Apex Corporation Case Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Apex Corporation Case - Coursework Example Conversely, the owners may just be satisfied with a business size that suits their managerial capabilities. Whatever the size of the business, it is the financial health that matters the most to all stakeholders (Meigs & Meigs, 10). In the given assignment, I have to assume that I am an attorney and that a client has approached me to consider whether a managerial position at Apex Corporation would be good to take up. He is already impressed with the salary and benefits they are offering but has no knowledge of accounting or finance. So I am going to have to advise him after looking at Apex’s financial statements for 2001, as the assignment criteria limits our evaluation to this year only. However we might make comparisons between the years 2000 and 2001 Analysis of Financial Statements The financial statements of a corporate enterprise, namely the income statement and the balance sheet are two of the most important summaries of the business activities that have occurred over t he last financial year. We are told that the Apex Corporation is a local manufacturing firm. The third statement that has also found to be of use to stakeholders is the Statement of Cash Flow, which shows how the firm used the cash generated in financing, investment and production activities. Negative or troubling cash flow situations are often the first sign of distress in a business, occurring long before telltale signs emerge on its income statement and balance sheet. The most common ratios that can be calculated for a corporate business entity using ratio analysis are the Current Ratio, the Debt-Equity Ratio, the Receivables Turnover, the Gross Profit percentage, the Net Profit percentage and the Inventory Turnover. This will give an analyst a good picture of the financial strength and viability of the business. Another approach would be a year to year comparison of results, using the common size income statement and balance sheets for 2000 and 2001. Calculation of Financial Rat ios Proceeding with our calculations, we first have the Current Ratio, which is calculated as: Total Current Assets / Total Current Liabilities. For Apex Corporation, this is: For Year 2000: $3,415,807/ $1,546,107= 2.21: 1. For Year 2001: $4,257,700/ $1,616,700= 3:1. So we find that Current Ratio has improved from 2.21:1 in 2000 to 3:1 in 2001. This indicates that there are now more current assets to cover current liabilities. The working capital which is defined as Total Current Assets – Total Current Liabilities, has improved from $1,869,700 in 2000 to $2,614,000 in 2001. This speaks well of the company’s short term liquidity and solvency. However, we would have to compare it to Industry Averages for the manufacturing sector to be more accurate in our perceptions (Meigs & Meigs, 943). Moving on to the Debt-Equity Ratios, the ratio of Total Debt to Total Assets can be calculated by Total Liabilities / Total Assets. For Year 2000 it is $2,296,107/ $5,615,807 or 0.41: 1 and for Year 2001 it works out to $2,466,700/$5,697,700 or 0.43:1. This means that debt was 41 cents to the dollar for each $1 of assets owned by Apex Corporation in 2000, and this increased slightly to 43 cents to the dollar in 2001. In other words we can say that each $1 of assets of Apex Corporation was financed 41percent by debt in 2000 and 59 percent by equity; this changed to 43 percent debt and 57 percent equity in 2001. Coming now to the Gross Profit Margin, this is given by: Gross Profit/ Sales x 100. For

Historical Account of Strategic Management Essay

Historical Account of Strategic Management - Essay Example Business strategies are quite analogous to military strategies wherein the strategic framework is used to provide a vision and direction to the company for its future. The origins of strategy can be found in the military war rooms where extensive planning and strategising are required for preparing themselves against their enemies so as to gain strategic advantage over their enemies. In the context of business organization strategy formulation essentially implies the fulfilment of similar set of objectives; however the only difference being the fact that the strategy formulation takes place inside business board rooms rather than war rooms and battlefields. Strategies are also essential as they help in generating better co-ordination among the team members within an organization. This is very crucial in order to gain competitive advantage in the turbulent and highly competitive business environment. Some of the characteristics of strategies include the aspect of importance, the range of commitment to the resources of the company and the fact that these strategic decisions are largely irreversible or difficult to revert. Authors have however pointed out that the difference of principles between the military and business organizations has perhaps led to the very absence of any general theory on strategy. The present study would try to analyse the basis of business strategy including analysing the origins and the historical background of business strategy. It would also include a comparison of various schools of thought on the aspect of strategic management that is being used by business organizations to gain organizational excellence and generate competitive advantage in the market. Historical Perspective of Strategic Management Strategic management has its roots based in strategy, this term ‘strategy’ has its origins in ancient Greece from the Greek word named ‘strategia’ that in general implies and means general ship. The aspect of str ategy comes from the aspect of ‘army’ and ‘leading’. The first recorded writing about strategy dates back to 500 BC to a work named the ‘Art of War’ written by Sun