Monday, September 30, 2019

Finc2011 Major Assignment Essay

Executive summary Woolworths Limited (WOW), which is one of the listed companies in Australian Security Exchange (ASX) (ASX 200), is the largest supermarket in Australia (Kruger 2013), it specializes in the groceries, food and retailing (WOOLWORTHS LIMITED (WOW) 2013). The aim of this report is to estimate and determine the dividend growth rate, stock return and current share price of Woolworths. Methods used for the estimation include dividend growth model, Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and Gordon’s Growth Model. The results of the estimation indicate that the dividend payments will continuous increasing in the future, the return on the company’s assets is reasonable and its share price is expected to rise. In addition, recommendations associated with the investment decision will be provided to the public investors regarding to the risks in the market by comparing with companies within the same industry. However, there are still a number of limitations of the report such as a few assumptions are made for calculations and limitations due to the difference of risk free rate. Calculation of Growth Rate: The approach used to estimate the growth rate (g) for dividend payments of Woolworths is: g = Ploughback Ratio x Return on Equity (ROE) Ploughback Ratio = 1 – Payout Ratio In which, payout ratio refers to the ratio of dividends to earnings per share (EPS) (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011). Souce: http://www.woolworthslimited.com.au/annualreport/2012/pdf/WW_AR12_Full.pdf Based on the figures above, the growth rate (g) for the 2012 should be: g = (1 – 0.8528) x 0.2722 = 4.01% In order to figure out a more accurate growth rate, the average should be taken from 2008 to 2012. As it is shown in the table, the average g = 7.68%. According to Woolworth’s annual report (2012), the payout ratio is quite stable, despite there is a sudden increase in 2012; hence, we could assume that the dividend payout ratio is constant. Meanwhile, although Woolworths’ Return on Equity (ROE) shows a slight decrease from 2008 to 2012, it is still fairly steady – close to 28%. Since both of two assumptions – constant dividend payout and return on equity – are satisfied (Mellare 2013), g = Ploughback x ROE is suppose to be an appropriate method to estimate the dividend growth rate for Woolworths. Calculation of required return using CAPM Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) is a method used to measure the risk and return of an asset, which describes that each expected risk premium of an asset should rise in proportion to its beta (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011): In which, ri refers to the return on asset, rf refers to the risk free rate of return, beta is the covariance and (rm-rf) is the market risk premium (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011). To begin with, risk free rate (rf) should be determined. Generally, 10 years government bonds rate is considered to be risk free rate as it is commonly believed that a government would be unlikely to default on its obligations (McNickle 2011). However, it does not mean that government bonds face no risks, it still encounter inflation and interest rate risk (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011). Source: http://www.rba.gov.asu/statistics/tables/xls/f02d.xls?accessed=2013-05-22-21-18-20 According to the Capital Market Yields – 10 years Government Bonds provided by Reserve Bank of Australia (2013), the 10-year government bond rates in 21th May 2013 is 3.26%, which should be used as the risk free rate (rf) for the calculation of CAPM. Source: http://www.ato.gov.au/super/content.aspx?menuid=0&doc=/content/60489.htm&page=36&H36 However, those may argue that based on the historical data from Australian Taxation Office (2013) – the table above, the average of risk free rate from 2003 to 2012 is calculated to be 5.34%, which should be the risk free rate for the calculation instead of 3.26%. Nevertheless, since the risk free rate is always changing, in order to estimate the return for asset more accurately, the current risk free rate 3.26% is supposed to be taken for the estimation. In this stage, the risky required return (rm), the same as market return, should be calculated. Stock market index is an approach to evaluate the value of stock market and S&P/ASX 200 is the most significant stock market index which tracks the performance of two hundred big Australian corporations (Australia Stock Market (S&P/ASX 200) 2013). Currently, S&P/ASX 200 is a primary share market index in Australia which replaced the All Ordinaries in April 2000 and has become the benchmark for investment for the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) (ASX 200 2013). Therefore, S&P/ASX 200 is the best indicator of the market return and used to determine the market return. Source: https://blackboard.econ.usyd.