Sunday, December 29, 2019

What Are Killer Bees, a.k.a. Africanized Bees

Killer bees, as theyve been dubbed by the news media, arrived in the U.S. in 1990, and now inhabit the southernmost areas of California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas. In recent years, killer bees have also been found in Florida, particularly in the Tampa area. What Makes Killer Bees So Killer? So what are killer bees? Killer bees are more properly called African honey bees (AHBs), or sometimes Africanized honey bees. Actually a subspecies of Apis mellifera  (the European honey bee) African honey bees earned their killer reputation for their more aggressive tendencies when defending their nests. African honey bees are quicker to respond to potential threats, and do so in considerable numbers. Their venom is actually no deadlier than that of European honey bees, but what they lack in venom quality they make up for in quantity. African honey bees may inflict ten times as many stings during a defensive attack as their calmer cousins. Where Do Killer Bees Come From? In the 1950s, biologists in Brazil were attempting to breed a honey bee that would produce more honey in tropical environments. They imported honey bee queens from South Africa and established experimental hybrid colonies near Sao Paolo. As sometimes happens with such experiments, some of the hybrid bees—Africanized bees—escaped and established feral colonies. Because the African honey bees were so well suited to tropical and subtropical environments, they continued to thrive and spread throughout the Americas. The killer bees expanded their territory northward at a rate of 100-300 miles per year for decades. How Dangerous Are Killer Bees, Really? The arrival of killer bees in the U.S. in 1990 didnt really live up to the decades of hype. Campy 1970s horror films depicting attacking swarms of killer bees, coupled with news media hysteria, probably led people to believe that the world would be a much more dangerous place once the killer bees flew across the border. In truth, killer bee attacks are relatively rare, even in areas where the African honey bees are well established. A fact sheet from the University of California-Riverside notes that just 6 deaths occurred in the U.S. as a result of killer bee stings in the first ten years after their arrival.

Friday, December 20, 2019

The View of Humanity and Morality; as seen through Modern...

Modern literature is a reflection of modern society, and the ways in which humanity is valued has greatly impacted the modern age. The view of humanity is the effect of a worldview. One of the most important places in which to observe the view of humanity is in the United States. For over half of the 20th century, the US population was divided; this division was not between the states or north and south. This division was in every county, town and city. The entire nation was segregated; blacks against whites. Racial segregation was the antithesis of everything which America had originally stood for. The United States, by tolerating laws that allowed segregation, denied the truth that all men are created equal and thus deserved equal and fair treatment. This fundamental truth is not only necessary for protecting the sanctity of life but also to maintain the integrity of American laws. When the states passed laws, making it legal to separate humans into groups and treat them b etter or worse, solely based on the color of their skin, they opened the door for other types of segregation, as well as denied the biblical truth that man was created in the image of God. If it becomes morally acceptable to discriminate based race, then it logically follows that discrimination based on sex or socio-economic status is also moral. Postmodernism, the philosophical ideology that denies the existence of absolute truth, essentially made it acceptable for truth to be made relative.Show MoreRelatedThe Liberal Arts: Creating a Citizen for a Community Near You1497 Words   |  6 PagesThe view of what college is and what the experience of college offers, differ dramatically between an individual and the society he or she lives. College has traditionally been viewed as the place young adults go to find themselves, find their career, and start their adult lives. 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ForRead MoreWeird Fiction Is An Appropriate Course For College Students Essay2090 Words   |  9 PagesQUESTION 1 For many people, reading weird fiction can be described as a pleasurable experience. These same people who leisurely enjoy weird literature, however, may presume that reading works by other traditionally celebrated authors is more educational. The claim that weird fiction is less educationally valuable than the works of authors such as William Shakespeare is false. Weird fiction is an appropriate course for college students to take who are interested in broadening their horizonsRead MoreEnglish Language And Composition Of The Victorian Era1320 Words   |  6 Pagesespecially women, were expected to be sexually restrained. This can be seen in the attire worn during the time. Women wore large dresses that covered the whole body except the head and neck. Sex was a topic that was treated like taboo. Since the beginning of Victorian Era sex has been very taboo up until recently where we have started to talk more openly about sex whether in comedy, music, etc. Another huge change in culture was a new view of religion. People started to get better educations which gaveRead MoreJoseph Conrad s Heart Of Darkness1488 Words   |  6 Pagesthe continent could neither breed nor support any true human life. Conrad lived through a time when European colonies were scattered all over the world. This phenomenon and the doctrine of colonialism bought into at his time obviously influenced his views at the time of Heart of Darkness publication. Very few people saw anything amiss with colonialism in Africa and the African people. 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The following chapters of its history identifies largely with social and moral liberation. The United States did not become understanding and compliant with societal equality in an instant, as it took strain, sweat, and blood to simply obtain a basic right: freedom. Through Frederick Douglass’s unique slave background, he developed a vision for theRead MoreAnalysis Of Alexander Pope s The Enlightenment 1411 Words   |   6 Pagesknowledge is achievable by man. Opening the gateway to modern philosophy, ‘The Enlightenment’ aimed to explore the nature of human existence, being dubbed as an age of reason. ‘Reason’ is defined as man’s judgement that is, as Creighton explains, ‘held in mind by one who would be freed from the bondage of the emotions’ and must, therefore, differentiate his own reason from the ‘hinderance’ that is feeling , abandoning all sense of morality gained through religion and other environmental aspects. CreightonRead MoreThe Collapse Of A Cherished Businessman1571 Words   |  7 Pagesworks often focus on the plight and tragedy of the common man. According to Rachel Galvin in an article for National Endowment for the Humanities, Miller generally illustrated characters that â€Å"wrestle with power conflicts, personal and social responsibility, the repercussions of past actions, and twin poles of guilt and hope† (Galv in). Some of his most famous modern tragedies include The Crucible, All My Sons, and Death of a Salesman. First staged in 1949, Death of a Salesman is considered Miller’sRead MoreFestivity in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night1357 Words   |  6 Pagesexplain to the audience that excess of such festivity has negative side effects such as ego and lack of true love. He expresses that the pursuit of expression and truth in itself invokes enjoyment. Sir Aguecheek mirrors the uncertainty of a person through lack of self-confidence and the desire to openly reveal his true self when lamenting â€Å"Is it a world to hide virtues in?† (1.3.131). While uncovering aesthetic and emotional mysteries, the Illyrians find that disport restrains them from actual enjoyment

