The Methodology of Three International University Ranking Systems Essay

The Methodology of Three International University Ranking Systems - Essay Example The three major international ranking systems that are used for this purpose are The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Rankings of World Universities as well as The CHE ExcellenceRanking 2010 (Gallagher, 2011). The essay will start off with a definition of the university league tables and how they work, reasons for their popularity and the substantial growth in their use over the past years. Next, it will explore various areas in relation with the league tables such as critical analysis of the three ranking systems to gauge their strengths and weaknesses, debate on the evidentiary basis of league tables to explain the criteria upon which the universities are ranked and criticism as well as the limitations to the validity of university ranking systems. Lastly, it will single out the methodology that stands out. The need for and growth of ranking systems: The world is in the process of getting preoccupied with rankings more and more every d ay. Just like scarcity, having access to the ‘finest’ as well as prestige more or less mark the purchase of almost every commodity in our daily lives, so are the customers of the tertiary sector continuously looking out for pointers that improve their capability to know and access the best in the tertiary sector (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). Criteria for measuring the rankings: In most of the university ranking tables, the criteria used to measure the rankings is: To be distinct about what the ranking will measure. To use a variety of indicators and multiple procedures rather than a single, weighted ranking. To associate comparable programs or institutions. At the institutional level, use rankings for planned preparation and quality enhancement purposes. At the government level, use rankings to kindle a philosophy of quality. Use rankings as one of the tools available to notify and update students, families and employers and encourage public debate (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007) An alysis of the ranking systems: Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) rankings were formulated in 1998 and were more formally known as ‘The Academic Rankings of the World Universities’ (ARWU). Universities that have field medallists; highly cited researchers as well as Nobel laureates are included in the ranking. According to this criterion, ARWU is not trying to compare all the universities throughout the world; instead it is targeting the world’s top research universities only. ARWU initially picks out around 1000 universities from throughout the world, of which only 500 are later on ranked in the league tables. For all ARWU indicators, data is usually collected from third parties that include the official site of the Nobel Prize as well as numerous Thomson Reuters websites in order to access citation and publications (Rauhvargers, 2011). Moving on to ‘The Times higher Education World University Rankings’, it is apparent that, published in 2004, it w as an ‘answer’ to the Shanghai ARWU rankings. The indicated drive of ‘The World University Rankings’ is â€Å"to recognise universities as the multi-faceted organisations that they are, to provide a global comparison of their success against the notional mission of remaining or becoming world-class† (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). This ranking separates 300 in each of the five faculty areas as well as about 600 universities and uses sources such as incorporate surveys from individual academics and researchers, employer organisations, third-party data as well as university information (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). Lastly, The CHE Centre for Higher Education Development that designed an ‘

