ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Financial analysis is an integral part of any company’s economic strategy. Shedding light on both financial opportunities and the factors that inhibit a company’s performance in a particular market, a financial analysis creates extensive opportunities for getting the priorities straight and using available assets to a firm’s advantage. While the horizontal and vertical analysis types are often juxtaposed, they, in fact, are the constituents of a single entity. Indeed, a closer look at the horizontal and vertical analysis types will shows that they complement each other. Offering companies a chance to explore their performance both in the context of their unique history and the contemporary market, each framework delivers the results that inform a company’s further financial strategy. As a result, a comprehensive assessment of the threats and opportunities that are open to an organization becomes a possibility (Vallabhaneni, 2015). Furthermore, selecting the base year when performing either vertical or horizontal analysis hinges on the goals thereof. For example, in the scenarios that involve rebranding a product or introducing a new brand to a specific audience, one may consider selecting the last year before the alterations as the base year for the analysis (Beecken & Beecken, 2017). Moreover, the interpretations of the analysis results will require extra data. Like many other analytical tools, horizontal and vertical types of financial statement analysis cannot be studied outside of the context in which they are performed. Hence, considering the performance of competitors, the characteristics of the selected industry, the demands of target customers, etc., must be recognized as a necessity. Vertical and horizontal types of financial statement analysis must become integral parts of any company’s financial operations. The specified strategies help identify necessary changes to a firm’s financial policy. Thus, both frameworks need to be included in the corporate setting.
Introduction and thesis statement The economy is a set of interconnected and interrelated processes that being in different spheres can influence each other in different ways. The article “Failure to Launch: Young Adults Increasingly Moving In With Mom and Dad” by Andrew Soergel (2016) presents recent events in the area of householding. According to the author, “more than 1 in 5 young adults still live with their parents, according to a new study” (Soergel 2016, para. 1). The author explores the influence of the economic situation in the country on the current choices of the Millennials in terms of their housing problems caused by the variety of seemingly non-related economic factors. Soergel (2016) states that more and more young people between 24 and 34 years of age still live with their parents, or they have decided to move in back to their parents’ homes. Economic setting The economic setting is as follows. The economy grows as does the number of workplaces. There is no correlation between employed and unemployed Millennials and their decision to move back into the parents’ houses (Soergel 2016, para. 16). There is a connection between college students and young people who live with their parents. Additionally, the homeownership rate in the USA has dropped substantially in the first quarter of the current year, up to almost 64% (Soergel 2016, para. 18). The wages of the American young people who can be called adults have either stagnated or decreased for the past five years, disregarding the growth of the economic indicators (Doerer 2015, para. 8). Finally, the debts of the students only increased as education became more expensive, as of today. Economic analysis The situation appears to be paradoxical, considering the rising economy. However, some factors make the current trend rather understandable. The first factor is the increased marriage age. More young people in their twenties decide to marry later, closer to 30 or even later (Soergel 2016 para. 10). It is related to the choice of receiving higher education rather than finding a full-time job after high school. It should be noted that more and more young women tend to live at home and go to college these days if to compare the numbers with the 1940s (Alter 2015, para. 4). Conclusion Using the fact that the salaries for young adults do not grow, one can conclude that the generation of Millennials started to think like economists. They started to make the choices based on a cost-benefit analysis. They marry later to avoid a huge increase in their debts because the students’ loans are usually unpaid in full when they leave college. Rent for an apartment or house for a family is very expensive, as well. Young women have decided to receive higher education first and only then get married to have the opportunity of career growth and self-realization (Alter 2015, para. 3). Young adults of Ame
