third month. This will help the company to increase the closing cash balance more at the end of third month. Discussion on various approaches of performance evaluation and control There are various approaches of performance evaluation and control those are applied in different types of business organizations. In case of private and public limited companies, presently, the approach of balance scorecard is used (Jerraya and Bacivarov 2016). In this approach, the management of the companies evaluates and controls the performance on the basis of four perspectives and those are customers, financial, internal business and learning and growth perspectives. In case of the partnership and sole proprietary businesses, the performance evaluation and control are generally done by checklists method (Brosig et al. 2015). This is one of the simplest methods of performance evaluation and control. Under this method, few questions are asked to the employees and if most of the answers become negative, then the organization arranges for training sessions. There are few indicators of performance and those are as under: Quantitative indicators turnaround times, annual sales, yearly expenditure, number of journal entries and many more Directional indicators - This is a technique, in which the performance is indicated by comparing the current years sales with the last years sales Conclusion During this report, it has been identified that managerial accounting information is very much useful in decision-making purposes. It has also identified that there are different techniques of cost allocations and approaches of performance evaluation and control those are applied by the different types of business organizations. Evaluation of the regression models In the evaluation of the two regression models that are net-up costs and number of set-ups and set-up costs and Number of set-ups hours, it can be identified that the in case of second regression model, the slope is higher than the first one. In case of first one, the coefficient of X variable is 0.001103 and on the other side, in case of the second variable, the coefficient of X variable is 0.015168. This indicates that the number of set-ups hours has more influence on the set-ups costs than the number of set-ups. Therefore, the organization that is Dilbert Toys must use the second regression model in case of decision making. Reference List Brosig, F., Meier, P., Becker, S., Koziolek, A., Koziolek, H. and Kounev, S., 2015. Quantitative evaluation of model-driven performance analysis and simulation of component-based architectures.Software Engineering, IEEE Transactions on,41(2), pp.157-175. Butler, S.A. and Ghosh, D., 2015. Individual differences in managerial accounting judgments and decision making.The British Accounting Review,47(1), pp.33-45. Collier, P.M., 2015.Accounting for managers: Interpreting accounting information for decision making. John Wiley Sons. Fanelli, A., Leniowski, D., Monaco, G. and Sankowski, P., 2015. The ring design game with fair cost allocation.Theoretical Computer Science,562, pp.90-100. Jerraya, A. and Bacivarov, I., 2016. Performance Evaluation Methods for Multiprocessor System-on-Chip Designs.Electronic Design Automation for IC System Design, Verification, and Testing, p.85. Kaplan, R.S. and Atkinson, A.A., 2015.Advanced management accounting. PHI Learning. Strumickas, M. and Valanciene, L., 2015. Research of management accounting changes in Lithuanian business organizations.Engineering Economics,63(4).

