Gross Ecosystem Production literature Review Essay

Gross Ecosystem Production literature Review - Essay Example How these components are timed and their amplitude determines the whole seasonal pattern of the carbon flux. The amount of organic matter involved in these processes varies from one ecosystem to another (Caffrey, 2003). The balance between the respiration and assimilation processes may be subjectively affected by changes in the local climate (Houghton et al., 1996). This means that changes in the systematic length of growth season are indicative of an extension in the time favoring carbon assimilation. On the other hand, the impact of climate on the process of respiration is very complicated. For instance, soil respiration is strongly related with soil temperature in most ecosystems. However, in other ecosystems, activity of the microbes depends on the soil moisture. The carbon budget of an ecosystem has been measured by a number of parameters. Some of the commonly used measurements include; Net Primary Production, Net Ecosystem Exchange, Net Ecosystem Production, Gross Primary Production and Net Ecosystem Metabolism among others (Kirschbaum, Eamus, Gifford, Roxburgh, & Sands, 2001; Lovett, Cole, & Pace, 2006; Mizoguchiet al., 2012). Gross ecosystem production refers to the measure of carbon accumulated in an ecosystem. The process responsible for the accumulation of carbon is photosynthesis (Kirschbaum et al., 2001). A number of ecosystems have been studied. The ecosystems include arid and semi-arid ecosystems (Smart, Stark, & Diego, 1999), wetlands (Stellner, Czerny, Dus, & Kve, 2012), sagebrush-steppe, shrubs, and rainforests (Barkmann et al., 2007). Other ecosystems studied are grassland, coastal lagoons (Camacho-Ibar, Carriquiry, & Smith, 2003), artificial reservoirs (Piet & Vijverberg, 1998) and ponds (Rubbo, Cole, &Kiesecker, 2006). However, the most vulnerable ecosystem is the Arctic. It is highly susceptible to climate change, and the effects of global warming. It is showed that these seasonal and climatic changes

Thomas Treadwell Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Thomas Treadwell - Essay Example There was a great transformation in American thinking intellectually, socially and politically. Treadwell was a patriot who joined the others in fighting the American loyalists and British to replace the royal government based in Massachusetts. In 1787, the year in which the constitutional convention took place, Thomas Treadwell was a judge of the court of the court of probate. He had been in this position from the beginning of 1778. This convention took place in Philadelphia to address the problems that had been experienced from the time of revolution in governing the United States of America (USC). Many had disputes about the election and composition of the Senate. The bone of contention was the definition of proportional representation. This was the question of inclusion of slaves or other property. There also questions on presidential elections, whether judges should be chosen by executive or by the law, whether to allow abolition of slave trade, and how long the presidential term would be. Many had also argued that presidential power ought to be divided between three persons and that executive power must not be left to one person. Thomas Treadwell was most interested in the constitutional convention of 1787 because at the time he was a judge which was one of the major issues that this convention was to address. The convention would address whether they would be chosen by the state laws or by the president and whoever else that was part of the executive. Treadwell being a specialist in laws would be affected by this convention across the board even as he moved into different posts. Between 1786- 1789 he gave his service in the New York State senate (USC). He viewed the constitutional convention as a platform through which Americans would come up with new laws to govern there nation’s operations. Treadwell was actively part of the delegation which first agreed on the principles of the convention. This

Compare and Contrast the Development of B and T Cells

Compare and Contrast the Development of B and T Cells The epithelial surfaces of the body serve as an effective barrier against most microorganisms, and they are rapidly repaired if wounded. Adaptive immunity is initiated when an innate immune response fails to eliminate a new infection, whereby an activated antigen presenting cells (APCs) bearing pathogens antigens are delivered to the draining lymphoid tissues. An adaptive immune response differs from the innate immunity in its ability to target structures that are specific to particular strains and variants of pathogen. T cells are produced in the bone marrow. They are transported still, as pro-thymocytes to the thymus where they undergo the process of maturation and selection. The regulation of T cell maturation in the thymus is termed central tolerance. During gestation, most T cells generated bear the gamma/deta T cell receptor (TcR) on their surface. In the adult, most T cells bear the alpha/beta TcR. The newly formed TcR then, has to be tested for recognition of self-MHC/peptide. The T cells are tested at a stage of development known as double positive, meaning that they bear both CD4 and CD8 receptors on their surface. Cells with TcRs that recognize self-MHC/peptide with very low affinity will die. This process is known as death by neglect. Cells with TcRs with medium affinity for MHC receive survival signals and undergo a process known as positive selection. Finally, cells which receive a high affinity signal via their TcR die by apoptosis, a process known as negative selection. Cells that in teract with MHC class I become CD8 positive T cell, and those that interact with MHC class II become CD4 positive T cells, before migrating out into the peripheral lymphoid system (Wood P, 2006). Mature B cells, like T cell, are also develop form pluripotent stem cells. However unlike T cells lymphocytes, B cell maturation occurs in the bone marrow. There are four different stages of B cell development: pro-B, pre-B, immature B, and mature B cells. During its development, B cells acquire B cell surface marker expression such as B220, CD19, CD20, etc. as well as antigen receptors. The stromal cells lining the bone marrow provide essential growth signals to developing B cells, including cytokines such as IL7 and cell to cell contact, via VLA4/VCAM and Kit/SCF. During B cell development, gene segment rearrangements take place, just like in T cells where TcR rearrangements (central tolerance) also occur. However, for B cells, the immunoglobulin heavy chain gene locus (variable-V, joining-J and diversity-D segments), situated on chromosome 14, rearranges. In haematopoietic stem cells, the Ig heavy chain genes are in germline configuration (Kurosaki T et al., 2009). As B cells deve lop to pro-B cells, a D-J recombination is the first gene rearrangement to take place. The intervening DNA is normally deleted from the chromosome as a circle. Gene rearrangements are mediated by recombinase activitng genes, RAG proteins. As the developing B cell proceeds from pro- to pre-B cell stage, a V-DJ gene arrangement takes place to form the VDJ coding block that encodes the variable domain on the antibody heavy chain. Gene rearrangement takes place on both copies of chromosome 14 in a developing B cell, but once a productive VDJ block has been assembled on one chromosome 14, rearrangement ceases on the other chromosome, ensuring only one type of Ig is produced by any single B cell. This process is known as allelic exclusion. If a developing B cell fails to make a productive VDJ block, it will fail to produce antibody heavy chain and die in the bone marrow (Murphy K et al, 2008). T and B cell activation: T cell activation takes place in draining lymph nodes (also spleen) close to site of infection. T cell recognizes antigen on MHC (Major Histocompatibility Complex) molecules becomes activated and differentiates to effector cells. Effector T cells migrate to site of infection and carry out effector functions. The T lymphocytes arrive through venules, and cross through the endothelial to the lymph nodes. Antigen presenting cells such (APC) such as dendritic cells, and macrophages presented antigens to T cells. On recognition of the antigen, a low affinity interaction is formed. These T cells then leave lymph node though the lymphatic system. Those T cells that recognize the antigens wall with high affinity will be retained and the process of proliferation and differentiation occurs. However, initial B cell activation takes place in T cell zone of secondary lymphatic tissues (i.e. in lyhmph nodes). Mostly IgM producing plasma cells are produced at this state. B cells, unlike T cells, ar e activated by the ineraction with antigen-specific T cell, by linked recognition. Antigen-activated B cell migrates to B cell area of lymph nodes to form organized germinal centres, where additional B cell differentiation processes take place. It is important to note that T cells recognize the peptide, while B cells recognize the coat protein. For T and B lymphocyte activation 2 signals are hypothesized to be required. Firstly, the antigen stimulus signal and secondly, the co-stimulatory stimulus. The absence of the second signal results in anergy or apoptosis. CD28/B7 interaction is the co-stimulatory signals for T cells while CD40/CD40 ligand, on the activated T cells, interaction is for B cells. For both T and B lymphocytes, in it resting G0 cell cycle, the cell appear to have a large nucleus, with little cytoplasm and show little evidence of organelles. However, when these cells enter G1/S/G2 cell cycle, cell shows an increase in cell size, chromatin de-condensation is seen. Cell division occurs rapidly, generating effector cells of either T or B lymphocytes. Effector T cells include Th1, Th2 and T regulatory, as well as T cytotoxic cell and memory T cells. On the other hand, effector B cells include plasma cell and memory B cell. T and B cell effector functions: B cell response to T-dependent protein antigen results in germinal centres formation in B cell areas of lymph nodes, and specialized processes such as Ig class-switching, somatic mutation and affinity maturation, memory B cell and plasma cell generation take place there. Emerging form germinal centres are somatically mutated and class-switched B cells, which no longer just produce IgM. Memory B cells are long-lived, resting and re-circulating cells, responsible for immunization part which helpto generate rapid and vigorous immune response on second encounter for that specific antigen. Plamablast cells migrate to other sites such as bone marrow, and become plasma cells, producing large amounts of secreted antibody. Some of which can live for long periods. The effector functions of B cells refer to what antibodies do after their contact with the antigen. The antibody effector functions include neutralization, complement fixation (IgM, IgG1/2/3), oposonization and antibody dependent cel l-mediated cytotoxicity. In contrast, T cell effector functions differ significantly from B cell effector functions. Antigen presenting cells present peptide via MHC which can either interact with CD4+ or CD8+ T cells. Helper T cells are defined by the cytokines they produce. Naà ¯ve CD4+ T cells (Th0), on interaction with APC, can differentiate to Th1 or Th2 cells, depending on the cytokine environment. Th1 cells co-ordinate inflammatory immune responses to intracellular pathogens while Th2 cells help B cells to make antibodies required for immune responses to extracellular pathogens, this is known as humoral immunity. Th1 and Th2 cells both act to promote the generation of more leukocytes. Besides Th0/Th1/Th2, other CD4+ T cell subsets exist (Zhu J et al., 2010). Resting T cells can differentiate into activated helper T cell, as well as activated cytotoxic T cell (CD8+ T cell). Initially, CD8+ T cells interact with potential target cells via low affinity/non-specific interactions between adhesion molecule s on the T cell (LFA-1 and CD2) and the target cell (ICAM1, ICAM2). This interaction has no effect on the cytoskeleton of the T cell and is a transient interaction unless recognition of specific peptide:MHC complexes occurs. If peptide:MHC I complex is present, the affinity of the adhesion molecule interaction increases and there is clustering of T cell receptor and associated molecules at the point of contact with the target cell forming the immunological synapse. This also signals for cytoskeletal rearrangements organized by the microtubule organizing complex which focuses the cytotoxic granules of the T cell at the point of contact with the target. Notice here, that T cells, unlike B cells do not produce antibodies against antigens. Granules containing perforin and other enzymes including granzymes are released and induce the activation of the cathepsin pathways in the target cell leading to apoptosis. CD8+ T cells can also kill target cells via the Fas/FasL pathway which also in duces apoptosis (Peter EJ 2007). In conclusion, adaptive immune responses occur when individual lymphocytes capable of responding to antigen proliferate and differentiate to become an antigen-specific effector cells and memory cells. The process of lymphocyte cell cycle progression, proliferation and differentiation in response to antigen and stimuli is known as lymphocyte activation. B cell activation is initiated by the ligation of the B cell receptor (BCR) with antigen and ultimately results in the production of protective antibodies against potentially pathogenic invaders. While naive or memory T cells encounter foreign antigen along with proper co-stimulation they undergo rapid and extensive clonal expansion. In human, this type of proliferation is fairly unique to cells of the adaptive immune system and requires a considerable expenditure of energy and cellular resources.

The Creation of God in Apocalypse Now in Relation to Frazers The Golde

The Creation of God in Apocalypse Now in Relation to Frazer's The Golden Bough      Ã‚  Ã‚   Very rarely do filmmakers intend to create cinematic masterpieces which integrate and draw upon lush literary qualities and leave the viewer with a deeper feeling of life and death than he or she had before viewing the film. Even if some filmmakers do attempt to create a masterpiece, symbolic and complex, many fall short. However, when Francis Coppola created Apocalypse Now, he succeeded in creating a masterpiece, drawing upon the complicated story within Conrad's Heart of Darkness and the savage observations within Frazer's The Golden Bough. The character of Colonel Kurtz in both Conrad's and Coppola's works, is one of a complicated, volatile renaissance man; he is at the same time a ruthless, body collecting warrior and a artistic philosopher. Kurtz's "divinity is like fire, which under proper restraints, confers endless blessings, but if rashly touched, burns and destroys what it touches" (Frazer 13). Kurtz, as a savage icon, is capable of greatness and is brutally ma licious at the same time. Where Coppola strays from Conrad, he does so to show Kurtz's deliberate choice to become a god-like figure and be destroyed in the tradition of the savages. Through the savage beliefs of tabooed head and hair, the slaying of the divine king, and sympathetic magic, Coppola creates a more savagely realistic character in Kurtz.    Perhaps one of Col. KurtzÕs most prominent physical features in Apocalypse Now is his shaven head. Frazer explains that, to the savages, the head and hair of their divine king is tabooed, and "to touch the top of the head, or anything which had been on his head was sacrilege" (Frazer 812). To the savages, their king ra... ...in Cambodia after he slays Kurtz because either Chef had ordered the air strike, or because Willard, eventhough he is mesmerized by the culture, is a unwavering part of the western world. Just because Willard is portrayed by Coppola as a unconventional man and can slay Kurtz in accordance with savage customs, doesn't make him a savage. Eventhough Frazer is an Englishman, Coppola believes his observations of savages are precise, and so he chooses to create his born again savage god-king, Kurtz, accordingly.       Works Cited Frazer, James. The Golden Bough. 1922. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1951. Vickery, James B., The Literary Aspect of 'The Golden Bough'. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1973. Wittgenstein, Ludwig. Remarks on Frazer's 'Golden Bough'. Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey: Human Press, Inc., 1979.      

