Candide Characters Essay

In Candide, the character called Pangloss is believed to be a parody of philosophers who spent their time idly wondering about the world or debating points that have no real significance to life situations.   For instance, Pangloss keeps on saying that the world is good despite all of the misfortunes that have befallen him. Many experts believe that Voltaire was also making fun at G.W. von Leibniz, a seventeenth-century philosopher who was part of a greater movement called theodicy.   This school of thought explains that evil exists in the world because they serve particular purposes.   That even if the world is perfect because it was created by a perfect God, it is necessary to allow evil to happen.   It’s clear that Voltaire does not believe, like how philosophers did, that there is an inherent goodness in everything and that everything happens for a reason, even the bad ones. Setting: The nobility of France In this play, the setting could be defined as the society, which is present at that time.   In other words, some members of the nobility of France were part of Candide’s life, like Cunegonde and her brother.   One example wherein Voltaire poked fun at this class is when he related that the baron’s sister didn’t marry Candide’s father because he only had â€Å"seventy-one noble lineages.† Action: Jacques Death Jacques, a good man who helped Candide and Pangloss, fell on a turbulent sea as he was rescuing a sailor.   The sailor, instead of helping Jacques to get back to the ship ignored the poor man, which resulted to his death.   In this example, it would seem that Voltaire is parodying the Christian preaching of good overcoming evil.   Here, Jacques did a good deed and was a good man but he died because of it.   To add to the mockery, Pangloss even said that the sea outside Lisbon was specifically created so that Jacques could drown in it. Works Cited Arouet, Francois-Marie.   â€Å"Candide by Voltaire.† Courier Dover Publications, 1991. Ward, Selena, and Jaffee, Valerie.   â€Å"Candide.†Ã‚   Sparknotes Home Page.   21 July 2008

Hot and Cold Essay

Since time immemorial, Indians have been bombarded with snacks-to-go by street vendors; fastfood is neither a modern phenomenon, nor a western innovation. But as increasing numbers of international players enter the domestic market, there are bitter lessons to learn about what local consumers will and will not welcome. just-food.com’s Debasish Ganguly reports from India on the evolving sector and the challenges facing new entrants into the fastfood market. Fastfood is not an alien concept to Indians; roadside shops have offered snacks-to-go since time immemorial and the country has a long tradition of indigenous fastfood served by a variety of street vendors. Whether the southern ‘Dosas’ or the ‘Phulkas’ in the north, the ‘Vada’, ‘Samosas’ or ‘Bhelpuri’, this inexpensive cuisine is still going strong, and street selling is a low-cost method of food distribution. However, since the arrival of established fastfood chains such as McDonald’s, marketing savvy and dollar power have given fastfood a very western orientation. The weekend stampedes outside any McDonalds restaurant are standing testimony to this fact. But the burger behemoths still have a long way to go. Local fastfood is not easily undermined by these interlopers, since methods of mass production have not been perfected and, in any case, they would have to compete with low cost ‘artisan’ production. On the other hand, the reality is that established local fastfood chains, like Nirulas, Wimpys or Haldiram, are sensing competition by the growing popularity of McDonald’s and other international chains. Though Nirulas does not admit to any drop in sales overtly, industry sources reveal that they have lost 18% of their original market share. So far, the fastfood chains have gained their popularity among the major metropolitan cities of India and some smaller cities, such as Pune or Baroda. Before the arrival of these fastfood chains, Nirulas was the market leaderin Delhi. In fact, Nirulas taught Delhi-dwellers what pizzas and burgers were all about. Nirulas was commanding a monopoly until western chains arrived in India.