Lillian Hellman Essays - Hollywood Blacklist, English-language Films

Lillian Hellman Lillian Hellman was one of the most influential and successful playwrights of her time. Throughout her professional life she has expanded her writing into different genres, as well as being a playwright she was a screenwriter during a popular time in Hollywood and later in her life she wrote many popular memoirs reviewing her life. Hellman was gripped with many obstacles in her career and personal life, including a torrid love affair with writer Dashiell Hammett, having to testify in front of the house on un-American activities and being a female in a male dominated profession. Julia Newhouse and Max Bernard Hellman had only one child, Lillian Florence Hellman, born June 20th 1905 in New Orleans. Growing up she would spend her time between New York where her parents lived in New Orleans. Lillian stayed with her two aunts in a bed and breakfast they owned in the French Quarter. As a child Lillian would romp through the dangerous city of new Orleans by herself proving she was very independent at an early age. Six months out of the year she would attend school in New Orleans, the rest was spent in New York where she also attended school. She decided to go to college in the east, attending both New York University and Columbia University. In 1925 Lillian Hellman left college and read scripts for a living. On December 31st she married her husband Arthur Kober, who also became a successful playwright. Through these years Hellman traveled to Paris and Germany. Kober and Hellman moved to Hollywood in 1930, where Kober worked as a screenwriter and Lillian Hellman read manuscripts for MGM. In Hollywood she met Dashiell Hammett. Shortly after she moved to New York and lived with Hammett, she divorced Arthur Kober. In New York Hammet wrote The Thin Man modeling his character Nora Charles after Lillian. After little luck in New York Hellman moved back to California as a screenwriter. While in Hollywood her mother died. The Children's Hour an early and controversial play written by Hellman opened in London. The play deals with a child's accusation that ruins two school teachers lives. The taboo subject matter of same sex relationships that the play deals with led to praise by her peers and boycotting by conservatives. The Little Foxes is the next Hellman play to be performed, it is her most popular play yet, staying open for 410 performances. In The Little Foxes material greed for power create tragic conflicts in a southern family. Hellman bought a 130 acre farm in upstate new York with the money her plays had brought her. Watch on the Rhine opens in 1941, with the success of this play Hellman had established her endurance and talent throughout the literary and theatrical world. In Watch on the Rhine, the destructive evil of the nazi disrupts the sheltered lives of a suburban family in Washington ,DC. She went on to write the Autumn garden (1951) and Toys in the Attic( 1960). In 1952 Lillian Hellman was supposed to appear before the house un-American activities committee for her slight affiliations with the communist party in Hollywood when she was a script writer. Hammet was also harassed by Charles Mcarthy and the committee, leading to his arrest. Hellman refused to discuss her friends political views as many Hollywood employees were forced to do. this was what she thought on the subject; "I'm pleased with what I did in front of the house UN American committee because it had good results and it let other people take the same position, which was the first time anybody had ever taken it." (Bryer dust cover) Dashiell Hammett died in 1961. In the 1970's Hellman gained recognition for her autobiographical writings. She was the author of three memoirs, An Unfinished Woman, Pentimento, and Scoundrel Times. Throughout these books she recalled her relationships with many people during her life. From her childhood best friend, Julia, who was killed during World War II, to her maid on her farm. All three memoirs gained critical acclaim and consumer recognition. An Unfinished Woman was the winner of the National Book Award and Pentimento was made into a movie starring Jane Fonda. Scoundrel Time, her last published work touches on the hardships she suffered during the Mcarthy era. "Hellman combined tightly woven plots with insight into psychological weakness and deep concern with the social issues of her time," one critic said about her work. She was thought of as a strong woman in hard times, "I don't have to tell you

Typewriters Vs Computers Essay Research Paper TYPEWRITERS free essay sample

