(Analytical Essay) on the field of International Relations Essay

(Analytical ) on the field of International Relations - Essay Example More specifically, the essay shall highlight on the other alternatives that are existent in an endeavor to maximize the states’ security. The essay shall also shed light on the case of Iran and the alternatives of development of regional hegemony among the members, accessing wealth and achieving nuclear superiority, as factors that would reduce chances of war attempts in the name of securing peace and security. One of the aspects that can allow for peace and security among states relate to development of regional hegemony among the members. According to Richard & Michael, (pp.71), regional hegemony refers to maximizing security in the states so as to avoid a situation whereby the state would be attacked by another. Though analysts hold the view attaining hegemony is almost impossible especially security along the water bodies, a lot of countries have attempted a move to establish hegemony, despite their having minimal resources for the same. This means that all countries always have the hope that they may achieve security through attaining domination over other countries in the region. This can be proven from the example of U.S.A. that has managed to maintain its security through attaining regional hegemony. If this happens, then there is a great likelihood that the fewer cases of war will be witnessed in the globe. In the case of Iran for instance, this country has been seen with a keen interest in the issue of acquisition of nuclear weapons, so as to achieve hegemony in the Persian Gulf and the entire Middle East region. This has been part of the country’s aspiration of for a long time especially under the leadership of Shah. With the country gaining regional superpower, it would automatically gain supremacy, especially having neighbors of the like of India, Israel, and Pakistan amongst others. It is evident that being the center of the regional hegemony, the country would be spared from war scares. On another point of view, accessing wealth is

Compare-Contrast Paper on Ancient Egyptian Arts and Ancient Greek Arts Research

Compare-Contrast on Ancient Egyptian Arts and Ancient Greek Arts - Research Paper Example The ancient Egyptians could have been very concerned on how the characters will be portrayed. The carefulness in drawing the characters involved is very notable. Verily, the stiffness nature of the characters portrayed could make a person say that the characters are just representations and not true. One could not entertain the idea that the characters were drawn or painted in an actual setting. Nevertheless, the ancient Egyptian arts are very attractive. Actually, the stiffness character of ancient Egyptian arts is associated to the beliefs and practices of Egypt’s primitive society. In the past, Egyptians gave importance to the exact portrayal of nature and actual life (â€Å"Art†). Exactness was actually viewed by them in terms of being able to draw the identifying features of the subject’s physical appearance. In such case, it is to be expected that in ancient Egyptian arts, the realistic appearance of an object is not given much attention. With regard to anc ient Greek arts, one could notice the realistic portrayal of the objects and characters involved (Hill; Newby, qtd. in Bispham et al. 49). Every detail of the objects and characters are seriously attended. For instance, in ancient Greek painting involving humans, one could see the lively and natural portrayal of human bodies (Pynt and Higgs 56).

Importance Of Capital Structure To A Firm Finance Essay

Importance Of Capital Structure To A Firm Finance Essay Capital Structure of a company refers to the composition or make-up of its capitalization and it includes all long-term capital resources, viz. Loans, reserves, shares and bonds,-Gestenberg Introduction Capital Structure is one of the most complex areas of financial decision making because of its interrelationship with other financial decision variables. Poor capital structure decisions can result in high cost of capital thereby lowering the Net Present Values of projects and making more of them unacceptable. Effective capital structure decision can lower the cost of capital , thereby increasing the value of the firm. It is particularly important for small business owners to determine a target capital structure for their firms, since capital is expensive for such small businesses. Capital structure decisions require considering a variety of factors. In general, companies use debt more when they have steady, constant sales levels, assets that have good returns for loans and a high growth rate . On the other hand, companies that have poor credit ratings, conservative management, or high profitability rely on equity capital instead. Capital Structure Capital structure is a business finance term that describes the proportion of a companys capital, or operating money, which is obtained through debt and equity or  hybrid securities [1]. Debt consists of loans and other types of credit that is to be repaid in the future, usually with interest. Equity involves ownership  interest in a corporation in the  form  of common stock or preferred stock. Equity financing does not involve a direct obligation to repay the funds which is in contrast to debt financing,. Instead, equity investors are able to exercise some degree of control over the company as they become part-owners and partners in the business. The goal of a companys capital structure decision is to maximize the gains for the equity shareholders. The optimal capital structure is the one that maximizes the price of the