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-636137-dt-content-rid-201558_2/courses/FINC2011_SEM1_2013/All%20Ords%20Accumulation%20Indices.xls Based on the data from S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation index (daily), which is provided by Mellare (2013), the yearly index could be calculated by averaging all of the daily indexes for that year. Yearly market return (rm) can be determined by: In which, old market index refers to the index for year t and new index is the index for year (t+1). A table for the calculation of market return will be created in a similar way with the S&P/ ASX200 table (see Appendix – 1) for the periods of 10 years in order to comply with ASX. Due to the prices in 2013 is not completed, the market return for financial year (FY) 2012 cannot be estimated reliably. Importantly, averaging rm for 10 years from FY 2002 to FY 2011 is significant for the purpose of determining a more accurate figure. As a result, rm = 8.31%. Because rm is the sum of the risk free interest rate (rf) and a premium for risk (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011), the risk premium, as a part of CAPM equation, can be calculated through: rm = rf + risk premium risk premium = rm – rf Based on the previous analysis, rf = 3.26% and rm = 8.31%, risk premium = 8.31% – 3.26% = 5.09%. According to the report from last year, the market risk premium is estimated to be 6.0% in October (Michael, Blake and Zolotic 2012), the estimated value of 5.09% is reasonable. According to the financial information from Reuters (2013), Woolworths’ beta (ÃŽ ²) = 0.34. Therefore, by applying CAPM: Calculation of Next Dividend Payment The next dividend payment should be determined by using: In which, d0 is the current dividend payment, d1 is the dividend for the next financial year and g is the growth rate. Souce:http://datanalysis.morningstar.com.au.ezproxy1.library.usyd.edu.au/af/company/dividendhistory?ASXCode=WOW&xtm-licensee=dat The table above shows the dividend history of Woolworths (Morningstar 2013). Since, the total dividend payment in 2012 is $67+59 = $126 cents/$1.26 per share, which should be d0, and the growth rate is estimated to be 7.68% in the previous calculations, d1 = 1.26*(1+7.68%) = $1.36, which is the total dividend payment for 2013. As the interim dividend for 2013 has already paid on 26/04/2013, the final dividend for 2013 which is the next dividend payment should be: $1.36–0.62=$0.74 per share. Determination of Expected Current Share Price The constant divident growth model, which is Gordon’s Growth Model, is used for estimating the current share price: In which, P0 refers to the current share price, d1 is the divident payment for the next year, re is the required rate of return and g is the growth rate. In order to calculate the current price P0, firstly, d1 need be calculated which should be the dividend for the next year – 2014. Hence, d1 = 1.36*(1+7.68%) = $ 1.46 As required rate of return (re) consists of both capital gains and dividend yields (Mellare 2013) and capital gains is the same as g (Mathis 2001), re = capital gains (g) + dividend yields. Souce: http://www.woolworthslimited.com.au/annualreport/2012/pdf/WW_AR12_Full.pdf According to the historical data from annural report of Woolworth (2012), taking the average of all of the dividend yields for the last five years – from 2008 to 2012, the dividend yield = 3.8808%. Therefore, re = 7.68% + 3.88% = 11.56% Lastly, the expected current share price in 2013 is: P0 = 1.46/(11.56%-7.68%) = $ 37.63 Recommodation and Discussion Investment decisions are rely on the return and risk associated with a security. According to CAPM, actural returns are measured by beta, which is defined as a security’s sencitivity relative to the changes in the value of the market portfolio (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011), over the long run. Beta of Woolworths Limited is 0.34 (Reuters 2013), which is a good sign as it indicates that the company is insensitive to the market risk. Comparing it with other companies, Wesfarmers Limited (WES), the Perth-based conglomerate which selling food to customers (Greenblat 2013), has same situation with Woolworths in terms of growing trend of dividend payment and  sharing market risk as they operates within the same industry – food industriy. Beta of Wesfarmers is 0.96 (Reuters 2013),which means that Wesfarmers is more risky than Woolworths as it is as risky as the market porfolio (Brealey, Myers and Allen 2011). As well, beta of Goodman Fielder (GFF), another food company, is 0.98 (Reuters 2013), which means it shares almost the same risk with the market porfolio (Mellare 2013) – realtively in the same situation with Wesfarmers. Therefore, when concerning with the risks, it is recommended to invest in Woolworths. However, under CAPM, high-beta securities will result in high return: ri = rf + ÃŽ ²*(rm – rf) As all of these three companies are in the same market, they share the same market risk but the proportion is different based on their beta. Although, securities of Wesfarmers and Goodman Fielder are more risky than Woolworths due to higher beta, they provide higher return to investors. Since investment decisions are depend on personal interests (Mellare 2013), it cannot be denied that there are a few investors prefer higher returns with higher risks. Moreover, the higher returns compensate investors for higher risk, hence, it is unlikely to determine whether invest in Woolworths is a better option. Nevertheless, investing in Woolworth is still recommended. Investing in low-risk securities provides constant and stable returns. Investing in Woolworths is worthwhile not only because Woolworths provides quite constant returns, but also its potential to growth due to its strong profitability and cash flows (WOW – Woolworths Limited 2012). Overall, it is recommended to invest in Woolworths. It is important to notice that there are a number of limitations for this report. Firstly, the method used for calculating dividend growth is based on the assumptions – constant dividend payout and return on equity, but in reality, both dividend payout and return on equity are unlikely to be constant. Consequently, the calculation of g may not be accurate. As well, since the 10-year government bond rate, which is considered as risk free