Typewriters Vs. Computers Essay, Research Paper Typewriters: AN ENDANGERED SPECIES? For good over a decennary, experts in office mechanization have predicted the death of the typewriter. In their position the computing machine is destined to tale over the word processing function enjoyed by the typewriter for over a century. Yet, a recent study ( Fernberg, 1989, 49-50 ) indicates that electronic typewriter cargos over the last three old ages averaged about a billion dollars a twelvemonth. Further, the Computer and Business Equipment Manufacturers # 8217 ; Association undertakings that the one-year growing rate will stay changeless at 1.5 per centum over the following five old ages. With gross revenues keeping steady at over a million units a twelvemonth, the electronic typewriter does non look endangered. It is likely here to stay-and for good grounds. Typewriter Familiarity Virtually anyone who has learned to identify can sit down at the electronic typewriter and within a few proceedingss operate it with astonishing easiness and velocity. We will write a custom essay sample on Typewriters Vs Computers Essay Research Paper TYPEWRITERS or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Harmonizing to Paez ( 1985, 55 ) : A familiar keyboard, which requires fewer key strokes and has a simpler, less code-intensive user interface, makes the Transition to a high-end typewriter much easier than the Passage to a personal computing machine with the same maps. Typewriter Flexibility An electronic typewriter can execute some maps computing machines can non, but a personal computing machine ( Personal computer ) can non be used a mere typewriter ( nor should it be ) . Possibly that is why one big study found that 85 % of secretaries who use PC # 8217 ; s besides use typewrite R. Using microchip engineering, sophisticated electronic typewriters can execute many of the automatic maps and redacting maps of which computing machines are capable. Automatic maps. Among the characteristics of electronic typewriters are automatic focus, right border justifying, and hang-indenting/ these characteristics are available on computing machines every bit good, but some users of both sorts of equipment say that the typewriter is more â€Å"user friendly.† Editing Functions. Some electronic typewriters permit operators to backspace/delete, insert transcript, move transcript from one topographic point to another, and hunt and replace specific words or footings in a papers. Some are equipped with templets that make form fill-in easy ; others permit the meeting of information from different beginnings. All these maps are performed without rekeying paperss. Typewriter Sophistication Electronic typewriters range from low-end machines with full-page shows, floppy storage, and complete text-editing capablenesss. The monetary value scope varies with the sum of advanced characteristics included. Some machines are upgradable so that the appropriate degree of edification can be obtained without replacing machines. Audion, Mark. # 8220 ; Using Electronic Typewriters: the Basics, Plus? . # 8221 ; Today # 8217 ; s Office, July 1986, 55-64. Fernberg, Patricia M. # 8220 ; Electronic Typewriters: Understanding the Product. # 8221 ; Modern Office Technology, March 1989, 48-50. Paez, Patricia. # 8220 ; Typewriters: Technology with an Easy Touch. # 8221 ; Today # 8217 ; s Office, September 1985, 55-72.

Creditor Rights in Sovereign Debt Markets Essays

Creditor Rights in Sovereign Debt Markets Essays Creditor Rights in Sovereign Debt Markets Essay Creditor Rights in Sovereign Debt Markets Essay Globally, governments are increasingly defaulting on their debt obligations with the most recent example being Argentina, Greece, Russia and a host of East Asian economies. The situation has elicited mixed reactions in international markets and bilateral institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, which have proposed aggregate collective action clauses that protect the investors interests (Broner et al. 2013). According to Noy (2008 p.64-78), without creditors, international financial markets cannot exist; therefore, investors must have meaningful ways to recoup back their investments in case of sovereign default. However, information access is considered key towards making informed investment decisions; thus, close cooperation between sovereign borrowers and creditors is critical. During a default, a countrys financial reputation is questionable, and oversight agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and Iconic agencies such as Moody rating often raise the red flag when dealing with defaulting nations (Diaz-Cassou and Erce 2011, p.14-18). Such defaulting economies suffer economic consequences, including restrictions on accessing financial markets, trade embargo, and tightening of the fiscal deficit in their home countries. These restrictions are implemented because the sovereign creditors, just like ordinary investors, have their rights in the sovereign debt markets. It is in light of this fact that the paper will focus on creditor rights in the sovereign debt markets, the potential costs of sovereign default for a country and the magnitude of the costs likely to be incurred should a country default its sovereign debt obligations. How Economies default their Sovereign Debts Since the advent of the global financial markets, sovereign debts have been considered the safest investment type due to their risk-free nature coupled with their potential for high returns. However, in 2002, the market was shocked when Argentina announced it was unable to service its bond debt. A decade later, Greece restructured its sovereign debts. These two situations elicited mixed market reactions, raising the