Present Proposals for Improvements to customer service Essay

Introduction: In this assignment I will research a business through either the Internet or visiting the actual location and describe what type of customer service does that business have. I will pass judgement by listing all the facilities that the business has installed to facilitate and benefit their customers. I will base my research on the Legoland theme park in Windsor as it has a lot of factors to talk about in my assignment and will prove quite interesting in my understanding in what good customer service is. For task 2 I will describe the Acts of Parliament that protects customers and relate each Act according to how it will affect an customer at Legoland. I will then take another business and I will observe all the factors that has been asked of me to do, such as make notes like the â€Å"friendliness that the business makes to its customers† to questions like â€Å"What are the conditions of hygiene to the customers†, all of which will be taken in to account into an overall conclusion to how that business gives satisfaction to customer service. I will visit Mc Donald’s in Hounslow, being as its a very busy environment it will test their behaviour to all the elements that could effect their service and observe how they deal in those predicaments. I will then interpretative my opinion on how Mc Donald’s could improve there business through an oral presentation. Read more:  Advantages of Off The Job Training For task 5 I will obtain information on how an organisation monitor customer service and explain on how Legoland would take out to improve and increase sales for the long term future. Task 1 and Introduction to Legoland I have chosen to visit Legoland Windsor as my organisation, Legoland has 150 acres of wooded landscape. It is set on a beautiful site, nine million families within our target age range. The lego group was founded in 1932 by â€Å"Ole Kirk Chitarisen who started life as a carpenter. today Lego is consistently the only European toy manufacturer in the worlds top ten best sellers list. The Lego group is always being innovative. Manufacturing new designs and different techniques of satisfying children’s fundamental needs. The lego group is still a family owned business. Around 1.2 – 1.4 million people visits Legoland per year. It has all a child aged 2-12 needs. It is near to main motorways and there are several means of access to Legoland. There are many advantages, for example the effect on the local economy. I am visiting Legoland in order to investigate how the business treats its internal and external customers and what methods they have to solve customer complaints. External customers are people that buy or visits. They are private individuals and businesses Legolands main external customers are families, grandparents with children, children from school trips and foreigners. There are 12 – 14 million visitors every year. It is a great idea for parents to take their children to Legoland as it meets their needs. Legoland has five themed activity areas with forty interactive notes and is full of fun for children aged 2 -12. The services that Legoland offer to its customers. * Toilet facilities: Children always need to go to the toilet nearly each hour of the day therefore , there should be a sufficient amount of toilets around the site. * Baby care Centres: This area is a private area for mothers to changed their baby or to breastfeed. It is ideal for mothers as it is convenient and they can rely on them in case of a emergency. * Lockers: Legoland offers lockers to the public as it saves them carrying their luggage around and they know that it is safe. They are non-refundable coin operated lockers . There are a high amount of lockers provided. * Pushchairs and wheelchairs hire: Both pushchairs & wheelchairs can be hired from Legoland. They have a charge but is fair. To make pushchairs & wheelchairs give more access Legoland have provided slopes instead of steps and wide gaps for access in the attractions. For example freestyle workshop. * Public telephone: There are public telephone located on the mini map. This is very pleasing as not everyone has mobile phones. This may be ideal for parents making calls to a taxi firm or friend to pick them up. * First Aid: There is only are first aid centre on the map. This is unpleasant as first aid centres are vital as children may cause injury to themselves and need assistance promptly. * Lost Parents: There are two lost parents sites located. This is a vital need as children need to know where they are and how far they are. A child may get lost and will not know what to do. Normally if a child appears at a lost parents centre, they announce it on speakers around the site giving a full description of a lost child. * Automatic cash machines; There is one cash machine on site. This is useful as parents do not have to visit banks to withdraw cash. Parents would not have to worry if they run out of money. * Restaurants and cafes: There are eight restaurants & cafes in Legoland. This is pleasing as parents and children will have the benefit of eating when they are ready. They would not have to walk far to find a restaurant. The internal customers of Legoland are the employees, support staff and those who work within the organisation. Their needs would be: * A pleasant environment to work in: The employees would require an environment in which it is clean, safe and suitable. * An average salary: All employee want to earn a sufficient amount of money, so they can purchase more goods/services, or of a higher quality of goods or services. Their salary must be able to cover for their own running costs, food and needs. * Uniform: Some jobs require the employees to wear a uniform. The employees would have to wear the uniform as it is presentable and is a form of advertising. It pleases customers & alerts them that the employees are available. * Changing area: Employees need an area in which they can change their clothes into their uniform. Their has to be a male/female changing room. This is convenient for the employees, as they will not have to wear their to and from work. * Lockers: Employees need locker to store their valuables and to reduce the risk of theft. The employees feel a little safer as they know their goods are store somewhere safe. * Toilets: Staff need toilet facilities as this is a basic need. * Car park: Staff who drive need to know where they can park their vechiles without worrying. In some staff car – parks, only the staff have an entrance to it. Business communication Oral. An event when I spoke to an member of staff at Legoland was: 1) At the main entrance, I went to guest services to ask on some more information on Legoland and perhaps that they might have a student information pack, they replied and gladly and gave me a booklet on all the information