Health and Social Care induction Booklet

Check these details with the people you care for and stick to them. Rights We all have rights and just because we can no longer kick after our selves this goes not mean all our rights disappear, the right to go to bed when we want. The right to decide what to wear and which room we want to sit in. Choice If you were unable to choose anything for yourself ask yourself would you be happy if these choices were taken away from you! The answer I'm sure is no! Then why would the people you are caring for be any different. Rivalry If everyone just walked into your house without asking would you be happy, NO. Knock on the door before entering a room; make sure the door is closed when carrying out personal hygiene. Protect the private information Of the people you care for as if it was yours. Independence Allow the people you care for to do things for themselves, you are there to support them to be independent Dignity To treat someone with dignity is to treat them as being of importance, in a way that is considerate of their diversity, as valued individuals.When dignity is present people feel in control, valued, confident, comfortable and able to make decisions for themselves. Respect Respect involves valuing the people you care for, acknowledging their value. This will express itself in certain behaviors for example extending common oratories, expressing concern for others and their well-being taking their feelings and experiences seriously. The Guidance and standards that is relevant to your role – Human Rights Act There are 16 basic rights in the Human Rights Act. Each one is called an Article.They are all taken from the European Convention on Human Rights. They affect everybody. They are also about your rights in everyday life. What you can say and do. Your beliefs. The right to life Freedom from being tortured or killed The right to marry and a family life The right to liberty and security Freedom of expression Protection from discrimination in respect of th ese rights and freedoms UN Convention on the Rights of the Child Protects the rights of all children to an education, to be healthy, to a childhood, to be treated fairly and to be heard.These included the ‘Right to life The right to family life It forbids capital punishment General Social Care Council Code of Practice Provides a clear guide, for those who work, in health and social care. Setting out the standards of practice, responsibilities and conduct for employees and their employers to follow. Employee should- Protect the rights of the service userRespect the rights of the service user Promote the independence of the service user Establish and maintain Be accountable and take responsibility for your actions Employers should- Ensure that the people they employ are suitable and understand their role and responsibility Provide appropriate training and development for their employees to strengthen their skills Have policies and procedures in place to cover any dangerous or di scriminatory behavior Nursing and Midwifery Council code of Practice You must make the care of the person you care for your primary concern.You have a duty of care always to them. You are personally accountable for your actions or inactions in your work life always. Valuing and Respecting Service Users Values guide the way we live our lives and the decisions we make. A value is defined as something that we hold dear, those characters or behaviors which we consider to be of importance. Everyone has the right to be valued and respected for their own individuality. We should take the service user's feelings, needs, thoughts, ideas, wishes and preferences into consideration. It means taking all of these seriously and giving them worth and value.Giving money respect seems similar to valuing them and their thoughts, feelings, etc. It also includes acknowledging them, listening to them, being truthful with them, and accepting their individuality and differences. Treat others how you would want yourself or a relative to be treated. Valuing Adults Listen to the service user, ask them what they want and how they want to do it, then help them to achieve it. Do not automatically do things for the service user; allow them to do things for themselves and aide when required Be flexible allow service user to decide when they want to do things such as eating, going to bed, getting up.Valuing children Acknowledge them When you communicate with a child come down to their level Treat them as equals Encourage them to do things for themselves Be patient The importance of a person-centered approach is to ensure the service user is thought of first before anyone else. Also it makes sure that the knowledge that a service user has about what they want and need, then provides information about what is the best thing to do. As a career you should focus on the wants, wishes and needs of the service user.

Comparison of Adverts

In this essay I will talk about advertising, and the affect it has on the people who view these adverts. Advertising is the way people show consumers what they are selling. There are many types of advertisements including print and verbal, they affect people in many ways, mainly by showing people things they need or want for aspirational reasons. The adverts which I have chosen are an advert from Perfect Pizza. The company sells pre-cooked pizzas which you can buy in store or have delivered. My first impressions of the advert are that it's very colorful and you are instantly drawn to the images of the pizzas, and the large bold writing. I found this advert in my letterbox as they deliver them to you, so you know what they are selling. The advert uses formal as well as informal language; many bits of the informal text are explanation texts, and the formal parts for information. It's presented in different colors and sizes, and is spaced out in different places. The text informs you of what is being sold and what the prices are, it also draws attention to itself. The sentences are short, only five words per sentence, but there are a few writing techniques including alliteration. The text is basically factual or as factual as they want you to believe, but when you advertise prices you have to be correct and factual. On the whole the text is very informative, it tells you everything you need to know that will convince you to buy the product, and the information helps you to make the decision by showing you what you could be having. The figures that are used are in pounds and are bold, maybe this is to draw the attention of the reader, so they can be amazed at how cheap the product is. And this would link in with the company slogan, which is ‘Great Taste, Great Value' this really speaks for itself, a great taste for great value. The key words in this advert are the words deal and only. These words suggest that the sale is part of a deal, or that it's not at the ordinary price. And only, suggests that the price is very low, or the ‘deal' does not last long. Maybe because the deal is that good it can not last forever, otherwise the company would go into bankruptcy. The images are of the pizzas, which they are selling. They are spaced out all over the advert, around the writing. Finally there is also a picture or potato skins, which show they sell more than pizzas. There are no people in the picture which is quite surprising as they might have included a picture of a person cooking the pizzas. I believe that this would make the advert more appealing to the consumer. The advert is in color, a reason for this would be so that it appeals to the younger generations, who are more likely to buy these pizzas. But I know that it was done in color for a specific purpose. There are no patterns in the picture, but there is red strip that runs along the top and the bottom. This is to bring attention to the text inside of it, which is very important as it contains the small print. It's the small print which can usually trick many people. The whole advert is laid out professionally, the images; the information, the logo and the slogan are all put on the front to draw attention to it. Perfect Pizza is placed at the top of the advert so it's the first thing you see. The fact that is a family corporation would be enough to convince me that the pizzas would be well made and would taste great. This advert is similar to the Domino's Pizzas adverts, which sponsor The Simpson's. Because the Simpson's are so famous I know that Domino's will have an advantage over Perfect Pizza. This advert appears in food magazines, because it's selling food. It's trying to sell itself by showing you what you could have, but I think that this company is in the shadow of another company. I will now analyze my second advert. The company ‘French Connection' is trying to sell people a sale. French Connection makes quality clothes and sells them off at really fair prices. The advert attracts my attention really well for the following reasons. I found this advert near to the front of the newspaper, so it must be very important because only important adverts get to the front of the paper. The advert uses formal language in the advert. The language is bold and stands out well, the sentences are short but get the message across well, it just tells you what you need to know. The key words in this advert are ‘Sale' and ‘French Connection' mainly because the word sale means a cut in price, and French Connection is a well respected country. The slogan is not on the advert, which is a bit unusual as it's the slogan that sells most of their clothes. In the illustrations the words ‘ Last Big Deal' are superimposed so that they stand out. The text is yellow and the effect is red, the background though is black. So it looks attractive and stands out. There is no picture of the product, but the company is well known, so people know what they are selling anyway. Because French Connection specialize in clothes. This advert links in with the adverts from ‘NEXT' and ‘Adams' which are both major clothes producers. French Connection; seem to have some competition from these brands, which would increase the popularity of the company. This advert appears in many women's magazines and a few men's, because they sell both male and female clothing. This is because they want to broaden their horizons, so more people see their adverts. It's trying to sell the sale which they are holding at one of the bigger stores. So if you want great products at cheap prices you should take note of this advert. Both adverts appeal to me greatly as I am fond of both companies, and they both use good advertising techniques. I would buy both of the products as the pizzas are great and the clothes are really fashionable. I believe that the adverts would appeal to their target audiences, as they are really well made, and really stand out to the consumers.

The African Union Organization

The African Union Organization The African Union is one of the worlds most important intergovernmental organizations. It is composed of 53 countries in Africa and is loosely based on the European Union. These African countries work diplomatically with each other despite differences in geography, history, race, language, and religion to try to improve the political, economic, and social situations for the approximately one billion people that live on the African continent. The African Union promises to protect Africas rich cultures, some of which have existed for thousands of years. African Union Membership The African Union, or AU, includes every independent African country except Morocco. Additionally, the African Union recognizes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which is a portion of Western Sahara; this recognition by the AU caused Morocco to resign. South Sudan is the newest member of the African Union, joining on July 28, 2011, less than three weeks after it became an independent country. The OAU: The Precursor to the African Union The African Union was formed after the dissolution of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 2002. The OAU was formed in 1963 when many African leaders wanted to accelerate the process of European decolonization and gain independence for a number of new nations. It also wanted to promote peaceful solutions to conflicts, ensure sovereignty forever, and raise living standards. However, the OAU was largely criticized from the beginning. Some countries still had deep ties to its colonial masters. Many countries associated themselves with the ideologies of either the United States or the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War. Although the OAU gave weapons to rebels and was successful in eliminating colonization, it could not eliminate the massive poverty problem. Its leaders were seen as corrupt and unconcerned for the welfare of the common people. Many civil wars occurred and the OAU could not intervene. In 1984, Morocco left the OAU because it opposed the membership of Western Sahara. In 1994, South Africa joined the OAU after the fall of apartheid. The African Union Is Founded Years later, Libyas leader Muammar Gaddafi, a strong proponent of African unity, encouraged the revival and improvement of the organization. After several conventions, the African Union was formed in 2002. The headquarters of the African Union is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Its official languages are English, French, Arabic, and Portuguese, but many documents are also printed in Swahili and local languages. The leaders of the African Union work together to promote health, education, peace, democracy, human rights, and economic success. Three AU Administrative Bodies The heads of state of each member country form the AU Assembly. These leaders meet semi-annually to discuss the budget and major goals of peace and development. The current leader of the African Union Assembly is Bingu Wa Mutharika, the President of Malawi. The AU Parliament is the legislative body of the African Union and is composed of 265 officials who represent the common people of Africa. Its seat is in Midrand, South Africa. The African Court of Justice works to ensure that human rights for all Africans are respected. The Improvement of Human Life in Africa The African Union strives to improve every aspect of government and human life on the continent. Its leaders try to improve educational and career opportunities for ordinary citizens. It works to get healthy food, safe water, and adequate housing to the poor, especially in times of disaster. It studies the causes of these problems, like famine, drought, crime, and war. Africa has a high population that suffers from diseases like HIV, AIDS, and malaria, so the African Union tries to give treatment to the afflicted and provide education to prevent the spread of these diseases. The Improvement of Government, Finances, and Infrastructure The African Union supports agricultural projects. It works to improve transportation and communication and promotes scientific, technological, industrial, and environmental advancement. Financial practices like free trade, customs unions, and central banks are planned. Tourism and immigration ​are promoted, as well as better uses of energy and the protection of Africas precious natural resources such as gold. Environmental problems like desertification are studied, and Africas livestock resources are given aid. The Improvement of Security A major goal of the African Union is to encourage the collective defense, security, and stability of its members. The African Unions democratic principles have gradually reduced corruption and unfair elections. It tries to prevent conflicts between member nations and solve any disputes that do arise quickly and peacefully. The African Union can grant sanctions on disobedient states and withhold economic and social benefits. It does not tolerate inhumane acts such as genocide, war crimes, and terrorism. The African Union can intervene militarily and has sent peacekeeping troops to alleviate political and social disorder in places like Darfur (Sudan), Somalia, Burundi, and Comoros. However, some of these missions have been criticized as being too underfunded, undermanned, and untrained. A few nations, like Niger, Mauritania, and Madagascar have been suspended from the organization after political events like coup detats. Foreign Relations of the African Union The African Union works closely with diplomats from the United States, European Union, and United Nations. It receives aid from countries around the world to deliver on its promises of peace and health for all Africans. The African Union realizes that its member nations must unite and cooperate to compete in the worlds increasingly globalized economy and foreign relations. It hopes to have a single currency, like the euro, by 2023. An African Union passport may exist one day. In the future, the African Union hopes to benefit people of African origin living throughout the world. African Union Struggles Linger The African Union has improved stability and welfare, but it does have its challenges. Poverty is still a tremendous problem. The organization is deeply in debt and many consider some of its leaders to still be corrupt. Moroccos tension with Western Sahara continues to strain the entire organization. However, several smaller multi-state organizations exist in Africa, like the East African Community and the Economic Community of West African States, so the African Union can study how successful these smaller regional organizations have been in combating poverty and political strife. Conclusion In conclusion, the African Union comprises all but one of Africas countries. Its goal of integration has fostered one identity and has enhanced the political, economic, and social climate of the continent, thereby giving hundreds of millions of people a healthier and more successful future.

The Delicate, Wilted Flower-The Role of Ophelia in Hamlet essays

The Delicate, Wilted Flower-The Role of Ophelia in Hamlet essays The classic tragedy Hamlet, is a story of a prince and the dysfunction experienced after the death of his father. After discovering his father was murdered by his uncle Claudius, Hamlets life, along with the lives of those around him, began to spiral into a tangled web. Never is this more apparent than in the case of Ophelia. However subtle, Ophelia plays a significant role riddled with control, grief, and vulnerability. Ophelia can be compared to that of a delicate, wilted, flower. She is fragile and apparently ruled by the men in her life. It is as though she has no true identity, for Polonius and Laertes dictated her actions. Her brother discourages her from maintaining her relationship with Hamlet by telling her, Fear it Ophelia, fear it my dear sister, and keep you in the rear of your affection out of the shot and danger of desire. Her father concurs with Laertes opinions of Hamlets true intentions and tells her princes could only marry princesses. This is a contradiction, for throughout the play, Gertrude implies that she would like to see Hamlet and Ophelia together. If Polonius were correct, wouldnt Gertrude have been the first to say her son must look for a more deserving woman? At no time during the play does Gertrude express disdain for Ophelia. Without further questioning, she obediently agrees to abide by her fathers wishes of severing the relationship. This is truly sad for it is obvious she has strong feelings for him. Rather than stand up for her beliefs, she in essence, sacrifices herself in order to please her father. While her fathers intentions appear to be good, he did not allow her to learn the lessons of life on her own. He so wanted to protect her that he failed to recognize that pain was all a part of growing up and almost a rite of passage into adulthood; especially with affairs of the heart. Not allowing her to discover this f...

