History of Japan Essay

1. What are the key features of the Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under Ieyasu and Iemitsu? What is the rationale behind this system? In what ways might it be considered `centralized feudalism`? The Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under the rule of Ieyasu and Iemitsu were mainly forms of centralized feudalism.   The Tokugawa period, particularly the Ieyasu Shogunate, was based on a strict class hierarchy.   This was based on the old structure created by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Bryant 2005).   It was comprised of the warrior-caste of samurai who were at the top of the hierarchy and they were followed by the farmers, the artisans, and the traders. The key feature of the Ieyasu Shogunate was the implementation of the feudal military dictatorship by Tokugawa Ieyasu.   This system of â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the key tool which helped the ruling body in restoring political and social order after a long period of warfare and chaos.   The system was such that there were feudal lords who controlled their own domains but they subject however to the whims of the Shogun who was characterized as the defacto ruler for Japan.   The ascension to Shogun was hereditary and thus led to the control by the Tokugawa Shoguns from the 1600s to 1868 (Sadler 1937). Tokugawa Ieyasu was able to gain control of the entire country through this method.   Though once a Daimyo himself, he soon became a Shogun and began exercising power over the 250 other daimyos all over Japan.   This was the centralized system that the Tokugawas were able to establish and relevant to this system was the â€Å"Alternate Attendance System† or the sankin kà ´tai (Sadler 1937). This system simply meant that every daimyo had to live every alternate year in the capital city of Edo under the penalty of permanently living in the city and leaving his life and heir behind in case such a task was not fulfilled.   Needless to say, this had immense implications for the history of Japan.   It meant that there were huge transfers of wealth since the daimyos had to finance their trips.   It also led to the fostering of a sense of loyalty to Edo as every daimyo after 1700 felt drawn to Edo as a native of the city (Sansom 1961). The situation was not so different during the time of Tokugawa Iemitsu who was the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu (Bryant 2005).   Iemitsu’s rise to power was predicated by the abdication of Hidetade in his favaor.   Hidetada installed all of his advisors and veteran daimyo in the service of Iemitsu but soon after, Iemitsu appointed most of his childhood friends and was soon able to carry on the installation of a strong and centralized form of administration similar to that by his grandfather Tokugawa Ieyasu.   While there were those who opposed such an act, Tokugawa Iemitsu simply removed all opposition and remained in power (Sansom 1961). The reason that these periods were considered as â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the fact that though there were different domains that were ruled by the daimyos, all power still emanated from the Shogun (Bryant 2005).   The Shogun ruled under the authority of the emperor and in fact ruled over most, if not all, of the activities of the realm.   This was eventually overthrown and replaced during the Meiji Renewal. 2. How would you characterize Meiji Japan`s economic development? In what ways was it distinctive? What role did the state play? Meiji Japan’s economic development was characterized by the Meiji Renewal which was a series of events that led up to major changes in Japan’s political and social structure (Beasley 1995).   The arrival of the Black Ships of Commodore Matthew Perry ushered in a direct response from the Shogunate and thus the Meiji restoration began.   It was during this same period that Japan established itself as an Imperial Power. The foundation of the Meiji Renewal was the formation of the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance between SaigÃ…  Takamori, who was the leader of the Satsuma domain and Kido Takayoshi, who was the leader of the ChÃ… shÃ… « domain (Jansen 2000).   Initially brought together to challenge the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate and installing the emperor into power, the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance succeeded in altering the political structure of Japan.   The two leaders, SaigÃ…  Takamori and Kido Takayoshi, were supported by Emperor KÃ… mei (Beasley 1995). The distinct characteristic of this period was the fact that it ushered in the industrialization of Japan (Jansen 2000).   It also led to the emergence of Japan as an island nation that possessed military power by the year 1905.   The slogan for Japan during this time was fukoku kyohei, which translates into â€Å"Enrich the country, strengthen the military.† The manner in which this Renewal was accomplished was by creating a group in which all the power was consolidated against the remnants of the Edo period government, the shogunate, daimyo, and the samurai class.   Thus the Meiji Oligarchy was formed.   During this period, the Tokugawa lands were seized and placed under the direct control of the government.   Some of the Daimyos who protested such an act eventually relented and returned their domains to the Emperor which lead to the creation of a central government in Japan for the first time in its history and also allowed the new centralized government to exercise direct power throughout the entire realm (Beasley 1995). The pivotal point came in 1871 when all the Daimyos were brought before the emperor and it was decreed that all domains were now to be returned to the Emperor (Jansen 2002).   These â€Å"returned† domains were converted into prefectures that were under the control of a government appointed governor. The next step came in the abolition of the four divisions in Japanese society that had previously existed.   This led to the abolition of the Samurai class, which at that time numbered nearly 1.9 million, and led to the development of the Japanese military which was now open to peasants (Beasley 1995).   Nationwide conscription was now established in order to fill in the ranks left by the former Samurais and every male was mandated to serve in the new armed forces of Japan for four (4) years upon turning 21. The state therefore played a very critical role in all of this as it was under the state that the abolition of traditional political structures was engineered and the abolition of the social classes was commenced.   The establishment of a strong Japanese Imperial Army also played a great role as it provided the state with the power that it needed in order to institute the reforms that is sought to implement (Jansen 2000).

Living and non living things Essay

Abstract Whenever you are teaching student a new language that they are not used to speaking at home or around their peers; require a lot of sacrifice for the he teacher and the students that are usually speaking their native tongue. With the challenges ahead the teacher will need to dedicate more time for teaching and instruction for the English Language Learner. And for the student wishing to learn a new language it will also take some sacrifice on their end as well. For the teacher and the pupil it will be very crucial that the students know and see the different language acquisition theories; how they are used in a classroom setting and how to implement those theories in a lesson plan. Introduction As the English Language Learner’s numbers start to increase in districts around the United States; many instructors are looking for more effective ways to teach the ell a new language. The Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) is an avenue that teachers use to decide how he/she will attack the different ways of delivering the lessons to the ell so they will be able to understand and gain knowledge and deliver lessons that allow English learners to acquire academic knowledge develop some English language proficiency. When the SIOP method is used all students benefit from the lessons and instructions not just the ells. The more the instructors use the SIOP model the English learner’s progress shall be seen in their academics. Since there are so many language acquisition theories that go along with SIOP; the two methods used in my lesson plans are an Innatist and Interactionist methods. Within both methods there is an emphasis on natural language development and they focus on interaction between people as the main ways to learn and develop a new language. Innatist Theory In the innatist natural language development is received by the students through materials such as books, friends and other resources. The input of this theory given to the students by the teacher is very important for the learning process. The ideal classroom setting would consist of students who have equal proficiency to those who are learning a second language. By  having the setting in such a way; this will ensure that all of the students are on the same level and can better work with another in improving language development. During this time a students’ output is not a concern and it is shown that language will occur naturally. There is also, a silent period to be expected during this time but there should be no worries. Innatist also believes that errors should not be corrected; students will correct them over time. â€Å"Most English language learner errors among their subjects were best described as similar to errors made by children acquiring English as a first language† (Peregoy, et al., 2008, p. 53). Some students are known to make the similar mistakes of those who are learning English as a small child. So the innatist theory is a way of making the students learn on their own, at their own pace, and use the interactions they have with others to build different skills. The lesson plan discussed will work jointly with the theory; due to the fact that the students will continue to use resources and do normal activities that they do on the normal. There will be times when the students will pair off with another student who may speak their native tongue so he/she will be able to relate to his/her peers; during this time they will bouncing ideas off each other to find out what the other may have learned so the will be able to teach each other. My lesson plan was given to a teacher of 6 and 7 years students where there are quite a few of English language learners. If the teacher were using the innatist theory he/she would pair students according to language level. The students who are considered more proficient in their native language would be paired with an student who may be ELL. With this lesson plan it was a good way to use group discussion it was an interesting to keep those students attention in order to make them more interested and excited to discuss the big ideas. Interactionist Theory The interactionist theory and the innatist theory are very similar. . The input of this theory given to the students by the teacher is very important for the learning process. The ideal classroom setting would consist of students who have equal proficiency to those who are learning a second language. By having the setting in such a way; this will ensure that all of the students are on the same level and can better work with another in improving language development. On the student output end, speaking occurs  naturally in communication with others. This theory puts no pressure on speaking, except when the student has the natural impulse to communicate with others. As for the treatment of errors is concerned, errors that impede communication will be naturally corrected as the meaning is negotiated; some errors may require explicit corrective instruction in order to make sure that the student is not being taught in the wrong way. â€Å" Interactionists view the communicative give and take of natural conversations between native and non-native speakers as the crucial element of the language acquisition process† (Peregoy et al., 2008, p. 55). Lesson Plan Success As you can see from the reading innatist and interactionist theories were present in the discussed lesson plan. As noted before the theories are very similar and the key purpose is to let the student learn and interact with each other in hopes that they will pick up on a new language and possibly learn to speak a new language. By using different activities that may be interesting and engaging to the students is also a big part of learning success. Many students like to hang out in groups; so with making a lesson plan around having the student to work in groups doing so can really help with the success of the students. The only major opposing view is that one theory would not make any correction on errors and the other theory would correct the wrongs. In a classroom setting it is important for teachers to correct errors as much as possible, this would help make sure that students are not abusing the language in the negative manner; and it would be easier to correct errors as they happen instead of having to force a student to change a habit he/she has been doing for a while My plans were not difficult; I made it interesting and fun for all students. As the students learn it becomes evident that the plan fits everybody. Conclusion When you have to create a lesson plan to teach students of different language backgrounds and make the plan fun and enjoyable for all students in the class; and when you also have to make the lesson where any teacher is able to instruct any group of students and keep them interested is not an easy task. And do keep in mind while creating these plans you may have some students in the selected class that may have no knowledge of the current  language being spoken in the class. In order to make the plans enjoyable for all students it is very important that a teacher or whomever is creating the plans have knowledge of the student that they may be potentially teaching and trying to get to grasp the English language. If the SIOP lesson plan broken down in it will be easier to follow and keep student interested in the learning process. If the lesson plan is followed no areas will be omitted and the students’ success will be seen in their academic increase. So as a teacher; you will have more time for teaching and less time trying to plan and focus more on ensuring that all the objectives and language acquisition theories are in place to assure that the all student have an equal chance to obtain the and learn the English or any other language. (Building Background) Students will read the book See How They Grow: Owl. Pose class discussion questions from the story such as: Is the owl from the story a living thing? Why or Why not? What does the owl do to make it a living thing? What does the owl need to survive? Steering the conversation into differentiating between living and non-living. Presentation (Language and content objectives, comprehensible input, strategies, interaction, feedback) Using a whiteboard divide the board into two categories, living and non-living things. Introduce the various pictures of living and non-living things. Do not tell students which is living or non-living. Students will approach the white board and place the living and non-living pictures under the correct category. Discuss with students why these things are living and why they are non-living. Using the teacher pointer ask for a volunteers to point out living or non-living things in the classroom. Discuss the differences among the things that the students  pointed out. Practice/Application (Meaningful activities, interaction, strategies, practice/application, feedback) Two stations should be created in the classroom. One station will be the â€Å"plant station† and the other will be the â€Å"Fish station.† Students should be divided into two groups also. One group will observe like scientists at the plant station and the other group will observe like scientists at the fish station. Pass out data sheets and magnifying glasses prior to students going back to their station. At the plant station the fake plant and the real plant should be positioned in the middle of the table and be labeled plant #1 and plant #2. At the fish station the beta fish and the candy Swedish Fish should be positioned in the middle of the table and labeled fish #1 and fish #2. Students will go to their assigned station and predict which plant or fish they believe is a living thing and which they believe is a non-living thing. Students will use their magnifying glasses like scientists and record on their data sheets characteristics of each plant and fish. Water for the plant and food for the fish should be available for the students to use when recording observations. Students will complete their data sheets by concluding which plant and fish was living and non-living. Students will discuss their conclusions as a class. Review/Assessment: Content (Review Objectives and vocabulary, assess learning) Students will use their science journals to draw a picture of a living thing and a non-living thing. The students will write in their journals what makes the picture they choose to draw a living and non-living thing. Extension: Introducing the word metamorphosis and how some living things can change when they grow. Reference Peregoy, S., Boyle, O. (2008). Reading, Writing, and Learning in ESL. New York: Allyn and Bacon.