How Hersey Portrays the Event in Hiroshima Essay

How Hersey Portrays the Event in Hiroshima - Essay Example All of these individuals had no sense that their life would change few minutes after eight fifteen in the morning of 6 August 1945. As Hersey’s says in his book, Hiroshima, a noiseless flash was the only sign that each survivor would remember as they encounter a tragedy they would not forget in their life. Miss Sasaki was clerk at East Asia Tin when Dr. Masakazu was with his patient in a private hospital, Mrs. Nakamura stood in her kitchen looking outside through the window, and Father Kleinsorge was leading a magazine in his room. Reverend Tanimoto was another victim of the Hiroshima bombing; he as the other survivors was with a colleague pushing a handcart to the man’s house (Hersey 4-6). That day was like any other as Hersey’s records it was a still morning, and the town was pleasant and cool as always. Moreover, within a splash of second, a â€Å"tremendous flash† cut across from east heading west, and from that moment, the life of the people changed i n the city of Hiroshima (Hersey 4-6). Hersey note that the situation that people were just living their life, though terrified by threat of attack, it is worth to note that human being are, in equal measure the same and need to be treated with dignity. Hersey’s story displays the danger that surrounds human being in his action to make a living. In his analysis of the event after the Hiroshima bombing, Hersey displays the location of his six characters that he interviewed. In addition, the mere chance that they survived while many other died is by chance and their unconscious actions. There was spared from death and serious injuries. Hersey portrays a mysterious situation where so many people dies living other with only minor injuries. Hersey also portrays how fast thing can change in the matter of seconds. Before the attack with the atomic bomb, Hiroshima was used to warning of the possible attack. However, in the morning of 6 August 1945, no warning came to caution the peopl e of the attack, and the whole of Hiroshima changed from common to struggle and survival. The life of Hersey’s characters and the city would be different from what they were used to. As noted in the narration of the experiences, Hersey’s works portrays the abuse of human ethics, and the action of the American government. The attack of Hiroshima with something that caused unwarranted suffering is chocking and unbelievable. Such an act ought to be demonstrated to make people aware of what could happen in a situation of war with the kind of weapon such as an atomic bomb. What insight does the book give you into the Japanese perspective, and what do you think of that? In the experiences of the survivors, Hersey work tries to unfold the live after the atomic bomb. First, Mrs. Nakamura, one of the six characters interviewed by Hersey meets her sister in Hiroshima, and she is disappointed to hear from her that Japan has conceded defeat and that the war was done. She wishes Ja pan could win the war even after the attack in the city. Hersey paint a picture of dedicated people who no matter the devastation they had the courage to move on with their life. At time Mrs. Nakamura was meeting her sister, she had gone to the city to bring with her rice she had buried before the attack (50). In other instances, Hersey says that in September of 1945, radiation related ailment, had affected everyone. Father kleinsorge fell sick while going to deposit money in the city while Mrs. Nakamura daughter had fallen sick. Mr. Takimoto by this time had been bedridden (51-55). None of the challenge that the Japanese met deterred them from moving on with their live. Hersey also records that even in the city; Feverfew and Panic grass spring up in the city