Bush V. Gore

Gore was described as a controversial election to say the least. The votes in several Florida counties were put up into question as to whether they should be counted or not. In a Democratic Election all legal votes must be counted. The main arguments around this issue were Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution, the interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause and confusion around voting deadlines during the Recount. This process was exacerbated by the lack of impartial justices and secretary of state. The initial argument surrounding this issue is Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution. Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution states, â€Å"In presidential elections, each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct, the electors to which the State is entitled. † That being said 3 justices, Rehnquist, Scalia, and Thomas all argued that Florida violated this; there argument placed a lot of emphasis on the word â€Å"legislature†. Meaning to say that there is a difference between the State, who is empowered to appoint its own electors and that own State’s legislature. Furthermore, this Article of the Constitution is completely out of the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction in the circumstances. The Supreme Court should have nothing to do with matters of state law in between the State and their own Legislature. Also, the Florida Supreme Court held that â€Å"a legal vote may include any ballot from which it is reasonably possible to determine the clear intent of the voter, whether or not the ‘chad’ had been completely punched through, which is consistent with the law of the clear majority of the States†. Chief Justice Rehnquist in his opinion argued that this interpretation was so ridiculous and not mirrored with Florida legislation, that it violated Article 2. He claimed that because most counties use punch cards that tell you to clearly punch your ballot no reasonable person could count a vote that wasn’t clearly punched all the way through. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) The Florida Election Code states that â€Å"no vote shall be declared invalid if there is a clear indication of the intent of the voter†, also a 60 year old Florida Law precedent states that â€Å"must give statutes relating to elections a construction in favor of the citizen’s right to vote, and the intention of the voters should prevail when counting ballots† (Constitution of the State of Florida, As Revised in 1968) After hearing this, the other 6 Justices concluded that the Florida Supreme Court decision was in long established precedent and said it didn’t even raise a question under Article 2 of the Constitution. In simpler terms, stating that all of those votes were legal and that the standards set were sufficient to determine which votes should and should not be counted. Onto the Equal Protection Clause, the Supreme Court basically contradicts themselves on this matter. After stating the voting standards set by the Florida Supreme Court didn’t violate Article 2, they continued on to state that it violates the Equal Protection clause because â€Å"the standards for accepting or rejecting contested ballots might vary not only from county to county but even within a single county† (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ). What is startling is that the Florida Constitution states, â€Å"The intention of the voters should prevail when counting ballots† meaning that if there is any intention the vote should be counted, and if this wasn’t precise enough for the Supreme Court why did they vote to uphold it on the Article 2, Section 1 vote? If the Supreme Court required a uniform standard for counting and recounting votes in Florida, why does it not need a uniform standard for voting? Is the fact that punch card voting has a sufficiently higher chance of having your vote not counted compared to computer voting where there is a bare minimum chance of your votes not being counted violating the Equal Protection Clause as well? Or is it the fact that punch card counties are more commonly in low income counties, who tend to vote Republican (Al Gore)? All of these things ould be seen as discriminatory or â€Å"not equal† as well as the non-uniform standard for counting, but if the Supreme Court has decided that the recount standard is in violation then in thought the whole Election should be rendered â€Å"Unconstitutional† and put to an end, correct? To continue, no it should not be put to an end. The Supreme Court should have ordered a stay on the Recount until a uniform standard was put in place for all of the Florida Counties and they should have ordered that every state have a uniform standard for Recounts for future elections. The Supreme Court made a Pragmatic but Unlawful decision in voting for the violation of the Equal Protection Clause which led to the stoppage of the 2000 Florida Recount. (Bo Li, Perspectives, Vol. 2, No. 3). This goes without mentioning the fact that Bush’s state of Texas had a uniform voting standard which allowed anything to be counted in the scenario of a recount including a dimpled chad. This means that Governor Bush signed in a bill that let any vote with slight intent be counted in the process of a Recount, yet is arguing that intent of a voter is an unconstitutional argument. This is hypocritical and shows a lack of character, if Bush truly believes in the Constitution he should be letting all the legal votes be counted to see if he actually won the Presidency of the United States. If Bush truly cared about the simple uniform standards for Recounting, he should have ordered for a stay until uniform standards were set in place. Instead he argued the entire Recount unconstitutional and the 5-4 majority (5 Republican Judges-4 Democratic Judges) decided that there was no reason to Recount possibly legal votes when it had a chance of harming Bush’s chance to become Prime Minister. Legal analysts from all over the Country explained it as the Justices trying to make a pragmatic decision by putting an end to this controversy, turns out it backfired on them. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) The third point to be explained in this case is the ongoing controversy over voting deadlines and how the ever so bright Secretary of State in Florida Katherine Harris’ thoughts were constantly being controlled by Bush advisors. Katherine Harris (and Friends) made it very clear that they would ot be accepting votes after a certain deadline, which left no time for the original recount. All these votes had to be stamped and signed to be considered legal votes. This left the Democratic Party frantically trying to recount votes and get them stamped and in on time. When she ruled that if votes were not stamped and signed they could not be accepted, the Democratic Party argued that tons of Military votes could not be counted because they were very rarely stamped and sig ned. In the US there is no voting law that states Military Votes can be accepted with no signature or stamp. This obviously led to an uproar from Republicans (Who most military votes get casted for) because it was just unethical for the Democrats to take away illegal votes for the Republicans. What the Republicans fail to realize is that taking away Florida citizens legal votes because you are scared of losing is also unethical. The Democrats later changed their minds and told the Secretary to reconsider the Military votes and give them special consideration. (Joseph I. Lieberman, Military Ballots Merit a Review) There are a few other factors I would like to add to perspective before closing my argument, in Florida the Republican swayed Secretary of State Katherine Harris put 20 Thousand people on the Voter Purge list. A Large group of these people had never done anything wrong, in particular an African-American Pastor could not vote because his name was similar to that of a hardened criminal in Florida (HBO Documentary, Recount). The most interesting fact of all was that the 3 Judges who voted for Bush in both instances (Rehnquist, Scalia, Thomas) were all considered Republican judges. In the last 30 years at the Supreme Court the 19 Cases involving the Equal Protection Clause concerning laws against race, elderly, and other minorities they voted a perfect 19 for 19 to uphold the Equal Protection Clause. Yet, the one case involving Politics and the party they are associated with they for some strange reason voted against it with very little reasoning. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) If that’s not Politics in Black Robes, what is. In Conclusion, Legal votes in Florida were not counted when they should have een. The various ideas such as the proper vote in Article 2, Section 1, the contradiction and unlawful voting on the Equal Protection Clause and the confusing deadlines regarding votes were all examples of how things can be exacerbated by impartial Judges and Secretary of States. The votes in Florida should have been recounted after a uniform standard was put in place similar to the one in Texas and the real results of the 2000 Election should have been deciphered. All else aside, the whole United States should have a uniform voting, counting and recounting standard to eliminate all this confusion in the future. Bibliography http://www. leg. state. fl. us/statutes/index. cfm? mode=constitutionsubmenu=3 http://www. nytimes. com/2000/11/20/us/counting-vote-absentee-ballots-military-ballots-merit-review-lieberman-says. html? pagewanted=allsrc=pm http://fathom. lib. uchicago. edu/1/777777122240/ http://www. oycf. org/Perspectives2/9_123100/bush_v1. htm HBO Documentary, Recount Bush V. Gore Gore was described as a controversial election to say the least. The votes in several Florida counties were put up into question as to whether they should be counted or not. In a Democratic Election all legal votes must be counted. The main arguments around this issue were Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution, the interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause and confusion around voting deadlines during the Recount. This process was exacerbated by the lack of impartial justices and secretary of state. The initial argument surrounding this issue is Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution. Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution states, â€Å"In presidential elections, each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct, the electors to which the State is entitled. † That being said 3 justices, Rehnquist, Scalia, and Thomas all argued that Florida violated this; there argument placed a lot of emphasis on the word â€Å"legislature†. Meaning to say that there is a difference between the State, who is empowered to appoint its own electors and that own State’s legislature. Furthermore, this Article of the Constitution is completely out of the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction in the circumstances. The Supreme Court should have nothing to do with matters of state law in between the State and their own Legislature. Also, the Florida Supreme Court held that â€Å"a legal vote may include any ballot from which it is reasonably possible to determine the clear intent of the voter, whether or not the ‘chad’ had been completely punched through, which is consistent with the law of the clear majority of the States†. Chief Justice Rehnquist in his opinion argued that this interpretation was so ridiculous and not mirrored with Florida legislation, that it violated Article 2. He claimed that because most counties use punch cards that tell you to clearly punch your ballot no reasonable person could count a vote that wasn’t clearly punched all the way through. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) The Florida Election Code states that â€Å"no vote shall be declared invalid if there is a clear indication of the intent of the voter†, also a 60 year old Florida Law precedent states that â€Å"must give statutes relating to elections a construction in favor of the citizen’s right to vote, and the intention of the voters should prevail when counting ballots† (Constitution of the State of Florida, As Revised in 1968) After hearing this, the other 6 Justices concluded that the Florida Supreme Court decision was in long established precedent and said it didn’t even raise a question under Article 2 of the Constitution. In simpler terms, stating that all of those votes were legal and that the standards set were sufficient to determine which votes should and should not be counted. Onto the Equal Protection Clause, the Supreme Court basically contradicts themselves on this matter. After stating the voting standards set by the Florida Supreme Court didn’t violate Article 2, they continued on to state that it violates the Equal Protection clause because â€Å"the standards for accepting or rejecting contested ballots might vary not only from county to county but even within a single county† (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ). What is startling is that the Florida Constitution states, â€Å"The intention of the voters should prevail when counting ballots† meaning that if there is any intention the vote should be counted, and if this wasn’t precise enough for the Supreme Court why did they vote to uphold it on the Article 2, Section 1 vote? If the Supreme Court required a uniform standard for counting and recounting votes in Florida, why does it not need a uniform standard for voting? Is the fact that punch card voting has a sufficiently higher chance of having your vote not counted compared to computer voting where there is a bare minimum chance of your votes not being counted violating the Equal Protection Clause as well? Or is it the fact that punch card counties are more commonly in low income counties, who tend to vote Republican (Al Gore)? All of these things ould be seen as discriminatory or â€Å"not equal† as well as the non-uniform standard for counting, but if the Supreme Court has decided that the recount standard is in violation then in thought the whole Election should be rendered â€Å"Unconstitutional† and put to an end, correct? To continue, no it should not be put to an end. The Supreme Court should have ordered a stay on the Recount until a uniform standard was put in place for all of the Florida Counties and they should have ordered that every state have a uniform standard for Recounts for future elections. The Supreme Court made a Pragmatic but Unlawful decision in voting for the violation of the Equal Protection Clause which led to the stoppage of the 2000 Florida Recount. (Bo Li, Perspectives, Vol. 2, No. 3). This goes without mentioning the fact that Bush’s state of Texas had a uniform voting standard which allowed anything to be counted in the scenario of a recount including a dimpled chad. This means that Governor Bush signed in a bill that let any vote with slight intent be counted in the process of a Recount, yet is arguing that intent of a voter is an unconstitutional argument. This is hypocritical and shows a lack of character, if Bush truly believes in the Constitution he should be letting all the legal votes be counted to see if he actually won the Presidency of the United States. If Bush truly cared about the simple uniform standards for Recounting, he should have ordered for a stay until uniform standards were set in place. Instead he argued the entire Recount unconstitutional and the 5-4 majority (5 Republican Judges-4 Democratic Judges) decided that there was no reason to Recount possibly legal votes when it had a chance of harming Bush’s chance to become Prime Minister. Legal analysts from all over the Country explained it as the Justices trying to make a pragmatic decision by putting an end to this controversy, turns out it backfired on them. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) The third point to be explained in this case is the ongoing controversy over voting deadlines and how the ever so bright Secretary of State in Florida Katherine Harris’ thoughts were constantly being controlled by Bush advisors. Katherine Harris (and Friends) made it very clear that they would ot be accepting votes after a certain deadline, which left no time for the original recount. All these votes had to be stamped and signed to be considered legal votes. This left the Democratic Party frantically trying to recount votes and get them stamped and in on time. When she ruled that if votes were not stamped and signed they could not be accepted, the Democratic Party argued that tons of Military votes could not be counted because they were very rarely stamped and sig ned. In the US there is no voting law that states Military Votes can be accepted with no signature or stamp. This obviously led to an uproar from Republicans (Who most military votes get casted for) because it was just unethical for the Democrats to take away illegal votes for the Republicans. What the Republicans fail to realize is that taking away Florida citizens legal votes because you are scared of losing is also unethical. The Democrats later changed their minds and told the Secretary to reconsider the Military votes and give them special consideration. (Joseph I. Lieberman, Military Ballots Merit a Review) There are a few other factors I would like to add to perspective before closing my argument, in Florida the Republican swayed Secretary of State Katherine Harris put 20 Thousand people on the Voter Purge list. A Large group of these people had never done anything wrong, in particular an African-American Pastor could not vote because his name was similar to that of a hardened criminal in Florida (HBO Documentary, Recount). The most interesting fact of all was that the 3 Judges who voted for Bush in both instances (Rehnquist, Scalia, Thomas) were all considered Republican judges. In the last 30 years at the Supreme Court the 19 Cases involving the Equal Protection Clause concerning laws against race, elderly, and other minorities they voted a perfect 19 for 19 to uphold the Equal Protection Clause. Yet, the one case involving Politics and the party they are associated with they for some strange reason voted against it with very little reasoning. (Geoffrey R. Stone, Equal Protection? ) If that’s not Politics in Black Robes, what is. In Conclusion, Legal votes in Florida were not counted when they should have een. The various ideas such as the proper vote in Article 2, Section 1, the contradiction and unlawful voting on the Equal Protection Clause and the confusing deadlines regarding votes were all examples of how things can be exacerbated by impartial Judges and Secretary of States. The votes in Florida should have been recounted after a uniform standard was put in place similar to the one in Texas and the real results of the 2000 Election should have been deciphered. All else aside, the whole United States should have a uniform voting, counting and recounting standard to eliminate all this confusion in the future. Bibliography http://www. leg. state. fl. us/statutes/index. cfm? mode=constitutionsubmenu=3 http://www. nytimes. com/2000/11/20/us/counting-vote-absentee-ballots-military-ballots-merit-review-lieberman-says. html? pagewanted=allsrc=pm http://fathom. lib. uchicago. edu/1/777777122240/ http://www. oycf. org/Perspectives2/9_123100/bush_v1. htm HBO Documentary, Recount

Global operations management - multiculturalism and diversity Essay

Global operations management - multiculturalism and diversity management - Essay Example There are back office, front office, retail and wholesale operations as part of the operations management. Customer service is another area focussed by the operations managers. Customer service determines the success and failures of a business. It is aimed at building active relationships with the customers. Because of the highly globalized business environment at present, operations managers of modern era forced to interact with diverse customers and hence the success of operations managements at present depends on how well the operations managers are able to manage the multiculturalism and diversity in business. This paper briefly analyses the current operations management issues with respect to multiculturalism and diversity management. Some of the issues the host foreign country could face as a result of the expansion   The major issue in internationalising a business is the issues with respect to diversity and multiculturalism. No two individuals are alike; same way no two cou ntries are alike. Countries may differ socially, economically, politically, legally and culturally. All these aspects have a big say in operations management and hence success of international business depends on how well a country deal with these issues. ... ternational business (Victor, 2009) Communication is one of the vital segments of every business activities and language barriers often spoil effective communications. Communication may occur between the organization and its customers and the knowledge of a common language is necessary for effective communication. The business environment in different countries is different because of the economical, political, legal and social differences. For example, America and China are two entirely different countries politically, economically and socially and hence while doing business with China, America should consider the issues related to diversity and multiculturalism seriously. Social organizations in America and China are entirely different because of the cultural differences. In America, religion is a big entity whereas in China, it may not be the same. It is not necessary that two parties in a communication process may have similar knowledge or level of information (Contexting) in the topic of negotiation, especially when they happen to be of two different cultures. In other words, Americans and Chinese may have different levels of contexting and the knowledge of these differences is essential while conducting business negotiations. Authority and leadership styles are other areas in which America and China may differ. Americans are more dominating types compared to Chinese people. â€Å"The view of authority in a given society affects communication in the business environment significantly as it shapes the view of how a message will be received based on the relative status or rank of the message's sender to its receiver† (Victor, 2009). Non verbal communication, and the understanding the importance of time etc are also different in different countries which should be

Employee resourcing, talent management, HRD and the skills agenda Essay

Employee resourcing, talent management, HRD and the skills agenda - Essay Example Social media, on the other hand, has mostly integrated into most internet users’ personal lives. Content and information sharing has taken a new shape where each individual can directly broadcast to his whole social circle over the internet. Businesses targeting this type of internet audience develop a whole new set of marketing strategies which involve content sharing giving the customers something to share about the business to their social circles. This implies the advent of social media has morphed business marketing. This directly influences the human resources as well. Where marketing is being morphed by the era of sharing and collaboration, human resource management is also being driven by networked employees that directly share business related information with each other. Such professional networks make it possible for the human resource developers and managements to search for, hire, and evaluate employees over the internet as well as establish continuous professiona l communications to directly manage them over the internet. This allows the degree of freedom to the employees giving them the space to manage themselves and takes this load off the company; essentially being workforce empowering and power delegation. The industries, to compete with the ever expanding businesses and to cater for the ever expanding market, change and improve continuously. Human resourcing in such conditions is, at best, a task for those who understand personalities and roles in field specific tasks and can find such people efficiently.