Operation Of Electrical Equipment In Hazardous Environment Environmental Sciences Essay

Based on my research up to day of the month I came to the decision that risky countries is a large subject to cover and after a series of meetings with my supervisor Mr. Jerry Duggan I have decided to concentrate preponderantly on â€Å" Dust Explosion † a subject which has ne'er been covered before by an electrical technology pupil in Cork Institute of Technology. By finishing this undertaking my purpose is that it will function as an educational tool in our progressive environment for me and for future readers. I hope to larn many things from this undertaking that will profit me in the hereafter and in my calling. I intend to analyze all the of import facets of dust detonation, by reexamining bing literature on the topic, hunt of appropriate web sites and by a possible site visit to a chemical works near me.1 Introduction:In Electrical technology, a risky location is defined as a topographic point where concentrations of flammable gases, bluess, or dusts may happen. Electrical equipment that must be installed in such locations is particularly designed and tested to guarantee it does non get down an detonation, due to curving contacts or high surface temperature of equipment. For illustration a family light switch may breathe a little, harmless seeable flicker when shift ; in an ordinary ambiance this discharge is if no concern, but if a flammable vapor was present, the discharge might get down an detonation. Electrical equipment intended for usage in a chemical mill or refinery is designed non to bring forth any flickers, or else to safely incorporate the discharge and do certain it can non light any explosive gases, bluess or dusts that might be present around the equipment. Many schemes exist for safety in electrical installings. The simplest scheme is to minimise the sum of electrical equipment installed in a risky country, either by maintaining the equipment out of the country wholly or by doing the country less risky by procedure betterments or airing with clean air. Intrinsic safety is a pattern where setup is designed with low power degrees and low stored energy, so that a mistake is improbable to put off an detonation. Equipment enclosures can be pressurized with clean air, and interlocked so that the equipment is disconnected if the air supply fails or arc-producing elements of the equipment can be isolated from the environing atmosphere by encapsulation, submergence in oil, sand, or by hardy enclosures that prevent extension of an internal detonation to the environing ambiance. As in most Fieldss of electro engineering, different states have approached the standardisation and testing of equipment for risky countries in different ways. As universe trade becomes more of import in distribution of electrical merchandises, international criterions are easy meeting so that a wider scope of acceptable techniques can be approved by national regulative bureaus. Standards regulating electrical equipment for usage in risky dust countries are altering so quickly that purchasers and users of electrical production equipment are happening it hard to maintain up. However, A by non maintaining abreast of the alterations, they run the hazard of a dust detonation happening in their works due to inadequately protected equipment and/or being prosecuted forA non-compliance or carelessness. The hazard of a dust or pulverization detonation happening in a fabrication works should non be underestimated. Around 2,000 dust detonations occur in Europe every twelvemonth, impacting all types of companies, including makers of sugar, coal, chocolate, flour-based goods, milk pulverization, tea, grain, fresh fish and baccy, every bit good as wood and metal processing companies. Any environment in which dust or pulverization is allowed to garner on hot surfaces or that could be ignited by a flicker from electrical equipment is a possible hazard. The cost, in footings of lives lost and harm to works, as a consequence of a dust detonation can be tremendous.2 Dust Explosion:Definition: Dust detonations occur when all right atoms dispersed in the air as a cloud react with O in the presence of an ignition beginning, bring forthing an detonation concatenation reaction. When this occurs in a changeless volume, there is a rapid and important addition in force per unit area. Prevention steps must be the first line of defense mechanism against such detonations, but in many state of affairss efforts to extinguish ignition beginnings are merely non plenty. Measures for extenuating the harm caused and the dangers posed to workers by eventual detonations are necessary. To assist vouch the safety of silo installings, companies in Europe are required to follow with the ATEX Directives sing explosive ambiances ( [ ATEX 1999/92/EC, 1999 ] and [ ATEX 94/9/EC, 1994 ] ) by put ining protection mechanisms.3 What is a dust detonation?Explosions are defined as sudden reactions affecting a rapid physical or chemical oxidization reaction, or disintegrate bring forthing an addition in temperature or force per unit area, or both at the same time. When the fire velocity is greater than the velocity of sound, we call it a explosion. Otherwise the detonation is known as a deflagration. Typically, dust detonations are comparatively slow burning procedures. If ignition occurs i n a dust cloud in an unfastened country, so small or no overpressure consequences and the primary jeopardy is a bolide. The best manner to acquire informations refering a specific type of dust is to make proving on the existent substance. Most written proficient resources on dust detonations have informations for the minimal explosive concentrations and other belongingss of common pulverizations.4 European Laws:In July 2006 a 2nd ATEX directive became compulsory European Standard EN 14491, 2006 EN 14491 for dust detonation venting protective systems and CEN ( 2006 ) .EN 14491 ( 2006 ) for the discharge of dust detonations came into force in 2006 and depict the basic design demands for dust detonation venting systems. This criterion is one of a series including criterions EN 14797 ( 2006 ) and EN 14460 ( 2006 ) on blowhole industry and detonation immune constructions. Together, these three criterions wholly cover dust detonation venting ordinances in Europe.5 Conditionss for dust det onation:As we all know detonation can merely happen, when three factors come together: 1. Flammable stuff ( in burnable measures ) 2. Oxygen ( in the air ) 3. Ignition beginning Fig.1 An detonation can merely happen, when these three factors come together Once the reaction is ignited, depending on how the exothermal energy is liberated, the consequences can be a controlled burning, fire moving ridge or detonation. All the protection methodological analysiss are seeking to extinguish one or more of the trigon constituents to cut down the hazard of lighting an detonation to an acceptable degree. To obtain an acceptable degree of hazard at least two independent events must be present, each one of low chance, before a possible detonation can happen. There are besides five necessary conditions for dust detonation to happen: a dust has to be combustible the dust is suspended in the air at a high concentration there is an oxidizer ( typically atmospheric O ) the dust is confined there is an ignition beginning Fig.2 Necessary conditions for dust detonation to happen The add-on of the two elements scattering and parturiency to the trigon ( see fig.1 ) creates what is known as the â€Å" detonation Pentagon † ( see fig. 2 ) . An initial primary detonation ( see fig. 3 ) in treating equipment or in an country were fleeting dust has accumulated may agitate free more accrued dust or damage a containment system such as a canal, vas or aggregator. As a consequence, if ignited, the extra dust dispersed into the air may do one or more secondary detonations ( see fig. 3 ) . These can be far more destructive than a primary detonation due to increased measure and concentration of spread combustible dust. Fig. 3 Primary and secondary dust detonations If one of the elements of the detonation Pentagon is losing, a ruinous detonation can non happen. Two of the elements in the detonation Pentagon are hard to extinguish: O ( within air ) , and parturiency of the dust cloud ( within procedures or edifices ) . However, the other three elements of the Pentagon can be controlled to a important extent, and will be discussed farther in this papers.6 Facility Dust Hazard Appraisal:As I have mentioned above a combustible dust detonation jeopardy may be in a assortment of industries, including: nutrient ( e.g. , confect, amylum, flour, provender ) , plastics, wood, gum elastic, furniture, fabrics, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, dyes, coal, metals ( e.g. , aluminum, Cr, Fe, Mg, and Zn ) , and fossil fuel power coevals. The huge bulk of natural and man-made organic stuffs, every bit good as some metals, can organize combustible dust. The European`s Industrial Fire Hazards Handbook provinces that â€Å" any industrial procedure that reduces a combustible stuff and some usually non-combustible stuffs to a finely divided province nowadayss a possible for a serious fire or detonation. † 7 Facility Analysis Components: Facilities should carefully place the followers in order to measure their possible for dust detonations: Materials that can be combustible when finely divided ; Procedures which use, consume, or produce combustible dusts ; Open countries where combustible dusts may construct up ; Hidden countries where combustible dusts may roll up ; Meanss by which dust may be dispersed in the air ; and Potential ignition beginnings.8 Beginnings of ignition:There are many beginnings of ignition and a bare fire need non be the lone one, a study shows that half of the dust detonations in Europe were from non-flame beginnings. Beginnings include fire hot surfaces clash curving from machinery or other equipment illuming work stoppages cutting and welding fires mechanical machinery As I mentioned earlier at the start of the study a differentiation is made between primary and secondary dust detonations. When a dust is found in a container, room or system component ignites and explodes we speak of a primary dust detonation. In a secondary dust detonation, dust that has settled on the land or on other surfaces is stirred by the primary detonation and ignites. As a consequence of this a concatenation reaction follows and the force per unit area wave emanating from the secondary dust detonation can stir up farther dust sedimentations and do farther dust detonations.9 Example of Historic Incidents:The undermentioned incident is an incident that marked the universe, in February 2008, a ruinous dust detonation occurred at the Imperial Sugar Refinery in Port Wentworth, USA. The dust detonation killed 13 people and injured many more. The undermentioned images below show the amendss of the refinery after the catastrophe ;10 Measuring the hazard:Identifying risky or non-hazardous countries should be carried out in a systematic manner. Risk appraisal should be used to find if risky countries exist and to so delegate zones to those countries. The appraisal should see such affairs as: the risky belongingss of the unsafe substances involved ; the sum of unsafe substances involved ; the work processes, and their interactions, including any cleansing, fix or care activities that will be carried out ; the temperatures and force per unit areas at which the unsafe substances will be handled ; the containment system and controls provided to forestall liquids, gases, bluess or dusts get awaying into the general ambiance of the workplace ; any explosive ambiance formed within an enclosed works or storage vas ; and, any steps provided to guarantee that any explosive ambiance does non prevail for an drawn-out clip, e.g. airing. Taken together these factors are the get downing point for risky country categorization, and should let for the designation of any zoned countries. The undermentioned paragraphs give farther information on what to see during an appraisal.11 The risky belongingss of unsafe substances:The belongingss of a unsafe substance that need to be known include the boiling point and brassy point of any flammable liquid, and whether any flammable gas or vapor that may be evolved is lighter or heavier than air. For dusts, information on atom size and denseness will be needed, one time it has been shown that a peculiar dust can organize an explosive ambiance. Often, relevant information is contained on a safety informations sheet provided with the merchandise.12 The size of possible releases:Some possible beginnings of release may be so little that there is no demand to stipulate a risky country. This will be the instance if the effect of an ignition following a release is improbable to do danger t o people in the locality. However, in the incorrect fortunes ignition of rather little measures of flammable gas/vapour assorted with air can do danger to anyone in the immediate locality. Where this is the instance, as in a comparatively confined location, from which rapid flight would be hard, country categorization may be needed even where rather little measures of unsafe substance are present. The size of any possible explosive ambiance is, in portion, related to the sum of unsafe substances present. Industry specific codifications have been published by a assortment of organisations to supply counsel on the measures of assorted unsafe substances that should be stored. For illustration,13 Temperatures and force