Tzu. The earlier research on strategy was limited to analysing military strategies. However with competition emerging immensely in the business markets, the aspect of strategy is business has gained prominence amongst researchers (Grant, 2005, p.14). However the aspect of business strategy gained populace among the researchers in the last 20 years where a number of strategic thoughts in business have come up widely. Authors like Porter, Mintzberg and some others have stated strategy as a top level decision making concept that is associated with the management of an entire organization. All these authors have essentially stated that strategy is a managerial aspect and involves the top management in an organization. These views have been severely criticised by authors like Camerer, Eve red, Keichel, Mitroff, Manson, Tinker and Lowe (1984). These authors have slammed the managerial orientation of the topic of strategy and have stated this school of thought as ‘atheoritical’. They have also stated that the views of Porter and others are largely jargon based and largely derived out of commonsense (Srivastava, 1986, p.363). Authors like Ackoff, Ansoff and others have stated that the present literature on strategic managem

Culver City Essay Example for Free

Culver City Essay Because of the changes that have taken place in the nursing home industry throughout the past decade, service area competitor analyses have become an increasingly important aspect of environmental analysis. The process of service area competitor analysis involves first of all an identification of the service category for analysis. It then moves on to include identifying of competitors, determining the strengths and weaknesses of rivals, and anticipating their moves based on the analysis of the data collected. The service area selected for this particular analysis is the Culver City nursing home industry. The market for nursing home care in Culver City, California is changing rapidly and has been considered a buyer’s market for specialty care. The population of Culver City in relation to the number of senior citizens is an important consideration in the decision to enter the nursing home market in this city. The number of persons each nursing home usually takes is in the range of 80 to 85% of its carrying capacity (Pandya, 2001). One must not forget that â€Å"the demand for nursing home care [is] driven by the availability of financing† (Willging, 2003). Also notable is that approximately 36% of seniors have been financing nursing-home care out of pocket (2001). In carrying out a service area competitor analysis upon this city, it is necessary to take a look at such aspects as its financial and economic situation, the demographics, and the trends that might derive from them. It will also be necessary to assess the strategies being pursued by the nursing homes that service the area and the consumer reaction to these policies. According to the analysis of the Culver City finance budget, the city began a period of economic growth in the late 1990’s where the property taxes began reflecting an increase in the value of real estate and overall taxes represented a general increase in per capita income. Over the period the city was able to sustain both low inflation and unemployment rates. Investment grew almost three fold, according to the Dow Jones Industrial, S P 500, and the Nasdaq composite charts (City of Culver City, 485-86). However, economic growth has plateauxed since 2001, and the employment rate that had fallen from 9 to 3. 9 percent, has risen up to approximately six percent (485). Across the United States, the health care industry has had to cope with economic changes resulting from rising medical costs. The Culver City population sustained a growth of 47% between the years 1990 and 2000 (â€Å"City Population,† p. 2). The records of the Culver City Redevelopment Agency reveal that the population of the city is 39,119. On average, there are about 16,826 households represented in the area, and the income for the average household is about $76,013 per annum. The income for the average family household amounts to $90,930. The Culver City trade area extends beyond this. If the area considered extends to a three mile radius beyond the hub of the city, the population increases 305,287 and boasts an average family income of $79,689. Within a five mile radius live about 852,147 people, and the inclusion of this population brings the average household income back up to $87,820. The median age of Culver City is 40, and 84% of all the adults of this city have attained at least a high school education. Thirty five percent of these adults have also attained at least a bachelor’s degree in higher education. The population is distributed mainly among persons of Caucasian, Hispanic, African American and Asian origins. Forty-six percent of the inhabitants are white, 25% are Hispanic, 12% are Asian and another 12% are African American. The remaining 5% are of unknown or â€Å"other† origin (â€Å"Demographics†). In Culver City is a rather prosperous community. Only 2. 96% of the population earns less than $20,000 per year. Those who live on an amount between $20,000 and $50,000 amount to 13. 46% and another 22. 