question, if the two governments completely defaulted, how could investors recover their invested assets? This is because government-issued bonds are considered risk-free and never accompanied by any form of collateral other than the governments guarantee to service its debt (Manns 2015, p.118-152). During the worlds financial meltdown, major economies were pushed into a deep recession because the countries experienced low growth and huge budget deficits, leading to a sharp rise in debt-GDP ratio. Previously, in such scenarios, countries absorbed their debts by utilizing different approaches. By late 2009, the average spreads were still minimal, and the allocation of sovereign hands in the domestic residents was below 50 percent in emerging economies such as Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain (GIIPS) (Ahmed 2016, p.4359; Rogers 2012, p.117-148). The situation deteriorated and economies such as Ireland, Spain, Greece and Argentina reported massive debt deficits than previously anticipated. These events not only slowed down the repayment of the debts, but also affected how different credit instruments were absorbed in the market. The same year, Greece defaulted on its IMF loan repayments, but surprisingly, the same government decided to settle a yen-denominated bond held by private entities fully. The situation was shocking since the IMF is the most authoritative lender and financier of last resort. According to Greeces move, IMF and other multilateral agencies are considered the de facto senior creditors; therefore, raising the question why first settle the yen-dominated debt. However, IMFs senior status as the principal economic lender is not enshrined anywhere legally (Waibel 2014, p.22-41). Creditors Rights in Sovereign Markets Aguilar and Zejan (1985, p.385-395) debated on the relative importance of distressed economies meeting their debt obligations. Key emerging economies such as Argentina, Greece and Bulgaria have underscored the importance of understanding the bargaining positions of their debt-riddled economies. According to Dowell-Jones (2014, p.51-85), the most fundamental question that remains unresolved is What can creditors do to reclaim back their assets if a sovereign nation does not fully ascribe to its debt obligations? Metz and Tudela (2011) continue to argue that sovereignty implies that no single agency globally can seize the assets of a foreign country. This discussion attempts to address the underlying issue using two approaches: Reputation Approach Direct Punishment Reputation Approach This principle works on a very direct premise because countries value the access to the international money market that facilitates smooth consumption in the face of volatile output or fluctuating investment opportunities (Longstaff et al., 2007). Countries are always trusted to issue timely loan repayments, hence do not wish to reprieve their status as good debtors. Considering reputational symmetry, there is no need for the creditors seeking arbitration or political sanctions; rather, investors should understand economies sovereign borrowing limits on external debts since the flow of repayments largely depend on a countrys fundamental computation of consumption spending (Arellano and Bai 2013). Therefore, should creditors extend so much to a country, an elastic limit may be reached whereby the country is unable to retain its debt repayment program. Investors must acknowledge that reputational approach comes with the undeniable feature of analyzing the countrys macroeconomic situati on instead of the murky institutional capacity to participate (Pepino 2015, p.73-95). Punishment Approach It is assumed that foreign creditors have no legal mandate whatsoever to repayment in debtor country courts (Stephanou 2013, p.127-158). However, these are other peoples assets because creditors accord investment rights in sovereign debt contracts, and any controversial government to an individual or government-to-government trade dispute can always be resolved by the international court of justice, affiliated to the IMF and the World Bank (Porte and Heins 2016, p.1-13). Creditors legal rights, if violated in certain cases, may interfere with a countrys business privileges such as imposing embargoes on the free movement of cargo within certain jurisdictions, a scenario that may interfere substantially with a countrys economy. Despite creditors rights, there is also the issue of seniority in the sovereign debt markets, and unlike the corporate debts, there are no legal rules of priority and seniority when it comes to the international debt market (Santiso 2009). Due to the lack of a harmonized standard in relation to a sovereign bankruptcy procedure, no single government can decide which creditor cluster to service their debts and the extent of the payment levels (Dam 2015). Seniority in debt repayments is considered an optional decision, thus not legally enforceable in a court of law. Conclusively, it can be argued that only credit-specific factors propel debt repayment patterns, and a nations economic fundamental cannot be used as a metric illustrating seniority in sovereign debt repayments. For instance, in 