per unit areas:Extra information associating to the procedure that involve the unsafe substances should besides be taken into history, including the temperatures and force per unit areas used in the procedure, as this will act upon the nature and extent of any release, and the extent of any subsequent risky countries. Some substances do non organize explosive ambiances unless they are heated, and some liquids if released under force per unit area will organize a all right mist that can detonate even if there is deficient vapor.14 Ventilation:Ventilation, either natural, or automatically ( e.g. produced by fans ) , can both dilute beginnings of release, and take unsa fe substances from an enclosed country. As a consequence there is a close nexus between the airing at any given location and the categorization and extent of a zone around a possible beginning of release. Well designed airing may forestall the demand for any zoned country, or cut down it so it has a negligible extent.15 Extent of risky countries:The appraisal needs to place countries within a workplace that are connected to topographic points where an explosive ambiance may happen. This will supply information on any countries off from the beginning of the jeopardy to which an explosive ambiance may distribute, for illustration through canals. Such countries should be included in the categorization system for topographic points where explosive ambiances may happen. An attack to measuring this hazard is described in BS EN 60079/10. A technique for forestalling this hazard is described in BS EN 50016, on pressurisation of enclosures or suites incorporating electrical equipment.16 Othe r considerations:When sing the potency for explosive ambiances, it is of import to see all unsafe substances that may be present at the workplace, including waste merchandises, residues, stuffs used for cleansing or care, and any used merely as a fuel. Besides some combinations of unsafe substances may respond together, organizing an ignition beginning, or in combination may organize an explosive ambiance, where singly this does non happen. Some perennial activities such as refuelling autos, or lading and droping oilers intended for usage on the public roads, involve the debut of possible beginnings of ignition into an country where a spill is possible, and which would run into the description of a risky country. In these fortunes, safety can be achieved by insulating power beginnings ( e.g. turning off engines, etc ) while a transportation is taking topographic point, and doing suited cheques before and after a transportation, before traveling a vehicle into or out of a risky country. Activities, such as care, may incur hazards non covered by the normal country categorization of the country where the activity is taking topographic point, for case the debut of beginnings of ignition into a risky country. Sometimes the unsafe substance can be removed before the care work activity starts. Sometimes, particular control steps can be taken to forestall the release of any unsafe substance during the work. In such instances the extra hazards associated with the activity should be assessed before work starts.17 Relationship between fires and detonations:In many instances where an explosive ambiance can organize, any ignition will do a fire instead than an detonation. Both fire and detonation cause dangers to workers, and in many instances the safeguards required to forestall an ignition are the same. The overall bundle of safeguards required will depend on the possible effects of a fire or detonation. Many factors influence the hazards from a fire affecting unsafe substances. In peculiar, employers should see whether a fire could take to an detonation, how fast a fire might turn, what other stuffs might be quickly involved, any dangers from fume and toxic gases given off, and whether those in the locality would be able to get away.18 Classifying risky countries into zones:Once an country has been identified as risky it should be classified into zones based on the frequence and continuity of the potentially explosive ambiance. This so determines the controls needed on possible beginnings of ignition that may be present or happen in that country. These controls apply peculiarly to the choice of fixed equipment that can make an ignition hazard ; but the same rules may be extended to command the usage of nomadic equipment and other beginnings of ignition that may be introduced into the country ( for illustration, lucifers and igniters ) and the hazards from electrostatic discharges. An international criterion, BS EN 60079/10, explains the basic rules of country categorization for gases and bluess, and its equivalent for dusts was published in 2002 as BS EN 61241/3. These criterions form a suited footing for measuring the extent and type of zone, and can be used as a usher to following with the demands in DSEAR. However, they can non give the extent and type of zone in any peculiar instance, as site-specific factors should ever be taken into history. Industry specific codifications have besides been published by assorted administrations and, provided they are applied suitably, they are valuable in promoting a consistent reading of the demands. Area categorization surveies normally take the signifier of drawings placing the risky countries and zones. Additional text gives information about the unsafe substances that will be present, the work activities that have been considered, and other premises made by the survey. Whenever such drawings and paperss have been produced, they should be included in the hazard appraisal record required by DSEAR. These paperss should be considered whenever new equipment is to be introduced into a zoned country. Hazardous topographic points are classified in footings of zones on the footing of the frequence and continuance of the happening of an explosive ambiance.Gass, bluess and mistsFor gases, bluess and mists the zone categorizations are: Zone 0 – can be describes as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance dwelling of a mixture with air of unsafe substances in the signifier of gas, vapor or mist is present continuously or for long periods or often. Zone 1 – can be described as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance dwelling of a mixture with air of unsafe substances in the signifier of gas, vapor or mist is likely to happen in normal operation on occasion. Zone 2 – can be describes as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance dwelling of a mixture with air of unsafe substances in the signifier of gas, vapor or mist is non likely to happen in normal operation but, if it does happen, will prevail for a short period merely.DustsFor dusts the zone categorizations are: Zone 20 – can be describes as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance in the signifier of a cloud of combustible dust in air is present continuously, or for long periods or often. Zone 21- can be describes as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance in the signifier of a cloud of combustible dust in air is likely to happen in normal operation on occasion. Zone 22 -can be describes as a topographic point in which an explosive ambiance in the signifier of a cloud of combustible dust in air is non likely to happen in normal operation but, if it does happen, will prevail for a short period merely.19 Equipment in risky countries:Particular safeguards need to be taken in risky countries to forestall equipment from being a beginning of ignition. In state of affairss where an explosive ambiance has a high likeliness of happening, trust is placed on utilizing equipment with a low chance of making a beginning of ignition. Where the likeliness of an explosive ambiance happening is reduced, equipment constructed to a less strict criterion may be used. Equipment is categorised ( 1, 2 or 3 ) depending on the degree of zone where it is intended to be used. A figure of ways of building equipment to forestall ignition hazards have been published as consonant European Standards, and in some instances, extra demands are set out in the Standards associat ing to installing and usage. The risky country zone categorization and corresponding equipment classs are: Zone 0 or zone 20 – class 1 equipment Zone 1 or zone 21 – class 2 equipment Zone 2 or zone 22 – class 3 equipment20 Marking of equipment:A standardized marker strategy is applied to place equipment suited for a specific location. Equipment built will transport the detonation protection symbol â€Å" Ex † in a hexagon, the equipment class figure ( 1, 2, or 3 ) , the missive G and/or D depending on whether it is intended for usage in gas or dust ambiances, and other indispensable safety information. In many instances this will include a temperature evaluation expressed as a â€Å" T † marker, and sometimes a gas group. These indicate restrictions to safe usage. Employers and those installing equipment should see the marker and certification provided with â€Å" Ex † equipment when it is being installed. All ATEX equipment will be required to transport three Markss. The CE grade The ATEX grade The Certification Code Additionally, it must be marked decipherably with the following minimal specifics: Name and reference of maker Appellation of series/type/model Consecutive figure Year of industryThe CE Mark:All ATEX equipment must transport CE grade ; the minimal tallness is 5mm. The CE grade confirms conformity with all the comparative Directives.The ATEX Mark:The ATEX grade ( EU Explosive Atmosphere symbol ) is a bluish hexagon incorporating the conventionalized letters ExThe Certification Code:All equipment points are required to transport the Certification Code as portion of their designation label.Log Table:Date 9/11/2009 I met up Mr. Jerry Duggan and discussed the importance of this undertaking and what country of jeopardies am I interested in to cover my undertaking. Date 11/11/2009 In my ain clip I got to seek the webs and happen out what is a dust detonation and what universe and European Torahs are out at that place to forestall these detonation from go oning and if they do go on due to unknown fortunes, how to carry on an detonation appraisal. Date 14/11/2009 I did some book research and reading from what was available in the library and what Mr. Jerry Duggan gave me and go really familiar with the factors that can take to an detonation. The book entitled â€Å" Electrical Apparatus and Hazardous Areas † became really ready to hand to understand the different zones for gas and blues, and dust jeopardies. Date 17/11/2009 After farther research in jeopardies I have decided to concentrate merely on one country preponderantly â€Å" dust detonation † . The meeting helped me understand how to near this country, which non many people know excessively much about. Date 19/11/2009 While making some internet research I came across a papers saying that half of the dust detonations go oning in Europe were from non-flammable beginnings. The beginnings that could take to an ignition were stated and an incident illustration was given. Date 21/11/2009 As a consequence of including an illustration of dust detonation that took topographic point in the USA, I wanted to show a hazard appraisal in order to find if risky countries exist in an enclosed country and so to delegate zones to those countries. Date 23/11/2009 I showed Mr. Jerry Duggan my up to day of the month research on dust detonation and advised me to seek and acquire a site visit which will profit me better on my stage research and the completion of the study. Date 24/11/2009 On this twenty-four hours I researched how would ventilation either of course or automatically ( produced by fans ) can both seek and extinguish beginnings of release and most of import take the unsafe substances from an enclosed country. Date 27/11/2009 Leaving unprecedented work unfinished from the day of the month of 14/11/2009 I wanted to lucubrate more on the designation of a hazard topographic point and the categorization into zones. Research had to be done to happen a definition on the zones categorization for dust. Date 30/11/2009 After farther desk research I met up once more and discussed the layout of my concluding twelvemonth presentation and a day of the month was set on the 10/12/2009 along with my assessor.Table of figures:The undermentioned figures are listed below as they appear in the study: Figure 1: An detonation can merely happen, when one of this factors come together Figure 2: Necessary conditions for dust detonation to happen Figure 3: Primary and secondary dust detonationsBooks:Electrical Apparatus and Hazardous Areas/Fifth Edition by Robin Garside Electrical Installation in Hazardous Areas by Alan McMillan Introduction to Intrinsic SafetyLinks & A ; Mentions:HBIRDPRO- # 692251-HOT Work HBIRDPRO- # 570000-Safety Signs HBIRDPRO- # 562514-Welding Thymine: TemplatesOH & A ; S – Occupational Health & A ; SafetyPTW Hot Work Control Guide.dot Thymine: TemplatesOH & A ; S – Occupational Health & A ; SafetyATW Hot Work Control Guide.dot OH & A ; S – Occupational Health & A ; SafetyHazardous Area Check Sheet Equipment In Combustibles Dust Areas www.encoderonline.com/UK/Data-Sheets/Incremental/Data-14.htmDocuments:Corporate Standard Hazardous Areas Handbook for risky country solution No. 14 – AB – Iraqi national congress A cosmopolitan attack for hazardous-area categorizations A usher to European ( EEC ) enfranchisement for electrical equipment in risky countries DOE Handbook Electrical Safety 1998Web sites:www.rowanhouse.co.uk www.stackmasula.com.au www.intrinsicallysafe.com www.stahl.de

