Monday, September 30, 2019

Exercise on Group Behavior

Exercise on group behavior 1. Based on knowledge from your company group relate to and explain the 5-stage group development model and the punctuated equilibrium model (both very important for exam. Group analysis based on 5-stage model: * Forming. Firs task was to find out people with the same level of motivation, expectations and similar point of view through the vision of business idea. After finally forming the company group another task was to find out the purpose of the project and understood why this experience could be useful for us (It took almost all day).Furthermore we had to take decisions about how group is going to look like and what tasks we have to do personally: we find out which persons are going to be leaders who are generating the idea and who are going to work with developing and presenting it. * Storming. Secondly we as a very fresh and inexperienced group had to come up with real and innovative business plan. It was the hardest part of all because we didnâ€⠄¢t knew each other very good. We had many conflicts about different ideas while finally after many disagreements we find out the best decision of our idea. * Norming.During the working time our relationships grown up significantly. It became much easier to work with each other. We began to understand each other easily and that let us to improve our productivity skills in team work.. * Performing. With better relationships to each other our performing improved as well. Everybody knew what they had to do and was not afraid to consulate to other group members. We began to work very fast and effective. * Adjourning. Finally we easily wrote one page report and we are waiting for new activities. Group analysis based on punctuated equilibrium model:Our group development can be good example of punctuated equilibrium model. First day of our work was very efficient. We formed our group, created first business idea and tried to develop and analyzed it. However after a while working with lost things idea we come up with the decision that we are not able to develop and use it. Then it was period of trying to find new ideas. We had about 10 different solutions however we didn’t stick to none of them until the last day when we had to send one page report. Last minutes work helped us to create and generate good idea and present it to others. Based on knowledge on group development why do you think group work often starts with teambuilding activities like wild-life experiences, bowling, outdoor exercises etc.? In group development is very important feeling and atmosphere through the members. Good relationships and knowing each other are the main keys to productive and efficient work. Teambuilding activities give ability to understand the way how other people are thinking, how active they are. Furthermore, people always feel much comfortable and relaxed in the known environment.As for my experience in teambuilding trip i can strongly agree that it was the best way to qu ickly get in the new team. 3. Explain how role conflicts might arise from role perceptions differing from role expectations (try to give a real life example that you have experienced). Personal example: In high school our student council (I was fresh member there) were organizing big event. Leading group announced that everybody can join them and take an active part in developing it. I with other â€Å"freshers† had many interesting thoughts and expectations however how come up in the end we were ably only to participate in cleaning after the party.As a result we felt exploited and misunderstood what caused big conflict between leading and new members. 4. Explain how conformity and status of group members effects team work . Conformity and status are very important part in group development. People are used to behave by first impression. Members who have more experience, are more talented or more self-confident (have higher status than other) are used to be treated as a leade rs or be more respected from the first minute. It can have both positive and negative effects through the group. It is important that despite status everybody would have equal right to speak and realize themselves.Furthermore, People often conform from a desire for security within a group—typically a group of a similar age, culture, religion, or educational status. It can prevent people from new ideas and innovation. 5. Explain why group cohesiveness can be both positive and negative for team performance Positive performance| Negative performance| * Individuals are proud to be in the group and see group membership important. As a result they look seriously to the tasks, output and achievements of the group. * Members of cohesive groups deal with conflict openly and constructively. They develop and share values and team loyality. Cohesive groups increase job satisfaction and reduce stress. * When working toward a common goal group members can fill in for each others' lack of k nowledge or shortage of skill. | * Teams members have tendency to adopt similar behaviors that became group norm what can couse lowered productivity or lack of creativity and innovation * Group-think. It happens when individual group members lose the ability to think for themselves and rely on the group to make their decisions. * cohesive groups find it difficult to change their values, actions or behaviors, particularly when the change is driven by external forces. Opinions held by the majority or by key group members are regarded as unanimous and alternative views are discouraged| 6. Answer the questions in the â€Å"Ethical Dilemma† page 255 1) If group members end up ‘working around’ shirkers, do you think this information should be communicated to the instructor so that individual’s contribution to the project is judged more fairly? If so, does the group have an ethical responsibility to communicate this to the shirking group member? If not, isnâ€⠄¢t the shirking group member unfairly reaping the rewards of a â€Å"free ride’’? Personally I believe that decision have to be made based on situation.I think that first of all group has to try to identify the problem why the member is not working. Maybe he/she has personal problems and can’t concentrate or he/she is not experienced enough that could face the task by himself. Furthermore, is very important to try to speak with the member and say your dissatisfaction directly instead of just throwing him out. If it doesn’t work then group must to communicate with instructor. 2) Do you think confronting the shrinking group member is justified? Does this depend on the skills of shirker (weather he is capable of doing good-quality work)?I believe that everything depends on situation and the task what members have to do. If person is able to do that but just is trying to avoid the work than it is justified. 3) Social loafing has been found to be higher in W estern, more individual nations, that other countries. Do you think this means we should tolerate shirking in these countries to a greater degree than if it occurred with someone from more collectivistic nation? I think that social and cultural background has great influence to human character. This is the reason that group members have to be tolerant with each other and try to find the best working method. . Make case incident 2 page 256 1) What are some factors that led to groupthink in the cases described here? What can teams do to attempt to prevent groupthink from occurring? People have tendency not to make quick and efficient decisions. They are trying to avoid conflicts in the team and are not making changes related with a work. They tend to strict to more traditional and safe decisions. I think that leader have to promote people to represent different ideas and not to be afraid of using different ways. 2) How might differences in status among group members contribute to grou pthink?For example, how might lover-status members react to group’s decisions? Are lower-status members more or less likely to be dissenters? Why might higher-status group members be more effective dissenters? Status has very big impact through group members. Individuals with lower-status are tend to keep quietly and not make decisions. They pretend that situation is appropriate for them and company. Higher-status group members are mostly more active and innovative. 3) Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says that he encourages dissent. Can such norms guard against the occurrence of groupthink?As a manager, how would you try to cultivate norms that prevent groupthink? I personally believe that encouraging dissent is one of the best ways against the occurrence of groupthink. It stimulates people to think and come up with new ideas or improve the old ones. I would choose the same way. 4) How might group characteristics such as size and cohesiveness affect groupthink? If group is very b ig and cohesive then it has big risk to be unsuccessful. People are not used to say their opinion or take action. I believe that smaller groups are working more efficient because they get more responsibilities.

My Clinical Experience Essay

During my first day of clinical, I encountered an issue that I believe is very significant. As a student nurse, our duty for this day was to follow our health care aide around the ward and assist in completing resident care. The resident required assistance in many of her daily tasks. The health care aide asked if I would perform one of those and do perineal care for her. I turned down her offer because I did not feel comfortable with my skill level. The resident had a bowel movement during the night. There was a significant odour in the room that overwhelmed me. I really wanted to leave the room because it was so unpleasant, but I stayed in the room so that the resident would not be embarrassed. This feeling of embarrassment, I assume, was already present but I decided to continue with helping clean up and change her linens. The issue that seemed significant, in this experience, was my feelings pertaining to intimate care. ‘One of the reasons why there is so little training in this area could be because the act of providing intimate care for others can be considered as “dirty work” and is undervalued both within services and by the wider societyÂ’ (Clark, 2006) In society, going to the bathroom is seen as a very private matter and is not done in public. During this experience, this was going against my beliefs of our social norm and understanding this, I went with my values of caring and supporting individuals in need by staying in the room. During this situation, I was trying to achieve my role of a student nurse while being professional in my actions. I did what I believed was right instead of following societies norms. Evaluating the issue with patient and my own personal issues, I made a decision that followed my morals and values. I chose to react positively to the situation at hand while learning from experience and following what I believed was ethically right. Consequences that may have arisen for the patient stem from the fact that my techniques were not like the health care aides and were stiff and uncoordinated, which I can only imagine caused discomfort. It took longer than usual for me to complete my tasks because of my personal doubt in my skill levels and amount of experience. The health care aide I was with initially mentioned that shifts were very tight for time and for getting things done she noted that she comes in early to ensure things run smoothly,  just in case of complications such as my current situation. My health care aide may not feel as confident in my actions as she may have been if I chose to initially participate despite my personal issues with intimate care. Having a loss of confidence in my abilities to deal with difficult and new situations turned out to be the consequences of my actions. Having more confidence and being aware of situations that may go against my beliefs and personal issues may have allowed me to have a better first day. The health care aide was very supportive of my actions and praised my efforts after the fact for stepping in during my first time in a difficult situation. I can imagine the resident was feeling some distress and embarrassment, as she could not control her actions and was very thankful afterward. Although feeling discomfort during the event, I was very pleased afterward. There were a few factors that influence my feelings, thoughts and responses during this experience. The feeling of discomfort in performing intimate care became obvious after the fact when I began reflecting on my clinical experience. I was not prepared for the amount of intimate care that was present. Sensing others` feelings is a trait that I have developed while being present in the health care area and teaching field, and along with my skill level, in nursing played a big part in my thoughts and responses during this experience. Although having cared for my great-grandmother in the past, this was my first day experiencing intimate care with a resident. Participating in practice labs, class discussions and learning activities allowed me to have the knowledge of performing such duties and an understanding of how personal we would be getting, but did not realize how it would affect me. Giving myself time to read up on nursing experiences, attending more clinical practice labs, participating and watching these duties in the health care setting will allow me to develop a secure level of confidence the next time that this type of situation may occur. Staying in the room allowed me to experience the feeling of support while looking past social norms and how they are challenged. I met my personal values, and I believe that one should  respect another person`s privacy. This understanding allowed me to be there to support the resident during her time of need. In the article `starting out` by Jane Schulz, a nursing student shares her experience of helping her colleague assist an elderly patient with daily care. Observing the compassion and care between nurse and patient from fundamental tasks, she took away a valued lesson of how our support and caring methods affect an individual. My relation to this story allowed me to reflect on the effects my care and supporting actions had on our patient. Having completed perineal care on manikins in class has been my only previous experience that I have encountered with intimate care. When presented with new situations, I have a tendency of handling them quite well with confidence. My reaction to intimate care was due to the discomfort with the amount of contact one has with sexual body parts and bodily fluids. I know what to expect if presented with a similar situation in the future, having had the experience I believe that I will understand how to handle my emotions and present a comfortable environment to better care for the patient. The only way I can be comfortable with intimate care is to participate in fundamental caring of patients and learn through experience. If I was to alter my actions by leaving the room instead of staying to help and support my resident, the consequences for my actions may have been due to a lack of confidence in my skill levels from my health care aideÂ’s point of view, and my own. It was apparent that the resident was not comfortable and needed help. Not giving my resident the care she deserves may have left her feeling like she was not important. Leaving the room would add to my view of societyÂ’s norm that going to the bathroom is a private matter and I would not have gained any experience to develop my skill levels and confidence. Reflecting on my clinical experience has made me aware of my strengths and weaknesses in my personal and nursing skills. I have taken a lot away from this experience; as I have come across a personal issue of have trouble dealing with intimate care. I have developed an understanding of social norms and how they can affect ones opinions. This experience has given me the ability to cope in new situations as it is and will always be a part of my job. Developing a way to deal with intimate care to the best of my abilities will allow me to care for my client and make sure their feelings [embarrassment] and privacy are being respected. Coming out of this situation realizing my mistakes, my level of confidence will surely ascend and prepare me for my chosen field. In relation to CarperÂ’s ways of knowing (Carper, 1978), I showed aesthetics by evaluating the situation as a whole. Despite having the urge to leave the room, I recognized the residents need for support when being faced with an issue that defied our social norm. Moving beyond the surface and being physically and mentally in the moment with the resident allowed her to experience the care they deserves through my supportive and helpful actions. I showed ethic ways of knowing when I understood that perineal care is something I believe was morally right. I felt like I had to be there for my patient when they needed me and make sure the care and support was present. Confronting my beliefs changed my opinion on societyÂ’s norms; I used my values and morals to guide my actions. My personal ways of knowing develop through my experience with intimate care. I completed a task that I was not comfortable doing and believed was a private issue. I decided to help in the experience after evaluating the patientÂ’s level of discomfort and need of assistance. Until I experience a similar situation, I will not know if my reactions will be the same, but I will know that I have the skills and ability to do it. I showed my empirical ways of knowing by analyzing the article “Primary Care Nurse PractitionersÂ’ Integrity When Faces with Moral Conflicts” by Carol Ann Laabs in relation to my experience with intimate care. The purpose of this article was to show the study of nurseÂ’s problem with moral integrity in primary care. It concluded that moral conflict is common within an entire group (e.g. staff, team, co-workers) and keeping ones moral integrity makes them feel great about their actions in a fundamental way while keeping on a professional level. This connects to my experience as I was in a situation where I had to make a decision involving my moral integrity and do what I believe I could do based on my values. This experience helped me to challenge my ethical beliefs and make decisions  based on what I believed was right. This experience has changed the way I will look at new situations with intimate care and ones that I will encounter in the future. I discovering that our education can only guide us, but it is the experience that allows us to develop our feelings and beliefs. By completing this reflection of my clinical experience I learnt that I had a hidden personal issue with intimate care. Intimate care is defines as care tasks associated with bodily functions and personal hygiene which demands direct or indirect contact with or exposure of the sexual parts of the body. (Cambridge and Carnaby 2000) With knowledge gained from this experience and from similar future situations, I believe I can develop a comfort in my skill level. Having to adapt to a variety of different situations and conditions is a part of a nurseÂ’s career and with experience and further education, I may come to terms with it and develop as a nurse. Having reflected on my actions, I am confident in my ability to follow my va lues and ethical beliefs while giving my patients my full attention and providing them with the holistic care they are entitled to. Reference Cambridge P, Carnaby S (2000) Making it Personal: Providing intimate and personal care for people with learning disabilities. Pavilion Publishing, Brighton. Retrieved November 7, 2007. Carolyn Ann Laabs (2007). Primary Care Nurse Practitioners’ Integrity When Faced With Moral Conflict. Nursing Ethics, 14(6), 795-809. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source database. (Document ID: 1342892401). Carper, B. A. (1978). Fundamental Patterns of Knowing in Nursing. New York. Aspen Publishers, Inc. Jane Schulz (2007). Starting out. Nursing Standard, 22(3), 29. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source database. (Document ID: 1352629031). Johns, C. (1994). Model of structured reflection. In A. Palmer, S. Burns and C. Bulman (Eds.). Reflective Practice in Nursing: The Growth of the Professional Practitioner (p. 112). Osney Mead, Oxford: Blackwell Science. Julie Clark (2006). intimate care: theory, research and practice. Learning Disability Practice, 9(10), 12-17. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source database. (Document ID: 1196316821).