on the Legoland Corporation. My opinion of the customer service of Legoland. During my visit to Mc Donald I discovered that many of staff were exhausted, unhelpful and bored. There were not many members of the public as the weather was unpleasant. Due to the poor weather, most of the attractions and shops were closed I went on a few attractions to test the staff’s reaction. For example, we went on a ride called â€Å"the ferrous wheel†. The woman working there was being very sarcastic as the ride was for all ages but aimed at younger children but still didn’t give her the right to tell me and the people I’m with â€Å"I hope you not come back†. We went on another ride called â€Å"casserole†. The man who was supervising the ride who was opposite us and phoned the person on the other side of the path and they both started laughing and making jokes, which quite rude and uncomfortable The procedures Legoland adapt to handling customer complaints are. * Listening to the customers complaints. * Try to assess the situation. * Let the customer fill in a customer complaint form * Reassure the customer saying sorry and it will not happen again An situation where a complaint was proceeded. A man came into a restaurant to purchase a cup of coffee for 85p. He begins to drink and realises that the coffee has gone cold. He goes to the server and tells him that his coffee that he just purchased has been cold when he bought it. The server Written communication I got this leaflet from a library. It has all the information the public need to know about Legoland. It has six different languages for everyone’s needs, it gives the statistic information, opening times, advance booking, season passes and where how to get there. It is a very vibrant and bold leaflet. This leaflet is all you need to know about Legoland. It has a big and colourful writing for children to read and uses words like â€Å"excitement†, â€Å"hours of fun† â€Å"nothing better†. These words are emphasised many times to make Legoland sound fun and interesting. Legoland manufactures many leaflets in order to persuade little children and parents to visit. LEAFET * Here in a leaflet, I got from the front desk It tells the public when the opening times are for certain attractions. The second Leaflet is a addition feature that Legoland have added as their last and closing days to their seasonal year. It is shown in a very bright and vibrant layout with space Legoland character shooting a space war over the miniature site attraction. It would attract people into to going to this event but the thing that would put people off is the times that the fireworks will be displayed which is the late evening so some people might need to leave, so they have to miss that event, if it was some other special event that can proceed in the day then the turn out could be large. N/A N/A These are the four acts which protect customers 1)Consumer protection Act 1987 This act states that all goods brought should be safe to use, and prices should not be displayed in a misleading way. Legoland would have to abide by these rules. For example, the price of goods should not be displayed in a confusing way. The price should be bold so customers can clearly see and understand them. 2) Sales of goods act 1979 This law declares that goods should be: * Merchantable quality (Fit to sell, have no faults or damages) * Fit for their purpose (suitable for the purpose for which they are sold) * As describe (must match description given) For example, at Legoland the goods sold should have no faults or damages. If a women purchases a key ring and discovers that there is a crack in the glass that contains a picture of Legoland, she can take it back either to received a refund or exchange, Legoland may lose customer loyalty through damaged goods so they must maintain high quality products. 3) Trades Description Act 1963. The code conveys that traders must give an accurate description of their goods & services. Legoland must show clearly their goods & services they sell. For example, In the leaflets it describes the goods it sells. 4) Health and safety at work Act 1974 This act states that External customers can sue if they: * get injured because he/she sold a faulty product * suffer financial lost/distress, because of poor workmanship, professional negligence * Injure themselves because lack of care by an employee due to unsafe fittings. For Example, a customer walks into Burger king and slips over and breaks his arm. There were no signs of safety to alert the customer. The customer can sue the business for this. Task 4 Intro: In this part of the assignment I am going to observes the customer service at McDonald. This requires me to purchase something from the fast food chain and take in all the details which will help me explain what are my thought on the overall service of that particular restaurant. ________________________________________________________________ During my visit to a well known restaurant I discovered that many of staff treated their customers very well. I went into a restaurant called â€Å"McDonald†. The service was satisfactory as they treated me in a good manner. There were limited amounts of food to choose from. They had a chicken burger, chicken nuggets, beefburgers & chips, all in total of 6 meals to choose from. I thought there would be more of a variety to choose from. I paid 79p for a medium portion of chips. its was not filling at all, whereas if I went to a general fish and chip shop the portions that they give for 79p is quite handsome and leaves you quite full. The time it took to order an potion of chips was very quick as it was almost instant. It took almost for the cashier at Mc Donald’s to despense the money I gave her in order to give me my order about 40secs, which was very impressive. I was in a long queue to test the amount of time it took to place my order. It took 3 mins to place my order in a queue with 7 people ahead of me. The hygiene of the restaurant was only satisfactory as the place was over crowded and I think due to the poor weather conditions most staff were ill and tired to meet the standards of cleanliness required by the Health and Safety Act to their customers. Despite the hygienic of the restaurant the ergonomics of the seats and tables and all other design features to the chain restaurant is in general quite good. For a family of four could easily seat together in a booth that is to assist a number of people at once to sit. The tables is on average in the right height to eat, and the seats just complement the table with the right height. The only disadvantage to the comfort to the seats is that its 100% plastic and that can be quite uncomfortable if sat down for a long time, but due to the constant redesigning to the restaurants it may just be a costing objective. In overall comfort to the restaurant is very welcoming and due to the