37% live within the next tier level, between $50,000 and $75,000. Seventeen percent live on $75,001 to $100,000, and a third of all the people live on an income higher than $100,000. Approximately 16% of the Culver City residents are over sixty years old (â€Å"Demographics†). For strategic management purposes it is dangerous to consider the over-65 group as a homogeneous one (Willging, 2003). Shifts in demographic and increases in lifespan have changed the make-up and the desires of the aging population (Ginter, et al. 2006, p. 6). The senior citizens and retiree demographic in Culver City has been divided into three groups for the sake of consumer analysis. The retirement group has a median income of approximately $53,000 which is about $11,000 higher than the national average. Non-whites are represent about 43% of this group and approximately 35% of this group has attained a bachelor’s (or higher) degree. This group is likely on average to spend a mid-to-high amount on entertainment, but spends a bit lower on average on health care, presumably because not all retirees are senior citizens (Artsmarket, 2002, p. 12-13). The active senior singles group has a median income of $32,000, which is also higher than the national median. They participate in many health activities and have a medium-to-high likelihood of spending money on health. The portion of none whites in this group is approximately 22%, and 25. 7% percent of the members of the active senior singles group have attained college degrees (Artsmarket, 2002, p. 14-15). The prosperous older couples group has a median income of approximately $67,500, which is an astounding $32,000 higher than the national median. Thirty percent of these have attained bachelor’s degrees (or higher) and people of color make up 29 % of the group. Their likelihood of spending on health care is in the high range (Artsmarket, 2002, p. 16-17). The city’s economic situation presents costs and benefits to any prospective nursing-home business venture. The fixed costs of entering the market would be considerable, but the increased unemployment rate (up from 3. 9 percent) would make the price of labor a little more affordable than in recent years. A favorable thing for businesses is the tax rebate program that has been instituted by the city to encourage new business. This grants them tax relief from either business or utility users’ tax (â€Å"City of Culver City, 489). A new entrant into the nursing home industry in Culver City must consider the quality of care that is to be provided by that business entity. The general problems with funding being experienced by nursing homes across the country has led not just to many law suits and eventual bankruptcy, but to the loss of customers to competitors (Day, 2005). Culver City customers also require not just a variety but quality of service. Variety will be an asset; however, as there is great intensity of rivalry among existing organizations, and the nursing home industry is experiencing rapid growth driven by the demographic and social trends mentioned above. It must be noted, for example, that a good portion of the seniors are educated, and â€Å"educated seniors tend to be more knowledgeable and have higher expectations of a facility† (Willging, 2003). The significant portion of non-whites must also be considered and real attempts made to cater and appeal to them. In addition, it must be noted that a vast majority of these seniors have lived active lives; therefore, facilities which cater to this would be magnetic to their tastes. The competitors in the Culver City nursing home industry, though they provide adequate care and the necessary facilities, can be categorized into four groups that denote they quality of service they offer as well as the level of reimbursement that they require for those services. For this service area nursing home facilities are pursuing four basic strategies: high price with highly specialized services (strategic group 1), low price with few ancillary services (strategic group 2), medium price with some services, (strategic group 3), and high price with many services (strategic group 4). Customers who seek the attributes of one strategic group, such as highly specialized rehabilitation services, are unlikely to be attracted to another strategic group. A good idea for a newcomer in the nursing home market is to choose the group to which it is best able to cater, and possibly to diversify the scope of the service by offering one or two (not many) extra services. Then, concentrate on providing the best service possible in that group. Diversity does exist in the consumer groups, but this information must be acted upon with care. Early retirees, for example, who might need nursing home care, may not yet qualify for state or federal assisted care (Clinton, 1993). Medicare and Medicaid provide full coverage to only about 9% of seniors, and many are forced to pay out of pocket (Day, 2005). The figures have shown that many Culver City seniors can afford this, but paying out of pocket means that the consumers will be even more unlikely to accept less than the best care. This look at the nursing home industry as it exists in Culver City has revealed that, though a â€Å"buyers’ market† exists and the competition is very high, a newcomer in the market might still have a chance to win a significant market share. This must be done by paying attention to the demographic as well as the economic situations that have the power to affect the market. The psychographic and demographic aspects show that a diversity of services must be offered and that any newcomer desiring be successful in such a competitive and demanding market must be willing to (carefully) diversify. References ArtsMarket. (2002). City of Culver City: Acorn Cluster Lifestyles and Local Profiles. Bozeman: Author. www. artmarket. com City of Culver City. (2004). â€Å"Fiscal 2004-05 Adopted City Budget. † Budget and Finance. Author. http://www. culvercity. org/citygov/budgetfinance/depts_budgfinanc. html â€Å"City Population. † (2001). Redistricting Committee. Oregon State Legislature. http://www. leg. state. or. us/comm/redistricting/citypop. pdf Clinton, Bill. (1993). Remarks and a question-and-answer session with the AARP on health care in Culver City, California. Weekly compilation of presidential documents. News and Society. http://www. findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m2889/is_n40_v29/ai_14550594 Day, Thomas. (2005). â€Å"About Nursing Homes. † Guide to long term care planning. National Care Planning Council. http://www. longtermcarelink. net/about_nursing_homes. html â€Å"Demographics. † City of Culver City. http://www. culvercity. org Ginter, P. M. , Swayne, L. E. and Duncan, W. J. (2006). Strategic management of health care organizations. 