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Chilean Copper Mine Collapse Essay

On August 5, 2010 at San Jose mine in northern Chile a cave collapsed trapping 33 miners more than 2000-feet underground (Weik, n. d. ). This should have been just another day, a normal 12-hour shift at work, but it instead it turned into a 69 day nightmare. Minors did not know it would be the last time for nearly two months they would see the light of day. Miners, much like fire fighters and policemen, know there is a risk in the work they do. Their families also know that there is a risk and accept that someday they may get a call with bad news. Knowing this and seeing it happen are two different things. Communicating with the Families and Employees The families are from different backgrounds and different nationalities this should be taken into consideration when communicating with them. Minera San Esteban Primera would want to have several people involved in communication plan that involved constant communication with families as well as their employees. Some of the people involved with communications should be the same nationality and speak the same language to get the message across as well as make the families feel somewhat at ease. This will help the families feel as though someone understands them and their culture because they are from the same backgrounds. Communication should be organized and planned. The families from other places, not local, should be put up in a hotel with a meeting place provided where the families can come for regular updates. This will relieve some stress from the families having to wait by the phone for updates, and for the company getting calls unexpectedly or at the wrong time. This place could serve a dual function as a place where families can go and seek empathy with other families, Minera San Esteban Primera should communicate in-person with the families as much as possible. They should provide updates via phone calls with set times to call. Electronic communication would be for faster if the families have access to this type of information. Other considerations are the employees who may have family members who are trapped. It is common in a work environment like this to have several members of one family working for the same company. Other employees may be minors who called in sick that day or were assigned to different projects. Minera San Esteban Primera will need to consider how they talk to employees to be sure sensitive information is not out before it should be. Some employees who have to work around the clock to make sure everything is taken care of. The families and employees need to know that their employer will do everything they can to help the miners as fast as they can. They should hold small to the point staff meetings to provide updates to the employees (Aniisu, n. d. ). They could even have a room where employees can come and watch for updates as they become available. The country came together suggesting ideas on how to get to the miners. It was important to ascertain if the miners were alive, to see if rescue was possible. Chilean government reached out to NASA for the assistance in communicating with the miners and could get lines of communication going. Once the Chilean authorities could confirm that they were all alive, the vital information had to get to the families and to the employees (Condon, 2010). Once communication lines were set up, family members were allowed to talk briefly to their trapped miners (Tabor, n. d. ). Even though it was only one minute, it was essential for the family to see that the minors were fine and no one was lied to. This also helped the miners’ mental state and encouraged them to stay strong until rescued. The employees were able to see live feed of the miners that helped them to feel as though Minera San Esteban Primera, NASA, and the Chilean government were, in fact, doing everything they could do to save the miners. As further mining operations were bound to happen employees would feel confident that their company would do what was necessary to ensure their wellbeing in the event of another collapse. References Aniisu, . (n. d. ). Internal Communications Pointers from the Chile Miners Rescue Mission. Retrieved from http://intraskope. wordpress. com/2010/10/15/internal-communications-pointers-from-the-chile-miners-rescue-mission/ Condon, K. (2010). Communication With Chilean Miners. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles. com/? Communication-With-Chilean-Miners&id=5391484 Tabor, J. M. (n. d. ). Jonathan Franklin’s â€Å"33 Men,† on the Chilean mine collapse. Retrieved from http://articles. washingtonpost. com/2011-03-18/entertainment/35259801_1_claudio-yanez-laurence-golborne-miners Weik, J. (n. d. ). Over 30 workers trapped

Friday, September 27, 2019

Pathology of the Heart Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pathology of the Heart - Term Paper Example There are two main types of myocardial infarction and these are transmural while the other is subendocardial infarction. The transmural can be further classified as anterior or posterior and is a result of insufficient oxygen supply in the heart (Ruben and Reisner 23-232). This heart condition is basically due to deposits of fats along the blood arteries causing blockage in the tubing. As a result, more pressure is exerted to the heart during blood flow and this could lead to rapture of the blood vessels. It is also due to unbearable psychological stress or when one experiences physical exertion that exceeds the normal. Some research indicates that pneumonia and increased uses of antibiotics contribute to this heart condition. Some human activities contributing to this include excessive tobacco smoking as well as heavy alcohol drinking. Other factors contributing to heart failure are air pollution, diabetes, old age both in men and women, and proven genetic factors. Socioeconomic factors like lack of education or low income generation also pose high risks of heart attacks. Women using more than one type of contraceptive pills and still smoke are at higher risk of heart attacks. Symptoms associated to this heart condition include abrupt pains in the heart often felt in the form of tightness or pressure. The pain is due lack of enough blood supply in the organ. This is a condition which is also known as angina pectoris. Other symptoms are difficulty in breathing as a result of limitation of left ventricle output and abnormal anxiety. In addition, lack of concentration due to cerebral or brain shocks could be experienced (Bogaet and Dymarkowski 68-134). This heart condition could lead sudden death since the heart fails to supply the required amount of blood to various body parts. Women patients experience weakness as well as difficulty in

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Selling & Sales Management Best Practices Assignment

Selling & Sales Management Best Practices - Assignment Example Customers have become more selective and look for high value in return of their money. This has increase the competition among different companies in order to capture the larger share of wallet of the customers. As a result there has been increasing pressure on the sales team of the organisation. This current recession has increased pressure on organizations and sales teams to be successful. It is critical for organizations to carefully analyse and explore the situation and factors influencing the industry in which an organisation operates and methods used for analysing their internal and external environment in order to come up with victorious sales strategies and tactics. Organisations need to carefully monitor and evaluate the overall industry and identify important trends or patterns. The exploration of the overall size and dynamics of the industry facilitate the organisation in the process of identifying different opportunities and threats and allow the organisation to understand the changing factors along with the important players of the industry. In order to target the customers the companies can use the demographics and psychographics factors. Miller et al (2011), stresses that psychological factors are crucial to identify the special psychological needs and preferences of the target market. It is important for organisations to monitor their competitors and seek to create a unique point of difference to give them that competitive advantage and differentiation from them. They need to be innovative to capture a larger market share and increase sales. Mitchell (xxxx) recommends creating a clear cut edge on their competitors on the basis of the effective and efficient customer relationship management with the help of the sales personnel and sales team. This can be seen at Louis Coupland, his company created a and unique selling point of difference, where sale phone is made after a sale to

The Media of Diaspora Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Media of Diaspora - Essay Example The common notion of a globalised world is that it is composed of governmental organizations and big corporations, but this is not always the case as shown by large segments of the global population living in countries not their own but merely adopted. It gave the notion or concept of a movement that is â€Å"globalisation from below† and dispelled conventional wisdom also that a diaspora refers to the Jewish people only or exclusively. Discussion There are significantly large numbers of people living in other countries today due to the advent of modern forms of travel, such as the steamships and airplanes, which made travel easier and much cheaper. Prof. Karim H. Karim has sought to spotlight the public discourse on this growing number of people who uproot themselves to move to another country which he calls as transnational groups. These groups in turn use a variety of media to communicate and keep in touch with the original communities in their home countries, using various forms of communications such as postal mail, telephone, fax, satellite television, audiotapes, video cassette tapes and with the Internet, through e-mails and chat groups (Karim 1). The main purpose of Prof. Karim is to examine how these transnational groups have utilized various communication tools at their disposal and what the social effects are on them. The study of diapora today has been expanded from its previous closed set of characteristics to a broader definition in terms of its social scientific parameters regarding human dispersals. Some of the main points or arguments raised by Prof. Karim are that diasporas do not fit nicely into a neat definition at all times, except perhaps their common feature of being powerless in a foreign land; but even this definition does not hold true in all instances, as there are exceptions to this, such as ethnic groups which ended up as ruling elites, as in some Caribbean nations. A common misconception likewise dispelled by Prof. Karim is that diasporas are not exclusively among Asians, Africans or Latin Americans only but also include some of white ethnic groups such as Greeks, Macedonians, Italians and white Rhodesians, although these groups may have an easier time in assimilating because they are also white like the majority of Anglo-Saxons. The key marker or characteristic of a diasporas’ group is a non-dominant position in the global cultural context. Within this definition, the worldwide community of Muslims can be included because they do not have much access to global communications networks such as the CNN or the Reuters news organization like what other groups or main majority of citizens have. Diaspora does not pertain only to people going out of their native countries, as it is also applicable to indigenous peoples who have been displaced (or forcibly removed) from the traditional homelands they had previously occupied for centuries. The definition applies to the Inuit natives of Alaska and other parts of the Arctic circle who had remained within boundary of their countries but not in the earlier same exact geographical location (ibid. 2) and a clear manifestation of this condition is being â€Å"de-territorialised† as a nation of people. Pursuant to this longing for an ancestral homeland, many diaspora groups end up claiming certain lands in other territories despite some conflicting claims on it, like Israel in

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Nurses Role in Communication of Health Promotion Initiative Assignment

Nurses Role in Communication of Health Promotion Initiative - Assignment Example Also, studies have proved that even though most nurses agree that obesity is a diagnosis that needs intervention, they do not pursue matter with overweight patients (Birse, 1998). Since obese people do not feel free to got the hospital to seek medical intervention and nurses are not fully committed to assist them when they encounter them at the hospital, what could be advocated is a social website that will educate the obese people on how to lose weight. People today tend to express their feeling at the social sites, which are gaining fast recognition (McCarthy, 2009). Hence, having a hospital social site that seeks to assist obese people share their feeling will, without doubt, work. The social site could also mean that nurses will stop worrying about countering obese people in reality and only face them when the matter is critical. It also acts as a cheaper alternative to actual medical

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Cost management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Cost management - Essay Example ent even the best marketing brains from boosting sales, the only option available to even the most adventurous management is to reduce costs to maintain the existing profit level. At a cursory glance it seems to be the only and might be the most prudent approach that any management might conceive. But ill conceived cost reduction triggered as a panic reaction to the gloomy market scenario might cause more harm to the company than any good as expenditures that are absolutely imperative for the company’s health might be sacrificed in this new avalanche of trimming down of expenses. The role of the management accountant as a custodian of entire database of the company has thus assumed a critical importance as the management accountant occupies a vantage position from where a critical and dispassionate evaluation of exiting cost structure and a prudent management of costs, as contrasted to cost reduction, can be implemented. There has thus been a phenomenal, and largely unnoticed, shift in the role of management accountant in managing a business. But this change can be properly appreciated only if one examines the basic nature of accounting and the inherent differences that exist between financial, management and cost accounting. This knowledge will equip an avid observer the wherewithal to adequately appreciate the subtle difference between cost and management accounting and cost management. The basic objective of accounting is interpretation of financial data to provide a sound basis for action by management, investors and other stockholders in the entire commercial venture. (Paton 1949) Thus, from a means-end perspective the end is an expected cache of sound and economically relevant information and the means adopted can best be referred to as descriptions. From a more practical aspect it can therefore be said that accounting provides information for two distinct but inextricably interlinked purposes; the first one quite obviously consists of reporting to

