Tuesday, October 29, 2019

The Welfare State In the United States of America (Microeconomics) Term Paper

The Welfare State In the United States of America (Microeconomics) - Term Paper Example Funded and managed by the U.S. government, these programs aspire towards ensuring economic security, universal access to resource for self-development and the reduction of social suffering, such as poverty and illness (Barr 4). Modern liberalism is the guiding philosophy of the United States Welfare System (McGowan 7). The philosophy says that individual liberty depends on positive rights such as social security, unemployment benefits, health care, and public education. Historically, welfare in the United States can be traced to the British Poor Laws, which distinguish between those unable to work due to age or physical challenges and those who are medically fit to work but are unemployed (Welfare Information welfareinfo.org). Monetary assistance was given to the former group while public service employment was provided for the later group by the government. Following the American Civil War, the United State Congress passed the Civil War Pension Program to provide aid to Civil War Ve terans and their families (Welfare Information welfareinfo.org). The United States welfare system, as currently known, started under President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a result of the Great Depression. During the Great Depression, one in every four of the American labor force was unemployed and many families underwent great financial hardship. The Franklin D. Roosevelt government stepped in to solve the problem. ... ty Income, Housing and Urban Development programs, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Head Start, Work Study, Medicare, and Social Security (Welfare Information welfareinfo.org). The politics, benefits and issues related to these programs as well as a comparison of United States welfare programs with welfare programs in other countries will be discussed in the term paper. Welfare programs in the United States: issues and politics Assisting the needy while not encouraging them to seek employment forms the foundation of the politics of the United States welfare programs. By the 1990s, welfare reform dominated the political scene due to a number of reasons. In fact, Republicans campaigned for an â€Å"end to welfare as we know it†, a policy theme, the President Clinton administration embraced (Politics and Social Welfare wps.prenhall.com). The reasons for these reforms were cogent and apparent. First, was the fact that most women can continue to work after childbirth and th ere was no reason for welfare mothers, who stay at home to claim welfare package. Another reason was the observation that some Americans were having more children in order to receive more aid. Furthermore, there was an alarming increase in unmarried mothers, for which welfare package was the incentive. Last, was the increasing number of voluntary unemployment among the labor class. Thus there was increasing dissatisfaction with welfare as epitomized by Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) among many Americans, and welfare reform forms a hot topic in the 1990s. In 1996, the United States Congress passed the Welfare Reform Act that gave the control of welfare system to states. Abolishing the AFDC, the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 support a system of block grants to states, constraining the

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Consumers Buying Behaviour Of Fashion Magazines

Consumers Buying Behaviour Of Fashion Magazines Vogue and GQ are the two fashion and lifestyle magazines which are published monthly. Vogue is published in 18 national and one regional edition by Conde Nast Publications. Vogue is most famous as a presenter of images of high fashion and high society. Vogue is giving the millions of women each month of the inspiration and challenge to see things in a different way both for themselves and the world. GQ which is mainly focusing on the mens sector is focusing on fashion, style, and culture for men, through articles on movies, health, food, sports, music, travel and books. It is published internationally in 17 countries and 12 different languages. It is the one which covers almost all the aspects of the males life. In our research the comparison of two fashion magazines, we covered the some characteristics of Consumer Buying Behaviours i.e societal changes overtime, demographics, personality, social group influence and consumer relationship. We also carried out the Primary research in order to attain our research findings. History (Societal Changes) Vogue which is the worlds most influential fashion magazine was founded in the year 1892, by Arthur Baldwin Turnure. After his death the magazine was picked by Conde Nast who changed the magazine from a weekly to a biweekly. Vogues target audience appears to be mainly women and those who prefer to embrace fashion and culture as a lifestyle. Gentlemens Quarterly (GQ) has been a leading voice in mens magazines, covering mens style and culture from fashion and politics to travel, entertainment, sports, technology and relationships. It all began in 1931, when Apparel Arts was founded as a mens fashion magazine. In 1958, Apparel Arts was reborn as fashion supplement issued quarterly for Esquire subscribers and renamed Gentlemens Quarterly. Through the 1970s, Gentlemens Quarterly retained its concentration on mens fashion and style. In 1983 Conde Nast purchased Gentlemens Quarterly and simplified the name to GQ. The up and downs in the growth of both magazines from the time of their first published till date, Vogue has several up and downs in every year but from 1990 it start growing rapidly. In the beginning GQ was also facing difficulties in capturing the market but when it introduced for general public it start growing rapidly. Magazine Covers, Cover Lines Content Over time, magazines covers have changed radically, and that change can be observed by following how magazines used cover lines. This article traces the history of magazine cover lines from early, bookish designs, through the emergence of the poster cover and its dominance, through the integration of type with art, to the proliferation of cover lines at the beginning of the 21st century. In the beginning both magazines shows a characteristic poster cover. The stunning design dwarfs the rest of the cover, even the magazines name. The amazing illustration, the designer has utilized many of the methods that will be re-invented throughout the 20th century for integrating cover lines with cover art: A large title with the models face overlapping it A model in a (nearly) full body pose A model in an unusual and expressive posture (rotated somewhat, spiralling down to the bottom cover line) Cover lines on all sides of her, carefully positioned in relation to the model and the background (The Amazing Fraud is written across the beam of the sailboat, other lines appear against the sail) THEN NOW The images are no longer in the foreground. Cover lines appear in front of the cover models, covering significant parts of their images. We see these beautiful people through the cover lines that surround them, as if they were in the bushes and the bushes were made of words. Vogue combines a modern mix of glamour, style and wit with a passionate flow of intelligent writing and cutting-edge photography. Whereas GQ is the pinnacle of the premium mens lifestyle and covers style, culture, entertainment, health, sports, luxury and life. As far as magazines are concern they also changes time to time the major changes come in their quality of the paper, printing, content etc. Research methodology The research methodology was divided into two stages which involve two sources for collecting the data in order to achieve the objective of our project. 1. Collecting data regarding the potential customers from the existing Magazines. 2. Collecting the primary data directly with the customer with the help of the interviews and questionnaires (Refer Annexure-1). Research design In this project multi stage sampling is used because the total population was too large and due to time constraint it was not practically possible to make a list of entire population. At first stage we have divided it into income wise and then further divided it into three factors which we target i.e. Fashion, Style and Cosmetics so that we can get correct and related information. Sample design Sampling Unit: Fashion Magazine Customers Sampling Size: 15 potential customers Sampling technique: multistage sampling Sampling area: London Contact Method: Personal Contacts. Demographics Segmentation: It is a check to characteristic of Human population and also used in identification of gender, race, age, income, disability, mobility, educational attainment, home ownership, employment statue and location. CLASSES IN DEMOGRAPHICS SHOPPING ORIENTATION VALUE, LIFESTYLE CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND SHOPPING ATTITUDE LIFE STYLE: This has been described as gaining the understanding of your customers. STRENGTH: Here are the strategies which the gq magazines uses to get the audience of their customers. The magazines consider age in publication of their magazines because their target audience are male with age 25-39 and gq magazine have desire for style. The success with style has always been the ethos around which gq was created, a provocative mix of the very best writing, strong visuals and an unrivalled sense of achievement, intelligence and irreverence, the ultimate urban mens tips sheet. Its the pinnacle of the premium mens life style magazine market and covers style, culture, entertainment, tech, health, sport, luxury and life. In vogue magazine it is a famous as a presenter of images of high fashion and high society. This publisher of the magazine also includes art, culture, politics and ideas to enhance the readers more on information. At the front pages of the both magazines theirs are some icons of information displayed on it with the details of the stories in side, which means that the magazines are educating to the customers. VOGUE MAGAZINE AGE:-The age of the target audience is 25-54 and the 82% of the readers are female. Again the 65% of the reader are full time or part time workers and the 26% of the readers are in AB socioeconomic quintile. Final the average household income is AUB 84, 850.( Roy Morgan Research March 2009.) READERSHIP:-348,000. CIRCULATION:-50,752. (ABC statement June 2009) GQ MAGAZINE AGE:-The age of the target audience is 25-30 and the 73% of the readers are men, 63% are single. INCOME:-The 65% of the readers had annual income of $50000 or greater and 25% had an annual income greater than $75000. SEGMENTATION: The vogue magazine implemented strategies which helps them to gain the customers by dividing their formats which are:- Information seekers Sensation seekers Utilitarian consumers Conspicuous consumer It was also revealed that fashion lifestyle segment have a very stronger effect in the vogue magazine readers because in the world today an average person want to be informed and perceives products or services he is purchasing. Personality The specific qualities, attributes, traits, factors, and mannerism that distinguishes one individual from other individuals. Vogue Femininity Sincerity Sophistication Need for cognition Super ego High dogmatism Compliant individuals Colour (Pink) Vogue is targeting the female sector and in its most of its issues femininity is very clear. On the cover page of magazine they are using the female models with sublime makeover to attract its target market. The magazine is making every effort in order to create the sincerity among its customers. They make them feel as a part of the magazine group by introducing the brands and celebrities of the liking of its customers. As they are targeting the female sector so the sophistication is an important element in it. They are introducing more and more glamorous, charming and appealing objects in the magazine. Cognition is the development of information to knowledge. The act of cognition consists of representing and transforming information. This can be done by sensing something directly, or indirectly by reasoning. The magazine is realizing this need and they are including the advertisements that are more perceived by the target market. Still there is much more to do in it to further reach to the wants of the people they are targeting. The magazine readers are super ego people who do have their self beliefs and attitudes. They have the personality composed of their internalized ideals that they have acquired from their parents and from society they belong to. People they are targeting are high in dogmatism and prefer established products rather than new innovative ones. They feel they are comfortable with what they are used to. The people magazine is targeting are high compliant individuals who have lofty goals in their lives and wants to be prominent from all others they are part of. The magazine is using light colours like pink and sky blue etc. which give the feelings to be cool and are highly attractive for women and more demanding in their lifestyles. GQ Masculinity Sincerity Ruggedness Product Personality Ego Low dogmatism Aggressive individuals Colour (Black white) GQ is focusing on the lifestyles of men so they are using more masculine attracted styles and products. There target market men are also very sincere towards the brand selection and products that are advertised in the magazine. They feel comfortable with what they get in the magazine. The target market is more rugged towards their approach for the products. They like aggressive styles and get more involved in these kinds of advertisements. The product personality mainly matches with the demands and likings of the men. The target market of GQ is egoistic and they feel themselves a part of the community if they are getting that what they want. They are in usual having low dogmatism so the people the magazine is targeting are closed minded persons generally prefer innovative products to traditional alternatives. They are normally the trend setters in their society. They want to try different and new things in order to get more attraction in a group they belong to. They are usually aggre ssive in nature and like to be prominent among others. They love to be more experimental in their ideas and approach towards the lifestyles. The GQ normally uses the colour combinations of black and white in order to show the aggressiveness in their styles and products. Social groups There is a difference when consumers make decisions of their perception as an individual and perception of themselves as a member of a group. Their purchase is affected by taking these factors into consideration. (Gary Charness Luca Rigotti Aldo Rustichini, 2005) The motivation to be a part of the particular group depends upon how attractive the Reference group is. These Reference groups sometimes influence that what product is purchased regardless of its brand but on some occasions brand matters but not the decision that what product to buy. (John OShaughnessy, 1995) Social groups are the communication network within the society. Sometimes the general communication within a society is so influential that it effects more than the proper and highly budgeted advertisements. (John OShaughnessy, 1995) There are three reference group influences: informational, utilitarian and value expressive. Informational influence is when individual seeks information about various brands from association of professionals. Utilitarian is when he or she satisfies the expectations of fellow work associates and Value expressive influence is when individual feels that the purchase or use of a particular brand will enhance the image others have of him or her. GQ users are those who mostly have utilitarian influence and try to purchase those products which are preferred by the people they have the social interaction with. On the other hand Vogue target market has mostly Value expressive influence as they want to purchase the brand which they feel that will enhance the image the others have about them. So they feel that by using particular brand they will look as nice as the person advertising the brand is. According to some psychologists there is the existence of trio of needs. These needs can be summed within Maslows theory but considered as individually. These needs have the unique relevance to consumer motivation in a group. These are power, affiliation and achievement. These are ego, social and self actualization needs respectively. As both Vogue and GQ are targeting the upper middle class so these needs plays an important role in the behaviour of the individual to get influenced by the group they belong to. The target market of GQ is more of the field of professionals and they want to be different in their groups. So they carry expensive products and whenever they see some new innovative product they try to be the first to introduce in their group. Vogue users are mostly females and females are usually more sensitive in their approach towards fashion and style in the group they belong to. They are very much conscious about trying new things so they go for the products that are mor e attracting to them in a group they belong to. Consumer relationship Consumer Relations is all about satisfying, safeguarding, enhancing, monitoring, and being responsive towards consumers needs remain profitable. Vogue and GQ are the living example of consumer relationship, since the day of their First Edition till date they never compromised on the factors of consumer relationship and due to which they retain their old consumers as well as attracting new customers, this has become possible because they are continuously taking feedback from their consumers and enhancing the quality in term of their contents and keeping it up to date according to their consumers needs. This responsiveness towards consumers made these magazines successful in their own categories. The strong relationship of Vogue and GQ magazines with their consumers increases their growth in the market. Data Analysis The above chart shows that the income of 20% of the Vogue users is less than  £50,000 while 45% of the magazine users fall under the income range of  £100,000 and we found no user of vogue in our sample size whose income level is above  £100,000. In case of GQ users most of the users have the income level around  £100,000 or more. The above graph inferences that mostly womens (around 60 %) goes for Vogue magazines is because of the Fashion Trends, around 40 % prefer style and the rest 10 % purchase it to get latest update about the cosmetics and accessories. This graph inference that mostly mens (around 60 %) goes for GQ magazines is because of the Style, around 40 % prefer Fashion Trends and as this magazine is mostly targeting the male gender of the society, so people do not prefer it for cosmetics. When we asked about the contents of the magazine such as brands, advertisements, articles etc. the majority of respondents replied in favour of it these magazines as shown in the above charts. CONCLUSIONS AND FINDINGS Since Fashion is continuously changing and market is increasing, people are purchasing Fashion magazines to get up to date with the current and upcoming Fashion and Style. Questionnaire Name: _________________________________________ Gender: Male Female Occupation: Business Service Student Unemployed What is your annual income?  £ Less than 50,000 50,001 75,000 75,001 100,000 More than 100,001 Which Fashion Magazine do you prefer? Vogue GQ Gentlemen Quarterly Which factor you prefer most while buying a magazine? Fashion Style Cosmetics What do you think about the content of this magazine? Good Average Poor If the particular magazine was not available in the market will you go for any other magazine? Definitely No, I will wait for it If you see your favourite celebrity endorsing in some other magazine would you switch from your existing magazine? Yes, for sure No, Do you discuss about the brands advertised in the magazine with your friends? Yes, I always do No (www.newsspace.com.an/gq) (http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1628136show=pdf) (www.wisegeek.com/what-is-magazine-advertising.htm) http://quazen.com/reference/about-vogue/#ixzz17XHMV3BM http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=history+of+vogue+magazinehl=enrlz=1R2SKPB_enGB399prmd=ivtbs=tl:1tbo=uei=76v_TJaMKcGIhQf358CvCwsa=Xoi=timeline_resultct=titleresnum=11ved=0CFoQ5wIwCg http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=history+of+gq+magazinehl=enprmd=ivsa=Xei=eqv_TO-AK5KwhAes5u3VCwved=0CHoQpQItbs=tl:1,tlul:1930,tluh:2010. http://aejmcmagazine.bsu.edu/testfolder/ http://www.bookrags.com/history/vogue-sjpc-05/ http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=MvilOZhaRkACpg=PA10lpg=PA10dq=role+of+personality+in+vogue+magazinesource=blots=QxDa7RWl7Ssig=SB7BzSjhBTmJ_C_0la7K8f-A0Jghl=enei=sMH_TLS4GsjAhAf9j8miCwsa=Xoi=book_resultct=resultresnum=10ved=0CEIQ6AEwCQ#v=onepageqf=false