4th ed. Malden: Blackwell. Pandya, Sheel. â€Å"Nursing Homes. † Policy and research for professionals in aging. AARP. http://www. aarp. org/research/longtermcare/nursinghomes/aresearch-import-669- FS10R. html Redevelopment Agency of Culver City. â€Å"Community Profile. † City of Culver City. Culver City: Government. http://www. culvercity. org/citygov/redevelop/demogr. html Willging, Paul. R. (2003). â€Å"Don’t let demographics fool you. † Nursing Homes. Aug. 2003. http://www. findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m3830/is_8_52/ai_108198554

Exploring Walt Disney World Tourism Essay

Exploring Walt Disney World Tourism Essay What is the largest and most visited resort in the world? Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida is the largest and most visited place in the world. The Walt Disney World Resort contains a variety of places to visit. Disney World offers four famous theme parks, two water parks, along with many other Disney themed attractions. Walt Disney World has five golf courses total. Four of which are 18-hole courses. Those courses include, Disneys Palm Golf Course, Disneys Mangolia Golf Course, Bonnet Creek Golf Course, and Lake Buena Vista Course. Three of those courses are on the PGA Tour. Disney also offers one 9-hole course called Disneys Oak Trail Golf Course. The golf courses offer golf carts for guests to use. Fantasia Gardens and Winter Summerland are two of Disneys miniature golf course. Walt Disneys water parks include Typhoon Lagoon, and Blizzard Beach. Disneys Typhoon Lagoon has the largest outdoor water park in the world. Typhoon Lagoons mascot is called Lagoona Gator. The legend of this park is, a typhoon came and flung fishing supplies, surfing gear, and ships all around the park. In the middle of the park is a shrimp boat, Miss Tilly. The shrimp boat is on a mountain that gushes water out every half hour for a waterfall. This park offers raft rides, waterslides, a wave pool, and even a shark reef. Teens and adults can go snorkeling with stingrays and sharks at shark reef. Typhoon Lagoon offers rides for the whole family. Such rides at Typhoon Lagoon include Crush N Gusher which is a roller coaster water slide. Also there are single person flume rides known as Keelhaul Falls and Storm Slides. Mayday Falls is a curvy fun inner tube ride. There is also Castaway Creek, which is an inner tube ride that goes all through the park. This park offers a lot of excitement for guests to have fun in. Blizzard Beach is the other water park at the Walt Disney World Resort. It is one of the most unique water parks. The legend of this park is that huge snowstorms lead to the constructing of a ski resort that didnt happen because the snow didnt last long. As the resort was closing an alligator was spotted sliding down a flume. The ski resort was made into a water park with the alligator named Ice Gator as the mascot. This park has one of the largest free falling slides in the world. Many of the slides are from Mount Gushmore. Mount Gushmore is the fifth highest point in Florida. Blizzard Beach also has a ride called Teamboat Springs which is one of the longest family raft rides. Walt Disney has four theme parks that are very well-known. Disneys parks include, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Disneys Hollywood Studios, and Epcot. There are always parades or shows involving Disney characters for children and adults to enjoy. Disney characters are almost everywhere you look at the parks to take pictures with the guests. Every park has Disney related shops and restaurants. Magic Kingdom is the most visited park in the world. The park is represented by Cinderellas Castle. Magic Kingdom includes seven magical lands. The lands include, Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, Main Street USA, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, and Mickeys Toontown Fair. Magic Kingdom has many Disney movie themed rides for the whole family. This park contains some of the famous rides such as Splash Mountain. Adventureland is themed to resemble jungles in Asia, Africa, Middle East, and South America. The Pirates of the Caribbean ride is at this part of Magic Kingdom. At Adventureland take a magic carpet ride on The Magic Carpets of Aladdin. Also guests can find the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse at this section of Magic Kingdom. Attractions such as Splash Mountain and the Country Bear Jamboree can be found in Frontierland. Frontierland is the more western part of the park. Tom Sawyer Island is a place that Walt Disney actually designed. Liberty Square contains the Haunted Mansion and the Hall of Presidents. It is based on an American Revolutionary town. Guests can dance with Goofy and characters from Toy Story 2 at Goofys Country Dancin Jamboree. Main Street USA is the most popular area of Magic Kingdom. Many shopping areas and restaurants are found there. Cinderellas Castle stands at the end of Main Street. The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is a major attraction for young girls to get made over into a princess at Cinderellas Castle. Many of parades happen sporadically at this part of the park. Fantasyland is based on a carnival theme. Fantasylands main attractions include, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, its a small world, Snow Whites Scary Adventures, Mad Tea Party, and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Mickeys PhilharMagic