Current Purchasing Power Accounting Accounting Essay

Current Purchasing Power Accounting Accounting Essay Accounting theory is a set of basic assumptions, definitions, principles, and concepts surrounding the accounting rule. It includes the reporting of accounting and financial information to relevant or interested parties. There are several approaches that are used in the development of accounting theory. The two main ones are normative theory approach and the positive theory approach. Normative theory approach is a theory that is not based on observation. It is based on how things in the accounting process should be done. This approach comprises of different approaches to have a single but effective accounting approach (Khandelwal, Jain, 2008). This kind of approach uses a formula to come up with an income based on value, not costs. On the other hand, positive or descriptive theoretical approach to accounting theory is a set of theories that is concerned with what accountants actually do (Rosenfield, 2006). These theories rely on a process of inductive thinking, which involves making observations and drawing inferences from them. The main purpose of making observations is to identify certain similarities, identify the number of instances that the similarities are actually observed to deduce a certain degree of assurance necessary to set up a theory about all the similar instances (Ackert, Deaves, 2009). Each of these accounting theoretical approaches are applicable in any business today. However, it would be difficult to apply them together at the same time, since each of them has different objectives (Ackert, Deaves, 2009). It is therefore up to an accountant to decide what approach is most accurate or best suited for what situation. This calls for the right judgment of accountants to be able to make the right decision in every situation or challenge that a business entity is faced with. Normative Theory Approach There are several approaches covered in this approach. Each of these theories is best suited for a different situation (Belkaoui, 2004). Below are these different theories and various situations where each theory is best to be applied. Historical Cost Accounting This theory is applied in times when the costs or prices for things are on the rise (Murphy, 2008). The Historical cost accounting theory is based on the assumption that money holds a constant purchasing power. The main challenge with this theory is that it assumes that the monetary unit is fixed and constant over time. This theory is however based on three components. One is that there are specific levels in price levels, which may be characterized by technological factors and changes of consumer demands. Another component is that there is usually a general change in price levels, which is what is known as inflation (Murphy, 2008). The third component is fluctuation in the exchange rates for different currencies. Due to these three components, the book value of a business should show the current value of assets when preparing financial reports (Murphy, 2008). As stated earlier, historical cost accounting is used when a company is experiencing rising prices. Prices are expected to raise every now and then, and this may render the approach useless in most of these situations. Companies that make use of this approach are safe from overstating profits especially in times when prices are on the rise (Whittington, 2007). Distribution of profits in such situations can affect the purchasing power of a company. This kind of approach may not be viable to use since it affects the operating results of the current year as it includes gains asserted in previous periods of the companyà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s existence. More to that, capital maintenance depends on maintaining an intact financial capital and purchasing power (Murphy, 2008). Using actual current values as they are presently in the market may give a certain measure of profits which should be well distributed to maintain a physical operating capital. Current Purchasing Power Accounting This theoretical approach is best suited in situations where accountants need to maintain capital and the purchasing power of a company. The Current purchasing power accounting theory was developed on the basis that if a company distributes its profits as is required by historical accounting, then the real value of a company has to be reduced (Murphy, 2008). This means that the company would have to distribute a certain amount of its capital. This approach applies indices and is hence easy and cheaper to apply when in such a situation (Rosenfield, 2006). This is because any adjustment that needs to be done is done at the end of a period, and on records made from historical cost accounting. Under this approach, non-monetary assets are termed as assets that monetary value may change overtime due to inflation. Such assets include the machinery in a factory. On the other hand, net-monetary assets are defined as monetary assets minus the monetary liabilities. With this theoretical approach, changes in the purchasing power of a company are not attributed to the non-monetary assets. The loss of purchasing power comes about as a result of holding net-monetary assets (Murphy, 2008). In general circumstances of price level accounting, non-monetary assets are listed to the current purchasing power and as thus, no profits or losses are recognized. This theoretical approach is not reliable when making decisions for the company. Current Cost Accounting This approach is best suited when trying to maintain the purchasing power of a company during times if inflation, or fluctuation of exchange rates of currencies, because it is based on actual valuations. This theoretical approach cuts a clear line between profits that are made after sales, and the gains that come with holding an asset, be it a net-monetary asset or a non-monetary asset (Murphy, 2008). Scholars have argued that a physical or real approach to maintaining capital yields the best results in any business entity, especially in terms of income. This approach values as asset on the basis of replacement costs (Murphy, 2008). Operating income of the asset is valued as realized revenue, minus the replacement costs of that particular asset. This approach of calculating replacement costs is best for calculating operating profit. This makes it possible to maintain the operation capacity of the business at a constant level. The current cost operating profits before absorbing gains and losses, and the realized gains of holding an asset are both counted as revenues, and thus the sum of the two equates to historical cost profit (Rosenfield, 2006). Gains of holding an asset are different from gains after making sales (Porwal, 2001). This is because are the two are dependent on differing factors in the market, most of which are beyond the control of the management in a business. There is an uncertainty surrounding the prevalence of replacement costs though. Current cost accounting is founded on two business concepts; current operating profit and realizable cost savings. Current operating profit is defined as the excess of the present value of the output sold, over the cost of related inputs. Realizable cost savings, also termed as the holding gains or losses, are the increase of the present cost of assets that the company is holding in a given period. Holding gains or losses of an asset can be realized or unrealized. For example, the holding gain of an excess in revaluation in unrealized, but is still considered as part of the business profit in the income statement (Whittington, 2007). In the event that there are two companies that were started at different times, the company that was started earlier will have a larger operating profit. This is because it has less depreciation costs. Any one would think that this company has a more efficient system of running its operations in the current years than other companies that were started later. The actual case is that the management made a wise decision when starting the company. The fact that they bought their assets back in time is a contributing factor. This is a good illustration of the concept of realizable cost savings. Exit Price Accounting This approach argues