Script ( the Vassals) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Script ( the Vassals) - Essay Example The boy stopped, as Mary is taking her rest. She  started to shake and utterly whispers her prayers as she saw a black shadow in front of her. I cannot believe that Nicholas and Melanie Woods are now dead. What a sorrowful experience. Life is very short and everyone lives for a total of time destined to them by fate. It is very unfortunate that there is nothing we can do about it. Once life has become that way, we only need to live to the fullest, but when the right time comes, we even go to glory without notice. With them in place, you cannot be a worried child at all. Most importantly, I was very much happy with the way they took the initiative to educate meant offer me the best they could. This is something that not all parents can do. Instead, it can only be done by just a few focused ones like my parents who knew that life is all about sacrifices. Anne my daughter! Be strong. We, as human beings, live in borrowed times. Everything that happens to us had been planned by God. The only thing we need to do is to thank the Almighty for whatever happens whether it is good or bad. After all, as a believer, you should not doubt that any unpleasant thing that happens to you has a purpose. It is meant to make you be stronger. Even Jesus Christ was tempted by Satan before He eventually emerged victorious over death. When I hear such utterances, I become the saddest on earth. Losing one’s parents to a murder is an experience which should not be taken lightly. No one can endure it. Neither can I. so, we need to react and show the world that we are discontent about this. Anne, you need not to plan evil. Two wrongs don’t make one right. I understand your pain, but you need to take heart. Planning to bad things against someone who has offended you is not the best thing to do. No anger should overcome you. Just be patient and humble. Know that life must continue regardless of

Niki Caros Whale Rider - An analysis in relation to journeys Essay Example for Free

Niki Caros Whale Rider An analysis in relation to journeys Essay The inner journey is one which involves the hurdling of psychological barriers, as well as cultural and social obstacles, rather than just a physical trek. The novel Things Fall Apart (1958) by Chinua Achebe and the film Whale Rider (2002) by Niki Caro both address the overcoming of emotional boundaries, while following the progress of the main characters. Issues such as cultural differences and gender equality are presented by the composers through the clever use of devices appropriate to the medium, while using the post-colonial context to accentuate these issues. Similar to Things Fall Apart, the film Whale Rider by Niki Caro explores the breakdown of Maori culture in post-colonial New Zealand. It follows the journeys of Pai, a young girl, and Koro, her grandfather, who both seek to uphold and preserve the Maori tradition, which has been negatively influenced by the European culture. During the film, Pai transforms from an unwanted child to the new village leader, while challenging the Maori customs through her curiosity, for example when she learns the sacred art of the taiaha. Koro, who disapproves of her actions, smashes a cup in his anger. Koros wife, Flowers, reprimands him, saying, You might be the boss out there, but Im the boss in this kitchen. Caro is addressing the gender barrier which exists in the Maori culture, an obstacle which Pai overcomes in her journey. Despite being reprimanded by Koro, Pai still retains great love for him, as seen in her speech on her ancestors, where she dedicates her words to Koro. The initial long shot places emphasis on Pai, while the camera is positioned at a low-angle, suggesting that she has gained authority and leadership. This scene symbolises one of the many emotional hurdles she has had to overcome in her inner journey. Moreover, her catharsis can be related to Okonkwos moments of compassion, thus highlighting the similarity between their journeys. Similar to Okonkwo, Koro progresses on a journey, beginning at the height of power, with Caro using several symbols to signify this, such as the whale tooth. The use of sombre music and close-up shots of Koro in the scene where he loses the tooth emphasises his sorrow. In the following scene, Caro  employs dark lighting to highlight Koros melancholy, while he strokes the staff, symbolising that it is his last shred of authority. Pais voiceover informs the audience on Koros plea for help and indicates a shift in power and authority as Pai begins to assume her role as leader, But they werent listening, so I tried. Koros discovery of the whales allows him to undergo an epiphany and continue on his journey. Caro has positioned the event during the night, with its dark connotations enhancing the negative atmosphere of the scene. Furthermore, Koros staff is washed away, symbolising that he has lost all of his power. Koro later realises the error of his ways and acknowledges Pai as their leader, Wise leader, forgive me. I am just a fledgling new to flight. Koros epiphany is thus one of the greatest differences between the two texts, as he is able to surpass the greatest obstacle in his journey and move forward, whereas Okonkwo is unable to change, leading to his death. Works Cited: Whale Rider. Directed by Niki Caro (2003). [Film]The Whale Rider. Ihimaera, Witi (2003)

Impact of Climate Change on African Countries

Impact of Climate Change on African Countries The Effects of Climate Change on Volatile African Countries In the fall of 2015, United States Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders received an onslaught of criticism when he attributed the rise of terrorism, and the series of Paris terrorist attacks that had just left 130 dead, to climate change. Immediately following the presidential debate, numerous reputable political pundits, from Wall Street Journal’s Peggy Noonan, to Republican Senator and former Chairman of Homeland Security Ron Johnson, voiced their disagreements with Sanders’ claim. In fact, soon after the debate ended, Senator Bob Corker from Tennessee was interviewed saying, â€Å"I get disappointed when people see momentum around [climate change] and try to attach an unrelated issue to it.†[1]  (Henry, 2015) In fact, in December of that same year, Foreign Policy magazine, a political journal revered for its impartiality, published an article titled, â€Å"Stop Saying Climate Change Causes War† refuting both Sanders’ claim, and others that sou ght to connect climate change to the still ongoing devastating Syrian Civil War. While Sanders’ cause-and-effect relationship may have been exaggerated, the relationship between extreme weather events, temperature anomalies, and violence is neither baseless nor uncorroborated. In fact, over the last half-decade, numerous studies have been released substantiating the linkage between climate change and armed conflict. In a 2017 study produced by the Brookings Institution, author Vesselin Popovski found that â€Å"a 1 percent increase in temperature leads to a 4.5 percent increase in civil war in the same year, and a 0.9 percent increase in the following year†Ã‚  (Popovski, 2017)   Just a year later, author Robinson Meyer of The Atlantic discovered that out of the ten countries most frequently mentioned in climate change literature, six of them also hold positions in the list of the world’s most violent countries.  (Meyer, 2018) While there is still little evid ence to support Sanders’ grandiose claim that climate change triggered the proliferation of terrorism in the 21st century, it is becoming increasingly evident that climate change will not just slightly alter current standards of living. The rise in temperature has inadvertently begun to promote civil unrest and violence in some of the most underdeveloped regions of the world. In order to theorize possible mitigation and adaptation strategies, it is important to recognize both the ramifications of climate change, and the role that industrialized countries have played in contributing to this global temperature increase. According to author Lynn Hewlett, whose chapter â€Å"Learning from Student Protests in Sub-Saharan Africa,† featured in Fees Must Fall, explains simply, â€Å"the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas creates carbon dioxide gas†¦ which traps the sun’s heart in the atmosphere and makes the earth warmer†Ã‚  (Lynn Hewlett, 2015)   Although the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report of a per-decade temperature increase of 0.2 °C may seem negligible, the consequences of climate change are difficult to overlook.  (IPCC Working Groups I-III, 2015) Escalating temperatures resulting from greenhouse gas emissions not only deplete natural resources such as arable land, potable water, and breathable air. The abnormal temperature rise over the past half-century has also contributed to rising sea levels, a global biodiversity loss, and more frequent extreme weather events, from prolonged droughts to incessant rainfall. Although there is still some debate surrounding human contribution to climate change, most climate change experts agree that humans are at least partially responsible for the stark temperature rise. According to a study conducted by Yale University in 2013, over 97% of 12,000 peer-reviewed papers on climate change argue that the temperature increase is indeed at least partially attributable to anthropogenic greenhouse emissions. (Marlon, 2013)   More disturbingly, however, is the role that industrialized nations, such as the United States and Germany, rapidly developing countries including India and China, and transnational corporations have all played in producing this environmental catastrophe. As reported in the 2017 Carbon Majors Database, a peer-reviewed study which compiled and recorded companies with the most greenhouse gas emissions, â€Å"over half of global industrial emissions since 1988 can be traced to just 25 corporate and state producers.†Ã‚  (Griffin, 2017) Despite the influence that industrialized nations and the currently modernizing BRICS countries have had on the current climate system, the brunt of climate variability has thus far fallen largely on African shoulders. Natural resources which were at one point plentiful throughout the continent have diminished greatly over the past half-century, which has led to desertification, widespread crop failure, and even violence. In his article, â€Å"’Who Wins from â€Å"Climate Apartheid?’ African Climate Justice Narratives about the Paris COP 21† author Patrick Bond points out that inland Africa is uniquely susceptible to climate change, which is projected to warm 6-7 °C by the end of the century, more than two degrees greater than the anticipated greater world average.  (Bond, 2016) Author Christian Parenti offers similar statistics to illustrate African susceptibility to climate change. As a member of the Maasai people living in Kenya explains, â€Å"In the 1970s, we started having droughts every seven years†¦ Now they are coming almost every year, right across the country.†Ã‚  (Parenti C. , Chapter 4, 2011)   Yet, as Patrick Bond and others argue, nascent African countries are vulnerable to the effects climate change not because of their location, but rather because of the lack of the infrastructure and resources that allow countries to face constantly changing environmental conditions. These issues are only intensified in Africa by pervasive government corruption and political instability. For example, although farming is the main source of employment for greater than 60% of the continent’s inhabitants, African malnourishment has worsened with each passing year.  (The World Bank, 2018) African farmers simply lack the funds to acquire high-yielding techniques, and are not provided with adequate infrastructure systems to produce sustainable quantities of food in unfavorable climates. Furthermore, African countries eager to cement their places in the global economy often impose pro-investment policies that prioritize multinational commercial agriculture over small-scale subsist ence farming. As the example above illustrates, many African countries exemplify what author Christian Parenti calls â€Å"Catastrophic Convergence:† a phenomenon where political, economic, and environmental disasters collide, compound, and amplify one another’s effects.  (Parenti C. , 2011) In these â€Å"conflict systems,† climate change generates violence in many forms, such as intrastate conflict between competing tribes, looting and piracy of Transnational Corporations, and mass demonstrations protesting environmentally destructive African governments. The long-term rise in global temperature, coupled with the recent preponderance of extreme weather events, has induced a natural resource deprivation across the globe. In fact, Parenti estimates that by the end of the century, the proportion of land in severe drought will expand from 3% to 30%. (Parenti C. , 2011) Therefore, ownership, allocation, and management of these increasingly scarce resources has become an issue of the utmost importance for countries and tribes across the globe. In vulnerable African states that lack basic infrastructural needs, however, this competition over access to remaining natural resources has erupted into armed conflict. In his 2011 book titled, Topics of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence, author Christian Parenti explains how climate change can induce violence by illuminating the current strife between the Turkana and the Pokot, two competing groups living in Kenya’s Pastoralist Corridor. For tribes living in the Pastoral ist Corridor, a mountainous and arid region in Western Kenya, cattle are the economic and cultural center of life. Yet, without water and adequate grazing land, Parenti writes, â€Å"the Turkana would disappear. â€Å"they would die or migrate to cities and their culture would exist only in the memories of deracinated urban slum dwellers.†Ã‚  (Parenti C. , 2011) Due to the area’s regular droughts and flash floods, coupled with deficient adaptation policies imposed by the Kenyan government, pastoralist groups are left no choice but to raid their neighbors and engage in violent behavior just to ensure their own future livelihoods. While it is difficult to estimate how many men have fallen in the Pastoralist corridor fighting over limiting resources, Parenti’s interviews of Kenyan pastoralists highlight the pervasiveness of climate-induced violence in these already tumultuous African states. Former Kenyan pastoralist Lucas Airong lost both his father and friends w hen he was a young boy by way of the Kenyan cattle wars. Although Ariong is now a local NGO leader, and is far removed from the Pastoralist Corridor, he still owns â€Å"about 50 cows†¦ all kept under the watchful eyes of armed men, his sons, and hired hands.†Ã‚  (Parenti C. , 2011) Since the Kenyan government has proven incapable of providing sufficient watering holes and adequate irrigation systems, local tribes such as the Turkana and Pokot are left no other choice but to engage in violent behavior. The diminishing supply of natural resources has the ability to spark both small-scale tribal clashes, such as in the Pastoralist Corridor, and large-scale civil wars, as illustrated by the most recent humanitarian crisis currently unfolding between the Christian anti-balaka rebels and the Muslim former Sà ©là ©ka rebels in the Central African Republic. Although no current CAR casualty report exists, the Associated Press reported in December of 2014, just seven months after the armed conflict began, that at least 5,186 fatalities were caused by the strife between the anti-balaka and the ex-Sà ©là ©ka factions.  (The Associated Press, 2014) While religious differences and the desire for political control were undoubtedly factors in instigating this conflict, former CAR Minister of Environment and Ecology and current CAR liaison for the World Resource Institute Paul Doko is one of many who attribute the ongoing Central African Republic civil war to resource scarcity. â€Å"What w e have been facing in the provinces,† Doko claims, â€Å"is a struggle between different militia for control over natural resources such as diamond, timber, ivory and others, rather than willingness to actually change politics.†Ã‚  (Bollen, 2013) In these remote provinces outside of the capital of Bengui, the feud over the country’s remaining resources has had devastating effects on local communities. Sà ©là ©ka commanders have forcefully removed, and even slaughtered, CAR citizens for control over the country’s â€Å"artisan timber exploitation, ivory poaching, and diamond mines.†Ã‚  (Bollen, 2013) Similar to the Pastoralist Corridor, armed conflict over natural resources is facilitated by the country’s weak governance and rampant poverty. In this politically fragile state, access to the country’s remaining natural resources is a critical step in attaining political influence and achieving economic prosperity. Climate change has also fostered violence between African locals and foreign corporations that exploit African workers and extract African resources. In their article titled, â€Å"Globalization, Land Grabbing, and the Present-Day Colonial State in Uganda: Ecolonization and Its Impact,† authors Pà ¡draig Carmody and David Taylor argue that the depletion of natural resources has increased their overall economic, social and political value in the global economy, which in turn has caused â€Å"ecolonization,† a phrase coined by the two authors which refers to the â€Å"ongoing colonization of different types of natural resources by those states, companies, and consumers that are able to exercise power in the global political economy†Ã‚  (Carmody & Taylor, 2016)   Due to continent’s largely untapped resource market and each country’s eagerness to finally enter the global economy, Africa has become one of the most popular destinations for foreign inve stment. Yet, this mass influx of foreign governments and transnational corporations (TNCs) has created resentment among many already impoverished and malnourished African communities. In resource-rich countries such as Somalia and Nigeria, locals have responded to the arrival of outside corporations with acts of looting, robbing, and piracy. In a 2014 journal study titled, â€Å"Fisheries, ecosystem justice and piracy: A case study of Somalia,† authors Rashid Sumalia and Mahamudu Bawumia argue that the recent rise in piracy off the coast of Somalia is the result of the destruction of the local fishing industry caused by increased foreign fishing presence, ineffective state governance, and unregulated toxic waste dumping. Foreign trawlers often overfish and, because of weak government enforcement of environmental policies, are allowed to dispose toxic and hazardous waste into Somalian waters. This in turn not only reduces the supply of available fish for Somalian natives, but also threatens the ecosystem’s future availability. (Sumaila & Bawumia, 2014) Confronted with increasingly barren fisheries, Somalian fishers, unable to overcome corporate technology and capital, are provided no other alternative but to engage in theft and piracy. This ongoing conflict between foreign entities and Somalian locals has made the Somalian coast the most dangerous body of water worldwide, closely trailed by the Niger Delta.  (Gaffey, 2016) With a crude oil production capacity of close to 2.5 million barrels a day, Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer, and the sixth largest worldwide. Although the Niger Delta accounts for 90% of all Nigerian commercial crude exports, and makes up close to 70% of the government’s total revenue, the region remains one of the most dangerous in the world.  (NNPC, 2016) While government officials, Nigerian elites, and major Transnational Corporations such as Shell, Mobil, and Chevron all reap the economic benefits of crude oil extraction, the vast majority of Niger Delta inhabitants still live in abject poverty. To make matters worse, crude oil extraction has subsequently led to greater pollution in the river basin, the widespread destruction of subsistence crops, and the expropriation of residential territory. The unequal distribution of oil revenue, the blatant disregard for environmental preservation, and the policies preferential to multinational corporations have all led to the emergence of multiple militant organizations in the Niger Delta. While these militancy groups differ in composition and extremity, they all employ violent tactics to achieve the same goal: a greater control over the country’s limited resources. (Francis & Sardesai, 2008) Lastly, in recent years, grassroots protests have arisen in several African countries in an attempt to combat environmentally destructive governmental policies. Having been hampered by colonialism for decades, many African governments are now employing â€Å"top-down development models† that concentrate on expanding industrial modes of production as a way to cement their place in the global economy.  (Leonard & Pelling, 2010) While such policies will certainly help propel national economies in the long term, they tend to relegate certain, already marginalized, African communities. Such marginalization and ensuing protest is most apparent in Kenya, and in the Darfur region of western Sudan. In her publication titled, ‘‘’It’s More Than Planting Trees, It’s Planting Ideas’: Ecofeminist Praxis in the Green Belt Movement,† author Kathleen Hunt points to the Green Belt Movement, a nationwide environmental campaign in Kenya, to illustra te the role that African citizens frequently play in protesting environmental and political oppression. The Green Belt Movement (GBM) was established by Kenyan environmental activist Wangari Maathai as a means to protest the country’s latest model of economic development, which relies heavily on trading the country’s already limited unsustainable resources, like timber, charcoal, and coffee. Hunt explains that such policies, which are not unique to Kenya alone but characterize much of the African continent, favor â€Å"national trade of raw materials over local community economies.† (Hunt, 2014) According to Hunt, Kenya’s keenness to enter the world market has both exacerbated local food insecurity and caused â€Å"deforestation, soil erosion, sedimentation†¦ [and] migratory shifts, as men moved in search for work in the white settlers’ plantation.†Ã‚  (Hunt, 2014) While these policies have indisputably afflicted the nation’s pop ulation as a whole, the Green Belt Movement has primarily focused on ensuring the rights of Kenyan women, who have traditionally been in charge of â€Å"managing the family’s land, food production, gathering water and fuelwood.†Ã‚  (Hunt, 2014) Established in 1977, the Green Belt Movement hasn’t only combatted environmental degradation through public demonstrations, however. Rather, the movement places an equally large focus on empowering Kenyan villages, from teaching locals how to properly plant trees to hosting community-wide engagement seminars. Despite the organization’s holistic and empowering approach, the movement has indeed encountered a considerable amount of violence throughout its history. Once the Green Belt Movement adopted a pro-democracy message to its platform, the Kenyan government began to use state force in order to stop the dissemination of their message. This was most apparent in 1992 when GBM forces joined fellow pro-democratic grou p, Release Political Prisoners (RPP), to protest the unjust torturing and indefinite holding of political detainees. While the demonstration was originally planned as a three-day sit-in on Uhuru Park, the two allied groups immediately encountered police violence. Fighting off the police’s tear gas and batons, many GBM and RPP members remained in the park for over eleven months.  (Hunt, 2014) Although the violence encountered at Uhuru Park was an anomaly for the Green Belt Movement, more frequent displays of violence stemming from environmentally destructive national policies can be found in the Darfur region of Sudan. With an almost entirely Arab population and government, Sudan Arab semi-nomadic pastoralists and non-Arab sedentary farmers have long shared the region’s natural resources. Yet, over the past half-century tensions have heightened as climate unpredictability has forced the two groups to compete over shrinking grazing land and evaporating watering holes. The current day humanitarian crisis, however, began in April of 2003, when a rebel group comprised of non-Arab members attacked El Fashir airport in North Darkur.  (Sikainga, 2009) This attack was the culmination of numerous non-Arab demonstrations advocating for better resource distribution and greater political representation in the Sudanese government. In response to this attack, president Omar al-Bashir acted swiftly, employing numerous autonomous militias to suppress non-Arab rebel groups. One ethnically Arab group, known as the Janjaweed, employed particularly heinous tactics to combat their non-Arab counterparts, including torture, arson, looting, and mass killings, deemed by many as â€Å"ethnic genocide.†Ã‚  (Human Rights Watch, Africa Division, 2004-2005) While the Darfur region has historically been volatile, this particular resource-related conflict, which pit marginalized sedentary farmers against the predominantly Muslim Sundanese government and its hired militias, has been deemed one of the worst humanitarian crises in the last century, killing more than 300,000 citizens and displacing more than 2 million (Taylor, 2005) If the immediate ramifications of climate change, such as desertification, droughts and food insecurity weren’t enough already to compel state actors to institute environmentally friendly policies, the examples listed above, from Kenya’s Pastoralist Corridor to Sudan’s Darfur, hopefully serve to illustrate the true gravity of unabated greenhouse gas emissions. Currently one-sixth of the world’s population is starving, and with global temperatures expected to rise anywhere from 4-6 °C by the end of the century, one can only assume the consequences of climate change will intensify in the near future.  (Holt-Gimà ©nez) In order to reduce malnutrition, maintain our current levels of biodiversity, and stop resource related conflicts altogether, major polluters and African countries must agree to sweeping and stringent reforms. Although mitigation strategies, which seek to drastically cut the production of greenhouse gasses through the implementation of gre en energy and the disengagement from the industrialized economy, are preferred by environmental activists worldwide, they have proven to be ineffective thus far, as Annex I countries, rapidly developing BRIC countries, and African central governments all refuse to make economic concessions in the name of environmental preservation.  (Jacobs, 2018) This was best illustrated at the 2011 Copenhagen Conference of the Parties (COP), an annual meeting between all member nations of the UNFCCC. The only agreement crafted at the conference, in which the United States, Brazil, South Africa, India, and China all decided to take â€Å"inadequate and voluntary emission cuts,† was conducted behind closed doors.  (Bond, 2016) The industrialized world’s stubborn refusal to include African countries in the decision-making process has been a recurring theme in nearly all environmental negotiations. The Paris Agreement of 2015, for example, did not even mention â€Å"climate debtâ⠂¬  payment for vulnerable countries, even though many African countries are already owed reparations for the damage levied by local climates.  (Bond, 2016) While occidental countries should be reprimanded for their unwillingness to take environmental action, it is important to note that African governments are also partially to blame for perpetuating climate change. Primarily concerned with enhancing the national economy, African governments have repeatedly favored large-scale corporations over local industries. This partiality manifests itself most clearly in the coastal city of Durban, South Africa.   Although the Durban population has expressed its vehement disapproval through frequent demonstrations and protests, the South African government has continued to invest in foreign industries nevertheless. As authors Llewellyn Leonard and Mark Pelling write, â€Å"state and industry interests [in Durban, South Africa] have continued to invest in projects that harm the local env ironment and human health† (Leonard & Pelling, 2010) This widespread government reluctance to reduce carbon emissions has rendered most proposed mitigation solutions, like La Via Campesina’s global food sovereignty movement, unfeasible. In his report titled â€Å"Seven Reasons Why the World Banks Plan for Agriculture Will Not Help Small Farmers,† author Eric Holt-Gimà ©nez explains how promoting global food sovereignty could help ameliorate food insecurity and resource deprivation facing African nations today. Providing citizens with the right to â€Å"determine [their own] food and agriculture policies† will not only keep local malnutrition from worsening, Holt-Gimà ©nez argues, but will also hinder transnational corporations from inflating commodity prices to unreasonable levels. (Holt-Gimà ©nez, Williams, & Hachmyer, 2015) Although an effective policy in theory, global food sovereignty hinges on rural and urban communities agreeing to directly exchange products and policymakers deciding to cut out transnation al corporations from the food supply chain. This course of action seems unlikely in Africa’s current economic climate, however. Challenging the TNC dominated neoliberal market will not only take decades to achieve, but will also severely impede on long-term national growth. Even though mitigation strategies such as reducing CO2 emissions and excluding transnational corporations from the global food supply chain are unlikely to be effective, climate-change induced conflict will decrease nonetheless if African communities are well adapted to fluctuating environmental conditions. Ensuring African resilience begins with the implementation of Climate-Smart Agriculture and increased infrastructural support from NGOs and already developed nations. Rather than just simply advocating for emissions reductions, Climate-Smart Agriculture promotes resilience among African communities by providing farmers with new technology and agricultural techniques, such as â€Å"mulching, intercropping, conservation agriculture, crop rotation†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (The World Bank, 2013). While Climate-Smart Agriculture will certainly help attenuate the problems plaguing Africa today, infrastructural improvement is also required to curtail resource related conflict. In fact, when asked how to solve tribal violence in the Pastoralist Corridor, Lucas Airong responded with, â€Å"more wells. We need boreholes†¦ the issue is drought†Ã‚  (Parenti C. , 2011). Although both of these solutions require a collective and concerted effort on behalf of developed countries, they are more moderate than the mitigation plans rejected in the past. Even though these policies are mere strawman solutions and do not address the root cause of climate change, adaptation strategies are