is popular here, its a 3-D adventure. Tomorrowland features the well-known ride, Space Mountain. Also guests can interact with Toy Story characters at Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin. Mickeys Toontown Fair is the last of the seven lands at Magic Kingdom. This part of the park is exciting because it contains places that belong to the characters. Guests can meet Tinker Bell and her fairy friends at Pixie Hollow. At Toon Park guests can interact with Chip and Dale. Guests can walk through Minne Mouses home in this section of Magic Kingdom. Mickeys house is also at this part of the park. Donalds Boat is another attraction here. One of Disneys other parks is Animal Kingdom. This is the newest park; it is also the largest Disney theme park in the world. Animal Kingdom allows animal encounters along with live entertainment. This park is themed around animals. The park contains 250 different types of animals making the park have more than 1,700 animals. Animal Kingdom has seven different areas which include, Oasis, Discovery Island, Camp Minnie-Mickey, Africa, Rafikis Planet Watch, Asia, and Dinoland. The Oasis is the main entrance to Animal Kingdom. This is where guests can encounter with animals such as wallabies, spoons, ducks, and giant anteaters. Rainforest Cafà © is a big attraction at Oasis. It is an animal themed restaurant that has a welcoming environment. The parks Tree of Life is found at Discovery Island. Discovery Island is a main part of Animal Kingdom because it connects to all of the parts of the park besides Rafikis Planet Watch. The parks largest shops and restaurants are located at Discovery Island. Another main attraction of the section of Animal Kingdom is, Its Tough to be a Bug. Mickey and Minnie can be found at Camp Minnie-Mickey. At this section of the park there is a theatre that features The Festival of the Lion King. Africas main attraction is the Kilimanjaro Safaris. Guests will be able to see giraffes, hippos, elephants, and wild animals on the safari. Guests take a Wildlife Express Train to learn about animal habitats on Rafikis Planet Watch. Around that area there is a small petting zoo for people to interact with the animals. Another part of Animal Kingdom is Asia. Asia contains the Maharajah Jungle Trek that guests can go through forests and see tigers, fruit bats, and komodo dragons. There is a river rapid ride located in Asia. There is also a roller coaster through the Himalayas at Expedition Everest. Dinoland has a Bone yard for kids to play in along with carnival games and gift shops. There are family rides and a roller coaster in this area of the park. One can also find Finding Nemo The Musical here. Another Walt Disney Park is Disneys Hollywood Studios. It is represented by The Sorcerers Hat, which is a symbol from the film Fantasia. This park is slightly different from the other parks because it is set up differently. It contains numerous amounts of buildings and streets. There is no defined layout. The park consists of six different areas that are, Hollywood Boulevard, Echo Lake, Streets of America, Animation Courtyard, Pixar Place, and Sunset Boulevard. Hollywood Boulevard is Hollywood Studios main entrance. There are venues everywhere you look selling Disney items. Live entertainment is always happening at this part of the park. There is a replica of the Chinese Theater that contains The Great Movie Ride inside of it. The Great Movie Ride is a dark ride that features old movies such as The Wizard of Oz. Another part of Hollywood Studios is Echo Lake. It is a small oval shaped lagoon with attractions such as The American Idol Experience and Hall of Fame Plaza. Another attraction at Echo Lake is the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! Kids can interact with plants and toys at the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure at Streets of America. This area of the park is where a lot of stunts are performed. Disneys Toy Story Plant Pizza Arcade is at this area as well. Animation Courtyard is where guests can meet Disneys Pixar characters. Playhouse Disney and the Voyage of the Little Mermaid are live performances at Animation Courtyard. At the Pixar Place the attraction is Toy Story Midway Mania!, which contain all of the Toy Story characters. Guests are able to see animations in movies. Last but not least, Hollywood Studios Sunset Boulevard contains the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and the Rock and Roll Roller Coaster. Sunset Boulevard also features Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage. Walt Disney Worlds final theme park is Epcot. Epcots icon is Spaceship Earth. This park is focused on international culture and technological innovation. This park only has two sections which are, World Showcase, and Future World. This park is twice the size of Disneys Magic Kingdom. Epcot has a variety of attractions from just a simple boat ride to fast thriller rides. Epcot has Kidcot stations which offer creations of one-of-a kind souvenirs. World Showcase contains 11 pavilions that represent different countries. Every pavilion has shops and restaurants that resemble their culture. The pavilions include Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, The American Adventure, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, and Canada. An attraction at World Showcase is the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure. The Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure is in most pavilions. It is an electronic scavenger hunt using a type cell phone, presented by Verizon Wireless. At the Germany pavilion characters from Snow White make appearances. In addition to Italy features Pinocchio characters. The Great American pavilion features all of the flags throughout the history of the United States. Guests