One of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America and its most distinguished personalities, Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Declaration of Independence and later served as the third president of America. Being such a prominent figure in the history of the US, Jefferson has a great deal of researches and publications covering his biography, ideas, and his personal life. Although Jefferson’s endeavors are not the first topic of interest for historians, it has also received excessive coverage over the decades. However, what interested most of the authors were Jefferson’s relationships with an African American woman Sarah “Sally” Hemings, which developed after Jefferson’s wife tragically passed away in 1782. The significance of this topic in the cultural context of the America of that time is the subject of this paper. The romance of Jefferson and a young African American girl was rather controversial and to some extent influenced the president himself and the political course that guided him. Jefferson and Hemings’ Relationship in the Cultural Context To understand why this relationship resulted in such attention, one would have to understand the peculiarities of the cultural context in which Jefferson lived. The America of those days was a country with highly developed slavery. Needless to say, it resulted in various forms of infringement of rights
Introduction Every person has the right to be protected from any offenses; the latter include various types of discrimination, such as discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, origin, religion, age, or disability (“Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination” n. pag.). However, such discrimination is not a rare thing, and it is important to fight the offenders. This paper scrutinizes the case of hostile environment sexual harassment that took place Love’s Travel Stops and Country Stores, Inc. (Bell 94). After discussing the laws that were violated by the company which allowed such a situation to occur, we will describe what the victims of the harassment were entitled to expect according to the law. We will also speculate on the organizational factors which contributed to the adverse situation, and offer some possible steps to be taken to both prevent the management failures similar to those which occurred in the firm and encourage the employees to report the cases of offense to the management. The Laws that the Company Violated The case described by Bell depicts a situation when the victim experienced the hostile environment harassment consisting of crude remarks, sexual comments, unwanted touching, and intimidation (92-93). Such offensive behavior is illegal (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission par. 1-5). The sexual harassment practices present in the organization are strictly prohibited by the Sexual Harassment Law, which can be found in Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act (1964); it forbids the attitudes that existed in the company, as well as other types of discrimination based other characteristics, such as race, color, age, etc. (“Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination” n. pag.; “Sexual Harassment Law” par. 1-3). It is stated that the victims of the abusive behavior are eligible to seek protection under the federal U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Besides, the victims could also seek protection under Fair Employment Practice acts which exist in some of the states and also include regulations concerning the issue of sexual harassment (“Sexual Harassment Law” par. 5). What Protection Should the Employees Have Expected According to the Law? According to the law, the harassed employees had the right to expect the company’s protection from the sexual harassment. First, the employer was obliged to establish clear policies regarding the sexual harassment (and any other type of harassment). The firm had to make it clear that any types of harassment would not be tolerated, and establish the procedure of formal complaint. Such a policy had to encourage the employees to complain about the harassment to the managers before the offense becomes serious. The company was also obliged to designate more than one person responsible for accepting the complaints in order to avoid prejudice or impartiality on that level; the person had to be reachable by the employees, and must not have been the victim’s supervisor. T
Compulsions and Addictions Establishing a difference between addiction and compulsion can be a challenging matter, as these notions coincide in several key features. Both of the phenomena can be described as the inability to control behavior that may offer temporary relief from anxiety. However, addictions professionals must be able to distinguish between the two matters. On the one hand, compulsion is a strong desire to behave in a certain way that may be connected to obsessive thoughts (“What’s the Difference”). On the other hand, addiction is the inability to stop practicing a harmful habit despite its negative consequences, as it is connected to the physical or psychological pleasures (“What’s the Difference”). Therefore, these two notions differ in one crucial characteristic. It is beneficial to look at two terms in an example to acquire a better understanding of the phenomena. Hoarding is a psychological disorder that may have negative consequences for a person and his or her friends and family. Therefore, it can be treated as an addiction, as it is a failure to discontinue a habit despite its adverse effects. However, the behavior is not associated with physical or psychological pleasure. It is connected to the fear of negative emotions from parting with an object. Hence, hoarding