Vocation in Don Quixote Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Vocation in Don Quixote - Essay Example This paper will analyse the treatment of vocation in this novel as it has a great role in the progression of both the protagonist and the novel itself. It has been given an important place in this work, to which both the character and the plot suits beyond perfection. With this as the main area of my analysis, I would like to move on to the next part. According to Macmillan English dictionary, the term vocation is defined as,† a strong feeling that you should be doing a particular thing with your life, especially because you believe that God wants you to do it†. As this term suggests, we are well aware of this as we are introduced to Don Quixote, the main character in the novel. We soon learn about his strong vocational insight and his struggle to attain it as the novel progresses. This peculiar aspect of vocation is one of the significant causes for creating a real- life as well as an imaginative blend in this splendid work. In order to understand the significant role played by the character’s vocation let me proceed with the work in detail. Many of us at times are overwhelmed with the feeling that we have born to do a particular thing. A man who begins writing poetry feels himself as if he has born to become a poet, a man who is fond of deep religious activities has a chance to feel that God wants him to become a religious person or priest. These are all the normal thoughts that we get when we are doing something in which our interest lies. It is more or less an element of intuition that triggers us with a strong emotional attachment towards our work where at one instance we come across this vocational feeling. First of all, the point I would like mention is that this vocation is common to all. And the next point is that, the worth of it depends on how we take it. Don Quixote fails to understand his vocation in a proper way and applies it to his life in the most

E-commerce Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

E-commerce - Research Paper Example The second exercise is on the comparison of online prices across the four major supermarket chains across UK and the prices of all the items have been compared to understand whether certain supermarkets are generally cheaper than certain others. Tesco and Asda have been found to be in general cheaper than Sainsbury's and Waitrose although further research in this area would be required to provide any conclusive evidence in this matter. The report however can definitely suggest that considering the lowered prices of online goods, more consumers would prefer to buy goods online in the coming years and online or internet shopping will definitely become more successful in the future. The expenditure for the week given is at 51 which would be slightly higher than the normal expenditure as the DVD, and Women's shoes amounting to 20.99 + 17.99 that is 38.98 are extra items bought which are not usually bought every week. The usual or average weekly expenditure considering these items bought will only be at 12.02 although at this time it is above 50. The expenditure for this week involves goods and items as diverse as washing powder, soft drink, women's shoes, mixed vegetables, ice cream, DVD, and red wine. ... The report however can definitely suggest that considering the lowered prices of online goods, more consumers would prefer to buy goods online in the coming years and online or internet shopping will definitely become more successful in the future. Keywords: Market price, online price, supermarkets, internet shopping, listed items. I - Summary of expenditure showing item, brand, size and cost and comments on how this would differ from average or normal expenditure Item Date Brand Size Cost Monday Washing powder 16-10-06 Ariel 1 kg 1.47 Tuesday Women's shoes 17-10-06 M&S 5 20.99 Wednesday Soft Drink 18-10-06 Coca Cola 2ltr 2.18 Thursday Mixed Vegetables 19-10-06 Tesco 500g .90 Friday Vanilla ice cream 20-10-06 Walls 2ltr 2.64 Saturday Red wine 21-10--06 Marquez de chive 75cl 4.83 Sunday DVD 22-10-06 Sainsbury's n/a 17.99 Total: 51.00 The expenditure for the week given is at 51 which would be slightly higher than the normal expenditure as the DVD, and Women's shoes amounting to 20.99 + 17.99 that is 38.98 are extra items bought which are not usually bought every week. The usual or average weekly expenditure considering these items bought will only be at 12.02 although at this time it is above 50. The expenditure for this week involves goods and items as diverse as washing powder, soft drink, women's shoes, mixed vegetables, ice cream, DVD, and red wine. The DVD and women's shoes as we have identified are some of the items that I wouldn't usually buy and can be considered as 'extra items' for the week. However these items seem to have raised the expenditure dramatically. II - Summary of expenditure showing item, brand, size and cost for online

Astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Astronomy - Essay Example Its birth pangs began some 4.6 billion years ago as rock and ice particles swirling around the young sun collided and merged, snowballing to produce ever larger planetary building blocks. In violent pileups, they smashed together to create planets, including the infant Earth. In the turmoil, another body, as big as Mars, struck our planet with the energy of trillions of atomic bombs, enough to melt it all the way through. Most of the impactor was swallowed up in the bottomless magma ocean it created. But the collision also flung a small world's worth of vaporized rock into orbit. Debris quickly gathered itself into a ball, and since then Earth history has unfolded beneath the blank stare of the moon. After the moon's fiery birth, the Earth's surface cooled. Even so, our planet remained an alien world for the next 700 million years; scientists call this time the Hadean, after the Greek underworld. Rafts of solid rock drifted in the magma like dark ice floes. Gases hissed from the cooling rock-carbon dioxide, nitrogen, water vapor, and others-enveloping the planet in a scalding atmosphere devoid of oxygen. As the temperature dropped further, the steam condensed into rain that fell in primordial monsoons and filled the ocean basins. These first oceans may have been short-lived. Space rubble left over from the birth of the planets-chunks of rock tens to hundreds of miles across-bombarded Earth throughout the Hadean. The greatest impacts might have boiled the oceans away, forcing the process of cooling and condensation to begin again. By 3.8 billion years ago the impacts relented. Liquid water could persist. About that time, perhaps in the oceans, lifeless chemical reactions crossed a threshold, producing molecules complex enough to reproduce themselves and evolve toward greater complexity. Life was on a road that led, as early as 3.5 billion years ago, to single-celled, blue-green cyanobacteria that flourished in the sunlit parts of the oceans. By the trillions, these microscopic organisms transformed the planet. They captured the energy of the sun to make food, releasing oxygen as a waste product. Little by little they turned the atmosphere into breathable air, opening the way to the diversity of life that followed. Those days are long gone, but the processes that turned our planet from a hell to a habitable world are still on view today, as the images on these pages show. Primordial heat left over from the planet's formation still bursts out in volcanic eruptions, spilling lava that exudes gases like the young, cooling Earth. In the planet's harshest environments today, cyanobacteria reign as they have for billions of years. And each time a plant gains a toehold on newly cooled lava, the victory of life over lifeless rock-won so long ago on the young Earth-is affirmed again. Subscribe to National Geographic magazine. The Earth began as a bleak surrounding where hot and fiery rocks and poisonous fumes existed. This is what the article from National Geographic Magazine, titled Earth in the Beginning written by Tom Appenzeller, illustrates. The article describes the early Earth

Uncompleted crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Uncompleted crime - Essay Example Article 105 of the Penal Law of New York contains the conspiracy of crime. There are various elements of conspiracy of crime in the historical statute of New York. First, the must be an agreement of persons in a contract to perform unlawful or illegal action. A conspiracy of crime is valid if different parties agree to carry out unlawful action. For example, in Mulcahy v R (1868) case, there was an evident of presence of an agreement between different persons. If the agreement is not present, the conspiracy of crime is invalid, and no conviction occur on the conspiracy. For example, in R v Thomson (1966), the charge failed due to lack of agreement between people to undertake unlawful action. Secondly, for the conspiracy case to be valid, the prosecution must give a clear evidence of the intention of various parties to join in the agreement for the purpose of carrying out a criminal activity. A case on conspiracy of crime can only be valid if there are clear intentions of parties involved either. Therefore, the conspiracy incorporates criminal liability according to the person’s intention. In the current Penal law, there are four main elements of conspiracy. To begin with, the actus Reus of conspiracy is present when an agreement by parties to carry out unlawful action is made. This means that, even if the planned action of the involved parties does not occur, parties are liable for committing conspiracy of crime (Gupta, 2013). The main purpose of their agreement must be clearly identified during the jurisdiction of the cases. The prosecution must highlight the main purpose of the agreement. If the purpose of the agreement is harmful to the public or cause fraud, the valid charge can be provided in the court of laws. In addition, conspiracy can also happen when there is unlawful purpose of the agreement, but the means applied in action is illegal (Harding, 1982). The overt act is greatly necessary in charging the conspiracy of crime. For

Astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Astronomy - Essay Example Its birth pangs began some 4.6 billion years ago as rock and ice particles swirling around the young sun collided and merged, snowballing to produce ever larger planetary building blocks. In violent pileups, they smashed together to create planets, including the infant Earth. In the turmoil, another body, as big as Mars, struck our planet with the energy of trillions of atomic bombs, enough to melt it all the way through. Most of the impactor was swallowed up in the bottomless magma ocean it created. But the collision also flung a small world's worth of vaporized rock into orbit. Debris quickly gathered itself into a ball, and since then Earth history has unfolded beneath the blank stare of the moon. After the moon's fiery birth, the Earth's surface cooled. Even so, our planet remained an alien world for the next 700 million years; scientists call this time the Hadean, after the Greek underworld. Rafts of solid rock drifted in the magma like dark ice floes. Gases hissed from the cooling rock-carbon dioxide, nitrogen, water vapor, and others-enveloping the planet in a scalding atmosphere devoid of oxygen. As the temperature dropped further, the steam condensed into rain that fell in primordial monsoons and filled the ocean basins. These first oceans may have been short-lived. Space rubble left over from the birth of the planets-chunks of rock tens to hundreds of miles across-bombarded Earth throughout the Hadean. The greatest impacts might have boiled the oceans away, forcing the process of cooling and condensation to begin again. By 3.8 billion years ago the impacts relented. Liquid water could persist. About that time, perhaps in the oceans, lifeless chemical reactions crossed a threshold, producing molecules complex enough to reproduce themselves and evolve toward greater complexity. Life was on a road that led, as early as 3.5 billion years ago, to single-celled, blue-green cyanobacteria that flourished in the sunlit parts of the oceans. By the trillions, these microscopic organisms transformed the planet. They captured the energy of the sun to make food, releasing oxygen as a waste product. Little by little they turned the atmosphere into breathable air, opening the way to the diversity of life that followed. Those days are long gone, but the processes that turned our planet from a hell to a habitable world are still on view today, as the images on these pages show. Primordial heat left over from the planet's formation still bursts out in volcanic eruptions, spilling lava that exudes gases like the young, cooling Earth. In the planet's harshest environments today, cyanobacteria reign as they have for billions of years. And each time a plant gains a toehold on newly cooled lava, the victory of life over lifeless rock-won so long ago on the young Earth-is affirmed again. Subscribe to National Geographic magazine. The Earth began as a bleak surrounding where hot and fiery rocks and poisonous fumes existed. This is what the article from National Geographic Magazine, titled Earth in the Beginning written by Tom Appenzeller, illustrates. The article describes the early Earth

Drinking Age Essay Example for Free

Drinking Age Essay You pack up all your belongings, say farewell to your hometown and your parents, and just like that, you start a whole new life that you have been looking forward to all your life. As you approach your first Friday night as a college freshman, you inevitably encounter the choice of going to your first college party and being able to drink without having to worry about your curfew for the first time. Needless to say, you make the decision to follow your floor-mates to a big party that they have been talking about for the whole week. Underage drinking situations like the above are common especially among college students. Underage drinking is currently determined by an MLDA, or legal minimum drinking age, of 21 throughout the United States. Despite this simple and straightforward law, however, an abundant amount of irresponsible minors tend to ignore this rule and continue to do what is ultimately an illegal action. Because of these ongoing actions, people have been questioning the law and whether or not the legal drinking age should be lowered. After a investigation of evidences and arguments, I firmly believe that the minimum legal drink age should be kept at 21 and not be lowered. Due to countless numbers of statistics, the social and physical effects, and the need to keep the younger teens away from alcohol, it is safe to conclude that keeping the drinking age at 21 is the best choice for our society. For more than 90 years, the topic of legal drinking age have surfaced and caused controversy. Because of this, there have been many modifications to the law from lowering the minimum age to 18 to giving the choice to each state to increasing the national minimum age to 21. According to an article from Economic Inquiry by Jeffrey A. Miron and Elina Tetelbaum, having all states to adopt an MLDA of 21 is regarded as an enormous contribution to life-saving effects such as decrease in driving fatalities among youths as well as in the number of binge drinking reported. When the individual states were allowed to lower their MLDA from 21 to 18 between 1970 and 1976, there were studies that â€Å"claimed that traffic collisions and fatalities were increasing in states that lowered their MLDA†. This helps to support the assertion that lowering the MLDA didn’t do much in lowering the number of traffic-related accidents, although it doesn’t directly prove the fact that lowering the drinking age causes accidents. However, Dee, who uses state-level panel data and controls for state fixed effects, prove the point that there is a direct correlation between the MLDA and the rate of traffic incidents. After years of studying the effects of different MLDA’s, he confirmed that having an MLDA of 21 as a matter of fact reduces total traffic fatalities among 18-20 year olds by about 11%. Not only were there findings in the reduction of traffic fatalities with an increased MLDA of 21, but there were also evidences that it helps to reduce the number of teen binge drinking as well. An article from the Journal of American College Health indicated that cases of binge drinking, which is defined as five consecutive shots for men and 4 consecutive for women, has been reported more frequently among college students living in dorms. However, according to the Economic Inquiry, moving away from MLDA 18 has been said to be associated with a reduction in heavy teen drinking of 8. 4%. They found that â€Å"nationwide increases in the MLDA†¦reduced youth drinking by about four percent relative to pre-existing levels† (Miron). Overall, these findings in statistics help with the assertion that the drinking age should be kept at 21 for the minors’ safeties. In addition to these statistics, there are also social reasons behind why the underage population should be forbidden to drink until they are 21. According to an article on the American Journal of Public Health, influences in underage drinking are contributing factors in unintentional social and health causes, such as sexual assault, violence, crime, overdose, and other related high-risk behavior. Since minors have not been fully developed as adults mentally, they are more likely to make irresponsible actions when intoxicated. This may lead to undesirable affects that could potentially influence them for the rest of their lives, and hence actions need to be done in order to keep minors from the alcoholic influence. Also in opposition, there is no scientific evidence made to date that suggests â€Å"a lower minimum drinking age would create conditions for responsible drinking or would lead young adults ages 18-20 years to make healthy decisions about drinking† (Wechsler). Therefore, we have no solid claim to support the MLDA of 18, whereas we have more than enough justifications in saying that the MLDA should be kept at 21. Lastly, my stance on the minimum drinking age is supported by the mere fact that having a lower drinking age will only cause the younger generations to be introduced to alcoholic beverages. An article from the Economic Inquiry points out â€Å"when the MLDA is 18, more high school students have access to alcohol through peer networks†. It is an inevitable circumstance that if the MLDA lowers down to 18, typical high school seniors will have access to alcohol; this can only mean that alcohol will be more accessible to high school underclassmen than if the MLDA is 21. This also means that, according the to the article, the law enforcement will have to monitor the drinking behavior of individuals aged 17 years and possibly younger—not only should this be an unnecessary action for law enforcement, but this is also a situation that everyone should be concerned about. Giving teens easier access to alcohol will only deter them from growing to their full potential. The higher the MLDA, the less likelihood we have that the younger generation will have access to alcohol. That way, we will also have the benefit of a possible reduction in alcohol-related traffic fatalities and binge drinking rates among youths as well as prevention of them being socially and physically influenced by alcohol. Therefore, it makes more sense to keep the MLDA AT 21 if we do not want the younger generations to have easier access to alcohol. Underage drinking—you see it everywhere and hear about it every time. Having to listen to the news on the most recent car accident caused by a drunk minor should not have to be a common thing if we implement the right actions. Many statistics out there evidently show that having a lower MLDA has a direct correlation to a higher chance of alcohol-related traffic fatalities as well as the rate of binge drinking amongst youths. Studies also show that underage drinking may lead to serious health or social causes to the minor, some of which include sexual assault, violence, and overdose. Lastly, lowering the MLDA will only help the younger generations to have access to alcohol due to their high school peers. Overall, I believe that the safest and the best choice for our society is to keep the MLDA at 21 and not be any lowered than it is now. As the future leaders of the world, I believe that youths and minors should be grown in the safest, healthiest, and the most influence-free environment that will help them grow to their full potential when they can.