winter they have set the climate to a comfortable temperature. The hygiene of the lavatories was at a high standard. No matter how busy it is, Mc Donald’s always maintained the lavatories clean and the all the way into the mensroom neat. The floors are always mopeds and the cubicles are always smelling fresh. The access for the disabled people is just satisfactory. As I walked in I noticed instant that the space between the tray and bin stand and the parallel table was quite close together, and if I just squeezed through a person going the other direction then someone in a wheelchair is going to have a frustrating time getting to order and finally having a place to eat in McDonalds. There is a disabled toilet which is at a very good standard, so Mc Donald’s are to facilitate disabled people but there ideas would need to have concerns on how they are meant to get in their restaurant. Mc Donald’s have always been concern for the environment. From when a customer opens there boxed burger to reading the sheet that covers the tray, Mc Donald’s always mentions and expresses that all there packaging and wrapping is produced from recycled paper and other materials. The majority of the disposable rubbish is always mention to be recycled too. The surrounding environment to Mc Donald’s is clean and members of staff take shifts into picking up any other rubbish that surrounds Mc Donald’s. The bins around the restaurant are always being replaced with an empty black bag, and on the outside of the restaurant which is the front, is a bin which is always being monitored by the staff. The safety of the restaurant was excellent as they had taken all precautions to prevent accidents from occurring. For example a sign symbolising that theirs a wet floor was put up, this was to reduce the risk of injury. The improvements that Mc Donald’s need to take in to action are: The three improvements to customer service that I have chosen are: a) Friendliness b) Availabilty of Goods and services a) Friendliness When I went into Mc’Donalds the staff did greeted me nice but in self forcefully way. As I ordered my fries the cashier almost shouted and said â€Å"Is that all† I quietly replied â€Å"no that would be fine†. Then when I received my order She said â€Å"Thank you enjoy your meal† even when I ordered a portion of fries and in the way she said it was in a insincere way. The way that the staff at Mc Donald’s could improve its courtesy to their customer would be to hire more cashiers and give them a longer break as on the day I went to the restaurant it was a very busy day and the amount of customers and stress combined can did lead to satisfactory behaviour. b) Availability of goods. From time to time McDonalds do have a wider variety of extra value meals but only for limited time period such as the new Chinese themed meals. As in a any other working day you would go into have lunch at their restaurants you would find yourself limited amounts of foods to choose and soon enough you would become fed up of eaten the same thing time and time again. Mc Donald’s could improve this by introducing more different extra value meals and fixing them into the ordering system in the restaurant so they become a regular fixture. How businesses monitor customer satisfaction Legoland monitor the number of customers by looking at their level of sales. If their sales are low, this means that the numbers of customer’s visits are low. This may be due to high price unhelpful or rude staff or validity of goods/services. Legoland monitors the level of sales by seeing if the sales have increased. This means that more customers are buying more. If the sales are rising this may indicate that customers that customers are happy with the service or find the goods at a reasonable price. Legoland monitor feedback by asking their customers to fill a form on their service. If a customer went into a shop to purchase a magazine and was unable to find it, he/she says thank you. This is a method of feedback as the customers was happy with their good/service. Some businesses issue surveys to their customers because then they can detect if people are happy with their good/service. Legoland monitor repeats business by checking the name and address of a person and how many times his names appears. For example a man buys a jumper on credit card. It shows the name and address. Another day, the same man returns and purchases a jacket, his name will appear again. Therefore the company can conclude that this is a frequent customer.

Does Technology Corrupt Society

Does technology corrupt society? (By: Gordon Turtle) Does technology corrupt society? That’s a commonly asked question. If you think about it, technology helps society more then it harms it. A lot of schools disallow the use of cell phones or laptops unless they are used for school it-self. How would students communicate without them? Through the one hour to an hour and forty five minutes of lunch? What about technology used for medical purposes. Also, technology used for electronics such as computers, lights, etc†¦ Lastly, technology used for communication, like cell phones, radios, etc†¦We use technology almost everywhere; we use it for medical to help people get rid of diseases and injuries. It also helps doctors train better, easier, and more efficiently. If we didn’t have technology then we would still be cavemen living in caves with no light, no way of surviving injuries or illnesses. If we didn’t have any medical abilities the human race would ha ve went extinct a long time ago. Technology gave us electricity and electronics. Without technology we wouldn’t have t. v. ’s, toy’s, game systems, etc†¦ If man evolved without technology then we wouldn’t have come this far, we wouldn’t be as smart as we are now.We also wouldn’t have any way of teaching our children or other kids about how to live life or how to be good responsible adults. Technology also gave us communication devices such as the cellphone, house phone, computers, laptops, etc†¦ If we didn’t have technology the military would have fast ways of communicating with its soldiers. Without communication we could think we are the only country on earth for all we knew. Communication devices gave us the power to talk to one another from one side of the earth to the other in seconds.Imagine a world without communication. Imagine you had to write a letter and have it read days or even months later, and then having to w ait days or months for a response. Communication devices are one of the most important pieces of technology ever made. Without them we might as well go live in a cave with the few people we know, thinking that you were the only ones that are on the earth. That’s why technology doesn’t corrupt society, and that technology is what brought us to where we are today. If you think about it, technology helps society more then it harms it.

