Monday, April 13, 2020

Admin Assistants Develop your phone skills for the office

Admin Assistants Develop your phone skills for the office You may think having an excellent phone manner is an outdated relic- after all, wont everyone just email if they want something? Not necessarily- if youre in an admin or customer service field, talking on the phone might still be a part of your everyday reality. And even if youre not, a good phone manner never goes out of style and can add a veneer of professionalism to your image in whatever job you do.Here are a few tips on how to be a boss at manning ye olde telephone.Have a formal greeting.Unless you know it’s your coworker Bob, or your spouse, or your boss calling you back after getting disconnected, come up with a professional way to answer calls. Be polite and informative: â€Å"Good morning/afternoon/evening. [Name of Company.] [Your name] speaking .† If you’re serving in an operator capacity, you can add something along the lines of â€Å"How may I direct your call?† It may seem silly, but it helps to think of a few variations and try them out lou d to pick the one that comes most naturally.Only answer if youre ready to talk.That means answering promptly (not making someone wait for 14 rings), but also making sure not to answer if you have your mouth full of coffee or lunch or if there’s a big commotion going on at your desk. If someone is calling you they want to you to hear what they have to say and respond with clarity.Take excellent messages.If you’re answering the phone for more than just yourself, make sure you take good messages. Work out with your boss the exact information you should get from everyone who calls. Never be too shy to ask for spelling clarification on a name or email address, or return phone number information.Leave excellent messages.If you hit an answering machine, speak slowly and clearly. Give your name and contact info at the beginning and again at the end so the person jotting down your details won’t have to listen to the whole thing again to get your number if they missed it at the beginning. Be succinct, but don’t leave out any important or relevant details- such as the reason for your call. Spell things you think might be garbled, especially by bad cell reception.Charm and disarm.Anger and frustration can magnify over the phone, especially when you cant throw an empathetic facial expression the way of someone ranting and raving. If youre in a position to deal with difficult or outraged clients or customers, youll have to pacify with your words. First and foremost, let the person know youre listening (I hear how upset you are and I understand why.). Then, let him or her know you will try to get to the root of the problem and fix it. Shouting back and getting snippy or curt will not help- it will usually only incense the caller more. Most people just want to be heard.Use names.Whenever possible, throw in the name of the person you are speaking to. Addressing someone this way makes a professional conversation feel more personal and less remote. Yo u don’t have to feel distant just because you’re not in the room together. And this goes both ways- make sure to always identify yourself early on with your own full name!Be sincere and kind.Having a good phone manner doesn’t mean being a phony. Sure, you should be cheerful, enunciate clearly, and speak articulately, but don’t put on a persona that isn’t anything like your true self. Be the best and brightest professional version of yourself while being as genuine and as frank as possible.  People can hear a lot of body language through the phone, and smiling is the clearest way to communicate positivity.

Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Strategic Corporate Finance- Presentation to Google

