Socially Responsible Investing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Socially Responsible Investing - Research Paper Example Empirical research that has been conducted by different people has shown that in selecting a portfolio, potential investors not only consider statistical measures like risk and return but also psychological factors such as sentiment, overconfidence, and overreaction. In short, it is a general observation that heuristic-driven bias, frame dependence, and market inefficiency plays a crucial role in shaping the kind of portfolios that investors make the preference to, the type of securities they find attractive, as well as the biases to which they are considered subject to. For a long period, the process of socially responsible investing has been the subject of significant attention in practitioner and academic literature. The process has so far attracted research process that has been geared towards examining and discussing the financial advantages associated with the process, its effects on social change, pertinent issues and challenges associated with SRI logistics as well as the motives and inspiration that drive investors. While it may be easy to know and comprehend some of the demographic makeup, associated with socially responsible investors, what distinguishes them from non-socially responsible investors as well as what their motives and inspirations are. Our understanding of the decision process behind SRI is still limited; this is influenced by the fact that only a few studies have tested hypotheses about investor behavior in the context of socially responsible investing.

Trinity by Leon Uris Essay Example for Free

Trinity by Leon Uris Essay Over a career spanning five decades, Leon Uris has enjoyed phenomenal popularity, with five of his twelve novels classified as number-one best-sellers by the New York Times. While the shortcomings in his prose, characterization, and political outlook have been well noted, Uris certainly ranks among the more important multicultural writers since World War II. His books explore a number of the defining cultural conflicts of the twentieth century: the Nazis’ attempted extermination of the Jews, the volatile clash between Arabs and Israelis in the Middle East, and the long-running battle between the British and Irish in Ireland, most notably. Millions of readers have learned the history behind these major intercultural conflicts from Uris’s fiction. At its annual dinner in 1978, at which the benediction was given by a Baptist minister from Belfast, the Gold Medal was awarded to Leon Uris, author of Trinity, a best-selling novel on the troubles in Ireland. The imperialist British have drawn Uris’s frequent ire. He levels harsh criticism against the British in Trinity for their self-interested administration and their failure to support Ireland in its infancy. In this book, Uris condemns the British for demeaning and subjugating Irish Catholics. He describes the British presence in Ireland as four centuries of tortured foreign occupation. In Uris’s version of Irish history, Ulster, now the nation of Northern Ireland, was established as a British plantation, a fortress outpost of colonial exploitation peopled with British-descended Ulstermen whose hatred of Irish Catholics smells strangely of Aryan supremacy of Nazi ideology. Trinity is a romantic, sentimental fiction about Irelands fight for independence. It feeds the myth of heroic opposition in the face of impossible odds. It is a paean to blood sacrifice, to the idea that the chosen few who are prepared to take upon themselves the burden of history can themselves make history, that blood sacrifice is a noble and a cleansing thing, that a glorious defeat is a prerequisite to prevailing, that in death there is victory. The novels heroes plan revolution in the face of hopeless odds; they gladly lay down their lives, eager to embrace a defeat that may somehow â€Å"stir the ashes of [the] people into a series of even more glorious defeats† so that â€Å"over the land long dead stirrings† will at last be heard (731). Trinity is bad history but powerful propaganda. It became more powerful still in the stench-ridden wings, where for nights on end the heroic exploits of Long Dan Sweeney and Conor Larkin and Brendan Sean Barrett, who, in their epic pursuit of Irish freedom, had been incarcerated and abused in captivity, who had endured hunger striking itself – â€Å"a silent defiance† became for the prisoners fictional role models with whom they could identify, in- vesting their protest with a political leitmotif that mirrored their own lives. â€Å"No crime a man commits on behalf of his freedom can be as great as the crime committed by those who deny him freedom,† Long Dan Sweeney declares. â€Å"We engage in a fight vulnerable to scathing propaganda, unloved by most of our own people, but God and God alone will eventually decide which side was just in its aspirations and which side was evil.† â€Å"Remember,† he exhorts his fellow revolutionaries, â€Å"the British have nothing in their entire arsenal of imperial might to counter a single man who refuses to be broken. Irish words, Irish self-sacrifice, and ultimately Irish martyrdom are our weapons. We must have the ability to endure pain to such an extent that they lose the ability to inflict it. This and this alone will break them in the end† (466). Fact and fiction reinforced each other. Trinity had its historical counterpoint in 1916, the H-block protest its fictional counterpoint in Trinity. The primitive, repelling circumstances of the H-blocks were often more unimaginable and less real than the imagined circumstances in Trinity. Fantasy fed the heart, and there grew among a number of the blanketmen a belief that a hunger strike would provide the catalytic momentum that would make 1916 come again. This theme of British cultural bigotry is central in Trinity. In the latter, British prejudice extends outward to include the Australians and New Zealanders sacrificed in Ireland has had a troubled history for over 800 years. Leon Uris’ Trinity deals with various aspects of Irish history. Find out about the main events in the history of Ireland and you will understand the present political troubles in modern Ireland. Works Cited Uris, Leon. Trinity. New York: Doubleday, 1976.