Friday, October 25, 2019

Emily Dickinsons God Essay -- Papers Religion Emily Dickinson Essays

Emily Dickinson's God Works Cited Not Included God, to Emily Dickinson, is seen in more than a church or a cathedral. God is seen in her poems in relationship to such themes as nature and the individual existence. These thematic ties are seen in such poems as "It might be lonelier," and "Some keep the Sabbath going to church." "Some keep the Sabbath going to Church" consists of the differences that exist between Dickinson's way of being close to God and many other people's ways of being close to God. While some may go to church every Sunday in honor of the Sabbath, Dickinson stays home and reflects. "A bobolink" is her "Chorister" and instead of a clergyman preaching, "God preaches" (Hillman 36). Dickinson believes she can find God on her own, without the assistance of a preacher or such. Nature, to Dickinson, is the equivalent of a chapel, its congregation, its clergyman, and its choir. Rica Brenner, a critic, wrote that she believed, "Nature, for Emily Dickinson, was the means for the enjoyment of the senses," (Brenner 288). Dickinson finds God, in the fullest sense, in nature. She does not feel as if a church would really convey the full affect of God, at least not to her. "The Sunday God of New England Orthodoxy, distant, awful, cruelly stern, was not for her," (Brenner 274). Dickinson, though she progressively conveys a disdain for the church and its idea of God in her poems, cares for people and nature. She values them above most other things and sees God in them. It can even be said that she rejects the church in the name of God, nature, and the human race, in addition to doing it in the name of her own sanity. Ric... ...d, his life was rare, and his paradise held infinite beauties for those who achieved it. On the other hand, he could be made of flint," (Farr 67). This implies that Dickinson believed in God, just in case there really was a heaven. True, she most likely wouldn't have sacrificed if she didn't think she was going to go to heaven, but she believed in God, and he was not in her own image. If she did create God in her own image, she would have understood better what she believed about him. Instead, she was always wrestling with the quest for who God was and if he even existed at all. The question as to what Dickinson's view of God is never definitively answered in her poetry. As the reader discovers what Dickinson believes about God, the speaker discovers as well. God remains a mystery in the poems of Emily Dickinson.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Measurements of physical characteristics Essay

Measurements of physical characteristics are used widely in everyday human life, whether in household or industrial processes, in service or in scientific researches. Some of the main categories of regularly measured parameters are weight, length, area, volume, temperature, density, concentration, voltage, amperage and power. Measurement units historically differed from nation to nation, but over time there is a straight tendency for unification of units. Metric system is recognized as universal in ever-growing number of countries and this allows to minimize differences and errors in international scientific, trade and other types of communications. In metric system, meter, its multiples and fractionals are used for the measurements of length, square meter and its derivates are for measurements of area, cubic meter – for measurements of volume. For measuring temperature there are Celsius or Fahrenheit degrees used, for measuring density – kilogram per cubic meter. Voltage in international metric system is measured in volts, amperage – in amperes, and watts are used for measuring power. To perform measurements one needs to have appropriate instruments. These instruments should have accuracy grade acceptable for the type and purpose of measurements that will be performed. When measurement of length is performed, the only kind of instruments needed is tape-measure or straight scale, if size of measured object is relatively small. If distance that has to be measured is large, and surface between starting and finishing points is not smooth, more sophisticated instruments will be needed to perform required measurements. Measurements of area and volume will sometimes require certain calculations in addition to direct measurements. If measurement of an area of regular shape is performed, it is enough to measure length of the sides of that area and then apply relatively simple formulas for calculation of that area. But if the area measured has irregular shape with edges of bizarre form, calculations will be far more complex and may require solution of integral equations to determine approximate size of an area in question. When it is necessary to measure volume of a liquid, volumetric glassware is enough. But when the volume of a body with complex form shall be calculated, procedure of measurement may become much more complicated. If the body with unknown volume is available for direct measurement, it may be submerged into the water or any other liquid and volume of displaced liquid that is equal to the volume of that body, could be measured. But if that body is not available for direct measurement and is given in form of a scheme with known parameters measured or set beforehand, then rather complicated calculations may be required to estimate the volume of a said body. Density of a liquid may be measured using special instrument called densitometer, which is based on displacement of a certain amount of liquid by the weight of the instrument. The higher density of examined liquid, the smaller will be volume of liquid displaced. For estimation of the density of gases or solid bodies another methods shall be applied, because displacement-based densitometry cannot be applied to non-liquid substances. Measurements of mass and volume are usually performed, and density then is calculated using the simple formula of mass divided by volume. Temperature can be measured using thermometers of different types – liquid-filled, electric, etc. Electric parameters like amperage, voltage and power, could be measured either directly using specific measuring devices, or indirectly by measuring related parameters and later calculating values of parameters required. For a list of physical parameters there are specific units in the system of measurements. Some of the examples were given above. For another example, unit for measuring force is newton, and unit for pressure is pascal. Certain parameters can be formulated indirectly through other units. Speed, for example, is defined as unit of distance passed per unit of time, and acceleration – as rate of change of speed per unit of time. Consequently, force that influences a body, may be calculated through known mass of the body, its beginning speed and rate of change of its speed under the influence of the force studied. Unfortunately, measurements can never provide us with absolute values of parameter we are interested in. Due to imperfection of both human perception, instruments for measurements and because of influence of unstable environmental conditions upon the instrument, body that is subjected to measurements and the person performing measurements, some imprecision will always be present. Additionally, when performing measurements, observer sometimes has to use estimated data because more or less precious values can not be obtained under current conditions. Or maybe high precision values of a given parameter are not important for the current task. Either way, estimation of measured data sometimes takes place, as well as certain ever-present

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Threat of Substitutes Product

2. 0 THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES PRODUCTS 3. 1 Switching costs Switching cost is a negative cost that consumers get regarding to the changing suppliers, brands, or products (Investopedia 2012). There are four different methods of switching costs that involve when substituting to another product. The four different methods are learning cost, opportunity cost, implementation cost, and conversion cost. Each method has own different values, however these cost does not involved to the electronic industry (Lash 2010). For people that willing to substitute to another brand usually they spend more time looking for the product that they like.For example, shopping in physical store and shopping in online store, both of it need a lot of time to looking for the item that they want and sometimes people waste their leisure time just in order to browsing around searching for substituting product. It also involved money on it, for substituting product we need to compare price between one and another produ ct. 3. 2 Buyer loyalty Buyer or consumer loyalty is about how to attract consumers and potential consumer in order to making them buy, buy often, buy in higher amount and also bring consumers to us, such as their relatives or friends (CostumerLoyalty 2011).Building a consumer loyalty should be the main focus in order to having a mutual relationship with consumers in a long term. There is many way to building the consumer loyalty such as, keep in touch with email marketing, care and remembering what the consumers like and don’t like, and give them reward. In the electronic industry, consumer loyalty is the most important role. It is important because when the brand is already proofed, tested as a high technology, good quality, materials and already well known, they will always come back and shop for the same brand because they know they fit, believe, and know that brand.For example, in Australia, an iPad sales has hit more than 250,000 (Colley 2010), it happen because Australi a people already know about the quality of the Apple product such as the booming of iPhone, iMac, Macbook, etc. 3. 3 Analysis Analyzing from the above, normally when people purchased a new stuff from electronic brand, people will buy additional accessories launched a new sensational tablet, they will manage Analysing from the statements above, it is more likely for one person to buy more types of apparel if that additional apparel will compliment the look of the buyer even more.Normally when a fashion brand launched a new seasonal fashion line, they tend to make complimentary items to match with the outfit, and these items could be belts, shoes, necklaces, etc. Customers tend to purchase these complimentary products because these accessories are normally priced at a small fraction compared to the outfit and looks even better with the attached products. In addition to this, Walters (1991) also adds that the main concept of promotion is also to stimulate purchases on non-promoted comp liments to the promoted items.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Free Essays on Hussain