stock and simultaneously minimizes the cost of capital thus striking a balance between risk and return. [2] A firms major decision is its financial decisions which can be analyzed in the theory of Corporate Capital Structure that is based on a model developed by Dodd(1986) and is determined mainly by cost variables- equity, debt and bankruptcy risk and other potential variables such as growth are, profitability and operating leverage. The primary advantage of debt financing is that it allows the founders to retain ownership and control of the company. Equity investors claim does not end until their stock is sold as compared to debt obligations which are limited to the loan repayment period, after which the lender has no further claim on the business. Debt financing tends to be less expensive for small businesses over the long term, though more expensive over the short term, than equity financing. The major disadvantage is that it requires a small business to make regular monthly payments of principal and interest. Due to such regular payments, young companies often experience shortages in cash flow. Debt financings availability is often limited to established businesses which is a disadvantage associated with it. Since lenders primarily seek security for their funds, it can be difficult for unproven businesses to obtain loans. The main advantage of equity financing for small businesses is that there is no obligation to repay the money. The investors in equity financing often prove to be good sources of advice and contacts for small business owners. The main disadvantage of equity financing is that the founders must give up some control of the business. Some sales of equity, such as initial public offerings, can be very complex and expensive to administer. Such equity financing may require complicated legal filings and a great deal of paperwork to comply with various regulations. Features of a Capital Structure Capital structure is that level of debt-equity proportion where the market value per-share is maximum and the cost of capital is minimum. It should have the following features: Profitability/Return: Studies have shown that the relationship between debt-equity ratio and a firms profit margin is such that for a firm which prefers to finance its investments through self-finance are more profitable than firms which finance investment through borrowed capital, firms prefer competing with each other than cooperating and firms use their investment in fixed assets as a strategic variable to affect profitability.[3] Solvency/Risk: Capital Structure of a firm indicates how much the company is leveraged by comparing what it owes to creditors and investors to what it owns. It reveals the degree to which the companys management is willing to fund its operations with debt, rather than equity. Lenders are sensitive about this feature as a high debt-equity ratio will put their loans at risk of being unpaid.[4] Flexibility: Flexibility is the ability to make decisions that the firm thinks are most apt even when others disagree. The level of flexibility the management can have depends on how the firm is financed. Debt offers little flexibility relative to equity. However, the flexibility offered by equity depends on the extent to which shareholders are inclined to agree with managements strategic choices. The flexibility benefit of equity is high only when the share price is high.[5] Conservation/Capacity: If a firm starts with a specific business risk, then the total risk associated with stock and debt is not affected by the capital structure. This is called conservation of risk. Risk is neither created nor destroyed.[6] Debt capacity involves the assessment of the amount of debt that the organization can repay in a timely manner without forfeiting its financial viability.[7] Control: The capital structure of a firm shows when control is allocated to only shareholders and when to others like creditors, or the management team. Generally the shareholders get control when the firms cash flow is sensitive. Also , debt value and firm value are negatively correlated when debtholders have veto power[8]   Determinants of Capital Structure Capital structure of a firm is determined by various internal and external factors. The macro variables of the economy are inflation rate, tax policy of government, capital market condition. The characteristics of an individual firm, termed as micro factors (internal), also affect the capital structure of enterprises. This section presents how the micro-factors affect the capital structure of a firm Size of a Firm: There is a positive relation between the capital structure and size of a firm. The larger the firms the more diversified they are. They have easy access to the capital market, receive higher credit ratings for debt issues, and pay lower interest rate on debt capital. Further, larger firms are less prone to bankruptcy and this implies the less probability of bankruptcy and lower bankruptcy costs. Hence, the lower bankruptcy costs, the higher debt level.[9] Growth Rate: There is a contradictory relation between the growth rate and capital structure. The equity controlled firms tend to invest sub-optimally to get wealth from the enterprises bondholders. They are more flexibility in their choice of future investment. Hence, growth rate is negatively related with long-term debt level.[10] Business Risk: There is a negative relation between the capital structure and business risk. Lesser the stability of the earnings of the enterprises, the greater is the chance of business failure and the greater the weight of bankruptcy costs on enterprise financing decisions. Hence, as business risk increases, the debt level in capital structure of the enterprises should decrease.