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Amaranth Advisors

Amaranth Advisors LLC was created in 2000 as a multi-strategy hedge fund with approximately $600 million in capital. It sought to employ a diverse group of arbitrage trading strategies particularly featuring convertible bonds, mergers and utilities. In 2002, Amaranth added energy commodity trading to its slate of strategies with JP Morgan Chase clearing Amaranth’s commodity trades. A multi-strategy fund runs several different strategies in-house that contribute to the total performance of the fund. A single-strategy fund concentrates the whole portfolio on one strategy. Amaranth was long natural gas futures. They enjoyed huge profits from natural gas futures and option trades in 2005 and early 2006. Brian Hunter used borrowed money to double-down on his bets. Buying more futures contracts of this same kind supported their price by increasing demand, which then increased the price gains. It seemed that Brian Hunter was acting on his own entity and that there was little to no communication between the star trader and the management team. Even though the firm emphasized that its fund was multi-strategy, most of the recent losses were driven by adverse natural gas trades. Prior to this debacle, most investors who viewed reports from this firm saw no reason to worry about its performance although some privy to their portfolio positions expressed concern. Amaranth’s misfortunes were solely a result of poor risk management. Also, even though the firm lost over $6 billion in a matter of days, the losses had minimal impact in the industry as a whole. The hearings on natural gas speculation by the permanent subcommittee on investigations of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs clearly demonstrate that the Amaranth debacle could have been easily avoided had ICE like NYMEX had the ability to limit Amaranth positions. In 2006, NYMEX examined Amaranth’s positions and calculated that Amaranth held about 51% of the open interest in the September natural gas futures contract which would expire at the end of the month. NYMEX determined that this was too large and on August 8 NYMEX compliance officials notified Amaranth of their concerns. During a follow up notification on August 9 NYMEX further notified Amaranth that they should not reduce September positions simply by shifting those positions to the October contract. Amaranth complied with NYMEX’s directions and subsequently reduced its September and October positions. However, at the same time Amaranth increased its positions in September and October in ICE contracts and as a results increased their overall positions in natural gas. The events that followed in late August and September led to huge losses with Amaranth losing significant value. The losses were created due to overconfidence, lack of transparency, and lack of risk management. Amaranth enjoyed huge profits and thought prices would just keep rising. There was no communication between Hunter and the management team. Also, investors had no knowledge that the majority of the portfolio was invested in natural gas positions. Leverage played a huge role in the losses. A hedge fund will typically borrow money, with certain funds borrowing sums many times greater than the initial investment. If a hedge fund has borrowed $9 for every $1 received from investors, a loss of only 10% of the value of the investments of the hedge fund will wipe out 100% of the value of the investor's stake in the fund, once the creditors have called in their loans. Risk management at Amaranth failed in August and September of 2006, resulting in the massive loss of over $5 billion in about a week. In the commodities markets only 10 percent was required as collateral for margin calls. Amaranth could also borrow at up to eight times assets to achieve massive amounts of leverage. Amaranth’s systems didn’t appear to measure correctly how much risk it faced and what steps would limit losses effectively. The risk models use historic data but the natural gas markets were more volatile in 2006, which made models useless. Amaranth used spread trades in natural gas futures and options markets to hedge their bets and control risk. Still, these spreads can widen and losses can increase. Going forward, appropriate due diligence should be done by the management team to make sure this does not happen again. Amaranth could have also protected with better downside protection such as put options.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

International Trade Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International Trade - Research Paper Example It is worth pondering on the root causes behind the ever increasing global trade. The paper aims at exploring how the trade agreement called NAFTA that the US has entered into with Mexico and Canada has impacted on the domestic industries and the US economy at large. The paper would also explore how the devaluation of the US Dollar against the Chinese Yuan can bring respite to the US manufacturing industries. Suranovic (2010) describes about some important key-reasons that decide about any trade between the nations and they are worth pondering to understand the burgeoning global trade. Resource Advantage Each country is endowed with certain natural resources such as minerals, water, land, fossil fuels, and essential raw materials and accordingly their strength lies in manufacturing those finished goods where such resources are necessary. Obviously, such resource pool will put certain countries in advantage over others. Technological Superiority Technological superiority of one countr y over other in a particular product will facilitate production of better quality goods at lower cost and that superiority puts one country ahead of others in a particular good. If the US produces Boeing aircraft and fighters or other sophisticated warheads then it is because of the technological superiority that the US exerts over others in this field. ... It is a fact that the US has absolute advantage in producing grains as it needs fewer real resources relative to the most of the countries in the world. The availability of huge agricultural land and the use of machines are the major reasons in having absolute advantage in agriculture. The country uses minimal labor per unit area of agricultural land increasing the productivity levels manifold; however, it is essential to note that absolute cost advantage does not determine the production and allocation of labor for producing a good but it is the comparative advantage that gives rise to the production of a particular good in that country. The comparative advantage takes into account the opportunity cost while producing a particular good in that country (Suranovic, 2011). This fundamental reality drives the trade globally and the NAFTA agreement is to be seen in this light. US Trade Balance with NAFTA Partners and the World in the year 1989 and 2009 (In billions of current USD) Source : O’Leary et al, 2012, p13. It is important to note here that there is no appreciable change in balance of trade in agriculture commodity with Mexico and Canada; there is no significant impact on the US labor force involved in agriculture. In all merchandise trade with Mexico and Canada in 2009, imports have increased by almost 45 billion and 11 billion USD respectively but so is the case with world trade which shows negative balance of 500 billion USD. This clearly shows that NAFTA trade has followed the world trend only and nothing specific can be attributed to NAFTA agreement that the US has entered into (O’Leary et al, 2012). Below mentioned table indicates about the employment changes between 1989 and 2008 in the key industries in the US. This

