ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Bizcom Limited is a medium-sized firm that specializes in clearing and forwarding services and has a number of strategically located offices with a head office carrying out administrative and management responsibilities. The firm’s local offices are dispersed across the nation with an international office abroad. Customers place orders at the various local branches, which are forwarded to the main office for onward dispatch to their international office. The customers pay a fee for this particular process. Bizcom’s management is employing the balanced scorecard to assess the financial, customer, internal processes, and innovative and learning perspectives, which are typical components of the balanced scorecard to assess the viability of an internet-based application that will allow customers to scrutinize their order status. The financial perspective The financial perspective relates to the financial objectives and obligations of a company (Kaplan & Norton, 1992). In this particular case, the financial perspective will involve Bizcom Limited. Measurement techniques such as net present value, return on investment, economic value added (EVA), and investment rate of return can be used to assess the financial perspective of Bizcom. A cost-benefit analysis of the internet-based application will enable the management to make the right decisions in relation to the operations and processes at Bizcom. Bizcom Limited is sourcing part of the project cost internally, whereas the other part is covered by a bank loan. The interest rates currently stand at 16%, and Bizcom has a repayment period of twenty-four months. While employing the EVA, the management has a positive EVA, an indicator that wealth has been created by the implementation of this internet-based application. The internal process perspective The internal processes perspective covers Bizcom’s Limited goal, which is in part to provide satisfactory clearing and forwarding services at the most competitive price. An important question to ask concerning this perspective in relation to the internet-based application may be how the adoption of the internet-based application is going to improve the internal processes at Bizcom. It is very likely that the implementation of this system will improve the processes at Bizcom whereby employees’ productivity will be enhanced while the client service is greatly improved. The customer perspective Customer perspective is directly related to internal processes perspective (Bose & Thomas, 2007). The customer perspective affects the internal processing that must align it to meeting the customer expectation through expedient online order status inquiries at Bizcom, which is the d
Alternatives to Prison Prison overcrowding is one of the most pertinent social issues in Canada, and it comes as no surprise that the criminal justice system develops alternative sentencing options. Alternatives to prison hold a promise to reduce the number of people going to prisons. They have the potential to optimize the costs of criminal justice while ensuring sufficient levels of public safety and crime deterrence within communities. Goff describes three alternatives to imprisonment: (1) conditional sentencing, (2) intermediate sanctions, and (3) home confinement and electronic monitoring. These sentencing options operate in different ways but have a number of things in common. Basically, they represent the so-called “back-end strategies” that promise to become more economically prudent and feasible in meeting the public demand for safety and reducing the scope of crime (Burns 75). Conditional sentences were created and approved in Bill C-41 (Goff 1). Conditional sentencing means that the length of imprisonment does not exceed two years, and the offender can serve this sentence in the community (Goff 1). It can be provided on mandatory or optional conditions (Goff 1). The former implies law-abiding behaviors, stricter rules of personal conduct, and an obligation to inform the court or the responsible supervisor of any changes in occupation, job, place of residence, etc. (Goff 1). Optional conditions may vary, depending on the circumstances of the case. For instance, the offender may be obligated to attend counseling sessions or participate in community programs. Intermediate sanctions represent the second alternative to imprisonment. These sanctions were designed to provide better control over the offenders who are released into the community (Goff 4). According to Goff, such intermediate sanctions include home confinement, intensive supervision, electronic monitoring, fines, and restitution orders (4). In most cases, intermediate sanctions are administered by judges, which is why they are also called “judicially administered” sanctions (Goff 4). One of the most serious questions raised by intermediate sanctions is whether they are effective enough to reduce recidivism rates and prevent offenders from being sent to a correctional facility (Goff 4). Even despite these concerns, intermediate sanctions remain a popular sentencing option in Canada. The number of offenders serving intermediate sanctions increases every year. As of today, intensive supervision probation remains the most popular form of intermediate sanctions applied to offenders in Canada (Goff 5). In addition to conditional sentencing and intermediate sanctions, home confinement and electronic monitoring represent an alternative to imprisonment. This alternative is based on the principle that offenders must be limited in their freedoms to the place of residence (Goff 7). This type of sentencing is based on the philosophy that the offender should maintain close family ties, be productive in the workplace, and actively participate in the community programs that are available to him/her (Goff 7).
