Saturday, May 23, 2020

International Trade Is An Old Subject - 2086 Words

International trade is an old subject, but it continues to increase its relevance thanks to the intensification of links between countries. In fact, they are now more than ever interconnected through trade in goods and services, through cash flows and investments. These phenomena increase pervasively due to the growing trend toward globalization. Therefore, many theories, which highlight the gains from trade, were created and then developed and some of them are useful to explain the current international trade. The first developers, who laid the foundation for further and more recent theories about the importance of trade between nations, were classical economists: Adam Smith and David Ricardo. According to Salvatore (2012), Smith†¦show more content†¦According to his theory, â€Å"even if one nation is less efficient than the other nation in the production of both commodities, there is still a basis for mutual beneficial trade† (Salvatore, 2012, p.35). A country may be more efficient in the production of both goods, but it will still have a comparative advantage in the production of a single good, the one that uses resources in the most efficient way compared to alternative production (ibid). The mistake made by Ricardo was that his model revolved around the labour theory of value, which states that the relative prices of commodities are proportional to the amount of work incorporated into them (Bellino, 2012). This assumption is not reflected in real life, thus, the law of comparative advantage was redrafted by Haberler (Salvatore, 2012) in terms of opportunity cost. Accordingly, a country has a comparative advantage in the production of a good whether the opportunity cost of its production is lower than in the other country (Salvatore, 2012). This last notion is defined as the units of a good that a country has to give up in order to produce one additional unit of the other good (ibid). This concept is also called marginal rate of transformation, which is explained by the absolute value of the slope of the production possibility frontier (PPF) (ibid). In fact, this frontier symbolises the maximum amount of a commodity that can be supplied once it is decided the extent of the

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Understanding and Using Loops in Delphi Programming

The loop is a common element in all programming languages. Delphi has three control structures that execute blocks of code repeatedly: for, repeat ... until and while ... do. The FOR loop Suppose we need to repeat an operation a fixed number of times. // show 1,2,3,4,5 message boxesvar j: integer;beginfor j : 1 to 5 dobeginShowMessage(Box: IntToStr(j)) ;end;end; The value of a control variable (j), which is really just a counter, determines how many times a for statement runs. The keyword for sets up a counter. In the preceding example, the starting value for the counter is set to 1. The ending value is set to 5.When the for statement begins running the counter variable is set to the starting value. Delphi than checks whether the value for the counter is less than the ending value. If the value is greater, nothing is done (program execution jumps to the line of code immediately following the for loop code block). If the starting value is less than the ending value, the body of the loop is executed (here: the message box is displayed). Finally, Delphi adds 1 to the counter and starts the process again. Sometimes it is necessary to count backward. The downto keyword specifies that the value of a counter should be decremented by one each time the loop executes (it is not possible to specify an increment / decrement other than one). An example of a for loop that counts backward. var j: integer;beginfor j : 5 downto 1 dobeginShowMessage(T minus IntToStr(j) seconds) ;end;ShowMessage(For sequence executed!) ;end; Note: its important that you never change the value of the control variable in the middle of the loop. Doing so will cause errors. Nested FOR loops Writing a for loop within another for loop (nesting loops) is very useful when you want to fill / display data in a table or a grid. var k,j: integer;begin//this double loop is executed 4x416 timesfor k: 1 to 4 dofor j: 4 downto 1 doShowMessage(Box: IntToStr(k) , IntToStr(j)) ;end; The rule for nesting for-next loops is simple: the inner loop (j counter) must be completed before the next statement for the outer loop is encountered (k counter). We can have triply or quadruply nested loops, or even more. Note: Generally, the begin and end keywords are not strictly required, as you can see. If begin and end are not used, the statement immediately following the for statement is considered the body of the loop. The FOR-IN loop If you have Delphi 2005 or any newer version, you can use the new for-element-in-collection style iteration over containers. The following example demonstrates iteration over string expressions: for each char in string check if the character is either a or e or i. consts About Delphi Programming;varc : char;beginfor c in s dobeginif c in [a,e,i] thenbegin// do somethingend;end;end; The WHILE and REPEAT loops Sometimes we wont know exactly how many times a loop should cycle. What if we want to repeat an operation until we reach a specific goal? The most important difference between the while-do loop and the repeat-until loop is that the code of the repeat statement is always executed at least once. The general pattern when we write a repeat (and while) type