Friday, September 27, 2019

Practical Arbitration Issues - UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Practical Arbitration Issues - UK - Essay Example Preliminary Preparations Before the disputing parties appoint an arbitrator, one party has to provide a written request for arbitration to the respondent through an arbitration notice3. The arbitration process is assumed to begin at the point where a third party is appointed as arbitrator by agreement of the disputing parties. Having received a letter signed by two disputing parties appointing an arbitrator, it must be noted by the two parties that the arbitration process has formally begun. The parties to the dispute should be aware that the purpose of arbitration is to find a fair resolution of the contention without unnecessary expense or delay4. The parties should further be aware that they have the freedom to agree on how resolutions will be arrived at subject to the legal demands of public interest. Yet again, the parties must be aware that any court of law will not intervene in the arbitration process unless in the case of special appeal5. The arbitration process will begin by the summoning of the parties in dispute for the purpose of confirming their identity and status in relation to the matter in dispute. In order for the arbitrator to be adequately acquainted with the matter or terms of the development contract, the parties will have to submit a copy of the notice of arbitration and confirm that the process of appointing the arbitrator was valid. Furthermore, the parties will have to serve the arbitrator with the original (development) contract for inspection6. It is important that the jurisdiction of the arbitrator is clearly outlined in the early stages of the process. In this case, the arbitrator should reserve the right to rule substantively on their personal jurisdiction. Any objections that arise in respect of the arbitrator’s jurisdiction should be dealt with in line with the law as set out by the Arbitration Act7. In order for the process of arbitration to be effective, the parties must be able to hold meetings and make presentations. The parties in dispute will have to agree on the venue or seat of the arbitration8. The arbitrator, on their own judgement, may choose a seat in the event that the parties fail to agree on a particular seat9. Furthermore, it should be made clear that the statutory laws that will apply during the arbitration. In the case of residents in the UK, the Law of England and Wales may apply. Once the seat has been decided, a date should be set for the commencement of the arbitration, subject to the agreement of the relevant parties. While there are laws that will apply during the arbitration, it is important for the arbitrator to set out specific rules, in writing, that will apply in the process10. These terms and conditions will include elements related to the arbitrator’s independence, compensation, fines, and prohibition of ex parte communications of the parties with the arbitrator on the matter being arbitrated except for administrative purposes. These terms and conditions will be consented to and signed by the parties. The items in dispute will then be identified with both parties presenting their cases. At this point, any important issues related to the matter should be raised by the parties. In addition, arbitrator will identify and record the main contentious issues as well as issues that are contested to by both

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Informative report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Informative report - Assignment Example The requirements including applicants’ eligibility, whether all application materials were turned in by the deadline, whether the applicant achieves the minimum standard scores on all evaluations and importantly whether he/she displays positive behavior, attitude as well as commitment to completing the college program. (Gateway to College). FRCC office also offers financial aid to the students to pay their tuition and other fees. To get that aid, the students need to have certain eligibility conditions. Apart from being a U.S. citizen or a U.S. permanent resident, they have to be classified as a Colorado resident as well. In addition, they need to have high school diploma, or pass the ACCUPLACER test. Importantly, they should have a â€Å"good standing in accordance with Front Range Community College’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy.† (Financial Aid) Choosing a career is one of the most crucial decisions that will be taken by the students in their lives. To aid in taking that crucial decision, FRCC has in-house career counselors, who can aid the students. So, the students can schedule an appointment with these counselors, who will surely aid them in exploring various options and then focusing on one. There are also career assessment tools or softwares, which can aid the students in selecting their