Monday, September 23, 2019

Britney Spears snapping under fame Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Britney Spears snapping under fame - Essay Example The information aired to the populace about a certain issue, for example, a political issue, or that in relation to fame will affect people in their perception and transform their thinking on certain issues. The downfall of Britney is not an exception from media influence. The theory assumes the human mind to be feeble than the media created by it. This leaves room for psychological effects on the material availed by the media. The internet in the recent years caused a considerable effect on how people relate with the media (Bayles, 2001). Communication theory relates media information to the psychology of individuals. The pop celebrity, Britney spears experienced various challenges. She has undergone relationship issues leading her to file cases in court for divorce. She even once stayed in a rehabilitation facility for drug addicts due to her drug consuming habits. All these events were present in the media (Tisdell, 2007). From the internet, radio and television, one would find information about Spears relationship, divorce and drug scandals. All these issues about spears were in media thus created a different image about the celebrity. The media aim was to watch every move for Britney as it is the case with all celebrities. Her scandals and relationship issues were also in newspapers plus magazines. A stunning issue arose back in 2004 after a publication indicating engagement with Kevin Federline. Her several funs in the entire globe were in surprise (Bartolomeo, 2010). The publicity became a critical issue, as it was famous to funs. Britney and her fiancà © managed to theater a reality show on television characterizing the events culminating to their relationship. After marriage, Britney announced a break off from her career stating her interest in her family affairs (Bartolomeo, 2010). Britney’s shows were evident in the media including the show Dateline in which she expressed her views on the tabloid rumor about her. Britney encountered battles of

Sunday, September 22, 2019

The themes of Sickness Essay Example for Free

The themes of Sickness Essay Mary Shelleys infamous literary piece, Frankenstein, is a name that anyone who has ever read a book would be familiar with. Several themes appear throughout the novel, some obvious, some subtle. One of the overlooked but nevertheless significant themes is societys duty to help the poor, the sick, and the ostracized. Multiple imperative events which occurred throughout the piece emphasizes on this theme: Victor Frankensteins mother aiding the poor and sick; Henry Clervals intense care of Victor; and Captain Robert Walton taking Victor aboard and nursing him back to health. Firstly, Victor Frankensteins mother powerfully demonstrates this theme when she regularly visits the poor and performs good deeds on behalf of the impoverished and downtrodden. She further exemplifies her kindness when she and her husband adopt Elizabeth into their family, and take in Justine, the servant girl. Moreover, when Elizabeth catches scarlet fever, a deadly and contagious disease, Mrs. Frankenstein throws her safety away to focus on nursing Elizabeth back to health. Secondly, when Victor becomes ill from troubling events, Henry Clerval tends to him for over several months, helping Victor get through his difficult times. During all that time Henry was my only nurse. [ ] He knew that I could not have a more kind and attentive nurse than himself; and instead of doing harm, he performed the kindest action that he could towards [me] (Shelley ). When one compares Clerval with Victor, one can see that Clerval understands the importance of caring for his fellow human beings, while Victor selfishly ignores others to conduct his own experiment, which he in the end, abandons. There had been no events in which Victor was the one nursing somebody else, yet there were numerous cases of the reverse; where somebody was nursing him. Lastly, not only does Henry tend to Victor, but after Victor tracks the monster to the Arctic regions, he falls deathly ill. When Captain Robert Walton spots a sick, dying man, he takes him aboard and selflessly nurses him-just as Ms. Frankenstein nursed Elizabeth. To put it briefly, one of the most overlooked yet important themes that most characters are contributing in is the theme of societys duty to support and care for the poor, the neglected, and the unhealthy. This theme can be noted by various events which occurs throughout the novel, such as Ms. Frankensteins care for Elizabeth and both Henry and Waltons care for Victor. Each character in the novel can be indirectly-if not directly-connected to Frankensteins theme of tending to the sick. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus. Minneapolis: Stone Arch, 2008. Print.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Romantic Jealousy and Facebook Use Correlation | Review

Romantic Jealousy and Facebook Use Correlation | Review Tamar Chemel Write the reference for this article in APA style. Muscanell, L. N., Guadagno, E. R., Rice, L., Murphy, S. (2013). Don’t it make my brown eyes green? An analysis of facebook use and romantic jealousy. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 16(4), 237-242. DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2012.0411 Write an overview or brief summary of the article in your own words. Indicate your assessment of what the study is about and the major findings of the study This study seeks to explore the correlation between romantic jealousy and Facebook use with university-aged participants to envision themselves viewing their partner’s Facebook page with various hypothetical situations (Muscanell, Guadagno, Rice, Murphy, 2013). The main research question of the study was to explore how gender, privacy settings on Facebook, and the existence of couple’s photos on the partner’s profile collaborate and effect the negative emotions of the participants (Muscanell et al., 2013). The researchers predicted that female participants would experience and report more negative emotions and romantic jealousy than the males (Muscanell et al., 2013). The researchers also expected that the participants would experience more negative emotions when the hypothetical situations involved a romantic partner’s couple photos and tagged photos containing a privacy setting, indicating the partner’s desire to hide or disguise their relationsh ip status (Muscanell et al., 2013). In addition, they also believed that participants would self-report more powerful negative emotions if the hypothetical romantic partner did not have any couple photos up on their Facebook profile for others to see (Muscanell et al., 2013). The study examined four particular negative emotional responses to these hypothetical situations; jealousy, anger, disgust and hurt (Muscanell et al., 2013). The results of the study indicated that women more than men responded feeling more jealous, angry, and hurt to the imagined situations of a partner’s photos made private rather than being visible to all of their friends or Facebook users (Muscanell et al., 2013). Participants, both male and female, responded to feeling disgust if an imagined romantic partner’s photos were set to private, and felt more disgust if there were no couple photos present on their partner’s Facebook profile (Muscanell et al., 2013). According to the introduction, what information was already known about the topic (look for references to previous research)? This current study was based off a previous study examining romantic jealousy and online Facebook use (Muise, Chirstofides, Desmarais, 2009). The results of this study indicates that individuals who used Facebook more often described greater jealousy in romantic relationships, and thus constantly kept track of their partner’s Facebook use and profile (Muise et al., 2009). Based on their theoretical framework, this current study used hypothetical scenarios to examine jealous and negative responses to romantic partner’s Facebook use. This study also had previous information about gender differences and social networking use, particularly with the use of Facebook. Thus, the researchers used the previous research to make the predictions about gender differences and the self-reported negative emotional responses associated with Facebook use (Guadagno Sagarin, 2010). What variables were studied? Identify the Independent and Dependent Variables if applicable. What were the hypotheses concerning these variables? The dependent variable in this study is the negative emotions self-reported by the participants in the study. These include; romantic jealousy, hurt, disgust and anger. The independent variable is the hypothetical Facebook scenarios created by the researchers. The hypotheses are the sex differences of jealousy in regards to online information sharing behavior. What were the operational definitions of the variables studied? Romantic relationships are defined as only heterosexual relationships. Facebook privacy settings are the modifications that control who can access any personal information on the social networking website, including; photographs, status updates and personal information. Negative emotions are outlined as hurt, disgust, anger and jealousy. Hypothetical Facebook situations are scenarios created by the researchers to explore the participants’ emotional responses to the online behaviour of an imagined romantic partner, such as â€Å"Imagine that you see a picture of your serious romantic partner with another individual of the opposite sex†. Who were the participants in the study? Were there any special participant characteristics? The participants were both male and female undergraduate students, who were heterosexual, mainly of Caucasian ethnicity, and had Facebook accounts. What were the procedures used to test the hypotheses? Did you notice any problematic features of the procedure? Participants were randomly assigned to one of the nine conditions set up by the researchers (Muscanell et al., 2013). After imagining this hypothetical Facebook scenario, participants were encouraged to self-report on a scale, assessing jealousy and other associated negative emotions in response to the imagined situation (Muscanell et al., 2013). The main problem associated with a self-reporting study is the participants’ self-reporting behaviour, which is inherently subjective and non-scientific, as well as susceptible to the social desirability bias. Was the experimental or non-experimental method used? Were there attempts to control any extraneous variables? This research would be considered experimental research, as the independent variable was manipulated to examine how that will influence the dependent variable. In this study, the researchers manipulated the experimental conditions of the hypothetical Facebook scenarios to examine how it would influence the participants’ negative emotions. The researchers outwardly stated that the hypothetical situations were ambiguous, which may lead to extraneous factors influencing an individual’s emotional response. Perhaps if the setting and environment were not hypothetical or imagined, this research would yield more applicable and generalizable results. What were the major results of the study? Were the results consistent with the hypotheses? As predicted and consistent with previous research, the results of the study indicated that women responded with more powerful feelings of jealousy, hurt and anger to the hypothetical Facebook scenarios created by the researchers (Muscanell et al., 2013). In addition, all participants had increased feelings of jealousy, disgust, anger and hurt when they had to visualize their romantic partner not having any couple photographs present on their Facebook profile or having those photos set to private so no other Facebook users or friends could see them (Muscanell et al., 2013). Did the author give suggestions for future research or applications? Can you provide other suggestions? The authors did identify limitations to the study, and directions for future research in the area. One suggestion indicates that future researchers should study the long-lasting effects of privacy settings and couple-related information availability on romantic relationships (Muscanell et al., 2013). Age and sexuality are two factors that this study did not include, and future research might be able to indicate how these results differ if they were to examine various ages or sexualities (Muscanell et al., 2013). As the study also suggested, future research should also examine the behavioral outcomes of these negative emotions that are elicited from the manipulation of privacy settings used on Facebook which can have potential real-life implications for interpersonal relationships (Muscanell et al., 2013). Another direction researchers could take is to examine how the manipulation of privacy settings on other social networking sites influence the likelihood of extra-relational affairs and success of relationships and how that has changed since social networking sites like Facebook existed.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Story Titled The Kidnapping English Literature Essay