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Ethical Theories and Discourses Ability Expectations

Question: Discuss about the Ethical Theories and Discourses Ability Expectations. Answer: Introduction: Cash converters private limited is a retail pawn broking company in Australia. It is the subsidiary of cash converters international limited. It offers some financial loans to the low cost people. This company has many franchises on international level in many countries such as US, Spain, Canada, South Africa and UK. Basically this company operates in financial services store and second hand goods. It has been incorporated in Perth, Australia in 2007. It is registered in the ASX (Cash converters, 2017). The operations of this company are in 16 countries. Currently there are 2 people as Board of directors. The website of the company is www.cashconvertersasia.com. It has been found through this case that cash converters one among the top payday lenders in the Australia but due to some issues company had charged a interest rate of 145% on personal loan and 633% on cash loan. Due to such charges the low income customer has been trapped. Due to this decision company has to face many problems such as less market share, decrement in share price, many cases and decrement in total revenue. Ethical theories and code of conduct: Ethical theory is an idea to justify the action done by an accountant. For it, an accountant has to examine all the basis in against and favor of the action. For it accountant has to ask questions to itself such as: Is this action good for the company? Is it good for the society? Would it harm to the society? Do these actions violate the rights of anyone? Have I made any wrong commitment with the company? Cash converters accountant didnt analyze any of the point mentioned above while preparing the final statements of the company. Company just charged this high interest rate to save itself from further losses and the accountant has hide all the situation faced by the company (Rossouw, Van Vuuren, Ghani Adam, 2010). Following are some relevant ethical theories to the accountants: Deontology is the normative ethical position which judges the morality of the action based upon rules. It emphasizes the action not only upon the basis of product. Accountant has totally ignored the main concept of accounting and ignored the main figures while preparing the final statements. Right ethical theory depict that all the rights set for the society must be ethically correct and it must be kept by the person on high priority. Accountant has ignored all the ethical concept of accounting and prepared the statements in such a manner that all the negative point of company could be hided (Wolbring, 2012). Utilitarianism ethical theory depict that a company must choose the action that offers a great amount of benefit to the most people. Here, accountant has just looked over the benefits of the company (Zadek, Evans Pruzan, 2013). It ignored the benefits of all the external stakeholders of the company. It helps the managers to find the best possible option so that all the issues could be outcome. Accountant had chosen the option through which only the company could get the benefits (Mingers Walsham, 2010). Thus it could be said that accountant had didnt consider any of the ethical theory while preparing the final financial statements. Annual report of cash converters: Through the final reports of the company, it has been analyzed that the profitability of the company it has been analyzed that company has just faced a loss worth $21000 which is not the true figure. Company has faced a high loss in 2015 due to the high interest prices. The revenue of the company has been lowered than before. But the accountant of the company ignored all the accounting standards and rules and regulations and through creative accounting, he presented the totally new figures so that the external stakeholders could be manipulated. The income statement of the company for 2014 and 2015 are as follows: Income Statement of Cash converters international Ltd as on...... 2015 2014 Revenue 374 330 Cost of revenue 138 119 Gross Profit 235 211 Operating expenses sales, general and administrative expenses 147 137 other operating expenses 97 35 total operating expenses 244 172 Operating income -9 39 Interest expenses 9 9 Other income 1 2 Income before income tax -17 32 Provision for income tax 5 11 Minority interest 0 -3 Other income 0 -3 Net income from continuing operations 22 21 Net income from discontinuing operations 0 0 other 0 3 Net income -21 24 net income available to shareholders -21 24 This table depicts that how much manipulation had been done by the accountant to provide the fake information to the clients. This ahs been observed that the accountant did the whole work for the benefits of the company. The society benefit had been totally ignored by the accountant. Through the final reports of the company, it has been analyzed that the profitability financial performance of the company is not true. Company has showed the total assets worth $441000 in 2015 which is higher than 2014 return. . The performance of the company has been lowered than before (yahoo finance, 2017). But the accountant of the company ignored all the accounting standards and rules and regulations