ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Background JW Marriott hotels is owned by Marriot international. Marriot international is a Washington DC based company. In 1927, Willard Marriott started the hotel chain (Marriott 6). Key Bridge Marriott is the company’s longest running hotel and it opened its doors in 1959. From there on, it ignited an international growth to include 3,150 properties. In 1992, Marriott cooperation was split into two. The split formed two companies; Host Marriot corp. and Marriot international (Marriott 8). In 1995, Marriott acquired a 49 % controlling stake in Ritz Carlot Hotel (Marriott 13). In 2005, all the rooms in the hotel were given an overhaul. In the same year, the hotel chain marked a milestone as the only hotel that did not offer trans fat foods (Marriott 15). Business performance Marriot hotels and resorts have continued to perform exemplarily. This is as far as sales and financial performance are concerned. As much as it has a global presence in different markets, it has enhanced its sales activities to reach as many customers as possible. These can be demonstrated from many sales centers it has in different markets (Marriott 23). From its third quarter results as at October 2010, the company posted good financial returns. For instance, total sales revenues increased by 9% to $253 million. Its worldwide system and growth improved considerably by 8.2% (Marriott 7).in addition, the chain of hotels also realized a net income of $ 83 million. This net income represented a 56 % rise in income in comparison with the results of the previous year. In addition, the company has a wide array of hotels under construction. The company’s strong cash flow has enabled it to reduce its debts ahead of schedule. Its total revenues were $2.6 billion (Marriott 21). Strategy In order to remain competitive in the market, the chain of hotels has sought to integrate an inimitable brand strategy. On the other hand, it should be known that the hotel business was not a glimmer in the eyes of the company owner. Marriot believes that its job is to make sure that customers have the best possible experience. By doing this, the company knows very well that its customers come from different backgrounds, culture, religion and tradition (Marriott 19). The execution of the brand strategy begins with one branch of the hotel and then later on, it is replicated to the others. This is because customer satisfaction relates in one way or the other with overall business performance (Marriott 7). The company employs global diversity and inclusion as a way of thriving in the market place. This is done by laying more emphasis on customers, suppliers, owners, workforce and recognition. Its current business strategy is also built on strategic alliances with other like minded business partners. This strategy has encompassed various cultural competencies to build upon its success. In addition, the company believes in working with locally owned businesses. This is more so in relation to different communities. By doing this, the company believes that it will be a win for the business and the community
In the field of phonology, the use of feature geometry presents a method of measuring and standardizing phonemes and their production, especially characterizing mistakes and impediments. Feature geometry defines each articulation as a mathematical formula for the shape of the inner space which is used to create it. This developed from the descriptive geometry initially created by Gaspard Monge in the eighteenth century. (Biography, Monge, Gaspard (1746–1818) 2008) It provides a method for classifying phonological features of any language according to a set of classes developed, which are based upon the location, method of utterance, and the descriptive geometry of the speech organs. Using the set of classes developed by various contributors to the science of phonology, information can be then shared among peers, and discussions concerning the diagnosis of speech problems and the creation of mitigation techniques can take place. IN this way, much progress has been made, both in the field of linguistics and in the field of phonology and speech therapy. “It is a familiar observation that certain phonological features pattern together recurrently across languages in phenomena such as assimilation, dissimilation, and reduction. Perhaps the phenomenon most frequently cited as an example of this is nasal place assimilation.” (Padgett, Jaye 2001). His paper argues for a new kind of understanding of feature class behavior – such as the recurrent patterning of pairs of certain phonological features, e.g., place of articulation and laryngeal features. His work proceeds from work in Feature Geometry in describing the classes of phonology, but argues that the features of a class are “targeted directly and individually by constraints (or rules), eve
Introduction The purpose of the experiment was to investigate peptides’ behaviour and the manner in which they can be utilized to identify a protein by means of electrospray ionization on an electrospray QTOF mass spectrometer. The peptides were introduced through a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) flow pathway. They were chromatographically alienated by HPLC and analyzed immediately using the mass spectrometer, which acquired structural information during the chromatographic run. Specifically, the quadrupole time of flight (Q-TOF) mass spectrometer was used. Background Mass spectrometer Mass spectrometry provides an easy, gentle and robust method for ionizing a broad range of molecules, including small molecules such as drugs, medium-sized molecules such as peptides, and huge proteins. The method is recognized as an excellent ionisation technique, more so for biological applications. The Q-TOF mass spectrometer fits well in peptide analysis. Modern spectrometry is able to achieve electrospray ionization. Electrospray ionization A solution is passed via a fin