Story Titled The Kidnapping English Literature Essay It was a wonderful morning. There were bees buzzing outside the yard and birds chirping while looking for food on the paths. Across the street, Old Misses Ling as usual was taking her pet, sniffles for a walk. She was a friendly old lady where everyone was fond of her and even called her an amiable person. Most of the neighbourhood will seek her to baby sit their children as she was very fond of kids. Through the window of my bedroom, I apparently could observe my neighbours mornings duties. Some people grieve in their mornings because of their boring life, same old routine and extra duties. Young children get on their buses waving goodbyes to their parents with their lunch pack in their hands. Those innocent days of mine had passed. I am a fully grown up as a 20 year old teenager in my own opinion but my mother stills call me her little sweetie. She was the only relative I have with my younger brother, Stanley after my father passed away in a car accident when I was 12 years old. I was matured enough to know that he will never come back to us again. I heard it was a homicide but the murderer was never revealed. My mother had a rough time when my dad passed away. She was very stress and uptight with her being a single parent and helping to run errands, taking care of us, and attending interrogations in the police department. We could barely make ends meet for 5 years. Now my mother got a steady job as a clerk in a lawyers firm. Busy but well paid I assumed because she never complained. We were under the familys protection programme for a year as being ordered by the chief police. He proclaimed that we might be attacked for some sort of reason. My mom found it ridiculous. Af ter years of searching my dads killer, we finally put it at rest. My mom thought it was for the best for us that we should stop howling on the past. I put on my snickers and ran downstairs. The smell of coffee and peanut butter ran across my nose. I jump a few step of stairs forward to reach the floor in my living room. My mom was holding a cup of coffee in her hands while speaking on the phone huskily. I never talked about her work at a lawyers firm because I assumed it was boring. She gave me a look while pointing to the food on the table to indicate that I should be having my breakfast. I gave a smirk because I was on a diet. As I was a cheerleader, it is essential to maintain fitness. My brother on the hand was playing with his food in his bowl of cornflakes. He was still a little boy who needs me to keep in straight but I love him. Even though he does get on my nerves, I will still care for him. I walked towards him and kissed his head and grab bits of cornflakes from his bowl and he started yelling. I enjoyed it because it gave me the sense of home. I grabbed my school bag and wave to my mom. It was 6.45am and I had to hurry of to school. Today is a big day because we are going to recruit new members for our cheerleading group. It was junior year recruitment and everyone was talking about it. It was time for us seniors to retire. I was walking beside the road paths when I remembered that I needed to wear my necklace which represents sister hood among the cheerleader members. The road was clear and it was quiet. Everyone must have gone to work by now. I digged the necklace from my bag and put it around my neck. It was 2 kilometres away from my house already. Out of a sudden, I heard a screeching sound of a car from behind. It was zooming fast behind me. It was a black mustang. Before I could avoid it, it stopped in a sudden manner and was forced into the car buy two man. I shouted but was helpless. Two of them were white and wore sporty clothes. Both of them looked like mafias. I was covered with a cloth on my mouth and I felt so weak. I tried to struggle but the chlorofoam was too intense. It seem to seep into my nostrils and mouth. It made me awfully drowsy. It was already taking reaction on my nerves and my brain. I fell to a deep sleep after smelling the chluorofoam from the cloth. All I could felt was the car moving fast forward and a tight grab from the kidnapper in the car. After two hours of deep sleep, I woke up. My heart was pumping really fast. I felt deadly cold. I knew it was probably the end of my life. I saw myself tied up to a chair. I couldnt move my body except my head. My mouth was sticked with a strong hold Sellotape. I wanted to scream but I couldnt. Tears started to run down my face. I tried to keep calm. God is all I could count on. I looked at my surroundings. It seems to be a run down garage. There were lots of car tools which I dont know their functions. I see bottles of kerosene and some car parts. Windows were high up on the ceiling. The wooden floor reeds and I was starting to panic. I heard laughs from outside the garage. It had two distinct voices. The door of the garage opened. One man in his mid 30s walked in with a cruel smile. There were scars on his lips. He was wearing white pants and black shirts with French writing. He was speaking French with his friend followed behind him. His friend was shorter and looked timid. He had bristle hair. They were speaking French, thinking that I would not understand a word. It was clear and they wanted to decide ways to torture me. I wanted to get up and escape so desperately but it was impossible. My hands were tied and it hurts. The brutal guy took a chair and sat in front of me. He looked like a savage guy who would do anything for power. He had nothing but fiery eyes. He looked at me coldly and said Nicole, we both know that you cant run till you give us the chip. We watched you and your family every single day. We knew your dad. You dont even have a single clue that killed your so called heroic dad. My face changed. The thought of my dad suddenly flashed in my mind. They must have knew something and hid away from us. I was furious and puzzled. Your dad was a brilliant guy. He invented a chip that was capable to conquer the world. It had important information of nuclear weapons which will cause massive destructions to the world. He was going to give the chip to the Alias Cooperation. We could not have that happen. We offered millions of US dollars to get the chip from your dad. He was making the wrong decision and the biggest mistake of his life. He was a fool to reject us. One day, he was driving home from work Bom! , we caught him, living him dead. He thinks he cannot get away easily, but with Zachariah around, he cannot even hide. My eyes were blurry. I was so mad that they took away my dead for a small chip. I wanted to hear no more. All those years without my dad were a total darkness to my family. I felt so sad that I hope that they will end me too because I missed my dad so much. The guy went on laughing. He gave me the feeling that my world will be haunted by him. He came near me and looked into my eyes and told me I better get the chip for them or I will share the same fate as my dad. I did know anything about the chip and I didnt know my dad could invent the chip. I told them. The timid guy grabs my neck and whispered in my ear while saying give us the chip and we will let you loose. The sellotape was taken off from my mouth and I started to scream. One of them put a knife on my throat and stuffed my mouth with a cloth. He threatened me that he will cut my throat if I made noises. In a second, another guy enters the garage. This time was a completely different guy. He is dressed all white and a golden watch on his wrist. He was escorted by two of his body guards dressed in dark suits. He seems to be the boss around here because there was completely silence. He was around his mid 50s with the wrinkles on his face and his body build. He ordered the two guys around me to stop hurting me. He sat in front of me smoking a cigar and told me to calm down. He took a phone and dialled numbers and told me to tell my mom to bring the chip over. He put the phone at my ear. When I heard my mom on the phone, she was crying and knew that I was being kidnapped by assuming that I didnt attend school. I told her to find the chip. Before I could continue my sentence, the guy took th e phone and ordered my mom to get the chip within 48 hours. Then he put down the phone. There was complete silence. His assistance seems to have fear towards him. He walked around me and gave me a devils smile. I closed my eyes and comfort myself that it is just a nightmare. The man said: This is not a dream, Nicole! You better hope your mom finds the chip within 48 hours and hand it over to us. I looked at him with disgust and told him even if we had the chip, we wont hand it to him either. He went out of the garage escorted by his two body guards. The other two guys left with him. I was left alone in the dark. Droplets of sweat ran down my head and neck. When it was midnight, it was so cold. My nose went red and felt froze. I knew I had to escape by all means. Before I find a tool to untie the ropes, I heard chaos outside the garage. There were gunshots and I heard sirens. I had a great feeling about it and relieved too. There were two policeman and rescue squad who barged into the garage with snipers and short guns. I saw the two bad kidnappers were lying on the ground with their hands up. The policeman untied me and pulled of the selotape on my mouth. A guy came in with my mom. I was puzzled because he was one of the body guards who escorted the accomplice just now. He reassured me that it was safe then. My mom hugged me and was terrified with her face expressions. She touched my face and told them everything was going to be alright. The guy beside her introduced himself as Allen. He explained that he was under cover in Zachariah association for years to mad e sure no one would lay hands on the chip and my family. He was with the Alias government. He looked at my bracelet and told me my dad put the chip in my bracelet given to me on my 8th birthday. The chip was inserting in the love heart shape attached to my bracelet. I took the bracelet and gave it to Allen. It would be better to be kept with the Alias government. He told us that the Zachariah association was a highly criminal association. They were active for years but they always get covered for their crime by corruption and murdering. They kept quiet for years after murdering my dad because it involved the US government and US military which was a serious crime. My mom was so confused and did not realised all those years my dad was a scientist in the Alias government. He was a businessman all along. Allen has finally got prove to put the Zachariah association under serious criminal punishment. He thanked us for cooperation. It was an awful day which exposed all the truth about my dad. We were sent to the hospital in an ambulans escorted by the policemen and a troop of soldiers. I needed to be admitted to the hospital for several days. Even though, I was sad about the loss of my dad, but I was proud of him serving fro the country with bravery, honesty, loyalty and integrity.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Good Friends :: Friendship Essay

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Randy and I met in fifth grade; he was the new kid in town and I was in the â€Å"cool group.† So naturally â€Å"the group† chose a person, me, to check out the new kid’s credentials. We talked about his other school and his hobbies, a baseball fan: right here he was a hit. One thing was different about him: he was African-American. I thought he was cool and so did some of the other â€Å"cool† kids, but some thought that he was too different. Right here, I knew that he was never going to make it in the popular crowd.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One day, my best friend and I decided to visit Randy; he lived right down the street from me so it was no big deal. We rang the doorbell and Randy let us in; his father worked at night, so he was there also. We were introduced to his dad, the coolest guy, and decided to go to the park. Randy told us that he had really appreciated us coming by, because he thought that no one liked him. I hate to say that it was true, but it was; of course, we completely lied and told him that everyone thought he was cool. I knew we couldn’t tell him the truth, it would break the poor kid. As time passed we became very good friends, and to my surprise he did become popular.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Randy was one of those kids who was good at everything, especially basketball; I, on the other hand, was not. So one day, I went to his house and we played basketball. Actually, we really didn’t play basketball at all, he taught me the game. He patiently taught me all the moves; the cool thing was I began to enjoy the game. Randy would not move on to a new skill unless I had completely perfected the one before. It was the first time someone actually forced me to learn a game, and because of this I grew to love it. As a matter of fact, I would go to his house after school every day and he would teach me a little more; I was anxious to learn what he would teach me next. I was becoming a real pro.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There was just one problem, I couldn’t really keep up with him, because I had very bad Asthma. It affected me in every way, I couldn’t run as quick and I would get Good Friends :: Friendship Essay   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Randy and I met in fifth grade; he was the new kid in town and I was in the â€Å"cool group.† So naturally â€Å"the group† chose a person, me, to check out the new kid’s credentials. We talked about his other school and his hobbies, a baseball fan: right here he was a hit. One thing was different about him: he was African-American. I thought he was cool and so did some of the other â€Å"cool† kids, but some thought that he was too different. Right here, I knew that he was never going to make it in the popular crowd.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One day, my best friend and I decided to visit Randy; he lived right down the street from me so it was no big deal. We rang the doorbell and Randy let us in; his father worked at night, so he was there also. We were introduced to his dad, the coolest guy, and decided to go to the park. Randy told us that he had really appreciated us coming by, because he thought that no one liked him. I hate to say that it was true, but it was; of course, we completely lied and told him that everyone thought he was cool. I knew we couldn’t tell him the truth, it would break the poor kid. As time passed we became very good friends, and to my surprise he did become popular.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Randy was one of those kids who was good at everything, especially basketball; I, on the other hand, was not. So one day, I went to his house and we played basketball. Actually, we really didn’t play basketball at all, he taught me the game. He patiently taught me all the moves; the cool thing was I began to enjoy the game. Randy would not move on to a new skill unless I had completely perfected the one before. It was the first time someone actually forced me to learn a game, and because of this I grew to love it. As a matter of fact, I would go to his house after school every day and he would teach me a little more; I was anxious to learn what he would teach me next. I was becoming a real pro.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There was just one problem, I couldn’t really keep up with him, because I had very bad Asthma. It affected me in every way, I couldn’t run as quick and I would get

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Monster under My Bed :: Personal Narrative Writing

The Monster under My Bed â€Å"Mom, please!† I cried. â€Å"All my friends are outside waiting for me.† â€Å"Amanda, I told you not until your room is clean. Now, go get started. The sooner you start the sooner you will finish and can then go outside and play,† replied my mother with a firm voice. I was a very stubborn five-year-old girl. My friends were outside wanting me to play, but after much begging my mother was still refusing to let me out of the house until my room was clean. The thought of my friends outside playing, and my missing out on the fun was too much for me to bear. I decided to take a shortcut on the cleaning and learned a lesson that even now, almost 20 years later, I still haven’t forgotten. I could tell from my mother's stern voice that she wasn’t going to budge on this one. I turned around, hunched my shoulders, dropped my head, and walked down the hall to clean my room, pouting the entire way. I turned into the room and saw a huge mess. â€Å"This is going to take forever!† I thought as I looked around at the toys, puzzles, books, and clothes strewn about all over. There was no way I could clean all this up and still have time to go play with my friends. â€Å"Jeez, Mom doesn’t understand anything. If she would just let me go play, then I would come back and clean it up later,† I thought to myself. â€Å"She is no fun at all. When I’m a mom I will never make my kids clean their room,† I vowed to myself. I started cleaning, putting toys in the toy box, books on the shelf, shoes and dress-up clothes in the closet. â€Å"I tagged you, I tagged you,† I could hear my friends yelling from outside. â€Å"You’re it! Ha, ha!† I had to get out there. Looking around my still-messy room, I realized my bed had lots of room under it. The Monster under My Bed :: Personal Narrative Writing The Monster under My Bed â€Å"Mom, please!† I cried. â€Å"All my friends are outside waiting for me.† â€Å"Amanda, I told you not until your room is clean. Now, go get started. The sooner you start the sooner you will finish and can then go outside and play,† replied my mother with a firm voice. I was a very stubborn five-year-old girl. My friends were outside wanting me to play, but after much begging my mother was still refusing to let me out of the house until my room was clean. The thought of my friends outside playing, and my missing out on the fun was too much for me to bear. I decided to take a shortcut on the cleaning and learned a lesson that even now, almost 20 years later, I still haven’t forgotten. I could tell from my mother's stern voice that she wasn’t going to budge on this one. I turned around, hunched my shoulders, dropped my head, and walked down the hall to clean my room, pouting the entire way. I turned into the room and saw a huge mess. â€Å"This is going to take forever!† I thought as I looked around at the toys, puzzles, books, and clothes strewn about all over. There was no way I could clean all this up and still have time to go play with my friends. â€Å"Jeez, Mom doesn’t understand anything. If she would just let me go play, then I would come back and clean it up later,† I thought to myself. â€Å"She is no fun at all. When I’m a mom I will never make my kids clean their room,† I vowed to myself. I started cleaning, putting toys in the toy box, books on the shelf, shoes and dress-up clothes in the closet. â€Å"I tagged you, I tagged you,† I could hear my friends yelling from outside. â€Å"You’re it! Ha, ha!† I had to get out there. Looking around my still-messy room, I realized my bed had lots of room under it.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Snake Venom