[11] Dividend Payout: There is an adverse relation between the dividend payout ratio and debt level in capital structure. The low dividend payout ratio means increase in the equity base for debt capital and low probability of going into liquidation. As a result of low probability of bankruptcy, the bankruptcy cost is low. This implies high level of debt in the capital structure.[12] Operating Leverage: The use of fixed cost in production process also affects the capital structure. The high operating leverage-use of higher proportion of fixed cost in the total costs over a period of time-can magnify the variability in future earnings. There is a negative relation between operating leverage and debt level in capital structure. The higher operating leverage, the greater the chance of business failure and the greater will be the weight of bankruptcy costs on enterprise financing decisions. Industry Life Cycle: Firms tend to adopt different financing strategies and a specific hierarchy of decision-making as they progress through the phases of their business life cycle. Debt is fundamental to business activities in the early stages, representing the first choice. However, in the maturity stage, firms re-balance their capital structure, substituting debt for internal capital.[13] Degree of Competition: Debt ratios are reduced as the scope of competition falls. For oligopolies, debt ratios show a significant and positive effect on prices.[14] Company Characteristics: Variables of size and growth opportunity in total assets reveal a positive association with the leverage ratio, however, profitability, growth opportunities in plant, property and equipment, non-debt tax shields and tangibility reveal inverse relation with debt level.[15] Forms of Capital Structure Capital Structure can be of various forms: Horizontal capital Structure: The firm has no component of debt in the financial mix. Expansion of the firm is through equity and retained earnings only. Vertical Capital Structures: The base of the structure is a little amount of equity share capital which serves as the foundation for a super structure of preference share capital and debt. Pyramid Shaped Capital Structure: Large proportion consisting of equity capital and retained earnings. Inverted Pyramid shaped Capital Structure: Small component of equity capital, reasonable retained earnings and increasing component of debt. Replacement Modernization Expansion Diversification Capital Structure Decision Desired Debt-Equity Mix Existing Capital Structure Payout Policy Effect on Return Effect on Risk Effect on Cost of Capital Value of Firm Optimum Capital Structure Capital Budgeting Decision Need for Funds Capital Structure Decision Process Internal Funds Debt External Equity DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO CAPITAL STRUCTURE Weighted Average Cost of Capital It is the expected rate of return on the market value of all the firms securities. Anything that increases the value of the firm also minimizes the WACC if operating income is constant. It is a calculation of a firms cost of capital in which each category of capital is proportionately weighted. All capital sources   common stock, preferred stock, bonds and any other long-term debt   are included in a WACC calculation. The WACC equation  is the cost of each capital component  multiplied by its proportional weight and then summing:   WACC = E/V * Re + D/V * Rd * (1- Tc) Where:   Re = cost of equity   Rd = cost of debt   E = market value of the firms equity   D =  market value of the firms debt   V = E + D   E/V = percentage of financing that is equity   D/V = percentage of financing that is debt   Tc =  corporate tax rate   Assumptions There is no income tax, corporate or personal. The firm believes in paying all of its earnings and dividends. A 100% dividend payout ratio is assumed. Investors have identical probability distributions of operating income for each company. The operating income is not expected to grow or decline over time. A firm can change its capital structure instantaneously without incurring transaction costs. rd represents the cost of debt For 100% dividend payout, re represents cost of equity V = D + E. ra is the overall capitalisation rate of the firm. It can also be expressed as: ra = rd[D/(D+E)] + re[E/(D+E)] NET INCOME APPROACH According to NI approach both the cost of debt and the cost of equity are independent of the capital structure; they remain constant regardless of how much debt the firm uses. This means that, the average cost of capital declines and the firm value increases with debt. This happens because when D/E increases, rd which is lower than re, receives a higher weight in the calculation of ra. This approach has no basis in reality; the optimum capital structure would be 100 per cent debt financing under NI approach. This can be illustrated with the help of a numerical. There are 2 firms A and B similar in all aspects except in the degree of leverage employed. Firm A Firm B Operating income(Rs.) 10,000 10,000 Interest on debt(Rs.) 0 3,000 Equity Earnings(Rs.) 10,000 7,000 Cost of equity capital 10% 10% Cost of debt capital 6% 6% Market Value of equity(Rs.) 1,00,000 70,000 Market value of debt(Rs.) 0 50,000 Total value of the firm(Rs.) 1,00,000 1,20,000 The average cost of capital for firm A is 10%. The average cost of capital for firm B is 8.66% NET OPERATING INCOME It is the opposite of NI Approach. According to NOI approach the value of the firm and the overall capitalization rate are independent of the firms capital structure. That is, ra and rd are constant for all degrees of leverage. Now, re = ra + (ra rd)(D/E) The market capitalizes the firm as a whole at a discount rate which is independent of the firms debt-equity ratio. In the absence of taxes, an individual holding all the debt and equity securities will receive the same cash flows regardless of the capital structure and therefore, value of the company is the same. An increase in the use of debt funds which are cheaper is offset by an increase in the equity capitalization rate. This happens because equity investors seek higher compensation as they are exposed to greater risk from increase in the degree of leverage. They increase the capitalization rate re as the leverage increases. Numerically, this can be explained. Two firms A and B are similar in all aspects except the degree of leverage employed by them. Firm A Firm B Operating income(Rs.) 10,000 10,000 Overall capitalization rate 0.15 0.15 Total market value 66.667 66,667 Interest on debt(Rs.) 1,000 3,000 Debt capitalization rate .10 .10 Market Value of debt(Rs.) 10,000 30,000 Market value of equity(Rs.) 56,667 36,667 Degree of leverage 0.176 0.818 Equity Capitalization for Firm A= (9,000/56,667) = 15.9% Equity Capitalization for Firm B = (7,000/36,667) = 19.1% TRADITIONAL APPROACH The traditional approach argues that moderate degree of debt can lower the firms overall cost of capital and thereby, increase the firm value. The initial increase in the cost of equity is more than offset by the lower cost of debt. But as debt increases, shareholders perceive higher risk and the cost of equity rises until a point is reached at which the advantage of lower cost of debt is more than offset by more expensive equity. The principal implication of the traditional approach is that the cost of capital is dependent on the capital structure and there is an optimal capital structure which minimizes the cost of capital. At this level, the real marginal cost of debt and equity is the same. MODIGLIANI AND MILLER POSITION Similar to NOI Approach Value of the firm is independent to its capital structure i.e. Independence of total valuation and the cost of capital of the firm from its capital structure NOI is purely conceptual, Doesnt provide operational justification Supports NOI and provides behavioral justifications. Assumptions: Capital market is perfect (i)Investors are free to buy and sell (ii) Well informed market (iii) Firm investors can borrow on the same terms (iv) Rational behavior of investors (v) No transaction cost Homogeneous risk class All investors have the same expectations of the firms EBIT No Corporate Tax Preposition I The value of a firm is equal to its expected operating income divided by the discount rate appropriate to its risk class. It is independent of its capital structure.'[16] V= D + E = O/r Where: O is the expected operating income; r is the discount rate applicable to risk class. MM invokes an arbitrage argument to prove the preposition. In equilibrium, identical assets sell for the same price, irrespective of how they are financed. This is also known as the law of conservation of value. Arbitrage Argument Consider two firms U and L, similar in all respects except in their capital structure. Firm U is unlevered, financed by equity alone and firm L is a levered firm. Firm A Firm B Operating income(Rs.) 1,50,000 1,50,000 Interest 0 60,000 Equity Earnings 1,50,000 90,000 Cost of equity 0.15 0.16 Market value of equity 10,00,000 5,62,500 Cost of debt 0.12 Market value of debt 0 5,00,000 Market value of the firm 10,00,000 10,62,500 Average cost of capital 0.15 0.1412 The value of the levered firm is higher than that of the unlevered firm. Such, a situation, argue MM, cannot persist because equity investors would do well to sell their equity in firm L and invest in firm U with personal leverage. For example, if an investor owns 10% equity in firm L, he would: Sell his equity in firm L for Rs. 56,250 Borrow Rs. 50,000, an amount equal to 10% of Ls debt at an interest rate of 12%. Buy 10% of firm Us equity for 1,00,000. His income remains the same. Old income from investment in firm L New income from investment in firm U 10% firms equity income 9,000 15,000 12% interest on loan of Rs. 50,000 (6,000) 9,000 9,000 When investors sell their equity in firm L and buy the equity in firm U, the marker value of firm L tends to decline and the market value of firm U tends to rise. This process continues until the market value of both the firms become equal. As a result, the cost of capital for both the firms becomes the same. Preposition II Firm A 100% equity Firm B 50-50%ratio Expected earnings per share (Rs.) 4 5 Price per share(Rs.) 20 20 Expected return to equity shareholders 20% 25% An increase in financial leverage increases the expected earnings per share but not the share price. This is because the change in the expected earnings is offset by a corresponding change in the return required by shareholders. We know, re = ra + (ra-rd)(D/E) Preposition II states that The expected return on equity is equal to the expected rate of return on assets, plus a premium. The premium is equal to the debt-equity ratio times the difference between the expected return on assets and the expected return on debt. The general implications are that for low levels of debt, the firms debt is considered risk-free. This means that rd is independent of D/E and hence re increases linearly with D/E. As the debt reaches a threshold limit, the risk of default increases and the return on debt rd rises. To compensate this , the rate of increase in re decreases. This happens because, beyond the threshold level, a portion of the firms business risk is borne by the suppliers of the debt capital. WACC Warnings Sometimes the objective in financing is not maximize overall market value but to minimize the WACC. If MMs proposition 1 holds true then they are equivalent objectives. However, if they dont, then the capital structure that maximizes the value of the firm also minimizes its WACC. Warning 1: Shareholders want management to increase the firms value. They are more interested in being than in owning a firm with low WACC. Warning 2: Since shareholders demand higher expected rates of return than bondholders, therefore debt is the cheaper capital source, so WACC can be reduced by borrowing more. However, this extra borrowing leads the stockholders to demand a still higher expected rate of return.