of loop in Delphi is as follows: repeatbeginstatements;end;until condition true while condition true dobeginstatements;end; Here is the code to show 5 successive message boxes using repeat-until: varj: integer;beginj:0;repeatbeginj : j 1;ShowMessage(Box:IntToStr(j)) ;end;until j 5;end; As you can see, the repeat statement evaluates a condition at the end of the loop (therefore repeat loop is executed for sure at least once). The while statement, on the other hand, evaluates a condition at the beginning of the loop. Since the test is being done at the top, we will usually need to make sure that the condition makes sense before the loop is processed, if this is not true the compiler may decide to remove the loop from the code. var j: integer;beginj:0;while j 5 dobeginj:j1;ShowMessage(Box:IntToStr(j)) ;end;end; Break and Continue The Break and Continue procedures can be used to control the flow of repetitive statements: The Break procedure causes the flow of control to exit a for, while, or repeat statement and continue at the next statement following the loop statement. Continue allows the flow of control to proceed to the next iteration of repeating operation.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Film Analysis Essay on Crash (2004) Free Essays

The movie â€Å"Crash† – from director and producer Paul Haggis – pictures one day in the lives of various characters in Los Angeles, all of them from different social and racial backgrounds but nevertheless connected and intertwined throughout the story. The movie’s story is being told in a mostly chronological way, except that it puts one scene to the very beginning of the film and then cuts back to the day prior, indicated by the visual text â€Å"yesterday†. In this first sequence, detectives Graham Waters and his partner Ria have been rearended when they arrive at a crime scene, leading to a fight between Hispanic Ria and the accident responsible, furious Chinese Kim Lee, involving race-related insults towards each other. We will write a custom essay sample on Film Analysis Essay on Crash (2004) or any similar topic only for you Order Now Breaking through the temporal order and showing everything that has happened prior to this fight gives the explanation why Kim Lee is so furious and why she was in such a hurry, as her husband is in hospital for being run over by a car. This strategy of playing with the viewer’s opinion and sympathy about the single characters is one that is central for the movie. Therefore a lot of prejudices are implicitly and explicitly presented through the narrative and the movie’s surface. Anthony and Peter for example are being pictured as two young adolescents just leaving a diner and discussing the (non-)discriminating treatment of the waitress. In Anthony’s opinion even other black people are racist towards Afro-Americans and that white people are scared of them although they are not even dressed like â€Å"gang-bangers†. This gives the impression of young people being worried and angry about ungrounded racial discrimination. Then the dialogue suddenly changes, both of them pull a gun and they steal the car from Rick and Jean Cabot – the two white people they just accused of having prejudices about them – leaving the viewer with a sudden change in the characterization they were given before. The movie continues like this when it shows the Hispanic locksmith Daniel Ruiz – mean-looking, tattooed and with a shaved head. Jean Cabot’s assumption about him being a Gang member who will sell the keys to their house as soon as he is out the door is consistent with his outward appearance. It is not until later in the movie, when he arrives at home taking loving care of his daughter, that the first impression is negated and turned into the opposite. Most of the characters in Crash turn out to be different than the first picture that is drawn of them all the time turning the story towards unanticipated events and revealing important information bout character backgrounds. Beyond that, it is important mentioning the complex net of connections and entanglements that occur between the characters and their stories and events. There is Jean Corbet, accusing her locksmith Daniel Ruiz of being a gang member, whose daughter is almost shot by the Persian shop owner Farhad, whose daughter works in the mortuary where Detective Graham Waters dead brother is identified as Peter, who stole Jean Corbets car, making her change the locks in her house in the first place. This list of connections could be continued with for another while, as there are more characters involved with even more links between them. This motive of connection is also shown by the cuts from one scene to the next via an audible and/or a visual connection. For instance when Ria storms out of Graham Waters apartment and slams the door after her, the film cuts to Officer John Ryan lying in his bed – suddenly being woken up by his Crash – 2004 Identity and Diversity in American Film Miriam Keller – 05/30/2012 Miriam Keller – 05/30/2012 groaning father. To the viewer it looks like he is wakes up from the slamming door, although there is no diegetic connection. Another example is the cut from Anthony and Peter just having stolen the black navigator, to the crime scene of the shooting between two drivers. As the car with Anthony and Peter drives through the picture it cuts to a police car passing by in exactly the same camera-shot and revealing the crime scene behind it. Match-cuts like this are a reoccurring stylistic element, emphasizing the just specified net of entanglements. The central topic of racism and prejudices in the movie Crash is shown from various different angles, pointing at the complexity of this issue. It states that nothing and no one can be easily characterized and the importance of looking at the bigger picture instead of pigeonholing someone. All the different characters with their intertwined stories make it clear that everyone is connected and the range of influence of one person’s behavior is further than one would expect. How to cite Film Analysis Essay on Crash (2004), Essay examples