Vampire Academy Chapter 5

FIVE OR RATHER, THEY HAD BEEN Strigoi. A regiment of guardians had hunted them down and killed them. If rumors were true, Christian had witnessed it all when he was very young. And although he wasn't Strigoi himself, some people thought he wasn't far off, with the way he always wore black and kept to himself. Strigoi or not, I didn't trust him. He was a jerk, and I silently screamed at Lissa to get out of there – not that my screaming did much good. Stupid one-way bond. â€Å"What are you doing here?† she asked. â€Å"Taking in the sights, of course. That chair with the tarp on it is particularly lovely this time of year. Over there, we have an old box full of the writings of the blessed and crazy St. Vladimir. And let's not forget that beautiful table with no legs in the corner.† â€Å"Whatever.† She rolled her eyes and moved toward the door, wanting to leave, but he blocked her way. â€Å"Well, what about you?† he taunted. â€Å"Why are you up here? Don't you have parties to go to or lives to destroy?† Some of Lissa's old spark returned. â€Å"Wow, that's hilarious. Am I like a rite of passage now? Go and see if you can piss off Lissa to prove how cool you are? Some girl I don't even know yelled at me today, and now I've got to deal with you? What does it take to be left alone?† â€Å"Oh. So that's why you're up here. For a pity party.† â€Å"This isn't a joke. I'm serious.† I could tell Lissa was getting angry. It was trumping her earlier distress. He shrugged and leaned casually against the sloping wall. â€Å"So am I. I love pity parties. I wish I'd brought the hats. What do you want to mope about first? How it's going to take you a whole day to be popular and loved again? How you'll have to wait a couple weeks before Hollister can ship out some new clothes? If you spring for rush shipping, it might not be so long.† â€Å"Let me leave,† she said angrily, this time pushing him aside. â€Å"Wait,† he said, as she reached the door. The sarcasm disappeared from his voice. â€Å"What? ­um, what was it like?† â€Å"What was what like?† she snapped. â€Å"Being out there. Away from the Academy.† She hesitated for a moment before answering, caught off guard by what seemed like a genuine attempt at conversation. â€Å"It was great. No one knew who I was. I was just another face. Not Moroi. Not royal. Not anything.† She looked down at the floor. â€Å"Everyone here thinks they know who I am.† â€Å"Yeah. It's kind of hard to outlive your past,† he said bitterly. It occurred to Lissa at that moment – and me to by default – just how hard it might be to be Christian. Most of the time, people treated him like he didn't exist. Like he was a ghost. They didn't talk to or about him. They just didn't notice him. The stigma of his parents' crime was too strong, casting its shadow onto the entire Ozera family. Still, he'd pissed her off, and she wasn't about to feel sorry for him. â€Å"Wait – is this your pity party now?† He laughed, almost approvingly. â€Å"This room has been my pity party for a year now.† â€Å"Sorry,† said Lissa snarkily. â€Å"I was coming here before I left. I've got a longer claim.† â€Å"Squatters' rights. Besides, I have to make sure I stay near the chapel as much as possible so people know I haven't gone Strigoi? ­yet.† Again, the bitter tone rang out. â€Å"I used to always see you at mass. Is that the only reason you go? To look good?† Strigoi couldn't enter holy ground. More of that sinning-against-the-world thing. â€Å"Sure,† he said. â€Å"Why else go? For the good of your soul?† â€Å"Whatever,† said Lissa, who clearly had a different opinion. â€Å"I'll leave you alone then.† â€Å"Wait,† he said again. He didn't seem to want her to go. â€Å"I'll make you a deal. You can hang out here too if you tell me one thing.† â€Å"What?† She glanced back at him. He leaned forward. â€Å"Of all the rumors I heard about you today – and believe me, I heard plenty, even if no one actually told them to me – there was one that didn't come up very much. They dissected everything else: why you left, what you did out there, why you came back, the specialization, what Rose said to Mia, blah, blah, blah. And in all of that, no one, no one ever questioned that stupid story that Rose told about there being all sorts of fringe humans who let you take blood.† She looked away, and I could feel her cheeks starting to burn. â€Å"It's not stupid. Or a story.† He laughed softly. â€Å"I've lived with humans. My aunt and I stayed away after my parents? ­died. It's not that easy to find blood.† When she didn't answer, he laughed again. â€Å"It was Rose, wasn't it? She fed you.† A renewed fear shot through both her and me. No one at school could know about that. Kirova and the guardians on the scene knew, but they'd kept that knowledge to themselves. â€Å"Well. If that's not friendship, I don't know what it is,† he said. â€Å"You can't tell anyone,† she blurted out. This was all we needed. As I'd just been reminded, feeders were vampire-bite addicts. We accepted that as part of life but still looked down on them for it. For anyone else – especially a dhampir – letting a Moroi take blood from you was almost, well, dirty. In fact, one of the kinkiest, practically pornographic things a dhampir could do was let a Moroi drink blood during sex. Lissa and I hadn't had sex, of course, but we'd both known what others would think of me feeding her. â€Å"Don't tell anyone,† Lissa repeated. He stuffed his hands in his coat pockets and sat down on one of the crates. â€Å"Who am I going to tell? Look, go grab the window seat. You can have it today and hang out for a while. If you're not still afraid of me.† She hesitated, studying him. He looked dark and surly, lips curled in a sort of I'm-such-a-rebel smirk. But he didn't look too dangerous. He didn't look Strigoi. Gingerly, she sat back down in the window seat, unconsciously rubbing her arms against the cold. Christian watched her, and a moment later, the air warmed up considerably. Lissa met Christian's eyes and smiled, surprised she'd never noticed how icy blue they were before. â€Å"You specialized in fire?† He nodded and pulled up a broken chair. â€Å"Now we have luxury accommodations.† I snapped out of the vision. â€Å"Rose? Rose?† Blinking, I focused on Dimitri's face. He was leaning toward me, his hands gripping my shoulders. I'd stopped walking; we stood in the middle of the quad separating the upper school buildings. â€Å"Are you all right?† â€Å"I? ­yeah. I was? ­I was with Lissa? ­Ã¢â‚¬  I put a hand to my forehead. I'd never had such a long or clear experience like that. â€Å"I was in her head.† â€Å"Her? ­head?† â€Å"Yeah. It's part of the bond.† I didn't really feel like elaborating. â€Å"Is she all right?† â€Å"Yeah, she's? ­Ã¢â‚¬  I hesitated. Was she all right? Christian Ozera had just invited her to hang out with him. Not good. There was â€Å"coasting through the middle,† and then there was turning to the dark side. But the feelings humming through our bond were no longer scared or upset. She was almost content, though still a little nervous. â€Å"She's not in danger,† I finally said. I hoped. â€Å"Can you keep going?† The hard, stoic warrior I'd met earlier was gone – just for a moment – and he actually looked concerned. Truly concerned. Feeling his eyes on me like that made something flutter inside of me – which was stupid, of course. I had no reason to get all goofy, just because the man was too good-looking for his own good. After all, he was an antisocial god, according to Mason. One who was supposedly going to leave me in all sorts of pain. â€Å"Yeah. I'm fine.† I went into the gym's dressing room and changed into the workout clothes someone had finally thought to give me after a day of practicing in jeans and a T-shirt. Gross. Lissa hanging out with Christian troubled me, but I shoved that thought away for later as my muscles informed me they did not want to go through any more exercise today. So I suggested to Dimitri that maybe he should let me off this time. He laughed, and I was pretty sure it was at me and not with me. â€Å"Why is that funny?† â€Å"Oh,† he said, his smile dropping. â€Å"You were serious.† â€Å"Of course I was! Look, I've technically been awake for two days. Why do we have to start this training now? Let me go to bed,† I whined. â€Å"It's just one hour.† He crossed his arms and looked down at me. His earlier concern was gone. He was all business now. Tough love. â€Å"How do you feel right now? After the training you've done so far?† â€Å"I hurt like hell.† â€Å"You'll feel worse tomorrow.† â€Å"So?† â€Å"So, better to jump in now while you still feel? ­not as bad.† â€Å"What kind of logic is that?† I retorted. But I didn't argue anymore as he led me into the weight room. He showed me the weights and reps he wanted me to do, then sprawled in a corner with a battered Western novel. Some god. When I finished, he stood beside me and demonstrated a few cool-down stretches. â€Å"How'd you end up as Lissa's guardian?† I asked. â€Å"You weren't here a few years ago. Were you even trained at this school?† He didn't answer right away. I got the feeling he didn't talk about himself very often. â€Å"No. I attended the one in Siberia.† â€Å"Whoa. That's got to be the only place worse than Montana.† A glint of something – maybe amusement – sparked in his eyes, but he didn't acknowledge the joke. â€Å"After I graduated, I was a guardian for a Zeklos lord. He was killed recently.† His smile dropped, his face grew dark. â€Å"They sent me here because they needed extras on campus. When the princess turned up, they assigned me to her, since I'd already be around. Not that it matters until she leaves campus.† I thought about what he'd said before. Some Strigoi killed the guy he was supposed to have been guarding? â€Å"Did this lord die on your watch?† â€Å"No. He was with his other guardian. I was away.