Do You Believe Blaines Current Capital Structure Finance Essay

Do You Believe Blaines Current Capital Structure Finance Essay Do you believe Blaines current capital structure and payout policies are appropriate? Why or why not? Blaines capital structure and dividend policy are not entirely appropriate from the point of view of a shareholder of the firm. The reasons for that can be summed up as follows: No leverage: The optimum mix of debt and equity in the capital structure will maximize shareholders return. Company should take on debt to acquire new firms and expand its operations. Low ROE : Attributed to Low leverage 2006 ROE data clearly shows up that ROE of all the comparable firms are much higher than that of Blaine. Increasing Dividend payout ratio As calculated in Question no.3, the cost of equity of the firm is close to 9% whereas ROE is 11%. This is a good proposition for shareholders. This can be enhanced by acquiring other companies using cash balance that the company has. Decreasing EPS Even when EPS is constantly decreasing over the last three years, the policy of giving more or less same amount in dividend may cost company in future. Way of financing of new acquisitions Blaine Inc. should rather raise capital in debt rather than issuing new stocks to raise capital. This will ensure EPS constant and will be good for shareholders. Should Dubinski recommend a large share repurchase to Blaines board? What are the primary advantages and disadvantages of such a move? No, Dubinski should not recommend a large share repurchase to the board. The reason for that is although the firm is public listed, still a large percentage of share is owned by family itself. Therefore, buying back the shares is as good as unlisting the company. Secondly, there are growth avenues wherein the company may require cash. The company should, like last two years, go for acquisition. This will bring value to shareholders. Else, during the times of new acquisitions, company would have to raise capital from the market and due to flotation cost; the cost of equity will be much higher. Consider the following share repurchase proposal: Blaine will use $209 million of cash from its balance sheet and $50 million in new debt-bearing interest at the rate of 6.75% to repurchase 14.0 million shares at a price of $18.50 per share. How would such a buyback affect Blaine? Consider the impact on, among other things, BKIs earnings per share and ROE, its interest coverage and debt ratios, the familys ownership interest, and the companys cost of capital. Effect of Share Buyback Particulars Value Remarks Equity Capital_Pre Buyback ($) 488,363,000 2006, Exhibit 2 Equity Capital_Post ($) 279,363,000 No. of Shares outstanding before buyback 59,052,000 No. of shares bought back 14,000,000 Total outstanding Shares 45,052,000 EPS_Old($) 0.91 EPS_New ($) 1.19 Percent change in EPS 31.08% P/E ratio 17.86 Market Price (S) 21.30 Percent change in Share price 19.28% Debt_equity Book Value 17.90% Debt_equity Market Value 5.21% Debt interest rate 6.75% Interest to be paid ($) 3375000 Interest coverage ratio 0.05 ROE 0.11 ROE_new 0.19 Change in ROE 74.52% Cost of Equity 9.01% Cost of Debt 6.25% Effective Tax rate 40.00% Expected future tax rate D/V 4.95% WACC 8.75% WACC_Old 9.01% Change in WACC -2.89% Equity beta Calculation for the Firm Market Cap Equity beta (Net)D/E Net Debt Cash Securities Total Debt D/E (1) (2) (3) (4)=(1)x(3) (5) (6)=(4)+(5) (7)=(6)/(1) Home and Hearth Design 776,427 1.03 45.18% 350,790 21,495 372,285 47.95% AutoTech Appliances 13,978,375 1.24 31.74% 4,436,736 536,099 4,972,835 35.58% XQL Corp. 5,290,145 0.96 17.97% 950,639 21,425 972,064 18.37% Bunkerhill Inc. 3,962,780 0.92 6.01% 238,163 153,680 391,843 9.89% Easyliving Systems 418,749 0.67 -15.47% -64,780 242,102 177,322 42.35% Blaine Kitchenware 959,596 0.56 -24.06% -230,879 230,866 -13 0.00% Average 25,386,072 0.90 10.23% 25.69% Unlevered Beta 0.78 Beta_Blaine 0.80 Ownership Scenario: For last 3 years and post share buyback 2004 2005 2006 2007 Outstanding Shares 41,309,000 48,790,000 59,052,000 45,052,000 Ownership of Founders descendants 62% 52% 43% 57% Assumptions Used Effective Tax rate has been taken equal to 40%, same as for Blaine. As a member of Blaines controlling family, would you be in favor of this proposal? Would you be in favor of it as a non-family shareholder? As a family member of Blaine, the news of buyback has to be evaluated in both the ways. The Pros are: Consolidating Control- This will increase the shareholding close to 57%. Return of Cash Surplus to Shareholders-As of now in April, 2007, there are no any plans of buybacks. Therefore, keeping cash intact leads to opportunity cost of shareholders. This will add value for shareholders. An effective defense against takeover- as the market is consolidating, it will be a wise decision to protect the company from hostile takeovers. The cons are: Effect on expansionary plans- As cash will be used to buy back shares and the company wont be able to raise money from markets in the near future, opportunities of acquisitions will be marred. Even if, company will raise capital from equity market, flotation cost will be high and so cost of equity will be comparatively high. Use of Leverage- the Company has been against the policy of taking debt. Taking debt of $50 million for share buyback will not go in line with the companys policy.

Essays --

The Ethics of Drug Design and Testing Victor Arce Arizona State University â€Æ' Drug Design, Testing, and Marketing The discovery of a lead pharmacophore and its subsequent testing in animals and humans has only recently taken shape thanks to the advancement in the fields of pharmacology, physiology, chemistry, and biology. Within the last 40 years, the near-linear advancement of computing power has allowed for the imaging of enzyme structures and therefore led to the ab initio calculations of structure shape and size in drug development. The recent scientific interest in biomimicry has created a new field for lead drug synthesis and treatment. The field of pharmacology is being bombarded with possible drug targets so why has the influx of drugs into the market remained relatively slow compared to all of the possible leads? The answer to that question has to do with the process by which a drug must be tested and approved before hitting markets. The process by which a treatment or a drug is studied is scientific. Figure 1- A flowchart demonstrating the process by which a drug must undergo before being marketed and regulated to the public. Figure 1 shows the process by which a drug is developed. The basis of therapies lies in the chemical, physiological understanding of disease. The study begins with a question. The question or hypothesis is based on the understanding of the human body and it’s function. The hypothesis must then be tested using reproducible methods. The compound in question is tested in vitro using a line of cells that are most relevant to the target site that the researchers are studying. For example, if you are researching a drug that could possibly target lymphomas, you would use a cell line that ... ...standard for human research ethics. The document is not legally binding to any country or entity but instead serves as a moral standard for all scientists and physicians as well as countries who want to use it as a guideline for legislation on human research in their own jurisdiction. Conducting Ethical Animal Research As seen in the first part of this paper, the use of animals in the advancement of medical knowledge can be traced back to the Romans. Galen may be one of the first historically significant scientists who used animals to further the knowledge of medicine. His vivisections led to a greater understanding of the healing process, the cardiovascular system, and digestion among other topics. By today’s standards, the vivisections that Galen carried out are seen as unethical and barbaric. The unnecessary level of pain inflicted on the animal would today be Essays -- The Ethics of Drug Design and Testing Victor Arce Arizona State University â€Æ' Drug Design, Testing, and Marketing The discovery of a lead pharmacophore and its subsequent testing in animals and humans has only recently taken shape thanks to the advancement in the fields of pharmacology, physiology, chemistry, and biology. Within the last 40 years, the near-linear advancement of computing power has allowed for the imaging of enzyme structures and therefore led to the ab initio calculations of structure shape and size in drug development. The recent scientific interest in biomimicry has created a new field for lead drug synthesis and treatment. The field of pharmacology is being bombarded with possible drug targets so why has the influx of drugs into the market remained relatively slow compared to all of the possible leads? The answer to that question has to do with the process by which a drug must be tested and approved before hitting markets. The process by which a treatment or a drug is studied is scientific. Figure 1- A flowchart demonstrating the process by which a drug must undergo before being marketed and regulated to the public. Figure 1 shows the process by which a drug is developed. The basis of therapies lies in the chemical, physiological understanding of disease. The study begins with a question. The question or hypothesis is based on the understanding of the human body and it’s function. The hypothesis must then be tested using reproducible methods. The compound in question is tested in vitro using a line of cells that are most relevant to the target site that the researchers are studying. For example, if you are researching a drug that could possibly target lymphomas, you would use a cell line that ... ...standard for human research ethics. The document is not legally binding to any country or entity but instead serves as a moral standard for all scientists and physicians as well as countries who want to use it as a guideline for legislation on human research in their own jurisdiction. Conducting Ethical Animal Research As seen in the first part of this paper, the use of animals in the advancement of medical knowledge can be traced back to the Romans. Galen may be one of the first historically significant scientists who used animals to further the knowledge of medicine. His vivisections led to a greater understanding of the healing process, the cardiovascular system, and digestion among other topics. By today’s standards, the vivisections that Galen carried out are seen as unethical and barbaric. The unnecessary level of pain inflicted on the animal would today be

Husserl’s Conceptions of Formal Mathematics Essay -- Edmund Husserl Ma

Husserl’s Conceptions of Formal Mathematics Edmund Husserl’s conception of mathematics was a unique blend of Platonist and formalist ideas. He believed that mathematics had reached a mixed state combining Platonic and formal elements and that both were important for the pursuit of the sciences, as well as for each other. However, he seemed to believe that only the Platonic aspects had significance for his science of phenomenology. Because of the significance of the distinction between these two types of mathematics, I will always use one of the adjectives â€Å"material† or â€Å"formal† when discussing any branch of mathematics, unless I specifically mean to include both. First, I must specify what I mean by each of these terms. By material mathematics, I will mean mathematics as it had traditionally been done before the conceptions of imaginary numbers and non-Euclidean geometry. Thus, any branch of material mathematics seeks to describe how some class of existing things actually behaves. So material geometry seeks to describe how objects lie in space, material number theory seeks to describe how the actual natural numbers are related, and material logic seeks to describe how concepts actually relate to one another. Some of these areas (like material geometry) seek to deal with the physical world, while others (like material logic) deal with abstract objects, so I avoid using the word â€Å"Platonic†, which suggests only the latter. By formal mathematics, I will mean mathematics done as is typical in the 20th century, purely axiomatically, without regard to what sorts of objects it might actually describe. Thus, for formal geometry it is irrel evant whether the objects described are physical objects in actual space, or n-tuples of real nu... ... Bouvier, Bonn, 1981. Tieszen, Richard L. â€Å"Mathematical Intuition: Phenomenology and Mathematical Knowledge†. Kluwer, Boston, 1989. Zalta, Ed. â€Å"Frege’s Logic, Theorem and Foundations for Arithmetic†. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/frege-logic/ Footnotes 1. Lohmar, p. 14 2. However, this claim is itself a material claim of the truth of a statement in material logic, i.e. that the given statement follows from the given axioms, when this statement and these axioms are viewed as actual objects in our reasoning system. 3. Husserl, p. 16 4. Fà ¸llesdal, in Hintikka, p. 442 5. Hill, p. 153 6. Husserl, p. xxiii 7. Husserl, p. 161 8. Gà ¶del, p. 385 9. Husserl, p. 163-4 10. Husserl, p. 167-8 11. Husserl, p. 169 12. Husserl, p. 168-9 13. Husserl, p. 136 14. Gà ¶del, p. 385 15. See Zalta’s discussion of Basic Law V. home