[17] Criticisms of MM Theory Firms are liable to pay taxes on their income. Bankruptcy costs are quite high. Agency costs exist because of conflict of interest between managers and shareholders. Managers have a preference for a certain sequence of financing. Personal leverage and corporate are not perfect substitutes. TRADE-OFF THEORY OF CAPITAL STRUCTURE It states that a company chooses how much debt finance and equity finance to use by balancing the costs and benefits. It states that there is an advantage to financing with debt which is the  tax benefits of debt  and there is a cost of financing with debt which is the costs of financial distress including  bankruptcy costs of debt  and non-bankruptcy costs. A firm that is  optimizes its overall value focuses on the trade-off when choosing how much debt and equity to use for financing. COSTS OF FINANCIAL DISTRESS Different firms and different industries will have different magnitudes of costs if they encounter financial distress. With some firms, distress will result in both customers and suppliers fleeing. With other firms, the fact that a firm is close to bankruptcy will not affect customers. When a firm experiences financial distress several things can happen. Arguments between shareholders and creditors delay the liquidation of assets. Bankruptcy cases take years to settle and during this period machineries and equipments rust and become obsolete. Assets sold under distress conditions, fetch a price lesser than their economic value. The legal and administrative costs associated with bankruptcy are quite high. Managers may lower the quality of goods, give unacceptable customer service, ignore welfare in a bid to survive in the short run. BANKRUPTCY COSTS OF DEBT   These the increased costs of financing with  debt  instead of  equity  that result in a higher  probability  of  bankruptcy. The fact that bankruptcy is generally a costly process and not just a transfer of  ownership  implies that these costs negatively affect the total  value  of the firm. These costs can be thought of as a financial cost, because as the probability of bankruptcy increases the financial costs increases. PECKING ORDER THEORY  OR  PECKING ORDER MODEL It  states that companies  prioritize  their sources of financing according to the law of least effort, or of least resistance, preferring to raise equity as a financing means of last resort. Hence, internal funds are used first, and when that is depleted,  debt  is issued, and when it is not sensible to issue any more debt, equity is issued. This theory prefers internal financing when available and maintains that businesses adhere to a  hierarchy  of financing sources and, and debt is preferred over equity if external financing is required. AGENCY COST   It is an  economic  concept that relates to the cost incurred by an organizations associated with problems such as divergent  management-shareholder objectives and  information asymmetry.   The information asymmetry causes the agency problems of  moral hazard and  adverse selection. Agency costs mainly arise due to divergence of control, separation of ownership and control and the different objectives the managers consider. KINDS OF ANALYSIS FOR CHOOSING THE CAPITAL STRUCTURE Leverage Analysis EBIT EPS Analysis ROI ROE Analysis Ratio Analysis Cash Flow Analysis Comparative Analysis Capital Structure Policies in Practice We will see a few in detail. LEVERAGE ANALYSIS : Leverage arises from the existence of Fixed Costs. There are two kinds of Leverage: Operating Leverage: arises from the firms Fixed Operating costs such as salaries, depreciation, insurance, property taxes, and advertising outlays. Financial Leverage: arises from the firms Fixed Financing Costs such as Interest on Debt. Sales Sales 500 units 600 units Revenues 500,000 600,000 Variable operating costs 250,000 300,000 Fixed operating costs 200,000 200,000 Earnings before interest and taxes 50,000 100,000 Operating leverage arises from the existence of fixed operating expenses. When a firm has fixed operating expenses, 1 percent change in unit sales leads to more than 1 percent change in EBIT. Consider the case of a firm, XYZ Limited which is currently selling a product at Rs 1000 per unit. Its variable costs are Rs 500 per unit and its fixed operating costs are Rs 200,000. The earnings before interest and taxes at two levels of sales, viz., 500 units and 600 units, is shown below: In the above example, a 20 percent increase in unit sales leads to a 100 percent increase in profit before interest and taxes, thanks to the existence of fixed operating costs. Hence, fixed operating costs magnify the impact of changes in revenues. This the magnification works in the reverse direction as well. Degree of Operating Leverage It refers to the sensitivity of PBIT (or EBIT) to changes in unit sales or Sales. Picture1.png It measures the effect of change in sales revenue on the level of PBIT. Financial leverage emanates from the existence of fixed interest expenses. The