undeniably the best way to guarantee that the world’s most vulnerable nations are at least prepared to combat the consequences of climate change. Bibliography Bollen, A. (2013, December 18). Natural resources at the heart of CAR crisis. Retrieved from New Internationalist: https://newint.org/blog/2013/12/18/central-african-republic-natural-resources Bond, P. (2016, Winter). Who Wins from Climate Apartheid? African Climate Justice Narratives about the Paris COP 21. New Politics, pp. 83-90. Carmody, P., & Taylor, D. (2016). Globalization, Land grabbing and the Present Day Colonial State in Uganda: Ecolonization and its impact. Journal of Environment and Development, 100-126. Francis, P., & Sardesai, S. (2008). Republic of Nigeria: Niger Delta Social and Conflict Analysis. The World Bank. Gaffey, C. (2016, May 4). WHY WEST AFRICA AND NIGERIA HAVE THE WORLDS MOST DANGEROUS SEAS. Retrieved from News Week: http://www.newsweek.com/why-west-africa-and-nigeria-have-worlds-deadliest-seas-455714 Griffin, D. P. (2017, July 10). CDP Carbon Majors Report 2017. Snowmass: Climate Accountability Institute. Retrieved from Carbon Majors Database: https://www.cdp.net/en/articles/media/new-report-shows-just-100-companies-are-source-of-over-70-of-emissions Henry, D. (2015, November 11). GOP senators rip Sanders for linking global terror, climate change. Retrieved from The Hill: http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/260465-gop-senators-rip-sanders-for-linking-terror-climate Holt-Gimà ©nez, E., Williams, J., & Hachmyer, C. (2015, Winter). Why The World Banks Plan for Agriculture will not help small farmers. Food First Backgrounder, 21(3). Human Rights Watch, Africa Division. (2004-2005). Entrenching Impunity Government Responsibility for International Crimes in Darfur. Human Rights Watch. Hunt, K. (2014, July-August). Its More Than Planting Trees, Its Planting Ideas: Ecofeminist praxis in the Green Belt Movement. Southern Communication Journal, 79(3), 235-249. IPCC Working Groups I-III. (2015). IPCC Fifth Assessment Report. Cambridge: Cambridge Unviersity Press. Jacobs, R. (2018). Slide 11. Climate Change and Resource Conflict. Leonard, L., & Pelling, M. (2010, February). Mobilisation and protest: environmental justice in Durban, South Africa. Local Environment, 15(2), pp. 137-151. Lynn Hewlett, G. M. (2015, December). Learning from student protest in Sub Saharan Africa. Fees Must Fall: Student Revolt, Decolonization and Governance in South Africa(43/44), 148-168. Marlon, J. L. (2013). Scientific and Public Perspectives on Climate Change. New Haven: Yale Project on Climate Change Communication. Meyer, R. (2018, February 12). Does Climate Change Cause More War? Retrieved from The Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/02/does-climate-change-cause-more-war/553040/ NNPC. (2016). Oil Production. Retrieved from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation: http://www.nnpcgroup.com/nnpcbusiness/upstreamventures/oilproduction.aspx Parenti, C. (2011). Chapter 4. In C. Parenti, Tropics of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence (pp. 39-53). New York: Nation Books. Popovski, V. (2017, January 20). Foresight Africa viewpoint: Does climate change cause conflict? Retrieved from Brookings Institute: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2017/01/20/does-climate-change-cause-conflict/ Sikainga, A. (2009, February). The Worlds Worst Humanitarian Crisis: Understanding the Darfur Conflict. Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, 2(5). Sumaila, R., & Bawumia, M. (2014). Fisheries, ecosystem justice and piracy: A case study of Somalia. Fisheries Research, 154-163. Taylor, S. (2005, February). Genocide in Darfur: Crime Without Punishment? The Atlantic. The Associated Press. (2014, September 12). Central African Republic: Death Toll in Massacres Far Exceeds U.N. Count. Retrieved from Mercury News: https://www.mercurynews.com/2014/09/12/central-african-republic-death-toll-in-massacres-far-exceeds-u-n-count/ The World Bank. (2013). Policy brief : opportunities and challenges for climate-smart agriculture in Africa. Washington D.C.: The World Bank. The World Bank. (2018). Women, Agriculture and Work in Africa. Washington D.C.: The World Bank.

Epidural In Labor :: essays research papers

Epidural Epidemic Drugs in Labor: Are They Really Necessary. . . or Even Safe? The use of epidurals is so common today that many perinatal professionals are calling the 1990s the age of the epidural epidemic. Believed by many in the medical profession to be safe and effective, the epidural seems now to be regarded as a veritable panacea for dealing with the pain of childbirth. It is true that most women experience pain during the course of labor. This pain can be intense and very real, even for those who have prepared for it. But pain is only one of many possible sensations and experiences that characterize the experience of giving birth. Barbara Katz Rothman, a sociologist who studies birth in America, writes that in the medical management of childbirth, the experience of the mother is viewed by physicians as pain: pain experienced and pain to be avoided.1 Having experienced childbirth ourselves, we have great compassion for women in painful labors. However, we also feel a responsibility to mothers and their babies to explore issues concerning the use of epidu ral anesthesia in labor issues that are seldom discussed prenatally. Several factors make the use of epidurals potentially hazardous. The Physician’s Desk Reference cautions that local anesthetics – the type used in epidurals – rapidly cross the placenta. When used for epidural blocks, anesthesia can cause varying degrees of maternal, fetal, and neonatal toxicity which can result in the following side effects: hypotension, urinary retention, fecal and urinary incontinence, paralysis of lower extremities, loss of feeling in the limbs, headache, backache, septic meningitis, slowing of labor, increased need for forceps and vacuum deliveries, cranial nerve palsies, allergic reactions, respiratory depression, nausea, vomiting, and seizures.2 In addition, a piece of the catheter that delivers the drug into the duraregion of the back may break off and be left in the woman, a dangerous risk that necessitates surgical removal. One of the most well-known side effects of spinal anesthesia is a spinal headache. Depending on the amount of anesthetic used and how the catheter was placed, the headache can be mild or severe, lasting between one and ten days after the birth. This is not how any of us wants to feel in our first days and hours with our newborn. Epidurals also have been linked to an overall increase in operative deliveries: cesareans, forceps deliveries, and vacuum extractions. A meta-analysis of the effects of epidural anesthesia on the rate of cesarean deliveries was undertaken by a group of physicians who examined, categorized, and analyzed all available literature.

Sample Questions

Chapter-1 MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS Multiple Choice Questions 1 Which of the following is a characteristic of a perfectly competitive market? a. Firms are price setters. b. There are few sellers in the market. c. Firms can exit and enter the market freely. d. All of these 2 If a perfectly competitive firm currently produces where price is greater than marginal cost it a. will increase its profits by producing more. b. will increase its profits by producing less. c. is making positive economic profits. d. is making negative economic profits. 3 When a perfectly competitive firm makes a decision to shut down, it is most likely that a.Price is below the minimum of average variable cost. b. Fixed costs exceed variable costs. c. Average fixed costs are rising. d. Marginal cost is above average variable cost. 4 In the long run, a profit-maximizing firm will choose to exit a market when a. Fixed costs exceed sunk costs. b. Average fixed cost is rising. c. Revenue from production is less than tota l costs. d. marginal cost exceeds marginal revenue at the current level of production. 5 When firms have an incentive to exit a competitive market, their exit will a. Drive down market prices. b. Drive down profits of existing firms in the market. . Decrease the quantity of goods supplied in the market. d. All of the above are correct. 6 In a perfectly competitive market, the process of entry or exit ends when a. Firms are operating with excess capacity. b. Firms are making zero economic profit. c. Firms experience decreasing marginal revenue. d. Price is equal to marginal cost. 7 Equilibrium quantities in markets characterized by oligopoly is a. Lower than in monopoly markets and higher than in perfectly competitive markets. b. Lower than in monopoly markets and lower than in perfectly competitive markets.Higher than in monopoly markets and higher than in perfectly competitive markets. d. Higher than in monopoly markets and lower than in perfectly competitive markets. 8 In economic s the central problem is: a. b. c. d. e. Allocation. Consumption. Scarcity. Money. Production. c. 9 Indicate below what is NOT a factor of production. a. Land. b. A bank loan. c. Labor. d. Capital. 10 Macroeconomics deals with: a. The behavior of firms. b. Economic aggregates. c. The activities of individual units. d. The behavior of the electronics industry. 11 Microeconomics is not concerned with the behavior of: a. Aggregate demand. . Consumers. c. Industries. d. Firms. 12 The study of inflation is part of: a. Normative economics. b. Macroeconomics. c. Microeconomics. d. Descriptive economics. 13 Aggregate supplies is the total amount: a. Produced by the government. b. Of products produced by a given industry. c. Of labor supplied by all households. d. Of goods and services produced in an economy. 14 The total demand for goods and services in an economy is known as: a. National demand. b. Economy-wide demand. c. Gross national product. d. Aggregate demand. 15 If marginal benefit is greater than marginal cost, a rational choice involves: a.More of the activity. b. Less of the activity. c. No more of the activity. d. More or less, depending on the benefits of other activities. 16 A student chooses to study because the marginal benefit is greater than the ________ cost. a. average b. total c. marginal d. expected 17 Periods of less than full employment correspond to: a. b. c. d. Points outside the production possibility curve. Points inside the production possibility curve. Points on the production possibility curve. Either points inside or outside the production possibility curve. 