Terrorists :: essays research papers

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The federal government has asked the National Academy of Sciences not to publish a research paper that feds describe as a "road map for terrorists" on how to contaminate the nation's milk supply. The research paper on biological terrorism, by Stanford University professor Lawrence M. Wein and graduate student Yifan Liu, provides details on how terrorists might attack the milk supply and offers suggestions on how to safeguard it. The paper appeared briefly May 30 on a password-protected area of the National Academy of Science's Web site. Journalists use that area of the Web site to get advance copies of articles slated for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. People who downloaded the Wein-Liu paper called the Food and Drug Administration for comment, and the FDA notified the Department of Health and Human Services, which asked the academy to stop the article's publication. The paper "is a road map for terrorists and publication is not in the interests of the United States," HHS Assistant Secretary Stewart Simonson wrote in a letter to the science academy chief Dr. Bruce Alberts. The paper gives "very detailed information on vulnerability nodes" in the milk supply chain and "includes ... very precise information on the dosage of botulinum toxin needed to contaminate the milk supply to kill or injure large numbers of people," Simonson wrote. "It seems clear on its face that publication of this manuscript could have very serious public health and national security consequences." Simonson wrote that acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Lester Crawford was joining him in the request to halt publication. Officials of HHS and the academy said they are to meet Tuesday to discuss the article. "The academy has been dealing with the issue of scientific openness versus national security since 9/11," said academy spokesman Bill Kearney. "The academy [members] are strong advocates of scientific openness while ensuring that nothing is done to aid terrorists." Kearney said the NAS routinely vets papers for security concerns before publishing them and had vetted the Wein-Liu paper. After HHS raised concerns, the NAS decided to "take a step back and make sure that we weren't putting out anything that we're uncomfortable with," he said. NAS is a private, nonprofit society of scientists and engineers chartered by Congress to advise the government on science and technology. HHS spokesman Marc Wolfson said Wein showed a draft of his paper last fall to HHS staffers, who expressed concern about the level of detail in the paper.

Prison Nursery Essay

The authors describe prison nurseries as living arrangements within a correctional facility that allow incarcerated mothers to keep their infants (born during their incarceration) with them through all or part of their sentence. This article brings to question whether these women should be treated any differently than any other incarcerated women and who should pay for these programs. The authors note that this may be one of the most controversial debates surrounding the imprisonment of women. At the time of this study, the authors note that there are currently 8 states that provide prison nursery programs: California, Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, South Dakota, and Washington. This is up from only 3 states in 1998 and notes that New York has had a prison nursery program since 1901. The authors illustrate studies that have shown that the recidivism rate among women who have been allowed to keep their children in prison nurseries is lower than that of other women. Howev er, limited studies have been cited concerning the development of children born into and raised within a prison nursery program. The authors discuss the cost of prison nursery programs as being one major hurdle into starting and/or continuing these programs. Most nursery programs are segregated from the general prison population and are staffed with both civilian and correctional staff, allowing for public and private funding to be used. The authors’ note that a large percentage of the children in prison nursery programs would otherwise be cared for through public dollars whether it be within the foster care system or public assistance to the interim caregiver during the mother’s incarceration so there seems to be little difference in the funding or use of funding in terms of child care. Through several studies the authors note the strict guidelines for eligibility for these programs, including type of crime, past history of abuse, and length of sentence. Each program has its on set of criteria and rules but the authors state that the idea behind the programs is the same wherever it is incorporated and that is to provide an opportunity for mother and child to succeed. The authors conclude that prison nurseries should be more widely available as the trend of women being incarcerated has continued to rise and no decline seems to be forthcoming. They note that studies into the long term effects on children born into prison nurseries is also needed as well as re-entry into society must be closely monitored and facilitated in order for true results to be determined.