Introduction Natureview is facing a rather daunting challenge ever since its inception in 1989. The farm’s attempt to maintain its profitability saw the hiring of Jim Wagner as chief financial officer whose central role was to formulate and implement strategies that would ensure continued growth in profits. It is in this regard that Wagner’s recommendation for an equity infusion from a venture capital to help fund strategic plans sailed through the board meeting unopposed. Now, the venture capital firm wants to withdraw its cash investments from Natureview. To counter the potentially devastating financial blow about to be dealt on Natureview, the management has limited options: to find another investor or put itself up for acquisition (Fleming, 2007). The management preferred the second option and that meant that Natureview had to increase its revenues in order to achieve the highest possible valuation. It is in this regard that Wagner advised the management to increase the firm’s revenues from $13 million to $20 million before the end of 2001 (Fleming, 2007). The first option was not preferred because finding an alternative investor would be difficult unless the venture capital firm cashed out first (Fleming, 2007). This would leave Natureview in a critical position. Problem Analysis Natureview Farm is facing imminent insolvency should the venture capital firm cash out. Although Natureview has been realizing increased profits every year, the decision to enlist a venture capital firm to finance its strategic programs is likely to plunge it into financial abyss. To avoid this problem, the management has to find ways and means of increasing its revenues so as to achieve the highest possible valuation as it prepares for takeover. Thus, a $7 million increase is required in order to put the farm firmly on track (Fleming, 2007). This problem was brought about by the inappropriate strategies that were used to diversify Natureview’s sales. The farm’s chief financial officer blundered by outsourcing finance to fund strategic investments. Apparently, these strategic investments have not yielded enough revenues to enable the farm stand on its own feet. Instead, they have resulted into financial dependency on the venture capital firm. Natureview Farm management is sharply divided on the marketing strategies to be implemented. The bone of contention revolves around the option of venturing into supermarkets as a way of increasing sales. Whereas the option has great potential in boosting sales, it would shake Natureview to its very core as a breach of confidence with the long-time business partners, the retailers (Fleming, 2007). Natureview’s condition was precipitated by stiff competition from other organic food manufacturers. The natural foods market was concentrated by four top competitors: Dannon, Yoplait, Breyers and Columbo (Fleming, 2007). The four competing companies dominated a fair share of the market. This could have slowed
Introduction Net Present Value (NPV) is an important tool used for capital budgeting analysis in most companies. Through NPV, financial managers can decide what decision is most profitable for companies’ shareholders. This report analyzes the feasibility of Google’s intent to purchase Groupon. First, the report presents an analysis of the value Google’s potential acquisition of Groupon would add to the shareholders of the two companies. Groupon’s current value, based on an NPV computation is USD 369,291,700 (See Appendix 1). Although Google offers as high as USD6billion to purchase Groupon, it is important for Groupon’s executives to consider the company’s potential before accepting Google’s offer. Should this deal pull through, however, it will be advantageous for Google’s shareholders since Groupon is currently in the way of Google’s intent to break into the local advertising market. Influence of Deal on Google Shareholders Groupon’s actual value is in its email catalog. However, Groupon’s email list is a list of people seeking cheap products. Firms with large lists of individuals who have already shown their inclination to pay full price may offer a less attractive proposition to potential marketers. This, however, does not indicate that Google’s $6 billion offer for Groupon is outrageous. No other company has penetrated the local-internet-advertising industry as effectively as Groupon has, and the dynamics involved are considerably less than Google’s other acquisitions (Weiss, 2010). Also, it is the desire for Google shareholders to have the company invest its funds into viable investment opportunities. It also appears that some criticism of the offer was rather snobbish. In spite of Groupon’s social media accessories, and its profitability, Groupon still appears strangely conventional. Groupon gathers its users to engage in mass one-off discounting programs by sellers (Efrati, 2010). It may appear irrational to buy an electronic coupon company considering that Google’s mission is to “revolutionize the world” (Efrati, 2010). However, this offer is just Google’s way of reacting to an identified investment opportunity. With simple text advertisements, Google expanded to display through the purchase of DoubleClick and is now shifting to the coupon market. Obviously, Google’s intended purchase may also be a way of preventing Groupon from ending up with companies such as Yahoo or Facebook. However, Google is in a dilemma with regard to the feasibility of purchasing Groupon. Local advertising funds have historical