Introduction The way companies do business is crucial. The United States Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has developed policies regarding publically-traded firms. Hence an investor and/or a creditor can access the data they require in order to evaluate the risks to an organization concerning investing or extending credits (Hewlett-Packard 2011 Annual Report, 2011). This paper examines the Hewlett Packard ethics practice, the United States SEC compliance, monetary ratios as described in the company’s 2010 and 2011 annual statements, and filing through the United States SEC. Role of ethics and compliance According to Catherine Lesjak, a chief monetary officer of Hewlett Packard, the firm desires to be a leader in ethical management in order that an employee can be conceited in working for the company, and clients and other stakeholders that continue to support their business (Hewlett- Packard, n.d.). The company deems it necessary to focus on and understand the monetary elements of their investment. For Hewlett Packard to succeed, it must follow the right way to gain monetary success and aim at appropriate business ethics. The company must adhere to international, national, and domestic rules, guidelines, and decrees in order to best meet the needs of the business, workers, and clients (Hewlett-Packard 2011 Annual Report, 2011). The current ratio of a firm is computed by differentiating the current assets with current liabilities (Hewlett- Packard Company, n.d.). This ratio aids in determining the comparative liquidity of the organization. To determine the liquidity of Hewlett-Packard, the monetary data for 2011 and 2011 was analyzed. HP had current assets amounting to $ 51,021 million, and current liabilities amounted to $ 50,442 million, which gives a current ratio of 1.01 for 2011. The current assets and current liabilities for 2010 were $ 54,184 million and $ 49,403 million, respectively, giving a current ratio of 1.10. This indicates that in every 1.01 dollars in assets, there was 1 dollar in debt for 2011. The debt ratio of an organization is calculated by dividing the cumulative debt with cumulative assets. In 2011 the debit for Hewlett-Packard amounted to $129,517 million and had assets amounting to $129,517 million, leading to a debt ratio of 17.41 percent. Total debt in 2010 amounted to $ 15,258 million, and total
The world is grappling with the most recent pandemic caused by a virus called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). This coronavirus has triggered fears among Americans as it emerged as a novel disease. May notes that it was evident no one was “immune to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus” right from the time the first case was reported. Several conspiracy theories emerged about how the respiratory illness began, as researchers and experts could not establish the source or carrier of the virus. This is not the first pandemic to occur, as a historical review of world history shows that countries have previously faced a similarly major pandemic, the Spanish flu, of 1918. A critical comparison of two pandemics reveals that both diseases are caused by novel viruses and the US adopted similar containment measures, such as wearing masks and social isolation, although it is apparent that CIVID-19 has been relatively more devastating than the Spanish flue. The historical background of the two pandemics reveals some differences, although the US responded in almost the same way to both due to the diseases’ shared characteristics. Stronchlic and Champine report that the Spanish flu also called the influenza pandemic of 1918, was caused by the H1N1 virus. On the other hand, a type of coronaviruses called SARS-CoV-2 is the cause of the current pandemic. The origin of the 1918 H1Ni virus remains obscure although it has been shown that World War I soldiers facilitated its spread. According to Webel and Freeman, “soldier mobilization created a situation well-suited to influenza dispersal,” making it difficult to establish the exact origin. However, the world community is confident that COVID-19 started in China, as it was first reported in the country’s Wuhan province. Hence, COVID-19 and the Spanish flu differ in both the causing virus and history of origin. Like the Spanish flu, COVID-19 has infected and caused many deaths in the US and across the globe. However, a detailed review of the figures reveals that the current pandemic has been more devastating compared to the 1918 influenza, as it has led to over 15 million deaths in less than a year since the initial case was reported (Stronchlic and Champine). The number might continue to rise because the virus has not been contained fully. According to Webel and Freeman, “the Spanish flu killed 50 million people globally, with 675,000 in the United States between 1918 and 1920,” although research shows that the statistic cannot be ascertained. The US and other countries lacked effecti