† He fell silent, his mind obviously somewhere else. The Moroi expected a lot from us, but they did recognize that the guardians were – more or less – only human. So, guardians got pay and time off like you'd get in any other job. Some hard-core guardians – like my mom – refused vacations, vowing never to leave their Moroi's sides. Looking at Dimitri now, I had a feeling he might very well turn into one of those. If he'd been away on legitimate leave, he could hardly blame himself for what happened to that guy. Still, he probably did anyway. I'd blame myself too if something happened to Lissa. â€Å"Hey,† I said, suddenly wanting to cheer him up, â€Å"did you help come up with the plan to get us back? Because it was pretty good. Brute force and all that.† He arched an eyebrow curiously. Cool. I'd always wished I could do that. â€Å"You're complimenting me on that?† â€Å"Well, it was a hell of a lot better than the last one they tried.† â€Å"Last one?† â€Å"Yeah. In Chicago. With the pack of psi-hounds.† â€Å"This was the first time we found you. In Portland.† I sat up from my stretches and crossed my legs. â€Å"Um, I don't think I imagined psi-hounds. Who else could have sent them? They only answer to Moroi. Maybe no one told you about it.† â€Å"Maybe,† he said dismissively. I could tell by his face he didn't believe that. I returned to the novices' dorm after that. The Moroi students lived on the other side of the quad, closer to the commons. The living arrangements were partly based on convenience. Being here kept us novices closer to the gym and training grounds. But we also lived separately to accommodate the differences in Moroi and dhampir lifestyles. Their dorm had almost no windows, aside from tinted ones that dimmed sunlight. They also had a special section where feeders always stayed on hand. The novices' dorm was built in a more open way, allowing for more light. I had my own room because there were so few novices, let alone girls. The room they'd given me was small and plain, with a twin bed and a desk with a computer. My few belongings had been spirited out of Portland and now sat in boxes around the room. I rummaged through them, pulling out a T-shirt to sleep in. I found a couple of pictures as I did, one of Lissa and me at a football game in Portland and another taken when I'd gone on vacation with her family, a year before the accident. I set them on my desk and booted up the computer. Someone from tech support had helpfully given me a sheet with instructions for renewing my e-mail account and setting up a password. I did both, happy to discover no one had realized that this would serve as a way for me to communicate with Lissa. Too tired to write to her now, I was about to turn everything off when I noticed I already had a message. From Janine Hathaway. It was short: I'm glad you're back. What you did was inexcusable. â€Å"Love you too, Mom,† I muttered, shutting it all down. When I went to bed afterward, I passed out before even hitting the pillow, and just as Dimitri had predicted, I felt ten times worse when I woke up the next morning. Lying there in bed, I reconsidered the perks of running away. Then I remembered getting my ass kicked and figured the only way to prevent that from happening again was to go endure some more of it this morning. My soreness made it all that much worse, but I survived the before-school practice with Dimitri and my subsequent classes without passing out or fainting. At lunch, I dragged Lissa away from Natalie's table early and gave her a Kirova-worthy lecture about Christian – particularly chastising her for letting him know about our blood arrangement. If that got out, it'd kill both of us socially and I didn't trust him not to tell. Lissa had other concerns. â€Å"You were in my head again?† she exclaimed. â€Å"For that long?† â€Å"I didn't do it on purpose,† I argued. â€Å"It just happened. And that's not the point. How long did you hang out with him afterward?† â€Å"Not that long. It was kind of? ­fun.† â€Å"Well, you can't do it again. If people find out you're hanging out with him, they'll crucify you.† I eyed her warily. â€Å"You aren't, like, into him, are you?† She scoffed. â€Å"No. Of course not. â€Å"Good. Because if you're going to go after a guy, steal Aaron back.† He was boring, yes, but safe. Just like Natalie. How come all the harmless people were so lame? Maybe that was the definition of safe. She laughed. â€Å"Mia would claw my eyes out.† â€Å"We can take her. Besides, he deserves someone who doesn't shop at Gap Kids.† â€Å"Rose, you've got to stop saying things like that.† â€Å"I'm just saying what you won't.† â€Å"She's only a year younger,† said Lissa. She laughed. â€Å"I can't believe you think I'm the one who's going to get us in trouble.† Smiling as we strolled toward class, I gave her a sidelong glance. â€Å"Aaron does look pretty good though, huh?† She smiled back and avoided my eyes. â€Å"Yeah. Pretty good.† â€Å"Ooh. You see? You should go after him.† â€Å"Whatever. I'm fine being friends now.† â€Å"Friends who used to stick their tongues down each other's throats.† She rolled her eyes. â€Å"Fine.† I let my teasing go. â€Å"Let Aaron stay in the nursery school. Just so long as you stay away from Christian. He's dangerous.† â€Å"You're overreacting. He's not going Strigoi.† â€Å"He's a bad influence.† She laughed. â€Å"You think I'm in danger of going Strigoi?† She didn't wait for my answer, instead pushing ahead to open the door to our science class. Standing there, I uneasily replayed her words and then followed a moment later. When I did, I got to see royal power in action. A few guys – with giggling, watching girls – were messing with a gangly-looking Moroi. I didn't know him very well, but I knew he was poor and certainly not royal. A couple of his tormentors were air-magic users, and they'd blown the papers off his desk and were pushing them around the room on currents of air while the guy tried to catch them. My instincts urged me to do something, maybe go smack one of the air users. But I couldn't pick a fight with everyone who annoyed me, and certainly not a group of royals – especially when Lissa needed to stay off their radar. So I could only give them a look of disgust as I walked to my desk. As I did, a hand caught my arm. Jesse. â€Å"Hey,† I said jokingly. Fortunately, he didn't appear to be participating in the torture session. â€Å"Hands off the merchandise.† He flashed me a smile but kept his hand on me. â€Å"Rose, tell Paul about the time you started the fight in Ms. Karp's class.† I cocked my head toward him, giving him a playful smile. â€Å"I started a lot of fights in her class.† â€Å"The one with the hermit crab. And the gerbil.† I laughed, recalling it. â€Å"Oh yeah. It was a hamster, I think. I just dropped it into the crab's tank, and they were both worked up from being so close to me, so they went at it.† Paul, a guy sitting nearby whom I didn't really know, chuckled too. He'd transferred last year, apparently, and hadn't heard of this. â€Å"Who won?† I looked at Jesse quizzically. â€Å"I don't remember. Do you?† â€Å"No. I just remember Karp freaking out.† He turned toward Paul. â€Å"Man, you should have seen this messed-up teacher we used to have. Used to think people were after her and would go off on stuff that didn't make any sense. She was nuts. Used to wander campus while everyone was asleep.† I smiled tightly, like I thought it was funny. Instead, I thought back to Ms. Karp again, surprised to be thinking about her for the second time in two days. Jesse was right – she had wandered campus a lot when she still worked here. It was pretty creepy. I'd run into her once – unexpectedly. I'd been climbing out of my dorm window to go hang out with some people. It was after hours, and we were all supposed to be in our rooms, fast asleep. Such escape tactics were a regular practice for me. I was good at them. But I fell that time. I had a second-floor room, and I lost my grip about halfway down. Sensing the ground rush up toward me, I tried desperately to grab hold of something and slow my fall. The building's rough stone tore into my skin, causing cuts I was too preoccupied to feel. I slammed into the grassy earth, back first, getting the wind knocked out of me. â€Å"Bad form, Rosemarie. You should be more careful. Your instructors would be disappointed.† Peering through the tangle of my hair, I saw Ms. Karp looking down at me, a bemused look on her face. Pain, in the meantime, shot through every part of my body. Ignoring it as best I could, I clambered to my feet. Being in class with Crazy Karp while surrounded by other students was one thing. Standing outside alone with her was an entirely different matter. She always had an eerie, distracted gleam in her eye that made my skin break out in goose bumps. There was also now a high likelihood she'd drag me off to Kirova for a detention. Scarier still. Instead, she just smiled and reached for my hands. I flinched but let her take them. She tsked when she saw the scrapes. Tightening her grip on them, she frowned slightly. A tingle burned my skin, laced with a sort of pleasant buzz, and then the wounds closed up. I had a brief sense of dizziness. My temperature spiked. The blood disappeared, as did the pain in my hip and leg. Gasping, I jerked my hands away. I'd seen a lot of Moroi magic, but never anything like that. â€Å"What? ­what did you do?† She gave me that weird smile again. â€Å"Go back to your dorm, Rose. There are bad things out here. You never know what's following you.† I was still staring at my hands. â€Å"But? ­Ã¢â‚¬  I looked back up at her and for the first time noticed scars on the sides of her forehead. Like nails had dug into them. She winked. â€Å"I won't tell on you if you don't tell on me.† I jumped back to the present, unsettled by the memory of that bizarre night. Jesse, in the meantime, was telling me about a party. â€Å"You've got to slip your leash tonight. We're going up to that spot in the woods around eight thirty. Mark got some weed.† I sighed wistfully, regret replacing the chill I'd felt over the memory of Ms. Karp. â€Å"Can't slip that leash. I'm with my Russian jailer.† He let go of my arm, looking disappointed, and ran a hand through his bronze-colored hair. Yeah. Not being able to hang out with him was a damned shame. I really would have to fix that someday. â€Å"Can't you ever get off for good behavior?† he joked. I gave him what I hoped was a seductive smile as I found my seat. â€Å"Sure,† I called over my shoulder. â€Å"If I was ever good.†