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

The Wine Industry Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Wine Industry Analysis - Essay Example Gradually the industry started modernizing all its processes and using fermentation and refrigeration for producing better quality products. As of now European market comprises of the majority of wine consumers, with other regions gradually joining in. Therefore the industry is indeed an attractive one, but the growing rivalry amongst the competitors has resulted in reduced margins for the industry. In addition threat of substitutes like other soft beverages has always kept the wine industry on the lookout for upgrading their own standards and quality. Some of the major wine producers are Constellation Brands, Inc. E. & J. Gallo Winery, Janton, Pernod Ricard etc. On account of increasing competition some consolidation is also taking place in the industry, with mergers and acquisitions. But the kind of competition amongst the large number of producers can be gauged from the fact that none of the major producers can boast of a market share of 2%. Observing the wine production figures s ince 1994 and projecting an estimate for the next five years till 2005, Morgan Stanley figured out that there could a marked decrease in the production levels in some countries, particularly after 2000, but this is more because of the increasing competition, which again is a pointer towards the attraction of the industry. Wine brings cheers to the consumers and has survived many adverse circumstances. But today the industry has made itself resilient enough towards such circumstances and facing them boldly. Q-2: What is the basis for competitive advantage Ans: Wine industry has in fact inherited some of the competitive strength in the form of its association with prestige and sharing happiness. In general the competitive advantage of wine industry is based upon the following facts; Quality of wine is decided as per the climatic conditions, the land and the ambience, which gives it a unique identity. Its shelf life is much more as compared to other drinks and beverages. Wine is mostly used as a pleasure drink, with friends and colleagues. Therefore the consumption of wine in a group tends to become more. Wine companies generally have a portfolio of products reflecting a wide variety of choices demanded by consumers in various style and price ranges. There are low-cost high volume varieties, premium varieties and ultra premium varieties. The market is ever growing with the drink becoming quite fashionable amongst the youth. Wine if taken in controlled quantity can have medicinal effects as well, therefore even doctors, other health professionals, NGOs too do not feel the need to be up in arms against the drink. It has been observed that citizens above the age of 50 years consume more wine than the younger ones. And with the a sharp rise in the average age of an individual, thanks to the advancements in health care

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Hazardous Waste Transportation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Hazardous Waste Transportation - Term Paper Example In the anticipation of such events, the United States government made the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act in 1976. Today, the act is being implemented under the supervision of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA); and mandates specific rules and regulations regarding the management of these materials. This paper would focus on the hazardous waste transportation as one of the important aspects of the act’s proposed â€Å"cradle-to-grave† program. This would start with knowing what the hazardous wastes are, why there is a need of properly transporting it, what are the specific provisions indicated in the RCRA on transporting these materials, its process and the people, or organizations involved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are four main things that deem wastes as hazardous. They are hazardous if they are toxic, can catch or readily start a fire, have high reactivity level when combined with other products, or are corrosive (Kovacs 71). The RCRA specifically defined these wastes under solid waste; although it can also include any form of matter. They are â€Å"any garbage, refuse, sludge or other discarded materials, including solid, liquid, or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, mining and agricultural operations, and from community activities† (Teets, Reis, and Worrell 21). Any of the materials that contain carcinogenic [can cause cancer], mutagenic [can induce mutation], or teratogenic [can cause malformation or even death to a fetus] elements are considered toxic. Corrosive substances â€Å"include inorganic acid and bases that have the ability to damage or destroy material and living tissue by direct chemical action.† R eactive materials, on the other hand, are those that readily react if combined with other products and â€Å"can cause burns, poisoning, fire or explosion† while flammable materials â€Å"include combustible liquids, flammable solids, flammable gases,

Monday, September 23, 2019

Point of Presence Advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Point of Presence Advertising - Essay Example The author planned to purchase a movie named Lord of the Rings – Fellowship of the Ring on recommendation of a friend and came across a pack of all the three movies of Lord of the Ring series at a price that was 20% less than the overall cost had the movies been purchased separately. The author realized that he anyway had to purchase the other two movies to complete the story and was delighted to get all the three of them at 20% discount. In the second purchase instance, the author was delighted to realize the value of the package as he owns both a Sony digital camera and Handy Cam. The total price was cheaper by 15%. Such product promotion advertisements resulted in positive impact on the author because the overall value of the buying decisions improved although the author didn’t had planned for part of the purchase. The effectiveness of these two â€Å"Point-of-Sale† advertisements resulted in win-win deal for both the store and the author – the store in creased the net sale value and the author got more useful products at lesser cost. The author was not at all annoyed but was happy with the sales girl for introducing these offers. Massy and Frank (1966. pp383) presented the findings of an exploratory study on behavior of retailer advertising thus establishing some interesting empirical generalizations. They could prove that the brands sell differently in different stores and the support to a brand depends upon the brand’s market share in a particular store type. The author discovered a linkage of this theory with the research by Kumar and Leone (1988. pp178-179) which stated that many customer packaged good manufacturers have resorted to funding short term sales promotion at the store level which primarily has two distinct advantages – the effectiveness of promotions can result in on the spot sales activity and the store management takes pride into participating in on the spot campaigns given increased margins & commissions.Both the manufacturer and the store management gain in this process – the former achieves brand promotion & quick sales and the latter achieves improved profitability of the store.  