The BCG (Boston Consulting Group) Matrix is an assessment tool, used by many companies in order to evaluate the efficiency of various business units and product line. A manager, who applies this method, focuses mostly on the balance between cash spenders and cash generators (Butje 2005, p 157). This technique is supposed to help an organization allocate investments and resources. Judging from this grid, we can single out several types of business units:  1. cash cows, which generate sufficient amount of profit to sustain themselves;  2. question marks, those divisions, which require considerable expenditures to become successful, and it is difficult to determine whether they will increase their market share or not;  3. dogs, those units which yield sufficient returns to break even but their profitability is small;  4. stars, which hold high market share and at the same time they use large quantities of cash (Griffin, 2006, p 219). It should be noted that the BSG matrix does not provide conclusive evidence as to the contribution of each division to the overall success of the company, especially if we are speaking those organizations, where business units work on the creation of the same or similar products. If the divisions are interconnected with one another, and each of them is an inseparable part of value chain, the use of the BCG matrix is no appropriate. Most importantly, this tool fails to take into account, the external environment (economic, legal, social and political factors) in which the firm operates. Overall these findings indicate at that the given moment one of the company’s business units (the electronics division) cannot break even, and its expenditures are higher than its returns. In turn, the appliances division generates excessive amounts of cash. This division can be regarded as self-sufficient and according to the classification, adopted by the Boston Consulting Group, it should be called a “cash cow” (Butje 2005, p 157). On the basis of these findings, we can make the following recommendations: the management should either increase the market share of the electronics division in order to justify its cash consumption or they need to sell this business unit. However, prior to making this decision, the management should undertake a series of investigations: in particular, they need to conduct value chain analysis as this will help them to understand the interactions between various divisions of the enterprise. Moreover, they need to carry out PESTLE and SWOT analysis, as these methods will show external environment can affect the development of each division. They need to apply Five Forces Model, developed by Michael Porter (2008). This tool is used to evaluate the intensity of competition in the market. On the whole, we can say that the BCG Matrix gives only a cursory overview of the situation within the firm. The authors of the previous posts have done an in-depth analysis of the key findings. They have pointed out that such an assessment tool as the BCG matrix has several limitations (ext
Professional sports have one of the most competitive and challenging labor markets. Thousands of athletes fight to find their place under the sun. Superstars are common, but true talents are rare. As a result, those who prove themselves unique have sufficient opportunities to win the labor market Olympus. Scarcity is the defining feature of the labor market in professional sports. Scarcity justifies billions of dollars paid to talented athletes who contribute to their teams’ win column (Center for Economic Education, 2005). Despite its uniqueness, the forces managing the supply and demand in professional sports are mostly similar to those in other labor markets. Hiring practices in professional sports must be regulated, to ensure that athletes are legally protected against discrimination and are offered equal opportunities to realize and improve their talents. The forces determining wage in professional sports and other labor markets are mostly the same. The demand and supply of labor are the major determining characteristics of wage in any labor market (Center for Economic Education, 2005). The quantity supplied of labor directly depends upon changes in salaries: the higher the wage the more labor is supplied to the market (Center for Economic Education, 2005). The marginal revenue of product (MRP) usually predetermines the levels of and changes in labor demand (Center for Economic Education, 2005). Two factors affect wage in any labor market: (1) the amount of goods and services each worker produces; and (2) the marginal revenue of this product or service (Center for Economic Education, 2005). It goes without saying that different labor markets have different characteristics and can be more or less attractive to workers. The labor market of professional sports is well-known for its incredibly high salaries. It comes as no surprise that professional sportsmen are often compared to teachers: the latter, despite the contribution they make to the society’s scientific development and intellectual progress, cannot always make their ends meet. This difference in wages has little to do with discrimination but is a complex result of numerous economic forces affecting labor markets. Scarcity is the definitive feature of labor markets in professional sports (McLaughlin, 2007). In the meantime, teachers are available in abundance (McLaughlin, 2007). They can be easily bred to become perfect educators. Unlike teachers, talented athletes are rare, and teams are willing to pay millions to acquire and retain a talent that will move them to the top of the win column. Scarcity explains the dramatic difference in how much teachers and athletes earn. Scarcity also justifies the incredible sums of money paid to prominent athletes in professional sports. These differences in teacher and athlete wages are directly related to the so-called diamond-water paradox. The latter explains why “diamonds are so expensive and wate