take a tour through American history at this pavilion. The France pavilion shows a replica of the Eiffel Tower. There are shops that sell French items. Disneys Beauty and the Beast make frequent appearances at the France pavilion. Characters from The Aristocats along with The Hunchback of Notre Dame also make appearances at France. The United Kingdom has a Beatles tribute band known as The British Invasion who performs frequently there. In stores at this pavilion you are able to find Beatles souvenirs. Characters from Alice in Wonderland, Winnie the Pooh, Mary Poppins, and Pirates of the Caribbean are usually at this part of World Showcase. Canada is a more outdoor pavilion. Characters from the Disney film, Brother Bear, appear in this pavilion. The other section of Epcot is called Future World. Future World also has many pavilions. The pavilions of Future World are Spaceship Earth, Innoventions, Universe of Energy, Mission: SPACE, Test Track, The Seas with Nemo and Friends, The Land, and Imagination. The pavilions explore innovative technology. Each pavilion is sponsored by a corporation who helped fund its construction. Spaceship Earth is one of the most known and recognizable structures that the Walt Disney World Resort has. It takes guests on a time machine experience that shows advancement in human communication. It has a timeline from how humans used to be, to how they are now. A German company called Siemens sponsors Spaceship Earth. Another pavilion in Future World is Innovations which deals with advancements in everyday life. The Great Piggy Bank Adventure, Club Cool, Segway Central, and SlapStick Studios are some of the exhibits this pavilion has to offer. Universe Energy itself was the attraction. It talked about battery powered cars and natural gas, petroleum, coal, and natural gas. Mission: SPACE is a motion simulator ride; it gives off the feeling of an astronaut. Future Worlds Test Track is sponsored by General Motors. Guests can actually drive the test cars around the track. The cars maximum speed is 64.8 miles per hour. Next to Disneys Rock and Roll Roller Coaster, this is the fastest attraction Disney has made. The Seas with Nemo and Friends is a pavilion based on underwater discovery. It is the largest man-made underwater exhibit in the world. Attractions at this park include, Talk with Crush where kids can ask questions about the sea. The Land is a pavilion to show how we can use our land or destroy it. Nestle sponsors this part of Future World. The Circle of Life is performed here, from the film The Lion King. Eastman Kodak sponsors Imagination. An Attraction at Imagination is Honey I Shrunk the Audience. The four parks are similar yet different. They each have different aspects and features about them. Each park has different icons and a different set up. They are alike because they all are Disney themed and have rides, shops, and food. The Disney parks are some of the most visited parks in the world. After all of the parks are closed there is Downtown Disney. Downtown Disney is opened to the public. Downtown Disney is an outdoor shopping, dining, entertaining area. It has three sections, Pleasure Island, Marketplace, and West Side. The Marketplace has a lot of shopping places that include, Lego Imagination Center, Once upon a Toy, and Goofys Candy Company. The Marketplace has the largest Disney character store in the world. Disneys West Side has many large stores and nice restaurants. Attractions such as Planet Hollywood, The House of Blues, and Wolfgang Puck Cafà © can be found here. Outdoor beverages and food can be found at Pleasure Island. The Orlando Harley Davidson is located at Pleasure Island. Also there is a lot of dancing that goes on at this part of Downtown Disney. One of the main attractions at Downtown Disney is Disney Quest. Disney Quest is an indoor interactive theme park. It offers five floors of fun entertainment. The genie from Aladdin is the parks unofficial mascot. On the first floor the attractions are a Virtual Jungle Cruise where guests may get wet while dodging dinosaurs, and Pirates of the Caribbean where guests search for gold. The second floor features Sids Create a Toy from Toy Story where guests can make a toy then later purchase it. Radio Disney Song Maker allows guests to make a song and later purchase it. In addition to Living Easels, guests can draw something on them and later buy it. Guests can try to find the genie and collect gems on Aladdins Magic Carpet Ride. The third floor of Disney Quest contains Buzz Lightyears Astro Blaster which is bumper cars and Mighty Ducks Pinball Slam which is a giant pinball game. The fourth floor is a comic adventure. The fifth floor resembles the fourth floor. Disney Quest also has games such as Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and many other arcade games. They also have games like skee ball and air hockey. They also have photo booths and claw machines. There are over 20 Disney themed hotels within the Walt Disney Resort. There are different categories of the hotels which include, moderate, deluxe, campgrounds, value, and club villas. Most of these hotels contain a pool, shops, variety of food, room service, arcades, and playgrounds. Disney hotels are fun themed such as Disneys All Star Movie Resort has characters from 101 Dalmatians and Toy Story. Pop Century hotel has Play-Doh and Rubiks Cube figures to show the hotels toy, catch phrase theme. All Star Sports Resort has large statues of sports like basketball or cheerleading to make guests feel the sport theme. Disneys Animal Kingdom Lodge has fun features like Pumbaas Fun Games Arcade where guests can play new and classic games. Another feature this hotel has Hakuna Matata Playground where kids can play all day next to the flamingo habitat. At Disneys campgrounds guests can go