Evaluation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Evaluation - Case Study Example Evaluation techniques are classified into two major classes which include the predictive evaluation techniques and descriptive evaluation techniques (Perlis, et al., 1981). The process of evaluation is goal oriented. The goals for which an evaluation process is intended for defines the importance of the evaluation process. One among the goals of evaluation is to determine if the technique is better as compared to existing techniques. This process entails the comparison of the technique with other existing techniques with aims of determining the status of the technique (Clements, 2002). This process is significant since it helps in assessing the technique with respect to already existing techniques and determining its viability in comparison with the existing techniques. Another goal of the evaluation process is to find out how good the technique is. This process is important since it facilitates assessing the technique to determine if it has the desired qualities as intended. Lastly, the process of evaluation of the given technique is aimed at determining â€Å"why the technique is bad†. This is aimed at detecting any weakness existing in the te chnique and this is important since using this weaknesses, suggestions that points out the need for further development can be generated (Farooq & Quadri, 3011). In general, the process of evaluation is aimed enhancing the usability of any given technique. This process of enhancement is aimed at improving user experiences, detecting flaws in the technique, addressing security concerns and removing unwanted features from the technique. The evaluation process as a whole is purported to facilitate technique improvement and enhancement of design supporting aspects. This process is vital since it plays a significant role in the development of the technique. The formative aspect of evaluation is paramount since it aids in the acquisition

Leonardo da vinci and the science work Research Paper

Leonardo da vinci and the science work - Research Paper Example This paper details a brief account of Leonardo Da Vinci’s life, his achievements and discoveries and an analysis of his life based on the parts of creativity. Brief Biography Leonardo was born on 15th April, 1452, in Vinci, Italy, out of wedlock and raised by his father, ser Piero, and his step mother. In the modern sense, Leonardo had no surname and was named â€Å"da Vinci† meaning â€Å"of Vinci†. However, his full names were â€Å"Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci† implying â€Å"Leonardo, son of ser Peiro, from Vinci†. Little literature is available about Leonardo’s early life. According to Vasari (23-32), Leonardo lived in Achiano, his mother’s home, for the first five years of his life and later moved to his father’s household in Vinci. His father had remarried numerous times. Fig. 1 Leonardo’s portrait Leonardo attained informal education on mathematics, geometry and Latin language. He joined Verrocchio’s work shop at the age of fourteen. He was exposed to chemistry, leather working, mechanics, carpentry, drawing, painting and metallurgy (Buchholz 35-40). He graduated at the age of twenty as a qualified master in the union of doctors of medicine and artists. At the age of 22, court records indicate that Leonardo Da Vinci was charged and exonerated of sodomy (Vasari 58). In 1482, Leonardo was commissioned by Lorenzo de Medici to create a silver lyre in the shape of a horse’s head. ... Within his life, his â€Å"great strength and generosity, outstanding physical beauty, and aspects of life† attracted the curiosity of many people (Vasari 67). Leonardo had numerous friends who are also renowned for their contributions in history and other fields. He kept his private life discrete and was involved in numerous intimate relationships with his pupils. Accomplishments Buchholz (76) regards Leonardo as a genius and a renaissance man. Additionally, he is described as a man whose immeasurable inquisitiveness was made equal only by his powers of invention. Arguably, his talents stretched further than his artistic works. Like most of the renaissance leaders, he did not observe any separation and distinction between art and science. Leonardo is primarily known as a painter (Moon 83). Two of his paintings, the Mona Lisa and The last Supper, are the most celebrated, reproduced and imitated paintings. Leonardo’s iconic drawing of the Vitruvian Man is renowned. He al so made numerous notebooks where he made scientific drawings, and diagrams. However, since he did not publish his diagrams, nobody else knew about the whereabouts of the notebooks and, therefore, they were discovered long later after he had died (Capra 21). As an engineer, Leonardo’s thoughts and ideas were hugely in advance of his period. He hypothesized a tank, a helicopter, solar power, calculator, and the elementary theory of plate tectonics. However, a few of his designs were feasible during his period. Some of his inventions came into the world of manufacturing unannounced and unpredicted. As a scientist, he immensely enhanced the state of knowledge on areas such as optics, hydrodynamics and anatomy (Capra 107-13). Leonardo was captivated by birds. He observed them, drew them

Personal Statement for law admission Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

For law admission - Personal Statement Example Unfortunately, the government of Nepal is a highly repressive force and there were few opportunities for me to utilise the skills I learned in the academic realm. While working as a trekking guide in the Himalayans I met my future wife, the most wonderful and steady influence of my adult life. As she was an Australian citizen, I found the strength to leave the people and mountains that had structured my life for twenty-four years to enter into an uncertain future. Finding myself in a foreign land, with my language skills stretched and only a few hundred dollars in savings, we shared a small room in the outskirts of Perth and began the tremendously challenging yet rewarding task of building a life together. Within three weeks, I earned a position as a food and beverage attendant at Burswood Casino and Resort, where I am still employed. Eventually our hard work resulted in financial stability, and I began to consider the future. Wishing to take advantage of the freedom of expression and action available to me as a legal resident of Australia, I decided to dedicate myself to the goal of entering the legal profession. With that in mind, I passed the Education Institution University Board exam and submitted the application in your hands. Although I am Although I am only twenty-eight years old, I have learned much through my varied life experiences. Born and raised in Nepal, I comprehend the fundamental challenges of life and how a government can disregard what many see as fundamental human rights. My undergraduate experience in social science and humanities trained me in logically accessing issues and solving problems effectively. Never one to limit myself to a classroom, I also led tourists from around the world on challenging treks through the mountains and glaciers of Nepal. When I found love, I embraced the situation and was able to establish myself in a new country. Excited and committed to my life in Australia with my wife, I am still the son of Bal Bahadur and Laxmi Thapa and dedicated to individual justice and making a difference both here and in my homeland. For me, this opportunity transcends the simple considerations of financial renumeration on a growing field. In addition to the great benefits of further understanding varied aspects of the legal profession, eventually I want to enter the realm of investigating and protesting international human rights violations, especially in the highly conflicted regions of Rolpa and Rukum. In order to accomplish the ultimate goal of my life I need a strong and challenging education in law. I believe your university, with its excellent professors, extensive library and esteemed reputation, would provide the best home for me. I long to make a difference and I want the opportunity to dedicate myself to bettering the life of others. Please give me the opportunity to demonstrate that my intellectual capacity, real world experience and personal courage will lead to success at your institution. Thank you for your time and consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you in the

Auditing. The series of scandals caused a general crisis of confidence Essay

Auditing. The series of scandals caused a general crisis of confidence in the integrity of the entire system of corporate accoun - Essay Example Thereafter the author described financial scandals as those corporate scandals that involve misappropriation and misuse of money or economic resources. The chronicles of business history are filled with errors related to accounting, judgements, financial management and financial skulduggery. Over the last few decades unscrupulous entrepreneurs have been heavily involved in financial scandals where they allegedly diverted funds from one stated use to another, paid dividends out of borrowed money or capital, traded stocks on the basis of insider information as well as concealed vital information regarding those stocks, practiced creative account thereby altering the company’s records so on and so forth. Auditing failure has been a major concern over the last two decades with case of Enron and WorldCom coming into the limelight. According to Tackett, Wolf and Claypool (2004), a severe distortion in the financial statements that has not been reported in the audit report can be ter med as audit failure. Thus the auditor has committed a serious mistake while conducting the auditing process (Arens, 2002). Normally, auditing failure would not happen if an auditor is abide by the Generally Accepted Auditing Standards despite the fact whether the financial statement is accurate or fair. ... Thirdly, auditing failure occurs when the auditor is lured into committing such frauds by the company. Lastly, auditing failure might occur if the audit officer may commit fraud intentionally because of having some private relationship with the client beyond a certain level which is normally not expected in normal audit between independent parties. The following sections will highlight the integrity in the System of Corporate Accountability thereby commenting on the role of auditors and their effectiveness in the auditing process. The issues which undermine the credibility of audit reports will also be discussed. Thereafter, the changes that have been made in the auditing regulation will be explained followed by an explanation of the corporate governance framework that exists in Parmalat. Henceforth, the issues of audit reporting will be discussed and appropriate conclusions will be drawn. Integrity in the System of Corporate Accountability Corporate accountability is of utmost impor tance in debates around social issues, ethics and businesses (Brenkert, 2004). Accountability generally refers to the reliability and authenticity in the financial accounts reporting related to the financial status of any corporation. Integrity in the corporate accountability system should be maintained in order to reduce fraudulent activity within the financial reporting system. In the latter half of the twentieth century, the social and environmental issues were also brought under the financial accountability making them responsible for the environmental and social records. Linkage between the accountability and the integration of the Corporate Social Responsibility within the businesses helped to take the Business for Social responsibility to greater heights. It