Strategic Corporate Finance- Presentation to Google Free Online Research Papers I will be submitting a detailed assessment of the three models Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT), and The dividend Growth Model. By analyzing all three models and making a clear stance and determination which of the three would be the best conclusion for the Google Inc. I examined each of the applications as well as their respective ease of use. The Capital Asset Pricing Model is a single factor model that establishes a relationship between risks and required, expected returns of an investment in an asset. This concept is based on the general idea that investors demand higher returns for bearing riskier investments (Downes Goodman, 2003). The Arbitrage Pricing Theory is an alternative to the Capital Asset Pricing Model. The APT is a multi-factor model that is based on the measurement of the volatility of multiple risk factors common to the market (Downes Goodman, 2003). The Dividend Growth Model is an approach that assumes dividends grow at a constant rate in perpetuity. The value of the stock equals next years dividends divided by the difference between the required rate of return and the assumed constant growth rate in dividends. The basic assumption in the Dividend Growth Model is that the dividend is expected to grow at a constant rate and that this growth rate will not change for the duration of the evaluated period (http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com). All three concepts have the same general purpose as for measuring the risk and required return for an asset, but achieve this goal through different means. CAPM is a single factor model in which risk measurement is concerned primarily with an asset’s volatility in relation to the general market, while APT is a multi-factor model where risk measurement is based on an asset’s volatility in relation to a various number of common market factors. CAPM is a more simplified, general approach to how an asset has historically moved in relation to the general market, while APT is a more difficult, complex concept laden with estimation errors, uncertainty, and possibly distracting factors. In this report I will discuss the Capital Asset Pricing Model, the Arbitrage Pricing Theory as well as the Dividend Growth Model and I will explain why I believe CAPM is a better approach than either of the other two for your company to use when measuring risk and required returns. Here is the three models in detail; Dividend Growth Model In this approach it is assumed that dividends grow at a constant rate in perpetuity. The Dividend Growth Model is better suited for those stable companies that fit the model. Those that are growing quickly or that don’t pay dividends do not fit the assumption parameters, and thus this model cannot be used. In this model, a company may not exceed the market growth rate. In addition, since the dividend growth rate is expected to remain constant indefinitely, the other measures of performance within the company are also expected to maintain the same growth rate. If in the current state, the dividend rate is greater that earnings, in time this model will show a dividend payout greater than the earnings of the company. Conversely, if earnings are growing faster than dividends, the payout rate will converge towards zero. Capital Asset Pricing Model The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) is a better approach for financial professionals to use than the Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT) when measuring the risk and required return for assets. The Capital Asset Pricing Model is a single factor model that establishes a relationship between risk and required/expected returns of an investment in an asset. This concept is rooted in the general idea that investors demand higher returns for bearing riskier investments (Downes Goodman, 2003). The CAPM is a single factor model in the sense that a single variable, the beta, is the foundation for all the differences in returns for all securities (Smart, Megginson, Gitman, 2007). The beta is the measure of how stocks move and its relationship to the market as a whole. It is essentially a measure of systematic risk that affects the market as a whole and cannot be neutralized by diversification. Assuming that the market as a whole moves at a beta measurement of 1, then a beta of higher than one would indicate that an asset moves more drastically than the market in general, while a beta of lower than one implicates that an asset moves less drastically than the market as a whole. The beta is the single factor in the CAPM equation that denotes differences throughout all securities. The CAPM equation used to measure the risk and required return of an asset centers around three inputs. These inputs are the risk free rate, the expected market return rate, and an asset’s beta. By using these three pieces of information we can assume that the required rate of return to accept the risk on an asset equals the sum of the risk free rate and an asset’s beta multiplied by the risk premium, which is the difference between the expected market return rate and risk free rate. As long as we have this information we can calculate the required rate of return for accepting the certain level of risk associated with an individual asset (Hamm, 2006). An asset’s beta is the only true variable in this equation as the risk free rate and expected market return rate will stay constant among the different assets with varying betas. Utilizing an asset’s beta, the risk free rate, and the expected market return rate, the CAPM equation can be a very useful tool in evaluating an assets risk and reward element in relation to the rest of the market as a whole. The CAPM equation and its ability to give a reasonable calculation about the required rate of return for accepting particular levels of risk in the market are enabled under a number of assumptions. A few of these assumptions are that all investors are generally risk averse and do require a higher level of returns for riskier investments, that diversifiable or unsystematic risk can be neutralized through diversification and that as a result investors are only concerned with the systematic risk of an investment, that the market offers no reward for unsystematic risk, and that all investors possess homogeneous expectations (Smart, Megginson, Gitman, 2007). Many of the assumptions associated with CAPM are not entirely realistic and exist in the most part to simplify this model for decision making (The CAPM and APT). The general purpose of the CAPM is to give investors a reasonable estimate of a required rate of return that would be needed on an asset in order to accept its level of risk. Assuming that unsystematic risk has been or can be diversified in a portfolio, CAPM is primarily concerned with the affect of systematic risk or general market risk on an asset. Using its historical volatility in correlation to market movement as an indicator as well as the risk free rate and expected market return rate, this model gives investors a general idea as to the risk and reward associated with a particular asset. Even though it is simple in nature, this model can be a very powerful and useful tool in investment decision making. An alternative to the Capital Asset Pricing Model is the Arbitrage Pricing Theory. Arbitrage Pricing Theory Unlike CAPM, APT is founded in the idea that the risk and return of an asset are affected by a group of different market factors (Smart, Megginson Gitman, 2007). As opposed to the CAPM, where the systematic risk of the market as a whole is applied to assets, the APT segregates the total systematic risk into smaller components of market risk. APT does not specify, identify, or give any guidance as to what these factors are or how many exist (The Economist, 1991). These different risk factors signify different types of systematic risk that cannot be neutralized by diversification. All assets are affected by each individual market factor and its own individual factor beta (Smart, Megginson Gitman, 2007). The APT attempts to break many of the basic assumptions of the CAPM. This theory establishes the idea that different assets will have a varying level of sensitivity to these smaller, common market risk factors. The theory also asserts that investors have