horse-back riding, fish, enjoy Mickeys Backyard Barbeque, get involved with water activities, and sing with Chip and Dale at the fire. The Disney hotels are fun and have everything in them to accommodate guests the best they can. The Walt Disney World Resort would not be here today if it wasnt for Mr. Walt Disney himself. Walt Disney has inspired many of people. Walt Disney changed the lives of many people. He changed the entertainment business. He was a magical person. He has touched the hearts of children along with adults. Who knew that by starting out drawing cartoons that Disney would have came this far! He always had a dream of owning a theme park. Walts dream came true. Walt is popular all over the world. He loved history, and slowly introduced us to the future. He is a legend of the 20th century. He won seven Emmy Awards, fifty-nine Academy Award nominations, and twenty-six Oscars. How did Walt get where he is today? Walt Disney was born on December 5, 1901. He had three brothers and one sister. In Walts younger days he would sell paintings to local people to make extra cash. Instead of doing his school work, Walt would doodle sketches. He went to college to study art and photography. At night he attended a place to better his drawing abilities. Walt always had a thing for nature and wildlife. Walt was even involved in acting. He would sneak out at night just to go perform somewhere. Walts father was somewhat stern at times. Walts mother and brother, Roy urged Walt to pursue his dreams. Walt was rejected because of young age from the military. He then went to France with the Red Cross. His ambulance had images of Disney cartoons on it. When Walt came back from France, he focused on comical art which led to animation. He produced short animations for local places. When Walt ran out of money, he packed up with The Alice Comedies and went to Hollywood. Walt married Lillian Bounds, an employee in 1925. They later had two daughters. He was not the typical Hollywood star. He didnt care for socializing; the people that knew Walt were his family. Soon after Lillian and Walt got married, Walt created Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse first made his appearance in Steamboat Willie. Steamboat Willie was the worlds first cartoon with sound. Walt produced the first colored cartoon known as, Flowers and Trees. Moving on, in 1937 Walt produced the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This film is a classic, and is still popular today. Right after Snow White came out, an unexpected death of Walts mother took place. This was one time Walt showed emotion. Disney was hard at work and within five years he produced more full-length films such as, Pinocchio, Dumbo, and Bambi. In 1955, Disneys dream of the amusement park came true. Disneyland was opened. After it opened, Walt Disney expanded. More and more parks popped up. Walt Disney died of lung cancer December 15, 1966 right before the Walt Disney Resort was opened. Walt Disney has changed the world today. New Disney movies keep coming out. Walt Disney created something that will never end. He was a true hero.

Motif of Play in John Updikes A&P Essay -- John Updike A&P

The Motif of Play in A & P  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the short story "A & P" the author, John Updike, uses the motif of play as one of the main means by which he develops the character of Sammy, the nineteen-year-old narrator and protagonist of the story. In his many and varied references to play, Sammy reveals, along with his obvious immaturity, his rich imagination and potential for possible growth. The story takes place in the summertime of 1960 on a Thursday afternoon. Sammy is employed at the A & P grocery store located in the middle of a town north of Boston, about five miles from the beach. Along with Sammy, the other characters involved in this story are three girls shopping in the A & P in their bathing suits, whom Sammy names Plaid, Queenie and Big Tall Goony-Goony; Stokesie, Sammy's married co-worker; and Lengel, the A & P manager. "A & P" is told from Sammy's point of view. Sammy presents himself as a nonchalant and flippant young man. He appears to be somewhat contemptuous of the older people shopping in the store. However, near the end of the story, we see that he does take responsibility for his conscience-driven behavior and decision, revealing his passage out of adolescence into adulthood through the courage of his convictions. We see Sammy's immaturity at its worst with his snide labeling of the customers in the A & P. An example of this occurs when he calls one lady "a witch about fifty with rouge on her cheekbones and no eyebrows" (p.33). Sammy places the blame on her for his mistake at the cash register. He claims she would have been burned at the stake in Salem if she had been alive then. In another instance, he refers to the housewives shopping as "houseslaves in pin curlers" (p.34). He seems to be fo... ...gives him some insight into his future. As he is walking away from the A & P he sees "Lengel in [his] place in the slot, checking the sheep through. His face was dark gray and his back stiff, as if he'd just had an injection of iron, and my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter" (p.37). Sammy begins his transition from adolescence into adulthood here. He realizes that if he stays at the A & P he may end up like Lengel or the other sheep. He wants more out of life and his fantasy about being Queenie's "unsuspected hero" (p.36) allows him to escape. Sammy comes to the conclusion that life is not going to be easy and he is going to make decisions for himself that the people around him will not necessarily support. Work Cited Updike, John. "A & P." Literature (4th ed). Ed. Robert DiYanni. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998.