Frederick Douglass: an in depth look into the life of a great man Robert B. Lewis V. Kurt Young History 112 Spring 2001 The molding of Frederick Douglass How did the early years of Frederick Douglass’ life affect the beliefs of the man he would become? Frederick Douglass’ adulthood was one of triumph and prestige. Still, he by no means gained virtue without struggle and conflict. There was great opposition and hostility towards him. To fully understand all of his thoughts and beliefs, first one must look at his childhood. Frederick Augustus Bailey was born in February of 1818 to a black field hand named Harriet. He grew up on the banks of the Tuckahoe Creek deep within the woods of Maryland. Separated from his mother at an early age, he was raised by his grandparents Betsy and Isaac Bailey. Isaac and Betsy were not thought to be of relation. Isaac was a free man and a sawyer, while Betsy was an owned slave, but she kept her own rules. Her owner trusted her to watch over and raise the children of the slaves until they were old enough to begin their labor. She was allowed to keep her own cabin, and to farm food for the children and herself. It was not an easy job. While all of the mothers were busy working in the fields of their master, Aaron Anthony, she was busy watching over their infants. Betsy Bailey was quite a woman. She was a master fisher, and spent most of her days in the river or in the field farming. She was very intelligent and physically able bodied. Most historians credit Frederick’s intelligence to his extraordinary grandmother. At the age of six, Frederick’s carefree days of running and playing in the fields came to an abrupt end. He was taken away from his grandmother to begin the toil and sweat of the field workers. Here he joined his older brother and sisters, Perry, Sarah and Eliza in the fields of Edward Lloyd. The slave head in charge of Frederick was the cruel cook, Aunt Katy. Although perhaps he deserved s... Free Essays on Hussain Free Essays on Hussain Frederick Douglass: an in depth look into the life of a great man Robert B. Lewis V. Kurt Young History 112 Spring 2001 The molding of Frederick Douglass How did the early years of Frederick Douglass’ life affect the beliefs of the man he would become? Frederick Douglass’ adulthood was one of triumph and prestige. Still, he by no means gained virtue without struggle and conflict. There was great opposition and hostility towards him. To fully understand all of his thoughts and beliefs, first one must look at his childhood. Frederick Augustus Bailey was born in February of 1818 to a black field hand named Harriet. He grew up on the banks of the Tuckahoe Creek deep within the woods of Maryland. Separated from his mother at an early age, he was raised by his grandparents Betsy and Isaac Bailey. Isaac and Betsy were not thought to be of relation. Isaac was a free man and a sawyer, while Betsy was an owned slave, but she kept her own rules. Her owner trusted her to watch over and raise the children of the slaves until they were old enough to begin their labor. She was allowed to keep her own cabin, and to farm food for the children and herself. It was not an easy job. While all of the mothers were busy working in the fields of their master, Aaron Anthony, she was busy watching over their infants. Betsy Bailey was quite a woman. She was a master fisher, and spent most of her days in the river or in the field farming. She was very intelligent and physically able bodied. Most historians credit Frederick’s intelligence to his extraordinary grandmother. At the age of six, Frederick’s carefree days of running and playing in the fields came to an abrupt end. He was taken away from his grandmother to begin the toil and sweat of the field workers. Here he joined his older brother and sisters, Perry, Sarah and Eliza in the fields of Edward Lloyd. The slave head in charge of Frederick was the cruel cook, Aunt Katy. Although perhaps he deserved s...

Monday, October 21, 2019

The variety of hoaxes essay

The variety of hoaxes essay The variety of hoaxes essay The variety of hoaxes essayThe museum of Hoax offers a variety of hoaxes which stirred the public in the past. At this point, the hoaxes depicting images of the Loch Ness monster, which are mainly unclear black and white photos depicting what was presumably treated as the Loch Ness monster. However, neither photo has been approved by scientists that means that they cannot be viewed as the evidence of the existence of the monster. At the same time, these hoaxes show the full extent to which the public was concerned with the existence of the Loch Ness monster. Basically, hoaxes are not credible for any critical mind because there are no clear photos made, while the only one made by Anthony Shiels is not credible because of the reputation of the photographer. At the same time, hoaxes are not credible because, in scientific terms, they cannot be treated as the evidence reliable enough to prove the existence of the Loch Ness Monster. In fact, there should be more evidence of the existence of the monster aside of the photos made in different time throughout the 20th century. In addition, the Loch Ness monster has become the tourist attraction and later photos are apparently fake or staged. In fact, when hoaxes are studied in details, it becomes evident that there are no clear indications that they depict the monster. For instance, if one looks at those photos without captions or without having any background information about them, one would never guess that it is supposed to be a monster depicted on those photos. This is why hoaxes of the past attempting to persuade the public that the Loch Ness monster does exist are not credible but still they stirred the public a lot and made the Loch Ness one of the main attractions of Scotland.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Cmo se certifica una traduccin para Inmigracin

Cmo se certifica una traduccin para Inmigracin La documentacià ³n en espaà ±ol para Inmigracià ³n debe traducirse  al inglà ©s. Puede ser  suficiente la traduccià ³n certificada  hecha por una persona bilingà ¼e.   Hay que tener en cuenta que en ocasiones cierto tipo de documentos, como calificaciones acadà ©micas o laborales para su convalidacià ³n, puede que tengan que ser traducidos por un intà ©rprete jurado. Incluso puede ser necesario obtener la Apostilla de la Haya. Pero para la mayorà ­a de los documentos, principalmente en asuntos migratorios  no ser necesario. Y es suficiente con una traduccià ³n certificada hecha por cualquier persona bilingà ¼e por lo que se puede ahorrar dinero en este trmite. Adems, NO es necesaria la firma de un notario. Quià ©n puede hacer una traduccià ³n certificada y cà ³mo se debe realizar Cualquier persona que es amiga del solicitante de un beneficio migratorio (no un familiar) con conocimientos fluidos de los idiomas espaà ±ol e inglà ©s.Debe traducir palabra por palabra. Es decir, no basta un resumen del texto que traduce sino que ha de ser una traduccià ³n fiel y completa.La traduccià ³n debe hacerse en una hoja en blanco, escribiendo con letra legible y tinta negra o -preferible- en computadora. Al finalizar la traduccià ³n es cuando se inserta, en la misma hoja, el siguiente modelo de carta que se seà ±ala a continuacià ³n y en el que se certifica que la persona que la ha traducido tiene conocimientos fluidos de inglà ©s y espaà ±ol y que ha realizado con competencia la traduccià ³n. Ejemplo de modelo de carta que se coloca al final de la traduccià ³n para certificarla I certify that I am competent to translate from Spanish to English and that the above Marriage Certificate of Pedro Sanchez and Marà ­a Garcà ­a is a correct and true translation to the best of my knowledge and belief. Signed: Tito Jandro  Caramà ©sAddress: 163 W. 36th Street, NY NY 10017Phone number: 917  21  63  68Date: February 7th, 2017 Notas sobre esta certificacià ³n de la traduccià ³n Obviamente el nombre o nombres de las personas sobre las que trata el documento y el tipo de documento. En el ejemplo se utiliza un certificado de matrimonio.En Signed, adems de poner el nombre completo de la persona que hizo la traduccià ³n, hay que acordarse siempre de firmar.La direccià ³n y el nà ºmero de telà ©fono han de corresponder a la persona que ha hecho la traduccià ³n. Segundo ejemplo de modelo para certificar una traduccià ³n I, Carmen Pà ©rez, certify that I am fluent in the English and Spanish language and that the above document is an accurate translation of the document entitle Birth Certificate. SignatureName: Carmen Pà ©rezAddress: 163 W. 64th Street NY NY 10017Date: February 7th, 2017 Que junto con la traduccià ³n certificada de esta manera hay que enviar una fotocopia legible del documento original que se ha traducido. Incluir el derecho y el revà ©s. Ejemplos de documentos para los que es suficiente este tipo de traduccià ³n Actas de nacimiento (conocidas en algunos paà ­ses como certificados) que se incluyen en peticiones de familia.Actas de viudedad, divorcio o anulacià ³n de matrimonioCertificado de matrimonioDeclaraciones juradas sobre el buen carcter moral de un migrante, que se recomienda incluir en peticiones como por ejemplo de perdones. Consejos sobre traducciones para Inmigracià ³n Todos los documentos en espaà ±ol que se envà ­an al Servicio de Ciudadanà ­a e Inmigracià ³n (USCIS, por sus siglas en inglà ©s) deben de ser traducidos. Sin embargo, en ocasiones los que se envà ­an a los consulados no siempre es necesario. Va a depender de la polà ­tica de cada consulado, con lo que es conveniente consultar en la pgina web cules son los requisitos. Si se elige  un traductor profesional, deber tambià ©n incluir algà ºn tipo de certificacià ³n sobre la traduccià ³n que realice, por ejemplo siguiendo los ejemplos anteriores seà ±alados en este artà ­culo. Finalmente recordar que no es necesario que estas traducciones està ©n  firmadas por un notario Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Management Work and Society People, Management and Business Essay

Management Work and Society People, Management and Business - Essay Example The structure of this paper is as follows. In the next section, the main arguments on the gendered nature of the organization are presented. This section is further divided into a number of subsections. The first subsection discusses the ways in which occupational mobility is important for women, and how it influences the organizations. Issues of the way in which lack of mobility can lead to gender pay differences are also discussed. In the next subsection, the aspects of gender and ethnic makeup of the senior management are discussed. It is noted that the type of senior management present in an organization will influence the kind of people who are hired. The third subsection discusses the ways in which pay differential is a key determinant in the gendering of the organizational environment. The next subsection discusses the implications of education on the nature of the organization. It is established that the organization is highly influenced the type of education which is availab le to the employees, and that women are generally less educated which decreases their chances at getting to the higher levels of management in the organization. The final subsection takes all these issues into account, and is a philosophical discussion on the ways in which a gendered policy is suitable for an organization working in a competitive market environment. This paper concludes that although there is some evidence that the gendered nature of organization is changing, however significant further progress needs to be made before organizations can call them self gender neutral. 2 Discussion & Review of Literature A great deal has been written about the organizational careers and the ways in which gender influences it (Barry et al., 2006, Belfield, 2005, Charles and Harris, 2007, Deem, 2003). Many of the studies on gender and women in management have established that satisfaction level of women working in organizations in UK and elsewhere is lower (Smith, 2009) because of j ob discrimination, difficulties in work-life balance (Charles and Harris, 2007), and poor attitude of management (MarTins and Parsons, 2007). The issues of gender in women, especially within the UK context has been debated in the literature for a long time, and has been a subject of controversy and debate (McDowell, 2005, Metcalfe, 2008). 2.1 Occupational Mobility One of the key issues facing women working in professional environment is occupational mobility. The circumstances under which women can choose or refuse promotions, new work environments and other key changes in the nature of the job are the key turning points in the career of women (Berg and Einspruch, 2007, Guillaume and Pochic, 2009, Tomlinson, 2006). A number of authors are of the view that careers of women are conceived as a set of adjustments to their family lives, which negatively affects their working relationships (Charles and Har

Friday, October 18, 2019

Research Parameters for BP, P, R &T Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Parameters for BP, P, R &T - Research Paper Example Discussion of the illnesses that can be identified by measurement of these body parameters will be included. Last but not least, the problems that can be experienced if assessing of these parameters is not performed will be explained in this paper. The body of a human being is made up various organs which keep the body in action and alive by making sure important parameters’ status is right. Just like a mechanical machine used to perform work, the organs have specific functions for the body. Examples of vital organs in a human body include; the brain, heart, liver, kidney and others. These organs are like machines; they need a source of energy, they need constant repair and maintenance for maximum efficiency. They also wear after sometime of continuous action and sometime malfunction. In sort organs are the machines responsible for keeping human bodies alive. This research paper will discuss the importance of checking various parameters of the body that are controlled by organs, and the problems that may affect them if the status of those parameters is unknown. It will concentrate on the blood pressure, body temperature, pulse rate and respiratory rate. Body temperature is the ability of the body to generate heat and get rid of it. It is measured using a thermometer and the units used are Celsius. The normal body temperature of a human is 37 degrees Celsius. Body temperature is measured by placing a thermometer, glass or electronic thermometer, in the rectum, mouth or armpit. The normal temperature of persons is variable depending on several factors: They include age, time of the day and the part of the body where temperature was taken from (Mackowiak, 2009). If the body temperature of a person is more than 1.5 degrees above or below the normal, this condition is known as fever. Assessing body temperatures of persons is vital since it determines whether one is suffering from a fever. This can assist the

Does sexual equality exists in our society In answering this question Research Paper - 1

Does sexual equality exists in our society In answering this question. Consider whether or not cultural equality exists, whether social equality exists, and whether biological equality exists - Research Paper Example The paper is aimed to discuss different issues related to sexual equality specifically the presence or absence of it. The different factors affecting the concept of sexual equality will be presented and discussed. One example is the exploration of the root causes of gender inequality. Ultimately, the study is aimed to determine the existence of social equality in the society. The study explores the presence or absence of sexual equality. It is a notion that in reality, sexual equality is merely an objective and a concept aimed for since sexual inequality prevails. In addition, the premises found in real societies can only allow for the existence of sexual inequality. There are different views that express the origins and reasons for sexual inequality such as functionalist and conflict theories. The functionalist theory is a way of viewing social inequality to be necessary on the basis of the functions of the different members and components of the society. For example, the role of men is different from the role of women, thus, they need not be compared. Instead these two groups that comprise the society should be view in terms of their complementary roles and functions (Tischer, 2010, p.254). On the basis of this view then, functions designated to every component of the society dictates the dynamics within that social unit. This trend is very evident throughout the history of the human civilization. Even in the earliest societies, men hunt while women attend to the children and the house. Sexual inequality then can be considered as the way of life of the people. What changed then since the said period is the view of the women regarding their role in the society. Due to the long history of having roles attached to the household, the female population became recognized and perceived to be better suited to stay at home while the male population works for a living. It then became increasingly natural to just assume that

