Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Coffee Bean Essay

ST. GREGORY’S UNIVERSITY Coffee Bean, Inc. Managerial Accounting, BU2123, Research Project, Spring 2007 Coffee Bean, Inc. (CBI) is a processor and distributor of a variety of blends of coffee. The company buys coffee beans from around the world and roasts, blends and packages them for resale. CBI currently has 40 different coffees that it offers to gourmet shops in one-pound bags. The major cost of the coffee is the raw coffee beans. However, there is a substantial amount of manufacturing overhead in the company’s predominantly automated roasting, blending and packing process. The company uses relatively little direct labor. Some of the coffees are very popular and sell in large volumes, while a few of the newer blends have very low volumes. CBI prices its coffee at manufacturing cost plus a markup of 30%. If CBI’s coffee prices are significantly higher than the market, adjustments are made to bring CBI’s prices more into alignment with the market. The company competes primarily on the quality of its products, but customers are price conscious as well. For the coming year, CBI’s budget includes estimated manufacturing overhead cost of $3,000,000. CBI assigns manufacturing overhead to products based on direct labor-hours. The expected direct labor cost totals $600,000, which represents 50,000 hours of direct labor time. Based on the sales budget and expected raw materials costs, the company will purchase and use $6,000,000 of raw materials (mostly coffee beans) during the year. The expected costs for direct materials and direct labor for one-pound bags of two of the company’s many coffee products appear below: Mona Loa $4. 20 0. 30 Malaysian $3. 20 0. 30 Direct Materials Direct Labor (0. 025 hours per bag). CBI’s president is very concerned about lowering profit margins. Several prices have had to be reduced to meet market pressures and other products are selling at good volumes without price adjustments. The president talked with CBI’s controller who believes that the company’s traditional costing system, which uses direct labor costs to allocate manufacturing overhead, may be providing misleading cost information. To determine whether or not this is correct, the controller has prepared an analysis of the year’s expected manufacturing overhead costs, as shown in the following table. Activity Center Cost Driver Purchasing Purchase Orders Materials handling Number of Setups Quality control Number of Batches Roasting Roasting Hours Blending Blending Hours Packaging Packaging Hours Total manufacturing overhead cost: Expected Activity 1,710 orders 1,800 setups 600 batches 96,100 hours 33,500 hours 26,000 hours Expected Cost $ 513,000 720,000 144,000 961,000 402,000 260,000 $3,000,000 Data regarding the expected production of two representative products, Mona Loa and Page 1 of 2 Coffee Bean Malaysian coffee, are presented below. There will be no raw materials inventory for either of these coffees at the beginning of the year. Mona Loa Malaysian 100,000 2,000 Pounds 10,000 500 Pounds 3 3 Per batch 20,000 500 Pounds 1. 0 / 100 1. 0 /100 Hours per pound 0. 5 / 100 0. 5 /100 Hours per pound 0. 1 / 100 0. 1 /100 Hours per pound Expected sales Batch size Setups Purchase order size Roasting time Blending time Packaging time Step into the shoes of the controller and prepare a complete report for the president explaining the results of your research. Compare the two product-costing methods: (1) the currently-used, volume-based method, and (2) an activity-based method. The supporting tables should determine full costs and prices of both products using the two different cost allocation methods. Continue your detailed report to the president by justifying why the company should remain using their present overhead allocation method or to go activity-based costing. Go beyond the accounting issues in your report, mentioning the impact on pricing, volume, and marketing decisions. Support your recommendation with current articles (Use the online resources of the SGU James J. Kelly Library to locate articles within the last year that deal with cost allocation issues). Three to five supporting articles should be sufficient to support your findings. Since this is a formal report, it will require a transmittal memo summarizing your findings. This memo/summary should be supported by a detailed report including tables and references to business/accounting literature. Include a bibliography in APA format. Also, since presidents rarely have time to read the entire article, but are interested in their content, provide an abstract of each citation. Remember: appearance, spelling, grammar count. Adapted from Managerial Accounting, Eight Edition, Garrison & Noreen, Irwin, 1997.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Free Essays on Hobbes And Locke Comparision