varying levels of risk tolerance and need to structure portfolio selection and portfolio risk management to their own specific goals (Otuteye, 1998). This is a more advanced concept than the CAPM, but still presents an issue in regards to the unknown set of smaller risk factors that constitute the systematic risk. The complexity of this theory in addition to a random amount of unknown factors is where we begin to see problems with this concept. No one knows the exact factors that constitute the systematic risk of the market that have a significant movement affect on assets, affecting their risk and return (Otuteye, 1998). The volatility of assets in relation to the different risk factors may have either a relevant and useful affect or misleading influence. APT allows for multiple sources of risk within the systematic risk realm that affect an asset’s market sensitivities. Neither professionals nor academics can come to an agreement on the number or identity of these different risk factors. The more risk factors that an investor includes in risk and return evaluation of an asset, the more misleading noise they may have to endure (The CAPM and APT). The inability to accurately identify correct sets risk factors or even predict their behavior can significantly impact estimates and exp ectations as well as severely hinder investment evaluation and decision making. APT could be a very useful tool in theory. It is a much more advanced concept than CAPM. However, the current APT contains many errors in association with the many different risk factors, especially as a result of the unknown number and identity of the various, common risk factors. The APT is certainly more complex and difficult to use than the CAPM. APT’s main issue is that of theory versus practicality (The CAPM and APT). In theory, this could be a great tool in determining the varying degree of sensitivity and risk associated with different assets in the market as a result of the varying factors of systematic risk. In practice, our inability to accurately identify the number or type of risk factors affect the sensitivity of assets make this a difficult, complex, and inconclusive model to follow. Regarding the ease of use of the three models, I will submit the following analysis. There are a number of reasons why CAPM is the better approach than APT and the Dividend Growth Model for our company to use when evaluating the risk and return of an investment. CAPM is a very simple yet powerful and useful tool in evaluating the risk and return acceptable in decisions about investments. It uses historical volatility in correlation to the market movement in order to provide a reasonable indication of required or expected returns for varying levels of risk associated with different assets. Also, many of these reasons are a result of the difficulties associated with APT. Some of the difficulties and problems that arise with APT are estimation error, uncertainty of varying risk factors among assets, risk factors change over time, timing differences among factors, and its complexity. Estimation and expectation errors occur with APT as a result of the issue pertaining to the unknown number or identity of risk factors (The CAPM and APT). It is difficult for any multi-factor model to not have a clear set of influential parameters for analysis and evaluation. â€Å"This can make the model difficult to understand and increase the role of misleading â€Å"noise† that can significantly distort any results† (eMasterTrade, APT). The uncertainty of varying risk factors among assets can also create a problem when using the APT. The behavior of every individual asset is different. As a result of this, every individual asset will have its own composite of risk factors that will affect its volatility. This situation makes it difficult to match or use â€Å"sets† of factors among assets. The composition and makeup of these sets of risk factors will also change over time. This means that APT’s model will only be relevant for an undisclosed period of time and must be continually rebuilt as necessary. Many of the risk factors that affect an asset may change. This relates to another problem with this the model of APT and varying risk factors. Risk factors are not predictable and do not exist on a schedule. Different risk factors will affect the sensitivity of an asset at different times that are not determinable. â€Å"This can create another issue with the estimation or expectation of risk a nd return on an asset† (eMasterTrade, APT). Overall, APT is far too complex, involving too many parameters and risk factors that cannot be properly identified or predicted. This is a concept that is great in theory, but cannot practically be applied in a predictable, reasonable, or accurate manner. CAPM on the other hand utilizes a simple model based on indicating historical volatility in relation to the movement of the entire economy and market. The CAPM is easier model to use and understand. As a result of the differences inherent in these two models, the CAPM model can give us more reasonable estimates of the required rate of return acceptable in relation to the level of risk associated with an asset. Regarding the Dividend Growth Model it is quite an appealing approach to certain companies, but The Dividend Growth Model approach to estimating the cost of equity has some appeal to management as it directly links the strategic plans, goals, and objectives to the cost of capital, and it is simple to calculate. However, if a company does not pay a dividend or it has an erratic or uncertain growth rate, the dividend growth model cannot be used (Finance and Accounting for the Nonfinancial Managers, J.Fred Watson, pg 285). This makes this model a little less desirable and I would opt for the certainty of the CAPM over it for our company. In summary, I would recommend the Capital Asset Pricing Model due to it is a much simpler and straightforward approach to calculating the risk and required return associated with an asset than the Arbitrage Pricing Theory and the Dividend Growth Model. The Arbitrage Pricing Theory is much more complex, while containing unknown variables which it behavior and affect cannot truly be measured, while the Dividend Growth Model works well for those companies growing at a rate equal to or lower than that of the economy and have an established and stable dividend payout. Although it is conceptually more advanced than the Capital Asset Pricing Model, the Arbitrage Pricing Theory is inherent with potential disadvantages. These potential disadvantages, in addition to the more reasonably accurate evaluative and analytical ability of its alternative, the Capital Asset Pricing Model, make CAPM the best approach for Google to use when calculating the risk required and expected return of possible i nvestments. References: 1. APT Arbitration Pricing Theory. E-Mastertrade.Com. 12 Feb. 2007 . 2. Downs, John, and Jordan E. Goodman, eds. Arbitrage Pricing Theory. Dictionary of Finance and Investment Terms. 6th ed. New York: Barrons Educational Series, Inc., 2003. 3. Downs, John, and Jordan E. Goodman, eds. Capital Asset Pricing Model. Dictionary of Finance and Investment Terms. 6th ed. New York: Barrons Educational Series, Inc., 2003. 4. Hamm, D.B.(2006) â€Å"Managerial Finance: Chapter 13-Return, Risk, the Security Market Line. 5. Otuteye, E. (1998). The arbitrage pricing dichotomy. Canadian Investment Review. Winter 1998. Retrieved online from the ProQuest database, Touro Cyberlibrary 6. http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Dividend+growth+model 7. Risk and Return. The Economist 318 (1991): 72. ProQuest. TUI. 12 Feb. 2007. 8. Smart, Scott B., William L. Megginson, and Lawrence J. Gitman. Corporate Finance. 2nd ed. Mason: Thomson South-Western, 2007. 226-235. 9. The CAPM and APT; Does One Outperform the Other? Geocities.Com. 13 Feb. 2007 . Research Papers on Strategic Corporate Finance- Presentation to GoogleIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalResearch Process Part OneOpen Architechture a white paperBringing Democracy to AfricaAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaPETSTEL analysis of IndiaBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfThe Project Managment Office SystemDefinition of Export QuotasMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever Product