18 The circular flow of goods and incomes shows the relationship between: a.Income and money. b. Wages and salaries. c. Goods and services. d. Firms and households. 19 In a free market system, the amount of goods and services that any one household gets depends upon its: a. Income. b. Wage and interest income. c. Wealth. d. Income and wealth. 20 In a planned or command economy, all the economic decisions are taken by the: a. Consumers. b. Workers. c. Government. d. Voters. Answers for Multiple Choice Questions 1 (c) 2 (a) 3 (a) 6 (b) 7 (d) 8 (c) 11(a) 12(b) 13(d) 16(c) 17(b) 18(d) 4 (c) 9 (b) 14(d) 19(d) 5 (c) 10 (b) 15(a) 20(c) Chapter-2 PRINCIPLES OF MANAGERIAL ECONOMICSMultiple Choice Questions 1 The word that comes from the Greek word for â€Å"one who manages a household is a. Market. b. Consumer. c. Producer. d. Economy. 2 Economics deals primarily with the concept of a. Scarcity. b. Poverty. c. Change. d. Power. 3 Which of the following is NOT included in the decisions that every society must make? a. what goods will be produced b. who will produce goods c. what determines consumer preferences d. who will consume the goods 4 In a market economy, characterized by Capitalism, there is full interference by the State in the economic activities of consumers and producers. a)True (b) False 5 In a market system of economy, there is no harmony between individu al interests and interests of the community. (a)True (b) False 6 Efficiency is the relation between returns and cost. (a)True (b) False 7 The subject matter of macro –economic includes the theory of income and employment at an individual level. (a)True (b) False 8 Rational decision results in†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦for the employees. a. Division of work. b. Centralization. c. Discipline. d. Motivation 9 A Theory Y approach is more suitable where a job offers: a. a high degree of intrinsic satisfaction. b.The ability to exercise initiative. c. An element of problem solving. d. All of the above. 10 Breech identifies four main elements of management. They are planning, control, coordination and: a. The division of work. b. Centralization. c. Discipline. d. Motivation. 11 Many well-known business economists participate in public debates. (a)True (b) False 12 Marginal Utility is the utility derived from the additional unit of a commodity consumed. (a)True (b) False 13 Compared to the static model, the fishing effort in a dynamic model is likely to be a. Larger. b. Smaller. c. Similar. . Larger or smaller. 14 Land, labor, and money are the three categories of economic resources. (a)True (b) False 15 Which of the following is not an interest rate derivative used for interest rate management? Interest rate guarantee a. Floor b. Swap c. Cap d. All of the above are interest rate derivatives 16 An agreement which guarantees an investor a minimum return on a principal amount is called a: a. Cap b. Executive stock option c. Stock option d. Floor 17 Which of the factors listed below is not a reason for decision making in organizations being a complex process? a.Modern information systems enable people to evaluate a range of possible outcomes b. Factors in the current context of the organization affect the decision c. Several stakeholders will have an interest in the decision d. People have to make decisions in a historical context 18 The overall process of decisi on making in, for example, staff selection includes which of these stages? a. Deciding which candidate to appoint b. Identifying the need for a new member of staff c. Agreeing the job specification d. All of the above 19 A manager who is helping a customer return some shoes they purchased last week is dealing with what type of decision? . Uncertainty b. Non-programmed decision c. Bounded rationality d. Programmed decision 20 Decision making situations can be categorized along a scale which ranges from: a. Uncertainty to certainty to risk b. Certainty to uncertainty to risk c. Certainty to risk to uncertainty d. Certainty to risk to uncertainty to ambiguity Answers for Multiple Choice Questions 1 (d) 2 (a) 3 (c) 6 (a) 7 (b) 8 (d) 11(a) 12(a) 13(a) 16(d) 17(a) 18(d) 4 (b) 9 (d) 14(b) 19(d) 5 (b) 10 (d) 15(d) 20(d) Chapter-3 CONCEPT OF DEMAND Multiple Choice Questions 1 The quantity demanded of Pepsi has decreased.The best explanation for this is that: a. The price of Pepsi increased. b. Pepsi consumers had an increase in income. c. Pepsi's advertising is not as effective as in the past. d. The price of Coca Cola has increased. 2 Demand curves are derived while holding constant: a. Income, tastes, and the price of other goods. b. Tastes and the price of other goods. c. Income and tastes. d. Income, tastes, and the price of the good. 3 When the decrease in the price of one good causes the demand for another good to decrease, the goods are: a. Normal b. Inferior c. Substitutes d.Complements 4 Suppose the demand for good Z goes up when the price of good Y goes down. We can say that goods Z and Y are: a. Substitutes. b. Complements. c. Unrelated goods. d. Perfect substitutes. 5 If the demand for coffee decreases as income decreases, coffee is: a. An inferior good. b. A normal good. c. A complementary good. d. A substitute good. 6 Which of the following will NOT cause a shift in the demand curve for compact discs? a. A change in the price of pre-recorded cassette tape s. b. A change in income. c. A change in the price of compact discs. d. A change in wealth. When excess demand occurs in an unregulated market, there is a tendency for: a. Quantity supplied to decrease. b. Quantity demanded to increase. c. Price to rise. d. Price to fall. 8 Market equilibrium exists when _____________ at the prevailing price. a. b. c. d. quantity demanded is less than quantity supplied quantity supplied is greater than quantity demanded quantity demanded equals quantity supplied quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied 9 A movement along the demand curve to the left may be caused by: a. A decrease in supply. b. A rise in the price of inputs. c.A fall in the number of substitute goods. d. A rise in income. 10 The quantity demanded of a product rises whenever (a) The product’s price falls. (b) Incomes increase. (c) Population increases. (d) The prices of substitute goods rise. (e) Consumer tastes and preferences change. 11 The equilibrium quantity mu st fall when (a) There is a decrease in demand. (b) There is a decrease in supply. (c) There is an increase in price. (d) There is an increase in demand and supply. (e) There is a decrease in demand and supply 12 The demand curve will shift to the left for most consumer goods when (a) Incomes decrease. b) The prices of substitutes fall. (c) The prices of complements increase (d) All of the above. 13 Producer goods, also called intermediate goods, in economics, goods manufactured and used in further manufacturing, processing, or resale. (a)True (b) False 14 Consumer goods are alternately called final goods, and the second term makes more sense in understanding the concept. (a)True (b) False 15 GDP stands for a. Gross Domestic Product b. Gross Deistic Product c. Gross dynamic product d. All of these 16 GNP stands for a. Gross national product b. Gross natural product c. Both (a)and (b) d.None of these 17 When the demand for a product is tied to the purchase of some parent product, its demand is called induced or derived. (a)True (b) False 18 An industry is the aggregate of firms (a)True (b) False 19 The ‘law of demand' implies that: a. As prices fall, quantity demanded increases. b. As prices rise, quantity demanded increases. c. As prices fall, demand increases. d. As prices rise, demand decreases. 20 When the market operates without interference, price increases will distribute what is available to those who are willing and able to pay the most. This process is known as: a. Price rationing. . Price fixing. c. Quantity adjustment. d. Quantity setting Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (a) 2 (d) 3 (c) 6 (c) 7 (c) 8 (c) 11(d) 12(d) 13(a) 16(a) 17(a) 18(a) 4 (b) 9 (a) 14(a) 19(a) 5 (b) 10 (a) 15(a) 20(a) Chapter-4 DETERMINATION OF DEMAND 1 The demand for a product or a service depends on a host of factors. (a)True (b) False 2 Demand curves may also be shifted by changes in expectations. (a)True (b) False 3 Quantity demand is a specific quantity that buy ers are willing and able to buy at a specific demand price. (a)True (b) False 4 If the price of a complement increases, all else equal, a.Quantity demanded will increase. b. Quantity supplied will increase. c. Demand will increase. d. Demand will decrease. 5 Which of the following would lead to an INCREASE in the demand for golf balls? a. An decrease in the price of golf balls. b. An increase in the price of golf clubs. c. A decrease in the cost of producing golf balls. d. An increase in average household income when golf balls are a normal good. 6 If input prices increase, all else equal, a. Quantity supplied will decrease. b. Supply will increase. c. Supply will decrease. d. Demand will decrease. 7 Which of the following would decrease the supply of wheat? . A decrease in the price of pesticides. b. An increase in the demand for wheat. c. A rise in the price of wheat. d. An increase in the price of corn. 8 When Sonoma Vineyards increases the price of its Chardonnay from $15 per bo ttle to $20 per bottle, the result is a decrease in†¦ a. The quantity of this wine demanded. b. The quantity of this wine supplied. c. The demand for this wine. d. The supply of this wine. 9 Which of the following will cause a change in quantity supplied? a. Technological change. b. A change in input prices. c. A change in the market price of the good. d. A change in the number of firms in the market. 0 In which of the following cases will the effect on equilibrium output be indeterminate (i. e. , depend on the magnitudes of the shifts in supply and demand)? a. Demand decreases and supply decreases. b. Demand remains constant and supply increases. c. Demand decreases and supply increases. d. Demand increases and supply increases. 11 An increase in the number of firms selling pizza will cause, ceteris paribus, (a) an increase in supply. (b) an increase in demand. (c) a decrease in quantity demanded. (d) a decrease in the quantity supplied. 