Summarize William Paley's argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Summarize William Paley's argument - Essay Example He illustrates this through an examination of a watch. While taking a leisurely walk and one finds a stone and a watch on the ground, an examiner may be curious about those objects. He may think that the stone had been there forever because it was nature’s design, but the watch may have been there due to human intervention. This may get him to focus on the watch, which is a far more valuable thing than the insignificant stone. The watch, so carefully designed, had been created with a specific purpose, and being found on the ground may seem to be an unlikely circumstance since it does not belong there. Paley so meticulously describes each part of the watch to show that its interconnection with the other parts was intended, so that the whole system could work. Had one part stop working, then the whole thing would be worthless. In examining the watch, so many questions may come to mind, such as why it was created, who was behind the creation and for whom and for what purpose it w as created other than the obvious reason of telling time. Paley first argues that so much more can come out of one’s examination of the watch that it brings about more appreciation to the examiner. He may marvel at the genius behind its creation, taking notice that the creator is one of a kind to have crafted such a machine. He may even be humbled to know that he himself is unable to come up with a fraction of the idea of a watch! The existence whoever or whatever created that watch whether he is still living or have died in the distant past now becomes more concrete to Paley. On his second argument, he admits to the fallibility of the watch, that even with the best intentions of the creator to make it work efficiently at all times, it may still be vulnerable to defects. However, it does not lessen the examiner’s appreciation of such a gadget. He also argued that because of the intricate design of the watch there may be parts that could be missed in the examination, or parts that may still be in need of clarification as to its role in making the watch work. Not knowing about these details does not invalidate the examiner’s belief that all parts, including the unknown ones, work together harmoniously in contributing to the efficiency of the watch. Another argument Paley made was that the existence of the watch in the place found must have followed an order that caused it to land where it is which the watchmaker may not even be aware of. All the thinking that the examination of the watch entails can make the examiner wonder if it was placed there on purpose for him to think deeply, but Paley argues that it would be realized that there was no contrivance on that matter, but the curious nature of the watch’s existence in the particular situation was inherently bound to make one think deeply about it. Paley goes on to explain the â€Å"metallic nature† of the watch. No matter how overwhelming the watch and its inner workings is, i ts existence should just be accepted as a usual occurrence. Confident as the examiner may be with his knowledge of the world, examination of the watch may make him conclude that he does not and cannot know everything. Paley concludes that there are things in this world that the examiner will never know nor understand no matter how hard he tries, and he

Tendering and Contracts Topics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Tendering and Contracts Topics - Essay Example Lump sum contracts are the simplest type of contracts used in engineering and construction. They are also called stipulated sum, as this is the simplest type of an agreement among the supplier of services and a customer (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). The customer pays the price upon completion of the agreed work, or as agreed. The price offered by the supplier of services is based on estimation of the costs of labour and materials, and a standard amount for overhead and the desired amount of profit (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). Profit and overhead are usually estimated to the total of about 12-16 percent of the project cost (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). This share increases with risk (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). In case the final costs of labour and materials are higher than the builder's estimate, the profit is reduced (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). When final costs are lower, profit increases. However, the price of the project remain s the same. Though there are advantages of this contract, problems might arise as well. In cases where costs turn out to be higher than first estimated, the provider of services might attempt to substitute cheaper materials for those first specified (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). ... ed plan of activities must be defined ahead of time; owner’s financial risk must be low and fixed at the beginning; there must be sufficient time to design the project properly and bid (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). Unless these requirements are met, this type of a contract should not be used. This contract is thus usually used with â€Å"Design-Bid-Build method of project procurement† (Oklahoma State University, n.d., p.1). In this method, project planning is outsourced and separated from project execution (AECOM CONSULT, 2006, p.i ). Transportation companies have traditionally used it. Another type of contracts is the measures and value contract. Unlike in the lump sum contract, here the final cost of the project is established upon completion. Before the outset, costs are estimated. Upon completion, costs are re – measured in order to establish the actual cost (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 2012). Instead of receiving one final bill, the o wner receives â€Å"the bill of quantities,† which is composed of a schedule of rates for each unit or item (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 2012). This type of contracts is best suited for projects where the initial design cannot be completed ahead of time. Drawings and a bill of approximate quantities is usually produced (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 2012). They are recommended for the residential projects (Georgie P Landscape Architecture Ltd, n.d., p.1). The advantage of this contract over the lump sum is that the program for design, tendering and construction is shortened (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 2012). However, here the owner of the project suffers the unexpected costs of the project. This type of a contract is also used in the design – bid – build method of

Arena Chapel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Arena Chapel - Essay Example The collection and distribution of money in order to obtain a profit, or usuring, was a very serious sin during this time period. Scorvegni thus more than likely had the chapel made in order to atone for his father's crimes. This was a way for Scorvegni to regain his family's name and thus to cleanse himself of anything his father may have done in the past. This can best be displayed by Scorvegni's dedication of the chapel in part to Santa Maria del Carita de Arena, the Virgin of Chastity, to try and remove the greedy stamp that had been applied to the family. Furthermore, within the Chapel itself, the sin of usury can be viewed in several of the chapel's frescoes. Perhaps the most powerful vision of this present in the chapel is the picture of Judas accepting money to betray Christ. Another picture displaying this image depicts Christ banishing the Temple merchants, and the addition of the usurers being hanged in Hell from their money bags. Scorvegni thus made a serious attempt to l et others know that he did recognize the sins of his family as serious ones. Scrovegni's development of the chapel was meant to be viewed as a reflection of his piety, and his atonement for the sins of his father. He was also following in the footsteps of the practice of the time, for several wealthy merchants had chapels constructed within their palaces. This seems to present us with a bit of conflict of motivation for the chapel's creations, which is also reflected in some of the chapel's pictorials: Among the factors that relate specifically to Enrico Scrovegni are a possible desire to expiate his father's usury and at the same time to make his own expenditure conspicuous; an ambition for status combined with a fear of damnation; a desire, on the one hand, to be regarded as an ascetic devoted to the cult of the Virgin, and, on the other, to secure for himself a fitting property to serve as his personal monument. (Norman 92) It appears quite possible that the Chapel was consecrated on March 25, 1305, during the Feast of the Annunciation (Norman 92). The first reference to the Arena Chapel was discovered in the poem The Documents of Love composed by Barberino. The poem alludes to Envy which "Giotto painted excellently in the Arena at Padua." Envy is just one figure of sins and vices found on the walls of the chapel. The chapel is a very interesting composition that tells a story within the cycle of its frescos. The cycle of the pictures displays the story of the Life of the Virgin as well as the Life of Christ. The presentation of the Virgin's story seems highly significant since the chapel itself is dedicated to the Virgin. Another interesting part of the chapel's dedication is the area reserved for the Virgin of the Annunciation, which also helps to contribute to the Annunciation on the Chancel Arch. The frescos here represent the end of the story of the Virgin and the beginning of the story of Christ (Cole 98). The story starts on the higher level on the south wall, with Joachim and Anna, the parents of the Virgin. The story then progresses from east to west. Viewers first see the Expulsion of Joachim from the Temple and the finale of this occurrence, when Joachim and Anna discover each other at the Golden Gate.