I wondered how a person can be developed to be a leader Essay

I wondered how a person can be developed to be a leader - Essay Example An effective leader knows what needs to be done to bring life back to the company, to deal with the company’s debt and financial burdens, to manage burgeoning and diverse groups of employees or to introduce more consumer-relevant products. The leader is the person who knows how to bring results. This is the reason that company leadership is the first variable that is changed when it hits rough patches. Conversely, the asset that is most appreciated and valued when the company is gaining speed. I understand that an innate set of leadership characteristics is essential in a person to be a good leader, combined with relevant education and training. I attained that education in business school right at the onset of my career and it has proved instrumental in my career progression and leadership capabilities. I have surmised that leadership is very contextual in nature and exists in many forms and manifestations. There are no didactic rules surrounding leadership; leadership is suc cessful when it is addressing change and bringing results. What is Leadership? While there are countless definitions of leadership in textbooks, the one I found most relevant was presented by Kotter, saying that leadership addresses change in organizations and prepares it for the ensuing struggle (2001). The world is in a state of constant change and dynamism, affected by a multitude of factors including newer technologies, economic shifts, globalization, social responsibility, the internet and scarce resources. As a result, today’s companies need people at the helm who are capable of dealing with change and deciding strategies that bring about change. The legendary Steve Jobs is commended as being one of the best leaders of our times because he steered Apple single-handedly not only towards profit, but made the company the most innovative company in the world which affected billions all over the globe. The idea crafted by Jobs, in retrospect, seems so simple: to enable the e veryday consumer to have simple yet artful gadgets for everyday entertainment. It was that vision of change, combined with Jobs’ management of Apple’s resources to steer it towards achievement of that vision that has allowed Apple to become what it is today. Thereupon, I take leadership as the force that not merely creates a vision for betterment, but also communicates it to all stakeholders, making it possible for that vision to be realized. The Leadership Role With the understanding that leadership exists to address change, I attempted to understand the exact role leadership plays in this process. Leadership is about refusing to limit one’s mind to ‘either this or that’ scenarios, says Martin (2007); the author explains that leaders do not simply consider two three options and select among them, but rather they create new, unheard-of solutions. Effective leaders are not afraid of complicated problems and nor do they develop strategies that fit som e pre-conceived mould. Instead, leaders strive to find a special solution that meets the unique business need. The innovativeness in leaders’ thinking is represented by creative solutions to problems that are a result of multidirectional factors and often opposing options (Martin). McShane and VonGlinow (2009) state that leaders use all the persuasion tactics at their disposal to motivate people to understand and implement their creative solutions. I learnt

Economic Globalisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Economic Globalisation - Essay Example Opponents, however, are more likely to view globalisation as a nefarious plot for the global promotion of the capitalist interests of multinational/transnational corporations culminating, not only in the increased poverty of LDCs but, in the subjugation of nation-states to multinational corporations. While conceding that both perspectives are exaggerated, the following paper shall, through a review of the definition of economic globalisation and the role of global trade and multinational corporations therein, establish economic globalisation as primarily favouring the capitalist interests of transnational corporations. Globalization, by the very nature of its definition as the globalisation of capital, favours capitalist interests, is founded upon the promotion of free trade and actively promotes the interests of multinational corporations. ... Of all the various definition forwarded for globalisation the most accurate, and comprehensive, is probably that forwarded by Held and McGrew (2002, 249-250) and which maintains globalisation to be an economic phenomenon whose intent is the globalisation of capital and the imposition of a capitalist economic agenda upon the International Political Economy (IPE). Globalisation, according to the latter definition, is the removal of capital controls to facilitate the unobstructed movement of funds and resources across national borders (Soros, 1998). Such globalization of capital is further significant because it implies reduced control over trade, foreign investment and multinational corporate activities. As stated by the pro-globalization economists, the removal of capital controls implies, "not only an increase in productive capacity but also improvements in methods of production and other innovations; not only an increase in wealth but an increase in freedom" (Soros, 1998). As may be inferred from the presented definitions, economic globalisation is the removal of artificial barriers to trade, involving the imposition of capitalism upon the global political economy and, as such, ultimately serves the interests of multinational corporations through the facilitation of their capacity it engage in trade, as in the unfettered movement of capital goods across national boundaries. Consequent to economic globalisation, and bearing in mind the stated definition, "The modern system of independent nation states and distinct national economies is being replaced by a single transnational political economy. Power and authority are steadily shifting to global institutions and corporations. National

Performance Appraisal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Performance Appraisal - Essay Example During the process of appraisal, each employee performance is reviewed against the objectives and standards for the financial year as agreed at the previous appraisal meeting. It is very important for career and succession planning purposes for the employees, jobs that are crucial and for the entire organisation. Despite the fact that performance appraisal is mainly used for motivation of employees, it has a number of purposes which include: development of positive attitude towards work, behavior development, communication and alignment of employees and organization objectives and boosting the positive relationships between the employer and the employees (Grote 107). Each organization has its own performance appraisal system. This work would focus on the development of a performance appraisal system for the Verizon Wireless. As it would turn out later, the appraisal system depends on the kind and nature of the job being appraisal. Technical and complex jobs require more appraisals. In such cases, appraisal is mainly used to retain the employees. This paper would develop an appraisal system for a customer service post (Grote 111). Retail customer support representative is expected to handle the customers issues related to the company. Based on the performance, the retail customer support representative would be appraised in a number of ways. Following an excellent job, the company, through the human resource department would appreciate the work done by retail support representative by offering one or combination of the following items or rewards. The person would be offered an award-winning training and competitive salary if he or she displayed high level of quality in key areas such as time consciousness, communication and presentation skills. The nature of appraisal would depend on the area(s) perfectly done (Grote 113). The employee who would display perfection in key areas such as time management or

Sir Richard Branson, Chairman, Virgin Group, LTD Research Paper

Sir Richard Branson, Chairman, Virgin Group, LTD - Research Paper Example The entrepreneur is described to be a risk taker, but also with ability to turn the impossible into business opportunities. More on his mass investment in entertainment, transport, telephone services, and financial sector is elaborated. He also demonstrates his leadership skills, while dealing with his employees, customers, society, and his different businesses by close association, partnerships, and participation. Keywords: Business, Enterprise, Entrepreneur, Leadership Skills, Ideas, Motivation, Investment, Opportunities, Evolution, Virgin Atlantic Airlines, Virgin Mobile, Music Label, Employees, Global Warming Introduction The ability to be a successful individual in society is viewed differently according to individuals, or a collective perception of people. Today everyone associates success with education, learning and gathering information, but opposing, excelling and living a satisfactory life needs the basics of wisdom, understanding and hard work, if not working smart. Sir R ichard Branson’s history exists to confirm this. People tend to strain in life, as they force themselves in situations where they do not fit; it is not really the sharpness of a student in class that determines his or her future. The idea is that, ‘people are totally different, with diverse abilities and interests’. ... He possesses the qualities of a great leader, which most businesses in the world lack, leading to their failure. Interest, Idea and Ambition in Business Different nations have various ways to nurture the young population in paths of their careers. At least academicians are now concentrating on this, unlike in the past where education was so generalized. Branson’s venture into business occurred in his childhood, at the age of 15 years, he began producing and selling magazines in his school, before dropping out at 17 years of age to fully participate in his business (Mills et al., 2007, p. 485). His entrepreneurial skills outweighed the impact of education in his life, but on the bright side he began nurturing his career early in life. He turned the business idea into a fact, hence bringing an impact into the market through his innovation and creativity. According to Schmidt and Ludlow, â€Å"Starting a magazine for young people, Student, he already had the idea that the concep t could cover many other products and services for young people: a student travel service, perhaps a bank† (2002, p. 130). His business venture in school was strategic, not that other individuals could not come up with another proposal, but because he took advantage of the market niche, combined with his wisdom and tactics to flourish at young age. Earlier on, he seemed to struggle with his studies especially with the rigid school rules, which most students also have to tolerate in the education systems. Convinced on his entrepreneurial step, he only got to begin with 4 dollars as his capital, with Jonny James as the only supporter, before his head teacher finally accepted his successful progress (â€Å"The success story,† 2008). His venture in business was humble,

World Music Industry †A Background Essay Example for Free

World Music Industry – A Background Essay There are three major segments in the world music industry; the industry that deals in the recorded music, the industry that is involved in the broadcasting of the already recorded music and the industry that attends to live performances. There are other less significant segments which are concerned with the broadcast rights for live performances and so on. Revenue is generated at each of these stages of the value chain. The earning of the revenue starts with a composer and lyricist with a song written and composed. In some cases the lyricist will sell the music on his own or he may decide to sell the rights may be transferred to another party. Then the song is played by the performers and at this point the revenues start flowing from two different directions – one from the performance recorded in a studio and the other from the live performances. In this process there are certain costs incurred which makes the presence of the companies specialized in the recording business as a prerequisite for channelizing the music performed. These costs include: Cost of rent for studio time and recording equipments Professional service charges payable for the sound engineers, technicians and operators Cost of transferring the recordings to tapes or compact discs and Cost of distributing the music as saleable commodities Since these costs are very high it is not possible to complete the value chain without the participation of these high profile companies. Usually these recording companies sign a contract with the performers. Under the contract the performer agrees to produce a certain number of recordings. The performer also agrees to take part in the promotion of the music product and is also under an obligation not to take part in recordings with other companies during the contract period. The record company undertakes to incur the cost of â€Å"producing, duplicating, packaging, distributing and marketing† of the products. The record companies distribute the products to the retailers who further sells to the consumers. In this value chain the authorized listeners who purchase the music product by paying the specified charges as remuneration to the copyright holders share their copy of the product with other listeners who do not make any payment for listening to the music. Traditionally the occasions on which the copying of the music was done were less which was in an informal way by making illegal tapes to share with friends and relatives. In this case there will be no earnings for any party in the value chain including for the â€Å"publishers, performers, recording companies and retailers†. There may not be any revenue arising for the person who has purchased the product legally and this depends on whether he charges for the copies he makes for the use of his friends. With the rapid changed in technology, the traditional market for the music was changing its dependence from cassettes, LPs, singles, compact discs, mini discs, MP3 and DVDs. These changes in the selling media have acted as strong barriers to the new entrants in to the market due to the reasons like: The international distribution network had proved very capital intensive involving huge investments. Despite the large investments, there was always the risk that the network must suit to the sudden changes in the customers’ demand. This often necessitated the trading off of international rights to music to international distribution as a measure to avoid the risk of change in preferences. (Kretschmer et al. , 1999). There were large costs associated with the marketing of the music worldwide. Firms had to incur marketing expenditure running in to millions of dollars in this respect. This is evident from the fact that releasing chart-bound albums have resulted in huge marketing costs in the national markets of UK and Germany. The composition of the products is so vulnerable that sometimes as low as 10 percent of the music products would account for almost 90 percent of the turnover and nobody could really assess the reasons for the success of certain products. (Caves, 2000) The competition from large players from other industries like consumer electronics, television and other media, entertainment and telecommunication industries using latest technologies of digital and networking also act as a barrier for new firms entering the music products market in the traditional set up. Examples of such organizations include the Time Warner, Disney, and Sony etc.