use of fixed-charges sources of funds, such as debt and preference capital, along with owners equity in the capital structure is known as financial leverage (or gearing or trading on equity). When a firm has fixed interest expenses, 1 percent change in profit before interest in taxes (PBIT) leads to more than 1 percent change in profit before tax (or profit after tax or earnings per share). Consider the case of XYZ Limited, which currently has an PBIT of Rs 50,000. Its fixed interest expenses are Rs 30,000 and its tax rate is 50 percent. It has 10,000 shares outstanding. The profit before tax, profit after tax, and earnings per share for XYZ Limited at two levels of PBIT, viz., Rs 50,000 and Rs 60,000 are shown below: Case A Case B Profit before interest and taxes 50,000 60,000 Interest expense 30,000 30,000 Profit before tax 20,000 30,000 Tax 10,000 15,000 Profit after tax 10,000 15,000 Earnings per share 1 1.50 In the above example a 20 percent increase in PBIT leads to a 50 percent increase in profit before taxes (or PAT or EPS), thanks to the existence of fixed interest expenses. Hence, fixed interest expense magnifies the impact of changes in PBIT. The magnification works in the reverse direction as well. Degree of Financial Leverage It refers to the sensitivity of PBT (or PAT or EPS) to changes in PBIT. The financial leverage employed by a company is intended to earn more return on the fixed-charge funds than their costs. The surplus (or deficit) will increase (or decrease) the return on the owners equity. Combined leverage, or total leverage, arises from the existence of fixed operating costs and interest expenses. Due to the existence of these fixed costs, 1 percent change in unit sales, leads to more than 1 percent change in PBT (or PAT or EPS). Consider the case of XYZ Limited, which currently has revenues of Rs 500,000. (Rs 500 units are sold at Rs 1,000 per unit). Its variable costs are Rs 500 per unit and its fixed operating costs are Rs 200,000. Its fixed interest expenses are Rs 30,000 and its tax rate is 50 percent. It has 10,000 shares outstanding. The financial profile of the company at two levels of sales viz. 500 units (the current level) and 600 units (a level 20 percent higher than the current level) is shown below. Sales Sales 600 units 500 units Revenues 500,000 600,000 Variable operating costs 250,000 300,000 Fixed operating costs 200,000 200,000 PBIT 50,000 100,000 Interest 30,000 30,000 Profit before tax 20,000 70,000 Tax 10,000 35,000 Profit after tax 10,000 35,000 Earnings per share 1 3.5 In the above example, a 20 percent increase in unit sales leads to a 250 percent increase in earnings per share, due to the existence of fixed operating costs and interest expenses. Also, fixed costs magnify the impact of changes in unit sales. Degree of Combined Leverage It refers to the sensitivity of PBT (or PAT or EPS) to changes in unit sales or sales. PBIT-EPS Analysis EPS is sensitive to changes in PBIT under different financing alternatives. where EPS = earnings per share, EBIT = earnings before interest and taxes, I = the interest burden, t = the tax rate, and n= the number of equity shares. Break-Even PBIT Level Consider the following data for ABC Limited. Existing Capital Structure: 1 million equity shares of Rs. 10 each Tax Rate : 50 percent ABC Limited plans to raise additional capital of Rs. 10 million for financing an expansion project. In this context, it is evaluating two alternative fina

Shakespeares The Tempest - Miranda :: Tempest essays

The Character of Miranda in The Tempest The character of Miranda in "The Tempest" is extremely compelling for two reasons. First and foremost it is important to note that the Miranda is the only female character who appears in the entire play. This is the only Shakespeare play where a character has this kind of outstanding distinction. This is not just a fluke on the part of Shakespeare, for it is very important that the character of Miranda appear by herself. The reader is not able to compare her beauty and virtue to any other female in the world of "The Tempest", and this serves both to show her value as a character and the fact that no other living women has the virtue of Miranda. While Miranda may not have many outstanding lines or solioquys, she makes up for this in sheer presence alone. Miranda's character encompasses all the elements of perfectionism and goodness which is lacking in all the other respective characters. All of the other characters in "The Tempest" are reflected by Miranda, and even if she did not spe ak one line she would still serve this important purpose. Secondly, Miranda also serves as the ultimate fantasy for any male who (like Ferdinand) is a bachelor. She is extremely beautiful, she is intelligent, and she has never been touched (or even seen) by another male. Shakespeare makes Miranda even more desirable by including the fact that she has never seen or even talked to another man (with the obvoius exception of Prospero). Miranda personifies the ultimate source of good in the play, and provides the ultimate foil for the evil character of Caliban. When Ferdinand is forced to chop wood by Prospero, Miranda offers to do it for him. Finding a woman this humble in the world of Shakespeare is almost impossible. One does not have to look farther than her last line in the play to realize her purpose in the plot. Miranda states "O wonder! / How many goodly creatures there are here! / How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world / That has such people in't" (Tempest,5.1,185-7) Through this passage and many of her others Miranda shows a posit ive attitude which is almost uncanny when compared to the other characters.