that assets should be valued as per their exit or market prices, non-marketable reproducible assets at replacement costs, and seasonal no marketable, non-reproducible assets be valued at the original cost (Rosenfield, 2006). The theory also argues that financial statements should be structured in a way to show how much a company is able to adapt to different situations and environments, and that income should be inclusive of all profits and losses, those that have been realized and those that have not been unrealized. This approach is suitable especially when the management has to make decisions about the future of a company. The fact that it gives a straight on focus on the adaptability of a company, makes it stand out of other theories (Whittington, 2007). The adaptability of a business entity is based on how liquid or sellable its assets are. This kind of approach would come in handy at a time when a company is considering to sell some of its assets to counteract inflations in the market. Positive Theories Approach As defined earlier, positive theories are used to explain and predict a phenomenon after making observations (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). Positive theories are based on the assumption that if one makes a series of observations on a behavior, they are able to develop a certain patter which they use to make conclusions and predictions. Examples of positive theories include the stakeholder theory and the legitimacy theory (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). PAT is mainly involved with relationships between people or entities that provide resources to a business organization (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). For instance, the relationship between the management of an organization and its owners. The main elements of most of the relationships according to this theory involve the delegation of decision making from one party (possibly the owners or management who act as the principle) and the agent (second party). If the principle makes wrong decisions, then the two parties are likely to suffer losses, and increased costs due to inefficiency. Such expenses are known as agency costs. The Positive Accounting theory seeks to find a way to reduce agency costs by use of contractual arrangements. It is thus based on the assumption that stakeholders will act in favor of their own interests, and will therefore grab any opportunity available to increase their wealth (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). With this assumption, morality and loyalty are definitely not characteristics of this theory (Ketz, 2006). The positive accounting theory states an organization is usually a collection of people who have individual self-interests, but are willing to cooperate to achieve collective goals, while at the same time, working on their personal goals (Alexander, Brittan, Joseen, 2007). One prediction of the PAT is that organizations will execute measures that align the interests of the whole organization to self-interests. Most of these measures are based on the output of the accounting system, where the stakeholders get to share the excesses of the organization. Such mechanisms need to be backed up by financial statements. According to PAT, managers should commit themselves to preparing the financial statements (Freedman, Jaggi, 2010). This is an expensive activity and the costs incurred are known as bonding costs. Bonding costs can therefore be defines as costs incurred to relevant authorities or agents when establishing means to communicate to the principals, so that they may act in a way that will not affect goals of the organization or the individuals involved. Being part of the stakeholders, the management officials too, have their own self-interests. Based on this assumption, PAT states that the financial statements that are prepared by the management should be audited (Alexander, Brittan, Joseen, 2007). This would help avoid possibilities of the agents to act or manipulate figures in the financial statements to suit their interests. On this note, PAT assumes that not all opportunistic actions can be controlled by contractual arrangements such as the auditing exercise, therefore, there will always be residual costs. Costs incurred during the auditing exercise are known as monitoring costs. Decisions or investigations that are based on the Positive accounting theory adopt an efficiency perspective or an opportunistic perspective. The efficiency perspective seeks to find mechanisms that can be executed so as to reduce agency costs (Freedman, Jaggi, 2010). A good example of this is that when companies produce financial statements that have been audited, they reduce real costs since there are no hidden figures that are not well accounted for. The audited financial statement therefore serves as an efficient perspective, and thus the organization can be termed as efficient (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). Still from the efficiency perspective, accounting practices of an organization should reflect the underlying financial performance of the organization. Organizations adopt different accounting methods, which can be explained by various organizational characteristics. A good example of this is goodwill. If a company is able to provide reliable information about its performance, potential investors will not need to go out looking for more information from other sources. This saves time and reduces costs (Schroeder, Clark, Cathey, 2011). A company will pick an accounting method that will best show its underlying performance. This means that placing certain limitations or regulations on how companies prepare their financial statements can lead to a company incurring more costs than necessary, and probably not achieve their goal. Based on this, this theory recommends that companies should be allowed to prepare their financial statements in a way that best suits their operations, and that will show their underlying performances well (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). As for the opportunistic perspective, PAT seeks to explain and predict opportunistic behavior likely to happen after getting into a contractual agreement. For example, when trying to minimize agency costs, the management of a given organization can negotiate a contractual arrangement to increase their bonuses on profits made. This would align the interests of the managers with those of the owners of the business entity. With the agreement in place, the management can then find other mechanisms to ensure that more profits are generated (Freedman, Jaggi, 2010). The more profits are made, the better the bonus that both the management and the owners will enjoy. These mechanisms that the management adopts may not be reflected on the set up of the organization or its assets. The opportunistic perspective assumes that owners of an organization predict that managers will at some point act opportunistic (Deegan, Samkin, 2011). The principles are therefore likely to set what accounting methods should be used. For instance, a bonus plan agreement may have a stipulation that a depreciation method be used to calculate income inform of bonuses. The management may find it a bit costly to stick to the stipulated plan, and may seek an alternative method. Following such a possibility, PAT states that agents will always have an upper hand in deciding what accounting method to use. Conclusion The above theories are applicable in different situations. According to the analysis put above, the two theories address different issues, and thus, it would yield contradicting results to combine them. For instance, normative theories are best applied when a company is faced with various externalities like fluctuations of currencies and inflation of prices. These affect the purchasing power of a company and thus, the theories come in handy to help the management to make decisions on how to survive such challenges. As for the positive theories to accounting theory, these come in handy when dealing with issues that affect the relationship between the major stakeholders of any business; the owners and the management. The two parties may have contradicting interests, and the positive theories come in handy best in such situations.