Experiments in Quantum Mechanics

Experiments in Quantum Mechanics The theory of quantum mechanics developed when the classical theories of mechanics and electromagnetism were unable to provide explanation to the characteristics of atomic structure and electromagnetic radiation  (Rae, 2008). The appearance of quantum mechanics resulted in the emergence of a principle that has the ability to describe the nuclei, proton and neutron (Rae, 2008). Quantum theory has two sides, the first is the mathematical side and the second is the conceptual side. The mathematical side has been successful in estimating the atomic and subatomic phenomena, while the conceptual side â€Å"has been a subject of endless discussions without agreed conclusions† (Thankappan, 1993). 1.0 Double Slit Experiment It is known that when particles are emitted through two slits two bands are formed, while when waves are passed through two slits interference pattern is formed on the back wall. When the crest of the first wave meets the trough of the second wave, the two waves cancel each other and destructive interference occurs which result in appearance of dark lines. On the other hand, when two crests or two troughs of the wave meet each other construction interference occurs and bright lines are formed. The elegant difference is blurred by quantum mechanics. When a stream of electrons passed through one slit, a single band is formed, but when electrons emitted through two slits an interference pattern is formed, but how could a piece of matters create an interference pattern like waves? Physicists thought that particles bounced each other and created the interference pattern. This time they decided to shoot the electrons one at a time, by this method it is impossible for electrons to interfere with each other. After a time the same interference pattern is formed. The conclusion was that the single electron leaves as a particle and becomes a wave of potential then it goes through both slits and interferes with itself to hit the wall like a particle (The particle is in two places at once), but mathematically it is even stranger that the electron goes through both slits, it goes through neither, it goes through just one slit or it goes through just the other. All of these possibilities are in superposition with each other (Khutoryansky, 2013). (Perimeter Institute, 2012) Figure 1.0 Double-slit apparatus showing the pattern of electron hits on the observing screen building up over time. This made the physicist completely puzzled and they decided to install a measuring device by one slit to see which slit the electrons actually pass through, but the quantum world is far more mysterious than they could have imagined. The electron decided to act differently because it felt that the observer watched it. When they observed the electron, the electron went back to behave like a little marble, it produced a pattern of two bands and not many interference pattern as it was expected. Physicists were Perplexed, they asked what is the matter? Is it Particles or waves? (Khutoryansky, 2013) After a while they have discovered that, when the electron was observed the wave function was collapsed. 1.1 The Explanation of double slit experiment A Physicist called Max Born, one of the founders of quantum mechanics came up with a new idea for what the wave equation described. Born said that the wave is not a smeared out of electron or anything else previously encountered in science. Instead, he declared that electrons are something about a probability wave (Probability distribution), that is Born argued that the size of the wave that any location predicts the likelihood of the electron being found there. Where the wave is big that is not where most of the electrons are, that is where the electrons are most likely to be, and that is very strange, so the electron on its own sees a jumble of possibilities (Khutoryansky, 2013). â€Å"You are not allowed to ask where is the electron right now, but you are allowed to ask if I look for the electron in this little particular of space, what is the likelihood I will find it there, and that bugs anyone!†(Peter Fisher, 2012). Finally, it is shown that the implication of this experiment is that matter can have both wave and particles properties. This is known as â€Å"Wave-Particle Duality† or â€Å"Dual Nature of Particles† This is proposed by Louis de Broglie in 1923 leading to the birth of modern day quantum mechanics. Exhibiting particles or waves characteristics depends if a detector is observing the matter or not. The second implication of the double slit experiment is that the outcomes of macroscopic events can be affected by observation. This is because macroscopic objects are composed of microscopic particles acting as either waves or particles (Lejuwaan, 2010). These facts lead to the emergence of De Broglie equation as shown in (1.1) and (1.2) (1.1) (1.2) Where is the wavelength, is Plancks constant, is the frequency, and E is the total energy of the particle (Phillips, 2003). The equations (1.1) and (1.2) are equivalently equal to (1.3) (1.4) Where is the modified Planck’s constant (), k is the angular wave number (and is the angular frequency ( (Phillips, 2003). The comparison between planets in a solar system and electrons in an atom was no longer reasonable. De Broglie’s hypothesis led to the development of quantum mechanics and subsequently the Schrà ¶dinger equation. It is important to know the equations (1.1) and (1.2) to understand the concept of the Schrà ¶dinger equation that will be discussed in the next section. 2. The Schrà ¶dinger wave equation Quantum mechanics is all about solving the Schrà ¶dinger equation. There are many Schrà ¶dinger equations, each physical scenario for which you want to apply. Quantum mechanics has its own Schrà ¶dinger equation, they are all slightly different and all require slightly different solution techniques. The reason why there are many different Schrà ¶dinger equations is that the situation over under which you want to solve the Schrà ¶dinger equation enters the Schrà ¶dinger equation as a potential function and we know that potential function influence the physics of quantum mechanics. The Schrà ¶dinger equation is a wave equation that describes the behavior of particles by taking account the fact that matter also has these wave-like properties. â€Å"The role of the Schrà ¶dinger equation in quantum mechanics is analogous to that of Newton’s Laws in classical mechanics. Both describe motion. Newton’s Second Law is a differential equation which describes how a classical particle moves, whereas the Schrà ¶dinger equation is a partial differential equation which describes how the wave function representing a quantum particle ebbs and flows. In addition, both were postulated and then tested by experiment† (Phillips, 2003). The Schrà ¶dinger wave equation helped in the emergence of quantum mechanics and Erwin Schrà ¶dinger was the reason of establishing an equation that considered as one of the fundamentals of quantum mechanics (Freiberger, 2012). There are two forms of the Schrodinger equation, the first form is time dependent Schrà ¶dinger equation and the second form is time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation (The Schrodinger Wave Equation, n.d.). 2.1 Time dependent Schrà ¶dinger wave equation: (1.5) Where is the imaginary unit, is the modified Planck’s constant (), indicates a partial derivative with respect to time t, is the wave function of the quantum system, and is the Hamiltonian operator (Wikipedia, 2014). (1.6) Where m is the mass of particle, V is the potential energy and is the Laplacian. The equation (1.5) is the general equation, while the equation (1.6) is the â€Å"single non-relativistic particle† of the time dependent Schrà ¶dinger equation. By solving time dependent Schrà ¶dinger equation, we can determine the probability of detection of particle in some region as a function of time (Phillips, 2003). 2.2 Time independent Schrà ¶dinger wave equation: Time independent Schrodinger equation is used more than time dependent Schrodinger equation, because the time is measured on a small scale. â€Å"The time-independent Schrà ¶dinger equation predicts that wave functions can form standing waves, called stationary states† (Wikipedia, 2014). The time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation has another important use that is making the time dependent Schrà ¶dinger equation to be solved easily once the stationary states are predicated by the time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation (Phillips, 2003). Eψ (1.7) (1.8) The equation (1.7) is the general equation, while the equation (1.8) is the â€Å"single non-relativistic particle† of time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation. 3. The Role of Quantum Mechanics in Structure-Based Drug Design Most drugs are very small molecules compered to their targets that are enzymes. In order for drugs to take its effect it has to bind to the active site of the enzyme. We can think about this as an engine that has moving parts that moving, and a little drug get stuck in the gears of the engine and hence the entire engine stopped working. This is how drugs are working. In order to design drug pharmaceuticals must know much information about the active site of the enzyme; it will help them a lot if they have a very high-resolution structure so they can know the active site of the enzyme. There are important enzymes whose structure is strange such as catalase which shown in figure (1.9) and it will be easier to design drugs if the structure of the active site is known (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). Over many decades, specialists used the high technological abilities to displace the hard obstructions that they faced along the path of drug discovery. This allowed them to improve the methods of drug design (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). There were many computational approaches that used at different stages of drug design process. These computational approaches were successful in decreasing the number of ligands (â€Å"a molecule such as drug that binds to receptor† (Dictionary.com, 2014).) In addition, in form the computational approaches helped in reducing the period and costs of drug discovery. The computational approach that we will discuss about is the structure-based drug design (SBDD). It is a method that depends on 3-D structures of biological targets. SBDD has two phases; hit identification and lead identification. The first phase is about exhibiting powerfulness against the target by the recognition of chemical compounds called â€Å"hits†. â€Å"Whereas, the latter engages evaluation of the screened hits to identify the promising lead molecules before proceeding toward a large-scale lead optimization†(Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). On of the most successful examples of the history of SBDD is the development of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) proteinase inhibitor (Meyer and Swanson et al., n.p.). 3.1 Target Identification Identifying the right target is only the first stage of a long process. Scientists need to find a protein or gene that is associated with the disease (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). Proteins come from genes, and it is easier to study genes than to study proteins. One approach to find a new drug target, involves comparing the genes of healthy individuals with those of people with the disease. The differences between two genetics maps can help to generate hypotheses in which proteins or lack of thereof cause the disease. It is also possible to do the opposite, by changing one gene at a time in cells or simple organisms, and then observing the resulting effects that will happen, so it called the phenotype of the mutation. If the phenotype has some similarity with the disease’s states, it can give ideas about the possible relation between the mutated gene and the disease. The third approach of target identification is to start already with a bioactive substance such as a natural medicine used in traditional medicine, a compound from basic research or known drugs with unexpected effects (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). When targets are identified they, another process occurs which called drug validation. Drug validation is on of the most important steps in SBDD; many drugs that failed were because it was not checked by â€Å"drug validation process† (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). When the target and the active site have been identified then the hit discovery process starts. One of the successful validation tools is the transgenic animal (animals that carry foreign genes) as they allow observing the phenotypic endpoints (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). 3.2 Hit Identification When the targets are discovered and being checked for target validation, the next step is hit identification. Hit identification is about getting a small molecule that has some of the initial properties that pharmaceuticals want in their final drugs. It is very early in the process of a drug discovery. The â€Å"hit† is defined as a molecule that binds to the target. There are some ways that used to determine identify the hit. One way is to start with a natural substrate and to make it drug-like. The second way is to design a De novo hit by SBDD. This way works if pharmaceuticals are familiar with the binding site as well as the protein structure. High throughput screening (HTS) is a process that aims to find inhibitors for the targets by using rapid assays. With HTS there is no need to be familiar with the nature of chemotype likely to have activity at the target protein (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). HTS is considered as one of the main processes for hit identification (Hug hes and Rees et al., 2011). The disadvantage of HTS is that it requires a lot of materials and time to do a huge combinatorial space (high cost) (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). When starting with HTS pharmaceuticals need to screen a lot of molecules to find a drug. HTS screens more than hundred thousand to million compounds or even more than a million compounds (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). Most of the molecules will not be active against the â€Å"biology†, while a large number of molecules will be active against the â€Å"biology† and the process keeps going until there is only one molecule that is active against the â€Å"biology† 3.3 Hit to Lead Phase â€Å"Hit to lead† phase is an elevated level of SBDD phases. It helps pharmaceuticals to get closer to a drug that is safe and efficacious in people because it helps to identify compounds with improved potency (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). â€Å"A lead compound is a compound that demonstrate a desired a biological activity on a validated molecular target† (Pharmacelsus GmbH, 2013). The key thing about the hit to lead phase is to identify compounds that is not only binds to the protein, but they in fact work inside a cell, and they show the selectivity in a cell (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). The key aspect of hit to lead stage is a repeated process in which it not only shows that the compound works in a biochemical assay, but it also demonstrate that it works effectively and selectively in a cell-based assay (Hughes and Rees et al., 2011). Therefore, it can go through the cell membrane, reach the target inside the cell, and engage that protein in a cell-based assay. In starting the hit to lead phase, the compounds start off with potencies that are weaker than pharmaceuticals would like. What pharmaceuticals looking for is compounds that will make the medicinal chemistry that will improve the potency of the hit compound at least a factor of ten, and ideally a factor of twenty in the biochemical assay (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). Also, pharmaceuticals look for things to start off with from the hit stage that have weak cellular potency, but with medicinal chemistry that correlates with the biochemical potency mentioned above (Kalyaanamoorthy and Chen, 2011). Furthermore, it drives the cellular potency to be more potent in the cell. This is all toward the goal that pharmaceuticals want to get potent compounds that are cell active. Also, there are several other important properties such that, if Pharmaceuticals do not want the compound to bond to other off-target that may cause toxicity then they prefer compound to have potency that at least ten-fold weaker to the closest related target. We will not discuss in detail. Knowing the active site is a very important thing in drug designing, there are several ways that used to determine the active site for unknown drugs active sites. 4. Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) The quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) is considered as one of the earliest approaches to drug design. This approach is all about finding a relationship between how active the compound is as a drug and the physical activities of the compound. The fundamental principle of QSAR is that the change in structural properties of the compound can lead to a change in the biological activities of the compound. QSAR allowed us to determine where approximately the drug settles in the human body. This is determined by a physical property that used which called the distribution coefficients between octanol and water (is the ratio between the concentration of a compound in the mixture). â€Å"QSAR depends on bulk properties of the potential drug molecules† (Moore, 2002). A new method is emerged, it is called 3D-QSAR, 3D-QSAR is considered to be an effective tool in the design of pharmaceuticals drugs that helps to connect the activity of a molecule with the properties that d epends on a special part of the molecular structure. We superimpose by a computer a set of molecules that we know their activities. By this method, the set of molecules with similar groups will be in the same place. Furthermore, a small box is drowned that divided into lattice of n points along each side and 200pm apart from each other (Moore, 2002). The box contains all the molecules. A box containing one molecule is shown in figure 2.0 5.1 QM/MM studies of pharmaceutically relevant targets In this section we will discuss about an experiment that Alessio and Marco (2012) did to show that QM/MM could predict the binding orientation of a reference inhibitor. The experiment is all about the interaction of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) and carbamic acid aryl ester inhibitors (URB524) (Lodola and De Vivo, 2012, pp. 337-362). â€Å"In general, SBDD depends on the accuracy of ligand docking, and the ability to identify binding modes† (Lodola and De Vivo, 2012, pp. 337-362). When FAHH is docked with URB524 inhibitors, there are two possible of this docking. Tools that applied in drug discovery were not able to distinguish between the two binding orientations. On the other hand, when QM/MM was used to model the inhibitor binding process, it made such a good success in revealing that (Lodola and De Vivo, 2012, pp. 337-362). QM/MM calculations showed that, the second orientation was energetically preferred. This QM/MM calculation’s suggested that the notably higher barrier in the first orientation led to an unstable product. (Lodola and De Vivo, 2012, pp. 337-362). By QM/MM we can gain a detailed understanding of the binding site interactions, and hence QM/MM can contribute practically to drugs design. On the other hand, although QM/MM gives a detailed understanding of the binding site interactions, QM/MM has not yet played an important role in drug designing. Due to the high computational abilities that QM/MM has, it looks like that QM/MM will be a main and an indispensable tool in drug design in the recent years.