Creative Problem Solving Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Creative Problem Solving - Essay Example One of the most significant problems that the world experiences in the present scenario is the global warming and the emissions of the Carbon di-oxide in the form of smoke from the burning of gasoline while driving a car. The problem of global warming is destroying the environment and the climate largely, which in turn harms living beings on earth to a considerable extent. In this context, innovative inventions like the launching of the electricity car are required, which will subdue the emissions at least to some extent. The invention of the Tesla Model S is indeed a creative and noticeable product that has its own contribution to the suppression of the emission level of the harmful gases thereby bringing down the risks of global warming largely. Moreover, the highly fluctuating price of the gasoline is also not required as the car can work on the electricity stored in the batteries. The invention of luxury saloon car is enough to attract the attention of the car lovers and additionally the term electric car is likely to add a wave into their minds. Tesla Model S was created keeping in mind the preferences of the people of all generation. The comfort and luxury along with the inclusion of the advanced technological attributes into the car has made it a sensation among the car lover around the world. Moreover, it has a well-known aspect on plying without utilizing a drop of gasoline but only on electricity, which also plays great role in establishing itself in the global market of the present scenario.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

The political and economic foreign policy developments of the United Essay

The political and economic foreign policy developments of the United States in the 19th century - Essay Example Domestically, the expansionist idea sought the annexation of land far beyond the US territory. This move was not only geared to acquire land for agricultural use, but also to exert political dominance. The lands acquired were given to yeoman farmers and slave plantation owners in order to further the agricultural sector. The manifest destiny was based on the notion that American settlers were destined to expand their territory over the continent; with proponents arguing that it was a divine call to expand from the sea to sea. Although there were no clearly defined principles to guide the idea, it received enormous support from the democrats who used it to justify various decisive actions. Through the notion of manifest destiny, the United States was driven by the temptation of world power and political supremacy, which sought to consolidate the position it held.3 As a result, territorial expansion into foreign areas was seen as moral obligation in an effort to spread American democra cy the world over. Initially, the quest for land collided with the Mexican authorities over Texas, California, and other western territories. As such, two wars were fought in the 19th century that were both in favour of land expansion and they include the Mexican war and the Spanish-American war. During the Mexican war, the US authorised several military operations to the test Mexican hold and control over these lands. The US prevailed in the war, which saw the annexation of Texas while California and New Mexico were ceded to the US territory.4 Historians have always regarded the conflict as the pure aggression by the United States. The Spanish-American war was viewed as the US intervention to secure Cuban independence...This paper is the best example of analysis of the real reasons behind sharp shift in political and economic foreign policy of the United States. In a bid to protect its interest, during the conflict between Britain and France, U.S. reviewed its isolationism policy t o adopt a more radical expansionist policy Domestically, the expansionist idea sought the annexation of land beyond the US territory. This move was geared to acquire land for agricultural use, and also to exert political dominance. Through the notion of manifest destiny, the U.S. was driven by the temptation of world power and political supremacy. Territorial expansion into foreign areas was seen as moral obligation in an effort to spread American democracy. Initially, the quest for land collided with the Mexico over Texas, California, and other western territories. As such, two wars were fought in the 19th century, both in favour of land expansion. The US authorised military operations to test Mexican hold over the lands. The US prevailed in the war, annexed Texas while California and New Mexico were ceded to the US territory. The Spanish-American war was viewed as the US intervention to secure Cuban independence from Spain, an example of the US actions to protect its economic interest, this follows losses incurred by shipping firms following conflict between the Spain and Cuban revolters. The US economic policy of industrial capitalism is illustrated to have well defined connections to its foreign affairs policies. This is demonstrated by US open door policy, which is based on belief that the US exports are vital to the growth of its economy. The origin of propaganda and its growing role in fueling war sentiments in Spanish-American conflict is under review.

Theory Preposition Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Theory Preposition - Research Paper Example Each of these two approaches focuses on and deals with different features of client dialogue. As a consequence, they follow different techniques of resolving problems. Nevertheless, both have the objective of helping the client, reconciling discrepancies, and mitigating conflict. This essay compares and contrasts the major tenets, concepts, techniques, views of pathology/normality of cognitive-behavioral therapy and person-centered therapy. It also discusses the usefulness of both therapies to advanced nursing practice. Comparing and Contrasting Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Person-Centered Therapy Cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) is a framework of human difficulties and challenges that can be approached from primarily two interconnected domains: philosophical and theoretical. Within the philosophical perspective, CBT can be regarded as being related to some forms of behaviorism. The behaviorist models are commonly philosophies of mind and science, specifically, methods of identif ying and dealing with the interpretation of the problems or difficulties usually related to psychology (Sharf, 2011). On the other hand, the theoretical feature of behavior therapy is more about actual identifications of particular problems. Theories can give reliable explanations or at least verifiable assumptions for issues about more exact problems (Sharf, 2011): How does this problem arise? What are the fundamental features of this form of medical disorder? What are the possible techniques for problem modification? Basically, CBT is a type of psychotherapy that has been shown to be one of the best methods for treating a broad array of disorders such as anxiety and depression. CBT targets thought and behavioral processes that reinforce both normal and abnormal behavior. It rests on the idea that these processes are learned, and, therefore, can be unlearned. CBT is described as collaborative, participative, and brief (Corey, 2009). Even though therapists take into account how diso rders may have emerged, their main interest is in helping the patient pinpoint, understand, and modify what is reinforcing the problem. The therapist-patient relationship is characterized by partnership or collaborating, and patients are motivated to actively participate in the application of techniques during therapy sessions. There are four major techniques employed in CBT: skills training, exposure therapy, behavioral activation, and cognitive restructuring (Norcross, 2002). Skills training assume that some individuals keep away from particular situations because they believe they do not have the necessary skills to handle them. For that reason, CBT normally involves acquiring new behavioral abilities to handle difficult social circumstances and anxiety. Through exposure therapy, CBT helps individuals conquer anxiety by systematically confronting their fears. This technique rests on the assumption that anxiety is reinforced by avoidance (Sharf, 2011). On the other hand, depressio n usually results in indifference, avoidance, and withdrawal. Through behavioral activation, or the process of enhancing rewards, CBT helps individuals recognize and take part in activities or tasks that give them the opportunity to gain rewards or gratifying experiences (Norcross, 2002). Lastly, according to Corsini and Wedding

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

The political and economic foreign policy developments of the United Essay

The political and economic foreign policy developments of the United States in the 19th century - Essay Example Domestically, the expansionist idea sought the annexation of land far beyond the US territory. This move was not only geared to acquire land for agricultural use, but also to exert political dominance. The lands acquired were given to yeoman farmers and slave plantation owners in order to further the agricultural sector. The manifest destiny was based on the notion that American settlers were destined to expand their territory over the continent; with proponents arguing that it was a divine call to expand from the sea to sea. Although there were no clearly defined principles to guide the idea, it received enormous support from the democrats who used it to justify various decisive actions. Through the notion of manifest destiny, the United States was driven by the temptation of world power and political supremacy, which sought to consolidate the position it held.3 As a result, territorial expansion into foreign areas was seen as moral obligation in an effort to spread American democra cy the world over. Initially, the quest for land collided with the Mexican authorities over Texas, California, and other western territories. As such, two wars were fought in the 19th century that were both in favour of land expansion and they include the Mexican war and the Spanish-American war. During the Mexican war, the US authorised several military operations to the test Mexican hold and control over these lands. The US prevailed in the war, which saw the annexation of Texas while California and New Mexico were ceded to the US territory.4 Historians have always regarded the conflict as the pure aggression by the United States. The Spanish-American war was viewed as the US intervention to secure Cuban independence...This paper is the best example of analysis of the real reasons behind sharp shift in political and economic foreign policy of the United States. In a bid to protect its interest, during the conflict between Britain and France, U.S. reviewed its isolationism policy t o adopt a more radical expansionist policy Domestically, the expansionist idea sought the annexation of land beyond the US territory. This move was geared to acquire land for agricultural use, and also to exert political dominance. Through the notion of manifest destiny, the U.S. was driven by the temptation of world power and political supremacy. Territorial expansion into foreign areas was seen as moral obligation in an effort to spread American democracy. Initially, the quest for land collided with the Mexico over Texas, California, and other western territories. As such, two wars were fought in the 19th century, both in favour of land expansion. The US authorised military operations to test Mexican hold over the lands. The US prevailed in the war, annexed Texas while California and New Mexico were ceded to the US territory. The Spanish-American war was viewed as the US intervention to secure Cuban independence from Spain, an example of the US actions to protect its economic interest, this follows losses incurred by shipping firms following conflict between the Spain and Cuban revolters. The US economic policy of industrial capitalism is illustrated to have well defined connections to its foreign affairs policies. This is demonstrated by US open door policy, which is based on belief that the US exports are vital to the growth of its economy. The origin of propaganda and its growing role in fueling war sentiments in Spanish-American conflict is under review.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Technology In Cinema And Film Making Media Essay