Monday, February 24, 2020

Human Resource Policy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human Resource Policy - Research Paper Example This paper will explore the policies that govern the proper use and disposal of needles and sharp objects in hospitals or nursing homes. #1 The human resource policy describes the rules that are formal and guidelines, which organizations employ to hire, reward, assess and train individuals who join the workforce of the enterprise or organization. When these policies are disseminated and organized in a form that can be comprehended and utilized easily, they can preempt numerous misunderstandings that emerge between employers and employees (Delpo, 2000). These misunderstandings can emanate from the infringement of the rights of employees by employers or ignorance of the responsibilities and duties of the employees in the business premises. In most cases, the policy of a business is written on a paper in a formal way to ensure that every employee gets access to the policies when they sign job contracts in the business. Further, written policies can be employed with extreme consistency a nd accuracy, and they ensure that the business is run in a consistent way with consistent decisions. Moreover, the policies of the human resource can save the company in case of a law suit, which could unearth the issues of employee’s rights and the interests of the business. Unless the business organization has clearly written human resource policies and laws, then the business will suffer from the law suit. Respect to the human resource policies is the core objectives of every worker, especially those who work in hospitals and nursing homes. It has become evident that these policies govern the association between the employee and the employer, and any breach in the contractual performance of duties will result to detrimental challenges (Storey, 2007). The workers in the nursing homes should respect the agreement that they had with their employer, and perform their duties to the expected standards without compromise. #2 The perspective of the roles of human resources depends with the person asked and the experiences of that person with the human resources. Further, the degree of interaction that an individual has experienced with the human resources can also influence the response that one gives regarding the question of the roles and processes (Delpo, 2000). Human resource represents policies and views of the organization, as well as the traditions and the culture that the organization wishes to instill, adopt and empower. In this position, human resources enhance the reputation of the company and the employer (Mathis, 2011). For instance, human resources ensure that the information about the company is not exposed during recruitment and enrolment of employees. In addition, human resources ensure that employees work towards the attainment of the organizational objectives. Furthermore, human resources provide an avenue for employees to air their grievances or seek an arbitrator to mediate the issues and challenges that face employees at the work place. The interests of the employees are represented by this department, though the department cannot skip the constraints that the organization sets. #3 Job analysis describes the process used in the determination of the requirements of work or task and duties of that job. Further, the

Friday, February 7, 2020

Business Policy Development and Implementation Critical Thinking Mod 5 Essay

Business Policy Development and Implementation Critical Thinking Mod 5 - Essay Example Encore also an expansion of Wynn Las Vegas is located adjacent to Wynn Las Vegas featuring 2,034 all suited hotel (Wynn Resort, 2013). One of the greatest operational strength of the resort lies in the hands of the founder, Steve Wynn. Wynn resorts differentiate its resort from the competitors through an idea which states, â€Å"Bigger ain’t better. Better is better.† However, as Steve Wynn is the biggest strength for the company similarly if Steve Wynn leaves the organization it shall result in failure for the company acting as weakness for the Wynn resorts and casino (Hoffman, n.d). Growth and expansion strategy Wynn Resorts has been planning to expand its business and build on new resort located on the Cotai strip in Macau and thus plans to spend about $4billion. Wynn operates in Macau as Wynn Macau and Encore and thus by expanding the resort is trying to strengthen the position in Macau. The new project aims to start off on the Cotai strip and plans to have 2000 roo ms, 10 restaurants and 500 gaming tables. Macau has grown to be the epicenter of the gaming industry across the globe with all renowned gaming companies looking for opportunity to expand in the region. According to reports of PWC the gaming market in Macau is expect to double and value at 62.2billion by 2015 (Trefis, 2012). Wynn Resorts and Casino deals in gaming and operates as one of the largest casino players in Las Vegas and other areas. So analyzing the Macau gaming industry, it should be profitable for Wynn Resort and Casino to build a resort in the Cotai Strip. Wynn expects that the Cotai Strip resort shall prove to be irresistible for the guests (Velotta, 2012). To analyze whether Wynn should pursue expansion in Cotai Strip Porters five force model has been used to support the expansion strategy and whether capital investment in the resort shall be profitable. Porters five force deals with five forces and are applied to identify the attractiveness of the industry. The indust ry here is the gaming industry and analysis is made on Macau gaming industry to analyze the future of Wynn resorts and casino. Bargaining power of buyer: The bargaining powers of the buyer refer to the ability of the customer to influence the price as well as terms of purchase. In the gaming industry the buyer power is least as it does not have any power in influencing the price. The prices are set by the companies and it does not change irrespective of any conditions. Wynn resorts plans to raise the price of the resort in Cotai Strip as compared with its other resorts. Power of supplier: The power of supplier is minimal but do not have the power to exert power over the firm and shall not crash on the profitability of the company. Threat of substitute: Threat of substitute for the gaming industry may be categorized from medium to high. But since Wynn Resorts deals in casino, the threat for the resort is relatively low. Threat of potential entrant: The threat of new entrant is low as huge capital investment is required to set up casino as they are already established players in the market. Rivalry: The rivalry is high as almost of the renowned gaming company from across the globe has been planning to expand in Macau that makes the competition even tougher in the current global economy growth rate. Conclusion Analyzing the Porters five force for Wynn Resort and Casino, it may be said that the decision taken by Steve Wynn to expand in Macau

Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Spanglish & Linguistics Essay Example for Free