Attitudes to Risk and Entrepreneurship

Attitudes to Risk and Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship, as defined by Stevenson (1983) â€Å"†¦ is the pursuit of opportunity beyond the resources you currently control†. Stevenson and Gumpert (1985, pp. 85-94) advise that the preceding definition represents both the individual as well as the society that he or she is embedded in as he or she identifies an opportunity they desire to pursue, and as an entrepreneur they thus must seek the resources from the broader society. The approach to entrepreneurship as voiced by Stevenson and Gumpert (1985, pp. 85-94) builds upon earlier scholars such as Schumpeter (1934) who identified the context of the interaction of the individual and wider society. The title of Schumpeter’s (1934) work â€Å"The Theory of Economic Development† could almost be suited to a title for entrepreneurship, as Harper (2003, p. 1) advises that one of the prominent features â€Å"†¦ of a competitive enterprise economy is the ability of people continually to seek out and seize opportunities for profitable new activities in local and world markets†. That statement mirrors the definition of entrepreneurship as put forth by Stevenson and Gumpert (1985, pp. 85-94). French economist Say, around 1800 stated that the entrepreneur â€Å"†¦shifts economic resources out of an area of lower and into an area of higher productivity and greater yield† (Dracker, 1985, p. 21). However, starting a new venture does not necessarily constitute entrepreneurship, and is not limited to new and or small businesses. Dracker (1985, p. 22) advises that entrepreneurship is indeed being practiced by all sizes of companies and corporations, and said activity represents the creation of something new, or different, and or the change / transmutation of value. As such, Dracker (1985, pp. 21) cites McDonald’s, which is an example of entrepreneurship. And while its product did not represent anything new, the management concepts, techniques, standardization of the product, the process of designing systems and tools, the understanding of the work that needed to be done, and devising working and training techniques to transmit this to others is what defines it as being entrepreneurial (Dracker, 1985, p.21). He also uses General Electric as an example in that the company’sâ€Å"†¦ long history of starting new entrepreneurial businesses from scratch, and raising them into sizable industries† is another example of this process (Dracker, 1985, p. 23), as well as Marks and Spencer of the United Kingdom. Sheller (2006) advises that â€Å"Entrepreneurship is a delicate organism†, continuing that â€Å"It needs the right environment to flourish†. Welsh (2003, p. 4) elaborates on Sheller’s (2006) view by stating: 1. Entrepreneurship flourishes in communities where resources are mobile, 2. Entrepreneurship is greater when successful members of a community reinvest excess capital in the projects of other community members, 3. Entrepreneurship flourishes in communities in which the success of other community members is celebrated rather than derided, and 4. Entrepreneurship is greater in communities that see change as positive rather than negative.† Given the risk taking nature of entrepreneurs, an examination of the context of this word is deemed as an important consideration before delving into the examination of the attitudes to risk and entrepreneurship. Inherent in the analysis of an entrepreneurial environment is risk, but, as stated by Culp (2001. 3) â€Å"Risk is everywhere†. Burt (2001) advises that â€Å"risk is the probability that an event will occur† and is â€Å"†¦ often used to express the probability that particular outcome will happen following a particular exposure† and also denotes the probability, or possibility of a loss. However, there are differing views and attitudes regarding risk, just as there are regarding entrepreneurship. These facets shall be examined herein, equating the various attitudes and approaches to these two areas. Chapter 1 – Introduction Implicit in understanding the context of attitudes to risk and entrepreneurship, are the words that constitute this examination. The simplistic nature of the statement belies the striations inherent in the different contexts. Follendore (2002) in commenting on that fact that words carry meaning, also states that words also can limit potential meanings. As shown by the preceding brief exploration of entrepreneurship and risk, these words have a broader dimension that one usually associates with them in general conversation, and or use. Termed linguistics, the meaning of words represents the context in which they are used in combination with other words and permits us to communicate with one another (Hill, 1969, p. 3). The character of the word stock of English has its roots in the Germanic tribes of the preromantic era and consists of French, Italian and other languages that have been incorporated into the body of words utilized by English speakers (Leith, 1997, p. 62). The foregoing is important in understanding that the word dictionary is 1. â€Å"A reference book containing an alphabetical list of words, with information given for each word †¦Ã¢â‚¬  that 3. Lists â€Å"†¦words or other linguistics items in a particular category †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Houghton Mifflin, 2007). Its etymology stems from Medieval Latin dictinrium, and from Latin diction, which is a derivative of diction (Houghton Mifflin, 2007). The weakness of the English language lies in its lexical ambiguity. Lin and Ahrens (2001) provide a further understanding of the importance of words that in most instances have multiple meanings, thus the phrase lexical ambiguity. They go on to add that â€Å"†¦ multiple meanings associated with †¦ (words) †¦ can be etymologically associated†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The words utilized in the title of this examination fall into the category of words that have â€Å"†¦ greater number of meanings †¦Ã¢â‚¬  thus they are â€Å"†¦ recognized faster than words with few meanings† (Lin and Ahrens, 2001). Dictionary meanings, as stated by Lin and Ahrens (2001) are the form that is usually preferred by researchers as a result of their having standardized meanings â€Å"†¦ comprehensive, and easy to obtain†. However, semantically speaking, the meaning of the words attitudes, risk and entrepreneurship change depending upon the context, thus variables are added as a result of using these words in combination, further compounding the equation. As borne out by the limited exploration of meanings for entrepreurship and risk. Thus in exploring the attitudes to the preceding, this examination shall explore these combinations and seek to find common linkages to result in an understanding of the foregoing. Chapter 2 – Attitude The context of this examination, which represents an exploration into the ‘Attitudes to risk and entrepreneurship’, embodies looking at the relationships of these words to define the phrase and bring out its meanings. It is the context in which these words reside, as well as the implications thus resulting, represent the underlying precepts that provide for a broad field of interpretations and thus variants. In beginning with the word ‘attitudes’, Houghton Mifflin (2007) defines its â€Å"1. A position of the body or manner of carrying oneself, 2. a. Astute of mind or a feeling; disposition, 2. b. An arrogant or hostile state of mind or disposition, 3. The orientation of an air or spacecraft relative to a reference †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Its etymology is French, from the Italian word ‘attitudinal, which was adopted from late Latin‘aptitd’ (Houghton Mifflin, 2007). Schneider (2006) advises that the word ‘attitudes’ consists of two components. One represents belief, and the other represents feeling (Schneider, 2006). Beliefs are a mental concept association that are usually â€Å"†¦ associated with an identity †¦ and as Dr. Schneider (2006) states, â€Å"†¦ are often stereotypical†. He continues that these stereotypical beliefs are usually stemmed in the â€Å"†¦ socio demographic differences of a person †¦ (as well as their) †¦ personal experience†. Thus, based upon the context as well as usage, ‘attitudes’ brings with it the usage context as formulated within an individual’s historical framework as well. These historical preconceptions, however slight, represent influencing factors acting upon the individual as they mentally traverse through their personal feelings, and beliefs regarding the word sets that follow, thus triggering other memory concepts, feelings and beliefs. Schneider (2006), refers to Sheriff in discussing ‘norm formation which represents the prevailing understanding(s) associated with a particular word in contemporary common usage. We as individuals have grown through experiences, associations, and circumstances in our environments as impacted upon by family, friends, acquaintances, and our abilities to cope, to develop personalities as well as thinking patterns that are the outgrowth of these variables. We see the environment, filter out what isn’t relevant, evaluate what remains, then process this information through our individual self-images â€Å"†¦ and / or sets of expectations, and /or personal characteristics, motivational factors and life experiences †¦and then we respond with either â€Å"†¦ reflective or spontaneous behaviour†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Rice University, 2003). The preceding would appear in a diagram as follows: Figure 1 – Individual Environmental Perceptions (Rice University, 2003) The next step in the process is the examination of individualbehavior in the context of two individuals as an interaction. Such can consist of one of three types of interactions, as represented by superior to subordinate, leader to peers, and leader to boss (Rice University, 2003). The importance of these distinctions is that such interactions often tend to influence, impact, change, and or colour person’s perceptions, and or processing thus causing them to arrive at differing conceptualizations. Figure 2 – Individual Environmental Perceptions in a Two Party Relationship (Rice University, 2003) Under Figure 2, it illustrates the interactive effects of environmental perceptions in a two-party relationship, and how the images of Individual A can impact upon the perceptions of Individual B. Another facet of how external influences can impact upon an individual’s thinking has been put forward by Janis (1972, pp. 15-30) who states that groupthink is the psychological drive for consensus at any costs which suppresses disagreement, and thus prevents the appraisal of potential alternatives in decision making groups. Thus, an individual in a bank will have a completely different set of mental references that will occur when he or she hears the word risk, than will an entrepreneur. In a limited and distant way, the preceding represents a variant of groupthink, or the thinking adopted by an individual as represented by being part of a group or enterprise. The symptoms can be mild to strong based upon the degree of adaptation, position and or other factors, and can fall into any of the following categorizations (Janis, 1972, pp. 174-195, 242-258): 1. Negative Outcomes The examination of only a few alternatives, Not being critical of the ideas of others, Failure to examine alternatives early, Failure to seek expert opinion, Being very selective in terms of gathering information, Failure to have contingency plans, 2. Symptoms An illusion of invulnerability, The rationalization of poor decisions, A belief in the morality of the group, The sharing of stereotypes that guide the decision process, The exercising of direct pressure on others, Failure to express true feelings, The maintenance of the illusion of unanimity, The use of what are termed mind guards to protect others in the group from receiving or evaluating negative information 3. Solutions The utilization of a policy forming group that thus reports to a larger group, thus forcing or bringing wider thinking latitudes into the equation, Having the leaders remain impartial, The utilization of differing policy groups to accomplish different tasks, The division of individuals into groups and then a discussion on differences to open up potential alternatives and additional thinking, Having discussions in sub groups that report back, The utilization of a Devil’s advocate to call into question all of the ideas raised by the group, Holding second meetings to provide another opportunity for other courses of action The idea of the preceding is to help minimize preconceived notions, ideas, and approaches to open them up to a broader field of discussion, ideas, alternatives, and possibilities. The foregoing is applied in individual situations by the individual taking the time for reflective thinking away for the instant pressures of now or of another’s influence. Chapter 3 Risk The Houghton Mifflin (2007) dictionary defines risk as â€Å" 1. The possibility of suffering harm or loss; danger, 2. A factor, thing, element, or course involving uncertain danger; a hazard †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . It, risk, represents a concept that carries with it the potential for a negative outcome or less that desired outcome that can potentially arise from a specific, desired or combination of actions in the present or sometime in the future (Douglas, 1992, pp. 102-105). Viscose (1998, p. 5)advises that â€Å"Individual risk perceptions are often in error †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ,explaining that â€Å"†¦ people make mistakes with respect to how they perceive risk and behave in the presence of uncertainty†. Douglas(1992, p. 102) states that it has been a long held belief that individuals are risk averse, which is based upon â€Å"†¦ the theory of rationale choice †¦ (that) †¦ assumes that the individual will always choose according to his own self-interest †¦Ã¢ €  which are choices, thus a factor of rational behaviour. Adams (1995, p. 1) simplifies the understanding of risk by personalizing it in order for us to gain aclearer perspective. He states that each and every one of us is â€Å"†¦ a true risk expert †¦Ã¢â‚¬  in that â€Å"†¦ we have been trained by practice and experience in the management of risk† (Adams, 1995, p. 1). Risk represents something that we as human being learn in infancy, starting with our trial and error processes representing learning how to crawl, walk, and then talk (Adams, 1995, p. 1). He adds to Douglas’ (1992, p.102) statement that individuals are risk averse as he points out the example of that although we as child tend to act out of â€Å"†¦ curiosity and a need for excitement †¦ (we are ) †¦ curbed by †¦ â€Å" our sense of danger (Adams, 1995, p. 1). The importance of investigating the components and foundations of risk as a part of the equation of this examination is crucial to the examination of attitudes, risk and entrepreneurship in that one needs the foundation of the theories, and usages attributed to these words and concepts. Risk, as a function of perceived uncertainty and dangerous also subject to prevailing public views, experience factors and acceptance. By any account, taking a flight in a piece of metal whose outer skin is thin, with the entire container flexing while one travels at speeds in excess of 400 km would not only sound risky to those born in ancient Rome, it would be viewed as insane. Thus risk is a changing variable based upon our degrees of exposure, the exposure of others, and its place in what we subscribe to as normal routines. Risk taking for one used to making investments, such as a financier, stock trader or venture capitalist, whose circle of acquaintances, friends, upbringing, and experiences is less than it is for a doctor, lawyer, cab driver or railroad engineer, as they lack the exposure, and mental familiarity that underpins uncertainty, and how to deal with it. The foregoing represents the third of Starr’s (1969, pp. 1234) three laws describing behavioural phenomena â€Å"†¦ 3. The acceptable level of risk is inversely related to the number of persons exposed to that risk†. The other two segments of this law are (1969, p. 1238): â€Å"1. The public is willing to accept voluntary risks about 1,000 times greater than involuntary risks. 