Technology In Cinema And Film Making Media Essay I think that modern technology has changed modern film making for the better. In the last few years, using the latest technologies has been paramount in the film making process. This has caused films to evolve over the years with each progressing idea, technology, and technique, allowing filmmakers to bring their vision to life more accurately and more convincingly to the big screen. Without these advances in video capture and computing many films such as Star Trek'(JJ Abrams, 2009) would not have been as successful. Film production has also become very fast to meet the growing demand for movies as the channel for distribution increase and audiences broaden. The development of technology has affected an extremely wide array of areas concerning film, including the production process, the way films are viewed, how the films are distributed, and even how they are promoted. These new innovations are advancing so quickly now that the traditional cinema-going experience may find itself hav ing to compete with online streaming of filmed entertainment. 2. The facts and opinions Digital media is in-expensive and can be edited quickly and easily. Large Volumes of raw video are handled in a few days with sometimes only one person working on it, this is comparable to the older methods with film that took several weeks to process with teams going through each reel of film. The first practical cinema device was made by two French brothers Louis and Auguste Lumiere, they called it the cinematograph. In 1894 the device and others like it began to be used in public buildings or halls (dubbed ‘nickelodeans because it cost a nickel to watch the short animation). Through various advancements throughout the following years the recording and replaying methods became more powerful and much simpler. One of these advancements led to colour pictures and was used to obliterate mono-chrome movies for a short while. Films like ‘Schindlers List Steven Spielberg 1993 and ‘Clerks Kevin Smith 1994 show that monochrome can help make an atmosphere that colour cant. An example of a movie with very little technology would be â€Å"No Country for Old Men† which relied on the atmosphere made by good acting and filming. It is argued that the lack of technology used in the making of the film and even in the setting, which was the early eighties, made for a more dramatic effect. But to contest that is the fact that the film was following the original novel by Cormic McCarthy, and that dramatic effect was made by very good acting, directing, back music and producing. Computer Generated imagery has changed the way movie makers imagine and visualise the movie because they are not as restricted as they were 20 years ago. Some ‘get arounds had to be made then due to lack of funds or until a technological solution was developed. The more simple ‘tricks included stopping the camera but keeping it in position as an actor moved off set before continuing to give the effect that a character had suddenly vanished. Another trick would involve an artist painting some matching scenery around a sheet of glass and letting the camera film through that so it made the surrounding area look larger than it actually was. Original animations were very tedious and labour intensive. To make the drawings ‘move the cartoonist normally had to produce twenty-five to twenty-six drawings for every second of screen time. This resulted in ten-minute cartoon needing fourteen thousand, four hundred different drawings. ‘Gertie the Dinosaur by Winsor McCay in 1909 was the first one of its kind. It was seven minutes long and needed ten thousand drawings. Titan AE, this is an animated movie enhanced by computer to give a hybrid. This was a great success and is known for stunning visuals and brilliant voice acting. Normally an animated movie is screened at around twenty five frames per second which means that even the smallest movement on screen would require about sixty drawings. With the computer this be dramatically reduced and enhanced graphically. Another movie â€Å"Monsters Inc. â€Å" is completely computer generated. This gives the movie a cartoonish look and the class of a live film were the actions and motions are more fluid. CGI allows directors to create an atmosphere that they would not be able to achieve with models or visual â€Å"trickery†. George Lucas explains in â€Å"Star Wars A New Hope Remastered DVD† In the scene where Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi are speeding across the Desert in the â€Å"Speeder†(Hover Car), The production team originally put Vaseline on the camera lens in the area that the cars wheels would be. This of course left two black smudges under the car. Due to other problems and limitations Lucas had problem realising his vision for the movie. He created his own digital effects house (Industrial Light and Magic and sound companies ‘THX and ‘Skywalker sound because the things he wanted simply didnt exist. New techniques were thought up and tested. Although the film was highly successful, Lucas still was not happy and later remastered the film with more advanced graphics and sounds. With the improvements they added larger backgrounds to once disappointing sets and add extra characters. A cut scene was added because they could now add in a CG (computer generated) alien character that at the time didnt even have a puppet stand-in. Without the help of these special effects the film would not have done justice to Lucas original vision for the movie. For ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Peter Jackson, 2001) and ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Peter Jackson, 2002) programmer Stephen Regelous created ‘Massive a special-effects program that allowed thousands of unique CG characters to have a mind of their own when thrown into combat for the battle scenes. â€Å"Gathering seventy-thousand or so tall, broad-shouldered extras, dressing them in elaborate armor and having them slaughtering each other was out of the question. â€Å"Digital technology is a thing, a medium that makes film flourish as it never has before.† George Lucas Because of CGI, realistic Dinosaurs were seen in ‘Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1993) and animals have charged down through a city street in ‘Jumanji (Joe Johnston, 1995). â€Å"The future of cinema lies in the power of the pixel. The injection of fresh ideas and methodologies will only serve to mix up the metaphorical gene pool and empower a new generation of filmmakers.† Roger Corman Both these movies have done very well in cinema through VHS and DVD sales. Examples of films that have been let down by special effects would be ‘Killer Flood'(Doug Campbell, 2003) and Deep Blue Sea(Renny Harlin, 1999) which did alright in viewings and even had very good acting and scripting but was let down by a few moments were the audience should have been amazed by the imagery but instead was disappointed by the poorly made imagery of the sharks. Movies have also been influenced by Computer Games and some of the rendering techniques from games have been applied to the movie making process. One such method has a group of people wearing Skin tight clothing fitted with sensors on all the locations were movement is most noticeable and at joints. A computer then gathers the information to make a model on screen with the same movements of the person wearing the sensors. Computer generated imagery has also helped reduce the cost of movie making. Large effects that normally cost thousands to make can be done with a decent computer and some editing software. Because of the need of pre-processing is no longer required with digital video, clips can now be viewed on site instantly and mistakes can be found and changed or fixed unlike traditional 35mm film where errors would not be found for weeks until all the film had been processed. With cost effective production, more and more movies can be made and newer previously unknown directors appear with Box Office hit Films. A recent box office hit â€Å"Zombieland† directed by Ruben Fleischer was the first feature film by him, without the low cost production methods available the movie may not have been made. ‘District 9 ‘Zombieland done well in cinema and have been made by first time directors. ‘District 9 Gross Profit $210,146,235 ‘Zombieland Gross Profit $90,081,556 The large profits of these films show that they have been a success and the filming budgets (average 30,000,000) show that studios are not afraid to stop a production half way. Before digital film these mock ups had to be made to view/preview the movie hence a higher cost. Digital Video has been both the answer to cheap filming and the enemy of those in the film industry. With digital video large amounts of video can be moved and transferred easily rather than the trucks needed to move the reels of film. Increased memory capacity has aided this as well allowing very high quality images to be recorded. High definition video is an example of this as there are so many pixels per frame and so many frames the file sizes are enormous. Just 30 minutes of video can be two Gigabytes in size. One of the first films to use digital video was ‘Westworld in 1973. Shortly before digital video came digital audio. With digital audio the same advantages apply, it is cheaper to store and easier to edit. One of the main advantages of digital audio is that tape is not needed to store it. Audio stored on tape was prone to distortion or deterioration from magnetic waves and moisture; it is also much harder to sync than with a piece of video like an animated character or sound effect. Recorders and Microphones have become very small and fitted inside the ear or in the collar of a jumper. They can record in very high quality which helps in the editing phase, if a character gets drowned out by another noise or their voice becomes muffled by another person in front of the microphone on the main floor . The better quality also creates a much better atmosphere for the audience. This may not make or break the film but bad audio can be worse than bad visuals in my own opinion. With HD (High Definition) audio emerging, recording techniques and styles will evolve again. This will follow the adoption of Surround sound which is now common among home entertainment systems and some Cinemas or Movie Theatres. Surround Sound uses multiple speakers placed around the audience and a special controller sends the right volume and sounds to each speaker to make it sound as though the audience is immersed in the movie. Sound technicians now place the mics around the set / scene to record the different sound levels at those spots in the room. Not every new idea in cinema was successful enough to consider continuing at first, such as three-dimensional movies (3D), which required viewers to wear special glasses, and the â€Å"smells†, in which different scents were blown into theatres to accompany the images and sound. The system just didnt work well or subtly enough. Now though 3D movies are at an all-time with 9 3D movies released in 2009 alone. With the new 3D technology using digital glasses and high frequency screens the poor effect on a viewers eye-sight or balance has been removed. 3D Filming has for a long time been an attraction for creating stunning experiences. â€Å"Journey to the Centre of the Earth† was the first film to successfully deploy a live 3D experience. It grossed $241,995,151 in worldwide. These changes seem to have been for the better, good profits for 3D films shows a fan base and market audience. The newest technologies used are proving their worth and may end up leading production to entirely 3d movies. With advancements comes cheaper high end equipment this has led to a lot of fans and wanna be producers making films or videos on the cheap. YouTube the greatest example of public film/video is well known and is full of fan made or home made movies. Some of these can be on par with full length feature films. Technology has advanced to let what used to be studio equipment be compacted and simplified for everyone. A good example of the Fan- made movie is â€Å"The Hunt for Gollum† a prequel to â€Å"The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring† It has amassed over 1.5 Million views and maintains a 5 star rating( The highest available on YouTube). On another Note the Movie has been made in HD which shows the makers had access to good equipment. Another intriguing thing to note is that technology on the whole can and has influenced films. Two older movies that are well known are ‘Wargames'(John Badham 1983) and ‘Hackers'(Iain Softley, 1995). One of the most notable is The ‘James Bond 007 series of films which has used technological possibilities to its fullest, were Bond is supplied with a massive range of gadgets some futuristic and some of the present times. 3. Conclusion Movies at home are now a big part of the cinema experience. Large television sets and home cinema systems are very common. Small versions of the projectors used in the cinema are also common and provide a cinema like atmosphere to your home movies. Homes can even have computers that server video and audio content to the television. With movies cheaply available to buy, sets of several DVDs available on a single Blu-ray disc and Online services such as the iTunes Store making digital downloads available, there is always a larger demand for movies and so the film industry will continue to make good films. â€Å"With more channels of distribution there will be a greater demand for content but less money will be required to make it. The people who can create content the most cost effectively will have a clear cut advantage† Roger Corman The future of Cinema is greatly entwined with technological advancements. The effects of technology on cinema are quite clear, as long as the technologies are used in the right ways and are not abused for the sake of time or money then the quality of cinema will not die. Though there are movies were technology plays a minute roll it still seeps through from the camera used the sound recording equipment and the sets built. The cinema was built of technology and should continue to thrive and mature and technology does so.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

My Feelings on English language :: essays research papers

My feelings about the English language, including both grammar and literature, have changed several times throughout my life. These changes took place as I was influenced by my family and by the different teachers that I have had throughout my academic career. As a young boy, I knew very little about the English language, but the instruction which I have received throughout my academic career has worked to shape my feelings about the English language. My parents began reading to me when I was very young. When I was only six months old, my parents bought me a number of plastic books. Using simple picture books, my parents taught me to recognize pictures of objects and how to associate those objects with their specific names. I learned how to talk when I was only a year old, and my parents continued to read to me in order to help me build up my vocabulary. I specifically remember my mother reading Sesame Street books to me. When she read to me, she used a different voice for each of the characters. I heard the same stories read to me so many times that I began to memorize them. I was able to recite my favorite stories before I could read them for myself. While I was unable to read, my skills with the English language were developing as I learned and used the words that I heard my parents read to me. My parents, my first teachers, made learning the English language an enjoyable experience for me at a young age.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I began attending preschool at the age of three, and I have a number of memories from that period in my life. My preschool teachers made learning about the English language fun. They ingrained in me the letters of the English alphabet using a number of techniques. I remember gluing uncooked macaroni noodles onto construction paper in order to form different letters of the alphabet. The letters or words that we learned were usually associated with a fun story or with a specific color. The teachers also read a great deal to me and my fellow classmates. Story-time became something that I looked forward to. Because my preschool teachers made learning fun, I looked forward to learning more about the English language at a very young age. My parents further reinforced what I learned in preschool by continuing to read to me at home.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Searle’s Solution to the Missing Object Problem :: Searle Philosophy Philosophical Essays

Let us imagine that to play a joke on her new friend Suzy, Jenny tells her all about her cocker spaniel. Jenny tells Suzy that her dog’s name is Sally, that Sally has long blonde hair, and that she loves to eat table scraps. The only problem is that Sally does not really exist  ¾ but Jenny doesn’t tell this to Suzy. Because of this, Suzy forms all sorts of beliefs about Jenny’s cocker spaniel. She believes that it is named Sally, that it has long blonde hair and loves to eat table scraps, and perhaps a few other beliefs. She also forms desires regarding the dog  ¾ she wants to meet Sally, to play fetch with her, and to buy her a doggie treat. Suzy, therefore, has many beliefs and desires regarding Sally the cocker spaniel  ¾ and all of this in spite of the fact that Sally does not really exist at all. In orchestrating this prank, Jenny thought she was merely playing a simple trick on her friend. But in succeeding at this, she has brought about a s ignificant philosophical dilemma. If Sally the cocker spaniel does not exist, then what are all of Suzy’s beliefs and desires about? This is the problem of â€Å"objectless directedness.† Mental states like believing and desiring are understood to be directed at things; they are intentional states, and every intentional state must have an intentional object. If I have a belief that Michael Jordan is the best basketball player of all time, or that Bush is a good wartime President, then these are beliefs about, respectively, Michael Jordan and George Bush. If I have a desire to meet the Pope, or to have a hamburger, then these desires are directed at the Pope and a hamburger, respectively. But in Suzy’s case, the supposed intentional object of her beliefs and desires  ¾ Sally the cocker spaniel  ¾ turned out not to exist at all. So did the beliefs and desires have an intentional object at all? And if so, what was it? In addressing this problem, this paper will explicate and argue for a solution given by John Searle in his book, Intentionality. After briefly