Advantages and disadvantages of franchising Essay

Franchising has exhibited dramatic growth since it offers some significant advantages when compared to other distribution methods. When starting a business or venturing into entrepreneurship, it is imperative for one to consider all options. One of the most suitable ways of achieving such an objective is to buy into a franchise. Business are able to expand by franchising in order to gain access to external capital that can fund growth of new outlets or stores that are run by committed and profit driven franchisees CITATION Fra12 l 1033 (Frazer, Merrilees, & Wright, 2012). These franchisees are more likely to be focused and diligent than employed staff. Therefore, Franchising allows individuals to become their own boss. For people who want to apply franchising in the Chinese market, they may wish weight all options. Franchising is one the best solution for transitioning from employment to a business owner. There are several businessmen and businesswomen who have thrived and successfully transformed their financial lives through franchising. Venturing into franchising has its benefits and also some drawbacks. Besides the startup capital required to become a franchisee, there is little planning and thought that is required when setting up the new business. The new store or outlet has to conform to the image that the franchisor has already set up. Small details such as the color scheme, to the inventory items to be placed on the menu or on the shelves, are all determined by the franchisor. This arrangement makes is easier for the franchisee to set up the business and increases the chances of success CITATION Hun11 l 1033 (Hunter, 2011). Most franchisors give the franchisee detailed training in order to ensure that they develop the required level of expertise to achieve profitability. This allows the franchisee to have a piece of minds knowing that the company is steering the business in the right direction. One does not have to develop an advertising strategy or solid branding as this is done by the franchisor. Although franchising might be perceived as an ideal solution by some individuals, others cite throwbacks of the business model. Therefore, they prefer multi-level marketing or network marketing, which allows one to become a distributor of a product of and established and a reputable company. This allows one to leverage on the advantages of being a franchisee whilst overcoming some of the disadvantages associated with it CITATION Hun11 l 1033 (Hunter, 2011). Firstly, multilevel marketing or network marketing products usually have a good level of branding in that, consumers are able to recognize the product that is offered to them. Although franchisees also have this advantage, they do not have the freedom to come up with unique structures when it comes to the distribution business. Network marking will, therefore, allow one to have free reign to market their business in whichever way they like CITATION Fra12 l 1033 (Frazer, Merrilees, & Wright, 2012). Another advantage that network marketing has over franchising is that little startup capital is required to become a distributor. One is only required to pay a little amount of money to join a network, while some networks require annual fees CITATION Hun11 l 1033 (Hunter, 2011). Additionally, one may be required to purchase the product in advance so that it can be delivered to the customers as the sales are made. All in all, the total amount of money required to run a profitable network is far less than what is required when one is a franchise. References BIBLIOGRAPHY Frazer, L., Merrilees, B., & Wright, O. (2012). Power and control in the franchise network: An investigation of ex-franchisees and brand piracy. Journal of Marketing Management, 11-29. Hunter, R. (2011). MASTER FRANCHISING AS AN ENTRY STRATEGY: MARKETING AND LEGAL IMPLICATIONS. The Coastal Business Journal, 16-27. Source document

Concepts Answers

What is database? Q & Answers A database is a logically coherent collection of data with some inherent meaning, representing some aspect of real world and which is designed, built and populated with data for a specific purpose. 2. What is DBMS? It is a collection of programs that enables user to create and maintain a database. In other words it is general-purpose software that provides the users with the processes of defining, constructing and manipulating the database for various applications. 3. What is a Database system?The database and DBMS software together is called as Database system. 4. Advantages of DBMS? Redundancy is controlled. Unauthorised access is restricted. Providing multiple user interfaces. Enforcing integrity constraints. Providing backup and recovery. 5. Disadvantage in File Processing System? Data redundancy & inconsistency. Difficult in accessing data. Data isolation. Data integrity. Concurrent access is not possible. Security Problems. 6. Describe the three le vels of data abstraction? The are three levels of abstraction: Physical level: The lowest level of abstraction describes how data are stored.Logical level: The next higher level of abstraction, describes what data are stored in database nd what relationship among those data. View level: The highest level of abstraction describes only part of entire database. 7. Define the â€Å"integrity rules† There are two Integrity rules. Entity Integrity: States that â€Å"Primary key cannot have NULL value† Referential Integrity: States that â€Å"Foreign Key can be either a NULL value or should be Primary Key value of other relation. 8. What is extension and intension? Extension – It is the number ot tuples present in a table at any instance.This is time dependent. Intension – It is a constant value that gives the name, structure of table and the constraints laid n it. 9. What is System R? What are its two major subsystems? System R was designed and developed over a period of 1974-79 at IBM San Jose Research Center. It is a prototype and its purpose was to demonstrate that it is possible to build a Relational System that can be used in a real life environment to solve real life problems, with performance at least comparable to that of existing system. Its two subsystems are Research Storage System Relational Data System. 0. How is the data structure of System R different from the relational structure? Unlike Relational systems in System R Domains are not supported Enforcement of candidate key uniqueness is optional Enforcement of entity integrity is optional Referential integrity is not enforced 11. What is Data Independence? Data independence means that â€Å"the application is independent of the storage structure and access strategy of data†. In other words, The ability to modify the schema definition in one level should not affect the schema definition in the next higher level.Two types of Data Independence: Physical Data Independen ce: Modification in physical level should not affect the logical level. Logical Data Independence: Modification in logical level should affect the view level. NOTE: Logical Data Independence is more difficult to achieve 12. What is a view? How it is related to data independence? A view may be thought of as a virtual table, that is, a table that does not really exist in its own right but is instead derived from one or more underlying base table. In other words, there is no stored file that direct represents the view instead a definition of view is stored in data dictionary.Growth and restructuring of base tables is not reflected in views. Thus the view can insulate users from the effects of restructuring and growth in the database. Hence accounts for logical data independence. 