peer review critique

To prepare:

  • Read the Jonathan Jones article from this week’s Learning Resources.
  • Review the websites in this week’s Learning Resources for more inspiration and examples of photographs.
  • Review your partner’s Final Project photographic series, which was submitted to this week’s Discussion as part of last week’s Final Project Assignment.
  • Consider the following questions regarding process in your partner’s photographic series:
    • To what extent is the work subjective or objective?
    • Would you consider the series conventional or challenging? Why?
    • What is the purpose of the elements used and the order in which the photographs appear in the series?
    • Are the photographs in the series clearly planned, or do they appear in a random presentation in order to gain more of an emotional reaction?
    • Was the series more of a documentary to report a situation to the viewer, or was the intent of the series to express or persuade the viewer to have or express a particular attitude?
    • Are the photographs in the series simple or complex compositions? How does this affect the intended viewpoint and understanding of the viewer?
    • Have delay tactics been used to create interest or ambiguity in the composition of the photographs in the series?
    • What is the style of the photographs in this series?

With these thoughts in mind:

Post a critique of your partner’s Final Project photographic series (Approximately 4-5 paragraphs). Consider each of the following:

  • Evaluate how the content and composition of the photographic series is presented either clearly or ambiguously to the viewer. Explain to what extent these choices may influence the viewer’s perception of the series.
  • Analyze how the subjects in the photographic series relate to each other.
  • Describe to what extent you believe the intent of the photographic series contributes to the telling of a subjective or objective story.

Cite at least one example from the course readings to support your answer.

Be sure to support your ideas by connecting them to the week’s Learning Resources, or something you have read, heard, seen, or experienced.

Jones, J. (2013, January 10). Photography is the art of our time. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2013/jan/10/photography-art-of-our-time
In this article, Jones asserts that photography is an art form that allows us to capture the essence of our daily lives and give it meaning.

The following websites comprise galleries that allow you to experience the fundamental elements of photographic art.

Faded & Blurred. (2015). Retrieved from http://fadedandblurred.com

No caption needed: Iconic photographs, public culture, and liberal democracy [Blog]. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.nocaptionneeded.com/

Time. (2015). Lightbox. Retrieved from http://time.com/photography/lightbox/

USE OF TEXTBOOK IS VITAL. PLEASE REFER TO TEXTBOOK WHEN DOING THE CRITIQUE.

TEXTBOOK LINK: https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/#/books/97811361…

Required Assignment—Applying Organizational Behavior Theory

In this assignment, you will apply organizational behavior theory to an organization with which you have past or present experience.

You are an organizational change consultant who has been hired to address a current problem within an organization. In addition to defining and justifying the problem, you must also apply organizational behavior theory to bring about positive change regarding the problem.

Complete the following:

  • Consider an organization with which you have past or present experience and for which you can make a case. Define a problem, past or present for that organization.
  • Using a combination of trade industry materials and/or personal communication with industry leaders/managers, justify the problem (i.e., provide enough detail to prove the existence and significance of the problem). Use appropriate academic peer-reviewed literature to support your argument.
  • Using organizational behavior theory, discuss how the theory might be applied practically to manage employee behavior to bring about positive, constructive change to the noted problem.
  • Explicitly include in your case a discussion of the following aspects of systems theory:
    • The climate and types of cultures likely to be encountered, and the types of systems to be considered based on the organization’s cultural climate
    • Employee motivation, including factors of motivation (such as planning and communication) and the types of motivation present within the organization
    • Possible employee satisfaction issues regarding development and implementation of a change plan to address the noted problem

Write a well-argued, 3–4-page paper in Word format. Note: The title page, references, and appendices are not included in the page count.

Apply APA standards to citation of sources. Click here to download the APA Guide. Use this guide to format your assignment. The course text, the trade journal(s) noting the problem, and peer-reviewed journal articles are to be used to support your position and theoretical constructs. General Internet sources will not be accepted as references.

Write your responses in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; display accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Leverage, Capital Structure, and Dividend Policy

Module 4 – Case

Leverage, Capital Structure, and Dividend Policy

Before starting on this assignment, make sure to carefully review the
background readings. Part A requires you to make some computations, and
Part B requires you to analyze some scenarios using your knowledge of
the concepts. So make sure to go through the computational examples in
the required readings and also thoroughly review the key concepts before
starting on this assignment.