Similar to Hobbes, Locke starts his treatise by defining the concept of a state of nature. Their basic aim is to show the nature of man's existence before the establishment of the society and sovereign state and make a rational and reliable point for their philosophical enquiries. Starting from this point, both of them proceed to the abstraction of the human nature and constructed a theory of society. However unlike the very pessimistic state of nature understanding of Hobbes, the state of nature as described by Locke is quite optimistic where, all men are born equal and are free, subject to the laws of nature which dictate them, that man shouldn’t destroy himself or any other person due to his commitment to God to protect the life given by God. The only exception to this is against the men who break the law, since the law ones broke it is not any more state of nature but state of war, a more similar situation to the Hobbesian understanding. However, despite the common starting points of their theories, their approaches to the question of property are quite differentiated. Whereas Hobbes did not dealt with the question of property in detail except entrusting it to the Leviathan, Locke shows a great enthusiasm for explaining the origins of property. He refuses the arguments of theorists, who see the property as the natural right of the men. According to him, all men are born free and equal regardless of what generation they have been born into and, private property does not arise from consent to divide up original common property. For explaining the origins of property, he employs the concept of labor. Basically he argues that God gave the world to all men commonly to be used to preserve life and liberty, and therefore the objects of nature, which are labored by men, belong to him. Man has property of his own person and therefore owns his labor and thus the objects created by his labor belong to him as well. In the Locke’s underst... Free Essays on Hobbes And Locke Comparision Free Essays on Hobbes And Locke Comparision Similar to Hobbes, Locke starts his treatise by defining the concept of a state of nature. Their basic aim is to show the nature of man's existence before the establishment of the society and sovereign state and make a rational and reliable point for their philosophical enquiries. Starting from this point, both of them proceed to the abstraction of the human nature and constructed a theory of society. However unlike the very pessimistic state of nature understanding of Hobbes, the state of nature as described by Locke is quite optimistic where, all men are born equal and are free, subject to the laws of nature which dictate them, that man shouldn’t destroy himself or any other person due to his commitment to God to protect the life given by God. The only exception to this is against the men who break the law, since the law ones broke it is not any more state of nature but state of war, a more similar situation to the Hobbesian understanding. However, despite the common starting points of their theories, their approaches to the question of property are quite differentiated. Whereas Hobbes did not dealt with the question of property in detail except entrusting it to the Leviathan, Locke shows a great enthusiasm for explaining the origins of property. He refuses the arguments of theorists, who see the property as the natural right of the men. According to him, all men are born free and equal regardless of what generation they have been born into and, private property does not arise from consent to divide up original common property. For explaining the origins of property, he employs the concept of labor. Basically he argues that God gave the world to all men commonly to be used to preserve life and liberty, and therefore the objects of nature, which are labored by men, belong to him. Man has property of his own person and therefore owns his labor and thus the objects created by his labor belong to him as well. In the Locke’s underst...