Ethics Goes To Hollywood Essay

When we think of ethics with regards to Hollywood, some people might even question if there really are any left? With the growing number of moralists and critics that easily target Hollywood, ethics has become an important factor that seems to be set aside. Many of the movies that are being shown today presents violence, nudity and lack of values incorporated with the film. But there can always be an argument about how is ethics really perceived through the movie industry? Some might doubt but actually when we look pass through over-all violence and those unacceptable factors to moralists, some movies do posses ethics in them. Most of the time, those ethics are just overlooked by the over-all presence of the movie. When we analyze and breakdown a movie and study the characters there is a great opportunity to realize the moral fiber of the film. In recent memory, there are only a few movies that have produced an unusual style of presentation in the silver screen. One of those movies showed up during 2007 through a film titled â€Å"300†. It was based from Frank Miller’s graphic novel also named â€Å"300†. This movie adaptation of the novel is also based from the Battle of Thermopylae that was retold in a fictional sense. To further analyze the movie, the following paragraph will showcase the movie’s summary. Beginning with the presentation on a how a Spartan boy grows up and how he emerges to be king of Sparta, the movie was narrated by Dilios, a spartan soldier who was able to live and tell the tale. After years of being Sparta’s king, Leonidas received a messenger who was sent by the Persian ruler Xerxes. The messenger presented an offer that enraged king Leonidas, leading the messenger kicked down a seemingly bottomless pit. The message was sent clear, the Persian army is about to come, to invade Sparta and add it up to their growing territory. King Leonidas then consulted the Ephors, priests who consult the oracle for answers from the gods. Proposing a plan to block the Persian army by defending the Hot Gates of Thermopylae, King Leonidas was furious by the Ephors’ advice of not to fight because the oracle said that it was forbidden and the gods will get enraged if they do. Despite all of this, Leonidas stood strong with his firm decision to defend the Hot Gates. He gathered 300 of the greatest Spartan soldiers and assembled a party that would hold off thousands of Persians. As they have reached the Hot Gates, they defended it for days just to protect Sparta. King Leonidas courageously led the way by standing strong to his principles until the end. The number of the Persian army was too much for the 300 Spartans and eventually led to their deaths. Only one soldier was tasked to return to Sparta to tell the tale, Dilios, who forever made Leonidas and the 300 Spartans, remembered. LEONIDAS AND HIS VIRTUES The whole essence of the story evolved in Leonidas’ answer to his ethical dilemma that concerned with his decision to push through despite a number of people prohibiting him. One example was when he was discouraged by the Ephors or priests to pursue his plan because it was the time of the Carneian festival. His ethical dilemma would be is that if he pushes through with his plan, he would be disrespecting the Carneian but he would be able to salvage some time to defend Sparta. Despite the senate’s disapproval of sending the whole Spartan army, Leonidas faced his dilemma by standing strong with his beliefs and forming an army of 300 to continue his plan. Another example would be seen during the scene where the Persians were negotiating with Leonidas. First was during the arrival of the Persian messenger who offered Leonidas salvation of the Spartans from the Persian army if he yields. Another was during their stay at the Hot Gates, when King Xerxes himself talked to Leonidas personally and again proposed to have them spared if he yields to the Persians. Both of these instances presented a same result, Leonidas refusing to give up and standing strong to his principles. Choosing the side of what’s right than what’s wrong, suggests Leonidas’ firm ethical correctness and proper morality virtues. OTHER ETHICAL THEORIES PRESENTED Egoism is also depicted in the movie as seen in Xerxes’ motivation to rule and conquer the world. His actions towards self-interests boost his drive to invade and gain territories. In one instance, he even called himself the king and ruler of the world. A little bit of Egoism can also be attributed to Leonidas. His strong desire to win and his confidence to bring only 300 soldiers despite knowing that his enemy would be thousands in number suggests a showing of Egoism. CONCLUSION When we analyze the definition of ethics we easily incorporate it with what’s write and what’s wrong. Most of it solely depends on how we make that decision. The movie â€Å"300† despite its over-all violent nature still possessed that essential factor of morality and the integration of ethics through the characters, most especially Leonidas. Being the Spartan king, his decision to protect his kingdom by defending the Hot Gates despite disagreements by the senate and the priests caused his ethical dilemma. By overcoming this dilemma and choosing what he knows is right, it created a chain of events that lead to his popularity and immortality through the help of the story that’s still known up to today. Despite Xerxes’ tempting offers in order for him to surrender, Leonidas’ strong principles carried him all the way to legendary proportions. Driven by a king’s instincts, Leonidas died for the people of Sparta which caused them to be more inspired and more driven to defeat the Persian army that arrived pass the Hot Gates. All in all, despite Hollywood’s descending reputation in accordance with moralists, people can still find ethics in movies. People just need to look pass through and analyze the details to get the even bigger picture. References Mackie, J L. (1977). Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong. New York: Penguin Books. Simpson, R. H. (1972). Leonidas’ Decision. Phoenix (Vol 26, pp. 1-11).