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Death penalty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

Death penalty - Essay Example But imprisonment without parole should serve as an alternative to the death penalty, and should be given enough and serious consideration. The death penalty should be stopped and must be prohibited (Pojman and Reiman 72). This essay’s main agenda or main aim is to support the argument that the death penalty should be abolished. In the research, there will be proofs to support that use of the death penalty as a form punishment does not deter crime. Also the research will look at the origin of the use of the death penalty as a form of punishment, and will give the reasons why this form of punishment should be stopped. The death penalty or capital punishment is a legal process whereby a person is sentenced to death for a crime he or she has committed. The actual process of killing the person is called execution. The death penalty tends to brutalize and disregard society and thus it should be completely banned (Johnson and Zimring 289). The death penalty was first used in Babylon for various crimes at least 3700 years ago, and was also used in many other parts in the world. Some countries imposed it for terrible crimes, while others imposed it on very minor offenses, for example under the Roman law of the twelve tablets in the 5th century BC, the death penalty was administered for crimes like publishing of insulting songs and also disturbing the peace of the city. Another example is under the Greece Draconian legal code in the seventh century, where the death penalty was a punishment for every crime (Kronenwetter 11). In a number of ancient societies, the death penalty was used to punish people who committed crimes against the community and religious leaders. The death penalty also served as punishment for other crimes such as robbery, rape, and murder committed against individuals. Rather than being conducted by the legal systems, punishments were carried out by families, clans, and victims in public. According to Kronenwetter, â€Å"execution

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Music Concert Report Essay Example for Free