Case Assignment

Part A: Quantitative Problems

  1. Suppose QuickCharge Corporation manufactures phone chargers. They
    sell their chargers for $20. Their fixed operating costs are $100,000
    and their variable operating costs are $10 per charger. Currently they
    are selling 30,000 chargers per year.

    1. What is QuickCharge’s EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) at current sales of 30,000?
    2. What is QuickCharge’s breakeven point?
    3. Calculate the EBIT if QuickCharge’s sales increase 50% to 45,000
      chargers. What is the percent of change in EBIT under this increase in
      sales? Also, calculate the EBIT if the company’s sales decrease 50% to
      15,000 chargers. What is the percent of change in EBIT under this
      decrease in sales?
    4. What is QuickCharge’s degree of operating leverage? Based on your
      computation, what does its operating leverage say about QuickCharge’s
      business risk?
  2. The StayDry Umbrella Corporation will have an EBIT of $100,000 if
    there is a normal amount of rain this year. But if there is a drought,
    they will have an EBIT of only $50,000. The interest rate on debt is
    10%, and the tax rate is 35%. The company does not pay any preferred
    dividends.

    1. If StayDry has zero debt and 50,000 outstanding shares, what will
      its EPS (earnings per share) be if there is normal rain? What will its
      EPS be if there is a drought? What is its DFL (degree of financial
      leverage)?
    2. Now suppose StayDry has decided to take on $300,000 in debt and has
      used these funds to buy back half of the outstanding shares so now there
      are only 25,000 outstanding shares. What is the new EPS and DFL for
      both normal rain and drought?
    3. Based on your answers to a) and b) above, what are the trade-offs
      management has to make between zero debt or $300,000 in debt? What are
      the benefits and disadvantages of taking on this debt?

Part B: Conceptual Questions

  1. For each of the following scenarios, explain whether the situation describes financial risk or business risk. Explain your answers to each scenario using at least one of the references from the background readings:
    1. A pharmaceutical company has developed a new cancer treatment drug
      that has a much higher success rate than other drugs currently in the
      market. It has the potential to triple the company’s profits. However,
      the FDA has expressed concern about some side effects, and it is not
      clear if the FDA will approve the drug.
    2. An airline has an EBIT of $100 million per year. However, it also
      has a huge amount of debt and pays $97 million per year in interest. Its
      EBIT is relatively stable but tends to go up or down by $5 million or
      so each year depending on the economy.
    3. A basketball franchise earns an EBIT of $50 million a year when its
      team has a winning year. However, it earns only $10 million when its
      team has a losing year.
  2. Explain what capital structure theory (or theories) best describes
    the following situations. Make sure to cite at least one of the required
    textbook chapters for each answer, and to cite at least two references
    for this section:

    1. A CEO decides to borrow $50,000 in new debt, and the share prices
      rise dramatically. He then decides to sell half of his own personal
      shares, and when this is reported in the Wall Street Journal, the share
      prices drop dramatically in value.
    2. The corporate tax rate rises from 35% to 45%, and the XYZ
      Corporation decides to issue more debt. A year later, bankruptcy laws
      are changed to become much stricter and costlier. XYZ then decides to
      pay back half of its debt.
    3. A CEO named Joe Bigwig is known for living large with very expensive
      cars and a huge mansion. Joe is seeking a large loan from a bank to
      finance some new projects for his corporation. However, the bank becomes
      concerned when they find out that he recently used company funds to buy
      a brand-new company jet and also schedules numerous business trips to
      Hawaii and stays in five-star hotels. The bank tells Joe he will receive
      the loan only if he agrees to scale back on his personal expenses and
      not give himself or any other executives a raise until the loan is paid
      back.

Assignment Expectations

  • Answer the assignment questions directly.
  • Stay focused on the precise assignment questions. Do not go off on
    tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background
    materials.
  • For computational problems, make sure to show your work and explain your steps.
  • For short answer/short essay questions, make sure to reference your
    sources of information with both a bibliography and in-text citations.
    See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper,
    including pages 11-14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the
    “Writing Style Guide,” which is found under “My Resources” in the TLC
    Portal.

Reflecting on General Education and Career

Reflecting on General Education and Career

Step 1

Prepare: Start by reviewing General Education Curriculum found in General Academic Information and Policies (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. in the Ashford University Catalog, which addresses the core competencies that the general education courses must cover: Applied Ethics, Communication, Information Technology, Critical Thinking, and Quantitative Reasoning. Review Week 5 Resources that are applicable toward career success.