Friday, October 11, 2019

Study on Mutual Funds

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY The main objective of the present study to understand how mutual funds function in India. Specifically the study seeks to answer the following question: 1. What is the present status of mutual funds industry in India? How does it compare with mutual funds in foreign countries? 2. How mutual funds operate to create value for their investors? 3. What consideration an investors should keep in mind while making investment in mutual funds? 4. What is the regulatory frame work for mutual funds in India? 5. What are the problems faced by mutual funds industry in India & what are its future prospects? RESEARCH DESIGN & METHADOLOGY The Present study has been completed on the basis of secondary data colleted from internet and from various books, publicity materials and brochures issued by various mutual funds co. Reference has also been made to the regulations issued by securities and exchange board of India in regard to mutual funds. The data and the resource material so collected have been analysed within the frame work of 5 sections each focusing on a particular questions the study seeks to answer. PLAN OF THE STUDY The Study has been completed within the frame work of five sections. The Section wise plan is as follows:- I. PRESENT STATUS OF MUTUAL FUND INDUSTRY II. OPERATION OF MUTUAL FUNDS III. INVESTMENT CRITERIA IV. REGULATORY FRAME WORK OF MUTUAL FUNDS V. PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTUS I PRESENT STATUS OF MUTUAL FUNDS IN INDIAN CAPITAL MARKET Retail investors usually want to participate in the capital market, but due to paucity of funds, lack of expertise knowledge and limited risk-bearing capital, they have limited access to capital market. Mutual funds provide a mechanism that helps the retail investors enter the capital market. the mutual funds manage their funds for maximum gain with minimum risk and in the most professional way and work as agent for growth and stability of capital market. Till 1964, there were no mutual funds in India. In 1963, UTI Act, 1963 was enacted for the establishment of first mutual fund. The UTI launched its first scheme, US-64; in1964 which later became the most popular unit scheme in India. In1987, the RBI issued guidelines for bank-sponsored mutual funds. The evolution of mutual funds in India is consisting of different phases as follows: PHASE I: History of mutual funds started in India in 1964 when the first mutual fund in the name of Unit Trust of India was established in July 1964. UTI launched its first scheme US-64 which eventually became the most popular scheme and could accumulate the largest corpus. After 1964, it started several other schemes also. Till 1987, UTI remained the synonym for mutual fund in India. It was a sole player and gathered shape of monolithic mutual fund with millions of investors in several schemes. PHASE II: In 1987, the Government allowed the public sector banks to establish mutual funds. SBI Mutual Fund in 1987. Other mutual funds to follow suit were Canbank Mutual Fund (1987), PNB Mutual Fund (1989), IndBank Mutual Fund (1989), LIC Mutual Fund (1989), GIC Mutual Fund (1990), etc. The position continued till 1992 and other mutual funds were also established. PHASE III: There was a historical change in 1993 when the government allowed private sector mutual funds also. The first mutual fund in the private sector was Kothari Pioneer. Thereafter, in 1994, the foreign mutual funds were also allowed to operate schemes in India, and Morgan Stanley was the first foreign mutual fund in India whose initial issue of units was overwhelmingly subscribed by the investors. In 1992, SEBI was established and it issued guidelines for the working and supervision of mutual funds. PHASE IV: In 1966 a need was felt for the modification of SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations. On the basis of ‘Mutual Funds-2000’ Report, SEBI framed new Regulations in 1996. There have been several amalgamations of mutual funds. After 1996, a number of foreign mutual funds as well as Indian mutual funds have been established. At the end of march 2004, there were 33 mutual funds and Assets Under Management of Rs 1,39,616 crores. After 1996, mutual funds have become very popular among retail investors. The increase in number of mutual funds and their schemes speak of the underlying strength of the investors’ confidence in them. As in April, 2005, there were 28 mutual funds operating in India. Some of the mutual funds operating in India at present are as follows (in alphabetical order): ABN AmroDSP Merril LynchJM Sahara Bank of Beroda Escorts Kotak Mahindra SBI Benchmark Fidelity LIC Standard Chartered Birls Sunlife Franklin Tempelton Morgan Sundarum Canbank HDFC Principal Tata Cholamandalam HSBC Prudential Tauras Deutsche ING Vysya Reliance UTI A large number of mutual funds have intensified competition and led go to product innovation. Each of these mutual funds has a number of schemes operating with different features and characteristics. There are more than 500 schemes in operation at present. II OPERATION OF MUTUAL FUNDS A mutual fund is a financial intermediary which acts as an instrument of investment. It collects funds from different investors to a common pool of investible funds and then invests these funds in a wide variety of investment opportunities. Small investors who are unable to participate in capital market, can access the stock market through the medium of mutual funds which can manage their funds for maximizing return. The investment may be diversified to spread risk and to ensure a good return (dividend or capital gain or both) to the investors. The mutual funds employ professional experts and investment consultants to conduct investment analysis and then select the portfolio of securities where the funds are to be invested. Thus, a mutual fund is a pool of funds contributed by individual investors having common investment preferences. FEATURES AND CHRACTERISTICS OF MUTUAL FUNDS A mutual fund is a financial intermediary and works as an investment company. It has distinct features and characteristics which differentiate it from other financial intermediaries. Some of the features of mutual funds are: (i) Mutual fund is a pool of financial resources. Investors bring their individual funds together. Sometimes, the funds which otherwise may not come for investment in the capital market, are invested through mutual funds. (ii)Mutual funds are professionally managed. The resources collected by mutual funds are managed by professionals and experts in investment. These professionals can undertake specialized investment analysis such as fundamental analysis, technical analysis, etc. , which are not otherwise expected on the part of individual investors. (iii)Mutual fund is an indirect investing. The individual investors invest in the mutual funds which in turn invest in the shares, debentures and other securities in the capital market. The proportionate funds given by an investor are represented by the units of mutual fund. Investors own these units. The shares, debentures are owned by the mutual fund. Investors have no direct claim on these securities. In case of closure or liquidation of the proceeds of these securities are proportionally distributed among the unitholders. (iv)Investment in mutual fund in not borrowing-lending relationship. Investors do not lend money to the mutual fund. Consequently, the investors have to share the gains or losses of operations of the mutual fund. (v)Mutual fund is a representative of investors. The mutual funds collect the funds from investors under a particular investment scheme. as a representative, the mutual fund has to invest these funds as per the designated scheme only. MECHANISM OF MUTUAL FUND OPERATIONS A mutual fund represents pooled savings/funds of individual investors. Professional managers of the mutual fund invest these funds in different types of securities. They have to take different decisions from time to time. The revenue returns may be distributed by the mutual funds to the unitholders. Capital appreciation in the mutual funds also belong to the investors. MUTUAL FUND SCHEMES One of the main objectives of mutual funds is to provide better returns to investors at minimum risk. Mutual funds issue units to the investors in proportion to the funds contributed by the investors. The income of the funds are shared by the investors in the proportion to the number of units held. These mutual funds offer different types of schemes from time to time to attract investors and to take care of their needs, on the basis of nature of investment, type of operations and type of income distribution. Mutual funds may launch different schemes to offer one or more of the following: (a)Regular and steady flow of income, (b)High capital appreciation, c)Capital appreciation and regular return,and (d)Return with tax benefits. There are different ways in which various mutual fund schemes can be classified. Following shows the classification of mutual fund schemes with reference to schemes being offered in India: 1. On the basis of Life Span. (a) Close-ended Schemes (b) Open-ended Schemes 2. On the basis of Income Mode (a) Income schemes (b) Growth schemes 3. On the basis of Portfoli o (a) Equity schemes (b) Debt schemes (c) Balanced schemes 4. On the basis of Maturity of Securities (a)Capital Market Schemes (b)Money market Schemes 5. On the basis of Sectors Different Sectoral Schemes 6. On the basis of Load (a) Load Schemes (b)No Load Schemes 7. Special Schemes: (a) Index Schemes (b)Offshore Schemes (c) Gilt Securities Schemes (d) Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) (e) Fund of Funds. Some of these schemes have been explained below: OPEN-ENDED AND CLOSE-ENDED MUTUAL FUNDS SCHEMES As per SEBI Regulations, 1996, open-ended scheme means a scheme of mutual fund which offers units for sale without specifying any duration for redemption. On the other hand, close-ended scheme is one in which the period of redemption is specified. The open-ended mutual fund scheme sells and repurchases the units of mutual fund on a continuous basis. Any investor can become a member (by purchasing units) or can exit (by selling these units back to the mutual fund). These sales and repurchases of units take place at a price called Net Assets Value (NAV) which is calculated periodically on the basis of the market value of the portfolio of the mutual fund. The sale and repurchase prices are announced by the mutual fund on a periodic basis. The Unit Scheme-1964 (US-64) was an open-ended mutual fund scheme. The essential feature of open-ended scheme is the liquidity. On the other hand, close-ended mutual fund scheme is only one in which the limited number of units are sold to investors during a specified period only. Thereafter, any transaction in these units can take place only in secondary market, ie, the stock exchanges. So, after the initial public offering, the mutual fund goes out of the picture and subsequent sale and purchase take place among the investors. The market price of the units of a closed-ended mutual fund scheme is determined by the market forces of demand and supply. The liquidity to investors provided by the market. However, all the closed-ended mutual fund schemes are redeemable at the end of a specified period when all the investment of the scheme are sold and the proceeds are distributed among the unit holders on a proportionate basis. There are several close-ended schemes such as Master Share Scheme of the UTI. INCOME FUND AND GROWTH FUND The mutual funds are called income funds when they promise a regular and/or guaranteed return in the form of dividends to the investors. For example, UTI launched several Monthly Income Schemes. The portfolio of these schemes is usually consisting of fixed income investments such as bonds, debentures, etc. The income schemes are also known as dividend schemes. These schemes are ideal for investors who need or seek intermediate cash flows in the form of dividend payment. A growth fund scheme is one which offers capital appreciation as well as a variable dividend opportunity to the investors. The investors may get dividend income from the mutual fund on a regular basis and the capital appreciation is available in the form of increase in market price. Growth schemes are good and suitable for investors having long-term investment perspective. In addition, there may also be income-cum-growth (hybrid funds) where the investor may be offered fixed incomes as well as growth opportunities. An example of a growth fund is UTI Growth and Value Fund which is an open-ended equity oriented scheme. The objective is to seek capital appreciation by making investments primarily in listed securities of Indian companies. A variant of income fund is known as Dividend Yield Fund. These invest funds in shares of those companies that pay high dividends. In addition, any appreciation of share price adds or subtracts investors return. DOMESTIC FUNDS AND OFF-SHORE FUNDS The domestic funds schemes are those which are open for subscription by the investors of the country of origin only. Most of the mutual funds launched in India are domestic mutual funds. The off-shore mutual funds bring funds (in the form of foreign exchange) to the capital market. At present, several off-shore mutual fund schemes have been floated in India. Ind Bank Off-Shore Mutual Fund, 1993 and Common Wealth Equity Mutual Fund, 1993 are examples of off-shore mutual fund schemes. TAX-SAVING SCHEMES These mutual fund schemes are designed to avail tax exemptions and concessions to the investors. These schemes help individual investors in their tax planning. CANPEP MEP 1994, PNB-ELSS were some of the tax-savings schemes. These schemes are also known as Equity-linked savings schemes were entitled to tax benefit under Section 88 of the Income Tax Act. Recently, private sector mutual funds have also launched these schemes such as HDFC Tax Plan, KP Tax Shields, etc. MONEY MARKET MUTUAL FUNDS (MMMF) SEBI Regulations, 1996 define an MMMF, as one which has been set up with the objective of investing in money market investments which include commercial papers, commercial bills, ‘T-Bills, etc. The funds collected by these mutual funds are invested exclusively in money market instruments. Money market mutual funds are a part of short-term pooling arrangement of funds. These are open-end funds. These funds are very liquid and risk free because of nature of their investments. MMMF provide better returns than short-term bank deposits and are often considered to be good alternative to bank deposits. The Reserve Bank of India has announced Guidelines for money market mutual fund in April 1992. However, at present, the MMMF are also regulated under SEBI Regulations, 1996. SPECIALISED SECTOR FUNDS Sector funds schemes are those under which the funds are planned to be invested in a particular region, industry or sector. For example, Pharma (D) Scheme of Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, Technology Company Scheme of DSP Merill Lynch Mutual Fund, Banking (D) of Reliance Mutual Fund are some specialised sector schemes of mutual funds. INDEX SCHEMES In this case, the funds collected by the mutual funds are invested in the shares forming the Stock Exchange Index. These funds are also known as growth funds. The funds are allocated o the basis of proportionate weight of different shares in the underlying Index. For example, Nifty Index Scheme of UTI Mutual Fund, Index Fund (Sensex) of Tata Mutual Fund, Index Fund (D) of Principal Mutual Fund are Index Schemes. There are 13 Index Funds which use S & P CNX NIFTY as the underlying index. EQUITY FUNDS SCHEMES Under these schemes, the funds are invested primarily in equity shares only. The equity fund schemes are high on the risk scale as the share prices are volatile. These funds try to reduce the risk by diversifying the investments in different types of shares. If invested rationally and properly, these schemes may give high returns commensurate with risk taken. The choice of investee companies is made by the mutual fund. These schemes may be income schemes or growth schemes. Fidelity Equity Fund is an open ended equity growth scheme with the objective of generating long term capital growth from a diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities (95%) and Money Market Instrument (5%). DEBT FUNDS SCHEMES In case of debt funds, the collected funds are invested in debt securities. A variant of debt funds schemes may be in the form of government securities funds scheme wherein the funds are invested in government securities only. Debt schemes are generally income scheme. A debt fund scheme is an ideal option for investors who are averse to risk which is associated wit equity schemes. BALANCED FUNDS A balanced fund provides