History of Indian Pharma Industry

CHAPTER: 1 INTRODUCTION History of Indian Pharma Industry The  Pharmaceutical industry  in  India  is the world's third-largest in terms of volume and stands 14th in terms of value. According to Department of Pharmaceuticals,  Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, the total turnover of India's pharmaceuticals industry between 2008 and September 2009 was  US$21. 04 billion. While the domestic market was worth US$ 12. 26 billion. Sale of all types of medicines in the country is expected to reach around  US$19. 22 billion by 2012. Exports of pharmaceuticals products from India increased from US$6. 3 billion in 2006-07 to US$8. 7 billion in 2008-09 a combined annual growth rate of 21. 25%. According to  PricewaterhouseCoopers  (PWC) in 2010, India joined among the league of top 10 global pharmaceuticals markets in terms of sales by 2020 with value reaching US$50 billion. Some of the major pharmaceutical firms including  Sun Pharmaceutical,  Cadila Healthcare  and   Piramal Healthcare. The  government  started to encourage the growth of drug manufacturing by Indian companies in the early 1960s, and with the Patents Act in 1970. However, economic liberalization in 90s by the former Prime Minister  P.V. Narasimha Rao  and the then  Finance  Minister,  Dr. Man Mohan Singh  enabled the industry to become what it is today. This patent act removed composition  patents  from food and drugs, and though it kept process patents, these were shortened to a period of five to seven years. The lack of patent protection made the Indian market undesirable to the multinational companies that had dominated the market, and while they streamed out. Indian companies carved a niche in both the Indian and world markets with their expertise in reverse-engineering new processes for manufacturing drugs at low costs.Although some of the larger companies have taken baby steps towards drug innovation, the industry as a whole has been following this b usiness model until the present. India's  biopharmaceutical  industry clocked a 17 percent growth with revenues of Rs. 137 billion ($3 billion) in the 2009-10 financial year over the previous fiscal. Bio-Pharma was the biggest contributor generating 60 percent of the industry's growth at Rs. 8, 829 crore, followed by bio-services at Rs. 2, 639 crore and bio-Agri at Rs. 1, 936 crore. The number of purely Indian Pharma companies is fairly low.Indian Pharma industry is mainly operated as well as controlled by dominant foreign companies having subsidiaries in India due to availability of cheap labor in India at lowest cost. In 2002, over 20,000 registered drug manufacturers in India sold $9 billion worth of formulations and bulk drugs. 85% of these formulations were sold in India while over 60% of the bulk drugs were exported, mostly to the United States and Russia. Most of the players in the market are small-to-medium enterprises; 250 of the largest companies control 70% of the Ind ian market.Thanks to the 1970 Patent Act, multinationals represent only 35% of the market, down from 70% thirty years ago. Most Pharma companies operating in India, even the multinationals, employ Indians almost exclusively from the lowest ranks to high level management. Mirroring the social structure, firms are very hierarchical. Homegrown pharmaceuticals, like many other businesses in India, are often a mix of public and private enterprise. Although many of these companies are publicly owned, leadership passes from father to son and the founding family holds a majority share.In terms of the global market, India currently holds a modest 1-2% share, but it has been growing at approximately 10% per year. India gained its foothold on the global scene with its innovatively engineered generic drugs and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), and it is now seeking to become a major player in outsourced clinical research as well as contract manufacturing and research. There are 74 U. S. FDA-approved manufacturing facilities in India, more than in any other country outside the U. S, and in 005, almost 20% of all Abbreviated New Drug Applications (ANDA) to the FDA are expected to be filed by Indian companies. Growths in other fields notwithstanding, generics are still a large part of the picture. London research company Global Insight estimates that India’s share of the global generics market will have risen from 4% to 33%. The Indian pharmaceutical industry has become the third largest producer in the world and is poised to grow into an industry of $ 20 billion in 2015 from the current turnover of $ 12 billion. The Indian pharmaceutical industry is a success story. 00 000 people are employed in this sector, in some 12 000 firms. 2 900 of them are large scale units, following a recent article by Pradeep Aggrawal and P. Saibaba in the renowned Economic and Political Weekly of Mumbai (29 September 2001). In the pre- and post-production sector, a further 2. 5 mil lion jobs are thought to be involved. Compared to the general price index, drug prices have risen much less in the last 15 years and remain far below average. â€Å"Worldwide, India is a  country of very low drug prices while producing high quality medicines†, Nihchal H.Israni, president of the Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA), states proudly. Self-sufficiency with regard to pharmaceutics exceeds 90 percent – in spite of the policy of a more open economy pursued by India since 1991. The secret of this success is the Indian Patents Act 1970. India had entered independence with the patent system of the British  colonial masters, enacted in 1911. This secured the Indian market for the British industry. Prior to 1970, multinational  companies dominated the Indian market with a share of 85%, pharmaceutics were largely imported whereas local production remained minimal.Section 83 of the Patents Act 1970 states â€Å"that patents are granted to enco urage inventions and to secure that the inventions are worked in India on a  commercial scale and to the fullest extent and not to enable patentees to enjoy a monopoly for the importation†. At the turn of the century, the share of multinationals had declined to a share of 40 percent of India’s market, including a substantial share of local processing by multinationals. 45 of the larger scale production units belong to multinational  companies. The â€Å"architect† of the patent law of 1970, S.Vedaraman, then director of the Indian Patent Office, summarizes the spirit of the law as follows: â€Å"We are not against patents. And we are prepared to pay decent license fees. But we in India cannot afford monopolies. † Since then, India has done without product patents for pharmaceutics, with the exception of production processes that may be patented for seven years. In addition, the law allowed for  compulsory licenses granted by the state, in the case of a patent holder not granting voluntary licenses on fair  conditions. India profited from a large section of well-qualified experts who made good use of the new opportunities.These moves did not find much favor with the multinational Pharma-industry. It should not be forgotten, though, that in many industrial  countries, the protection of inventions through patents was only developed in the last 30 years. The Swiss pharmaceutical industry in particular fought the enactment of a patent law at the end of the 19th century, in order to be able to imitate foreign drugs, such as Aspirin. In the German Reichstag (Parliament) Switzerland was  considered a â€Å"state of robber barons†, in France a â€Å"country of counterfeiters†.Product patents for medical drugs have only been known in Switzerland since 1978. It is very clear whose interest they serve. Technology exporters profit from patent protection, which shields them from low-cost  competition. Technology importe rs – in other words, most of the developing  countries – want access to technical innovations as freely and cheaply as possible, i. e. no patent protection which creates monopolistic barriers. Indeed it was in this way that the economic development of Japan, Korea and Taiwan was able to thrive, due to the beneficial absence of patents.The Cipla philosophy has for decades been to promote the principle of relying on one’s own strength. â€Å"For India, this means striving for a high degree of self-sufficiency in vital areas of health and nutrition, and for our business practice, it means aiming for the fulfillment of the needs of the Indian population, the use of indigenous raw materials and of local personnel†, says Cipla managing director Y. K. Hamied. This philosophy,  combined with technical expertise, must have been the reason that the Indian  Council for Medical Research suggested to Cipla in 1990 that the AIDS drug Zidovudine be produced locall y.Due to the state investing its limited means in prevention, the market remained small. In India, approximately US$ 2 million is turned over yearly for AIDS drugs. Of this, Cipla has a share of about 80 percent. This is only a small percentage of Cipla’s total turnover of more than US$ 210 million. Indian Pharma industry is very interested in the export of its pharmaceutics. Developing  countries are an important market for Indian manufacturers because they produce high quality products at very  competitive prices. But free trade is hampered by national and international patent rules.For a patent does not only constitute the sole right to produce a product but also to import it. Despite these barriers, India’s drug exports exceeded in the year 2000 for the first time US$ 1. 5 billion. The success story of the pharmaceutical sector is part of a wider but less known â€Å"economic miracle†: India achieved average rates of economic growth for the last 20 years of six percent annually. Major Pharmaceutical Companies in India: In the list of top pharmaceutical companies in India it is not the Indian companies but also the MNCs that are becoming the part of the race.Indian pharmaceutical market in 2008 was $7,743m and if compared to year 2007 it was 4% more than that. It is expected that Indian pharmaceutical market will grow more than the global pharmaceutical market and will become $15,490 million in 2014. Today Indian pharmaceutical industry is the second most fastest growing industry displaying the revenue of Rs 25,196. 48 crore and growth of 27. 32 percent. Top pharmaceutical companies in India are also acquiring the small companies worldwide to further expand the market. Injections, tablets, capsule; syrups are the products of Pharma companies in India.Looking back into history reveals that it was in 1930 when the first pharmaceutical company in India came into existence in Kolkata. It is called the â€Å"Bengal Chemicals and Pharmac eutical Works†. This Indian company is still there and today it is the part of five drug manufacturing companies that are owned by the government. Till the period of 60 years the pharmaceutical industry in India was overshadowed by the foreign drug manufacturing companies but with the Patent Act in 1970, the whole scenario of pharmaceutical companies in India had changed since then.With this the Indian market was more open to Indian pharmaceutical companies than the MNCs. So with this pharmaceutical companies in India started to grow in number At present there is a cut throat competition among top pharmaceutical companies in India with the native as well as MNCs. But there are certain issues that are concerning the growth of Pharma companies in India. These are: ? Mandatory licensing and failure of new pattern system. ? Regular power cuts and inadequate infrastructure. ? Restricted funding. ? Regulatory hindrances that lead to the delays in the launch of new drug or Pharma pro duct. Too many small as well as big pharmaceutical companies and excessive competition. Top 10 Pharmaceutical Companies in India |Rank |Company Name |Turnover Amount |Remarks | |1. |Ranbaxy |4198. 96 | | |2. |Dr. Reddy Lab. |4162. 25 | | |3. |Cipla |3763. 72 | | |4. |Sun Pharma |2463. 9 | | |5. |Lupin labs |2215. 52 | | |6. |Aurobindo Pharma |2080. 19 | | |7. |Galxo Smithkline |1773. 41 | | |8. |Cadila Healthcare |1613. 00 | | |9. |Aventis |983. 80 | | |10. IPCA Laboratories |980. 84 | | COMPANY PROFILE Medley is a global pharmaceutical company operating since 1969 from Mumbai, India. Since launch, the company consolidated its position with a strong marketing infrastructure. In the year 1976, a formulation plant with modern facility was set up at Aurangabad followed by a couple of units placed at Daman and Jammu. Medley has state of the art facilities maintaining high quality standards at every further stage in manufacturing process with strict adherence to the Good Manufacturing Pr actices.Medley Pharmaceuticals Limited is a multidivisional and multi location organization with strong presence in Pharmaceutical formulations. The specialties include Hematinics, Anti ulcerants, Anti bacterial, Pain management, Gynecology & cardiovascular drugs. We specialize in Iron preparations, our mega brand being R. B. Tone Syrup. We also have many 1st time in India brands to our credit like Dompan (Domperidone & Pantoprazole), O2 (Ornidazole & Ofloxacin), Tazocef (Tazobactum & ceftriaxone) & Osmium K2 (1st brand of Vitamin K27 combination in India)Medley ranks amongst the top 40 pharmaceutical companies in India as per ORG IMS. Medley believes that quality is a continuous process and not an isolated stage in the process. They have an extensive distribution network across the country with 5 Depots, 17 C/Fs & over 1500 Stockiest which caters to the retailers. Research & Development The inbuilt quality of products is assured through scientific way of product development at R&D scale, transfer of technology from lab scale to mass production, analytical method development, stability studies and process validation.Our current thrust is towards development of innovative dosage forms in the areas of tablets, syrups, aerosols & other types of herbal formulations found in India. We believe that only through integrity one can provide the best medicine to patients whose well being is valued the most as per the company perspective. Medley has established state of the art R&D centers at Daman and Mumbai equipped with the latest ultra modern instruments. These R&D centers have highly experienced team of scientists having post graduate & doctorate degrees in the field of pharmacy & chemistry.The R&D centre established at Daman has received approval of Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India in 2006. WORLDWIDE OPERATIONS [pic] Medley has set its eyes on becoming a truly global pharmaceutical company over the next decade. Medley's products reach 26 countrie s with significant presence in Asia, Africa, Middle East, Russia and CIS Medley intend to enhance its International presence based on its policy of â€Å"Integrity in Medicines† and quality of products. Medley already has setup the office in UK and tied up with partner in USA and SA.Medley is aggressively working on finalizing its business tie-ups in Brazil. Medley has dynamic team and representative office in Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Russia and Kazakhstan. The dynamic field force promotes its specialty formulations. Around 514 formulations are registered in 26 countries. Today International business contributes 12% of Medley sales, but expected to grow substantially in the next three years. We have three manufacturing facilities, two at Daman and one at Jammu which strictly follows WHO GMP guidelines.All our manufacturing facilities are the state of art manufacturing units for oral and liquid section. The Daman Facility is MHRA-UK approved. One of our fa cilities at DAMAN is certified for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) Conforming to INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS by Competent Regulatory Authorities in Uganda, Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, and Yemen. Medley is now preparing for the South Africa. This initiative of Medley would help strive for the growth and to serve the world community. COLLABORATION Collaboration is Key to Our Success:-Collaboration, cooperation and partnership are the keys to our success. We are committed to working with our corporate partners to  offer our research, development, regulatory, manufacturing, marketing and sales expertise. Identifying good partners and managing long-term relationships is part of our company philosophy. Contract Manufacturing Why Medley for Contract Manufacturing? Medley understands the outsourcing requirements of its customers and transforms their needs into solutions. The pharmaceutical industry today is acing challenging business environment due to escalating R and manufacturing costs as well as delays in bringing new drugs to market. Other key factors impacting the industry include: †¢ Ever increasing demands to deliver lower cost of goods & improve customer supply performance †¢ Greater product complexity †¢ Ongoing regulatory compliance demands By using our contract manufacturing services you can access Medley's comprehensive technology portfolio for pharmaceuticals and the competence we have built up over decades.Knowledge, modern technology and creativity combined with clear and well-defined communication procedures between our teams of experts and customers & above all consistency, world class quality & delivery ahead of time are the key factors for achieving optimum solutions that will surely exceed your expectations. Complete confidentiality and protection of client intellectual property is the heart of the Medley culture. In-Licensing We look at partnering and collaborating as an important strategic approach that will complement our growth in India and international markets.We believe in brand building & are leaders in various therapeutic segments with 3 brands featuring in top 300 (IMS-Health). Our extensive distribution network with more than 1500 stockist’s, 6 depots & 16 C&F’s backed by 40 years of marketing experience & strong field force of over 1500 representatives enables us to achieve the leadership position in various therapeutic segments. We use collective experiences and resources that have been proven to work at the highest levels of efficiency to help brands better succeed.Our core areas of marketing expertise include the gastroenterology, cardiovascular, dialectology, gynecology & Orthopedic therapy areas. We seek to establish a long term, mutually rewarding relationship based on exclusive marketing rights business model, as well as co-marketing or strategic alliances for co-development including clinical trials of products for necessary regulatory approvals. Out-Licensing Our form ulation development expertise enables us to develop generic products which are bioequivalent. We seek out-licensing opportunities for our generic formulations for global markets.Our Global Services †¢ Formulation development †¢ Contract manufacturing of generic formulations for European market †¢ Analytical method development and validation †¢ Extensive QC capabilities (Micro, Chemical, ICH Stability) †¢ Packaging and shipping Company vision [pic] MILESTONES 1. First manufacturing operation in  Aurangabad in 1976 for tablets,  capsules and liquid orals. 2. Second unit established in  1992 at Daman  for liquid orals. 3. Third unit at  Daman established in 1998  for tablets and capsules which was later dedicated to Cephalosporin formulations. 4.Fourth unit established at  Daman in 2000  for large volume liquid orals. 5. Fifth unit established at  Daman in 2002  for tablets and capsules complying with international regulatory requirements. 6 . Medley was accredited as  ISO – 9001:2000  companies during the year 2003, by  American Quality Assessors (AQA). 