The impacts of The UK’s withdrawal from The European Union on the Hotel Industry The WritePass Journal

The impacts of The UK’s withdrawal from The European Union on the Hotel Industry Introduction The impacts of The UK’s withdrawal from The European Union on the Hotel Industry ). Consequently, the hotel industry in the UK is largely depended on leisure and business travellers from the UK. The decision by Britain to withdraw from the European Union is a disaster for the tourism industry and specifically businesses involved in providing tourists with accommodation services. There is a general serious concern for the UK’s hotel industry as a result of the anticipated negative effects of Brexit on the travel industry in the UK. Constraints of Free Movement There is a strong tourism and travel flows between the EU and the UK. The destination for the majority of UK tourists is the EU, which is, in turn, the main source of international tourists entering the UK (Rolfe Hudson-Sharp, 2016). Travel and tourism trade between the EU and the UK has been expedited by the free movement of products and services, people and investment across the Euro Zone. This free movement and the flow of travel and trade could be significantly affected by the implementation of the Brexit. The EU has various regulations that are designed for the benefit of business travellers and holidaymakers. As much as most of these policies may not be altered immediately, UKs withdrawal from the EU has significant future implications. Free movement of people between the UK and other EU member states is supported by various regulations such as the financial protection regulations for bundle holidays, flight delays compensations, access health cover while traveling within the EU, and controls on mobile phone charges. In this respect, Brexit will expose customers within the EU to higher prices and fares while considering UK as a travel destination, which might limit the competitiveness of the UK as a tourist destination for travellers from the EU (Milas et al., 2016). An immediate concern for the travellers’ hotels in the UK is the effect of uncertainty period that follows the current Brexit negotiations. Further, the period immediately after exit from the EU will be damaging to the Hotel industry in the UK. Specifically, an exit will culminate in elevated travel costs and decreased travels between the UK and the EU. This would also imply the collapse of the European Health Insurance Card, which is an attractive package for travellers within the EU. Consequently, for the hotel industry in the UK, the negative effects of Brexit far outweigh the perceived benefits. The Cost-effectiveness of Human Capital The hotel industry in the UK is a net employer of a significant number of immigrants from the EU. A consideration of changes that will affect the ability of the sector to recruit foreign nationals could affect many businesses in the hospitality sector with respect to filling various roles in that there is a general skill shortage in the UK’s labour market (D’Angelo Kofman, 2016). In this respect, the hospitality sector in the UK could struggle to fully recover from the withdrawal of UK from the EU in that the hotel industry in the country is dependent on the EU as a source of labour. Specifically, the freedom of movement within the EU is key to the sustainability of the hotel industry in the UK and therefore Brexit may affect the financial viability of various elements of the Hotel industry in the UK. For instance, hotels in the UK are able to provide quality services at a lower cost when compared to its major competitors, Australia and the United States as a result of its membership to the EU. Furthermore, the large customer base in the EU enables UK Hotels to operate at capacity which means that they can offer better prices and guarantee more visits and hence competitiveness of the UK tourism sector (Milas et al., 2016). The implementation of the Brexit implies that EU residents will not be able to freely work as employees within the UK’s hotel industry. This will force the hotels to outsource some of its services to local firms, losing quality control and increasing the cost of hotel services by over 20 percent. Therefore, the membership of Britain within the EU is central to the existence of Hotels in the UK as cost effective quality service providers on a global scale. Conclusion As Brexit becomes a reality in the hotel industry in the UK, it is apparent that exiting from the EU may affect the sustainability of hotels from two points of view. Firstly, the collapse of free movement deal between the UK and other EU member states imply a significant decline of foreign travellers in the UK due to cost and travel bureaucracy issues. Secondly, the possibility of a significant number of employees in the hotels industry facing deportation due to withdrawal from the EU imply increased operational costs for hotels in the UK and ultimately a decline in their competitiveness on a global scale. Therefore, as plans for Brexit are being laid down, it is important to consider the possibility of adopting policies that will ensure the hotel industry in the UK survives the Brexit process. Reflective Summary This reflection is founded on Gibbs (1988) Reflection Cycle. The decision to utilise this approach was rooted in the fact that it inspires a vibrant account of the situation, examination of feelings, experience evaluation that enhances the ability of an individual to make sense of all the experiences and ultimately be able to apply the acquired knowledge in related situations (Gibbs, 1988). While the principle objective of this course was to examine learning through developing academic skills, the approach taken in this course to achieve this objective merits a reflection. The course in both lectures and tutorial sessions involved the establishment and development of working study groups. From the study groups, I was exposed to numerous perspectives on what a study group is and numerous variations of study groups in different contexts and different purposes. In fact, as much as the same charge with respect to study assessment was provided, each state resulted in a unique study group. Despite these disparities, I gained fascinating insights in the study group practice, and I currently consider it to be among the most valuable approach to exploring novel ideas and contributing practically to my professional development. In addition, I noted that since the study group agenda is driven by the group members, the experience was highly personal and purposeful. This model has been influential in my ability to develop excellent communication skills. Specifically, this module made me aware of the imperativeness of communication skills with respect to communicating with instructors and peers, expressing thoughts and reflection, depicting critical thinking during group discussions, and being culturally sensitive while talking to peers. These are competencies that will build on my communication skills to assist me in my academic undertakings. Further, this module explores ways of improving written forms of communication in that it is essential for a student to be able to express him/herself through writing. This will be important to me when writing research papers, analytical case studies, speeches, and essays. References D’Angelo, A., Kofman, E. (2016). UK: Large-Scale European Migration and the Challenge to EU Free Movement. In  South-North Migration of EU Citizens in Times of Crisis  (pp. 175-192). Springer International Publishing. Gibbs, G. (1988). The reflective cycle.  Kitchen S (1999) An appraisal of methods of reflection and clinical supervision. Br J Theatre Nurs,  9(7), 313-7. Milas, C., Worrall, T., Zymek, R. (2016). Watch Out for Winners and Losers: Odd-†Implied Brexit Sentiment and FTSE Returns.  Financial Times. Rolfe, H., Hudson-Sharp, N. (2016). The impact of free movement on the labour market: case studies of hospitality, food processing and construction. Retrieved from academia.edu/download/45123775/Free_movement_final_report.pdf