both growth and regular incomes as these schemes invest both in debts and equity instruments in the proportion as disclosed in the offer document. These schemes are appropriate for investors who look for moderate growth. The NAV of these schemes are likely to be less volatile than the pure equity funds. GILT FUNDS The funds of these schemes are invested exclusively in government securities. These funds are low return and low risk and popular among the risk averse investors. Some of the gilt funds operating in India are Gilt Plus (Birla Sunlife Mutual Fund), Gilt Investment (Cholamandalum Mutual Fund), FT Gilt (Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund), Gilt long-term (HDFC Mutual Fund), Gilt Treasury (Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund), etc. SCHEMES BASED ON MARKET CAPITALIZATION In recent past, mutual funds in India have launched several schemes with a focus on market capitalization of companies. For example, UTI Large Cap Fund, UTI Small-Cap Fund, Chola Multi-Cap Fund, HDFC Premier Multi-Cap Fund, etc. are schemes based on market capitalization. It may be noted that the classification between large, small and mid-cap is arbitrary and can vary from market to market. In India, the National Stock Exchange defines mid-cap companies as those having average 6-months market capitalization between Rs. 75 crores to Rs. 750 crores. In Case of multi-cap or flexi-cap schemes, the investments ar e made across companies with different market capitalization-large, small or mid. LOAN AND NO-LOAN FUNDS A load fund is one that charges a % of NAV (Net Assets Value) as entry or exit fees. Whenever an investor buys or sells the units, a fee is charged by the fund to meet the administrative expenses. On the other hand, a no-loan fund is one which does not charge any fees for entry or exit. In case of no-loan fund, all transactions of sale and repurchase of units are done at NAV while in case of load funds, the repurchase is made at a price less than NAV and sale is made at a price more than NAV. FUND OF FUNDS A fund of funds scheme means a scheme that invests primarily in other schemes of same mutual fund or other mutual funds. Benchmark Mutual Fund has started a FOF under the name of FOF Junior BeES. EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) refers to basket of securities that are tradeable at a stock exchange. They are somewhat similar to Index Fund Schemes. The ETFs are so called because they are listed on a stock exchange and are traded as any other listed security. So, ETFs have characteristics of open-ended mutual funds as well as that of listed shares. ETFs do not sell their units directly to the investors. Rather, a security firm creates an ETF by depositing a portfolio of shares in line with an Index selected. The security firm creates units against this portfolio of shares. These units are sold to the retail investors. So, the ETF has portfolio of shares as well as a liability towards the holders of ETF units. ETFs are different from Mutual Funds in the sense that ETF units are not sold to the public for cash. Instead, the Asset Management Company that sponsors the ETF (fund) takes the shares of companies comprising the index from various categories of investors like authorized participants, large investors and institutions. In turn, it issue them a large block of ETF units. Since dividend may have accumulated for the stocks at any point in time, a cash component to that extent is also taken from such investors. In other words, a large block of ETF units called a â€Å"Creation Unit† is exchanged for a â€Å"Portfolio Deposit† of stocks and â€Å"Cash Component†. The number of outstanding ETF units is not limited, as with traditional mutual funds. It may increase if investors deposit shares to create ETF units; or it may reduce on a day if some ETF holders remeed their ETF units for the underlying shares. These transactions are conducted by sending creation/ redemption instructions to the Fund. In case of mutual funds, the portfolio of the investments made under the scheme may change, but in case of ETF, this is not so, because the ETF portfolio created once does not change. The market value of the units of ETF changes in line with the Index automatically. The funds managers are not required to actively manage the portfolio resulting in lower expense level of the fund. Consequently, the NAV of the ETF would be higher than the NAV of the Index Fund with the same portfolio. As the ETFs are listed on a stock exchange, they provide a lot of liquidity and price is determined by the demand and supply forces and the market value of the shares held. As opposed to ETF, the sale/ purchase prices of the units of a mutual fund are based on the NAV. A comparison of ETF, Open-ended funds and close-ended funds has been presented in table below: 1. Parameter Open-ended Fund (OEF) Closed-ended Fund (CEF) Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) Find Size Flexible Fixed Flexible 2. NAV Daily Daily Real Time 3. Liquidity Provider Fund itself Stock Market Stock Market/Fund itself 4. Sale price At NAV plus load, if any Significant Premium/Discount to NAV Very close to actual NAV of Scheme 5. Availability Fund itself Through Exchange where listed Through Exchange where listed/ fund itself. 6. Portfolio Disclosure Monthly Monthly Daily/Real-time ETFs have edge over the ordinary mutual funds. In case of latter, an investor cannot take the benefit of intra-day movement of price of shares because the mutual fund units can be traded at the closing NAV based rate. However, the performance of ETF is based on the underlying index and ETF can be traded through out the day taking benefit of intra-day movement in price. In India, several ETFs, have been created so for. Bench Mark Mutual Fund has created 5 ETFs. 1. Liquid BeES 2. Nifty BeES 3. Nifty Junior BeES 4. Bank BeES, and 5. FOF Junior BeES All these 5 ETFs are listed and traded at the capital market segment of the NSE. Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund has launched SPICE which tracks the Sensex. It combines features of both open-ended scheme and exchange traded share. It is listed at Mumbai Stock Exchange and can be traded in a lot of one unit. Value of one SPICE is 1/100 of the Sensex value. UTI Mutual Funds has launched SUNDERS, which is also listed at Mumbai Stock Exchange. Certain ETFs traded at American Stock Exchange are QUBES (Representing NASDAQ-100), SPIDERS (representing S&P 500), DIAMONDS (Representing Dow Jones Industrial Average), etc. NET ASSETS VALUE (NAV) OF A MUTUAL FUND Investors are the owners of the mutual fund. Funds collected under a particular scheme are invested in different securities. So the ownership interest of the unit holders is represented by these securities. Net Assets Value (NAV) refers to the ownership interest per unit of the mutual fund, i. . , NAV refers to the amount which a unit holder would receive per unit if the scheme is closed. NAV is represented as follows: An amount of Rs. 50,00,000 has been collected by a mutual fund by the issue of 5,00,000 units of Rs. 10 each. The amount has been invested in different securities. The market value of these securities at present is Rs. 56,00,000 and the mutual fund has a liability of Rs. 4, 50,000 in respect of expenses, etc. The NAV of the fund is: The units of an open-ended mutual fund scheme are sold and purchased by the mutual fund at a price based on NAV. The NAV of a mutual fund scheme is calculated by dividing the net assets of the scheme by the number of outstanding units under that scheme on the date of valuation. SEBI Regulations, 1996 provide that while determining the price of the units, the mutual fund has to ensure that the repurchase price is not lower than 93% of the NAV and the selling price is not higher than 107% of the NAV. Further that the difference between the selling price and the repurchase price shall not exceed 7%, calculated on the selling price of the units. The NAV varies from time to time and is published in newspapers so as to enable the nvestors to know the value of their investments. SEBI Regulations, 1996 require that the NAV of a mutual fund scheme shall be calculated and published at least in two daily newspapers at an interval of not exceeding one week. III INVESTMENT CRITERIA MAKING THE INVESTMENT DECISION Ones main considerations as an investor, besides choosing which vehicles are right, lie in the a reas of risk management, taxes and inflation, and asset allocation. In order to reach your financial objectives, you must choose from diverse investment alternative – all of which vary greatly in the degree and type of risk and potential return. The key to developing a sound portfolio is to strike the right balance between potential reward and risk, based on your financial objectives, financial situation and investment style. We’ve all heard the expression, â€Å"Nothing ventured, nothing gained. † Perhaps nowhere does this maxim hold truer than in the financial markets, where pursuing potentially higher returns means accepting higher levels of risk. Before you venture anything, you should determine your personal level of risk tolerance, given your needs and goals. To do this, you should familiarize yourself with the various kinds of risk and how they affect different types of investments. THE MANY OF FACES OF RISK Risk is the possibility that one may lose some or all of his investment in real terms, or that his investment may not increase in value. Several factors may influence the amount of risk one can comfortably accept, including ones age, family situation, income, time horizon and financial goals. When investing, one faces the following key risks: †¢Market Risk: This is the possibility that an investment (e. g. , a stock) will decline in value. As a result, if you sold the investment, you would receive less than what you initially paid for it. †¢Credit Risk: This is the possibility that the issuer of an investment (e. g. , a corporate bond) may not live up to its financial obligations. A default by the issuer could mean that you lose your invested capital and the expected interest payments. †¢Inflation Risk: This is the possibility that the value of a long-term asset (e. g. , a government bond) may not grow enough to keep up with inflation, reducing your purchasing power as a result. †¢Reinvestment Risk: This is the possibility that interest rates will fall as an investment (e. . , a bond) matures. If this occurs, you may be unable to reinvest matured assets at the rate of return you were accustomed to receiving. This type of risk also applies to reinvesting the coupon payments received from bonds and other fixed-income payments. †¢Liquidity Risk: This is the possibility that you will be unable to liquid ate an asset (e. g. , real estate) when you want and at the price you want. As a result, you may be forced to retain the asset or accept less than you wanted for the sake of liquidity. †¢National, International, and Political Risk: The possibility that a country’s government will suddenly change its policies. Events such as wars, embargos, coups, and the appointments of individuals with unfavorable economic policies can impact the financial markets, especially concerning investments related to that country. Possible results changes in tax structures and changes in bond or stock ratings. †¢Economic Risk: The risk that the economy will suffer a downturn as a whole. Such an event generally affects all the financial markets across the board, from product prices to the job market. †¢Industry Risk: The risk that a specific industry will suffer a downturn. Often, industries related to the one that experiences problems will suffer as well. Tax Risk: The risk that high taxes will make investments less profitable for both businesses and investors. Businesses that have no pay expand or improve. Investments that carry heavy tax baggage generally lead to lower dividends for an investor. How Much Risk Is Right? The amount of risk that is right depends upon person to person. To determine the r isk comfort level, one may ask this himself: Am I willing to tolerate greater volatility for potentially higher returns from my investments, or do I place more emphasis on quality, with less risk? Several factors may influence the amount of risk one can comfortably accept in ones portfolio, including: †¢Age †¢Family situation †¢Income †¢Financial goals In addition, the markets evolve and ones personal goals will inevitably change with time. One of the best ways to keep ones investments on target is to meet with financial professional regularly. In these meetings, the investor and his financial professional can discuss the investment objectives, determine the individual risk tolerance level and help to understand the various risks associated with an investment. The financial professional can also help an investor build a portfolio that has the potential to provide the highest returns consistent with the amount of risk one wish to assume. HOW TO CHOOSE WHICH RISKS TO TAKE? Whenever one considers a new investment, he may wish to ask his financial professional the following questions: †¢What types of risk are involved? Once the financial professional has explained the risks, one must ask how he or she can help to manage or minimize the different kinds or risk for the investment one is considering. Not all kinds of risk will apply to every investment. †¢What could happen to the principal in a â€Å"worst-case† scenario? The financial professional can explain how diversifying ones portfolio can help mitigate the effect of a downturn in any one market or industry. For example, assume you invested in the stock of a highly speculative biotechnology company. The stock’s trading price could fall substantially if the company’s only product fails to get FDA approval or is shown to be inferior to a competitor’s product. Spreading ones money across different asset classes – stocks, fixed – income investments, and cash equivalents – could help one manage the risk better than investing all his funds in this one stock. †¢How will adding this investment to the holdings help to manage the portfolio’s overall risk? Managing market risk through a balance of financial assets in ones portfolio is a significant component of long-ter m investment success. Ideally, ones portfolio should offer a measure of protection during inevitable market downturns and be positioned for opportunity when markets heat up. In addition to risk there are other factors also which need to be considered before investing, as stated below: INFLATION: Inflation taxes are two factors always on the minds of investors. Inflation is the persistent increase in the cost of goods and services, and the reason why the same loaf of bread that costs you $1. 00 today will probably cost you $1. 