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Multinational Corporations and Global Justice †MyAssignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Multinational Corporations and Global Justice. Answer: Introduction The world has increasingly become smaller due to the globalization of companies seeking to tap into new markets and enhance their business fortunes. As a result, there is the movement of labor, knowledge, and technology across the globe to complement and meet the need of competent, innovative and skilled expertise from all walks of life. These movements take the role of ensuring that people come together and work collectively in a movement to achieve certain aspects that could not have been otherwise achieved when done individually. Increased globalization in the business world has necessitated companies to comply with standardized rules and regulations for various reasons anchored to its reputation and smooth operations. Compliance to ethical and human rights issues has become vital to organizations' operations and culture. This has, therefore, forced companies to re-align their core business activities to reflect ethical standards and human rights considerations. Those that disrespect the rules are automatically subjected to scrutiny from industry-peers, media, and the general public Besides, authorities have developed a significant interest in the human rights largely due to a wave of increased illegalities and unfair treatment of workers which includes the use of child labor, low wages, discrimination and unsafe working environment. Advocating for such rights at the individual level is difficult, and thus, the coming together helps to enhance and manage the aspects (Stark, 2010). Corporations have the mandate to enforce the universal human rights standards through systems and procedures laid in collaborations with their external stakeholders. To this effect, organizations have committed resources to align their organizational structures and processes to human rights dictates to enhance the reputation of the company and increased the probability to gain market share and acquire a competitive edge (Ronnegard, 2015). Further, in a bid to uphold the rights of its employees, the company achieves motivation and high productivity from its workers through some of the below-discussed practices. Impartiality and Fairness All staff ought to be subjected to equal standards of treatment without favoritism or discrimination. Practicing these ethical standards ensures the human rights to fair treatment is not interfered with in any way. This measure is vital to the organization's unity and morale towards a common goal and objective. Unfair and impartial treatment undermines the human rights, and people feel out of the place which affects their freedom (Valdman, 2009). Thus, every business organization is expected to consider this ethical aspect and ensure that it treats its employees fairly. Organizations practice transparency through sharing information openly within and without the company. Part of the information pertains the procurement activities of the organization, recruitment, and promotions. Nevertheless, confidential information of the company is reserved for security, competitive purposes and privacy of its employees. By being transparent, companies present an opportunity to the general to scrutinize and evaluate the dealings. The media also plays a watchdog role in examining corporate organizations and revealing any unethical conducts. Restricting people from accessing the organization's information hampers the rights of people (Scherer, 2015). Therefore, every business organization is expected to practice this ethical issue to ensure that all the stakeholders have information regarding the organization. Ethics demand for the organization to provide its employees with protective gears to prevent them against burns, cuts and other forms of injuries. This measure is consistent with the human rights to health and safety in a working environment. Every business organization must establish and understand all the safety issues that exist in every job position and put in place every required safety measures to ensure that employees are safe (Snyder, 2009). Some of these actions include the providing the workers with the necessary protective gear to enhance their safety. Every business organization must ensure that the employees are working in the safe and comfortable conditions. Preservation of employees privacy Telecommunication companies are at a high risk of violating the rights to privacy of their clients and workers due to pressure from authorities. Accessing of private information and tapping to the conversation of people is a massive breach of their security because it exposes the affected to fraudsters and cyber crimes. Such a case violates the privacy rights of people (Powell Zwolinski, 2012). Example, Internet companies including Google have resisted the pressure from security