How can English Government Gain Trust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

How can English Government Gain Trust - Article Example According to the report  in the view of many scholars it is the prime duty of the government to gain an adequate level of public trust because governmental bodies are fundamentally supposed to guard the interest of people. If the general public has not been able to trust government officials anymore then it simply means that government has failed in terms of representing interests of the public. However it is also important to note that ordinary people cannot decipher the level of government’s ability to fulfill public interest and therefore the duty of evaluating governmental machinery’s tendency to serve the public lies with political analysts, writers and other intellectual persons such as religious scholars.  This paper outlines that  the prevailing law and order situation in the society is considered as an effective measure of government’s power to protect public interests. Moreover the financial well-being of each and every citizen can also be taken a s a mean of determining governmental effectiveness. Additionally citizens trust those governments that provide them with state of the art medical services at an affordable price.  The governmental bodies can do that by bettering the overall law and order situation of the society and it is also expected to sponsor sporting musical and cultural events in a particular society.  The e-mechanism causes the problems of people to resolve quickly that fosters trust and respect for the government.... Additionally citizens trust those governments that provide them with state of the art medical services at an affordable price. Based on the above argument government can win public trust by offering an ample amount of job and business opportunities while it has to provide healthcare and safety services as well. According to Offe the governments should work towards providing the citizens with a fulfilling life (42). The governmental bodies can do that by bettering the overall law and order si tuation of the society and it is also expected to sponsor sporting musical and cultural events in a particular society. Levi added that the role of government in terms of releasing the citizens from a job and work stress is a significant indicator of growing social activities in the community (6). Silcock identified electronic form of government as an ideal way of providing public services because in this way the governmental issues are run with the help of computerized and automated system. The e-mechanism causes the problems of people to resolve quickly that fosters trust and respect for the government (88). According to Wang and Wart the governments that involve citizens in the decision making process will reap more trust than those that follow an authoritative style of governance (268). Thus the decentralized chain of command can really help the government in fostering trust within people. Nevertheless it is interesting to know that those governments that follow the raw public o pinion in order to devise policies tend to fail because the mere public viewpoint is a crude way of policy development. The governments are suggested to invite the opinion of experts before making critical decisions.  

Surging poverty in a key to crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Surging poverty in a key to crime - Essay Example You will not be permitted or approved to walk that street, you are not even allowed to sit or sleep and it is strictly prohibited for you to roam around like a normal citizen of the society. This forces me to ask a simple question that is being poor a crime itself or is being poor a doorway to crime? If questioned, City officials come up with a self-satisfactory answer that the State’s laws are constituted in a way, not to discriminate. They have their own way of explaining it. If someone is lying down on some random sidewalk, whether that someone is wealthy or a homeless, he has violated the ordinance. Another way these officials put up the law and equality is by saying that it actually forbids both, the rich and the poor to sleep under bridges. This arouses a thought: why would the wealthy even consider of sleeping under a bridge when he knows he has a better, luxurious and comforting place to spend his night. Moreover, the recent study indicates that poverty has intensified as recession has continued to eliminate jobs, thus generating higher poverty ratio. Deriving information from the study highlighting poverty and homelessness, conducted by the National Law Center shows that the statistics of poor public have continuously increased since the year 2006. As a result, a higher ticketing ratio and an increased number of arrests have been observed. People have been ‘taken in’ for more neutral violations such as littering, holding an open bottle of alcohol or jaywalking (Ehrenreich 2009). Therefore, the connection between the two, poverty and crime has been a controversial debate. However, it can be said that in our country there is an obvious relationship between them.  Poor in our society make up the overflowing majority (Williams 2007). It is well said that an improved society can be evaluated by how it administers the poor. In the light of this saying, the Americans are a hopeless failure. Current situation indicates that on a nationwid e scale, up to 20% of children reside in poverty. In Los Angeles, almost 30% of children suffer from poverty (Holmes 2002). The brutality of the official’s temperament towards the poor, indigent and homeless in our society can at times be breathtaking. ‘Food Not Bombs’ was the name of a group that started to function a few years back. The group’s motive was to feed the poor in the society and therefore, launched free vegetarian food in public parks, with a hope to serve hungry people nationwide. Not long after, when this activity was initiated, many cities including Las Vegas approved an ordinance that forbade food sharing with the hungry and poor in public places. As an outcome, most members of this public service group were taken into custody. This is yet another cause that further spoils our social situation. Such acts play an important part towards criminalizing people (Ehrenreich 2009). Furthermore, criminal justice professors and sociologists have fo und mutuality between poverty and crime.  Logically people who are victims of poverty are much likely to be connected and involved in criminal acts such as street crimes, larceny, burglary and shoplifting. As per the evaluations, city of Detroit is one of the poorest regions in America and  Michigan’s economy is estimated to have the worst economic conditions as compared

Cultural Relativism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Cultural Relativism - Essay Example the word itself in layman’s dialect means all cultures are equal and no culture is above another, and we should tolerate the differences that make up our cultures. Today’s cultures are engaging in closer interactions that results in ethnocentrism, which is the negative attitude towards a different culture and cultural relativism, which is attributed to bringing about positive association with different cultures. As a way of acclimatizing to the rapidly changing societal world, cultural relativism has proved to be the rather a proficient doctrine. However, it was brought to the public limelight as a solution to the Nazi holocaust aftermath where therapy proved unreliable. Nazism took form as another cultural practice and the victims had to practice cultural relativism (Nkeonye, 1994). That approach among many others has proved that cultural relativism fails in moral theory scrutiny. Cultural practices like slavery and genocide have no moral theory grounds to be accepted among the ideals and ideas of cultural relativism. The major problems of cultural relativism are between two cultures; modern and western culture. The modern cultures, be it in religion or government, is abusing the notions of cultural relativism to use social unrest for their benefit simply because it will be understood as a cultural practice when it is clearly immorality. This is a problem of cultural relativism in many ways according to whichever perspective you may prefer. Societal moral standards are being violated and are excused under the notion of cultural relativism. Nkeonye (1994) points out clearly cases such as the media, using the cultural acceptance notion to make pornography acceptable to our children. For instance, today every production obviously violates moral standards. This is a problem simply for the reason that the western cultures are misusing cultural relativism notions to advance the beneficial agenda of a few; thus utterly violating everything. Research indicates

Culture icon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Culture icon - Essay Example This is especially true with John and Paul who wrote some of the most widely-known songs ever. John, on his own, can be best remembered in his song entitled ‘Imagine’ with its very familiar lyrics and melody. His influence was not limited to the world of music. He also became very outspoken about many aspects of his beliefs. These things are reflected in his songs. John Lennon was an advocate of peace and he was against the Vietnam War where soldiers get killed every day. The Hippies who were popular in the 1960s considered him as being one of them and this acceptable to him. He became, by choice or not, a political figure. Then, his abrupt death when he was assassinated only added to the idealism that was regarded on his life. â€Å"If nothing else, John Lennon’s death clearly marked a shift from the imagery of stardom to that of heroism† (Mà ¤kelà ¤ 211). His songs and words remained to be very influential. His beliefs on love and the importance of peace remained to be relevant even to this day. These are the things that make John Lennon a cultural

Rene Descartes six meditations Distinction of Self from the Body Essay Example for Free