Spanglish Linguistics Essay Spanglish is a well-known term that describes the linguistic behaviors on Spanish speakers, who’s Spanish is uniquely influenced from the English language. Spanglish can also be defined as a â€Å"mixed-code vernacular that includes a range of linguistic phenomena, most notably code-switching†. Despite the fact that Puerto Rican linguist, Salvador Tio, coined the term ‘Spanglish’ in the late 1940’s, this language contact phenomena has actually been used over the past 150 years, since the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed. Some would consider Spanish a 3rd language and some would dismiss it as unorganized slang. In modern society, Spanglish is classified as a popular term, not a technical one. Although many variations of Spanglish do exist and is widely denounced for being a form of slang, Spanglish has proven, to hold its own flexible syntax, grammar interface, and switching rules. Spanglish can be found in the speech of the Hispanic population of the United States, especially in communities located near the border, such as Southern Texas, and communities with significant Latin influence, like Miami and New York City. Every Hispanic group has its own variant of Spanglish (Cuban, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Boricuan, Mexican,  e. t. c) and can differ depending where the region is located. San Diego, for example, borders Mexico where many Spanish and Spanglish-speaking citizens currently reside. Historically, the United States and Mexico were both seeking land near the border during the mid 1800’s, but both countries spoke opposing languages (English and Spanish). â€Å"They were TWO RADICALLY DIFFERENT COUNTRIES IN TERMS OF SOCIAL CONDITIONS, ECONOMICS, POLITICS, AND CULTURE. † (5. JESUS VELASCO-MARQUEZ). AMERICAN AND MEXICAN POLITICIANS WERE FORCED TO USE CODE SWITCHING TO COMMUNICATE WITH ONE ANOTHER AND EACH SIDE. ATTEMPTED TO ACQUIRE THE OPPOSING COUNTRY’S LANGUAGE. EVENTUALLY, THE TREATY OF GUADALUPE, SIGNED IN 1848, ENDED THE MEXICAN-AMERICAN WAR AND BEGAN AN ERA OF PEACE BETWEEN BOTH COUNTRIES. THE PEACE TREATY ALSO ESTABLISHED THE BORDER BETWEEN BOTH COUNTRIES, ATTRACTING COLONIES TO VILLAGES ALONG THE BORDER FOR TRADE AND STOCK ROUTES. THE CULTURE OF THESE VILLAGES, WHOSE RESIDENTS HAIL FROM BOTH AMERICA AND MEXICO, CREATED ‘SPANGLISH’ AS A RESULT. DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PANAMA CANAL IN 1881-1914, AMERICANS NOW HAD ACCESS TO TRAVEL DEEPER INTO SOUTH AMERICAN, WHICH MADE SPANGLISH AND CODE SWITCHING A  VITAL FORM OF COMMUNICATION. ASIDE FROM THE MEXICAN BORDER, SPANGLISH HAS ALSO FOUND ITS WAY ONTO THE TONGUES OF CUBAN-AMERICANS AND CUBANS, WHO’VE MIGRATED FROM CUBA during the 1953-1959 Cuban Revolution. During the early to mid-1900s, New York City was also experiencing a similar wave OF MIGRATION, AS MANY PUERTO RICANS WERE SETTLING IN NEW YORK FOR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL REASONS. †¢Spanglish can be divided into three subdivisions: 1. Adapting lexical items (â€Å"loan words†) from one language into the other on a phonological or morphological (roots/affixes) level. (e. g, ‘saying updatear’ [to update]  instead of the Spanish alternative â€Å"actualizar†). Borrowed verbs tend to carry the borrowing language’s inflections (e. g. parquear [to park]). 2. Calques: Words or phrases in one language whose semantic components are directly translated from another language. (e. g. â€Å"to call back† becomes â€Å"llamar para atras† which is the literal word-for-word translation. Although the translation was entirely in Spanish, the grammar influence was due to English. 3. Code-switching: The phenomenon that occurs when adapting loan words from one language into the other in the same utterance or conversation. Two main types of code switching can be identified. Internsentential code-switching occurs when the switch is made at a clause boundary (e. g. I’m extremely tired, me voy a domir), Intrasentential code-switching occurs when the switch is made within a clause (e. g. Mi abuela le gusta cooking). Intersentional code switching tends to be more popular than Intrasentential code switching, as speakers tend to â€Å"alternate among multiple CONSTITUENTS WITHOUT ERROR (TORRES 330)†. THE FLEXIBLE, YET RULE GOVERNED, LINGUISTIC PHENOMENA OF SPANGLISH INCLUDE SIMILAR (YET