Introduction This opinion piece appears on the “Houston Chronicle” as an editor’s piece and it seeks to persuade readers to vote ‘no’ in an upcoming referendum on Robbing HISD (Houston Independent School District). The article’s title is “Voters Should Say No to Putting District under Robin Hood Recapture Plan” and it is a direct appeal to potential voters to reject the proposed changes (Houston Chronicle, 2016). The sentiments contained within the article are part of an ongoing debate on whether the HISD should abandon the existing school funding system or adopt the state-favored method. This essay offers a short reflection of this opinion article including the validity of its claims. Referendum on the distribution of school funds The article’s opening statements are direct references to the seriousness of the decision that the voters are facing. The writers of the article proceed to claim that most voters are likely to be confused by the wording of the referendum question. The article highlights that HISD is more likely to perform better if the electorate votes ‘no’ to the referendum question. The authors of the article justify their claim by noting that the school district is more likely to suffer the consequences of an inefficient school-funding system in the hands of the state. The article also points out that the Texas Supreme Court recently failed to give the favored school-funding system a vote of confidence. The article also warns about possible deficits in school funding if the current system is changed (Houston Chronicle, 2016). The authors conclude the article by noting that although the current regime is not perfect, it is better for the legislature to fix it than distribute school funds to a worse system. The most striking thing about this article is that it is straightforward and only uses simple reader-persuasion techniques. Most opinion articles are long-winded and they often use complicated jargon in the hope of impressing their readers. However, this article does not employ this technique and even its title is straightforward. This approach adds credence to the article. For instance, the authors of th
Introduction Asia is one state which presents a very dynamic region in the third-world countries over the past twenty years. The dynamics includes Chinese growth, the coming up of India, regional collaboration, economic, trade and security issues. A case study of Southeast Asia reveals that its governance has greatly influenced the political, economic and social environment of many states. The Southeast Asian Nations have developed new models of economic collaboration and new political roles which have in effect sculptured international systems of the world (Wurfel and Burton, 1996). The recent global crisis and the subsequent melt-down of powerful economies is what triggered the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to seek more international cooperation. Other than economic cooperation, this partnership is also being sought in the political arena (in fighting terrorism), knowledge and technology transfer, and support for development projects. Asia is hopeful of providing a compact economic alternative due to regional integration with powerful economic giants like China and India and Russia. The trend of the rest of the world is in fact towards the Asian Nations (Wurfel and Burton, 1996). The New World Order The new World Order refers to the coming together of the world’s most powerful nations to secure and sustain world safety, peace and security. The other terms that can be used interchangeably to mean the new world order include globalization, one world government, and global governance. There are many people who dismiss it as just a mere theory, but a closer investigation into the history, clearly reveals its establishment as a fact. The coming up of the new world order was in fact prophesied in the Bible (Lineman, 2007). The New World Order’s intention is to create a one world government which will control and regulate all the other nations under an international law. The setting up of this global government is slowly taking its roots in the political arena and especially in the United Nations. There is a Commission for global governance established in the United Nations which forecasts a world court, a one police force and a global tax. In addition, there are several organizations that have so far been set up which ascribe to the New World Order philosophy which include: the media personalities, the Club of Rome, the Trilateral Commission, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, the Council of Foreign Affairs, etc. The economy is also affected since there are free trade agreements among nations, International Financiers like the International Monetary Fund, Bank of International Settlements, etc. The third area of concern is religion, where there are plans to come up with a new world religion. This is evidenced by the existence of such organizations as the World Council of Churches, and the Parliament of World Religions. Moreover, there has been a g
Introduction The use of assistive technologies in educational institutions has long been introduced with the advent of globalization and the popularity of the Internet. Technology is having an impact on teaching and learning. Mobile learning, or m-learning, which is conducted with the use of mobile phones or handheld computers like laptops or Personal Digital Assistants or PDAs, is gaining ground. (Smith and Broom, 2003, p. 5) The internet is another tool in imparting education and learning, and this is used now in distance learning, particularly significant to those in need of lifelong learning or continuing education. This is interesting to many educators because of the way it is being imparted to the learners: education with no situated classroom, ignoring distance and time. The learners can now have access to education and to the vast amount of knowledge without much time and effort on both educators and learners. (Zhao et al., 2007, p. 55) The question of whether the use of technology as assistive devices is beneficial to education is still a subject for research and study. This does not however mean that there are more disadvantages than advantages in the use of technology in teaching. It is a fact that the process of learning has become easy with the use of technology such as the laptops, cell phones, interactive TV in distance education delivery methods. (Singh, Mangalaraj, & Taneja, 2010, p. 300) Nowadays, computers and Information Technology tools are commonly used in classes as educational tools in imparting knowledge to students, from elementary to college. But the question that this brief paper will try to answer is: how prepared are the teachers in the use of technology in imparting education? Background The term ‘mobile’ is becoming so popular with the emergence of multiple hand-held