Step 2

Reflect: Think about the core competencies as previously mentioned, and ponder your time taking general education courses. Reflect on the specific courses not associated with your college major and determine the level of new information you have acquired that relates to the core competencies. You must also think about a potential job you might apply to once you graduate and determine what skills you developed through general education courses that make you qualified for a specific job.

Step 3

Write: For this discussion, you will address the following prompts:

Your initial post should be at least 500 words in length, which should include a thorough response to each prompt. You are required to provide in-text citations of applicable required reading materials and/or any other outside sources you use to support your claims. Provide full reference entries of all sources cited at the end of your response. Please use correct APA format when writing in-text citations (see In-Text Citation Helper (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.) and references (see Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.).

Read Ch1 and 2 of The Cold War: A Very Short Introduction, and Answer Following Questions.

1. Identify and explain the 2-3 key points of disconnect between Western suspicion and Stalin’s main agenda? At least TWO PARAGRAPHS.

Answers should be at least two paragraphs in length and reflect a thorough reading of our texts and an understanding of the complexities that shaped historical actors and events. If you quote or use any information directly from our readings, you must cite the author and page number like this (Kinzer, p.23) right in the text after the material you’re borrowing. There is no need to use books or internet material other than our text readings for that week.

2. Comment on, question, or critique the attachment “Peer Editing“ in at least 4 sentences.

Critique, question, and add to what they’ve written, but do so politely and respectfully. Credit for this part will be determined by how effectively you respond in this way. A mere “that’s good”, “I agree”, “I thought the same thing”…will not receive credit. Neither will repeating parts of your own answer or critical responses that are disrespectful or don’t provide a thoughtful rationale.

hotel case study

The company has developed a very specific sequence they use to diagnose problems. Using this sequence:

  • Review all of the information you have, and list all of the items you see which appear to be problems.Your list should be categorized in the same manner as the checklist.
  • From your list, determine which 5 problems should be addressed first, based on your estimate of their likely financial impact.For the 5 items you select, you will need to determine the financial impact (increased profitability) based on the hotel’s current performance and their distance from the company benchmark, using 2014 revenue and volume.
  • For each item on the list, recommend 4 specific action steps the management team must take to correct the problem and reach the benchmark.
  • Submit a written report “addressed to” the unit managers.In this report, for each of the 5 items identify, you need to:
    • Identify what information you used to draw your conclusion for that item.Which report(s) you used in your review.
    • Show the calculation you made to determine the financial impact.
    • List the 4 action steps you are recommending they take.These can be bullet points, but must be specific

    No too professional wards.

  • The information you can see the files which I have uploaded

Educational and Psychological Assessment of Exceptional Students

Activity 1: Part C of the IDEA, the Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers with disabilities, includes a component called Child Find. How does this program operate in your local school district? Locate the director of the program in your district. Describe the activities and the services offered by your district for young children with disabilities and their families. Please support youractivity with related web sites and Youtube videos.

Please describe the content of these web sites and Youtube videos.

Activity 2: View a video depicting the behavior of an infant or toddler with disabilities. In a PowerPoint presentation describe the disability and whether or not the portrayal is realistic. Is what you viewed in the movie consistent with what you know about the IDEA? Why or why not?

Miltary and Borders, law homework help

In July 2009, news media reported that President George W. Bush considered using military forces to arrest suspected Al Qaeda operatives in Buffalo, N.Y. (see a NY Times article on this issue). Ultimately, the President chose to use traditional law enforcement in the form of the FBI, and six of the suspects later pled guilty.

The use of military forces was supported by a DOJ memo, though most commentators disagreed, saying such law enforcement activities are inconsistent with the Posse Comitatus Act. However, it should be noted that a United States Army brigade is now, for the first time, permanently deployed on United States soil.

Your assignment this week is to answer the following questions:

  • Do you think the military should be used to in this way inside our nation’s borders? Why or why not?

This individual work should include the following:

  • An in-depth submission free of spelling and grammar errors.
  • An essay containing a minimum of one page, typed and double-spaced.
  • You will be assessed on the rationale you use in addressing the question/issue posted, and how well you justify your argument regarding this issue.
  • Your response must be thought provoking, have well developed ideas and/or opinions, and should reference any supporting material from the text, lecture, or other sources you have used to complete the assignment.
  • You may use your text or the Internet as a reference, but remember to cite your sources.
  • Assignment 2: LASA 1: Ethical Issues for Forensic Psychologists

    Assignment 2: LASA 1: Ethical Issues for Forensic Psychologists

    Read the following current  version of the ethical guidelines by the American Psychology-Law Society:
    http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/
    This assignment is designed to help you synthesize and apply the current version of the ethical guidelines of forensic psychology to what you have been learning about the relationship of substance abuse in the criminal justice system, assessment, diagnosis and ethical considerations. 