Music Concert Report Essay The highly respected jazz trio made up of pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Kenny Washington and drummer Peter Washington played for about an hour an a half. Their smooth melodies and precise playing worked perfectly together to give a great performance against the New York City skyline at Dizzys Club Coca-Cola. The trio opened up the show with a song called â€Å"Ill Remember April†. The song was originally written in 1941 by Gene de Paul (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). â€Å"Ill Remember April† first performance was in a very atypical setting. The song was not performed in a Broadway play or Jazz Club but rather the 1942 comedy Called Ride Em Cowboy. Actor Dick Foran sang the song in what a critic at the time called, â€Å"I’ll Remember April’ was an oasis of sanity in the madness† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Although an odd start the movie Ride Em Cowboy proved to be significant in the Jazz community for another reason as well. In the movie the famous jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald appeared in her first film role playing an employee at the dude ranch named Ruby (Ill Remember April (1941)). â€Å" She projected a light, frothy, easy-going humor† in her performance of â€Å"A-Tisket, A-Tasket† (Ill Remember April (1941)). This movie brought out just how significant jazz music was at the time because it made a mediocre film come to life. This was not Gene De Pauls first time creating a brilliant jazz song. The pianist, composer and arranger had written many songs before for Hollywood films and Broadway shows such as â€Å"You Dont Know What Love is† and â€Å"Star Eyes† (Ill Remember April (1941)). He had worked with many lyricists before but on this particular song Gene de Paul worked with his friend Don Raye and Patricia Johnston (Ill Remember April (1941)). The lyrics portrays two distant lovers remembering the past and have a close connection with Dorothy Fields â€Å"The Way You Look Tonight† (Ill Remember April (1941)). The song entered the pop charts in the spring of 1942 after being recorded by Woody Herman and his Orchestra. The song did not catch on quickly because it differed in many ways from the typical pop song of the time. The melody and form separated â€Å"Ill Remember April† the most from other music of the time. Songs of the time usually followed an A-A-B-A form, repeating a lot giving it a catchy tune. â€Å"Ill Remember April† however, used a 48-bar A-B-C-D-A-B form making it seem long and dragged out compared to other popular jazz songs. Wilson, McElrath, Tyle) â€Å" Beboppers Charlie Parker and Bud Powell were among the first to explore the song’s unconventional structure, followed by an influential 1950 recording by Red Norvos trio with Tal Farlow and Charles Mingus† (Ill Remember April (1941)). The actually musicality of the song is quite complex with many chord changes and key changes. The song starts off in G but has a â€Å"false key change to Bb major during the first eight measures of the bridge† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). The tone of the song is major it moves rather step wise throughout. The chord progression of the song is a twist and turn roller coaster taking you from a G to a E major back to the G then to a D7. This is important because it allows for many different substitutions of chords and improvisations. (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle) One of the most important and defining elements in Jazz is improvisation. It is expected that during any jazz performance one or more musicians will improvise. Improvisation is so common that most of the time a musician will not perform the same piece the same way twice. However the freedom given to jazz musicians does come with some boundaries. â€Å"Ill Remember April† gives much leeway to improvisation as long as they are â€Å"chosen carefully so as to at least imply a logical harmonic progression† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Typical jazz instruments are the saxophone, clarinet, flute, vibraphone, trumpet, piano, guitar, banjo, tuba, double bass, bass guitar, vocals, trombone and drum kit. The size of the band can vary greatly in jazz however from an ensembles which can have as little as two people to big bands that can have as many as 30 people. The Jazz show that I saw was a trio including a pianist, bassist and drummer. The setting in which I saw â€Å"ll Remember April† performed is much different then the setting I would have seen it in 1942. I saw the song be performed in a rather fancy evening setting at a Jazz Club where there was dinners and drinks being served. The club was modern and well designed. The backdrop behind the performers was a large window outlooking part of the New York City skyline. Around 75 people went to the club to watch a well respected trio play their rendition of â€Å"Ill Remember April†, as well as several other songs. In 1942 I would not have been able to go to a club one night and be served dinner as I listened to a band play the song. At first the only way to hear the song was in the movies it was featured in. The song was featured in the 1942 film Ride em Cowboy as I had mentioned earlier, it was also in the 1942 movie Strictly in the Groove and was again featured in the 1945 movie Eve Knew Her Apples. It is not until later that I would have been able to sit down at a jazz club or concert hall to see the piece be performed. Anita Boyer recording of â€Å"Ill Remember April† appeared on the album The nat King Cole Trio: The MacGregor Years 1941-1945 disc 4 (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Since then â€Å"Ill Remember April† has been recorded hundreds of times by various artists throughout the years. â€Å"The song’s unconventional characteristics became assets, and it found favor as a bop vehicle† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Each performance of â€Å"Ill Remember April† takes on its own identity according to the performer. Artists have put their own twists on the song sometimes even implying a â€Å"Latin-feel† or they have stuck close to the original. The aspect of flexibility while maintaining the same brilliant theme makes â€Å"Ill Remember April† so exciting making artists recreate the classic for years. Before going to the concert I listened to â€Å"Ill Remember April† performed by Charlie Parker. Charlie Parker was an extremely influential jazz saxophonist. He recorded â€Å"Ill Remember April† on July 5, 1950. While having the same melody Charlie Parkers version of â€Å"Ill Remember April† and the Bill Charlap Trios version differed greatly. The biggest difference was the use of instruments. The Bill Charlap Trio did not include a saxophone. I had expected to hear a saxophone so at first it took a second for my ears to adjust when the Bill Charlap Trio began to play the song. I personally preferred the saxophone. I thought it gave the song a very demanding tone catching the audiences attention while at the same time it gave the song a very magically, flowing feeling. The saxophone was also backed up by other instruments like the piano which gave it a full rich sound. The piano, bass, and drums of the Bill Charlap Trio also gave a good performance however I felt it lacked a clear â€Å"lead† instrument how the saxophone did for Parkers rendition. One aspect I did like more in the Bill Charlap Trios version was the elongated piano solo. Solos are very important in jazz music and they occur often. Solos give artists the opportunity to improvisation keeping the piece fresh and giving it an element of surprise. Throughout the Bill Charlap Trios performance there were many solos. In â€Å"Ill Remember April† it was the pianos time to shine. I enjoyed the solo because it showed off Bill Charlaps talent and kept the piece exciting. An interesting aspect of his solo was he included a verse from Dorothy Fieldss â€Å"The Way You Look Tonight† which as I mentioned earlier gave inspiration to the writing of â€Å"Ill Remember April†. Overall I enjoyed listening the piece live better than the recording because it allowed the music to â€Å"come alive† rather than just listening to a recording. Going to the concert opened my eyes to what seems to be a whole new world. I was very anxious and nerve about what to expect when I went to the Jazz Club but when I got there I was pleasantly surprised. The music was entertaining and I loved the experience. Looking up the history of the songs continued to spark my interest. It is very interesting to see how music written seventy years ago is still influential and played in modern settings such as a Jazz Club.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Mr. Palomar and When My Brother Was An Aztec Analysis