technologies, like the laptops, Ipads, Android, and PDAs. Mobile seems a necessity in commerce and business. Mobile Internet service is popular all throughout the world with internet connection. (Kukulska-Hulme, 2005, p. 33) The traditional way of imparting education makes use of a teacher and a physical classroom with lectures and books. In technology-assisted classroom, education or learning is imparted using laptops, PDAs, cell phones, with the aid of web pages and computer software. (Andronico et al., 2004, p. 91) Mobile learning refers to acquiring education while one is not in a situated classroom; one can be at home or at work. The concept of mobile learning promises users new and/or advanced user experiences, which are quite often markedly different from those afforded by conventional desktop computer-based learning systems (e-learning). (Ryu and Parsons, 2002, p. 3) It is also revolutionary in the sense that learning is not the ordinary teacher-student interaction in a traditional classroom, but the students are away doing their other jobs or chore
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been passed in 2010 and since then altered American healthcare in a number of ways, however, sometimes, not in the ways it supposed to. The key features were implemented gradually with each year, from 2010 to 2015. They include New Consumer Protections, which implies providing information for consumers online, and regulation of lifetime and annual limits of insurance coverage (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016, p. 56). The same year features that improved quality and lowering costs of healthcare were implemented; as well as attempts for the enhancement of availability of Affordable Care, which included “providing access to insurance for uninsured Americans” (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016, p. 56). In the following years, the act was being integrated furthermore, with the government constantly increasing access to the reform for Americans, while lowering the costs. The ACA was aimed at making affordable health insurance available to more people, expanding the Medicaid program, and urging new innovative ways to deliver healthcare services that lowered the costs simultaneously (HealthCare). During the implementation of the act, these factors collectively will make quality healthcare affordable to an average American. The act “reflects many tenets proposed by American Nurses Association”, which are concerned with healthcare being a basic human right, and talk about it being “safe, effective, patient centered, timely, efficient, equitable” (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016, p. 56). ACA puts strong emphasis on prevention medicine, and, for instance, establishing a Prevention and Public Health Fund, providing grants for prevention activities” which results in higher rate of public wellness (American Medical Association). The act also contains several entries that deal with the enhancement of quality of healthcare offered, sponsoring research to study different medical strategies’ effectiveness, as well as attempting to reduce medical errors (NCSL). Affordable Care has been a subject of long-lasting debates and political battles due to its conflicting nature de-facto and on paper. One of the most well-known instances of ACA that do not work so well, is its tenet that “people with pre-existing conditions cannot be denied coverage or charged higher premiums” (Abrams, 2020). However, before this part of bill was passed, “insurers could charge excess prices for—or outright deny—coverage to all kinds of people, including pregnant women and cancer survivors” (Abrams, 2020). Thus, the Act seemed to work against its own aims – which is the main reason behind its opposition and criticism.
In the field of death penalty mitigation, assessing a defendant’s background is a critical, but often overlooked issue. For instance, while a person’s history of abuse or being raised in a deprived environment might not be directly related to the crime, these factors could “shape [their] life choices, and life chances” (Ashford & Kupferberg, 2013, p. 51). Similarly, a defendant’s mental state can be viewed as grounds for the lessening of one’s punishment because of their diminished moral culpability and responsibility (Ashford & Kupferberg, 2013). Thus, the a critical distinction between criminal responsibility and moral culpability. The difference between criminal responsibility and moral culpability is relevant when considering an appropriate punishment for an individual. Although one’s guilt (criminal responsibility) can be proven, moral culpability can be diminished by the circumstances surrounding the crime and the defendant’s situation and background. These factors, while not absolving one of criminal responsibility, can affect the choice of appropriate punishment (Ashford & Kupferberg, 2013). A common application of moral culpability is deciding whether persons of a good character committing criminal acts that are not reflective of their character should receive less harsh punishments than those of bad character. The practical implication of this decision is the likelihood that the defendant will re-offend in the future. Thus, judging his or her capacity to act as a moral actor is a critical consideration. As this is an extremely complicated issue, moral agency models can be used to provide a framework to both bases and argue the judgment. In practical terms, one’s moral culpability and capacity as a moral actor should be heavily considered when evaluating the conditions surrounding the crime, as well as the defendant’s background. Common themes that may emerge are mental illness, history of abuse, or poor socioeconomic status. All of these factors in one’s background can contribute to the erosion of one’s ability to act with rationality and restraint. Therefore, they can all be referred to as mitigating factors in determining the defendant’s punishment. However, as Ashford & Kupferberg (2013) note, these factors can themselves be abused to achieve an unfair reduction of one’s sentence. Ultimately, the concepts of moral culpability, moral character, and moral agency mode