    After thoroughly reading the ethical guidelines of forensic psychology, review the following scenarios and questions and respond to each question thoroughly.  Your paper should reflect an understanding of applying the ethical standards to the course material. 

    • Provide a summary which includes the purpose, history and goals of the ethical standards.  What is your initial reaction to the ethical guidelines of forensic psychology? 
    • Review and summarize the standards related to confidentiality.  What steps will you take as a counselor in the criminal justice system to be in compliance with the ethical standards?  After reviewing the textbook and online lecture, how will you handle “red flags” and the limits of confidentiality, yet be in compliance with the ethic guidelines? 
    • You are presented with a client who is ordered through the court to undergo an examination or treatment.  The client refuses to sign the confidentiality agreement, and has made it quite clear he is not going to participate.  Identify what action you will take and provide the standard(s) which guided your decision.  Be sure to include a summary of what confidentiality is and why it is important. Your significant other is a recovering addict. 
    • According to the module lecture countertransference may occur when counseling an individual who has similar behaviors to the counselor’s family members.  Review the standard 4.07 from the ethical guidelines of the American Psychology-Law Society and the online content.  Discuss what options the counselor has to be in compliance with the standard.  Be sure to include a discussion of countertransference.
    • Compare and contrast the ethical issues of confidentiality and countertransference: Which issue do you believe will be most difficult to deal with, and why? After reviewing the ethical guidelines and applying the guidelines to treatment and evaluation issues provide your opinion of the relationship of substance abuse treatment and sanctions of the court.

    Your report should be at least 5 pages long. Remember to also include a cover page and reference page, and to support your arguments with information drawn from the ethical guidelines of the American Psychology-Law Society, the  online content, the textbook, and other credible, scholarly sources to substantiate the points you are making.  Apply APA standards for writing and citations to your work.

    Submit your response to the M3: Assignment 2 Dropbox by Wednesday, August 3, 2016. Name your assignment as follows: LastName_FirstInitial_PSY494_M3A2.doc.

    Assignment 2 Grading Criteria

    Maximum Points

    Summarized the ethical guidelines and provided initial reaction to the publication.

    28

    Summarized the standards of confidentiality and provided explanation of being in compliance of the standards within the criminal justice system when presented with “red flag” situations.

    32

    Identified the standards which guide the practitioner to handle court ordered evaluations and described what actions could be explored with a non-cooperative client.

    32

    Described countertransference and examined the appropriate action of the counselor as guided by the ethical guidelines and the module content.

    32

    Compared and contrasted the issues of confidentiality and countertransferance. Analyzed the complexity of substance abuse use and the criminal justice systems.

    32

    Style (4 points): Tone, audience, and word choice
    Organization (12 points): Introduction, transitions, and conclusion
    Usage and Mechanics (12 points): Grammar, spelling, and sentence structure
    APA Elements (16 points): In text citations and references, paraphrasing, and appropriate use of quotations and other elements of style

    44

    Total:

    200

    Quality Improvement Plan, health and medicine homework help

    Write 1,400- to 1,750-word paper about improvement in staff and developement with the following sections:

    • Criteria and Tasks
      • · Authority, structure, and organization
        • Describe the authority structure of the plan’s implementation. This must describe who is responsible for implementing the plan. Include a description of each role involved in the plan:
          • Board of directors
          • Executive leadership
          • Quality improvement committee
          • Medical staff
          • Middle management
          • Department staff
    • Communication
      • Identify who the performance activity outcomes are communicated to and who does the communicating. This describes who is responsible for overseeing data collection and preparing data reports.
    • Education
      • Describe how staff will be educated regarding the plan. This covers how each staff member will be initially oriented to the plan and how each employee fits into the plan based on job responsibilities.
    • Monitoring and Revising
      • Annual evaluation
        • Analyze what elements of the plan are annually evaluated for improvement.
        • Analyze how to monitor the effect of changes implemented from the decision-making process.
    • Regulatory and Accreditation
      • External entities
        • Analyze the effect of external entities, such as governmental agencies, accrediting bodies, and professional interest groups, on the quality and performance measure of an organization’s decision-making processes.

    Cite at least 3 sources according to APA guidelines to support your information.