is a compulsion, as it is the consequence of obsessive thoughts and feelings. Unique Features of Addictions Treatment Counselors having a personal history of addiction is a unique feature of the field of addictions. While the phenomenon was relatively widespread in the 1970s, such history does not make a specialist more effective in treating the condition. There is no doubt that a person who has had the first-hand experience in the matter may seem more accountable for addicts. Indeed, many theoretical ways of treating gambling have failed due to being very far from reality (Gupta et al. 576). However, a person who has recovered from distress can think that he or she has found a unique method to treat all cases, which is also untrue. Therefore, while a personal history of addiction can be used as an example of a piece of evidence, it cannot be considered a beneficial factor for treating addiction. The other unique aspects of
The modern world, with its highly developed technologies and increasing population of the planet, issues global challenges for humanity. One of the problems that have emerged full-blown is the global problem of nutrition. It is obvious that any customer wants to consume high quality, health, and fresh food free from any genetically modified organisms. It is the universal truth that the health of a person depends upon the food he consumes. At the same time, no one can deny the fact that without modern technologies in the sphere of agriculture, it is impossible to satisfy the global demand in food products. There are different approaches to this problem. There exist adherents of the organic food concept, who believe that food should be produced by means of traditional methods free from fertilizes or pesticides. There are also proponents of industrial food technologies, who review the issue from a broader perspective. They assert that it is impossible to deny the fact of the industrialization in agriculture. For this essay, the following theses have been chosen:   * the organic food concept has definite benefits for a consumer as well as for a grower;   * there is a difference between organic food and real food;   * the real food concept is not able to solve the global food problem. One of the steadfast advocates of organic food growing is Eliot Coleman. Describing all benefits of organic farming for human health and environmental protection, Coleman asserts that such a term as organic has already outlived its usefulness. The main Coleman’s idea is that a conception of a mass marketing contradicts the organic food approach. He is convinced that in order to make products produced by food giants competitive, demands for a quality of food to be labeled as organic have been underestimated. In his opinion, the notion of organic food does not mean its supreme quality anymore as it was several years ago. Now he proposes to use such a term as authentic or real food. By implementing this notion, he aims to emphasize the main differences between fresh, ripe, and nourishing food produced by growers and food that is now called organic. He also maintains claims for the real food production that are inadmissible for the food giants. The typical representative of the opposing vision of this problem is Robert Paarlberg. He is convinced that the adherents of organic or real food act from respectable motives. However, they do not understand the food problem on a global scale. He is sure that the debates concerning the nature of real food are a prerogative of the
Taking a glance back into the time when women were fully dependent on men, one cannot help wondering how much has been accomplished in such little time. However, the idea of women’s liberation is not new to any existing field, and literature is no exception. In the prologue to his The Wife of Bath’s Tale , Chaucer makes a clear statement about the necessity to free women from men’s domination. Analyzing an extract which starts with “Sir old fool, what help is it if you spy?” (Chaucer 307) and ends with “Dear sir shrew, Jesus shorten your life!” (Chaucer 307), one can possibly get a better understanding of Chaucer’s work. To start with, the given work belongs to the genre of poetry. The answer seems quite obvious, since the extract contains obvious rhymes, such as “best–blessed,” “earth–fourth,” etc. (Chaucer 307). Speaking of the style, one must take a closer look at several text elements. For instance, since the first sentence starts with addressing the “Sir old fool,” it can be considered that the author chose dramatic monologue as the text style. However, there can be traced certain elements of narrative in the text: “He’d not guard me till I let him” (Chaucer 307). The above-mentioned example can be classified as the means to turn the text into a story, which allows to refer the latter to the narrative style. Hence, the extract is a blend of the two. Like any other piece of poetry, the given extract possesses specific prosodic characteristics. As for the meter, one has to admit that the given extract is written in an iambic pentameter. To prove the above-mentioned, it will suffice to offer the following evidence: the line “Though you prayed Argus with his hundred eyes” ((Chaucer 307) has ten syllables, with the emphasis on every second one. However, there are also obvious prose elements, for instance, the first-person narrator: “I’ll be blessed” (Chaucer 307). In addition, the poem extract is packed with all sorts of metaphors. For example, the Knight never really “prayed Argus” (Chaucer 307) – this is the metaphor for constantly keeping an eye on someone, a woman in the given case, for Argus is the mythological giant guardian. It is necessary to add that the major theme of the given extract is the idea of women’s freedom. The entire piece is shot through with the desire to break free f