Monday, October 21, 2019

A School Principals Recommendation Letter for a Teacher

A School Principal's Recommendation Letter for a Teacher SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips According to the State Department of Education, there were 24 applicants for every one teaching position in Connecticut last year! Teaching's a competitive field, so a stand-out letter of recommendation can go a long way. In the sample letter below, a principal recommends an art teacher applying to another school due to budget cuts. Check out what the principal has to say about this teacher, and then read on for an analysis of what this letter does well. Sample Letter #2: Written by a Principal for a Teacher Mr. Henry NicholsSchool PrincipalCityville Middle School1 School RoadCityville, NJ 08008 Dear Principal Nichols, It’s my honor and pleasure to provide this letter of recommendation for Julia as she pursues an art teaching position with Cityville Middle School. As the principal of Townston Middle School, I’ve enjoyed having Julia on the teaching team for grades 6 through 8. We’ll all miss her and her contributions to our school community. Unfortunately, budgetary restrictions have forced us to reduce the art teaching faculty, and as the most recent hire, Julia will no longer have a position with us next year. This decision in no way reflects on her skills, and I wholeheartedly endorse her candidacy as she seeks a position elsewhere. It’s my wish that she finds a school with the resources to support her talent for teaching art. Julia started her teaching career with us fresh out of graduate school two years ago. She brought with her a solid training in pedagogical methods and art history, along with great energy and enthusiasm. She introduced several new projects that are now a part of the curriculum, including a self-portrait assignment that asks students to reflect on their identities, a stop-motion animation project using clay and iPads, and a papier-mache â€Å"sled challenge† that resulted in fun races down the hill beside the school. Julia also contributed to the â€Å"3D Printer Build-a-Thon,† a weekend-long event during which students, educators, and community members came together to assemble over 20 3D printers. Julia brings exciting new ideas to life; I’m confident that she will continue her momentum with her next school. Julia also impressed me with her commitment to lifelong learning. She successfully collaborated with her mentor, took advantage of several professional development opportunities offered in the district, and took classes on digital technology and special education over the last two summers. She also went out of her way to elicit feedback from her students, inviting them to share their experiences at the end of each semester. It’s this commitment to growth and her students’ well-being that makes Julia an outstanding educator who empowers her pupils. Julia is charismatic and creative, and she thinks outside the box. She has shown excellent classroom management skills and developed a rapport with students, colleagues, and parents that is characterized by mutual respect. At the end of last year, I had a parent come to me specifically to praise Julia's teaching and the impact she's had on her son. Beyond her strengths as an art teacher, Julia’s also a talented artist and has some of her oil and acrylic paintings displayed in a nearby gallery. Julia has my highest recommendation for the position of art instructor, and I look forward to learning more about the accomplishments that lie in her professional future. If the circumstances were different, I would strive to retain Julia on our art department teaching team. Please don’t hesitate to contact me for any further information. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Elsa SkoolsSchool PrincipalTownston Middle Schooleskools@townston.k12.edu(866) 8-5546 Will this letter convince Principal Nichols to make room for Julia and her paintbrushes? Recommendation Letter #2: The Breakdown Like the first sample, this recommendation letter represents a common relationship between letter writer and candidate. It starts out with a strong statement of support with, â€Å"It’s my honor and pleasure to provide this letter.† This statement is then quickly followed by an explanation of who the letter writer is, thereby showing why she’s qualified to recommend Julia. Principal Skools explains why Julia’s applying elsewhere and makes sure to state that she would retain her on the teaching team if the budget allowed. She goes on to describe Julia’s contributions with specific examples of projects she introduced and community events to which she contributed. The writer uses highly positive language to describe Julia, calling her creative, energetic, and committed to continuous improvement. She also touches on her personal talents as an artist. The letter’s structured to describe three main points: Julia’s accomplishments at the school, her commitment to learning and improvement, and her relationships with teachers, parents, and colleagues. In her glowing endorsement, Principal Skools gives specific examples of the achievements Julia'smade and will continue to make in her next art teaching position. What's Next? What experience do you need to become a teacher in the first place? Find out what degree you do (or don't) need to teach in this article. On to the next! Click here to read our third recommendation letter sample written by a restaurant manager for a part-time employee. Are you looking for a different type of sample letter? Head back to our original recommendation letter guide to find more samples and learn about the key features of outstanding reference letters. Want to provide a strong recommendation for your employee, but don't have the time to craft the perfect letter? PrepScholar's new recommendation tool, SimpleRec, takes you from good intentions and a blank page to a fully written and formatted letter of recommendation in under 5 minutes. All you need to do is give us some simple pieces of information about your employee and your experience working with them, and we'll do the rest. Try out SimpleRec risk-free today:

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Building a Houseâ€Advice From an Architect