MORE COMPLEX) COMPONENTS OF SPANISH-ENGLISH CODE SWITCHING. ANGLICISMS/LOAN WORDS ARE BORROWED WORDS (OR PHRASES) FROM THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND INCORPORATED INTO SPANISH (OR ANY LANGUAGE). AN EXAMPLE OF THIS BEHAVIOR IN SPANGLISH WOULD BE THE TERM â€Å"TROCA† (WHICH TRANSLATES TO â€Å"TRUCK† IN ENGLISH AND â€Å"CAMIONETA† IN SPANISH) OR THE WORD â€Å"PARQUEADERO† (WHICH TRANSLATES TO â€Å"PARKING LOT† IN ENGLISH AND â€Å"ESTACIONAMIENTO† IN SPANISH). NEITHER ONE OF THESE WORDS CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS CODE SWITCHING NOR CAN BE PROPERLY DEFINED AS ENGLISH OR SPANISH. IN FACT, SOME LINGUISTS BELIEVE THAT IN ORDER TO  USE PROPER CODE SWITCHING, THE SPEAKER MUST ATTAIN A HIGH COMPETENCY IN EITHER LANGUAGE, AND THEREFORE SHOULD NOT EVEN BE COMPARABLE TO SPANGLISH. THESE LOAN WORDS TEND TO FOLLOW A SET OF LINGUISTIC PATTERN IN SPANGLISH, SUCH AS ADDING THE SPANISH INFINITIVE ENDING OF â€Å"-AR† TO ENGLISH WORDS, LIKE: MAPEAR (TO MOP), TEXTEAR (TO TEXT), CHANGEAR (TO CHANGE), LINKEAR (TO LINK), AND RELESEAR (TO RELEASE). ‘FREE MORPHEME CONSTRAINT’ AND ‘EQUIVALENT CONSTRAINT’ ARE TWO LINGUISTIC CONSTRAINTS IN SPANGLISH. FREE MORPHEME CONSTRAINTS STATE THAT SWITCHING BETWEEN BOUND MORPHEMES IS  PROHIBITED (E. G. ESTAMOS TALK-ANDO OR YO ESTOY EAT-IENDO). EQUIVALENT CONSTRAINTS STATE THAT NO SWITCH CAN BE MADE IF THE RESULT IS UNGRAMMATICAL, AND MUST BE GRAMMATICAL TO BOTH LANGUAGES (E. G. I SAW LO INSTEAD OF I SAW HIM). IN NEW YORK CITY, PUERTO RICANS HAVE BEEN OBSERVED TO SWITCH FORM CLASS WORDS, SUCH AS NOUNS AND PRONOUNS, AND RARELY SWITCH AUXILIARIES AND ADJECTIVES. MANY SOCIOLINGUISTS, SUCH AS ILLANA STAVANS), ARGUE AGAINST ‘FREE MORPHEME CONSTRAINTS’ BY USING LEXICAL WORDS LIKE â€Å"JANGEAR† EVEN THOUGH â€Å"-EAR† IS A BOUND MORPHEME IN SPANISH USED TO CREATE VERBS. STAVANS ARGUMENT DECLARES THAT EVEN THOUGH ‘FREE BOUND MORPHEME’ RULES STATE THAT SWITCHING BETWEEN BOUND MORPHEMES IS PROHIBITED, EXCEPTIONS CAN BE MADE IF THE LEXICAL WORD IS PHONETICALLY INTEGRATED INTO THE BOUND MORPHEME’S LANGUAGE. CALQUES, OR LOAN TRANSLATIONS, GO FURTHER THAN JUST BORROWING WORDS OR PHRASES. THE SPEAKER CREATES A LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THE SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING THE GRAMMAR FORMAT; UNGRAMMATICAL TRANSLATION. ‘FALSE COGNATES’ FOLLOW A SIMILAR FORMAT AS THEY BORROW WORDS FROM ENGLISH TO SPANISH BUT PROVIDE A ROOT WORD THAT TRANSLATES INTO A DIFFERENT MEANING (E. G.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"CARPETO† IS INDEED A SPANISH WORD, BUT THE SPEAKER WOULD BE INCORRECT IF THEY WERE USING IT TO DESCRIBE A â€Å"CAR PET†, AS â€Å"CARPETO† ACTUALLY MEANS â€Å"FOLDER† IN SPANISH. BECAUSE ROOT WORDS TEND TO BRANCH ACROSS MULTIPLE LANGUAGES, ‘FALSE COGNATES’ ARE THE MOST COMMONLY USED DEVICES IN SPANGLISH. Based on public literature, specifically Spanglish: The Making of a New American Language (2003) by Illan Stavans, each Spanglish speaker has their own regional dialect depending on their heritage, social lass, and age. Some of these include, â€Å"Cubonics† (Cuban-Americans), â€Å"Nuyorrican† (Puerto Rican spoken in New York  City) and â€Å"Dominicanish† (Dominican-Americans). Stavans explains that there’s no such thing as one Spanish, and each group has its own speech pattern. His view on â€Å"Chicano Spanish†, (which he considers Mexican-American Spanglish), contrasts opposing views from another sociolinguist, Carmen Fought. Fought studies Chicano Spanish, and believes that is â€Å"neither Spanglish nor a version of nonstandard Spanish but, rather, is a unique dialect used by speakers who are typically not bilingual. † Fought even challenges Chicano Spanish stating the speakers are likely to not even know  Spanish at all, and because of their high vowel pronunciation on the letter â€Å"I† (words like â€Å"going† are spoken as â€Å"go-WEEN† or â€Å"talking† becomes â€Å"talk-EEN†) other people might believe what they’re hearing is â€Å"the accent of a native Spanish speaker†, which is false. Cubonics however, uses many loan words like ‘pulover’, which is literally almost spelled the same as the English word it borrows from (‘pullover’), but the Cubonics definition is referring to a â€Å"shirt† whereas â€Å"camiseta† would be the proper Spanish translation. Social motivation for code switching