and through creative accounting, he presented the totally new figures so that the external stakeholders could be manipulated. The statement of financial position of the company is as follows: This table depicts that how much manipulation had been done by the accountant to provide the fake information to the clients. This has been observed that the accountant did the whole work for the benefits of the company. The society benefit had been totally ignored by the accountant. The share price of the company was AUD 0.51 which was quite similar with the last month share price i.e. AUD 0.51. And the share price of Dec 2015 was AUD 0.52. Thus it has been found that the share price of the company didnt affect due to the fake projection of final statements f the company. The accountant of the company had hided every information from the external stakeholders and thus the share price of the company became similar. But it has been found that in Dec, 2015, the share volume of the company had been decreased from 17,001,028 to 5,844,047 (yahoo finance, 2017). It depict that the investment of the company had been lowered due to the high interest rate charged by the company. Thus it could be said that the accountant had ignored all the ethical theories but still the stakeholder got to know about the issues in the company and divest their money from the companys projects. Social responsibility and sustainability: Social responsibility and sustainability is very important for a business. Following are some social responsibilities which must be fulfilled by the financial institutions as well as cash converter ltd to enhance the position in the society (Branco Rodrigues, 2006): An institute must evaluate and classify the investment project in the 3 categories according to the risk and environmental affect (Cuganesan Khan, 2008). This would help the society to find the best project. Cash converter must also use this technique to gain the goodwill and a good position back in the society. A company must assess the social and environmental factors before identifying the risk over any project. This would help the company as well as society for getting more return and save the environment. Cash converter must also use this technique to gain the goodwill and a good position back in the society. Financial institute must launch grievance mechanism to resolve the query of client and society (Darus, Mad Yusoff, 2014). This helps the company to gain the trust of society in companys operations. Cash converter must also use this technique to gain the goodwill and a good position back in the society. Financial institute must charge the interest rate according to the market and customer. The high interest rate could be in disfavor of the company and company could lose the market share. Conclusion: Through the case study of cash converters it has been found that the action taken by the accountant of the company was not ethical. Accountant had ignored all the accounting standards, policies, rules and regulations while preparing the final statements of the company. The income statement and balance sheet of the company did not reveal the true facts about the company. The share price of the company also did not affect due to the fact that all the information had been hided from the external stakeholders of the company so that the position of the company could not get affect in the market. Financial institutions has also suggested some social responsibilities which must be followed by the companies to make a good position in the market. References: Branco, M.C., Rodrigues, L.L. (2006). Corporate social responsibility and resource based perspectives. Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 69(2), pp. 111-132. Cash converters, (2017). Home. Retrieved as on 1 April 2017 from www.cashconvertersasia.com. Cuganesan, S., Khan, H. (2008). Assessing the reporting of stakeholder reciprocity in the Australian banking industry. Journal of Human Resource Costing Accounting, Vol. 12, pp. 85-101. Darus, F., Mad, S., Yusoff, H., (2014). The importance of ownership monitoring and firm resources on corporate social responsibility (CSR) of financial institutions, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, International Conference on Governance and Strategic Management (ICGSM), Volume 145, 25 August 2014, Pages 173-180 Mingers, J., Walsham, G. (2010). Toward ethical information systems: the contribution of discourse ethics.Mis Quarterly,34(4), 833-854. Morning Star, (2017). Balance Sheet. Retrieved as on 1 April 2017 from https://financials.morningstar.com/balance-sheet/bs.html?t=CCVregion=ausculture=en-US Rossouw, D., Van Vuuren, L., Ghani, A. H. A., Adam, M. Z. A. (2010).Business ethics. Oxford University Press Southern Africa. Wolbring, G. (2012). Ethical theories and discourses through an ability expectations and ableism lens: The case of enhancement and global regulation.Asian Bioethics Review,4(4), 293-309. Yahoo Finance, (2017). Historical Data. Retrieved as on 1 April 2017 from https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/CCV.AX/history?period1=1427826600period2=1490985000interval=1mofilter=historyfrequency=1mo Zadek, S., Evans, R., Pruzan, P. (2013).Building corporate accountability: Emerging practice in social and ethical accounting and auditing. Routledge.