Gilgamesh: Women’s Sexuality Essay

In the epic poem â€Å"Gilgamesh,† the main character was two-thirds God and one-third human. Gilgamesh presented himself with a god like mentality. His power was neither gained nor deserved. He’s a selfish leader who held his power by striking fear into the hearts of those forced to succumb to him. The gods created Enkidu, a man so fearful and threatening, to bring down and end Gilgamesh’s reign of terror; but the outcome was least expected. They became great friends and companions. Though in text, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are the ones with all of the spoken power, it is the women characters that exert their power over man having a major influence on their decisions. The women set the stage for us to see how even the most powerful of gods are controllable by something as simple and human as the sexuality of a woman. One empowering female in this poem is Shamhat, the temple prostitute. She was sent from the temple of Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, to seduce Enkidu. She is told, â€Å"Now use your love-arts. Strip off your robe and lie here naked, with your legs apart. Stir up his lust when he approaches, touch him, excite him, take his breath with your kisses, show him what a woman is† (p. 78). When Shamhat presents herself to Enkidu, he could not resist her. It was said that she tamed the wild animal. She then taught him her ways of civilized humans and he left behind all that he knew. This shows that the power of a woman’s sexuality is only natural to man, and can over power even their greatest desires in life. The goddess of love and war, Ishtar, is another example of woman’s power taking a toll on man. When Ishtar laid eyes on Gilgamesh, she was drawn to him, asking him to be her groom and marry her. Gilgamesh declined her offer because he heard of her ways with men and how she manipulated and exploited them. Ishtar became outraged with him and so, called on her father, Anu, to release the â€Å"Bull of Heaven† and punish Gilgamesh. Anu mentioned to her that it was her own fault for provoking him. Ishtar warns him, â€Å"If you refuse to give me the Bull of Heaven I will break in the doors of hell and smash the bolts; there will be confusion of people, those above with those from the lower depths. I shall bring up the dead to eat food like the living; and the hosts of the dead will outnumber the living† (p. 32). Anu obeys her requests and sent the beast down, only for it to be defeated by both Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Ishtar is not threatened by their survival and victory, yet she then threatens them again. By displaying her rage and anger accumulated from rejection by man, she proves just how much power she truly has over man. She was feared by Anu and received what she asked. Women not only use their sexuality for lust and sex, but also show men that they are not inferior to them, they can be just as frightening and powerful. In the epic poem â€Å"Gilgamesh† there was a significant influence in gender roles. Even though men were considered to be the wisest and most powerful of humans, the two women Ishtar and Shamhat, had the power to influence Gilgamesh, Enkidu and even Anu, the father of Ishtar, in their own ways. These two women are not seen as objects of man, but as two empowering women exerting their power over man.

Poetry and science enjoy equal success in expanding human knowledge Essay

Before answering whether both poetry and science enjoy equal success in expanding human knowledge, one must first understand what poetry and science are and what they do. Poetry is an artist’s way of abstractly conveying his or her ideas through writing so as to stimulate the emotional side of the readers. Science on the other hand, is an objective way of clearly stating facts so as to stimulate the â€Å"formal† or fact craving side of the readers. Poetry presents an object in order to convey a particular message or feeling, whilst science merely presents an object objectively and describes how it is, clearly, in every way possible. Therefore, it is clear that the purpose of these two approaches is quite different. Furthermore, the ways of knowing in poetry and science are somewhat different. Poetry’s ways of knowing are mainly emotion and language, while sciences are mainly language and reason. However, although they have language in common, both of them utiliz e language in different ways and for different purposes. As is obvious from above, both approaches aim to expand two completely different parts of human knowledge. Poetry aims to expand the aesthetic while science the scientific. Therefore, they cannot be assessed on their ability to expand human knowledge based on the same criteria but rather, they should both be assessed based on individual criteria in their own specific areas of knowledge and then compared after being assessed. Assessing them based on the same criteria would much be like comparing a desert with a main course, which would be wrong since they both have different purposes and, although the dessert may not be good at achieving the purpose of the main dish, it could well be excellent at achieving the purposes of a dessert. Since poetry tries to â€Å"touch† the reader’s emotional side aesthetically it must be scrutinized as an art. The purpose of art is to aesthetically touch an emotion which all people supposedly have. Through techniques specific to each art, good artists are able to do this, and this in itself is an expansion of human knowledge in that it causes people to be aware of their emotions. Humans â€Å"have to turn to poetry to interpret life for us, to console us, to sustain us.