7. Largest Brand R. B. Tone  is number 2 in haematinic segment as per ORG-IMS. Brand O2 launched in 2005  is number 1 in the anti diarrhoeal segment as per ORG-IMS. 8. A large manufacturing complex in  Jammu in 2005  spread over  12. 5 acres  of land. 9. State of the art  R&D centres established at Daman  which has eceived approval of Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India in  2006. 10. Medley received the well deserved accolade  Ã¢â‚¬Å"WHO GMP Certificate†. INFRASTRUCTURE Daman Plant:- The plant is located on plot No. 18 & 19, Zari causeway road, Kachigam, Daman. This facility is located about 5 km away from Vapi railway station & about 179 km from Mumbai. The plot size is 7602 sq. mtrs, and the construction area is 7335 sq. mtrs. It has dedicated and segregated areas meeting current CGMP requirements for manufacturi ng of oral dosage forms – Tablets, Capsules & Liquid orals.Adequate areas for storage of Raw materials, Packing materials & finished products has been provided. The manufacturing capacity per annum in single shift is 5100 lac Tablets & capsules and 46 lac litres of liquid orals. The facility is WHO GMP and Schedule M GMP certified by the Indian FDA. The facility is also approved by National Drug Authority of Uganda, MOH Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi and Yemen. The Facility is MHRA-UK approved and scheduled for other highly regulated agencies MCC-SA and WHO-Geneva. Jammu Plant:- The plant is located at Lane-3, Phase I, SIDCO complex, Bari Brahman, Jammu.This facility is about 20 Kms away from the Jammu Airport. The plot size is 53115 sq. meter and total construction area is 15981 sq. meter. It has dedicated and segregated areas meeting current CGMP requirements for manufacturing of oral dosage forms – Tablets, Capsules & Liquid orals. Adequate areas for storage of Raw materia ls, Packing materials & finished products has been provided. The manufacturing capacity per annum in single shift is 8040 lac Tablets and capsules and 31. 80 lac liters of liquid orals. COMPANY PRODUCTS SUPRAKARESuprakare is the 2nd biggest division of Medley catering mainly to Orthopaedic & Gastroenterology segments. It is also the fastest growing division of Medley & has one of the most innovative and first time launches in the Indian Pharmaceutical Market like DOMPAN (Domperidone plus pantoprazole), Ostium K2 (1st brand of Vitamin K27 combination in India), Tazocef (Tazobactam plus Ceftriaxone), Acenac-N (Aceclofenac plus Pregabalin) to name a few. Today, all of them feature amongst the top 5 brands in their respective segments. Product table: Analgesic & |Analgesic & |Muscle Relaxant |Anti-Osteoporotic |Antibiotics |Digestive enzymes | |Anti-inflammatory |Antipyretic | | | | | |Acenac-P |Nimsaid-P |Colchico 4/8 Mg |Ostium K2 |Cefo L 50/100/200 |Xymex Syrup | |Acenac-SR |Nimsaid- P125/250 |Acenac-MR/Mr8 |Ostium K2 Forte |Cefo L Rediuse |Xymex MPS Tablets | | |Suspension | | | | | |Acenac-N | | | |Cefo LX 100 |Xymex Drops | |Eezflam | | | |Cefo LX 200 | | |Eezflam forte | | | |Tazocef 1. 125 | | NUTRAKARENUTRAKARE, A division of Medley Pharmaceutical is thriving since a decade and is by far the largest division of the company. Division is achieving newer heights through unique formulations & innovative ideas. Nutracare is the pioneer in Gynecology and Anti infective Segments and is known for the brands R. B Tone and O2 (First time launched in India) This features among the Top 300 Brands of Pharmaceutical Industry according to IMS ORG. †¢ O2 Tab is ranked 1st in its category in the Ofloxacin and Ornidazole Market †¢ O2 Suspension is ranked 2nd in its category in the Ofloxacin and Ornidazole Market †¢ R. B Tone is ranked 3rd in the Liquid Iron Market. Product table: Haematinics |Antibiotic Anti |Anti-ulcerants |Hepatoprotective |Antibiotics |Ant i-Cold | | |diarrhoeal | | | | | |R. B. Tone Syrup |O2 Tablets |Domrab |Trisoliv Syrup |Kefodime 50/100 DT |Oncet-CF Tablets | |R. B. Tone Capsules |O2H Tablets | | |Kefodime 200 |Oncet-CF Syrup | |R. B. Tone Forte |O2 Suspension | | |Kefodime Dry Syrup | | |R. B.Tone Drops |O2 Infusion | | |Ofoxin 200/400 | | |R. B. Tone Injection | | | |Ofoxin Suspension | | VAZOKARE Vazokare Division is catering into Life Style Segments – Cardiology and Dialectology. The division manufactures and markets the quality brands with the ultimate goal of delivering maximum possible benefits to all its customers. It also strives at its best in offering the premium quality medicines at the most economical price, thus serving the society. Vazokare proves its belief in innovation by launching the India’s first and only Glyceryl Trinitrate Spray in pen form.Our mission is to give access to the best healthcare products at the most affordable price. Product table: |Anti hypertensive |Anti-Angina l |Lipid Lowering |Anti-Diabetic |Drugs for neuropathy |Multivitamin | | | |Agent | | | | |Betabest XL 25/50 |GTN Pen |Atorin 5/10/20/40 |Gepride M1 |Mecobion P 75/150 |Mecobion OD | |Betabest AM 25 |GTN Spray |Atorin EZ |Gepride M1 |Mecobion OD | | |Encardil 2. /5/10 | |Atorin-F |Glucozid | | | |Telmed AM | | |Glucozid-M | | | |Nevol 2. 5/5 | | |Trizem 1/2 | | | NANOKARE It is the newest addition in the array of SBUs of Medley Pharmaceuticals. The Division is exploring the untapped potential to create newer horizons for the company. Medley's entry into the rural market is driven by the fact that we have a vast range of products which address disease conditions and health problems widely prevalent in rural areas.The division covers a realm of products in various therapeutic segments like anti-infective, Hematinics, anti diarrhoeal, anti ulcerants, calcium supplementation, anti cold. The Division currently is operating in Maharashtra & Madhya Pradesh, but soon has vision of spreading its tentacles pan India. Product table: |Haematinics |Analgesic and |Antibiotic |Anti-Ulecerants |Antibiotics |Multivitamin | | |Antipyretic |Antidiarrhoeal | | | | |R. B. Tone Syrup |Nimsaid-P |O2 Tablets |Dompan |Azirite 250/500 |Vistamina Tablets | |R. B.Tone Capsules |Nimsaid-P125/250 |O2H Tablets |Dompan OD |Azirite Suspension | | | |Suspension | | | | | | | |O2 Suspension | |Ofoxin 200/400 | | | | |O2 Infusion | |Cefo Suspension | | | | | | |Cefo LX 200 | | ZENKARE Within a short span of time division has made a good presence in Generic market. In Zenkare, at present, range of 300 products is available in various therapeutic segments. Introduction of new products will be done timely as per the market demand. COMPETITORS Mankind Pharma Mankind Pharma, the 8th  largest Pharmaceutical Company of India, was incepted in 1995 with a meager capital of? ?50 lakhs and 20 employees.Today, we are amongst the top 5 fastest growing Pharmaceutical companies of India with an employee base of more than 9000 and heading towards a turnover of   [pic]  2500 crores. We aspire to aid the community in leading a healthy life through two parallel objectives: formulating, developing & commercializing medicines and delivering affordable & accessible medication that satisfies urgent medical needs. Mankind is a fully integrated pharmaceutical company, with a comprehensive network of 62 C agents & 6000 Stockiest. With a pan India presence, our offerings span in Antibiotics, Antifungals, Gastrointestinals, NSAIDs, Anthelmintics, Cardiovascular, Dermal and Erectile Dysfunction categories.Our strong portfolio of businesses, geographies and products ranging from Pharma to popular OTC & FMCG brands – Unwanted72, PregaNews, Kustody, Adiction, Gas-O-Fast, Manforce Condoms and Kaloree1 provide us the strategic benefits of integration that allow us to perform best in an increasingly competitive market. With the thrust of making headway, in 2007 Mankind acquired Magnet Labs Pvt. Ltd. and marked its marketing presence in antipsychotic segment. In January 2010, Mankind acquired  Longifene, the former brand of UCB Belgium. We are further expanding the horizon of Serving Life  in Vietnam Philippines,  Myanmar and other regulated and semi-regulated markets by 2015.Today, after those tentative first steps, Mankind’s voyage is not only going strong but radiating new standards and that miniscule initial investment has grown by giant strides to crores of rupees in wealth for Mankind’s stakeholders. Having succeeded in garnering the trust of all, Mankind will continue to dream big on its path of novelty and eminence and millions of consumers will relish the results with contentment thereafter. Our Mission â€Å"To support a healthy & active lifestyle through our broad portfolio of Pharma, OTC & FMCG products† Our Vision â€Å"To be the No. 1 Pharma Company of India by 2015† 1. Mankind Pharma 2. Discovery Mankind 3. Life star Pharma 4. Special Mankind 5. Future Mankind 6.Magnet Labs Ranbaxy Pharma Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited (Ranbaxy), India's largest pharmaceutical company, is an integrated, research based, international pharmaceutical company, producing a wide range of quality, affordable generic medicines, trusted by healthcare professionals and patients across geographies. Ranbaxy today has a presence in 23 of the top 25 pharmaceutical markets of the world. The company has a global footprint in 43 countries, world-class manufacturing facilities in 8 countries and serves customers in 125. In June 2008, Ranbaxy entered into an alliance with one of the largest Japanese innovator companies, Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd. to create an innovator and generic pharmaceutical powerhouse. The combined entity now ranks among the top 20 pharmaceutical companies, globally. The transformational deal will place Ranbaxy in a higher growth trajectory and it will emerge stronger in terms of its global reach and in its capabilit ies in drug development and manufacturing. Ranbaxy was incorporated in 1961 and went public in 1973. | | | Mission: Ranbaxy's mission is ‘enriching lives globally, with quality and affordable pharmaceuticals’. Financials: For the year 2011, the company recorded Global Sales of US $ 2. 1 Bn. The Company have a balanced mix of revenues from emerging and developed markets hat contribute 47% and 46% respectively. In 2011, North America, the company's largest market contributed sales of US $ 791 Mn, Europe contributing US $ 297 Mn and Asia clocking sales. Strategy: Ranbaxy is focused on increasing the momentum in the generics business in its key markets through organic and inorganic growth routes. Growth is well spread across geographies with focus on developed and emerging markets. It is the company's constant Endeavour to provide a wide basket of generic and innovator products, leveraging the unique Hybrid Business Model with Daiichi Sankyo. In Japan, Daiichi Sankyo Espha Co. , Ltd. (DS Espha) will market generic drugs.As part of the Hybrid Business Model, Daiichi Sankyo will utilize Ranbaxy's strong manufacturing capabilities and expertise in developing generic medicines for the Japan and market them. The company will also increasingly focus in high growth potential segments like Vaccines and Biosimilars. These new areas will add significant depth to the existing product pipeline. R: Ranbaxy views its R capabilities as a vital component of its business strategy that will provide a sustainable, long-term competitive advantage. The company has a pool of over 1000 R scientists engaged in path-breaking research. Ranbaxy is among the few Indian pharmaceutical companies in India to have started its research program in the late 70's, in support of its global ambitions. A first-of-its-kind world class R&D centre was commissioned in 1994.Today, the company has multi-disciplinary R&D centers at Gurgaon, in India, with dedicated facilities for generics researc h and innovative research. The R&D environment reflects its commitment to be a leader in the generics space offering value added formulations and development of NDA/ANDAs, based on its Novel Drug Delivery System (NDDS) research capability. Ranbaxy's first significant international success using the NDDS technology platform came in September 1999, when the company out-licensed its first once-a-day formulation. Ranbaxy has developed the anti-malarial new drug, arterolane maleate + piperaquine phosphate that has been approved by the Indian Drug Regulator, Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for manufacturing and marketing in India.In April 2012, the company launched India's first new drug, Synriam TM, for the treatment of uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria, in adults. Within Ranbaxy, there is a sharper focus on R&D of Generics, as the company is increasingly working on more complex and specialist areas. People: The Company’s business philosophy based on delivering v alue to its stakeholders constantly inspires its people to innovate, achieve excellence and set new global benchmarks. Driven by the passion of it's over 14,000 strong multicultural work force comprising of more than 50 nationalities, Ranbaxy continues to aggressively pursue its mission of ‘Enriching lives globally, with quality and affordable pharmaceuticals'. Piramal PharmaPiramal Enterprises is the flagship company of the Piramal Group and is a world leader in its various business verticals. It has a global footprint of over 100 countries, manufacturing bases in USA, Great Britain, Sri Lanka, China and Canada and a diversified workforce representing the Piramal Group’s diversified global portfolio. Recently, the UN Conference on Trade and Development’s World Investment Report 2011 ranked Piramal Enterprises CMO (contract manufacturing) business vertical as number five in the top 10 pharmaceutical contract manufacturers worldwide; and was awarded the number one position amongst all Indian CMOs. Drug discovery and research is an important part of the business.Piramal Enterprises aspires to be the first Indian company to discover, develop and launch its own NCE drug in the global market and has made steady progress towards that goal. The company has more than 115 issued patents and 395 pending patent applications in several countries. The patents and pending applications cover a wide variety of areas across multiple discovery and development programs including compositions of matter (NCEs and natural products), methods of treatment, biomarkers, diagnostics, pharmaceutical compositions, drug delivery systems, etc. Healthcare Information Management: In May 2012, Piramal Enterprises Ltd acquired Decision Resources Group (DRG), a US based company, which is an independent provider of decision support tools, analytics and research for the global healthcare industry.Considered to offer the â€Å"Gold Standard† in analysis according to many of its clients, DRG provides web-enabled insights and predictive analytics via a variety of high value reports, databases, tools and advisory services to the global bio-pharmaceutical, managed care and med-tech industries. DRG is focused on three main market segments: (1) The Bio Pharma business unit provides reports, databases and advisory services on drug utilization trends and forecasting in a variety of therapeutic areas; (2) The Market Access business provides database and analytical services that healthcare companies use to assess the current and future opportunity of their products’ acceptance into a market. (3) The Medical Technology business provides actionable insights and data on the medical device markets.Headquartered outside of Boston, DRG has a global presence with offices in Belgium, Canada, England and Japan. Indiareit is the real estate equity funding arm. It the largest Reit fund by AUM (assets under management) in India i. e. Rs 3800 crore by June, 2011. I t has domestic and offshore funds, and has recently raised funds from UK, Singapore and Dubai. PHL Finance Pvt Ltd. is the non-banking financial company (NBFC) that has recently formed to look into funding of real estate and infrastructure projects. Cipla Pharma Cipla was established in 1935 with the vision of making India self-reliant and self-sufficient in healthcare. Today, we are one of the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical companies with a presence in over 170 countries.We are renowned for making affordable, world-class medicines that meet the needs of patients across therapies. We also offer services like consulting, commissioning, plant engineering, technical know-how transfer and support. Since inception in 1935, caring has been at the core of everything we do at Cipla. For patients, caring is a promise that we will do whatever it takes to ensure they have continued access to the highest quality medicines at affordable prices; whether a disease affects millions o r just a few hundreds. To the medical fraternity, caring means the assurance of world-class medicines and support across multiple therapeutic areas.For business partners, caring brings the confidence of always getting world-class quality and competitive prices. For employees, caring manifests itself in a safe, equal-opportunities' workplace that fosters innovation for a healthier world. History: Cipla’s journey began in 1935 when our founder, Dr. K. A. Hamied, set up an enterprise with the vision to make India self-sufficient in healthcare. Over the past 77 years, we have emerged as one of the world’s most respected pharmaceutical names, not just in India but worldwide. We have 34 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities that make Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and formulations, which have been approved by major international Regulatory Agencies.We have over 2000 products in 65 therapeutic categories; with over 40 dosage forms, covering a wide spectrum of di seases ranging from communicable, non-communicable, common and emerging diseases to even rare diseases. Our Research and Development (R&D) centre is focused on developing innovative products and drug delivery systems, giving the country and the world many ‘Firsts'. Today, we are one of the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical companies with a strong presence in over 170 countries. We maintain world-class quality across all our products and services. Whether it’s for millions or for just a few hundreds, our journey to care for all humanity continues. Milestones: 1. In 1935, our founder, Dr. K. A. Hamied set up Cipla to make India self-reliant in healthcare. 2.In 1939, Mahatma Gandhi visited Cipla and inspired our founder to make essential medicines for the country, and strive for self-sufficiency. During World War II, when India was dependent on imported medicines and there was an alarming shortage of life-saving drugs, we manufactured them for the country. 3. I n the 1960s, we pioneered API manufacturing in the country and helped lay the foundation for the bulk drug industry in India. 4. In 1970, we spearheaded the New Patent Law by which an Indian pharmaceutical company was allowed to manufacture a patented product as long as the process to manufacture it was changed. This enabled Indian companies for the first time to manufacture any medicines and make them available and ffordable for all Indians. 5. In 1978, we pioneered inhalation therapy in India with the manufacture of Metered-Dose Inhaler (MDI), at a time when the country stopped receiving imported supplies. Today, we have the world’s largest range of inhaled medication and devices. 6. In 1994, we launched Deferiprone, the world’s first oral iron chelator which revolutionized the treatment for thalassemia. For the first time patients with thalassemia had an option that was affordable, painless and convenient. 7. In 1996, we gave the world the first transparent dry powd er inhaler which was so simple and easy to use, it changed the face of inhalation therapy in India. 