3. What is Data Model? A collection of conceptual tools for describing data, data relationships data semantic cs and constraints. 14. What is E-R model? This data model is based on real world that consists of b asic objects called entities and of relationship among these objects. Entities are described in a database by a set ot attributes. 15. What is Object Oriented model? This model is based on collection of objects.An object contains values stored in instance variables with in the object. An object also contains bodies of code that operate on the object. These bodies of code are called methods. Objects that contain ame types of values and the same methods are grouped together into classes. 16. What is an Entity? It is a ‘thing' in the real world with an independent existence. 17. What is an Entity type? It is a collection (set) of entities that have same attributes. 18. What is an Entity set? It is a collection of all entities of particular entity type in the database. 19. What is an Extension of entity type?The collections of entities of a particular entity type are grouped together into an entity set. 20. What is Weak Entity set? An entity set may not have sufficient attributes to form a primary key, and its primary ey compromises of its partial key and primary key of its parent entity, then it is said to be Weak Entity set. 21 . What is an attribute? It is a particular property, which describes the entity. 22. What is a Relation Schema and a Relation? A relation Schema denoted by R(AI, A2, †¦ , An) is made up of the relation name R and the list of attributes Ai that it contains. A relation is defined as a set of tuples.Let r be the relation which contains set tuples (tl, t2, t3, tn). Each tuple is an ordered list of n-values t=(v1,v2, vn). 23. What is degree of a Relation? It is the number of attribute of its relation schema. 24. What is Relationship? It is an association among two or more entities. 25. What is Relationship set? The collection (or set) of similar relationships. 26. What is Relationship type? Relationship type detlnes a set ot associations or a relationship set among a given set of entity types. 27. What is degree of Relationship type ? It is the number of entity type participating. Concepts Answers Marginal revenue is the additional revenue that a firm obtains by selling one more unit. Marginal cost is the cost of hiring one more unit of labor or the cost of producing one more unit of output. Marginal revenue product is the additional revenue we obtain by hiring one more unit of labor. When we incur a marginal cost our hope it that is will generate marginal revenue product which exceeds the cost. Hence the marginal revenue will exceed our marginal cost. 4. Distinguish between economic and financial capital.Economic capital resources include all items that man manufactures by combining natural and unman resources like buildings, equipment, roads, and bridges. Financial capital is a dollar value claim on economic capital. Financial capital would include cash, deeds of trust, mortgages, loan papers, stocks, and bonds. 5. Discuss the value of the entrepreneur. What distinguishes the entrepreneur from the labor resource? Why are entrepreneurs unique? Entrepreneurial resources consis t of the ideas of individuals, who assume risk and begin business enterprises.The entrepreneur combines natural, human, and capital resources to produce a good or service that we value more than the individual components. Without the entrepreneur, the other resources would not normally be combined, except for subsistence (I . E. , the resources that are just sufficient to sustain life). The entrepreneur seeks to make a profit when using his ideas. When we look at overall payments, the mental talents of people in the form of the entrepreneur normally exceed the wages that are paid for labor. The owner of a professional sports team, the entrepreneur, will normally make more than any player on that team.Of course, the more brilliant the idea and its ultimate appeal to the buyer of the good or service, he more profit that will accrue to the entrepreneur. 6. What is opportunity cost? An opportunity cost is the highest value that is surrendered when a decision is made; it is never the dec ision, which is made. It is a quantifiable term. 7. What makes up gross income? All of the money received from all sources during the year. This includes wages, tips, interest earned on savings and bonds, income from rental property, profits to entrepreneurs, and any other source of income an individual may have. 8.Compare progressive, regressive, and proportional taxes. Give at least one example of each type of ax. Progressive taxes are taxes that take a larger percentage of your income as your income increases. Regressive taxes are taxes that take a higher percentage of your income as your income decreases. Proportional taxes are taxes where the percentage paid stays the same, regardless of income. Examples include progressive income taxes, regressive sales taxes, and proportional property taxes. 9. What is the law of supply? The law of supply states that as the payment or price of an item increases, coteries Paramus, we will supply more of that item. 0. What is a supply table? Ho w do you obtain supply curve from a supply table? A supply table is a listing of the quantities of some variable, which will be supplied at various prices in the market place. The supply curve is obtained by horizontally summing the quantities supplied by different suppliers at each price in the market. 11. What is the law of demand? The Law of Demand states that if all other factors are constant, as the price for an item decreases, people will demand more of that item, coteries Paramus. 12. Explain the concept of a surplus of money versus a shortage of money.When the supply of money saved exceeds the demand for money, here is a surplus of money; then institutions (banks, credit unions, savings and loans, etc. ) will pay less for savings, and interest rates will begin to fall. When the demand for money exceeds the supply, there is a shortage of money and interest rates will be bid up in the market as institutions attempt to obtain more money. 13. What is the Federal Reserve? What ar e the Feud's three tools for controlling the money supply? The Federal Reserve is the Central Bank of the United States.The three tools for controlling the money supply are the discount rate, the reserve requirements ratio, and federal open market operations. 