Venom Venom Types Methods of Production Methods of Delivery Offense or Defense? Lethal injection or False alarm? Mysteries Warnings To most people venom and snakes go hand in hand. It is commonly believed that all snakes are venomous, but this is an erroneous belief. Of the 2. 700 known species of snake only 300 are venomous. So what is venom, how did snakes get it and why do they have it? These are questions that have interested herpetologists and other scientists alike. Venom itself is a poison secreted by animals for either defensive or offensive purposes.Venom originated from digestive enzymes that were originally located in the stomach. Throughout the millions of years it has progressed quite a lot and in some animals has become quite different from it's origin. The type of venom depends on the type of animal. In spiders venom is kept rather simple. It is pretty much just digestive enzymes. Spiders use their venom to turn their hard shelled insect meals into nice and nutritious goo. So in a sense one can think of this type of venom as a form of starting the digestive process before you even start to eat the meal.In insects venom is used predominantly as a defensive weapon. Wasps, bees and ants use formic acid in their stings to cause a painful burning sensation that will either kill or injure their enemy enough to make them think twice about attacking them again. Amphibians all use their venom for defense. In amphibians the venom is secreted through glands in the skin to make the animals unpalatable. So as we can see venom is a predominantly defensive adaptation. An adaptation that has found it's way into every class of vertebrates except one. The birds; the only class to forego any venom.In mammals we have platypi with venomous claws, then there are the fish which comprise too many venomous species to count and finally we have the reptiles. All venomous reptiles are squamates and of them snakes make up the bulk. There are only two species of venomous squa mates that are not snakes, the lizards of the genus: Heloderma. These lizards use their venom for defense as well and can deliver powerful and painful bites. In snakes venom has found a new use, for offense. Since snake prey generally has the advantage of speed (not to say that snakes can't be speedy. A black mamba traveling at 17 mph is nothing to sneeze at. snakes had to find a new way to take down their prey without running the risk of losing them or getting too hurt in the process. Enter venom, a fast and effective mode of subdueing prey items with minimal risk to the snake. Venom types Snake venom can be divided into two broad (yet fuzzy) categories. That of hemotoxicity and neurotoxicity. Hemotoxic venom effects the blood and organs, causing a breakdown or inflammation in the body. Hemotoxic bites are the most painful as breathing hurts and tissues start to die. Neurotoxic venom, as the name suggests, effect the nervous system, leading to everything from siezures to death.Neur otoxic bites are the most deadly. Although we have these two wonderful different categories, no snake fits completely in each. Many snakes incorporate both neurotoxic and hemotoxic venom in their bites so when telling them apart one goes by which type is more predominant. For instance Ophiophagous hannah (King Cobra) has predominantly neurotoxic venom while Crotalus adamanteus (Eastern diamondback rattlesnake) has predominantly hemotoxic venom. Methods of production While getting bitten by a snake might strike fear in people, the fangs are not where the venom comes from, they are mearly methods of transfer.The place where the venom is made is in special glands located on the head of the animal. The venom glands differentiate into false and true venom glands. False venom glands (a misleading name no doubt) are made up either from mucus producing supralabial glands that run on either side of the head extending as a continuous strip from near the snout to below and well behind the eye. These then lead to several ducts that lead to the bases of many maxillary teeth. Alethinophidians are known to have this type of arrangement. Most colubrids have a different arrangement.Rather than use those modified salivary glands they use a larger gland known as the Duvernoy's gland. This gland is situated right under the skin, above and near the angle of the jaw. These glands open from a duct at the base of one or more posterior usually enlarged fangs that may or may not be grooved. These glands do not have a lumen (central storage chamber) so the snakes must give off a continous stream of venom into their prey which means that they must continue to hold on to the animal to ensure envenomation. True venom glands are made uf thick connective tissue.They contain a lumen, a separate compressor muscle and a duct connecting them to a single fang on each side of the jaw. These glands dominate all elapids and viperids (along with some atractaspidids) Methods of Delivery Their are four main types of teeth in snakes with which venom is transferred from gland to prey. While these forms seem to indicate a continual progression towards more complexity, they are misleading as it doesn't take into account the morphological variation in snake dentitions making for a paraphyletic occurence (that is they all thought up different ways to accomplish the same goal).Aglyphous snakes Aglyphous (grooveless) snakes lack any groove in their teeth for venom to run down. Instead the venom drips down the teeth from any available opening essentially saturating the maxillae. In order for envenomation to occur the snake must chew on it's prey which is time consuming. Aglyphous snakes include blind snakes and some colubrids. Opisthoglyphous snakes Opisthoglyphous (rear grooved) snakes have elongate fangs located on the top of the back of their mouths. These fangs have a groove running on the lateral side of the fang which helps direct venom into the prey.Since the fangs are located post eriorly the snake must make a point of taking a big bite into it's prey in order to assure envenomation. Colubrids make up the bulk of this group. Proteroglyphs Proteroglyphs (front groove) snakes are pretty much all elapids with an occasional actractaspidid like Homoroselaps (Harlequin snakes). In proteroglyphs the groove has run so deep that both sides of the groove overlap eachother forming a channel for the venom to flow. A lumen is located at the base of the tooth where venom eagerly awaits ejection while a discharge orifice lay on one side near the tip.An adductor (jaw closing) muscle is attached to the glands so that when the snake bites down the glands get squeezed and a stream of venom flows into the prey. These snakes are â€Å"fixed fanged. † That is to say they are unable to fold up their fangs when not in use so the fangs must be kept short enough so as not to puncture the lower jaw. Interestingly enough fixed fanged elapids are known to hold onto their prey afte r biting. This would seem to present a potential hazard for the snake, but the predominantly neurotoxic venom works so fast that the prey doesn't have enough time to struggle, thus ensuring the snake it's meal.Some cobra types such as the rinkhals (Hemachatus haemachatus) and many species of Afro-Asian cobras (Naja sp. ) have the ability to spit their venom at predators. Their fang tips have beveled, circular (sometimes pear shaped) apertures on the anterior surface just above the tip where the venom is ejected. African spitters go one stepped further. They have spiral grooves in their fangs that (like the riflings of a gun barrel) force a spin on the venom allowing for greater accuracy. This is only used in defense and is amazing effective as these snakes are adepth marksmen.By expending venom in these little droplets, the snake is guaranteed the maximum use of it's (normally offensive) venom when battling a predator. How often can these snakes spit before running out. Well one bla ck necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) emptied it's venom glands by spitting fifty seven times in only twenty minutes. Truly a force to be reckoned with. Solenoglyphous snakes Solenoglyphous (pipe grooved) snakes make up the viperidae and show some of the most specialized teeth for the job.Viperid fangs have the groove so deep now that the outside of the teeth completely cover it forming a pipe for venom to enter. The two fangs are attached to a short highly movable maxillary bone. This bone allows the snakes to fold their fangs up in their mouths. This ability to fold up the fangs allows for greater fang length. How much greater? Well compare a 3. 83-m Ophiophagous hannah's 11mm fangs to a 1. 8-m Bitis gabonica (Gaboon viper) with fangs measuring 29mm. Impressive no? Viperids have predominantly hemotoxic venom and as such, their bites take longer to take effect.Since the effect is longer, the snake can't risk holding onto the struggling prey for it would surely get hurt, but w ith their potent venom, quick strikes and hyperextendable fangs, these snakes are able to get in and out extremely fast. Not only can the fangs hyperextend (up to 1800) but with the separately jointed maxillae the fangs can move individually as well. So a viper can decide whether or not to move one fang or two. Inject one side or two. The amount of venom control in vipers is astounding as well as their venom reservoirs. The bulk of Bitis gabonica's head is it's venom glands. Shocking!Offense or Defense As stated before, snakes predominantly use their venom to capture prey, but when push comes to shove, venom can mean the difference between life and death. Snake defense is rather limited when one thinks about it. They can't outrun their predators, a lack of limbs means that gaining the leverage for tail whipping is rather impossible (pointless anyway seeing as how most snakes have rather small tails). Some snakes can secrete nasty substances that make them unwanted to be around. Othe rs feign their own deaths, but in general the best area of defense for snakes lies in their jaws.For a venomous snake, biting a predator means wasting precious venom; a commodity that doesn't come without it's price. Venom costs energy to make and takes a while to refill when empty. A snake would much rather save that venom for something worth it like food, so it takes quite a bit of pressing to get a venomous snake to actually bite. In fact it is for these reasons that venomous snakes have adopted so many warning strategies. From warning colors, to hoods, to rattles, venomous snakes do everything in their power to avoid biting the enemy. In contrast a boid or other constrictor will readily bite in defense.While they lack venom, recurved teeth can be just as bad and since constrictors don't have to worry about wasting venom they can feel free to bite all they want. Lethal injection or False alarm? Along with warning well in advance, another common thing found in venomous snakes (esp ecially viperids) is giving what is known as a â€Å"dry bite. † Dry bites occur when a snake like a rattler is cornered and forced to bite in defense. While the snake might be in last resort mode, it still has one more trick up it's sleeve. Venomous snakes (true venomous snakes) have the ability to choose whether or not they want to inject venom into something.So if a rattlesnake bites a dog, it has the choice of either envenomating or bluffing the animal. In nature bluffs work much of the time and are the safest way for an animal to avoid a fight. By giving off a dry bite, venomous snakes need not waste their venom supplies. In fact over half of all rattlesnake bites are dry ones. A very comforting thought. Mysteries of Venomous Snakes One of the strangest things about elapids and viperids is that they seem to have evolved venom that is too potent for their own good. For instance, a Western rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) injects it's prey (a mouse) with 300 times more venom than is necessary.Or the Inland Taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus) which injects enough venom in one bite to kill two hundred thousand mice. Why the excess? No one knows for sure. Perhaps the mechanisms that produced the venom never had any buffers for how powerful it got. Since the evolution of new traits involves the constantly ascending path (new traits are only kept if beneficial to the organism) the fact that ever potent venom would always guarantee the quick death of the prey means that it would always be selected for and will be until something comes to counter it.While this is a nice theory and all, there is an underlying problem with it. Venomous snakes (of at least the elapid and viperid families) are able to meter out how much venom they intend to inject into their prey. So that Crotalus viridis is quite aware of the amount it is pumping into that mouse. Plus since venom replenishment is not the fastest thing (averaging between 4 days and three weeks) injecting so much ve nom seems wasteful. Another theory proposed was that it the venom helps to begin the digestion process. Surely this seems reasonable especially considered how venom effects tissue along with it's origins.Yet that too does not give a perfect explanation for Brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) which inject three to eight times more venom than necessary, end up with half of that venom lodged in the skin. So for now, the reasons behind the excess venom delivery by venomous snakes are still unknown. Warnings about venom While no person should actively go out and try to capture a venomous snake (without good reason) in the even that one finds said snake, the best precautions are to examine the encounter. If you're far enough away to leave then feel free to do so, you need not worry about the snake following you.If you're practically stepping on the snake things could be worse. At that point though one usually finds that one has been bitten. If bitten make sure to ID the snake. Remember as much as possible about it. For an idea of the type of venom that might have been injected in you consider the area that you are at and how the snake looked. Vipers, due to their large venom glands, have heart shaped heads. Elapids have nice thin heads. Colubrids are harder to tell apart from elapids, but a venomous elapid will give warning or have some type of forewarning available.Colubrid bites normally don't kill and are more a pain than anything else. Viper bites can be deadly and normally are very painful. Elapid bites are extremely lethal and antivenin treatment is a must if bitten. Although all this seems scary, it's best to remember that no venomous snake will attack without severe provocation. Look for the warning signs and watch where you step and you should be fine. Also remember many bites given are dry, so just because you were bitten doesn't mean you were envenomated. A good rule of thumb when dealing with a scared or cornered snake is that the last thing it's going to want to do is bite.Venom Venom Types Methods of Production Methods of Delivery Offense or Defense? Lethal injection or False alarm? Mysteries Warnings To most people venom and snakes go hand in hand. It is commonly believed that all snakes are venomous, but this is an erroneous belief. Of the 2. 