Building a House- Advice From an Architect While your new house is an exciting and mind-boggling experience for you, it is routine for the builder (been there, done that). These attitudes often tend to clash. Building your new house should not (and cannot) be a passive exercise. A myriad of decisions have to be made  - by you. When you are unable or unwilling to make decisions, you force the builder to make them. To make sure your new home fulfills your own vision, follow the following guidelines. Understand Your Contract No matter what type of contract you sign, you become a party to a legal document involving a massive amount of money for the construction of your new house. By so doing, you abdicate none of your basic legal rights. Therefore, know your rights and exercise them. Start by reading the contract and understanding it. You are paying (or will pay over the next 25 to 30 years) for the knowledge of the builders: their experience and ability. Plus you are paying your builders a profit above their expenses. What do you expect in return? How do you ensure that you get what you expect? COMMUNICATE  - WRITE IT DOWN  - COMMUNICATE  - WRITE IT DOWN  - COMMUNICATE  - WRITE IT DOWN. Anything you add to the house after the contract is signed, the builder will keep track of  - assiduously! Anything you delete or reduce, YOU keep track of  - assiduously! Save on Building Costs The average house contains approximately 1,500 to 2,000 square feet. Do you need more space than that? Why? How much more? You pay for each and every square foot of space in your house, whether its occupied, usable, or otherwise. If the cost is $50, $85, or $110 per square foot, extra, unused, vacant, and unnecessary areas are provided at the very same cost. You want to be in control of building costs, but you dont want to skimp. Keep costs in perspective; for example, that cost of $10-per-thousand more for a brick you really like translates into a total cost of only $100 more when a typical amount of 10,000 bricks is involved. Do the math yourself. Be smart. Take care that glitz and gadgets suggested by friends, the builder, or magazines do not overwhelm good basic construction. Dont trade them for lesser construction. Bouncy floors where joists are stretched to the maximum are not remedied by a hot tub, flocked wallcovering, skylights, or jazzy door hardware. Know what you like. Check Building Codes Dont expect to control the number of nails used. Do expect a substantially built house, free of defects, and in accord with all applicable codes and regulations. Require proof of such compliance (many jurisdictions issue Certificates of Occupancy) at the closing of your mortgage. This indicates accord with the minimum code and safety standards. Realize that some things are virtually unchangeable; they should be done properly, first off. This includes a properly sized and constructed foundation system, a properly designed and installed structural system, and so on. Changeable items such as finishes and coverings should not distract you from watching for and requiring good basic construction. Watch for things that are not necessarily what you want and that you will not be able to change easily or cheaply. Question things that just dont look or seem right. Most of the time they indeed are not. Seek some reliable outside, impartial advice- other than your father, even if he is a builder! Be Flexible Be ready and prepared to compromise in order to resolve situations and problems. Be aware, however, of what you may be giving up in this process;  examine and understand both sides. Is the situation worth what you are losing? The builder is fully capable of doing anything or finding someone who can do anything you wish, but anything always comes with a price. Be careful and wary of unique, inordinate, or far-out requests, new technology, and untested materials and equipment. Understand that construction is an imperfect science. Combine that understanding with natural elements (e.g., site conditions, weather, wood members, human foibles), and you might face situations where things could change, must be changed, or simply exceed capabilities. Flat-out errors do happen. Absolute perfection or your idea of perfection may not- and more than likely, will not- be achieved. Drastic imperfections, however, can be corrected, and they should be. It is within your rights to require this. Keep Records Issues not clearly and specifically noted, written, described, or shown will be interpreted by both sides. A meeting of minds must take place, where interpretations are fully understood and resolved. When this resolution does not happen, expect dispute, confrontation, pique, anger, frustration, and perhaps even litigation. Be redundant,  leaving nothing to chance. Follow up verbal discussions and instructions with written verification. Keep records and receipts; records of phone calls and all correspondence; samples you approve; sales slips; model, type, and style numbers; and the like. Dont allow yourself to be reduced to buying any aspect of a pig in a poke. The more time and effort spent up front in programming, planning, designing, and understanding, as well as in establishing specifics of the project, the better the chance for a smoother construction period and a satisfactory result. Be Businesslike Be pragmatic and absolutely businesslike in all of your dealings with the builders. They are working for you; you are not seeking them as new friends. If a friend or relative performs part of the work, treat that person in exactly the same manner:  have a contract and demand adherence to your schedule. Dont let a gift or a good price disrupt the project overall. Summary of Questions to Ask What is a good design for our needs?What is a building code? Does it affect us? How does it work? What doesnt it do?Who is responsible, overall, for my building project?What are good sizes and proportions for rooms? What style do I want?What am I really getting from the builder?What problems do I have in my current house that I dont want to repeat?Where can I find answers and help? How do I make my desires known?What does that line on the drawing mean?What is a dispute? What is a lien?What are specifications? Does the builder write and provide them?What if my builder does something in a way I dont like? Is the house going to be complete? Will something be left out?When will the house be finished?What is a contract? How do I play a part in it? What does it say?What is an extra?Is that a good material? Ive never heard of it.Can I change things?Who picks the color of the paint, wall coverings, tile, type of wood, siding?Is landscaping included and what form does it take? Sod? Seed? Mud and rocks? Slopes? Are landscape features guaranteed? What if I disagree with the builder? Can I stop the work?Am I allowed on the job site? Can I inspect the work as it goes up? Can I bring someone with me?I really want this xyz in the house. How do I get exactly that?I can buy the light fixtures from my brother, but who will hang them? What do I do?Should I close on the mortgage and pay the builder in full? I have several items that I dont like. Must I still close?Why do we have to make all these trips to pick things out? About the Author, Ralph Liebing Ralph W. Liebing (1935–2014) was a registered architect, a lifelong teacher of code compliance, and the author of 11 books on architectural drawings, codes and regulations, contract administration, and the construction industry.   A 1959 graduate from the University of Cincinnati, Liebing taught at the University of Cincinnati School of Architecture and the College of Applied Science Technology at Illinois State University. In addition, he trained carpenters union apprentices, directed classes at community education programs, and taught architectural technology for Daytons ITT Technical Institute. He practiced architecture in both Ohio and Kentucky. Liebing published many textbooks, articles, papers, and commentaries. He was a fierce advocate for not only enforcing specifications and codes but for design firms to engage owners in the process.  His publications include Construction of Architecture: From Design to Built, Architectural Working Drawings; and The Construction Industry. In addition to being a Registered Architect (RA), Liebing was a Certified Professional Code Administrator (CPCA), Chief Building Official (CBO), and a Professional Code Administrator. Ralph Liebing was a pioneer in creating useful, professional web content of lasting quality.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Using antibiotics on dairy herds. Im going in favor of this process Research Paper