4. What is risk? What is the difference between systematic and unsystematic risk? Risk involves the probability that the actual return on an investment will be different from the desired return. Systematic risk is that risk which is associated with economic, political, and sociological changes that affect all participants on a near equal basis. Unsystematic risk is that risk that is unique to an individual, firm, or industry. EXERCISES AND PROBLEMS 1.Carry Yogi's Lounge consists of the following. Carry, the owner believed that people would come to hear a band play on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evening. During the remainder of the week, she believed her customers would watch sporting events on several television sets located t hroughout the lounge. Carry employed two bartenders, three servers, two assistant servers, two cooks, one dishwasher and a clean-up person. She had a bar, 15 barstools, 4 tables, 40 chairs, 4 television Sets, and one satellite dish. She had an oven, stove, grill, refrigerator, sinks, dishes, and glassware.Carry started this business with $50,000 of her own money, and she borrowed $1 50,000 from the bank. From this description, list each of the scarce resources that are used in Carry Yogi's Lounge. Entrepreneurial resource: Carry Yoke. Labor resources: 2 bartenders, 3 servers, 2 assistant servers, 2 cooks, 1 dishwasher, and a clean-up person. Economic capital resources: 1 bar, 15 bar stools, 4 tables, 40 chairs, 4 television sets, one satellite dish, oven, stove, grill, refrigerator, sinks, dishes, and glassware. Financial capital resources: $50,000 of her own money and $1 50,000 from the bank. . Joe Fixity has an appliance repair business. He has more business than he can handle and wants to hire another repair person. Joe estimates that three appliances can be repaired each hour by a qualified person. Joe bills out labor at $45 per hour, but he stipulates that the minimum charge for appliance repair estimates is $30 plus parts. What is the marginal revenue product of a qualified repair person? 3 appliance repairs per hour times $30 = $90 marginal revenue product. What is the maximum hourly wage that he would pay an employee?Therefore, since we bring in an additional $90 per hour by hiring one more repair person, the maximum wage we would pay is $90. 3. Sam Smith is currently employed as a mechanical engineer and is paid $65,000 per year plus benefits that are equal to 30% of his salary. Sam wants to begin a consulting rim and decides to leave his current job. After his first year in business, Cam's accountant informed him that he had made $45,000 with his consulting business. Sam also notices that he paid $6,000 for a health insurance policy, which was his to tal benefit during his first year.What was Cam's opportunity cost? Sam gave up $65,000 in salary plus $19,500 in benefits roar total of $84,500. 4. Sara Lee just graduated from college with a degree in accounting. She had five job offers: Bean counters CPA, $35,000; Assets R us, $27,000; The Debit store, $30,000; J & G's Spa's, $33,000; and The Double Entry Shop, $40,000. What was her opportunity cost if she accepted the job with The Double Entry Shop? Sara gave up Bean counters CPA at $35,000 which was the highest value surrendered. 5. Sam Club earned $50,000 and paid taxes of $10,000.Samaritan Heart earned $60,000 and paid taxes of $12,000. If these taxes were paid to the same government agency, is the tax on income progressive, regressive, or proportional? Why did you reach this conclusion? As show below these taxes are proportional because they both paid the same percentage of their income in taxes. 6. You read an article in this mornings paper that stated inflation was accelera ting and would reach six percent this year. If the FED believes this statement and it has set a goal of three percent inflation, what will it likely do at the next meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee?They would most likely raise the discount rate, the federal funds rate, or both. They could also sell more government securities to decrease the money supply. 7. A friend came into your office and said that his bank was out to kill small businesses. You asked him what he meant by this remark, and he said that he read an article that said his bank had just loaned $10 million to a major automobile manufacturer at a rate of 3 percent, which is less than prime. But your friend just borrowed $50,000 from the same bank and they charged him prime plus four percent, or 7. Percent. Your friend has been in business for two years, and last year he had a loss of $2,000. How can you explain this difference in interest rate to your friend? The bank charges interest based upon risk The probab ility of the automobile manufacturer defaulting on the loan is very remote; therefore, they get a favorable interest rate from the bank. Since your friend lost money last year and since over 40 percent of all mall businesses fail in the first five years, the bank's risk is much higher and therefore they will charge a higher interest rate.

The Hunters: Moonsong Chapter Sixteen

When Stefan walked by Elena's room again, the daisy was gone, and the subtle scent of her citrusy shampoo lingered in the hal way. No doubt she was out with Meredith and Bonnie, and he could depend upon Meredith to protect her. He wondered if Damon was watching them, if he'd approach Elena. A bitter strand of envy curled in Stefan's stomach. It was hard being the good one sometimes, the one who would abide by the rules, while Damon did whatever he wanted. He leaned back against the door to Elena's room. There was a window across the hal , and as he watched the cold crescent of the moon sailing high in the sky, he thought of his silent room, of the books of economics and philosophy waiting for him. No. He wasn't going back there. He couldn't be with Elena, but he didn't have to be alone. Outside, there was a chil in the air for the first time since school had started; the sultry heat of a Virginia summer was final y giving way to autumn. Stefan hunched his shoulders and tucked his hands into his jeans pockets. Not real y knowing where he was going, Stefan headed off campus. Vague thoughts of hunting in the woods crossed his mind, but he wasn't hungry, just restless, and he turned away from the trail that led that way. Instead he wandered the streets of the smal town around the col ege. There wasn't much to do. There were a few bars hopping with col ege kids and a couple of restaurants, already closed up. Stefan couldn't imagine wanting to press into a hot and crowded bar right now. He wanted to be around people, maybe, but not too many, not too close, not close enough to sense the thrum of blood beneath their skins. When he was unhappy, like tonight, he could feel something hard and dangerous rising up inside him, and he knew he needed to be careful of the monster he carried within him. He turned down another block, listening to the soft pad of his own steps against the sidewalk. Near the end of the street, a faint thud of music came from a dilapidated building whose buzzing neon sign read EDDIE'S BILLIARDS. None of the few cars in the parking lot had a Dalcrest parking sticker. Clearly a townie spot, not a student one. If Stefan hadn't had this burning, angry loneliness inside him, he wouldn't have gone in. He looked like a student – he was a student – and this didn't look like a place that welcomed students. But the ugly thing inside him stirred at the thought of maybe having a reason to throw a punch or two. Inside, it was Welllit but dingy, the air thick and blue with smoke. An old rock song was playing on a jukebox in the corner. Six pool tables sat in the middle of the room, with smal round tables around the sides, and a bar at the far end. Two of the pool tables and a few of the round tables were occupied by locals, who let their eyes drift over him neutral y and then turned away. At the bar, Stefan saw a familiar back, a sleek dark head. Even though he'd been sure Damon would be fol owing Elena, he wasn't surprised to see him. Stefan had reined his Power in, concentrating on his own misery, but he'd always been able to sense his brother. If he had thought about it, he would have known Damon was there. Damon, equal y unsurprised, turned and tipped his glass to Stefan with a wry little grin. Stefan went over to join him. â€Å"Hel o, little brother,† Damon said softly when Stefan sat down. â€Å"Shouldn't you be holed up somewhere, crying over your loss of the lovely Elena?