700 known species of snake only 300 are venomous. So what is venom, how did snakes get it and why do they have it? These are questions that have interested herpetologists and other scientists alike. Venom itself is a poison secreted by animals for either defensive or offensive purposes.Venom originated from digestive enzymes that were originally located in the stomach. Throughout the millions of years it has progressed quite a lot and in some animals has become quite different from it's origin. The type of venom depends on the type of animal. In spiders venom is kept rather simple. It is pretty much just digestive enzymes. Spiders use their venom to turn their hard shelled insect meals i nto nice and nutritious goo. So in a sense one can think of this type of venom as a form of starting the digestive process before you even start to eat the meal.In insects venom is used predominantly as a defensive weapon. Wasps, bees and ants use formic acid in their stings to cause a painful burning sensation that will either kill or injure their enemy enough to make them think twice about attacking them again. Amphibians all use their venom for defense. In amphibians the venom is secreted through glands in the skin to make the animals unpalatable. So as we can see venom is a predominantly defensive adaptation. An adaptation that has found it's way into every class of vertebrates except one. The birds; the only class to forego any venom.In mammals we have platypi with venomous claws, then there are the fish which comprise too many venomous species to count and finally we have the reptiles. All venomous reptiles are squamates and of them snakes make up the bulk. There are only two species of venomous squamates that are not snakes, the lizards of the genus: Heloderma. These lizards use their venom for defense as well and can deliver powerful and painful bites. In snakes venom has found a new use, for offense. Since snake prey generally has the advantage of speed (not to say that snakes can't be speedy. A black mamba traveling at 17 mph is nothing to sneeze at. snakes had to find a new way to take down their prey without running the risk of losing them or getting too hurt in the process. Enter venom, a fast and effective mode of subdueing prey items with minimal risk to the snake. Venom types Snake venom can be divided into two broad (yet fuzzy) categories. That of hemotoxicity and neurotoxicity. Hemotoxic venom effects the blood and organs, causing a breakdown or inflammation in the body. Hemotoxic bites are the most painful as breathing hurts and tissues start to die. Neurotoxic venom, as the name suggests, effect the nervous system, leading to everything fro m siezures to death.Neurotoxic bites are the most deadly. Although we have these two wonderful different categories, no snake fits completely in each. Many snakes incorporate both neurotoxic and hemotoxic venom in their bites so when telling them apart one goes by which type is more predominant. For instance Ophiophagous hannah (King Cobra) has predominantly neurotoxic venom while Crotalus adamanteus (Eastern diamondback rattlesnake) has predominantly hemotoxic venom. Methods of production While getting bitten by a snake might strike fear in people, the fangs are not where the venom comes from, they are mearly methods of transfer.The place where the venom is made is in special glands located on the head of the animal. The venom glands differentiate into false and true venom glands. False venom glands (a misleading name no doubt) are made up either from mucus producing supralabial glands that run on either side of the head extending as a continuous strip from near the snout to below and well behind the eye. These then lead to several ducts that lead to the bases of many maxillary teeth. Alethinophidians are known to have this type of arrangement. Most colubrids have a different arrangement.Rather than use those modified salivary glands they use a larger gland known as the Duvernoy's gland. This gland is situated right under the skin, above and near the angle of the jaw. These glands open from a duct at the base of one or more posterior usually enlarged fangs that may or may not be grooved. These glands do not have a lumen (central storage chamber) so the snakes must give off a continous stream of venom into their prey which means that they must continue to hold on to the animal to ensure envenomation. True venom glands are made uf thick connective tissue.They contain a lumen, a separate compressor muscle and a duct connecting them to a single fang on each side of the jaw. These glands dominate all elapids and viperids (along with some atractaspidids) Methods of Delivery Their are four main types of teeth in snakes with which venom is transferred from gland to prey. While these forms seem to indicate a continual progression towards more complexity, they are misleading as it doesn't take into account the morphological variation in snake dentitions making for a paraphyletic occurence (that is they all thought up different ways to accomplish the same goal).Aglyphous snakes Aglyphous (grooveless) snakes lack any groove in their teeth for venom to run down. Instead the venom drips down the teeth from any available opening essentially saturating the maxillae. In order for envenomation to occur the snake must chew on it's prey which is time consuming. Aglyphous snakes include blind snakes and some colubrids. Opisthoglyphous snakes Opisthoglyphous (rear grooved) snakes have elongate fangs located on the top of the back of their mouths. These fangs have a groove running on the lateral side of the fang which helps direct venom into the prey.Since th e fangs are located posteriorly the snake must make a point of taking a big bite into it's prey in order to assure envenomation. Colubrids make up the bulk of this group. Proteroglyphs Proteroglyphs (front groove) snakes are pretty much all elapids with an occasional actractaspidid like Homoroselaps (Harlequin snakes). In proteroglyphs the groove has run so deep that both sides of the groove overlap eachother forming a channel for the venom to flow. A lumen is located at the base of the tooth where venom eagerly awaits ejection while a discharge orifice lay on one side near the tip.An adductor (jaw closing) muscle is attached to the glands so that when the snake bites down the glands get squeezed and a stream of venom flows into the prey. These snakes are â€Å"fixed fanged. † That is to say they are unable to fold up their fangs when not in use so the fangs must be kept short enough so as not to puncture the lower jaw. Interestingly enough fixed fanged elapids are known to h old onto their prey after biting. This would seem to present a potential hazard for the snake, but the predominantly neurotoxic venom works so fast that the prey doesn't have enough time to struggle, thus ensuring the snake it's meal.Some cobra types such as the rinkhals (Hemachatus haemachatus) and many species of Afro-Asian cobras (Naja sp. ) have the ability to spit their venom at predators. Their fang tips have beveled, circular (sometimes pear shaped) apertures on the anterior surface just above the tip where the venom is ejected. African spitters go one stepped further. They have spiral grooves in their fangs that (like the riflings of a gun barrel) force a spin on the venom allowing for greater accuracy. This is only used in defense and is amazing effective as these snakes are adepth marksmen.By expending venom in these little droplets, the snake is guaranteed the maximum use of it's (normally offensive) venom when battling a predator. How often can these snakes spit before r unning out. Well one black necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) emptied it's venom glands by spitting fifty seven times in only twenty minutes. Truly a force to be reckoned with. Solenoglyphous snakes Solenoglyphous (pipe grooved) snakes make up the viperidae and show some of the most specialized teeth for the job.Viperid fangs have the groove so deep now that the outside of the teeth completely cover it forming a pipe for venom to enter. The two fangs are attached to a short highly movable maxillary bone. This bone allows the snakes to fold their fangs up in their mouths. This ability to fold up the fangs allows for greater fang length. How much greater? Well compare a 3. 83-m Ophiophagous hannah's 11mm fangs to a 1. 8-m Bitis gabonica (Gaboon viper) with fangs measuring 29mm. Impressive no? Viperids have predominantly hemotoxic venom and as such, their bites take longer to take effect.Since the effect is longer, the snake can't risk holding onto the struggling prey for it woul d surely get hurt, but with their potent venom, quick strikes and hyperextendable fangs, these snakes are able to get in and out extremely fast. Not only can the fangs hyperextend (up to 1800) but with the separately jointed maxillae the fangs can move individually as well. So a viper can decide whether or not to move one fang or two. Inject one side or two. The amount of venom control in vipers is astounding as well as their venom reservoirs. The bulk of Bitis gabonica's head is it's venom glands. Shocking!Offense or Defense As stated before, snakes predominantly use their venom to capture prey, but when push comes to shove, venom can mean the difference between life and death. Snake defense is rather limited when one thinks about it. They can't outrun their predators, a lack of limbs means that gaining the leverage for tail whipping is rather impossible (pointless anyway seeing as how most snakes have rather small tails). Some snakes can secrete nasty substances that make them unw anted to be around. Others feign their own deaths, but in general the best area of defense for snakes lies in their jaws.For a venomous snake, biting a predator means wasting precious venom; a commodity that doesn't come without it's price. Venom costs energy to make and takes a while to refill when empty. A snake would much rather save that venom for something worth it like food, so it takes quite a bit of pressing to get a venomous snake to actually bite. In fact it is for these reasons that venomous snakes have adopted so many warning strategies. From warning colors, to hoods, to rattles, venomous snakes do everything in their power to avoid biting the enemy. In contrast a boid or other constrictor will readily bite in defense.While they lack venom, recurved teeth can be just as bad and since constrictors don't have to worry about wasting venom they can feel free to bite all they want. Lethal injection or False alarm? Along with warning well in advance, another common thing found in venomous snakes (especially viperids) is giving what is known as a â€Å"dry bite. † Dry bites occur when a snake like a rattler is cornered and forced to bite in defense. While the snake might be in last resort mode, it still has one more trick up it's sleeve. Venomous snakes (true venomous snakes) have the ability to choose whether or not they want to inject venom into something.So if a rattlesnake bites a dog, it has the choice of either envenomating or bluffing the animal. In nature bluffs work much of the time and are the safest way for an animal to avoid a fight. By giving off a dry bite, venomous snakes need not waste their venom supplies. In fact over half of all rattlesnake bites are dry ones. A very comforting thought. Mysteries of Venomous Snakes One of the strangest things about elapids and viperids is that they seem to have evolved venom that is too potent for their own good. For instance, a Western rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) injects it's prey (a mouse) w ith 300 times more venom than is necessary.Or the Inland Taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus) which injects enough venom in one bite to kill two hundred thousand mice. Why the excess? No one knows for sure. Perhaps the mechanisms that produced the venom never had any buffers for how powerful it got. Since the evolution of new traits involves the constantly ascending path (new traits are only kept if beneficial to the organism) the fact that ever potent venom would always guarantee the quick death of the prey means that it would always be selected for and will be until something comes to counter it.While this is a nice theory and all, there is an underlying problem with it. Venomous snakes (of at least the elapid and viperid families) are able to meter out how much venom they intend to inject into their prey. So that Crotalus viridis is quite aware of the amount it is pumping into that mouse. Plus since venom replenishment is not the fastest thing (averaging between 4 days and three wee ks) injecting so much venom seems wasteful. Another theory proposed was that it the venom helps to begin the digestion process. Surely this seems reasonable especially considered how venom effects tissue along with it's origins.Yet that too does not give a perfect explanation for Brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) which inject three to eight times more venom than necessary, end up with half of that venom lodged in the skin. So for now, the reasons behind the excess venom delivery by venomous snakes are still unknown. Warnings about venom While no person should actively go out and try to capture a venomous snake (without good reason) in the even that one finds said snake, the best precautions are to examine the encounter. If you're far enough away to leave then feel free to do so, you need not worry about the snake following you.If you're practically stepping on the snake things could be worse. At that point though one usually finds that one has been bitten. If bitten make sure to ID the snake. Remember as much as possible about it. For an idea of the type of venom that might have been injected in you consider the area that you are at and how the snake looked. Vipers, due to their large venom glands, have heart shaped heads. Elapids have nice thin heads. Colubrids are harder to tell apart from elapids, but a venomous elapid will give warning or have some type of forewarning available.Colubrid bites normally don't kill and are more a pain than anything else. Viper bites can be deadly and normally are very painful. Elapid bites are extremely lethal and antivenin treatment is a must if bitten. Although all this seems scary, it's best to remember that no venomous snake will attack without severe provocation. Look for the warning signs and watch where you step and you should be fine. Also remember many bites given are dry, so just because you were bitten doesn't mean you were envenomated. A good rule of thumb when dealing with a scared or cornered snake is that t he last thing it's going to want to do is bite.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Company Law and Secretarial Practices Essay