Mr. Palomar and When My Brother Was An Aztec Analysis When My Brother Was an Aztec is Natalie Diazs first accumulation of poems. The book is separated into three parts. The first section of the book is committed to catching cultural depictions of Native Americans and their communities, the second segment is about the drug addicted brother, and the third on the pity and agony that goes with reservation life. On the other hand, Italo Calvinos Mr. Palomar is a novel that comprises a series of short chapters, each in sets of three, which explores Mr. Palomars universe. The text is broken into three individual sections. They are Palomars Vacation, Palomar In the City and The Silences of Palomar. This novel presents the story of a man who cannot move past his self-made boundaries. It depends on things that our principle character, the middle-aged Mr. Palomar, sees and ponders. This paper will examine the way both the author Natalie Diaz and Italo Calvino uses the scene and overall importance of the scene in text. Also, it will scrutinize simi lar or different approaches taken by the authors to scene and how do these approaches impact the result. Poems in the first section of Diaz most specifically address Native American experience and the first section of Mr. Palomar addresses visual experiences. The first section of the book is committed to catching social previews of Native Americans and their groups. There are some poems that juxtapose glimpses of those communities against standard culture, as with Cloud Watching and If Eve Side-Stealer and Mary Busted-Chest Ruled the World, these and others make a study of the devastated conditions that numerous Native Americans are compelled to live in and around reservations. The outright highlight of the section is The Last Mojave Indian Barbie. The gently hidden scrutinize of standard cultures misleading position toward Native Americans is made entertaining in light of the fact that it is wrapped in the transparent appearance of the tremendously censured doll Barbie. The piece is flippant and shocking, which makes the demonstrations of the youngsters toys all more amusing. On the ot her hand, the reader is acquainted with Mr. Palomar as he endeavors to think about the way of one wave through direct perception. Calvino, in third person, points of interest wonderfully the trouble of doing as such, as the wave itself raises and falls, shifts shapes and dimensions, is converged with different waves, parts from itself and changes, and at last dies along the beach. In Mr. Palomar, Calvino tells us, is trusting that in achieving a reply with regards to the structure of a single waves nature, its development and decimation, he will discover a similarity to the reply with regards to the topic of the piece of the universes nature. He neglects to do as such, is flopped even to diminish his nervousness in endeavoring to do as such, and proceeds onward. The following story being one of endeavoring to accomplish the fitting concordance of detachedness and mindfulness as to a topless sunbather to pass on regard for tradition and regard for her femininity, with the aftereffect of being perceived as a pervert. Poems in the second section of Diaz represents another sort of experience and the second section of Mr. Palomar shows components that are anthropological, or cultural in the expansive sense. The reader finds that the second segment takes a more genuine thoughtfulness and altogether refocuses on the brothers character. His crazy drug addicted behavior is expertly caught in My Bother at 3am.. Using non-particular solid subtle elements, Diaz transports the reader to the scene for observing the Brothers hallucination of the devil, feel the siblings fear, and feel his moms despondency. It is one of the best poems in the collection. The section finishes up with a formal internment of the sibling in No More Cake Here. The poem utilizes sound and imagery to catch the sisters help and blame at being remembered at her brothers death. Toward the end, the reader is made uncertain as the sibling returns and tells the sister/narrator that he is not dead. Now, the reader may assume that the brother is a signifier for the wrongs of a modern culture and that the sister infers present day society unnecessarily depleted and too much occupied, making it difficult to oversee troublesome issues. On the other hand, Palomar in his garden attempting to comprehend a blackbirds whistle and Palomar microscopically looking at the infinity of his lawn; Palomar watching the moon and the planets and the stars (Mr. Palomar Book Review Summary). Palomar getting another point of view on his city from his patio and considering the mass whirling of starlings. Palomar wondering about every one of the assortments of cheeses in a cheese specialists and ending up purchasing a simple cheese bothered as he is called to make his request. Palomar also at the zoo contrasting himself with a giraffe (Mr. Palomar Book Review Summary). The poem of Diaz and the novel of Calvino provides new experiences from different aspects. The reader finds the poems of When My Brother Was an Aztec are expertly made utilizing imagery, sound, and frame to catch their individual subjects in striking conduct. Likewise, the book functions as a whole. It works as a scrutinize of the issues of poverty and drug addictions confronting standard and Native American society. Diaz is completely fruitful with this, her first collection. Diaz tries different things with structure in a large number of her poems to demonstrate how the association of a poem is just as important as its content. When My Brother Was an Aztec takes after a stair-step example to demonstrate that as Diaz and her family take after her brother more distant and further down his dangerous way, there is no real way to return. On the other hand, Mr. Palomar watches and considers questions as various as blackbirds, the sky, a cheddar shop, and the naked bosom of a sunbather. A t least twice, be that as it may, Mr. Palomar finds the tables turned on him, turning into the watched instead of the observer (Mr. Palomar Characters). At the end of the novel, Mr. Palomars absence of authoritative self-knowledge gets to be distinctly prominent, however then, as the creator proposes, a telescope is most likely not the best instrument for seeing oneself. Finally, it can be said that In When My Brother Was an Aztec, Natalie Diaz looks at memorys part in human identity. Every poem is layered with different pictures and feelings exhibiting the tumult that imbues familial connections, especially those clashed by social conflicts and drug addiction. On the other hand, Italo Calvinos Mr. Palomar is a novel, yet in another sense, it is just about a philosophy book, beautiful all things considered as it brags no answers, rather it is basically a series of perceptions and inquiries with respect to them. By this way, both the authors were successful to express what they wanted to say in different form of writings. Works Cited Calvino, Italo. Mr. Palomar. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1985. Print. Diaz, Natalie. When My Brother Was an Aztec. Port Townsend, WA: Copper Canyon, 2012.Print. Mr. Palomar Book Review Summary. Detailed Review Summary of Mr. Palomar by Italo Calvino. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2016. Mr. Palomar Characters ENotes.com. Enotes.com. Enotes.com, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2016.