2005, Greece defaulted payment to the most senior creditor, the IMF, while serving its junior creditors such as the fund managers and other institutional investors. Factors Driving Sovereign Debt Default One of the key factors prevalent with sovereign default is the accumulation of vast reserves of foreign denominated debts from the market, making the economy unable to make timely payments due to factors such as tight budgets and lack of political goodwill. In such scenarios, sovereign investors find it difficult acquiring support from supranational courts or creditors rights enforcement agencies. According to Wright (2010, p.295315) and Schroeder 2015 p.73-104), when countries default on some of their treasury obligations, it means that the state is no longer willing to handle its debt liabilities or pay up the interest. Signs of sovereign debt defaults begin to emerge when an economy is associated with massive overspending or too much borrowing for approximately 8 to 10 years. However, there are always consequences for the creditors and, in most cases, international negotiations commence, which often end up in partial debt cancellation. Under such an arrangement, partial repayments are remitted while the investor surrenders a huge chunk of the debt. A perfect example is the Argentines economic crisis (1999-2002), whereby creditors unanimously agreed to relinquish 75 percent of the outstanding debt. In certain instances, the creditors may wait for a regime change to recoup their dues. Creditors rights are clearly spelled out in international law, and they not only entail the rights of creditors against the debtor, but also amongst other creditors. In cases where there is a default over several cases, the rules in favor of the creditors rights establish the particular creditor that holds the strongest right towards any particular relief, whether attaching state assets or seeking any other form of compensations if possible. Waibel (2013, p.209251) reiterates that to mitigate against default risks, contemporary economies have responded through issuing bonds in hard currencies via international financial institutions as transaction intermediaries, and as a result, courts have been established in New York, London and Tokyo to deal with cases of aggrieved creditors (Baldacci and Gupta 2011, p.251-263). To curb or control sovereignty credit defaults, the International Capital Market Association (ICMA), an entity legally mandated to oversee the international financial mar ket, has enacted a multilateral legal framework that regulates the sovereign debts restructuring process for the sake of enhancing predictability, stability, and efficiency in the international financial system (Erdem and Varli 2014, p.42-57). Consequences for the Economy If a country defaults its treasury obligations, it simply disposes of its monetary obligations towards creditors. The immediate effect under such a scenario is that the country benefits from an immediate reduction in its debt portfolio and the accompanying interests associated with such debts (Hu, An and Yang 2008). However, the countrys reputation is dented among multilateral creditors and other credit rating agencies (Doug 2014, p.14). This means that the country cannot easily participate in the international financial market because investors perceive the economy as high risk. In a different scenario, foreign lenders may jeopardize the countrys monetary sovereignty. Sovereign defaults also include constrained access to credit not only in international markets, but also domestically since the government of the day has lost its credibility amongst investors. Besides, the domestic financial institutions also hold significant amounts of domestic debts, and if a government defaults, th e situation may degenerate into bank runs and lead into a financial crisis since most investors find it difficult to cope up with broke governments. These effects have consequences to an economys Gross Domestic Product (GDP) because the country is faced with a higher borrowing cost due to its poor credit score (Kolb 2011, p.113). The situation may exacerbate if the creditors are domestic borrowers because the government must always visit financial markets to offset their operational expenses such as paying workers and suppliers. Such a situation may lead to a knock effect on the entire economy and completely paralyze operations (Christodoulakis 2006). Argentinas Case Study Argentina can be used as a perfect case on how a section of an economy may escalate the debt crisis. The country defaulted its sovereign debts in 2002 and the economys fiscal deficit and debt position deteriorated significantly. As a result, the interest rate spread increased dramatically from below 10 percent to almost 50 percentage points by the end of 2001 (Bruno 2009). The Argentine government responded by increasing reliance on local financial institutions, whereby the government debt as a percentage of the banking systems total assets rose from 15 percent in 2000 to 21 percent by the end of 2001 (Wei 2003, p.709-705). In this light, the banking sectors credit risks increased significantly. Besides, the voluntary debt