Incorporation means the process of legally declaring a corporate entity as separate entity from its owners. Incorporation has many advantages for a business and its owners, including: Protects the owners’ assets against the company’s liabilities. Allows for easy transfer of ownership to another party. Achieves a lower tax rate than on personal income. Receives more lenient tax restrictions on loss carry forwards. Can raise capital through the sale of the stock. Incorporation involves drafting a â€Å"Memorandum of Association† and an â€Å"Articles of Association†, which lists the primary purpose of the business and its location, along with the number of shares and class of stock being issued, if any. Incorporation will also involve state-specific registration information and fees. Those procedures are undertaken by a promoter who is a person who starts up a business, particularly a corporation, including the financing. The formation of a corporation starts with an idea. Pre-incorporation activities transform this idea into an actual corporation and the promoter is the individual who carries on these activities. Usually the promoter is the main shareholder or one of the management team and receives stock for his/her efforts in organization. Without incorporation, Company Law cannot stand by itself as law amended is critically meant to protect the shareholders as well as the member of the company which is incorporated. As mentioned above, incorporation tends to protect the welfare of the business and its owners in various perspectives like intellectual property, taxation and capital shares. In other words, Company law (or the law of business associations) is the field of law concerning companies. Furthermore, there are various types of company that can be formed in different jurisdictions as shown in Malaysian Company Act 1965 Section 14(2) which are: a company limited by guarantee. Commonly used where companies are formed for non-commercial purposes, such as clubs or charities. The members guarantee the payment of certain (usually nominal) amounts if the company goes into insolvent liquidation, but they have no economic rights in relation to the company. a company limited by guarantee with a share capital. A hybrid entity, usually used where the company is formed for non-commercial purposes, but the activities of the company are partly funded by investors who expect a return. a company limited by shares. The most common form of company used for business ventures. an unlimited company either with or without a share capital. This is a hybrid company, a company similar to its limited company (Ltd.) counterpart but where the members or shareholders do not benefit from limited liability should the company ever go into formal liquidation. Meanwhile, there are thousands of company law cases that showed that incorporation is the bedrock of formation of Company Law. As such, We held out a few cases here which clearly indicated the importance of Company Law in determining the court case related to incorporation. Salomon v A Salomon and Co Ltd [1897] AC 22 Corporate separate personality Salomon conducted his business as a sole trader. He sold it to a company incorporated for the purpose called A Salomon and Co Ltd. The only members were Mr Salomon, his wife, and their five children. Each member took one  £1 share each. The company bought the business for  £39,000. Mr Salomon subscribed for 20,000 further shares. However,  £10,000 was not paid by the company, which instead issued Salomon with series of debentures and gave him a floating charge on its assets. When the company failed the company’s liquidator contended that the floating charge should not be honoured, and Salomon should be made responsible for the company’s debts. Lord Halsbury LC stated: â€Å"†¦ it seems to me impossible to dispute that once the company is legally incorporated it must be treated like any other independent person with its rights and liabilities appropriate to itself, and that the motives of those who took part in the promotion of the company are absolutely irrelevant in discussing what those rights and liabilities are.† Hickman v Kent or Romney Marsh Sheep-Breeders’ Association ‘Outsider rights’ Hickman was a member of the Kent or Romney Marsh Sheep-Breeders Association. He began a court action complaining of various irregularities in the affairs of the association. Clause 49 of the Associations constitution stated that all disputes were to handled by arbitration. The question of whether a person who is not a member of the company has rights to sue on the ‘statutory contract’ provide by what is now section 33 of the Companies Act 2006 was considered . It was held that an outsider to whom rights are purportedly given by the company’s articles in his capacity as an outsider cannot sue in that capacity, whether he is also a member of the company or not. From this case comes the fundamental concept that a company has a legal personality or identity separate from its members. A company is thus a legal ‘person’. Macaura v Northern Assurance Co Ltd [1925] AC 619 Members have no interest in a company’s property The owner of a timber estate sold all the timber to a company which was owned almost solely by him. He was the company’s largest creditor. He insured the timber against fire, but in his own name. After the timber was destroyed by fire the insurance company refused the claim. The House of Lords held that in order to have an insurable interest in property a person must have a legal or equitable interest in that property. The claim failed as â€Å"the corporator even if he holds all the shares is not the corporation†¦ neither he nor any creditor of the company has any property legal or equitable in the assets of the corporation.† In a nutshell, the effect of incorporation which is embedded in Section 16(5) â€Å"On and from the date of incorporation specified in the certificate of incorporation but subject to this Act the subscribers to the memorandum together with such other persons as may from time to time become members of the company shall be a body corporate bby the name contained in the memorandum capable forthwith of exercising all the functions of an incorporated company and of suing and being sued and having perpetual succession and a common seal with power to hold land but with such liability on the part of the members to contribute to the assets of the company in the event of its being wound up as is provided by this Act† clearly demonstrated that the foundation of Company Law is the ‘company’ and that without incorporation and the creation of a separate corporate personality, there couldn’t be a base for the formation of Company law and Companies Act. 2. In practice, in no circumstances, is it possible to pierce the corporate veil between a parent and a subsidiary company. A company is an artificial person. Once it is incorporated, it comes into being and is a separate legal entity from its members and officers. The importance of the principle of separate legal entity was first established in the landmark case of Salomon v Salomon & Co Ltd (1897). In this case, Mr Salomon was a sole-proprietor manufacturing boots. The business was successful. Mr Salomon incorporated a company and sold his business to the company in consideration for 20000 shares and debentures of  £10000 issued in favour of Mr Salomon. Mr Salomon ended up holding 20001 of the 20007 shares issued. The other six shared were held by his wife and five children as nominees for Mr Salomon. Unfortunately, the company experienced financial difficulty and was wound up. An action was brought against Mr Salomon to indemnify the company for all the debts due to its unsecured creditors. The House of Lords held that even though the business was managed by the same persons and the same hands received the profits, the company was not an agent or trustee for the members. Incorporation of the company created a separate person. The members were not liable in respect of the company’s obligations. The same applies to parent and subsidiary companies. Both parent and subsidiary companies has their own separate legal entity. One example is the case of The People’s Insurance Co (M) v The People’s Insurance Co Ltd (1986). In this case, the plaintiff company, People’s Insurance Co. (M) Sdn. Bhd. (PICMSB) was a subsidiary of the first defendants company, People’s Insurance Co. Ltd. (PICL). On 12 January 1978, five directors of PICMSM held a meeting. One of the directors was the Managing Director of the defendant (PICL), another one was General Manager and Director of the defendant (PICL), and another one was Executive Director of the defendant (PICL). During the meeting they passed a resolution that affected PICL. The defendant (PICL) denied any liability. The court held that: i. The parent and subsidiary companies are two separate legal entities; ii. Officers of the parent company who are on the Board of the subsidiary are not representatives of the parent company but sit at the Board Meeting as directors and agent of the subsidiary iii. A resolution of the Board of directors of the subsidiary does not bind the parent company. The resolution did not constitute a contract between the parties. Thus, it is held that the principle of separate legal entity applies as well to related companies, including wholly owned subsidiaries. In Adams v Cape Industries PLC (1990), the main defendant was an English registered company presiding over a group of companies whose business was in the mining (in South Africa), and marketing, of asbestos. The company had become the subject of a class action lawsuit in the United States, and the company tried to avoid fighting the case in the American courts on jurisdictional grounds. The Plaintiffs obtained a judgment against the English company in the American courts, but as Cape had no assets left in the U.S., they then sought to enforce the judgment against the principal company in the group in the English courts. The court accepted that the purpose of the corporate group structure set up by Cape Industries had been used specifically to ensure that the legal liability of a particular subsidiary would fall only upon itself and not the parent company in England. The court refused to pierce the veil of incorporation to allow the judgment creditor to enforce its judgment against the judgment debtor’s holding company. The court refused to treat both the subsidiary and holding companies as one single entity. However the legislature recognizes that there may arise circumstances when this principle of separate legal entity may lead to adverse positions, and thus have enacted statutory exceptions to lift the veil of incorporation under specified circumstances. Normally in new situations or circumstances, court decides on case by case basis to pierce the veil of incorporation. There are instances where the court held that the related companies do not have separate legal entities; they are indeed one legal entity. In DHN Food Distributors Ltd v London Borough of Tower Hamlets (1976), DHN carried on the business of operating a grocery on the property owned by one of its wholly owned subsidiaries. The property was compulsorily acquired by the authority which refused to pay compensation to DHN as it did not have any interest on the land. The English Court of Appeal held that the group operated as a single economic unit and thus DHN could recover the compensation due to them under law. In conclusion, in normal practice with no circumstances, it is not possible to pierce the corporate veil between a parent and a subsidiary company as mentioned in The People’s Insurance Co (M) v The People’s Insurance Co Ltd (1986) and Adams v Cape Industries PLC (1990). Only when there arise circumstances can only the corporate veil of a parent and subsidiary company be pierced. 3a. Joe and Mike issue sufficient RM1 shares to Luke to raise his stake to 40% to allow them to defeat the resolution of their removal from the board. The action proposed by Joe and Mike is not allowed under section 132D of Companies Act 1965. Section 132D(1) of the Act reads, â€Å"notwithstanding anything in a company’s memorandum or articles, the directors shall not, without the prior approval of the company in general meeting, exercise any power of the company to issue shares†. Unless the power to issue shares has been vested in the members at a general meeting, the directors are not allowed to issue shares. Under this section, the company’s power to issue shares is not transferred from the directors to the members in general meeting. Rather, it imposes an obligation on the directors to obtain the approval of the company’s shareholders in general meeting before exercising their power to issue shares. When an allotment of shares takes place by the company without compiling without any statutory procedure, it is an irregular allotment. Although it is necessary to obtain only an ordinary resolution for the issuance of new shares, section 132D (5) requires such resolution to be lodged with the Registrar of Companies (ROC). When the minimum subscription is not received, it is an irregular allotment and it is void. The directors are liable to pay both the company and also to the allotee. On the other hand, prior approval of the members is not required if the shares issued are consideration or part consideration for the acquisition of shares or assets by the company. Section 132D (6A) provides that if the consideration for the shares in kind or partially in kind, it is sufficient for the directors to inform the members in writing at least 14 days before the shares are issued. The consequences for non compliance of section 132D are provided in section 132D (6) which reads, â€Å"Any issue of shares made by a company in contravention of this section shall be void and consideration given for the shares shall be recoverable accordingly†. In fact, the directors are liable to compensate the company and the allottee for any loss, damages or costs which might occur as a result of the breach. According to section 132D (7), â€Å"any director who knowingly contravenes, or permits or authorizes the contravention of, this section with respect to any issue of shares shall be liable to compensate the company and the person to whom the shares were issued for any loss, damages or costs which the company or that person may have sustained or incurred thereby†. Thus, Joe and Mike shall be liable to pay compensation to the company and Luke if any loss or cost incurred. However, the shareholders or creditor of the company may apply to the court for validation of the shares under section 63. If the court finds the issuance of shares is just and equitable, the court may order the validation of the shares which were not properly issued. In the case of Kepala Sawit (Teluk Anson) Sdn Bhd v Yeoh Kim Leng & Ors (1991), the court held that â€Å"an act of the company which is irregular offers room for its regularization or validation by application of the just and equitable principles embodied in section 63†. Nevertheless, it seems to be impossible for the court to validate the shares in the situation above if any appeal is made. Besides that, the intention of Joe and Mike to raise Luke’s shares is to allow him to defeat the resolution of their removal from the board. Section 128 of the Companies Act 1965 provides for the removal of a director of a public company but no provision is made for the removal of a director of a private company. This is left to the company’s article. Article 69 of Table A provides that the company may by ordinary resolution remove a director. Thus, if Singing Stars Sdn Bhd’s article has adopted Table A, then the procedure provided in Section 128 has to be followed. Also, depending on the company’s article, either an ordinary or special resolution has to be passed in the meeting by the shareholders of the company. In business or commercial law, ordinary resolution is a resolution passed by the shareholders of a company generally affirmed by not less than 50% of the members casting their votes, whereas special resolution is generally affirmed by not less than 75% of members casting their votes. Therefore, even if Luke’s stake can be raised to 40%, he still can’t defeat the resolution because a resolution is passed based on the voting cast by the majority in the meeting. Hence, Tony shall not worry about Joe’s and Mike’s action in raising Luke’s stake to 40% by issuing shares as its legality is bounded by section 132D of Companies Act 1965. Also, the removal of a director is allowed when a resolution is passed in the meeting. With only Joe, Mike and Luke to defeat the resolution, the resolution to remove them off as the directors can still be passed. 