2. The acceptability of risks appears to be roughly proportional to the third power of the benefits† Starr’s (1969, p. 1238) three putative laws however have not gained wide spread acceptance with risk specialists on all grounds, however there are those who agree with his assertion that there is a relationship between risk acceptability ad benefits. Otway and Chen(1975, pp. 76-80) however found that through a replication of the analysis that the resulting data did not support Starr’s (1969, p.1238) assertion in qualitative formulations, and instead found that individuals were indeed willing to accept high involuntary risks with large benefits. Despite the findings of Otway and Chen (1975, pp.76-80) the jury is still out regarding Starr’s (1969, p. 1238) three putative laws. And while we have been discussing risk as on an individual basis, risk exists in all forms, thus the exploration of it in institutions also has relevance as it is still a human facet. Culp (2001, p. 15) advises that we find it â€Å"†¦ tempting to associate definition of risk with measures of risk, such as the variance of returns on some asset† or in order mathematical means. Culp (2001, p.15) asserts that risk can be shown through mathematical formulas to that†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ make sense in illustrative purposes†, adding that â€Å"Risk is concept, not a particular statistical construct†. In further exploring risk, Culp (2001, p. 15) adds that attempting to glean an understanding of risk â€Å"†¦ at the conceptual level †¦Ã¢â‚¬  is a daunting task. He states that there is a tendency to use terms such as interest rate risk, maturity, accident, credit and so forth, which have their applications, and adds that the conceptualization of the â€Å"†¦ definition of risk varies with the perspective† (Culp, 2001, p. 15). Thus, he offers perspectives on how risk can be defined, and the relationships between them. Firstly, Culp (2001, p. 15) offers what he terms the â€Å"event-driven definition of risk† which works on the principle of â€Å"†¦ the type of event that can result in a loss†, such as a flood or earthquake. The second type of risk Culp (2001, p. 16) defines is ‘market risk’ thatâ€Å"†¦ arises from the event of a change in some market determined asset price, reference rate or index†. He explains that ‘delta represents the value that is the â€Å"exposure that deteriorates as a result of the price, or value of some risk factor changes†, with â€Å"‘gamma’ as the risk that delta will change when the value of an underlying risk factor changes â€Å"and ‘rho as the â€Å"risk that the interest rates used to discount future cash flows in present value calculations will change and impose unexpected losses on the firm (Culp, 2001, p. 17). Culp (2001, p. 18)defines ‘liquid risk’ as that which †Å"occurs in the event that cash flows, and current balances are insufficient to cover cash outflow requirements†, and ‘credit risk’. The other types of risk Culp (2001,pp. 18-22) defines are ‘operational risk’, and ‘legal risk’, with other risks representing a broad array of items such as intellectual risk, customer loss risk, and supply chain risks as a few examples. In equating risk with the subject of this examination, risk aversion represents the division of risk that is associated with individuals. Culp (2001, p. 34) refers to this as â€Å"†¦. the shape of a utility function dictating the degree to which an individual is risk-averse, risk-neutral, or risk-loving†. Barrett (1993, p. 2) states that inside of these risk categories is what he terms the ‘disaster threshold ‘whereby one engages in behaviour that includes risk only when it does not touch their threshold of misfortune beyond which they will not goes such would †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ be experienced as a disaster†. He adds that when individuals have a preference for â€Å"†¦ risk-aversion †¦ (it) †¦ displaces the preference for rational decision making† (Barrett, 1993, p. 79).Under this type of thinking the rule is â€Å"†¦ to take as few risks as incompatible with the perception of opportunities, and to expect corresponding attitude i n others† (Barrett, 1993, p. 79). Lane and Cheek (2000) conducted a study on risk-aversion examining theâ€Å"†¦ role of contingencies and experimental context in human decision-making†. They subjected twelve individuals to â€Å"†¦ a series of conditions that provided response alternatives of a small, high-probability reinforce (non-risky alternative), or a larger, low probability reinforce (risky alternative)†. The range of therein forcer probabilities and amounts were utilized via a discrete trial design that had repeated trials conducted in multiple sessions. In comparing the results with prior data it was found that the subjects in the study â€Å"†¦ displayed a strong preference for the non-risky response alternative, even when doing so resulted in lost earnings† (Lane and Cheek, 2000). These results support decision, and risk models that emphasize the subjective as opposed to mathematically expected value of reinforces, and â€Å"†¦ the data highlight the important role of reinforcement contingencies, and context in risk-taking behaviour† (Lane and Cheek, 2000). Risk, as explained by Adams (1995), Viscose (1998),Douglas (1992), Starr (1969), and others is inherent in any choice that involves probabilistic outcomes. Lane and Cheek (2000) found that inâ€Å"†¦ contexts with two or more response alternatives, both the probability, and size of each alternative presumably influence decisions†. Lawrence (1992) concurs with Lane and Cheek (2000) in that the choice of decision making that occurs under uncertainty usually includes options of selecting, and or choosing to use an informational system, and a set of probable messages that take in current decisions. Under this type of thinking the rule is â€Å"†¦ to take as few risks as incompatible with the perception of opportunities, and to expect corresponding attitude in others† Barrett (1993, p. 79) whereby the taking of as few risks as possible is the preference in compatibility with opportunity perception, and the corresponding attitude of others. Hahnemann and Tversky (1979, pp. 341-350), Silberberg et al (1988, pp.187-195), and Slavic and Lichtenstein (1968, pp. 1-17) all conducted studies in risk aversion, and noted the tendency toward a mild approaching conditions as represented by gain versus no-gain. Hahnemann andTversky (1979, pp. 341-350) found that under some conditionsâ€Å"†¦equivalent outcomes with real, and hypothetical outcomes, but results from other studies are not so straightforward, and suggest that there may be differences in subjects’ decision making when real payoff contingencies are implemented†. Slavic (1969) found â€Å"†¦ when choices were hypothetical, subjects maximized gains and discounted the probability of loss, but were more risk averse under conditions in which they actually played out their choices†. In equating risk as a variable of simply participating as opposed to gain and or loss Reuchlin and Frankel (1969, pp. 444-449) found that in the utilization of gambling situations that contained no payoffs, the individuals involved in the study were indifferent to the response they selected, but when the probabilities of winning, and losing were introduced whereby monetary gains, and or losses were involved, they were real sensitive to the choices made. The understanding of why people make decisions in situations whereby an alternative is the better choice based upon some attributes of values and in others the alternative is better based upon some other attribute represents a problem of preferential choice, and judgment in psychology. Castellan (1993, p. 20) advises that in general, when people are â€Å"†¦faced with more complex decision problems involving many alternatives, people often adopt simplifying strategies that are much more selective in the use of information†. He continues thatâ€Å"†¦strategies adopted tend to be non-compensatory, in that excellent values on some attributes cannot compensate for poor values on other attributes† (Castellan, 1993, p. 20). He elaborates on the foregoing by making reference to a number of job applicants with basically the same qualifications, however, the interviewer might decide that a published article background is a determining factor which he utilizes to aid in the decision process. The preceding represents a simplification strategy for getting through, and or making a decision, which is termed heuristics for choice, which can change based upon the conditions. Tversky ( 1972, pp. 281-299) referred to such a strategy as an elimination-by-aspects process. Heuristics such as the equal weighting rule, majority of confirming dimensions, and lexicographic represent differing methods for simplifying processing in the making of choices(Castellan, 1993, p. 20). The preceding represents a factor of risk as individuals work through their own history and experience base as well as any applicable organizational or society rules in reaching a risk based decision. The equal weighting strategy simplifies the decision making process by virtue of ignoring information concerning the relative importance of each attribute (Castellan, 1993, p. 21). In the confirming decisions heuristic, the general process entails the processing of pairs of alternatives whereby â€Å"†¦values for each of the two alternatives are compared on each attribute, and the alternative with a majority of winning (better) attribute values is retained †¦.† (Castellan, 1993, p.21). In this manner â€Å"†¦processing is simplified by requiring only ordinal judgments of which alternative is better on an attribute, rather than assessments of the degree to which one alternative is better than the other †¦ (thereby the) †¦ process of pairwise comparison is repeated until all alternatives have been evaluated, and the final winning alternative identified† (Castellan, 1993, p. 21). In the final heuristic, lexicographic choice works by â€Å"†¦first determining the most important attribute, and then examining the values of all alternatives on that attribute. The alternative with the best value on the most important attribute is selected† (Castellan, 1993, p. 21). In cases of ties, the second most important attribute is considered and the process repeated until the decision making tie is eliminated. The foregoing are aspects in risk decision making that some individuals use in arriving at their choices, and are usually reserved for more long term risk analysis decision making such as investment, business decisions, long term purchases of higher monetary value and so forth. These types of risk taking processes are also associated with entrepreneurs. Chapter 4 – Entrepreneurship The Houghton Mifflin dictionary (2007) defines entrepreneur as â€Å"Adperson who organizes, operates and assumes the risk for a business venture†. An entrepreneur represents an individual who is usually of high aptitude, who possesses certain characteristics that are found in only a small portion of people in general, who pioneers change(Quick MBA, 2007). The more popular definition that is thought of by society when this word is mentioned, is of a person who wants to work for themselves. The origin of entrepreneur is French, based on the word ‘entreprendre, which means ‘to undertake’. Entrepreneurship represents the practice of beginning new companies, and or organizations as usually represented by a new business as a result of new opportunities that have, or are presenting themselves. Such naturally entails elements of risk. The equation of risk in entrepreneurship is represented by the spectre of failure, which can beat result of a multitude of business, supply, sales, market condition, financing, timing, competitive, new innovations, cost, locale, another problems that are all interweaved to result in a complex series of risks that must be examined, explored, decided upon, and dealt with correctly to minimize failure, which does not necessarily translate into success. Stevenson (1983), as previously referred to, describes entrepreneurship represents â€Å"†¦ the pursuit of opportunity beyond the resources you currently control†, which he further amplifies with Gumpert (Stevenson and Gumpert, 1985, pp. 85-94) that entrepreneurship represents both the individual as well as the society that he or she is embedded in as he or she identifies an opportunity they desire to pursue and as an entrepreneur they thus must seek the resources from the broader society. Given all of the research, and studies devoted to entrepreneurship no universal theory has been generated, as various disciplines have their â€Å"†¦own unique way of viewing entrepreneurship which remains relatively unaffected by the perspectives of other disciplines †¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Gartner, 2001). All of the foregoing have been engaged in as a part of the purpose of this study, which is to equate attitudes toward risk and entrepreneurship. The three critical words that comprise this examination have extremely broad interpretations as well as context that are dependent upon when, and how they are used. For Dracker (1985,p. 28) entrepreneurship is about risk. But his view does not take the skew of said risk being negative or positive, but rather that risk is inherent with the concept as it, risk, is inherent with business in general, simply that entrepreneurial risk is a different form. Thus, the attitudes concerning risk and entrepreneurship are individual and dependent upon the prevailing social circle, or societal views that can take on any the differing contextual concepts of any of the words in arriving at a mental conceptualization of what these words mean in combination. He describes entrepreneurship as â€Å"†¦ ‘risky’ mainly because so few of the so-called entrepreneurs know what they are doing(Dracker, 1985, p. 29). And continues that they â€Å"†¦ lack the methodology†¦ (and) †¦violate elementary and well known rules (Dracker, 1985, p.29). Thus Dracker (1985) is seemingly saying that the high degree of complexity inherent in entrepreneurship, as either demands or requires an individual who is usually of high aptitude, who possess certain characteristics that are found in only a small portion of people in general, who pioneers change (, 2007). The attention being devoted to an examination of entrepreurship is deemed as an important part of the risk attitude equation in that like risk, and attitude, it, entrepreurship, entails a large number of variants in how they are viewed contextually. Dracker (1985, p. 30) aids in providing clarity by advising that entrepreneurship requires innovation, as it â€Å"†¦ is the specific instrument †¦Ã¢â‚¬  of the process. It represents the factor â€Å"†¦that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dracker, 1985, p. 30). He explains that innovationâ€Å"†¦ creates a resource †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and that a resource represents something that has no value until a need, and use is found for it, and thus endows it with an economic value (Dracker, 1985, p. 30). To illustrate, he points to various plants, rock, and minerals that went unused for centuries until a use were found for them. Owing to this view, Dracker (1985, p.33) advises that innovation represents an economic term, in this context, as opposed to a social or technical one. He adds that it, innovation, â€Å"†¦can be defined the way J. B. Say defined entrepreneurship, as changing the yield of resources † as well as being â€Å"†¦ defined in demand terms rather than in supply terms, that is, as changing the value and satisfaction obtained from resources by the consumer †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dracker, 1985, p. 33). Francis and Demirep (2006) address the issue of entrepreneurship in the context of â€Å"Wealth, Entrepreneurship and Occupational Experience â€Å"citing that as a factor of the probability of becoming an entrepreneur, one is likely to be male, a member of the Caucasian race, in the upper middle age bracket, and married. They cite that the theoretical aspects of the preceding profile represent facets such as risk aversion, along with entrepreneurial ability, as mentioned by Dracker (1985, p. 30) â€Å"†¦and the desire to be one’s own boss† (