† Stefan sighed and slumped on the barstool. Propping his elbows on the bar, he rested his head on his hands. Suddenly, he was terribly tired. â€Å"Let's not talk about Elena,† he said. â€Å"I don't want to fight with you, Damon.† â€Å"Then don't.† Patting him lightly on the shoulder, Damon was up and out of his seat. â€Å"Let's play some pool.† One thing about living for hundreds of years, Stefan knew, was that you had time to get real y good at things. Versions of bil iards had been around as long as he and Damon had, although he liked the modern version best – he liked the smel of the chalk and the squeak of the leather tip on the cue. Damon's thoughts seemed to be running on the same track. â€Å"Remember when we were kids and we used to play bil iart on the lawns of Father's palazzo?† he asked as he racked up the bal s. â€Å"Different game, though, back then,† Stefan said. â€Å"Go ahead and break.† He could picture it clearly, the two of them fooling around when the adults were al inside, shoving the bal s across the grass toward their targets with the heavy-headed maces, in a game that was a cross between modern pool and croquet. Back in those days, Damon was wild, prone to fights with stable boys and nights prowling the streets, but not yet as angry as he would be by the time they grew into young men. Back then, he let his adoring, more timid younger brother trail after him and have a share in his adventures. Elena was right about one thing, he admitted to himself. He liked hanging out with Damon, being brothers again. When he'd spotted Damon at the bar just now, he'd felt a little lightening of the loneliness he was carrying around with him. Damon was the only person who remembered him as a child, the only person who remembered him alive. Maybe they could be friends, without Katherine or Elena between them for a while. Maybe something good could come out of this. Bil iart, bil iards, or pool, Damon had always liked playing. He was better than Stefan, and, after hundreds of years of practice, Stefan was pretty good. Which was why Stefan was so surprised when Damon's break sent bal s spinning merrily al over the table, but none into the pockets. â€Å"What's up?† he asked, cocking an eyebrow at Damon as he chalked his own cue. I've been watching the locals, Damon said silently. There are a couple of slick hustlers in here. I want to draw them over to us. Hustle them for a change. Come on, Damon added quickly when Stefan hesitated. It's not wrong to hustle hustlers. It's like killing murderers, a public service. Your moral compass is seriously skewed, Stefan shot back at him, but he couldn't keep himself from smiling. What was the harm, real y? â€Å"Two bal in the corner pocket,† he added aloud. He made the shot and sank two more bal s before intentional y scratching and stepping back to let Damon take his turn. They went on like that, playing pretty Wellbut not too Well, careful to look like a couple of cocky col ege kids who knew their way around a pool cue but would be no chal enge to a professional hustler. Damon's pretense of frustration when he missed a shot amused Stefan. Stefan had forgotten, it was fun to be part of Damon's schemes. Stefan won by a couple of bal s, and Damon whipped out a wal et ful of money. â€Å"You got me, man,† he said in a slightly drunken voice that didn't sound quite like his own and held out a twenty. Stefan blinked at him. Take it, Damon thought at him. Something about the set of his jaw reminded Stefan again of the way Damon was when they were children, of the way he lied to their father about his misadventures, confident Stefan would back him up. Damon was trusting him without even thinking about it, Stefan realized. Stefan smiled and slipped it into his back pocket. â€Å"Rack'em up again?† he suggested, and realized he was also pitching his voice a little younger, a little drunker, than he normal y would. They played another game, and Stefan handed the twenty back. â€Å"Another?† he asked. Damon started to rack the bal s, and then his hands slowed. He flicked a glance up at Stefan and then back down at the bal s. â€Å"Listen,† he said, taking a deep breath, â€Å"I'm sorry for what's happening with Elena. If I – † He hesitated. â€Å"I can't just stop feeling the way I do about her, but I didn't mean to make things harder for you. Or for her.† Stefan stared at him. Damon never apologized. Was he serious? â€Å"I – thank you,† he said. Damon looked past him and his mouth twitched into his sudden, bril iant smile. Bait taken, he said silently. So much for the heartfelt brother moment. Two guys were coming toward them. One was short and slight with sandy hair, the other big, bulky, and dark. â€Å"Hi,† the shorter one said. â€Å"We wondered if you guys wanted to play teams, mix it up a little.† His smile was bright and easy, but his eyes were shrewd and watchful. The eyes of a predator. Their names were Jimmy and David, and they were real pros. They kept the games close, waiting until after the third game to suggest raising the stakes to make things a little more interesting. â€Å"A hundred?† Jimmy suggested casual y. â€Å"I can just about do it, if you want.† â€Å"How about more?† Damon said, sounding drunk again. â€Å"Stefan, you stil got that five hundred in your wal et?† Stefan didn't, nowhere near it, but he didn't think he'd need to pay up. He nodded but, at a glance from Damon, played reluctant. â€Å"I don't know, Damon†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he said. â€Å"Don't worry about it,† Damon said expansively. â€Å"Easy money, right?† Jimmy was watching them, his eyes alert. â€Å"Five hundred it is,† he agreed, smiling. â€Å"I'l break,† Damon said, and went into action. After a moment, Stefan rested his pool cue against the wal . He wasn't going to get a chance to shoot, none of them were; Damon was moving with clockwork precision to pocket one bal after another. He wasn't making any effort to hide that he and Stefan had been running a hustle, and Jimmy's and David's faces darkened dangerously as the last few bal s rattled into their pockets. â€Å"Pay up,† Damon demanded sharply, setting down his cue. Jimmy and David were moving toward them, scowling. â€Å"You two think you're real smart, don't you?† David growled. Stefan poised himself on both feet, ready to fight or run, whatever Damon wanted. They wouldn't have any trouble fending off these guys, but with the disappearances and attacks al over campus, he'd rather not cal attention to themselves. Damon, cool and relaxed, gazed at Jimmy and David, his hands open. â€Å"I think you want to pay us the money you owe us,† he said calmly. â€Å"Oh, that's what you think, do you?