3b. After this they will pass resolutions to remove Tony from the board and to replace him with Luke. Directors are agents of the company and thus owe a fiduciary duty towards the company. Section 4(1) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"director includes any person occupying the position of director of a corporation by whatever name called and includes a person in accordance with whose directions or instructions the directors of a corporation are accustomed to act and an alternate or substitute director†. Section 4(1) states that a director includes a de facto director, a shadow director and an alternate or substitute director. Sections 122(1) and (1A) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"every company shall have at least two directors, who each has his principal or only place of residence within Malaysia†. Sections 122(2) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"no person other than a natural person of full age shall be a director of a company†. This is clear that only a human being can be a director. Besides that, Section 122(2) imposes the minimum age of the director which is 18 years old. Thus, only a person who is 18 years old and above may be appointed as a director. Section 129 of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"notwithstanding anything in the memorandum or articles of the company no person of or over the age of seventy years shall be appointed or act as a director of a public company or of a subsidiary of a public company†. A person who aged 70 years old and above can only be a director if the resolution appointing him as a director receives approval from at least 75% of the votes at the company’s annual general meeting. The office of a Tony as a director may become vacant if he is disqualified pursuant to the Companies Act 1965 or the articles of association, resigned from the position, removed from the board of directors and retires by rotation. Articles of association of the company provides that the office of a director shall become vacant if the director (a)ceases to be a director by virtue of the Companies Act 1965 (b)becomes a bankrupt or makes any arrangement or composition with his creditors generally (c)is prohibited from being a director by reason of any order made under the Companies Act 1965 (d)becomes of unsound mind or a person whose person or estate is liable to be dealt with in any way under the law relating to metal disorder (e)resigns his office by notice in writing to the company (f)for more than six months is absent without the permission of the directors from meetings of the directors held during that period (g) without the consent of the company in general meeting holds any other office of profit under the company except that of managing director or manager (h)is directly or indirectly interested in any contract or proposed contract with the company and fails to declare the nature of his interest in a ma nner required by the Companies Act 1965. Tony will not be removed as he is not disqualified by the articles of association. The resignation of a director may take effect on the date which the board receives the letter of resignation, the date stated in the letter or according to the articles of association. Section 122(6) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or in the memorandum or articles of a company or in any agreement with a company, a director of a company shall not resign or vacate his office if, by his resignation or vacation from office, the number of directors of the company is reduced below the minimum number required by subsection (1) and any purported resignation or vacation of office in contravention of this section shall be deemed to be invalid†. Tony does not take action to resign from a director. Tony will not be removed from the board. However, he may be removed from the board by an ordinary resolution. Section 128(1) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"a public company may by ordinary resolution remove a director before the expiration of his period of office, notwithstanding anything in its memorandum or articles or in any agreement between it and him but where any director so removed was appointed to represent the interests of any particular class of shareholders or debenture holders the resolution to remove him shall not take effect until his successor has been appointed†. A public company may remove a director by ordinary resolution before the expiration of his term of office. The resolution is passed if it garnered more than half of the votes casted. A director of a public company is not possible to be removed by other director as provided in Section 128(8) which reads that, â€Å"a director of a public company shall not be removed by, or be required to vacate his office by reason of, any resolution request or notice of the directors or any of them notwithstanding anything in the articles or any agreement†. Thus, Joe and Mike are not able to remove Tony from the board. To remove a director, a special notice of the resolution is required to serve to the company at least 28 days before the scheduled members’ meeting as stated in Section 128(2) of the Companies Act 1965, â€Å"Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the memorandum or articles of the company, special notice shall be required of any resolution to remove a director or to appoint some person in place of a director so removed at the meeting at which he is removed, and on receipt of notice of an intended resolution to remove a director the company shall forthwith send a copy thereof to the director concerned, and the director (whether or not he is a member of the company) shall be entitled to be heard on the resolution at the meeting†. The special notice of ordinary resolutions is also called notice of intention is given by the members to the company at least 28 days before the scheduled meeting. Then the company must give at least 14 days’ notice to the members before the meeting is scheduled to be held. It is provided in Section 153 of the Companies Act 1965, â€Å" where by this Act special notice is required of a resolution, the resolution shall not be effective unless notice of intention to move it has been given to the company not less than twentyeight days before the meeting at which it is moved, and the company shall give its members notice of any such resolution at the same time and in the same manner as it gives notice of the meeting or ,if that is not practicable, shall give them notice thereof, in any manner allowed by the articles, not less than fourteen days before the meeting, but if after the notice of intention to move such a resolution has been given to a company, a meeting is called for a date twenty-eight days or less after the notice has been given, the notice, although not given to the company within the time required by this section, shall be de emed to be properly given†. The board of directors may attempt to undermine the members’ proposal to remove a director, the board may call for the meeting to be scheduled less than 28 days from the receipts of the members’ notice. Section 153 of the Companies Act 1965 provides that the meeting is not invalidated if it is held less than 28 days after the notice was given by the members to the company. In Soliappan v Lim Yoke Fan [1968] 2 MLJ 21, the High Court held that Section 128 was not mandatory. The power to remove directors under that section co-existed with any power contained in the articles of association. Therefore, 28 days notice is not necessary, the removal could be affected in accordance with the articles of association. However, on the facts the proper notice required under the articles of association had not been given either, so removed as director and consequently the plaintiff was not properly appointed as director of the company. If Tony is removed from the board, he may claim compensation or damages for the termination of his appointment as a director. Where the company has entered into a contract with Tony and the company breached it by removing him, then Tony has the rights to claim compensation. Section 128(7) of the Companies Act 1965 provides that, â€Å"nothing in subsections (1) to (6) shall be taken as depriving a person removed thereunder of compensation or damages payable by him in respect of the termination of his appointment as director or of any appointment terminating with that as director or as derogating from any power to remove a director which may exist apart from this section†. Tony who is appointed as a director is not required to retire unless the articles of association provides so. Upon retirement, the shareholders may re-elect the directors who have performed but not those who failed to perform up to expectations. In See Teow Chuan & Anor v YAM Tunku Nadzaruddin Ibni Tuanku Jaafar & Ors [2007] 2 MLJ 212, the board of directors made a resolution that all executive directors must retire on attaining 55 years of age. The plaintiffs brought an action challenging the introduction of a new term into their existing contract that they should retire. The court held that the power to pass the resolution as to retirement of directors was a fiduciary power entrusted by the memorandum and articles of the Company. That power was used for a collateral or improper purpose, namely to remove the plaintiffs and was invalid. In conclusion, Joe and Mike are unable to remove Tony from the board and replace Tony with Luke. Tony will be removed from the board if he meets one of the events stated above. 3c. As an added incentive the shares will be issued to Luke for RM0.60 each to allow for a tidy profit. The issue here is whether Joe and Mike can issue shares to Luke at RM0.60 each to allow for Luke’s support towards them. The issuance of shares below the nominal value of RM1.00 is called issuance of shares at a discount. At common law, the issuance of shares below the par value (at a discount) is prohibited because it constitutes a reduction of share capital without confirmation by the High Court. Section 64 of the Companies Act 1965 requires a special resolution that authorizes the reduction of its share capital with the confirmation by the Court. Case : Re Wragg Ltd. Facts : A liquidator took up a court case seeking a declaration that certain shares in the company issued to two members and registered in their names as fully paid were not properly issued as fully paid up. The liquidator asked for an order that the two members pay the amounts unpaid thereon. Held : The transaction was wholly legitimate. Lindley L.J. stated â€Å"it is not law that persons cannot sell property to a limited company for fully paid-up shares and make a profit by the transaction. We must not allow ourselves to be misled by talking of value. The value paid to the company is measured by the price at which the company agrees to buy what it thinks it worth it while to acquire. Whilst the transaction is unimpeached, this is the only value to be considered.† However, there are two exceptions to the rule against issuing shares at a discount that are stated in Section 58 and 59 of Companies Act 1965. In occasions where the company enters into an underwriting agreement wherein the underwriter will subscribe the shares in the company if the shares are not taken, in return, the company agrees to pay the underwriter a fee. Section 58 of Companies Act 1965 recognises this commercial agreement provided that the payment of that commission is not more than 10% of the issued value of the shares and is authorized by the company’s articles. Section 59(1) of the Companies Act 1965 states that the company can issue shares at a discount of a class already issued if – (a) The discounted shares are authorized by ordinary resolution passed in general meeting of the company and is confirmed by Court order; (b) The resolution specifies the maximum rate of discount at which the shares are to be issued; (c) the company can only issue shares at a discount only after one year it is entitled to commence business; and (d) the discounted shares must be issued within one month from court’s confirmation or within extended time as allowed by Court. According to section 59(4), the discounted shares must be offered to existing members of that class based on pro rata basis. Failure to do so, the company and every officer who is in default shall be guilty of an offence punishable with a fine of RM1000 and default penalty in accordance with section 59(7) of the Companies Act 1965. Case : Ooregum Gold Mining Co of India v Roper Facts : The market value of the  £1 ordinary shares of the company was 2 shillings and 6 pence (2s 6d). The company issued preference shares of  £1 each with 15s credited as paid, leaving a liability of only 5s a share. Held: The holders of the discounted shares are liable to pay the full nominal value to the company. In common law, issuance of shares at a discount is prohibited but there are statutory exceptions under section 58 and 59 which enable the company to issue shares at a discount. In this case, Luke is not the underwriter of Singing Stars Sdn Bhd. Therefore, Joe and Mike cannot issues shares at a discount to him by virtue of section 58 of the Companies Act 1965. However Luke can be entitled to get the shares at a discount if the discounted shares are passed by a majority of members who are present and votes at the meeting and confirmed by the Court order, which specify the maximum rate of discounts are to be issued, commence it’s business after one year and issue the discounted shares issued within one month from court’s confirmation or within extended time as allowed by Court, then Luke can be entitled to the discounted shares after the existing shareholders are offered the discount. Luke will not be getting the shares at a discount because the most of shareholders are not satisfied with Joe and Mike and wanted to vote them from the board. Hence, the majority of them will win and Luke will definitely not getting his shares at a discount. If Joe and Mike insist on issuing the shares at a discount to Luke, the holder of the shares (Luke) may be liable to pay the full nominal value of the shares as stated in the Ooregum principle. Besides, the directors (Joe and Mike) who are responsible for the unlawful issue may be held liable to the company for the discount allowed. In conclusion, Tony can sue Joe and Mike for breach of companies act and they will be held liable to company in respect of the discount allowed. From the above Tony and the other four shareholders can vote to reject the acceptance of payment by land from Luke for the shares. Joe and Mike do not have the power to accept the payment without the knowledge of the members of the company. If the transaction is still done Section 132D(6) provides that the shares issued are void and the directors shall be liable to compensate the company and the person whom the shares were issued to for any loss, damages or costs which they may sustain as consequence of the breach. 3d. Luke has suggested that the company might accept some land which he owns as payment for the shares. Section 67 (1) of the Companies Act prohibits a company from: Financing the purchase of its own or its holding company’s shares Giving financial assistance for the purpose of or in connection with the purchase of its own or its holding company’s shares Dealing in or lending money on its own shares In the case of Datuk Tan Leng Teck v Sarjana Sdn Bhd, the plaintiff entered into a contract to sell a piece of land to the 2nd defendant, Pasti Hasil Sdn Bhd for a piece of land at a price of RM15, 896,995. According to the agreement, RM1,000,000 of the purchase consideration will be capitalized as paid-up capital for 1,000,000 shares in the SSB. PHSB had paid RM3,300,000 for the land to SSB and RM1,000,000 out of this payment had been considered as a payment for 1,000,000 shares in SSB. Thus, 1,000,000 shares had been allotted to Pasti Hasil Sdn Bhd. The court held that financial assistance has been given to Pasti Hasil Sdn Bhd as the defendant agreed to treat a portion of the sum owed by Pasti Hasil Sdn Bhd as payment for the shares. Section 67 (1) prohibits the company from giving financial assistance unless it is bona fide commercial transaction entered in good faith. As Pasti Hasil Sdn Bhd had not paid anything for the shares the share capital of the defendant had reduced. In the case of Belmont Finance Corporation Ltd v Williams Furniture Ltd (No 2), Belmont’s directors paid  £500,000 of Belmont’s money under a scheme to help a company called Maximum ( which was owned and controlled by a Mr. Grosscurth) to buy shares of Belmont. Goff LJ held that the agreement was unlawful and the payment was made by Belmont for an illegal purpose, namely to facilitate the purchase by Grosscurth and his associates of Belmont’s shares. Lord Denning in Wallersteiner v Moir (1974) propounded the following test: â€Å"You look to the company’s money and see what has become of in. You look to the company’s shares and see into whose hands they have got. You will then see if the company’s money has been used to finance the purchase.† Thus for this case if the company accepts Luke’s land as payment for the shares, it is not a bona fide commercial transaction entered in good faith and is prohibited by section 67(1). Thisi s because the land serves no specific purpose to the company and future benefits will not flow to the company through this entity. This means that the land is of no use to the company at the time of purchase which shows that it is not a bona fide commercial transaction. Furthermore this also shows that the company’s money paid to Luke for the land will be used to purchase its shares. If Joe and Mike accept this transaction, they will be guilty under section 67(3) of the Companies Act and section 67(4) provides that officers who are guilty are liable to compensate the company or any person who has suffered losses or damage as a result of the prohibited transaction. REFERENCES 1) http://www.scribd.com/doc/64780622/1/S128-1-Companies-Act-1965 2) http://www.ssm.com.my/files/clrc/consultation_documents/cd2.pdf 3) Chan Wai Meng (2012) . Company Law in Malaysia: Cengage Learning.