WHITE BLOOD CELLS Essay -- essays research papers fc

White Blood Cells Bacteria exist everywhere in the environment and have continuous access to the body through the mouth, nose and pores of skin. Further more, many cells age and die daily and their remains must be removed, this is where the white blood cell plays its role.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to this quotation, without white blood cells, also known as leukocytes, we would not be able to survive. White blood cells are our body’s number one defense against infections. They help keep us clean from foreign bacteria that enter our bodies. Statistics show that there are five to ten thousand white blood cells per micro liter of blood, however this number will increase during an illness. White blood cells can differ in many ways, such as, size, shape and staining traits. There are five different kinds of white blood cells that fall into two separate categories. One category is called, granular leukocytes, and the other is called agranular white cells.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three different types of granular leukocytes. Neutrophil is a phagocyte, produced in the bone marrow that ingests and destroys bacteria extremely fast. Neutrophil has a diameter, which is, about ten to twelve micrometers long. They make up about 60-70 percent of the total number of white blood cells in our body. Eosinphil is a type of white blood cell that secretes poisonous materials in order to kill parasites, allergies and phagocytosis of bacteria, which is when the...

Plan For Development Of Human Capital

The staff development and leadership training models and programs of Clark County School District includes various aspects like Specific goals for student achievement, Time-bound goals for student achievement, Strong, internal evaluation practices and Time and Opportunity. (Wiedemann, 2006, 6) But from the perspective of modern Human Resource and development there are still rooms for improvements. The main aim of an able leader is to produce confident, independent learners and support staffs thorough a capacity for self assessment.The first of these factors deals with spiritual dimension of the leaders in the context and perception of their students and support staffs. The second factor deals with physical dimension where the focus is mainly laid down on the classroom environment. The third factor is the instructional dimension where the teaching skills of the teachers are taken into consideration. Lastly there is the factor of managerial dimension which is focused on dealing with ad dressing student behavior. (Finnis, 2003)To maintain standards in educational tolerance and sensitivity, we must learn about each student individually. This would be for their benefit to not only realize their goals and aspirations but to know their potential limitations and help them in the discovery of methods toward surpassing those limitations in order to gain access to their aspirations. Professors must also provide the students the outside methods toward attaining confidence in their ability to learn new skills in forwarding their education.Consistent teaching and learning is managed in order to improve attainment resources for teaching and learning in the form of revision guides, coursework help, lesson plans, worksheets, tasks and links to other sites. (Zimmerman, 2002) This has often resulted in improved consistency in teaching and would also have enabled students’ access to useful materials encouraging independent learning. It should also be mentioned that Leaders a nd the aspect of leadership must be efficient and intelligent.Let us take the example of Peters and Waterman, who in â€Å"In Search of Excellence† thought of â€Å"being visible† and â€Å"management by walkabout†. The dexterity and expertise of managers should support the endeavours of the Staffs. Staffs should feel that they are guided by the managers in perusing their duties. By sound management techniques the ambitions of participative leadership and the human relations school can be achieved. (Wright, 2004)In general it can be stated that strategies followed by the school are to EXPAND its student and staff base and enhance the moral by pursuing multimedia opportunities, DELIVER an award-winning level of excellence, building public interest, trust and pride, PROVIDE vigorous leadership and support in the institution, INSTILL an environment of internal and external excellence in customer service, EMPOWER and recognize each staff's unique contribution, ACHIE VE the highest standards of quality, IMPROVE motivation strength and thus build up a considerable level of human capital.  (Berkowitz, 2000)In conclusion it should be the main aim to produce confident, independent learners thorough a capacity for self assessment. In this manner gaining independence in their education and the capacity to achieve will further their aspirations toward higher goals.Providing a baseline for their understanding and ability to interact with them and then first ascertaining their learning level prior to assigning the individual goals as well as the overall goals for each individual student is an important step toward gaining understanding and the capacity for learning. Taking the steps outlined in the Classroom Strategy and adapting them to the differentials provided by the learning styles of each student is an important aspect for consideration and would in fact manage to be one of the goals set to achieve as a teacher. (Manning, 2003) References: Berkowitz L; (2000); Leadership and Implementations: Findings and Enactment. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. Finnis, J. 2003. Fundamentals of Leadership; Georgetown University Press Manning, Schissler Susan. (2003). Ethical Leadership in Human Services: A Multi-Dimensional Approach, New York: Allyn and Bacon. Wiedemann, Denise; 2006; District School Improvement – Amao Plan; Clark County School District; Las Vegas: Nevada; retrieved on 28.06.2007 from http://ccsd.net/schools/pdf/DSIP2006-full.pdf Wright, Robert; 2004; The Moral Animal: why we are the way we are. Little, Brown & Co Zimmerman, S; (2002); Introduction to Management Principals; National Book Trust