Rene Descartes six meditations Distinction of Self from the Body Essay Rene Descartes was a French Mathematician and a modern Philosopher who developed an original philosophy based on sciences aimed at being stable and likely to last. His method was based upon premises of senses, reason, doubt and belief. Like most philosophers his quest was for Truth and knowledge. However the nature of Truth and knowledge remains debatable among philosophers to this day. It is worth noting that a contemporary modern philosopher said at the beginning of the 21st century, the beginning of ‘ Information Age ‘ , â€Å" Study of philosophy is now reduced to the study of language. We are distinct from our bodies ! Since the advent of human civilization many men have preoccupied themselves with philosophical thoughts of the distinction of self from the body. These metaphysical ideas , sometimes ontological, lie on the borderline of religious theology and philosophy. With discoveries in the field of physical sciences like Einstein’s ‘ Relativity ‘ the human conception of space, matter, time and forces has become clearer. This has further fuelled interest in the field of philosophical investigation of the relationships between mind, matter and the supernatural. This activity is a commonplace past time of the educated and curious. The scientific and methodological study of any branch of knowledge involves the formulation of – Thesis, Hypothesis and Anti – Thesis. Every Thesis has an Anti–Thesis. Is the self distinct from the body ? The senses are deceptive! What we see is spurious. Our memory deceives us. Hence a Truth that can be established is that nothing is certain. Hence it can be assumed for the time being that our senses and bodies are not true. We are probably distinct from our bodies. Rationality is questionable ! Man is known as a ‘ rational animal’. But the idea of rationality and the distinction between a man and an animal are debatable. Man certainly has to face an obvious ‘ identity crisis’ if material knowledge is to be trusted. The idea of a soul distinguishes self from the body ! All phenomena can’t be explained by sense-perception, thinking and physical bodies. They have to be attributed to a super-natural phenomena , ‘ the soul’. If the self is to be distinct from the body it could be in the form of the soul. The power of self-movement, sensation and thought as according to the judgment of Rene Descartes are foreign to the nature of body. These conclusions are based on Descartes philosophical experiments with himself using the faculty of his mind. He uses his mind to probe the co-relation between subjectivity, objectivity and their distinctness from body. This method has been Descartes most powerful tool and which makes him unique in the family of modern philosophers. The awakening during sleep is an experiment. Descartes argues that when asleep he has perceived through senses many things he can’t perceive through senses while awake. These are once again Descartes experiments with himself. Descartes is careful nough to recollect his thoughts and experiences for the object of philosophical study. ‘Thinking’ is separate from ‘being’. Descartes uses his imagination to conclude that he might exist separate from his body as a source of ‘thinking’. In his legendary famous statement he once declared , â€Å" I think therefore I am. â€Å" Human mind and judgment are prone to error . Hence the truth has to be away from the Human mind and body. Descartes reached a conclusion that there does exist a God. God is perfect in his judgment because his mind is infinite. This is obviously not true with human beings. Hence their judgment is subject to errors and faults. There is also a philosophical method of reaching the Truth by elimination of errors. Considering the belief that their does exist a Universal Truth away from the limitations of the human body it is reasonable concluding that we are distinct from our bodies. The existence of God is an irrefutable evidence ! Thesis that there does exist a God strengthens the concept of distinction of self from the body. It would be contradictory associating God to a body; God, Descartes assumed is infinite. Also, the idea of life after death in the form of soul which is the belief of literally every religious heology strengthens the belief that we are distinct from our body. Rene Descartes experimented with the mind ! Descartes claims in ‘ The Fourth Meditation’ that he has trained his mind to separate from his senses and dwell only in the intellect. The result were observations and conclusions that he was totally separate from matter. Descartes uses his ability at philosophical meditations, the popular method of study and research by a philosopher. The Human Will Descartes concludes extends beyond the bodies. With the human will, many philosophers believe it is possible to meditate and separate the consciousness rom the body. Modern Science refutes distinction of body from mind thesis. Descartes himself was once a scientist before he took to philosophical pursuits. A scientist, for example a Doctor would immediately rubbish the claims of the separation of self from the body citing encyclopedias of scientific evidence. Carl Jung’s Experiment nulls the idea of a soul. This famous Psychologist conducted an experiment and concluded that there is no soul ! The distinction between self and body is not recognized by modern psychology books. Philosophical methods might be fallacious. Philosophers employ methods based n speculations and subjectivity. These might be inaccurate and also subject to a difference of opinion even amongst philosophers. Whereas science is based on empirical experiments which no one can challenge once accepted and established. There is a self concept in the science of Psychology. The self concept has an aura of mysticism associated with it. No one can see, feel or touch the self concept. It is reduced to ‘I’ and ‘me ‘ from the common sense point of view by nearly all domains of knowledge. Popularly the psychologists associate the self concept , the I – Self, with the ndividual and his states of mind – Conscious, subconscious and the unconscious. Body- Ego concept can be an evidence of self and body singularity. The genesis of mental structure advocated by Hartmann, Kris and Loewenstein advocate an ego state known as the Body Ego. They suggest with impressive arguments that the ego and the id should be conceived the result of an undifferentiated state. Conclusion : The embodied self concept generates a tension. The stream of consciousness can be believed to be located within the boundaries of a creature. The self ( its memories, eliefs and traits ) might not located within the boundaries of the creature. Our intuition equates ourselves with our consciousness. A point to be noted is that there is a dualism not only between mind and body but also between consciousness and mind ! The ancient scholarly philosophical debate ‘ Self is distinct from the body ’ is a challenging interdisciplinary study. However, the philosophy student is best equipped to handle it. The debate seems to have no end. That is what makes a debate an interesting academic field of study. Philosophers and philosophy students have to be cautious that in their xuberance they do not unwittingly clash with scientific evidence or infringe with cherished religious and theological beliefs. The society punished Galileo because he was ahead in time than the people. The times have changed remarkably. These days society is more tolerant to new ideas. Even blasphemy against Jesus doesn’t shock the West anymore. Recent headlines of a popular newspaper says that the church has forgiven Beatles for claiming they were more popular than Jesus. Philosophers and philosophy students can play a timely role in all ages. The clear message is that they need not ostracize themselves from the society.