Using antibiotics on dairy herds. Im going in favor of this process - Research Paper Example About 1.3 million human clinical salmonellosis case and more than 500deaths that are associated with this salmonella may occur annually in the US alone. Therefore there is a need to use antibiotics in daily herds to control these strains most of which are drug resistant to reduce these effects from the daily products to humans. The use of antibiotics has over the time portrays success in controlling diseases and other pathogens from the daily herds to humans. A study by Church et al, (4220) concerning the treatment of intra mammary infections that were infected by minor pathogens such as Corynebacteruium boris portrayed that that though dry milk periods aided in milk production, there were no considerable effects on milk production related to udder health in short dry period and long dry period, treatment of the intramammary infections could only be treated using antibiotics. The use of antibiotics has therefe been considered and found to be the most effective methods through which bacterial infection in both daily and other herds can be approached with due to the growing resistance of some bacterial strains. These strains continually develop resistance to major drugs in the market. Hartzell et al (763) explain that the Escherichia coli 0157:H7 was first recognized as a food borne pathogen in 1982. This or ganism has spread over time and is highly virulent and can lead to debilitating and deadly disease that include hemolytic uremic syndrome (Relay et al 1983 as quoted in Hartzell et al, 763). This organism does not have an effect on cattle though it colonizes the intestinal tract of cattle. Such organisms are passed to humans though fecal matter, ground beef, raw milk, lettuce spinach and other related plants that cow dung may be used as a fertilizer. Sanderson et al (781) argues that Salmonella causes gastrointestinal illness in both livestock and humans. This is another

Friday, October 18, 2019

Elements of Religion and Alternative paths Essay

Elements of Religion and Alternative paths - Essay Example To begin with, one should point out that I consider myself to be a Christian. That is why I participate in some of the rituals that are characteristic to this religion. For example, I was baptized. In spite of the fact that I was too young to do make a conscious decision about it, at the present moment I consider this to be an important even in my life. I also go to services from time to time which means that I participate in rituals that were established by my religion. In addition to that, my religious belief manifests itself in a widely developed ethical system that allows me to find correct ways to behave in some of the most difficult situations. Indeed, whenever I am faced with a choice which involved many different aspects to consider, I judge the decision that I would like to make against ethical guidelines that are preached by my religion, determining if I will be able to comply with them in case I make a particular decision. I would like to note that there were many instance s when my religion allowed me to choose the best option. Finally, it would not be a mistake to argue that community as well as the sense of it plays an important role in my religion. Thus, I primarily see the latter is a shared ground for different people to unite and work out a common understanding of the world that can hardly be explained in a one dimensional way. If one takes a close look at my religious belief, one will be able to see that some of elements of it outweigh other. For example, I put big emphasis on practical (ethical system) and social aspects (community), while the central myths that are promoted are not as important for me since I acknowledge that their major function is to create symbolic value. In other words, I am far more interested in elements that are able to help be on a daily basis, rather than some abstract notions that differ my religions beliefs for other. Now, it may be quite suitable to turn to the

The soul is the prison of the body (Foucault, 1979). Critically Essay

The soul is the prison of the body (Foucault, 1979). Critically examine the argument that psychology is a performative practice - Essay Example Children are introduced to certain social activities that they slowly pick up and can adapt. For instance, introducing a young child gradually to a certain religion, taking them to language classes, or showing them a particular sport that they should play. All habits that are instilled into the young child are indeed integral to how he will grow and develop mentally. The child will perceive life in a certain way and consider things using a particular thought pattern that is different (Walsh et al., 2014). This is how performative psychology comes into play as the child is programmed to take up a particular role. It is a proven fact that by regularly practicing something, one will develop such things into his personality. This is why different people have different characters. This is because by doing certain things over a period; they eventually pick that up in their personalities and become what they constantly do (Butler, 2009). It all has to do with performing or playing a particular role. With time, one finds that it is a habitual thing and a part of his personality. This is how performative psychology comes into play. Every part of a person’s personality is gradually introduced into them through their thinking pattern. A practical example, for example, is from the television programmes that bring children up watching. Many children from the 70s, 80s and early 90s watched many kids shows. One of these was the Sesame Street programme. It was a programme where the children learnt many concepts in simplified methods. Characters such as Big Bird, Elmo, Miss Piggy, Kermit, Ernie, Bert and many others, influenced the children. Each of these characters played a particular role and taught the children certain values or introduced them to a certain way of thinking. The children were probed about certain things like ability to count, ability to recite the alphabet