† (Matthew Arnold, ‘The Study of Poetry’) The purpose of Shakespeare’s Macbeth is not to scientifically understand how ambition can conquer one, nor is it meant to be a historical recount of the real Macbeth. It is a poetic story which is written so as people can empathize with the main characters and view their own life in terms of conquering their faults and sustaining their good. Another purpose of poetry is to represent human nature. This can clearly be seen through any of Robert’s Frost’s poems such as Out, Out which explains, better than any scientific paper ever could, the ability of a child to care so much about his desire to work and help society, and the lack of care his family experiences when he dies. Poetry presents human characteristics, the human thought, the human inner self, all compact into one verse and it is so powerful because when read, one immediately connects with it, and it touches each person’s emotions in a way. Also, it so vividly depicts the nature of humans that it is a powerful tool through which people can express themselves, and in which people can relate to. It expands our knowledge of human nature and the way humans behave and the power of emotions and their effect on us. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth when Lady Macbeth asks the evil spirits to â€Å"unsex me [Lady Macbeth] here† one feels the evil powers of ambition and its ability to overtake ones sane and rational thought. On the other hand science’s purpose is to clearly depict a situation or object. Science, in no way, should aim to â€Å"touch† the reader’s emotional side, but rather touch the reader’s rationality. Although some may argue that science does touch a reader’s side, it is not the main purpose of the writing, and is rather an effect of extreme love towards and passion for the subject. A scientific argument should not be ambiguous or differ from reader to reader, unlike poetry. There is no way for a scientific argument to be true to some people and false to others, for in science there is an absolute truth which the scientists are trying to attain. Although many may argue that poets are also aiming to achieve this absolute truth, it must be noted that each person’s emotions are different and therefore there is no way to absolutely describe the way people think, react or behave. Biology, chemistry and physics have set laws and truths which, regardl ess of who or where you are, will be true. If the purpose of poetry is, as we said, to depict human nature, then the purpose of science is to understand nature itself and how it works. When writing a piece the author must create a balance between ambiguity and precision and the language of a piece is directly dependant on the purpose of the piece. Poetry and science are completely opposite in the way that they try to balance ambiguity and precision. In poetry the ability to ambiguously use words is good since it allows one to think abstractly and allows different readers, with different mindsets, to interpret the piece in different ways. Therefore, in the case of poetry language, as a way of knowing, is created to be ambiguous so as to contribute to the knowledge and effect of the piece. On the other hand, in science ambiguity greatly impedes a work. It is not acceptable for a law or theory in science to be indirect and not addressing one specific point clearly.. Otherwise the law becomes obsolete, since if it is not understandable it has no purpose. There is no space in science for different interpretations of a law; the law has one purpose that it achieves and that purpose is set. It is not different for different people, or different nations, or different cultures. In the sense of multiple meanings, contrary to poetry’s double entendres, scienctific writing cannot have any; the one meaning the author desires to portray must be directly stated so as to disallow ambiguity and interpretation. For example, water being comprised of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom is true independent if one is in the United States, Russia, or Australia. Also, it is true independent of ones age, race, background, nationality, religion, or any other factor which may change from person to person. However, poetry is quite the opposite. Poetry should be, and is, interpreted differently by different people. The meaning or â€Å"truth† behind poetry is fully dependant on all the factors listed above. An old person may have a completely different understanding of words in poems such as George Herbert’s The Pulley the double meaning of the word â€Å"rest† which can either mean the remainder or it can mean peace. The great difference between these two interpretations leaves the reader with the final choice to interpret the poem the way he/she wants and this is the intent of the poet. However, in science it is the intent of the scientist to clearly illustrate his/her point without any ambiguity as in science clarity is essential. In conclusion, it can be seen that poetry and science have completely different purposes and different means of attaining these purposes. Furthermore, each of these specific areas of knowledge means to expand different types of knowledge and pertain to different ways of knowing. However, one must realize that it is essential to have a balance between the â€Å"scientific† or factual knowledge, and the â€Å"poetic†/†aesthetic† knowledge or the emotional understanding of human nature. Therefore, in these terms science successfully expands its portion of human knowledge successfully expands its. Therefore, it can be concluded that each area of knowledge has equal success in expanding knowledge in its respective â€Å"area†. â€Å"In science one tries to tell people, in such a way as to be understood by everyone, something that no one ever knew before. But in poetry it’s the exact opposite.†(P A M Dirac) Do both the approaches suggested in the quotation enjoy equal success in expanding human knowledge?