† Jimmy said sarcastical y. He shifted his grip on his pool cue, and now he was holding it more like a weapon. Damon smiled and unleashed a wave of Power into the room. Even Stefan, who was half expecting it, was chil ed as Damon lifted his human mask for a moment, his black eyes cold and deadly. Jimmy and David staggered backward as if they'd been shoved by invisible hands. â€Å"Okay, don't get upset,† Jimmy said, his voice shaking. David was blinking as if he had been slapped with a wet towel, clearly unsure of what had just happened. Jimmy opened his wal et and counted out five hundred dol ars in fifties into Damon's hand. â€Å"Now it's time for you to go home,† Damon said softly. â€Å"Maybe you don't want to play pool for a while.† Jimmy nodded and didn't seem to be able to stop nodding, his head bobbing like it was on a spring. He and David backed away, moving quickly toward the door. â€Å"Scary,† Stefan commented. There was a hol ow place inside his chest stil , an empty ache of missing Elena, but he felt better than he had since that day she walked out the door alone. Tonight, he realized with a slight shock, he'd had fun with Damon. â€Å"Oh, I'm a terror,† Damon agreed lightly, pocketing al the money. Stefan raised an eyebrow at him. He didn't care about the money, but it was typical of Damon to assume it was his. Damon grinned. â€Å"Come on, little brother, I'l buy you a drink.†

Helium Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Helium - Essay Example Nobel Prize winners in Physics like R. Richardson with colleagues Osheroff and Lee, nevertheless, points out the essential features of ‘helium’ and the reasons which are worth startling the public to the extent of agreeing that expensive costs be imposed on helium for the sustenance of MRIs, fiber optics, rockets, and other machines that hold special vitality in supporting human lives and activities. Where does helium come from? (in geographical, political and economic terms, as much as the chemical origins). Basically, Sun is the primary source of helium, one of the most stable elements, which is yielded through hydrogen fusion reactions in the solar system whereas on Earth, the radioactive decay of massive elements which are chiefly thorium and uranium over billions of years is found to cause helium formation beneath the Earth’s surface. Along with natural gas, the helium produced exudes out of large rock cavities under low pressure into the atmosphere which has approximately five parts of helium per 100,000 parts of air (Lansing, 1995). In 1868, spectrometer was first used to examine the Sun’s chromospheres during a solar eclipse in India where the resulting spectrum confirmed quantities of hydrogen including yellow stripes which were alleged to characterize sodium element. Unconvinced by the initial hypothesis, French astronomer Janssen further investigated on the matter and was able to disclose the truth about the stripes as beyond the traits of sodium but were most likely part of an unknown element’s identity. On a separate intensive research conducted by Lockyer and  Frankland, Janssen’s results proved that due to its ‘bright yellow stripe’, the element could not have originated from the earth after which  Frankland proposed to call it â€Å"helium† coming from the Greek word â€Å"Helios† meaning Sun. Similar findings were revealed through a range of spectra of other stars that comp rised the yellow stripes whereas Palmieri observed them in gases erupting from Mt. Vesuvius back in 1882. It was not until 1895 that the studies of helium became more meaning when Sir  William Ramsay  treated a Norwegian ore (cleveite) with acids which yielded evolution of helium gas. Hence, the appearance of the yellowish streak in the experiment marked the certainty that on our planet, helium does exist. After nearly two decades, around the same time radium came to be known, scientists had undergone another batch of efforts that would lay foundations for an understanding of helium as a radioactive substance (Helium, History). Geographical findings indicate that the United States, specifically Texas, makes the world’s largest manufacturer of helium despite the valuable presence of helium extraction facilities in Algeria, Russia, and China. Being distilled from  the natural gas  that contains appreciable quantity of uranium and thorium to undergo radioactive decomposi tion, the helium formed is normally derived from rare circumstances of alpha-particle capture occurring underground at considerable depths (Deakin, 2010). Helium is opulently recovered from a region in Amarillo, Texas or the Texas panhandle within a perimeter of 400-km radius and this accounts for a major resource amount that sustains different parts of the world with their helium requirement (Edwards, 2004). Colorado, Kansas, and Oklahoma are also states of origin responsible for contributing small percentages of helium throughout all nations (ScienceDaily). What are the major uses of helium and why are existing reserves irreversibly declining? Several applications of Helium has have been made possible due to the element’s distinct chemical and physical properties such as low boiling point, low

Ethical, legal, and social responsibility issues that your topic Research Paper

Ethical, legal, and social responsibility issues that your topic raises - Research Paper Example It is usually hard to choose whether to apply these unethical conditions because despite the challenges they face, it can be beneficial to the organization. It can lead to lower variable costs and increase in company profits. It is very important that executive members of organizations such as senior managers and supervisors equip themselves with ethical knowledge and skills. These would come handy when they face ethical dilemma on whether to use appropriate employee working conditions or not (Crowther, 43). When deciding on whether to change the current working conditions, it is important to research if the issue is serious and if it harms stakeholders of the organization. These stakeholders include employees, families of employees, shareholders, customers, suppliers and the society that neighbors the organization. Some of the issues such as hiring fewer employees are small problems that can be sort out internally. Large issues such as massive pay cut of employee salaries or exposing employees to health hazards put the reputation of the organization down. If the issue is very serious, junior managers should take it upon their responsibility to pass it to a senior manager or any officer with a high authority. It takes great courage when it comes to managers voicing personal values on ethical issues of employee working conditions. Not every organization executive share the same beliefs and values, but understanding and knowing ones values puts them at an advantage when dealing with ethical dilemma that may arise in the organization. Several steps should be considered before organizations change their employee working conditions. First, it should ask itself how it feels about the particular issue. It should then have its intentions to be for the greater good .Next; the organization should evaluate and consider its power in the specific industry that it carries its operations. After this, the organization can then weigh the risk and benefits of its action.