agencies to allow access to private data and information of its customers is thereby compromising their safety making them vulnerable (Zwolinski, 2007). Organizations have human resource management that endeavors to investigate into their employee's frustrations and addressing their concerns to achieve maximum productivity from their labor and equally sort their rights (Strudler, 2017). Further, it is through this functionality that the culture of ethics is cultivated in the organization through rules, regulations, and systems supporting standards best practices. This is critical in helping the companies grow to increase the productivity of people which in turn improves the profitability of the organization. The corporate social responsibility is practicing ethics, fairness, and generosity to both the internal and external stakeholders to the organization. Ethics demand the team to reciprocate for the hospitality of the host communities through rolling various projects including infrastructure, enlightening the locals on new issues including health and education. The company donates resources and knowledge to the host community in a bid to improve their quality of lives. This is a positive initiative that serves to empower the community both economically and socially which upholds their human rights in various quarters. The organization's corporate social responsibility does not only help the people and community outside but also brings many benefits to the company. These include its ability to bring about the business sustainability of the organization (Lee Kotler, 2013). Ethics demands organizations to conserve the environment and ensure depletion of natural resources does not happen. On this grounds, companies are forced to dispose waste responsibly and contain their emissions so that it does not cause health hazards to the local community. It is the interest of authorities to ensure its people are not harmed by activities of companies infringing on their health rights (Wettstein, 2009). Therefore, every business enterprise is expected to be an environmental steward and activities that can negatively affect the environment. Impediment to Ethical and Human Rights Considerations Business enterprises ought to analyze challenges obstructing the full and efficient implementation of the ethical regulations which is consequential to systematic human rights risks. Among the distracters to the achievement of ethics and human rights is the cost involved to roll-out these practices. Due to this, some companies have resolved to set up their operations in countries with cheap labor and lenient human rights laws, as a strategy to cut down costs (Werhane, Hartman, Archer, Englehard Pritchard, 2013). Companies bend toward respecting and practicing human rights to gain enhanced reputation and longevity of their businesses among other benefits. They learn in the length of time how to make human rights commitment their culture within their companies and in partnership with external stakeholders. Enterprises that excel at human rights implementation over time are then able to communicate their successes and gain trust with consumers and investors (Ellis, 2007). Also, firms that are ethical and respect human rights are highly attractive to skilled and competent professionals across the globe. Conclusion In conclusion, the presence of a clear guide and standards of human rights practice enables organizations to have a level field of business activities and prevent them from potential lawsuits that can potentially damage their reputation. Additionally, companies can organize cross-functional activities that involve the leadership of the organization from top to bottom which enhances free interaction and socialization of the employees. This is in a bid to break the barrier of superiority and promote the human rights to freedom of expression and socialization at free will. References Ellis, C. (2007). Telling secrets, revealing lives: Relational ethics in research with intimate others. Qualitative Inquiry, 13, 3-29. Lee, N. Kotler, P. (2013). Corporate social responsibility: doing the most good for your company and your cause Powell, B. Zwolinski, M (2012). "The Ethical and the Economic Case Against Sweatshop Labor: A Critical Assessment," Journal of Business Ethics, 107(4): 449-472. Ronnegard, D. (2015).The Fallacy of Corporate Moral Agency, New York: Springer. Scherer, A. (2015). "Can Hyper norms be Justified? Insights from the Discourse-Ethical Perspective", Business Ethics Quarterly, 25(4): 489516. Snyder, J. (2009). Whats the Matter with Price Gouging?,Business Ethics Quarterly, 19(2): 275293. Stark, A., (2010). "Business in Politics: Lobbying and the Corporate Campaign Contributions," in G.G. Brenkert and T.L. Beauchamp (eds.), Oxford Handbook of Business Ethics, New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 501532. Strudler, A. (2017). What to Do with Corporate Wealth?,Journal of Political Philosophy, (25)1: 108126. Valdman, M. (2009). "A Theory of Wrongful Exploitation," The Philosophers Imprint, 9(6) Werhane, P., Hartman, L., Archer, C., Englehardt, E. Pritchard, M. (2013).Obstacles to the Ethical Decision-Making: Mental Models, Milgram and the Problem of Obedience, New York: Cambridge University Press. Wettstein, F., (2009).Multinational Corporations and the Global Justice: Human Rights Obligations of a Quasi-Governmental Institution, Stanford, CA: Stanford Business Books. Zwolinski, M. (2007). "Sweatshops, Choice, and Exploitation," Business Ethics Quarterly, 17(4): 689727.