Introduction Considering the fact that the modern world is the world of computes, television, mobile phones, and other devices, information technology and system is a rather crucial field. In order for ordinary people to keep up with the times and for various companies to stay competitive, it is of vital importance to know why and how to use electronic devices, as well as be aware of the advantages and disadvantages. The purpose of this paper is to briefly discuss data, information, and knowledge. Then, the pros and cons of a leader being always available for his or her employees and clients will be addressed. Finally, some facts about robots replacing human labor in the future will be provided. Data, Information, and Knowledge First of all, it is necessary to differentiate the concepts of data, information, and knowledge. According to the DIK pyramid, data are characteristics, most often numerical, collected through observation (“Defining Knowledge, Information, Data”). It is the lowest part of the pyramid, followed by information, which is actually processed data that became meaningful to the receiver or user (“Defining Knowledge, Information, Data”). Finally, the highest part is the knowledge that “consists of data and/or information that have been organized and processed to convey understanding, experience, accumulated learning, and expertise as they apply to a current business problem” (Rainer and Prince 10). Hence, these concepts are different though connected to each other. Pros of Always Staying in Touch Informational technologies have become an integral part of modern businesses and provided them with some crucial benefits. There are certain pros and cons of a company’s leader to always be in touch with the employees and customers. The advantages include that the organization’s workers feel more secured if their manager is available all the time and can help them whenever they need it. Moreover, the leader is able to solve severe problems as soon as they emerge because he or she is immediately notified by the employees. Finally, if the manager is constantly in touch with the clients, it increases their trust and desire to use this company’s services. Cons of Always Staying in Touch As mentioned above, there are also disadvantages both for the leader and employees. First of all, if workers know that they can rely on their manager and call him or her every time something severe happens, they become less responsible and independent. Hence, if they suddenly cannot reach their leader, they may not be able to solve the problem by themselves. Second of all, if the manager states he or she is always available but does not get in touch when needed, this may ruin his or her as well as the company’s reputation. Finally, the leader will not be able to live his or her own life and enjoy entirely free from work time and personal space. Robots in Business Organizations Since technologies are entering all the spheres of life, it becomes both easier and harder for people to manage the business on their own. That is why
Maps and Dreams by Hugh Brody is an ethnographical account of the research which was conducted at a Beaver Indian reserve in British Columbia. Combining the chapters with the first-person narration and the parts with verified scientific data, the author implements an original approach for providing an account of his observation and the results of the experiment. Mixing the scientific and humanistic approaches and implementing the anthropological framework and the concept of the bio-cultural triad for covering various sides of life of Beaver community, Brody uses dialogic procedures for depicting and explaining the processes in the Indigenous community. Hugh Brody implemented a mix of scientific and humanistic approaches for covering the naturalistic issues in his ethnographic account of life of a Beaver Indian reserve. Funded by the federal government, the ethnographer has spent more than a year in northwestern British Columbia for examining the possible impact of the planned natural gas pipe upon the conditions of life of Indigenous population. Disregarding this federal mission, Brody’s book under consideration contains not only verified data on history and economy of the Beaver reserve, but also his personal views of their lifestyles and their culture. Mixing the chapters with first-person reportage with scientific data, the author noticeably struggles with the difficulties of describing the phenomena of an unknown culture using the native language. There is a contrast between the scientific methods implemented for studying various dimensions of the community and partially subjective manner of representation of the achieved results, which emphasizes the complexity of the processes in the reserve. The ethnographer suffers from a culture shock which can be seen in his reactions to the surrounding