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

The Invisible Man by HG Wells :: The Invisible Man HG Wells

The Invisible Man by HG Wells Griffin - Wells goes in great detail about the way Griffin (the Invisible Man) looks and acts. He writes about Griffin's bad temper and his evil scheme of stealing money and food to survive as an invisible man. He makes the character, Griffin, realistic because his emotions, like expressing his anger through shouting, are something people are familiar with. Griffin was quick to anger by the taking of drugs and stimulants. What may have begun as quick temper and impatience turns into violent rage and a wish to commit murder. Griffin's deterioration is self-induced for the most part, but his alienation from his own kind is assisted by other human beings. Fear and superstition follow him, and it seems a defensive mechanism of humans to lash out and destroy the things they fear and do not understand. Griffin had been a brilliant young chemist and researcher, confined and unappreciated as an instructor in a small English college. His brilliance had led him to investigations in physics and the properties of light. It is interesting to observe that as his passion for experimentation and his devotion to pure scientific investigations accelerated. When he required money to advance his experiments in invisibility, he stole it from his father. He finds the possibility to make something invisible. He try's it with a cat and it works. So then he made himself invisible. As an invisible man he could steal, as much he wanted. He is chased by dogs, hunted down in a department store, nearly run over in the streets, and constantly subjected to the discomfort of exposure and he gets lots of head colds. He is a man caught in a trap of his own making. Then, of course, he is betrayed by the only person in whom he placed confidence. Griffin's end is tragic, but it is the culmination of the tragic course he had followed since he first ventured into the unknown terrors of invisibility. Mr. Thomas Marvel - Griffin meets a man named Marvel and wants him to be his servant. He is very scared and does what Griffin expects him to do at first, but when they come to Port Stowe, Marvel tells the barmen at the Jolly Cricketers' pub that the invisible man could be there. Marvel got the money and the diary of the experimental investigator. He has opened an inn, and tells everybody what has happened to him after that time, when there had been an invisible man.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Conventional Morality Essay