The Boston Beer Company Essay Example for Free

The Boston Beer Company Essay Jim Koch began selling Sam Adams beer from bar to bar out of a brief case in April 1985. He sold unlabeled bottles kept cold with chill packs from his briefcase. His sales tactic was the following simply 10-second pitch: â€Å"Try this new beer. It’s handcrafted in small batches. You’ll like the taste. † (Hyatt, 2010) At the time, the craft beer industry in America was virtually non-existent. By 1989, sales of Sam Adams had grown to 63,000 barrels. In 1996, Sam Adams sales had reached 1. 2 million barrels. (Wikipedia, 2012). The success of the brand served as the catalyst for what many call the microbrew revolution. By 1995, there were approximately 600 small, local and regional breweries throughout the United States. Today, the Boston Beer Company (producer of Sam Adams) employs over 800 workers and brews over 2 million barrels of Sam Adams beer annually. It is the largest of the craft breweries in the United States. (Boston Beer Company) The craft brew industry accounts for about 1 percent of the domestic beer market, which is dominated by giants MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch InBev. This is has required a remarkable level of growth since the early 1990s. In 2011, the industry grew 13 percent by volume (barrels) and 15 percent by retail dollars. Domestic craft beer sales reached 11,468,152 barrels in 2011, up from 10,133,571 in 2010. This growth has occurred despite the overall $96 billion domestic beer market contracting in the past few years (down 1 percent in 2011 to 199,937,239 barrels). (Brewers Association, 2012) The craft brew industry is comprised of several types of breweries which range in annual production from a few barrels up to 6 million barrels. The Brewers Association recently revised the upper limit from a previous point of 2 million barrels in 2011. (Nason, 2011). The industry classifications are the following: * Nanobreweries: Breweries which produce less than 30 barrels per year. * Microbreweries: Breweries classified by their annual production volume, which is up to 15,000 barrels per year. In addition, 75 percent of the beer produced is sold outside of the brewery. There are no set guidelines on the inputs or techniques used to produce the beer in order to be classified as a microbrewery. (Kleban Nickerson, 2011) While the term is often used interchangeably with the term ‘craft beer,’ they are actually not synonyms. A craft beer must contain at least 50 percent traditional malt. (Brown, 2012) * Brewpubs: Restaurant-based breweries in which more than 25 percent of the beer produced is sold onsite, often directly from the brewery’s storage tanks. A majority of these are located in the northeast. * Contract brewing company: Breweries which outsource their production to other breweries subject to exact brewing specifications. The contract brewing company handles all marketing, distribution, and selling responsibilities. (Brewers Association, 2012) Boston Beer Company used to be classified as a contract brewing company. However, from 2007 to 2009 the company’s production at company-owned breweries increased from approximately 35 percent to over 95 percent. (Datamonitor, 2011) * Regional craft brewery: Brewers which produce from 15,000 to 6 million barrels of beer per year. Less than 25 percent of the brewery is owned or controlled by a non-craft alcoholic beverage industry member. In addition, at least 50 percent of its production volume must be in all-malt beers. (Brewers Association, 2012) The Boston Beer Company is now a regional craft brewery. The total number of U. S.craft breweries passed 2,000 in 2012, with significant growth since 2009: Breweries (#)| 2009| 2010| 2011| Regional Craft Bwr. | 71| 81| 88| Microbreweries| 505| 615| 789| Brew Pubs| 1,020| 1,053| 1,063| Total| 1,596| 1,749| 1,938| (Brewers Association, 2012) The industry is based on a three-tiered system of distribution in which the producers partner with wholesale distributors who provide transportation and refrigerated storage to retailers. There are hundreds of distributors in the industry, and over 630,000 retailers. There are over 220 million potential customers (over the age of 21 yrs.) domestically. (Beaudette, 2011). States control the regulation of the industry, and typically collect taxes through the distributors, rather than attempting to work with hundreds of thousands of retail outlets. (Beer Distributors of Oklahoma, 2010) Company’s Dominant Features The Sam Adams brand was named for the Boston revolutionary who was also a brewer. Samuel Adams Boston Lager made its debut in April 1985, when it was served in approximately 25 Boston bars and restaurants. At this point, the company had two employees: Jim Koch (founder) and his partner Rhonda Kallman. Sales reached 500 barrels by the end of the year, and the company expanded rapidly from there. (Samuel Adams, 2012) The company went public as the Boston Beer Company in 1995, selling shares of Class A common stock on the New York Stock Exchange using the ticker symbol SAM. Jim Koch owns 100 percent of the company’s class B stock, which grants him control over all decision-making responsibilities of Boston Beer Company. They have three breweries located in Cincinnati, Boston and Breinigsville (Pennsylvania), and produce over 30 styles of beer. (Boston Beer Company) This includes its seasonal brands: Alpine Spring (January-March), Summer Ale (April-August), Octoberfest (August-October), and Winter Lager (November-January). (Wikipedia, 2012) The company currently produces over 2 million barrels of beer annually, and is the largest craft brewery in the industry. It is the second largest American brewery by sales volume (to D. G. Yuengling and Son). The company has been a pioneer within a growing differentiated niche market within the alcohol beverage industry. The Boston Beer company builds its competitive advantage by focusing on innovation and quality (freshness). The company (and craft beer industry as a whole) cannot compete with Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors based on price due to lack of scale (though Sam Adams is more widely distributed than any of its craft industry members). The company began freshness dating back in 1987. It soon followed this with an amnesty program for its wholesalers which allowed beer that was three months past its expiration date to be returned for a partial refund. In more recent years, the company has enacted its Freshest Beer in Town initiative. This is a just-in-time distribution model in which wholesale partners will keep only one week of inventory (down from 3-4 weeks’ worth before), and the Boston Beer Co. will replenish supply based on consumer demand. The company also has begun the Draft Quality Audit Program, in which trained employees make in-market visits to test the freshness of the company’s product on tap at various retailers. Over 20,000 such audits are now conducted on an annual basis. The company also plans to continue pursuit of joint collaborations with other breweries and expansion of its own operations. It currently has an agreement with Moosehead Brewery for distribution of Sam Adams products in Canada. It has also teamed with Germany’s Weihenstephan Brewery to create Infinium, the first new beer style created under the Reinheitsgebot principle of beer purity (only four allowed ingredients: water, malt, hops and yeast). The Weihenstephan Brewery has a credible claim as being the world’s oldest brewery, and enjoys a strong reputation among beer enthusiasts. (Zegler, 2012) Regarding potential future growth, founder Jim Koch is excited for both his company and the craft beer industry. In 2011, he stated the following: I do believe that craft beer has a solid foundation for continued growth. Because in 2011, craft beer has become the new wine and the 20-somethings are adopting craft beer in the same way that their boomer parents adopted wine. When that happened in the 80s it led to decades of steady, healthy growth, and I’m optimistic that craft beer can have many years of steady, health growth†¦. I also believe that we (Boston Beer Co. ) have a really bright future. We’re also very small. Sam Adams can double. We can maybe even triple [in size] in the next 20 years. (Zegler, 2012). Places where it competes As stated above, the Boston Beer Company operates three breweries in Cincinnati, Boston and Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania. Over 95 percent of the company’s products are now produced in its own breweries. It is distributed throughout the United States, in parts of Europe including Germany, and now in Canada through an agreement with the Canadian brewery Moosehead. Standing in the Industry (Rivals) Boston Beer Co. has been the craft brewing industry leader since its beginning. It was the number one craft brewer in 2011 based on beer sales volume. It was followed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.and New Belgium Brewing Co. In the overall industry, Boston Beer Co. is number five in beer sales volume, behind Anheuser-Busch InBev, MillerCoors, Pabst Brewing Co. and D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc. The craft beer segment accounts for approximately one percent of the overall alcoholic beverage category (includes wine and spirits, imported beer, craft and large breweries). (Brewers Association, 2012) Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors dominate the industry, though business dipped last year. Interestingly, there seems to be a great amount of cooperation and collaboration amongst the members of the craft brewing segment. Building the segment is a common concern with many of the regional craft breweries. For example, in 2008 Boston Beer Co. responded to an industry-wide hops shortage by sharing 20,000 pounds of its own hops at cost with 108 selected craft breweries. (Samuel Adams, 2008) There are many other notable craft breweries that have emerged as industry leaders in the past decade, including the following: * Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. : The nation’s second largest craft brewer, they are based Chico, California. The company was founded by Ken Grossman and Paul Camusi in 1980. Production is approaching 1 million barrels annually. The most popular product is the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. * New Belgium Brewing Co. : Headquartered in Ft. Collins, Colorado and founded in 1991 by Jeff Lebesch. The company’s flagship beer is the popular Fat Tire. It is the nation’s third largest craft brewery. The company’s distribution network had reached 19 states by 2009, and is growing. * Deschutes Brewery: Based in Bend, Oregon. The company’s products include its Black Butte Porter, Mirror Pond Pale Ale and the award-winning The Abyss (11% alcohol by volume; released in 2007). * Harpoon Brewery: Headquartered in Boston, Mass. Products include its India Pale Ale, Munich Dark, 1636 Brew and four seasonal varieties. * Boulevard Brewing Co. : Located in Kansas City, Missouri. The company’s products are available in over twenty states in the Midwest region. (CNBC, 2012) * Dogfish Heah Craft Brewery: Founded by Sam Calagione and based out of Delaware. Calagione is known for pushing the boundaries of brewing varieties, and actually collaborating with Jim Koch in creating 2009’s SAVOR Flowers brew (it was a one-time experiment). Competitive Capabilities Boston Beer is the craft beer industry leader by production and sales volume. Its focus is on freshness and innovation (variety). The company started early with its freshness dating, followed by its amnesty program for its distributors, and now the Freshest Beer in Town and Draft Quality Audit Program. Regarding his company’s emphasis on beer freshness, Koch stated the following: If my beer isn’t fresh, I want the consumer to buy something else. And I want to make it as easy as possible for them to know because if they have a bad experience with my beer, they may not buy it again. To me, it’s not about trying to get consumers that are trying one beer after another and they never buy again. I’m very focused on giving consumers a great taste in every bottle so I can build brand loyalty based on a reliably rewarding experience. (Zegler, 2012) Boston Beer innovation is manifest in its wide variety of seasonal and specialty brews, as well as its recent notable collaborations. It teamed with Weihenstephan Brewery to create Infinium, which sold out domestically within a few weeks, and apparently had similar success in Germany. The company added Noble Pils in 2010 (winner of its 2009 Beer Lover’s Choice election; brewed with all five Noble hops). Latitude 48 is an India pale ale with hops from producers along the 48-degree latitude sources. The company also released its Samuel Adams Revolutionary Rye Ale in 2011 (winner of 2010 Beer Lover’s Choice election). The company also intends to expand its Barrel Room collection of beers, which until recently were only distributed in Denver and Boston. The Barrel Room beers are aged in the Boston Beer Company’s brewery supply of barrels, and include American Kriek, New World Tripel, and Stony Brook Red varieties. Jim Koch stated the following concerning his company’s push for new varieties: We’re not the new kid on the block. We’re not the newest beer out there. We’re not the most local. We don’t have the best marketing or a cute brand name. People have tried Sam Adams, it’s not a new experience†¦ the reason that we’ve become the leading craft brewery is because we have always given the consumer the best possible experience and they have rewarded us with their loyalty. That’s why we keep pushing on those things. . (Zegler, 2012) Forces Driving Industry Change. Aside from the continued expansion efforts of many industry’s regional craft breweries, there has also been a current lobbying push on behalf of the craft beer industry for the passage of Congressional bills H. R. 1236 and S. 534, which would reduce federal excise taxes applicable to the craft breweries. Specifically, if passed the bill would reduce the small brewer rate on the first 60,000 barrels by 50 percent, from $7. 00 to $3. 50 per barrel. The rate on production between 60,000 and 2 million barrels would also be reduced from $18. 00 to $16. 00 per barrel. The two bills were introduced in March 2011. (Brewers Association, 2012) (Buchman Law Firm, LLP) Sources of Competitive Advantage Arenas Boston Beer Company operates in the craft brewing industry, which accounts for approximately 1 percent of the overall beer industry, which is dominated by Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors. Sam Adams and the company’s other products are distributed throughout the United States and Canada (via the recent agreement with Moosehead Brewery of Canada). The company’s target customer is one who is willing to pay a premium price for a quality beer, and will display brand loyalty. The company’s standing as a catalyst for the microbrew revolution has given it considerable brand recognition among beer enthusiasts. Vehicles The company has grown considerably in twenty years, employing over 800 employees with three breweries which now produce 95 percent of the company’s products. Jim Koch plans to continue company expansion, with visions of tripling in size in the next twenty years. Based on the company’s history, expansion will most likely occur through internal development rather than via any mergers or acquisitions. Each beer style must registered by requests for certificates of label approval (COLA). State registration usually requires a state application coupled with the federal COLA for a given label. (Buchman Law Firm, LLP) Excise taxes are typically collected through a company’s wholesalers. Boston Beer Co. has embarked on some notable recent joint ventures, including its creation of Infinium in collaboration with the Weihenstephan Brewery and its Canadian distribution agreement with Moosehead Brewery. On the supply side, the company must continually replenish its inventory of barley and hops. Monthly barley prices from February 2007 to January 2012 had a standard deviation of $37. 