Introduction The fact that people have the ability to think and make rational or irrational decisions makes them the most complex living things on earth. This is due to the fact that they assess the advantages and disadvantages of various activities around them and decide on the best options available to them before doing anything. It should be noted that human beings have a predetermined expectation while doing various activities. It can be said that human beings’ actions are usually subjective and aimed at achieving a certain goal in life. However, animals act by instinct and without having a subjective mind towards achieving a certain goal and in most cases luck seems to favor their activities. The ability of human beings to think and make various decisions motivated psychologists and sociologists to explore the various differences in the abilities of individuals to think and make their independent decisions. This discussion explores the various ways through which intelligence and achievement tests are assessed. Basic Rules of Assessment The process of assessing any intelligence or assessment test is based on several factors that act as guidelines to the selection and ranking criteria. It should be noted that these terms form the basic rules of assessment in the process of testing and ranking people in the society. Perfect is a term that refers to the person with the best qualities according to what is being examined. This person is considered to have all the qualities desired by the assessment criteria. Average refers to people who posses most of the qualities being considered for assessment while poor refers to those who lack any or most of the desired qualities (Friedman 2011). Normal distribution refers to the average pattern in which scores are distributed among candidates and is usually represented in a graphical pattern that shows few people on either ends while the middle part is occupied by majority if the participants. The confidence interval refers to negligible errors of measurement on either side of the scores. A norm referenced score is the score that is used to make comparisons between a person and other people subjected to the same test. Reliability and validity coefficients test how reliable and valid a test is and they range from 0-1 with the higher number meaning that the test has more of the attribute being tested. A true score is the result of a person’s score if the test is very accurate. Standard error of measurement refers to the measure of how close a person is to his or her true score. Standard deviation refers to the variations in the sets of scores achieved by people and it shows their differences in abilities. Intelligence Tests Emotional Intelligence This is the ability of a person to know, evaluate and regulate his or her emotions and that of other people. The two models commonly used to ev
The historical accounts of Papacy provide adequate evidence that the Western Schism is one of the major problems that faced Papacy in its lifeline. In particular, the existence of more than one Pope and Papal offices attracted external forces, including social, religious and political influence from various parts of Europe (Salembier par. 1). At the time, the establishment of a Papal office in Avignon, France, rivaled the traditional Papal office in Rome, Italy. These forces later contributed to the decline of the Western Schism and the fight between Rome and Avignon. Religious and political power played some of the most significant roles in the rise of the Schism. Surprisingly, they also played an important role in the end of the fighting between the two Papacies. Politically, Europe, with its Christian political units, was divided between the two popes who existed at the time. For instance, France and most of her political allies, including Spain, various German princes and Scotland were supporting the Pope in Avignon. Political rulers in Portugal, some German princes, England, Bohemia, Flanders and Hungary supported the Roman pope. On the other hand, Italian political rulers were divided and kept changing sides. The councils of Pisa, Constance and Basle contributed significantly to the end of the Western Schism. Although they were made up of religious prelates, politics and social factors played an important role in the process. Started in 1409, the Council of Pisa was arranged by bishops from both sides. It was a General Council meeting in the Italian City of Pisa. It had more than 500 prelates taking part. They decided to depose both the Avignon and Roman popes. In their place, a new pope, Alexander V, was elected in 1409 (Salembier par. 1). However, popes Gregory XII and Benedict XIII of Rome and Avignon respectively, refused to recognize the decision (Salembier par. 2. The council also refused to withdraw its decision. Thus, the church had three popes located in Pisa, Avignon and Rome. At this point, the church was unable to solve the problem. Therefore, politics started playing the greatest part in looking for a solution. Emperor Sigismund of Germany, although a relatively weak ruler, saw the need for political intervention in order to find a permanent solution. He realized that none of the three popes had the authority to call another council after the failure of the one at Pisa (Salembier par. 2). Therefore, he decided to use his political position to act. He called another council, choosing the Imperial city of Constance as the right meeting place. The Council of Constance, supported by political institutions, took some important steps towards solving the problem. It began in 1414 and ended in 1418 (Salembier par. 4). It deposed all the three popes. With more than 1000 prelates, the council’s main purpose was to solve the crisis. Few prelates supported the three popes. When the three popes realized that they had no support in the council, they made some steps to end the problem. Pope John of Pisa was forced to agree with his deposition (Salembier par. 4). Gregory, on his part, abdicated whil