Mosaddeqs Nationalization of Oil in Iran Essay -- Foreign Policy Poli

Mosaddeq's Nationalization of Oil in Iran The world of foreign policy is like a multi-sided game of chess. Moves are made with varying degrees of calculation and skill, and nothing happens in a vacuum. Everything that happens affects the other players' sets of options and levels of risk. In analyzing historical events in international relations, it is incumbent upon the analyst to take into consideration the historical and regional context to what happened. At the time of the coup that overthrew Premier Mosaddeq, several world events had just happened: key were the 1949 Chinese Revolution and Iran's 1951 nationalization of its oil industry. The Korean War was ending, and the Viet Minh guerrillas were harassing the French colonial regime in Vietnam. Five days before the coup in Iran, the Soviet Union tested its first hydrogen bomb (Encyclopaedia Britannica). According to Daniel Ellsberg in his book Papers on the War (1972), after 1949, no U.S. president could politically afford to be in power while another major country "went Communist" (dictating that they take actions to f...

Purpose of theory Essay

A theory can be explained as a given set of principles or statements used to give an explanation to an occurring phenomenon. Theories explain existing situations and can be used to develop solutions to identified problems within an organization especially when it has been tested for a number of times hence acceptable or producing evidence based results. A theory differs from a model in such a way that a model act as a representation of a given phenomena or the actual concept. A model can in this case be used to explain a given theory. Like a theory a model can be used to make predictions and to control a given situation. Scientific inquiry involves the use of systematic methods of collecting, analyzing and concluding data and in turn developing new inventions using scientifically gathered information or facts. The process involves the formulation of theories or hypothesis and effective experiments to test the formulated hypothesis. Naive inquiry on the other hand involves an informal collection, analysis and interpretation of data and does not necessarily include the application of critically thought ideas and skills. In this case a theory is explained using natural language. Scientific inquiry is likely to produce reliable and results or findings that can be used to find evidence based solutions to an existing problem. It makes use of collected evidence to test given ideas. Evidence based management requires the application of scientific inquiry as it involves the use of meta skills and critically thought approaches in the development of workable solutions (Judd, Kidder& Smith, 1991). Tested theories act as evidence and produce explanations for existing phenomena that can be used to develop new inventions which may act as control measures or solutions Reference Judd, C. , Smith, E. , Kidder, L. (1991). Research Methods in Social Relations, 6th ed. , New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College Publishers. .

Communicating in the Workplace

Tasha Wright April 23, 2013 Assignment 1. 1 Complete assignment 1. 1 from Ch. 1 of Communicating in the Workplace. Choose two misunderstandings you experienced and fill out the chart for these. Respond to questions 1 and 2 shown under the chart for each example of a misunderstanding. In your response, include the following: * Cite a meaningful misunderstanding rather than a general or less material misunderstanding. * Use business- or work-related examples rather than personal ones. Identify the roles of the sender and receiver, such as manager, peer, subordinate, client, vendor, and so forth. Question| Misunderstanding One| Misunderstanding Two| Who was the sender? | My Co-worker | My Manager| Who was the receiver? | I was| I was| What was the message? | â€Å"Refill the ink toner in the mail room. †| â€Å"Make sure you open all tickets and provide your daily log assignments†. | What channel was used to sendthe message? | Via Email| | What was the misunderstandingthat occurred? There were three different ink toners and three machines located in the mail room. Sender didn’t state which Ink toner that was needed and machine. | The email was not specifying of which ticket to open in order to provide our daily log assignment. | How could the misunderstandinghave been avoided? | The sender could have specified informed the correct Ink toner and machine. | The message could have been clearer on which ticket to review. | 1. What did you learn about the communication process from this activity?Answer: When using communication via email, you have to make sure the details are informed, where, what, when. In via email you should have more clarification within the message to communicate better so that you can resolve the issue. 2. What seemed to be the main causes of the misunderstandings? Answer: The lack of information, if I haven’t asked questions the wrong ink toner would have been installed into the wrong machine and would have delayed pr ojects. To prevent misunderstanding in communication the body of the message should include details about the subject.