8.In 2001, we pioneered the access to HIV treatment by making antiretrovirals (ARVs) available at less than a ‘Dollar a Day'. The cost of treatment dramatically fell from $12,000 per patient per year to $300 per patient per year. This caused a revolution where HIV treatment became a reality for the world and millions of lives could be saved. 9. During the 2005 Bird Flu epidemic, we produced an anti-flu drug within a period of 2-3 months, which would have normally taken at least 3 years to develop. 10. In 2012, we made a breakthrough in reducing the prices of cancer drugs, thus making world-class medicines affordable and accessible to cancer patients. THE SEVEN WORST MISTAKES IN PHARMA LAUNCH (AND SECRETS TO AVOID THEM)In today’s Pharma environment, the product launch period has become critical. To set up a pattern for long-term sales and profits, products must make a big splash upon their introduction. But making this happen is a process that can be filled with uncertainty, confusion and frustration. Mistakes can set back years of effort and millions of dollars in expenses. Understanding the biggest mistakes Pharma marketers can make during launch can help savvy leaders prevent catastrophes, and plot a clear path towards profit. What are the biggest mistakes Pharma marketers make during pre-launch planning, and how can they be avoided? 1. Focusing on Product, Forgetting Everything Else:Sure, a big part of launching a drug revolves around the drug itself – developing the chemical composition, submitting the drug for approval, ensuring formulary positioning, and more all focus on the physical product. But often lost in the mix is the customer and market. Long before a product is complete and ready for sale, you need a deep understanding of your customers and the market you are targeting. That means understanding, in-depth, some key points: ? Th e disease you are treating, including standards of care for that therapeutic area ? The people it affects. ? The needs of patients with the disease ? The needs of physicians treating these patients ? Key opinion leaders and professional associations in the therapeutic area ? Trends in patient access, managed care acceptance and reimbursement in the disease area Key regulatory milestones and requirements affecting the disease and the product To further know your market, you must also understand your product in terms of the competition that already exists, and that which is likely to develop before and after launch. Knowing how your product will stack up against other players in the marketplace points toward the true benefits of your drug for customers. Pre-launch planning should include some tough questions: ? How is your product better than the pharmaceuticals and intervention that already exist? ? How can an average customer, payer, physician or pharmacist differentiate between you r product and its competition? How will the product provide benefit that is different than other Pharma offerings? ? How will your competitors respond to your market entry? ? How will the competitive landscape change over time? Is this area going to explode with entries? Will generics infiltrate soon? 2. Working with the Wrong Team: A good product is important. But just as, if not more, important is the team guiding that product to market, and pushing it towards success. Instrumental in developing, marketing and selling the Pharma product is a team that boasts knowledge, experience and skills. Choosing this team is a delicate endeavor, and should combine leaders from all pay grades and units.While product managers, marketing directors and managers are often the go-to team members, chosen for their titles, successful product launches need a team with creativity, problem-solving ability and persistence, skills that can transcend titles. Businesses should therefore build launch teams b ased on experience and talent for the unique process of launch. 3. Working in Silos: For effective pre-launch planning, company departments must work together. Why is cross-functional work necessary for successful pre-launches? Consider product research and development, which can often take place in a vacuum. With a cross-functional team, R&D can learn the concerns and needs of marketers, incorporating new research points that can be instrumental in later positioning and sales.Of course, collaboration on this level can be a daunting prospect for Pharma companies, long organized by silos and strict division of tasks. Cross-functional collaboration is the pinnacle of marketing and pharmaceutical hopes, but what often happens in implementation is a crash and burn. Breaking the idea down into tactical steps, however, can ease the process from the very beginning: ? Establish and gather the pre-launch cross-functional team, including R&D, medical and regulatory affairs, and other division s of importance. For this team of leaders from these departments, the need to differentiate the ultimate product and create value must be explicitly stressed. ? Provide clear objectives for the team, as well as clearly assigned responsibilities.Everyone must understand his or her role in developing and capturing the product value. ? As key activities take place, particularly market research, review all findings with the team. ? Brainstorm and determine the needs of customers in the target area, including what is meaningful and valuable to physicians, patients and payers. ? Develop options for creating and demonstrating value to the customer base. Together, the team must brainstorm options, anticipating regulatory requirements, clinical development needs and marketing potential. Consider options also in terms of managed care organizations' perspectives, and how the company can alleviate any concerns. One collaborative partnership that is especially important to launch is that between marketing and sales. Most marketing communications people don't have a direct relationship with their sellers, and don’t understand the realities that the sellers face in everyday sales situations. Cooperative launch planning can ensure that the sales team has the pre-launch education to get new products off to a big bang, and all the materials and information they need to address target questions. 4. Rushing Launch: Everyone wants the competitive advantages of being first to the market, or first to address a unique need. But rushing product launch can come at the expense of long-term success.In attempts to speed along launch, many companies give short shrift to critical areas, and don’t try to accelerate more appropriate areas. The most-commonly skipped steps in a time crunch include primary research, business case development and cross-functional coordination, all of them crucial in best serving the market and customers. Companies can also neglect to devote enough t ime to marketing and sales tactics, brand positioning, pricing, operational support and other key decisions. Due diligence is essential in these areas, and can be tightly project-managed without losing time. An area that can be sped up rather easily, however, is one that many companies don’t think about.By investing more attention and energy into initial regulatory approval, and obtaining that approval as quickly, efficiently and comprehensively as possible, far greater value can be earned over a products life. Several regulatory means exist through which companies can look to accelerate market arrival. ? Priority Review: It offers an abbreviated priority review process for specific products that can demonstrate a key point: they serve a specific and notable unmet medical need. ? Orphan Drugs: This program offer market exclusivity for the drugs for rare diseases, but this period is offered only to the drug that receives market approval first.Applications for these orphan drug s are given greater levels of support and feedback from regulators, meaning approvals are accelerated. 5. Failure to Track, Assess and Learn: Launching a new product can be a very educational experience for all those involved. But without the means of measuring success, tracking activities, and learning from mistakes, all the lessons of launch can be forgotten, creating a missed opportunity to improve future launches. Companies should take advantage of credible metrics to measure success during the pre-launch period, and participate in a post-launch review. Companies can strengthen their processes, and set themselves up for future successes. 6. Using a One-Size-Fits-All Approach: Consistency is a critical business practice.But many companies can take this desire overboard, fitting every new product into the same mold, and eliminating the creativity and uniqueness of each product. One way to resist the cookie-cutter approach, and create a product that can be in it for long haul, is l ifecycle management. The key to better, customized product success far into the lifecycle is considering these types of strategies early, even in pre-launch. Product lifecycle management means more than plotting a counter-attack against generics. A true product lifecycle strategy is focused on maximizing the profitability of a product over its life. There are several ways to do this, and they figure prominently in the pre-launch period. Be Proactive. Start early, plan ahead, and prepare for any and all scenarios that will arise during a products life. ? Organize. Set up the cross-functional teams that will enable a comprehensive perspective and approach, whether or not these are official Lifecycle Management teams. Establish clear ownership and accountability for key actions, and defined lines of authority. More than anything, the team must include members that have the actual power and skills to drive action forward and make any necessary changes. ? Franchise Make plans for your sp ecific product, but also consider the possibilities for further expanding into the therapeutic area.A therapy franchise dominates this area through complementary products, and can be accomplished through solo efforts or licensing partnerships. ? Expand. Plan for current uses of the product, but also never stop thinking about the future uses and areas to expand into. ? Reformulate. Choose the best form of delivery that makes sense in today’s environment, but set the groundwork for new innovations. Scientists are advancing the art of formulation every day, so keep aware and keep focus on newer, patient-friendly methods of administration. Reformulation down the line is an important way of expanding a drugs usefulness and audience. ? Protect. Through the pre-launch period, the focus should be on speeding the product to approval to leverage the amount of patent exclusivity.During a products lifecycle, the team must study all regulatory trends and methods of maintaining patent prot ection. Prolonging the time before generic competition is an essential means of protecting the time and energy put into drug production. ? Switch. Think a successful OTC switch will be just the key for protection years down the line? Not without extensive planning that reaches back into the pre-launch period. Some experts contend the switch should be planned while the drug is still in clinical trials, and at a minimum of seven or eight years before action. ? Shut Down. Think you shouldn’t even consider the end of the line when you’re in pre-launch?Think again. Exit strategies should be planned and plotted. Far too often a product is allowed to limp along in its latter years, consuming valuable organizational and financial resources. Consider the long-term and the potential scenarios for actively managing the end-of-life phase, and pinpoint the cutoff point for when the product no longer delivers value. 7. Missing Out on the Secret Weapon of Analytics: No matter how muc h you plan ahead, new drug development is inherently risky in today’s environment. Increasingly, Pharma managers and marketers need a way to assess the potential of new products, and the likelihood of success upon launch.Analytics models can provide insight on what drives your target consumers, and help predict actual launch results. The Eularis Pre-Launch Analytics Systems, for example, have been implemented and worked successfully during both pre-launch and launch of numerous pharmaceutical brands. Due to effective pre-launch analytics and planning that created strong preparation for a successful launch, these products continue to be category leaders. For anyone involved in the pre-launch and lifecycle management of the product, analytics will provide significant assistance through the myriad problems and challenges that comes in this task. SWOT ANALYSIS OF MEDLEY PHARMA Strengths: 1.Strong growth in emerging market business in Suprakare division. 2. Introduction of Caramel & Zinc salt in Nutracare market that has very limited competition. 3. Co-operative and Experienced Sales team. 4. Price policy as compare to Competitors. 5. Brand value of Medley Pharma. Weakness 1. Limited presence in Indian market. 2. Weak in delivering new products in short time. 3. Lack of motivation factor among MR’s & distribution team. Opportunity 1. Capture the untapped Market 2. Can Increase their share in contract manufacturing. 3. Can improve the commission based dissatisfaction among sales team. 4. Can work on promoting brand in remote areas too. 5.Can also work on Generic market division too which is yet to launched. Threat 1. Stiff competition from many Indian and other global brands means limited market share growth. 2. Better range of new products by competitors’ at rapid speed. 3. High price & quality sensitivity of consumers. 4. Stringent patent regulations. CHAPTER: 2 RESEARCH METHODLOGY & OBJECTIVES OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 1. To study the possible hurdles for launching a new Pharma products. 2. To study the different competitors of Medley Pharma. 3. To study the brand value of Medley Pharma in market. 4. To study the perception and satisfaction level among Doctor’s & Druggists towards Medley Pharma. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This research is helpful for the Medley Pharma in understanding the buying preferences of the Distributors with regard to: a) Price b) Quality c) Sales Commission ? This research is helpful for the Medley Pharma in understanding the role of the Advertising in establishing the market of the product. ? This research also helpful for Medley Pharma to improve their Distribution model. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the researcher’s problem or it may be understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically. It defines various steps that are adopted by a researcher in studying his research problem along with logic behind them. ? Steps t o be followed for Research process:- ? SAMPLING AND SAMPLE DESIGN:- SAMPLING:Sampling can be defined as the selection of some part of an aggregate or totality on the basis of which a judgment or inference about the aggregate or totality is made. In other words it is the process of obtaining information about an entire population by examining only a part of it. The process of sampling is used for various reasons- ? Sampling saves time and money. It is usually less expensive and produces results at faster speed. ? It provides more accurate information. ? It enables to estimate the sampling errors and thus assists in obtaining information concerning characteristics of population. ? It also enables greater speed of collection of data. The ultimate test of sample design is how well it represents the characteristics of the population it purports to represent.In measurement terms the sample must be valid which depends upon – ? Accuracy – It is the degree to which biasness is absent from the sample. ? Precision – It represents how well the sample represents the population in all respect. SAMPLE DESIGN: A sample design is a definite plan for obtaining a sample from the sampling frame. It refers to the technique or the procedure that is adopted in selecting the sampling units from which inferences about the population is drawn. Sampling design is determined before the collection of the data. Several decisions have to be taken in context to the decision about the appropriate sample selection so that accurate data is obtained and efficient results are drawn.Following questions have to be considered while sampling design:- ? What is the relevant population? ? What is the sampling frame? ? What is the type of sample? ? What sample size is needed? Sample Size: It indicates the number of individual who would be surveyed. Here the sample size is 102. Respondents: Doctors, Distributors, Retailers & Medical representatives of Medley Pharma. METHODOLOGY We we re supposed to operate from Medley Pharmaceuticals Ambala Division. We were made aware about all the products Medley was providing with a more stress on their core product Division i. e. Nutracare. Methodology – (OTJ-On the job) Methodology of the project starts with – In the first phase we are trained and they teach us different things about market. ? They provide the database of Distribution channel. ? Then after that we have to provide details of product & their USP’s. ? Then we have to visit the point to retrieve the information from the respondents. ? Maintaining records of feedback of respondent’s regular basis. Methodology – (OFTJ-Off the job) Exploratory research is a type of  research conducted because a problem has not been clearly defined. Exploratory research helps determine the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects. Given its fundamental nature, exploratory research often concludes that a perceived  problem does not actually exist.Exploratory research often relies on secondary research such as reviewing available literature and/or data, or qualitative approaches such as informal discussions with consumers, employees, management or competitors, and more formal approaches through in-depth interviews, focus groups,  projective methods, case studies or pilot studies. The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision making  by them, but they can provide significant insight into a given situation. Although the results of qualitative research can give some indication as to the â€Å"why†, â€Å"how† and â€Å"when† something occurs, it cannot tell us â€Å"how often† or â€Å"how many. † Exploratory research is not typically generalized to the population at large. Exploratory Research Research is exploratory when you use no earlier model as a basis of your study. The most usual reason for using this approach is that you ha ve no other choice.Normally you would like to take an earlier theory as a support, but there perhaps is none, or all available models come from wrong contexts. Exploratory research means that hardly anything is known about the matter at the outset of  the project. You then have to begin with a rather vague impression of what you should study, and it is also impossible to make a detailed work plan in advance. Analysis in exploratory research is essentially Abstraction and Generalization: Abstraction means that you translate the empirical observations, measurements etc. into concepts; generalization means arranging the material so that it disengages from single persons, occurrences etc. and focus on those structures (in variances) that are common to all or most of the cases.According to Alasuutari, in qualitative analysis of empirical findings, you can distinguish two phases but these two overlap: †¢ Simplification of observations †¢ Interpretation of results (or â€Å"so lving the enigma†) In the simplification phase, the material is inspected from the theoretical point of view of the study project, and only the points relevant from this angle are noted. Details differing from