Lawrence Kohlberg: â€Å"Physical consequences of an action determine its goodness or badness regardless of the human meaning or value of these consequences. Avoidance of punishment and unquestioning deference to power are valued in their own right, not in terms of respect for an underlying moral order supported by punishment and authority. † (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern is for self – â€Å"Will I get into trouble for doing (or not doing) it? † Good behaviour is associated with avoiding punishment. Inadequacy of Stage 1 reasoning: Avoidance of punishment regardless of the ethical value of the actions is unhealthy especially under â€Å"bad† authorities such as Adolf Hitler. * Stage 2: Instrumental Relativist Orientation Lawrence Kohlberg: Right action is â€Å"that which instrumentally satisfies one’s own needs and occasionally the needs of others. † â€Å"Human relations are viewed in terms like those of the marketplace; elements of fairness, reciprocity and equal sharing are present, but they are always interpreted in a physical or pragmatic way. Reciprocity is a matter of ‘you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours,’ not of loyalty, gratitude or justice. † (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern is â€Å"What’s in it for me? † It is still egocentric in outlook but with a growing ability to see things from another person’s perspective. Action is judged right if it helps in satisfying one’s needs or involves a fair exchange. Inadequacy of Stage 2 reasoning: Where the needs of different individuals conflict, can there ever be a fair exchange? Doesn’t this conflict call for sacrifice from one of the parties? Level 2 – Conventional Morality People at this stage conform to the conventions / rules of a society. * Stage 3: Good Boy-Nice Girl Orientation Lawrence Kohlberg: â€Å"Good behavior is that which pleases or helps others and is approved by them. There is much conformity to stereotypical images of what is majority or ‘natural’ behaviour. Behavior is frequently judged by intention. ‘He means well’ becomes important for the first time. One earns approval by being ‘nice. ‘† (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern is â€Å"What will people think of me? † and the desire is for group approval. Right action is one that would please or impress others. This often involves self-sacrifice but it provides the psychological pleasure of ‘approval of others. ‘ Actions are also judged in relation to their intention. Inadequacy of Stage 3 reasoning: * Same person, different roles OR Different groups, different expectations * Different people, different roles * People not living up to their duties or roles * Stage 4: Law and Order Orientation Lawrence Kohlberg: â€Å"Right behavior consists in doing one’s duty, showing respect for authority and maintaining the given social order for its own sake. † A person in this stage â€Å"orients to society as a system of fixed rule, law and authority with the prospect of any deviation from rules as leading to social chaos. † (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern now goes beyond one’s immediate group(s) to the larger society †¦ to the maintenance of law and order. One’s obligation to the law overrides one’s obligations of loyalty to one’s family, friends and groups. To put it simply, no one or group is above the law. Inadequacy of Stage 4 reasoning: * Unquestioning obedience toward authority is unhealthy. * Accepted social order may not be the best possible order. The laws of society may even be bad. Level 3 – POSTConventional Morality The moral principles that underline the conventions of a society in this level are understood. * Stage 5: Social Contract Orientation Lawrence Kohlberg: â€Å"Generally with utilitarian overtones. Right action tends to be defined in terms of general individual rights and in terms of standards which have been critically examined and agreed upon by the whole society †¦ with an emphasis upon the possibility of changing law in terms of rational consideration of social utility (rather than rigidly maintaining it in terms of Stage 4 law and order). † (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern is social utility or public interest. While rules are needed to maintain social order, they should not be blindly obeyed but should be set up (even changed) by social contract for the greater good of society. Right action is one that protects the rights of the individual according to rules agreed upon by the whole society. Inadequacy of Stage 5 reasoning: How do we arrive at a consensus on the rules that are good for society? Should a majority group impose their preferences on a minority group? What if you disagree with the decision of the majority? * Stage 6: Universal Ethical Principle Orientation Lawrence Kohlberg: â€Å"Right is defined by the decision of conscience in accord with self-chosen ethical principles appealing to logical comprehensiveness, universality and consistency. These principles are abstract and ethical (the golden rule, the categorical imperative) and are not concrete moral rules like the Ten Commandments. At heart, these are universal principles of justice, of the reciprocity and equality of human rights, and of respect for the dignity of human beings as individual persons. † (Duska, R. and Whelan, M. , 1975) Summary: The concern is for moral principles †¦ an action is judged right if it is consistent with self-chosen ethical principles. These principles are not concrete moral rules but are universal principles of justice, reciprocity, equality and human dignity. Inadequacy of Stage 6 reasoning: Our conscience is not an infallible guide to behaviour because it works according to the principles we have adopted. Moreover, who or what determines these universal principles? Although moral reasoning does not necessarily lead to moral action, the latter is based in part on one’s capacity to reason about moral choices. Kohlberg was more concerned with the reasoning of the action than the action itself. And that reasoning when acted upon becomes our motivation. II – ETHICAL RELATIVISM * Cultural Relativism (sociological relativism): The descriptive view that different groups of people have different moral standards for evaluating acts as right or wrong. A. Hence, it is not an ethical doctrine–it’s a sociological or observational conclusion–even so; the view is somewhat ambiguous. B. For example, different groups might have the same basic moral principle, but apply the principle in radically different situations. 1. A second sense of cultural relativism is less obvious. I. e. , that different cultures differ on basic moral principles. 2. A possible reason for the observation of cultural relativism is shown by the example of basic moral principles which could be said to support different moral rules according to the interpretations of different cultures. In the following diagrams, there are two vastly different interpretations listed for each moral principle. * Ethical Relativism: the prescriptive view that (1) different groups of people ought to have different ethical standards for evaluating acts as right or wrong, (2) these different beliefs are true in their respective societies, and (3) these different beliefs are not instances of a basic moral principle. A. The ethical relativist often derives support for his position by two basic mistakes: 1. The relativist confuses cultural (or sociological) relativism with ethical relativism, but cultural relativism is a descriptive view and ethical relativism is a prescriptive view. (E. g. , cultural relativismdescribes the way the way people actually behave, and ethical relativism prescribes the way people ought to behave. 2. The ethical relativist often argues as follows: â€Å"An absolute ethical standard has never been proved beyond doubt in the history of thought. Thus, an absolute ethical standard does not exist. † This argument is an instance ad ignorantiam fallacy. p is unproved; not-p is true. From the fact that a statement has not been proved, we can logically draw no conclusion. B. Objections to ethical relativism. 1. The Differing Ideals Objection (or, as it is sometimes called, the linguistic objection): it is inconsistent to say that the same practice is considered right in one society and considered wrong in another. (If â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† are to have consistent meaning, then the terms must be used in the same manner. ) Possible counter-objections (by the ethical relativist): a. The relativist sometimes states that â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† have no consistent meaning. These words reflect only emotion or perhaps the ceremonial use of language. In other words, this defense shades into ethical subjectivism. Counter-counter-objection (by ethical absolutist): The problem with believing that â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† have no consistent meaning is the ordinary use of words in this case results in meaninglessness. What would happen if people used the same word in different situations to refer to different things? Communication would not take place. b. Some ethical relativists believe ethical words are reducible to non-ethical values; e. g. , these words have to do with recommendations for survival or well-being. Counter-counter-objection (by ethical absolutist): the problem here is just the difficulty of understanding the nature of a non-ethical value. Would a non-ethical value be an aesthetic value? c. Some relativists believe we can justify relativism by intuition, revelation, authority, etc. Counter-counter-objection (by ethical absolutist): these attempts are subjectively based; they differ from time to time and place to place. 2. Mental Health Objection to ethical relativism (from the definition or criterion of a group): If â€Å"what is right in one group is wrong in another,† where exactly does one group end and another begin? Counter-objections to the Mental Health Objection (by the relativist): * Right and wrong are to be determined in the situation. * Right and wrong are to be determined by what the majority determine at the time and place. * Right and wrong are ultimately established by power or authority. 3. Ad Populum Objection to the relativist’s belief that ethics is established by what most people believe: Simply because most people think something is right does not thereby make it right. Simply because most people think a statement is true does notmake that statement true Counter-objections to the ad populum objection (by the relativist): a. The same difficulty of establishing the meaning of â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† exits for the absolutist, pari passu. The absolutist has been unable to state a universally agreed upon meaning to the terms. (Notice that this response is a variant of the ad hominem—tu quoque.) b. Other solutions to the questions of the meaning of key ethical terms according to the relativist are possible by appealing to survival value, consensus gentium, and so on 4. Moral Progress Objection: If ethical relativism were correct, there could be no such thing as moral improvement or purpose in cultures or a person’s life. To have improvement, we must have a standard by which to judge the difference in moral values. Counter-objections (by the relativist): a. That’s correct–we can make no such judgment that one society is better than another. We could only judge by our own values. b. If something like â€Å"survival value† is used to ground moral beliefs, then moral improvement might be identified with â€Å"increased knowledge concerning survival of the society. † * Ethical Absolutism: the prescriptive view that there are basic or fundamental ethical principles which are true without qualification or exception as to time, condition, or circumstance. * Ethical Nihilism: the view that ethical terms such as â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† have no meaning or are nonsense. A. Objection: but something is meant when we say, â€Å"X is wrong. † Counter-objections (by the nihilist): 1. If there is no empirical meaning to the terms, they have no â€Å"cash value. † (Q. v. , positivism. ) 2. â€Å"Whatever can be said, can be said clearly. † The burden of proof that the terms have meaning is on the non-nihilist. * Ethical Skepticism: the view that ethical terms such as â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† might have meaning but their meaning cannot be established. A. Objection to skepticism at this point is methodological. Ethical skepticism should not be held a priori at the beginning of an investigation but should only be a possible outcome after a thorough study.