05 next year. For your purchasing power to grow in â€Å"real† terms, your returns must outpace the inflation rate. TAXES: Additionally, taxes must be a consideration. There are investments available that are both taxable and tax-free; others are tax-deferred or tax-deductible. The differences are significant, but not as dizzying as they seem. ASSET ALLOCATION: Asset allocation refers to the diversification of your portfolio across all the different classes of assets. The goal of effective asset allocation is to develop an appropriate mix of investments based on your specific investment objectives that maximizes performance potential with an acceptable level of investment risk. The goal is more consistent returns, lower volatility and a greater chance of achieving financial objectives. SELECTION OF A MUTUAL FUNDS There are thousands of funds to choose from, but there are some general guidelines that can help you choose a fund. †¢Define your investment time horizon and financial goals. Meeting a long-term goal (e. g. , starting a college fund for a newborn) will require different investments than in meeting a short-term goal (e. g. , accumulating money to purchase a car). †¢Understand your risk tolerance and the risk of different mutual funds. Risk tolerance is based on your comfort level in the fluctuation of price, which will affect your investment principal. Once this is determined, you can match fund types that have historically shown commensurate price movement. Keep in mind, however, that past performance is no guarantee of future results. †¢Combine your goals, time horizon and risk tolerance and find a fund category that matches these objectives. This will help in deciding what types of funds you may want to consider. You will find that there are still many funds to choose from within a specific category. Your prudential financial professional will be able to perform a comparative analysis of the individual funds to find the most appropriate choice. Check with your tax advisor prior to investing in a tax-exempt or tax-managed fund. Match the term of the investment to the time you expect to keep it invested. Money you may need right away (for example, if your car breaks down) should be in a money market account. Money you will not need until your retire in decades (or for a newborn’s college education) should be in longer- term investments, such as stock or bond funds. Putting money you will need soon in stocks risks having to sell them when the market is low and missing out on the rebound. Expenses matter over the long term, and of course, cheaper is usually better. You can find the expense ratio in the prospectus. Expense ratios are critical in index funds, which seek to match the market. Actively managed funds need to pay the manager, so they usually have a higher expense ratio. Sector funds often make the â€Å"best fund† lists you see every year. The problem is that it is usually a different sector each year. Also, some sectors are vulnerable to industry-wide events (airlines do come to mind). Avoid making these a large part of your portfolio. Closed-end funds often sell at a discount to the value of their holdings. You can sometimes get extra return by buying these in the market. Hedge fund managers love this trick. This also implies that buying them at the original issue is usually a bad idea, since the price will often drop immediately. Mutual funds often make taxable distributions near the end of the year. If you plan to invest money in the fund in a taxable account, check the fund company’s website to see when they plan to pay the dividend; you may prefer to wait until afterwards if it is coming up soon. Research. Read the prospectus, or as much of it as you can stand. It should tell you what these strangers can do with your money, among other vital topics. Check the return and risk of a fund against its peers with similar investment objectives, and against the index most closely associated with it. Be sure to pay attention to performance over both the long-term and the short-term. A fund that gained 53% over a 1-yr. period (which is impressive), but only 11% over a 5-yr. period should raise some suspicion, as that would imply that the returns on four out of those five years were actually very low (if not straight losses) as 11% compounded over 5 years is only 68%. Diversification can reduce risk. Most people should own some stocks, some bonds, and some cash. Some of the stocks, at least, should be foreign. You might not get as much diversification as you think if all your funds are with the same management company, since there is often a common source of research and recommendations. The same is true if you have multiple funds with the same profile or investing strategy; these will rise and fall together. Too many funds, on the other hand, will give you about the same effect as an index fund, except your expenses will be higher. Buying individual stocks exposes you to company-specific risks, and if you buy a large number of stocks the commissions may cost more than a fund will. The compounding effect is your best friend. A little money invested for a long time equals a lot of money later. The decision to invest in a mutual fund is one you have to make on your own. However, when you try to choose an investment, it’s usually best to seek the guidance of an investment representative. Why? Consider that there are more mutual funds than there are stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange. While many of these funds share the same objectives, no two are exactly alike. Similarly, as an investor, your goals are unique. An investment representative can help you determine the fund that’s right for you. A mutual fund investor has more options than ever before – stock, bond, and money market funds to satisfy all outlooks, from the most conservative to the most venturesome. Generally speaking, in investment management, intelligently assumed risk creates the opportunity for greater returns. †¢A money market mutual fund aims for current income at minimal risk. †¢A municipal bond mutual fund aims for current tax-free income. †¢Government income funds aim for current income with principal security. †¢Corporate bond funds aim for a high rate of current income. †¢An income fund aims for a higher rate of current income. A balanced fund aims for current income with some capital appreciation. †¢Growth and income funds offer the possibility of more growth than a balanced fund, but probably less income. †¢A growth fund aims for the accumulation of capital, with little or no current income. †¢Aggressive growth funds offer the prospect of maximum capi tal appreciation, with more than average risk. In addition, specialized funds are available – for instance, those that invest only in certain geographic regions or in certain sectors or industries (like health care, technology, or energy). There are even funds that have adopted certain social objectives or that follow specific investment philosophies. For more complete information, including charges and expenses, obtain the mutual fund’s prospectus. Read it carefully before you invest or send money. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires every open-mutual fund (where the fund’s managers issue new shares on demand) to provide you with a copy of its prospectus before – or coinciding with – a purchase of shares. A prospectus is a key source of information regarding a mutual fund and often is the best place to start when you are considering investing in one. It will describe the fund’s objectives, risks, and operations. TURNOVER Turnover is a measure of the amount of securities that are bought and sold, usually in a year, and usually expressed as a percentage of net asset value. It shows how actively managed the fund is. A caveat is that this value is sometimes calculated as the value of all transactions (buying, selling) divided by 2; i. e. , the fund counts one security sold and another one bought as one â€Å"transaction†. This makes the turnover look half as high as would be according to the standard measure. Turnover generally has tax consequences for a fund, which are passed through to investors. In particular, when selling an investment from its portfolio, a fund may realize a capital gain, which will ultimately be distributed to investors as taxable income. The very process of buying and selling securities also has its own costs, such as brokerage commissions, which are borne by the fund’s shareholders. The Dalbar Inc. consultancy studied stock mutual fund returns over the period from 1984 to 2000. Dalbar found that the average stock fund returned 14 percent; during that same period, the typical mutual fund investor had a 5. percent return. This finding has made both â€Å"personal turnover† (buying and selling mutual funds) and â€Å"professional turnover† (buying mutual funds with a turnover above perhaps 5%) unattractive to some people. IV REGULATORY FRAME-WORK OF MUTUAL FUNDS Immediately after its constitution, SEBI issued the Mutual Fund Regulations in 1993. However, with the growth of mutual funds, it was imperative that they should follow prepared a ‘Mutual Fund 2000 Report’ and on the basis of this report, it prepared more stringent and comprehensive regulations in 1996, known as SEBI (Mutual Fund) Regulations, 1996. ince then, there have been number of amendments in Regulations, 1996. Besides, SEBI has also issued several guidelines in respect of working of mutual funds. Some of the provisions of the SEBI (Mutual Fund) Regulations, 1996 (as amended from time to time) have been summarized hereunder: 1. The sponsor, who wants to establish a mutual fund, should have a sound track record and a general reputation of fairness and integrity, i. e. , must be in business of financial services for 5 years, and must have contributed at least 40% of the net worth of the Asset Management Company. 2. A mutual fund is constituted in form of trust. The trust shall incorporate an Asset Management Company (AMC). The trustees shall ensure that the AMC has been managing the schemes independently of other activities. 3. Two-thirds of the trustees shall be independent persons and not be associated with the sponsor. 4. The trustees shall ensure that activities of the AMC are in accordance with the Regulations, 1996. 5. The trust shall periodically review the investors’ complaints received and shall be redressed by the AMC. 6. The mutual fund shall appoint a custodian to carry out the custodial services for the schemes. The sponsor or its associates shall no have 50% or more of the share capital of the custodian. 7. No scheme shall be launched by the AMC unless the offer document contains disclosures which are adequate in order to enable the investors to make informed investment decisions. 8. Advertisement in respect of every scheme shall be in conformity with the Advertisement Code. 9. Every close-ended scheme shall be listed at a recognized stock exchange, or there will be a repurchase facility. 10. The close-ended schemes may be converted into open-ended schemes under certain conditions. A close-ended scheme may be allowed to be rolled over if necessary disclosures about NAV, etc. , are made to the unit holders. 11. In case of over-subscription for a new scheme, the applicants applying for upto 5,000 units shall be allotted full. The refund to applicants, if any, shall be made within 6 weeks from the data of closure of the list. 12. No guaranteed return shall be provided in a scheme, unless such return is fully guaranteed by the sponsor or the AMC. 13. An open-ended scheme shall be would up after the expiration of the mixed period, or in case, 75% of the nit holders decide so, after repaying the amount due to the unit holders. 14. The money collected under any scheme shall be invested only in transferable securities in money market or capital market or private placed debts or securitized debts. 15. The mutual fund shall not borrow any money except to meet temporary liquidity needs and borrowing, if any, need not be more than 20% of NAV of the scheme, and for period o f less than 6 months. 16. The funds of a scheme shall not be used in option trading or a carry forward transaction. However, derivatives can be traded by a mutual fund at a recognized stock exchange for portfolio balancing. 7. A mutual fund can enter into underwriting agreement. 18. NAV for each scheme shall be calculated by dividing the total assets of the scheme by the number of outstanding units. The NAV of the scheme shall be published in two daily newspapers at interval of not exceeding one week. 19. In case of open-ended schemes, the repurchase and sale price shall be published at least once a week. 20. The mutual fund shall ensure that the repurchase price of a unit is not less than 93% of NAV and the sale price is not more than 107% of NAV. In case of close-ended schemes, the repurchase price shall not be less than 95% of the NAV. 1. The AMC may charge the mutual fund with investment and advisory fees as per rates prescribed in the Regulations. The issue expenses and redempt ion expenses of a scheme shall not exceed the limits given in the Regulations. 22. The mutual funds are required to raise at least Rs. 20 crores or Rs. 50 crores (for close-ended and open-ended schemes respectively) or 60% of the target amount, otherwise the entire subscription be refunded. Each scheme should have a minimum of 20 investors and not single investor should account for more than 25% of the corpus of the scheme. 23. The unquoted debt instruments shall not exceed 10% in case of growth funds and 40% in case of income funds. 24. Investment in one company under any scheme should be restricted to 5% of the corpus of the scheme. Under all schemes, the investment in one company should be restricted to 5% of the paid-up capital of the company. Total investment in all securities (debts and shares) in one company shall be restricted to 10% of the corpus of the mutual fund. 25. Funds under the same AMC mutual not be lent or invest from one scheme to another, unless the funds are transferred at the prevailing market price. 26. All mutual fund must distribute a minimum of 905 of their profits in any given year. The e3arnings must be segregated as current income, short-term capital gain and long-term capital gain. 27. Trading by mutual funds shall be restricted to hedging and portfolio balancing purposes only. The securities held shall be marked to market by the AMC to ensure full coverage of the investments made in derivative products. 28. Mutual funds are permitted to participate in the Securities Lending Scheme of SEBI under certain guidelines. 29. Mutual funds are allowed to invest in ADRs/GDRs issued by Indian companies. They can also invest in foreign securities under certain conditions and within limits. 30. Mutual funds can also invest up to 10% their funds in equity of listed overseas companies which have a shareholding of at least 10% in an Indian company listed on a recognized stock exchange. 31. The AMC and the trustees are required to review and disclose the performance of their schemes. They are also required to disclose the performance of the benchmark indices. Any of the following indices may be selected for this purpose: BSE Sensex, S&P CNX Nifty, BSE 100, BSE 200 or S&P CNX Nifty 500. 32. Several Guidelines have been prescribed in respect of Advertisement to be issued by mutual funds. Any advertisement, communication, sales literature, or presentation, etc. , should not be misleading. 33. Detailed guidelines are prescribed for valuation of investments. For this purpose, the investments are classified into traded, thinly traded and non-traded investments. 34. Guidelines for identification and provisioning for NPA are also provided. For this purpose, an asset is NPA if the principal/ interest is not received for one quarter. On NPA, no interest shall be accrued. If any interest is already accrued, it shall be provided. A provision @ 10%, 20% or 25% of the book value of NPA is required depending upon the period for which it is NPA. 35. A mutual fund and the AMC shall, before the expiry of 1 month from the close of half year, shall publish its financial results in respect of that half year. MUTUAL FUND INVESTMENT AND INVESTORS’ PROTECTION IN INDIA In case of mutual funds, small investors park their funds in expectation of a suitable return and safety of their funds. Mutual funds take decisions on behalf of the investors. There is a relationship of trust between the mutual fund and the investors. Market regulators should take a cognizance of this fact. The interest of the investors should be protected by framing a comprehensive set of regulatory provision. As the first mutual fund in India, the UTI was created as a statutory body under the UTI Act, the relevant provision regarding investment policies, etc. were all given in the UTI Act itself. However, the position changed after 1992 with the constitution of SEBI. The basic objective of SEBI is to â€Å"protect the interest of the investors in securities and to promote the development of, and to regulate, the securities market and for matters connected therewith or incidental therewith. So, the regulation of mutual funds activities was make a matter under purview of SEBI. SEBI issued the Mutual Fund Guidelines, 1993 as a first attempt to provide for a regulatory framework to give directions to the functioning of mutual funds and to protect the interest of the mutual funds investors. Keeping in view the changing scenario, SEBI issued a new set of Mutual Funds Guidelines in 1996. A detailed list of the provisions of Guidelines, 1996 is already given in this chapter. Some other provision specifically dealing with investors protection are: (i)Each mutual fund must be registered with SEBI. The sponsor must have a sound track record and experience in financial services of at least 5 years. (ii)Number of terms and conditions have been provided in respect of Asset Management Company (AMC). The Directors of the AMC should here adequate professional experience in finance and financial services. (iii)The custodian of the mutual fund should also be approved and registered with SEBI. (iv)No mutual fund scheme can be launched unless approved with the trustees. (v)Minimum and Maximum amount to be raised under the scheme should be notified. (vi)Lot of disclosures are required in respect of the scheme in the prospectus. vii)No scheme with a guaranteed return can be issued unless such return is guaranteed by the AMC or the sponsor. (viii)Periodic report in respect of each of the scheme is to be published. Any information that has an adverse bearing on the investment should also be disclosed. (ix)There are investment norms provided for mutual fund investment with a view to contain t he investment risk. Investors’ interest is protected by prohibiting mutual funds from excessive risk exposure. (x)SEBI can impose several types of monetary penalties for violations of SEBI Regulations and Guidelines.