12 A change in demand is a change in th e ENTIRE demand relation. a)True (b) False 13 The demand for a given product will rise if: a. Incomes rise for a normal good or fall for an inferior good b. The price of a complement falls c. The price of a substitute rises d. All of these 14 Two explanations for the law of demand are (a) Price and quantity effects. (b) Substitution and income effects. (c) Opportunity cost and substitution effects. (d) Substitutes and inferior goods. (e) None of the above. 15 An increase in demand, ceteris paribus, will usually cause (a) A decrease in quantity demanded. (b) an increase in quantity supplied. (c) an increase in supply. d) a higher quantity and a lower price. 16. The quantity demanded of a product rises whenever (a) the product’s price falls. (b) incomes increase. (c) population increases. (d) the prices of substitute goods rise 17 The demand curve is downward-sloping because at a higher price for a good (ceteris paribus) (a) people buy fewer substitutes. (b) people buy more com plements. (c) people search for substitutes. (d) income rises. (e) substitutes become complements. 18 The supply curve is upward-sloping because at higher prices for a good (a) consumers search out more substitutes. (b) consumer income increases. c) demand is lower. (d) None of the above. 19 If the factors held constant along a supply or demand curve change, (a) the equilibrium may change. (b) the demand and supply equilibrium may be disrupted. (c) the supply or demand curve may shift. (d) All of the above. 20 If the price of crackers goes up when the price of cheese goes down, crackers and cheese are (a) inferior goods. (b) substitutes. (c) both substitutes and complements. (d) complements Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (a) 2 (a) 3 (a) 6 (c) 7 (d) 8 (a) 11(a) 12(a) 13(d) 16(a) 17(c) 18(d) 4 (d) 9 (c) 14(b) 19(a) 5 (d) 10 (c) 15(b) 20(d)Chapter-5 PRICE ELASTICITY OF DEMAND 1 If the price elasticity of demand for a good is . 75, the demand for the good can be described as: a . normal b. elastic c. inferior d. inelastic. 2. When the price of a product is increased 10 percent, the quantity demanded decreases 15 percent. In this range of prices, demand for this product is: a. elastic b. inelastic c. cross-elastic. d. unitary elastic. 3. If the price elasticity of demand for a product is equal to 0. 5, then a 10 percent decrease in price will: a. increase quantity demanded by 5 percent. b. increase quantity demanded by 0. percent. c. decrease quantity demanded by 5 percent. d. decrease quantity demanded by 0. 5 percent. 4 If an increase in the supply of a product results in a decrease in the price, but no change in the actual quantity of the product exchanged, then: a. the price elasticity of supply is zero. b. the price elasticity of supply is infinite. c. the price elasticity of demand is unitary. d. the price elasticity of demand is zero. 5. If 100 units of product K are sold at a unit price of $10 and 75 units of product K are sold at a unit price of $1 5, one can conclude that in this price range: a. emand for product K is elastic. b. demand for product K is inelastic. c. demand for product K has shifted to the right. d. consumers are sensitive to price changes of product K. 6 Total revenue falls as the price of a good increases if price ela sticity of demand is: a. elastic. b. inelastic c. unitary elastic d. perfectly elastic. 7 The demand for Cheerios cereal is more price-elastic than the demand for cereals as a whole. This is best explained by the fact that: a. Cheerios are a luxury. b. cereals are a necessity. c. there are more substitutes for Cheerios than for cereals as a whole. d. onsumption of cereals as a whole is greater than consumption of Cheerios. 8 What is the most likely effect of the development of television, videocassette players, and rental movies on the movie theater industry? a. b. c. d. decreased costs of producing movies increased demand for movie theater tickets movie theater tickets become an inferior good increased price elasticity of demand for movie theater tickets 9 The price elasticity of demand will increase with the length of the period to which the demand curve pertains because: a. consumers' incomes will increase. b. the demand curve will shift outward. . all prices will increase over time. d. consumers will be better able to find substitutes. 10. A state government wants to increase the taxes on cigarettes to increase tax revenue. (a)True (b) False 11 This tax would only be effective in raising new tax revenues if the price elasticity of demand is: a. unity b. elastic c. inelastic d. perfectly elastic. 12. Sony is considering a 10 percent price reduction on its color television sets. If the demand for sets in this price range is inelastic: A) revenues from color sets will remain constant. B) revenues derived from color sets will decrease.C) revenues derived from color sets will increase. D) the number of television sets sold will decrease 13 Elasticity of demand for a commo dity with respect to change in its price. (a)True (b) False 14 An elasticity alternative in which infinitesimally small changes in price cause infinitely large changes in quantity. (a)True (b) False 15 Three factors that affect the numerical value of the price elasticity of demand are the a. b. c. d. availability of substitutes time period of analysis proportion of budget All of these 16 The price elasticity of demand is one of four common elasticity’s used in the analysis of the market. a)True (b) False 17 Cross elasticity of demand is: a. negative for complementary goods b. unitary for inferior goods. c. negative for substitute goods d. positive for inferior goods. 18. A positive cross elasticity of demand coefficient indicates that: a. a product is an inferior good. b. a product is a normal good. c. two products are substitute goods. d. two products are complementary goods. 19 A market without legal prices is in equilibrium when: a. quantity demanded equals price. b. the d emand curve remains constant. c. quantity demanded equals quantity supplied. d. uantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied. 20 A relatively small change, say 1% on an INR 100,000 house, can make a BIG difference in the buyer’s decision to buy. (a)True (b) False Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (d) 2 (a) 3 (a) 4 (d) 5 (a) 6 (a) 7 (c) 8 (d) 9 (d) 10 (a) 11(d) 12(c) 13(a) 14(a) 15(d) 16(a) 17(a) 18(c) 19(c) 20(a) Chapter-6 TYPES OF ELASTICITIES OF DEMAND 1 If it is observed that, in a particular market, price has risen and quantity exchanged has increased, it is likely that: a. supply has increased. b. supply has decreased. c. demand has increased. d. emand has decreased. 2 The quantity of a good demanded rises from 1000 to 1500 units when the price falls from $1. 50 to $1. 00 per unit. The price elasticity of demand for this product is approximately: a. 1. 0 b. 16 c. 2. 5 d. 4. 0 3 If the elasticity of demand for a commodity is estimated to be 1. 5, then a decrea se in price from $2. 10 to $1. 90 would be expected to increase daily sales by: a. 50% b. 1. 5% c. 5% d. 15% 4 A long-run demand curve, as compared to a short-run demand curve for the same commodity, is generally: a. more elastic b. less elastic c. of the same elasticity d. none of the above. The price elasticity of demand is 5. 0 if a 10 percent increase in the price results in a a. 2%decrease in quantity demanded. b. 5%decrease in quantity demanded. c. 10% decrease in quantity demanded d. 50% decrease in quantity demanded. 6 Demand for a good will likely be more elastic, a. The higher the level of income. b. The larger the proportion of monthly income spent on it. c. The fewer the good substitutes available. d. The higher the price of complementary goods. 7 Demand will be more elastic, a. The higher the income. b. The lower the price. c. The shorter the passage of time after a permanent price increase. . The more substitutes available for the good. 8 The price elasticity of demand measures the sensitivity of demand to price changes. (a)True (b) False 9 If a good has no close substitutes and is regarded as a necessity by many consumers, then demand for the good will be quite elastic. (a)True (b) False 10 Cross elasticity of demand is the ratio of the percentage change in demand for a good to the percentage change in price for another. (a)True (b) False 11 A 50 percent increase in price that results in a 90 percent decrease in the quantity demanded indicates that demand is elastic in this price range. a)True (b)False 12 Demands for most goods tend to become more elastic with the passage of time. (a)True (b) False 13 If two goods are substitutes, then an increase in the price of one good will leads to an increase in the demand for the other good. (a)True (b) False 14 If two goods are complements, then a decrease in the price of one good will results in a decrease in the demand of the other good. (a)True (b) False 15 The price elasticity of demand is the same as the slope of the demand curve. (a)True (b) False 16 If demand is price elastic, then: a. a rise in price will raise total revenue. b. a fall in price will raise total revenue. . a fall in price will lower the quantity demanded. d. a rise in price won't have any effect on total revenues. 17 Complementary goods have: a. The same elasticity’s of demand. b. very low price elasticity of demand. c. negative cross price elasticity of demand with respect to each other. d. positive income elasticity of demand. 18 The price elasticity of demand generally tends to be: a. smaller in the long run than in the short run. b. smaller in the short run than in the long run. c. larger in the short run than in the long run. d. unrelated to the length of time. 19 If the price elasticity of supply of doodads is 0. 0 and the price increases by 3 percent, then the quantity supplied of doodads will rise by a. 0. 60 percent. b. 0. 20 percent c. 1. 8 percent d. 18 percent. 20 If the cross-price elastic ity between two commodities is 1. 5, a. The two goods are luxury goods. b. The two goods are complements. c. The two goods are substitutes. d. The two goods are normal goods. Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (c) 2 (a) 3 (d) 6 (b) 7 (d) 8 (a) 11(a) 12(a) 13(a) 16(b) 17(c) 18(b) 4 (a) 9 (b) 14(b) 19(c) 5 (d) 10 (a) 15(b) 20(c) Chapter-7 SUPPLY ANALYSIS 1 The cost of factor inputs like land, labor, and capital has a major influence on supply. a)True (b) False 2 Which of the following factors will make the demand for a product more elastic? (Assume the product has a straight-line, downward sloping demand. ) a. The product has no close substitutes. b. A very small proportion of income is spent on the good. c. A long time period has elapsed since the product’s price changed. d. A lower price 3 For a given normal supply curve, the amount of a tax paid by the buyer will be larger a. the more elastic the demand. b. the more inelastic the demand. c. the income elasticity is equa l to zero d. when the price is high. With a perfectly elastic demand and a normal supply (upward-slopping) a. consumers will bear the entire tax burden. b. consumers will not bear any tax burden. c. consumers and producer will split the tax burden in half. d. producers will not bear any tax burden. 5 Which of the following leads to the producers paying all of a tax? a. The supply is perfectly elastic. b. The supply is perfectly inelastic. c. The demand is unit elastic. d. The demand is perfectly inelastic. 6 The incidence (split) of sales tax is determined by the a. level of government which imposes the tax. b. federal government in all cases. c. greed of the seller. d. rice elasticity of supply and demand. 7 The market supply curve is the horizontal sum of the individual supply curve. (a)True (b) False 8 Supply determinants are five ceteris paribus factors that are held constant when a supply curve is constructed. (a)True (b) False 9 Supply is the willingness and ability of produce rs to make a specific quantity of output available to consumers at a particular price over a given period of time. (a)True (b) False 10 Individuals supply factors of production to firms. (a)True (b) False 11 The supply curve for tomatoes is not thus more elastic in the short run than in the momentary period. (a)True (b)False 2 Macroeconomic studies are based on empirical evidence. (a)True (b)False 13 Demand curve slopes upwards from left to right. (a) True (b)False 14 In the market, anyone who agrees to pay the requisite price of a product would be excluded from their consumption. (a) True (b)False 15 Aglets are the metal or plastic tips on shoelaces that make it easier to lace your shoes. The demand for aglets is probably a. perfectly elastic. b. inelastic. c. elastic but not perfectly elastic. d. unit elastic. 16 The cross elasticity of demand measures the responsiveness of the quantity demanded of a particular good to changes in the prices of a.Its complements but not its substit utes. b. its substitutes but not its complements. c. its substitutes and its complements d. neither its substitutes nor its complements. 17 If goods are complements, definitely their a. income elasticity’s are negative b. income elasticity’s are positive. c. cross elasticity’s are positive. d. cross elasticity’s are negative. 18 If a rise in the price of good 1 decreases the quantity of good 2 demanded, a. the cross elasticity of demand is negative b. good 1 is an inferior good. c. good 2 is an inferior good d. the cross elasticity of demand is positive. 9 The price elasticity of demand generally tends to be: a. smaller in the long run than in the short run. b. smaller in the short run than in the long run. c. larger in the short run than in the long run. d. unrelated to the length of time. 20 The demand for your services becomes more elastic. (a)True (b)False Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (a) 2 (c) 3 (b) 6 (d) 7 (a) 8 (a) 11(b) 12(a) 13(b) 16(c ) 17(d) 18(a) 4 (b) 9 (a) 14(b) 19(b) 5 (b) 10 (a) 15(b) 20(a) Chapter-8 PRODUCTION DECISION 1 Which of the following functions is not a core function of an organisation? a. The product/service development function b.The operations function c. The accounting and finance function d. The marketing (including sales) function 2 Most operations produce a mixture of both products and services. Which of the following businesses is closest to producing â€Å"pure† services? a. IT company b. A Restaurant c. Counsellor/therapist d. Steel company 3 Operations can be classified according to their volume and variety of production as well as the degree of variation and visibility. Which of the following operations would be classified as high volume, low variety? a. A family doctor b. A carpenter c. A front office bank d.A fast food restaurant 4 Which of the following activities is not a direct responsibility of operations management? a. Designing the operation’s products, services a nd processes b. Planning and controlling the operation c. Developing an operations strategy for the operation d. Determining the exact mix of products and services that customers will want 5 Operations can be classified according to the degree of variation in demand and visibility of the operation as well as their volume and variety of production. Which of the following operations would be classified as high variation and high visibility? a. A front office bank b.A family doctor c. A fast food restaurant d. A carpenter 6 The production function incorporates the technically efficient method of †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. a. production. b. process c. function d. All of these 7 A fixed input is one whose quantity cannot be varied during the time under consideration. (a)True (b)False 8 Economists find it convenient to distinguish between the †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. and the long run. a. short run b. large run c. big run d. None of these 9 The law of variable proportions states th at as the quantity of one factor is increased, keeping the other factors fixed, the marginal product of that factor will eventually decline. a)True (b)False 10 MRP stands for a. Marginal Revenue Product b. Marginal Revenue process c. Both (a) and (b) d. None of these 11 The book value of old equipment is not a relevant cost in a decision. (a)True (b)False 12. One of the dangers of allocating common fixed costs to a product line is that such allocations can make the line appear less profitable than it really is. (a)True (b)False 13. A differential cost is a variable cost. (a)True (b)False 14. All future costs are relevant in decision making. (a)True (b)False 15. Variable costs are always relevant costs. (a)True (b)False 6 Only the variable costs identified with a product are relevant in a decision concerning whether to eliminate the product. (a)True (b)False 17 Managers should pay little attention to bottleneck operations because they have limited capacity for producing output. (a)Tr ue (b)False 18 A cost that does not affect a decision is called an a. opportunity cost b. incremental cost c. avoidable cost d. irrelevant cost 19. Costs that change between alternatives are called a. fixed costs. b. opportunity costs. c. crelevant costs. d. sunk costs. 20. A cost incurred in the past that cannot be changed by any future action is a(n) a. pportunity cost b. sunk cost c. relevant cost d. avoidable cost Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (c) 2 (c) 3 (d) 6 (a) 7 (a) 8 (a) 11(a) 12(a) 13(b) 16(b) 17(b) 18(d) 4 (d) 9 (a) 14(b) 19(c) 5 (b) 10 (a) 15(b) 20(b) Chapter-9 ISOQUANT AND PRODUCTION FUNCTION 1 Economists typically assume that the owners of firms wish to a. produce efficiently. b. maximize sales revenues. c. maximize profits. d. All of these. 2 Efficient production occurs if a firm a. cannot produce its current level of output with fewer inputs. b. given the quantity of inputs, cannot produce more output. c. maximizes profit. d. All of the above. Limited liab ility is a benefit to a. sole proprietorships. b. partnerships. c. corporations. d. all of the above. 4 Which of the following statements best describes a production function? a. the maximum profit generated from given levels of inputs b. the maximum level of output generated from given levels of inputs c. all levels of output that can be generated from given levels of inputs d. all levels of inputs that could produce a given level of output 5 With respect to production, the short run is best defined as a time period a. lasting about six months. b. lasting about two years. c. in which all inputs are fixed. d. n which at least one input is fixed. 6 In the long run, all factors of production are a. variable. b. fixed. c. materials. d. rented. 7 The short-run production functions for Albert’s Pretzels. The marginal productivity of labor equals the average productivity of labor a. for all levels of labor. b. at none of the levels of labor. c. only for the first worker. d. only fo r the fifth worker. 8 the short-run production function for Albert’s Pretzels. The law of diminishing marginal productivity a. appears with the second worker. b. has not yet appeared for any of the levels of labor. c. first appears with the fifth worker. d. s refuted by this evidence. 9 If the average productivity of labor equals the marginal productivity of labor, then a. the average productivity of labor is at a maximum. b. the marginal productivity of labor is at a maximum. c. Both A and B above. d. Neither A nor B above. 10 Average productivity will fall as long as a. marginal productivity is falling. b. it exceeds marginal productivity. c. it is less than marginal productivity. d. the number of workers is increasing. 11 Factors of production are a) inputs and outputs. b) outputs only c) inputs only d) the minimum set of inputs that can produce a certain fixed quantity of output. 2 The set of all pairs (z1, z2) of inputs that yield the output y is the y-is quant. (a)True (b)False 13 L-shaped isoquants imply that production requires that the inputs are perfect substitutes. a. are imperfect substitutes. b. cannot be used together. c. must be used together in a certain proportion. d. None of these 14 Isoquants that are downward-sloping straight lines imply that the inputs a. are perfect substitutes. b. are imperfect substitutes. c. cannot be used together. d. must be used together in a certain proportion. 15 Isoquants that are downward-sloping straight lines exhibit a. n increasing marginal rate of technical substitution. b. a decreasing marginal rate of technical substitution. c. a constant marginal rate of technical substitution. d. a marginal rate of technical substitution that cannot be determined. 