Bteac National It Unit 2 Information Systems D1 Essay Example

Bteac National It Unit 2 Information Systems D1 Essay Example Bteac National It Unit 2 Information Systems D1 Paper Bteac National It Unit 2 Information Systems D1 Paper D1 Explain how software utilities can improve the performance of computer systems Computers systems are an essential piece of equipment in many people’s everyday lives they have to deal with a lot of processes information and be able to go on the internet where there is a risk of getting viruses and bugs. This is why computer systems have to be equipped with the right software utilities to ensure that they are working at their best at all times. There are many different types of software utilities available for a computer system I will explain them in detail in this report. Firewalls Most if not all businesses, schools and big companies regularly use computer systems and go on the internet they usually have many computer systems networked together that get used for important information and keep their companies running. This is why they install firewalls on their systems. Without firewalls there is the risk of malicious viruses getting through, infecting the system and sometimes taking it down completely. The firewall acts as a communications filter which stops those malicious communications from reaching the computer system. Firewalls can also be programmed to only visit certain sites this will make sure that there is no chance of a virus. Firewalls definitely improve the performance of computer systems. Disk defragmenters Over the time of using a computer system it will start to slow down this is because of the software that gets installed and deleted off the hard disk. When you install software on to a computer system the information gets put into sectors of the hard disk. when you run it a little arm moves to the sector that has the information and then it loads but overtime when the disk gets full of information it takes longer for the little arm to get to the place with all the information also because of software that is deleted there are spaces scattered all over the hard disk making information even longer to locate this is where disk defragmenters come in to play. The disk defragmenter is a tool that cleans up your hard disk and puts all information into order so that it is easy to find for the system this then makes the applications run much quicker. Drive formatting Drive formatting is the process in which you erase data from your hard drive When you format a hard drive the  operating system erases all bookkeeping information on the disk, then it tests the hard drive to make sure all  sectors  are reliable, marks bad sectors (that is, those that are scratched or otherwise damaged), and creates internal  address  tables that it later uses to locate information. Before you use a new hard drive you should make sure it is formatted. There is also reformatting this is when you take a hard drive that you have already formatted and format it again this process makes a huge difference to the speed of your system because it deletes all the rubbish on the drive.