exchanges that increased the maturity of the bonds also increased maturity mismatches on the institutions financial statements. Due to the weakening of the banking system, there were widespread panic withdrawals throughout 2001, whereby deposits fell by 20 percent by the year-end (Fliz 2010, p.52-72; Zutshi 2008). By early 2002, the Treasury confirmed that it was defaulting $18.8 billion of their external debt and concurrently announced it was ditching the currency exchange board regime. These series of events prompted the Peso, Argentines official currency, to fall from 1 peso per US dollar to 3.9 by the end of March 2002. As a result, the country was heavily indebted when the debt is converted into their local currency. The situation impaired the local financial institution systems that provide liquidity and credit to the economy, and the banks credit to the private sector as a proportion of annual GDP reduced by 50 percent from 20.8 percent in 2001 to 10.8 percent by the end of 2003. The scenario led to lessened economic activity, hence increasing the countrys fiscal burden compared to GDP. The banks non-performing loans also increased dramatically when the recession deepened. According to Horn and Fritsche (2012, p.118-126), Argentina had a sovereign debt more than $123.7 billion, which wa s not sustainable even with conservative estimates. Additionally, it is noteworthy that no financial valuation of the countrys export and import growth could deliver the requisite net long-run foreign exchange earnings adequate for servicing the debt, even if the countrys interest levels were to move back to pre-crisis level. The countrys trade deficit expanded and its currency got overvalued, trade liberalization stalled and the exports only comprised of an insignificant share of the countrys economic bedrock (Schaumberg 2014, p.135-154).

Personal Reflection Paper on The Self Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Personal Reflection Paper on The Self - Essay Example My self-concept derives from a whole host of such factors, not the least of which is what others think about me. I have always had a great interest in music and I have a very good singing voice, which has made me popular with my friends: so I consider music and the capability of rendering it is an integral part of my self. The awareness of my gender has led me to see what women the world over go through in terms of greater struggles for freedom and rights. My self-concept thus wraps around my identity as a woman as someone who has to struggle with the everyday realities of being a woman, and also involves an acceptance of the fact that I have an average appearance. Add to that my identity as an African-American, and the picture is complete in a social context. People around me see me as a normal, well-adjusted, average-looking African-American woman and also as a student who sings well, and so it becomes an important definition of my self-concept in the social context. My concept of self contributes to my self-esteem, my idea of what I am worth, of what I am capable of contributing to the society, and the respect of choices and rights that I feel I deserve. My singing abilities and my accomplishments as a student provide a boost to my self-esteem, because they bring me recognition and applause in my community, especially in my church where I lead the choir. My self-esteem lets me perform well and gives me the confidence to move about in a social context, comfortable in the knowledge that I am likeable and welcome. I feel that my accomplishments more than make up for my lack of physical attractiveness, and it does not significantly detract from my sense of self-esteem. My self-esteem leads me to believe that I can make informed choices about my own life, and indeed have all rights to do so. In the social arena, my self-esteem helps me perform at a high level of self-efficacy. Based on my concept of self and self-esteem, I am able to form an estimate of how effective I am as a person. There is no hesitation in attempting a new challenge, because my sense of self-efficacy tells me that I am more than likely to succeed. In my point of view, my sense of self-efficacy increases if the challenges belong to my comfort zones, namely singing or academics, because it is very well accepted by those around me and myself that these are the areas I am easily able to excel in. This is the reason why I am comfortable taking part in community events which involve singing. One of my earliest and most significant memories is of being sent on stage by my mother to sing a small hymn at a church event. After my singing ended, there was loud and continued applause, and I could see the smiles of approval on the faces of all the people in the audience which included my parents, relatives, friends and neighbors. This gave my sense of self-esteem a major boost, and whenever I now feel nervous about going on stage, I recall that moment in my childhood when I first heard the applause of the people around me. It gives me a feeling of rise in self-confidence, and my concept of self-efficacy is restored: I do not feel nervous or panicky any more and am able to get on the stage and