76 per metric ton. This low amount of variation has led many breweries to simply purchase the crop on an annual basis. Conversely, many breweries will contract to acquire hops years into the future. The Boston Beer Company has over $33 million in hops contract commitments through 2015. (Craft Beer Analytics, 2011) Differentiators Boston Beer Company has significant brand equity within the craft beer industry due to its significant role in creating it. They attempt to further differentiate their products based on freshness and product innovation. Its Freshest Beer in Town initiative is a just-in-time supply arrangement with the company’s wholesalers (it was intended to include 50 percent of Boston Beer’s distributors by the end of 2011). (Craft Beer Restaurant Times, 2011) The program reduced suppliers’ inventories of Sam Adams down from an average of 3-4 weeks to just one week (which is to be kept chilled). Boston Beer ships more based on what the distributors have sold as opposed to advance orders. According to Koch: â€Å"Refrigeration of the beer virtually eliminates all of the product degradation that happens through the supply chain. The temperature control also makes it as if the retail account is getting its beer straight from the brewery. † The Draft Quality Audit Program is one in which company salespeople have been trained to taste the defects and track the cause of low quality Sam Adams on tap at various retailers. Boston Beer Co. now conducts approximately 20,000 audits each year, which has resulted in a drop in the incidence of low quality company beer from 15 to just 3 percent, according to Koch. (Zegler, 2012) The company has also continued to expand its beer varieties. From its seasonal brews and collaborations with breweries such as Dogfish Head and Weihenstephan, to its Barrel Room collection and updates such as Noble Pils, Latitude 48 and Revolutionary Rye Ale, the company is always looking to test the boundaries of craft brewing. Corporate Strategies Boston Beer Company has successfully built on Sam Adams’ strong brand equity, differentiating its products based on quality, variety, and freshness. The company has continued to expand its operations with no plans to discontinue such efforts. It has also hedged against future increases in hops prices with over $33 million in hops contracts already signed covering the company through December of 2015. Economic Logic The craft beer industry is based on the idea that consumers will pay a premium price for a quality beer which is different from the industry norms offered by companies such as Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors. Sam Adams also benefits from considerable brand equity. Staging and Pacing. Jim Koch has stated that he believes that the craft beer industry will continue to trend upward in sales relative the rest of the alcoholic beverage industry, and that the Boston Beer Company could triple in size within the next 20 years. His opinion on this matter is important, because Koch owns all of the company’s Class B common stock and with it, retains all decision-making authority for the company. Financial Analysis Current Financial Standing The 2011 fiscal year provided the Boston Beer Company with multiple opportunities to raise their glasses. Undoubtedly, the major achievement of 2011 was officially obtaining just over 1% of the United States beer market. This increased market share enabled the company to release some very impressive numbers in their recent 10-K. Earnings Snapshot| Revenue| $558. 282M| Net income| $66. 059M| Return on assets| 24. 24%| Return on equity| 35. 76%| Profit margin| 11. 83%| Current ratio| 1. 88| Quick ratio| 1. 37| Quite possibly the most staggering ratios from the 2011 filing are the company’s return on assets (investment) and return on equity. These tools measure how profitable a firm is relative to their total assets and total equity, respectively. In 2011, the Boston Beer Company reported a return on assets of 24. 24% and a return on equity of 35. 76%. Both of these ratios have a high level of volatility depending on the industry. These measures are remarkable within the alcoholic beverage industry, as well as the general beverage industry. In comparison, Coca-Cola (KO) posted a return on assets of 10. 72% and a return on equity of 27. 10% in 2011, while the winemaking company Constellation Brands (STZ) posted a return on assets of 6. 25% and a return on equity of 16. 75%. Furthermore, the company performed well regarding profit margin. Differing from other measures, profit margin should rarely be used to compare different firms. The reasoning behind this is that firms have varying levels of setups, so comparing profit margins could lead to confusion and misdiagnosis. The best way to use profit margin is against prior years. When weighed against its prior years, the company has seen a constant uptick over the past several years, signifying it is doing a good job of controlling costs and setting pricing at a reasonable level. The Boston Beer Company excelled in their liquidity and leverage ratios as well, not just in the three major profitability ratios: return on assets, return on equity, and profit margin. The most common ratios for measuring liquidity are the current ratio, quick ratio, and cash ratio. The current ratio (liquidity ratio) is an easy way to measure whether a firm is able to pay its short-term debts. A ratio of 1. 0 or above is likely and expected, and the Boston Beer Company’s 2011 current ratio of 1. 88 leaves it with plenty of leeway to pay all of its short-term obligations. Much like the current ratio, the quick ratio is a slightly more conservative measure that takes into account current levels of inventory, which can be difficult to liquidate. The company’s quick ratio is 1. 37, after taking out inventories. This still leaves plenty of room for the company to repay its short-term obligations. The last liquidity ratio is the cash ratio, which is the least commonly used of the three measures mentioned previously. The cash ratio is the ultimate ratio of liquidity because it only compares cash and marketable securities to current liabilities. An extremely high cash ratio could signify that a firm is stockpiling cash and not investing its assets wisely. The company’s cash ratio of 0. 74 is less than 1. 0 but still reasonable considering the other amounts of short-term assets. While the company does not have the ability to pay its short-term obligations with cash, it is still operating within a secure level of liquidity. The last group of ratios is the leverage ratios. These ratios measure how much debt a company is carrying. The total debt ratio divides total liabilities by total assets, giving an estimation of how leveraged a company is at a given time. In 2011, the Boston Beer Company’s total debt ratio was 0. 32, which would signify a generally low level of risk to potential investors. Much like the total debt ratio, the debt to equity ratio is a leverage ratio that has total debt in the numerator. The difference is the debt to equity ratio divides the total debt by stockholders equity. This ratio shows how a company finances its activities, whether through debt or equity. The Boston Beer Company’s debt to equity ratio of 0. 47 indicates it has very little debt compared to its equity. This shows how the company has been conservative in using debt to finance its operations. The last leverage ratio is interest coverage, a tool used to see how easily a company can pay its interest expenses. Since the company has interest income instead of interest expense, the interest coverage ratio is not valuable when evaluating the company’s 2011 financials. Recent Financial Trends During the past three years, the Boston Beer Company has seen steady gains from almost all of their major financial indicators. The company, undoubtedly, has improved on their prior year results across the board since 2009. When the financial crisis struck the United States and the world in late 2008, most firms encountered decreased earnings and in many instances, losses. Many of these companies are just now returning to their pre-recession profitability. The majority of the damage was incurred to these companies in the fourth quarter of 2008 and well into 2009. As seen by their year-over-year net income growth of 284. 74% in 2009, the recession did little to hurt the company’s financial situation. One potential explanation for its recession success comes from the â€Å"relationship between economic recession and [increased] consumption of alcohol and that heavy drinking behavior is unambiguously associated with unhappy feelings or dissatisfaction† (Anderson Moro, 2008). The widespread theory is that a sudden decrease in income has little affect or possibly a negative correlation with beer consumption. Quite possibly, this could explain why most vice companies trade with a beta less than 1. 0, indicating a negative relationship with the market. The Boston Beer Company is currently trading with a beta of 0. 85. In their most recent 10K, the company posted a year-over-year net income growth of 31. 74%. While this number appears very positive on the surface, it does not fully take into account a settlement the company received from its glass bottle supplier when the company had to issue a recall after routine inspections found glass particles in certain bottles. The recall affected approximately 25% of the company’s bottles and was completed by the fourth quarter. Nevertheless, the end result was the company â€Å"received a cash payment of $20. 5 million, which was recorded as an offset to operating expenses, and all parties have released each other of any claims as they relate to this matter† (The Boston Beer Company, Inc. , 2011). Comparison with Market Leaders While the Boston Beer Company has been experienced significant gains the past few years, it is still a minor player in the beer industry compared to the two leaders: Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors. These two companies combine for a total market share of just over 35%. The Boston Beer Company’s 2011 revenue of $558. 282 million is 1. 43% and 10. 80% of Anheuser-Busch InBev’s $39. 046 billion and SABMiller’s $5. 170 billion, respectively. While it cannot compete on revenue, the company can compete on productivity. The productivity ratio is computed as employees divided by revenue. The company’s productivity ratio of $664,620 per employee tops Anheuser-Busch InBev’s $336,600 per employee and MillerCoors’ $277,260 per employee. The company has repeatedly stated that its goal has never been to be on the same level as the market leaders. Instead, its goal is to be the leader in the better beer category, which includes Yuengling, Corona, and Heineken. In 2011, D. G. Yuengling and Son passed the company as the largest American beer-maker in sales, a title long held by Anheuser-Busch. The Boston Beer Company’s objective is to regain that title and grow with the better beer category. Stock Trends The Boston Beer Company has a very unique setup for their common stock. The company has 8,714,931 shares of Class A Common Stock outstanding and 4,107,355 shares of Class B Common Stock outstanding. Where the setup gets unique is that the Class A Common Stock only have voting power to approve certain mergers and elect a minority to the board of directors. The Class B Common Stock is held entirely by C. James Koch, Chairman of the Board of Directors, who has control over the majority of the board of directors and most other matters regarding shareholder approval. This gives Mr. Koch substantial control over his company and takes a large amount of power from the remaining shareholders. After reaching its lowest point in close to a decade at $19. 02 in May 2009, the Boston Beer Company (SAM) has rebounded to new levels. In fact, the stock reached its all time high of $119. 84 on June 19, 2012. Except for a decline of close to 25% of the stock’s value in early 2011, the increase has been steady and balanced since the low in 2009. One interesting note is the volume of shares traded in late 2007. Traders saw the stock rising quickly from $30 to $50 and felt it had a lot of volatility. This led to a sharp increase in trading activity that pushed the volume over 1. 5 million shares. Stock Performance Outlook As of late, stock analysts have conveyed mixed feelings about the company’s future stock outlook. According to Morningstar’s survey of four analysts, one rates the stock a buy, one rates it underperform, and two rate it a hold. This shows exactly how divided analysts are on the future of the stock. Since 2008, earnings per share has increased from $0. 56 to $4. 81, although the $4. 81 does take into account the settlement. Excluding the settlement, earnings per share in 2011 was $3. 73, still a 5. 97% increase over 2010. For 2012, analysts are â€Å"looking for full-year earnings of $4. 14, a projected 10% increase from last year. The next-year estimate is pegged at $4. 80, a solid 16% earnings growth projection† (Vodicka, 2012). If the company meets or exceeds these earnings projections, there is little doubt that it could continue climbing. Traders who are bullish on the stock believe it should continue growing with the craft brewery sector. They point toward the company’s recent run of hitting estimates, its healthy price to earnings ratio of 22. 57, and its recent investment in their brewing facilities to keep up with increased demand. On the other hand, bearish traders point toward the company’s high valuation premiums that are incorporated into the prices. If the company were to miss their upcoming quarterly earnings, it could ignite some traders to short the stock, potentially sending it spiraling. Key Success Factors. For firms to be successful over a long period of time, they must be aware of the key success factors that drive profitability in their industries. Key success factors are a set of issues that all companies operating in the industry must pay attention to in order to be successful. Quite simply, key success factors are something each company must have to accomplish long-term success. In his 2004 journal article, Richard A. Caralli explains that â€Å"every organization inherits a particular set of operating conditions and challenges that are inherent to the industry (or a segment of the industry) in which it chooses to do business. This results in a unique set of [key success factors] that organizations in a particular industry must achieve to maintain or increase their competitive positions, achieve their goals, and accomplish their missions† (Caralli, 2004). The beer industry in particular has three main key success factors. First, firms must have an advertising campaign that effectively reaches their target audience. For years, Anheuser-Busch has been the market leader by segmenting the way it advertises its different brands. Budweiser is marketed as the â€Å"King of Beers† and is known for its signature Clydesdale horses and vintage bottle design. On the other hand, Bud Light is marketed as â€Å"The Sure Sign of a Good Time. † Its commercials are designed for a much younger audience and are regularly voted as some of the most humorous on television. The other major beer makers seem to follow the same strategy of marketing their core brand as legendary and historic, while marketing the light varieties in a more humorous tone. A second key success factor in the beer industry is obtaining and maintaining a network of wholesale distributors. These distributors act as middlemen to transport the beer from brewers and importers to stores, bars, and restaurants. The approximately 3,300 distributors in the United States allow companies to focus more on brewing and marketing and less on delivery to the end user. The beer wholesaler industry is a very large industry in itself. The largest distributor, Reyes Beverage Group, delivers 93 million cases per year and has revenues of $1. 9 billion. Firms must keep in constant contact with these distributors to ensure timely and cost-effective delivery. The last major key success factor affecting the beer industry is knowledge of the consumer. To be able to effectively advertise for their brands, firms must have deep knowledge of their target audience. The beer industry is segmented into a variety of different divisions. Marketing a specific product incorrectly could be extremely costly. Miller is effectively targeting their target audiences with Miller 64 and Miller High Life. Miller 64, with only 64 calories, is intended for males and females age 35 and under, while Miller High Life is intende.