16 The profit maximization firm will choose the least cost combination of factors to produce at any given level of output. (a)True (b) False 17 The production function is useful in deciding on the additional value of employing a variable input in the pro duction process. (a)True (b) False 18 The additional use of an input factor should be stopped when its marginal revenue productivity just equals its price. a)True (b) False 19 The least cost combination of-factors or producer’s equilibrium is now explained with the help of †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. curves and iso costs. a. iso product b. iso process c. Both(a) and (b) d. None of these 20 MRTS stands for†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. a. Marginal rate of technical structure b. Marginal rate of technical substitution c. Both(a) and (b) d. None of these Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (d) 2 (d) 3 (c) 6 (a) 7 (c) 8 (a) 11(c) 12(a) 13(c) 16(a) 17(a) 18(a) 4 (b) 9 (a) 14(a) 19(a) 5 (d) 10 (b) 15(c) 20(b) Chapter-10 THEORY OF COST 1 The cost of capital is critically important in finance. a)True (b)False An implicit cost is a. the cost of giving up an alternative b. the cost of a chosen alternative c. calculated by subtracting the monetary cost. d. none of the above 3 The historical co st of an asset refers to the actual cost incurred at the time the asset was acquired. (a)True (b) False 4 An Explicit cost is a business expense accounted cost that can be easily identified such as wage, rent and materials. (a)True (b) False 5 Private is the cost that has to be paid by an individual who is directly involved in the production or consumption of a particular good. a)True (b) False 6 Social cost or external cost is not the cost burden carried by individuals who are not directly involved in the production or consumption of that particular good (a)True (b) False 7 Average cost is the sum total of Average variable it and average fixed cost. (a)True (b) False 8 Cost-output relationship facilitates many managerial relationships such as: a. Formulating the standards of operations. b. Formulating the rational policy on plant size. c. Formulating a policy of profit prediction. d. All of these 9 Cost in the short-run can be classified into†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦and variable cost. a. fixed cost b. sset c. both (a) and (b) d. None of these 10 Total fixed costs remained fixed irrespective of increase or decrease in production of activity. (a)True (b) False 11 Marginal costs is the change in total cost resulting from unit change in†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. a. output b. input c. both(a) and (b) d. None of these 12 The †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. implies that the cost of production continues to be low till the firm reaches the optimum scale (Marginal cost = Average cost). a. V-shape b. Q-shape c. U-shape d. All of these 13 Scale economies and returns to scale generally produce a U-shaped long-run average cost curve, such as the one displayed to the right. a) True (b) False 14 __________ is concerned with the branch of economics relating the behavior of principals and their agents. a. Financial management b. Profit maximization c. Agency theory d. Social responsibility 15 A concept that implies that the firm should consider issues such as protecting the consumer, paying fair wag es, maintaining fair hiring practices, supporting education, and considering environmental issues. a. Financial management b. Profit maximization c. Agency theory d. Social responsibility 16 Which of the following is not normally a responsibility of the treasurer of the modern corporation but rather the controller? . Budgets and forecasts b. Asset management c. Investment management d. Financing management 17 The __________ decision involves determining the appropriate make-up of the righthand side of the balance sheet. a. asset management b. financing c. investment d. capital budgeting 18 A long-run is also expressed as a series of short-runs. (a)True (b)False 19 Which of the following are used in calculating opportunity costs? a. monetary costs b. the cost of time c. preference d. all of the above 20 An explicit cost is a. the cost of giving up an alternative b. the cost of a chosen alternative c. alculated by subtracting the monetary cost of an alternative by the time invested d. none of the above Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (a) 2 (a) 3 (a) 6 (b) 7 (a) 8 (d) 11(a) 12(c) 13(a) 16(a) 17(b) 18(a) 4 (a) 9 (a) 14(c) 19(d) 5 (a) 10 (a) 15(d) 20(b) Chapter-11 MARKET STRUCTURE, AND PRICING 1 Which of the following cannot be classed as a market structure? a. Oligopoly. b. Perfect competition. c. Communism. d. Monopolistic competition. 2 Income and population are two variables that can be used in ______ segmentation: a. psychographic b. demographic c. lifestyle d. behavioural 3 Strong exchange rates can: a. help stimate consumer purchasing power. b. help predict change in lifestyle across Europe. c. predict the evolution of sales for particular brands. d. drive imports to become cheaper. 4 BERI stands for: a. Business Economic Risk Index. b. Business Economic Rating International. c. Business Education Rating Indicator. d. Business Environment Risk Index. 5 The size and liquidity requirements are based on the minimum invest ability requirements for the MS CI Global Standard Indices. (a) True (b) False 6 Oligopoly is a market structure in which a small number of firms account for the whole industry’s output. (a) True (b) False The number of firms and product differentiation are extremely crucial in determining the nature of competition in a market. (a) True (b) False 8 type of market structure represented by the constant returns to scale (CRS) technology includes a. Monopolistic competition b. Oligopoly c. Duopoly d. Perfect competition 9 In industries in which there are scale economies, the variety of goods that a country can produce is constrained by a. the fixed cost b. the size of the labor force c. the marginal cost d. the size of the market 10 A monopoly firm engaged in international trade but enjoying a protected home market will a. quate marginal costs with foreign marginal revenues. b. equate marginal costs with marginal revenues in both domestic and foreign markets c. equate average costs in local and foreign markets d. none of the above 11 Minimum efficient scale of production in relation to the overall industry output and market requirement sometimes play a major role in shaping the market structure. (a)True (b) False 12 Price and output decisions of firms that want to maximize profits always depend on costs. (a) True (b) False 13 Which of the following is NOT a financial objective of pricing? a. Corporate growth. b.Return on investment. c. Profit maximization. d. None of these 14 Which of the following is NOT a marketing objective? a. Cash flow. b. Positioning. c. Volume sales. d. None of these 15 Setting a price below that of the competition is called: a. Skimming. b. Penetration pricing. c. Competitive pricing. d. None of these 16 Which of the following is NOT a reason for cutting prices? a. Capacity utilisation. b. Increasing profit margins. c. Market defence. d. None of these 17 Which of the following is NOT a reason for increasing prices? a. Cost pressures. b. Price comparison. c. Curbin g demand. d.None of these 18 The costs that depend on output in the short run are: a. both total variable costs and total costs. b. total costs only. c. total fixed cost only. d. total variable costs only 19 A firm will shut down in the short run if: a. fixed costs exceed revenues. b. total costs exceed revenues. c. it is suffering a loss. d. variable costs exceed revenues. 20 In the long run, every cost is variable cost. In this period, all costs ever incurred by the firm must be recovered. (a)True (b) False Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (c) 2 (b) 3 (d) 6 (a) 7 (a) 8 (d) 11(a) 12(a) 13(a) 16(b) 17(b) 18(a) (d) 9 (d) 14(a) 19(d) 5 (a) 10 (b) 15(b) 20(a) Chapter-12 PERFECT COMPETITION 1. A perfectly competitive firm will maximize profit at the quantity at which the firm's marginal revenue equals a. price b. average revenue c. total cost d. marginal cost 2 Which of the following is not a valid option for a perfectly competitive firm? a. Increasing its output. b. Decreasing i ts output. c. Increasing its price. d. Increasing its resources. 3 In the long run, a perfectly competitive firm will achieve all but which of the following: a. Economic profit b. Allocative Efficiency c. Productive Efficiency d.Normal profit 4 If the price a firm receives for its product is equal to the marginal cost of producing that product, the firm is: a. Always earning an economic profit b. Always productively efficient. c. Always allocatively efficient. d. Always experiencing an economic loss. 5 A firm that is producing at the lowest possible average cost is always: a. Earning an economic profit. b. Productively efficient. c. Dominating the other firms in the market. d. Not producing enough output. 6 Which of the following is the best example of a perfectly competitive market? a. diamonds b. athletic shoes c. soft drinks d. arming 7 Perfect competition is an industry with a. a few firms producing identical goods. b. many firms producing goods that differ somewhat. c. a few fi rms producing goods that differ somewhat in quality. d. many firms producing identical goods. 8 In a perfectly competitive industry, there are a. many buyers and many sellers. b. many sellers, but there might be only one or two buyers. c. many buyers, but there might be only one or two sellers. d. one firm that sets the price for the others to follow. 9 In perfect competition, the product of a single firm a. is sold to different customers at different prices. b. as many perfect complements produced by other firms. c. has many perfect substitutes produced by other firms. d. is sold under many differing brand names. 10 In perfect competition, restrictions on entry into an industry a. do not exist. b. apply to labor but not to capital. c. apply to both capital and labor. d. apply to capital but not to labor. 11 Price for a firm under monopolistic competition is ______. a. equal to marginal revenue b. greater than marginal revenue c. less than marginal revenue d. greater than total reve nue 12 In the long run, monopolistically competitive firms tend to experience ______. a. high economic profits b. ero economic profits c. negative economic profits d. substantial economic losses 13 Marginal revenue for a monopolist is ______ a. equal to price b. greater than price c. less than price d. equal to average revenue 14 Perfect competitions describes a market structure whose assumptions are extremely strong and highly unlikely to exist in most real-time and real-world markets. (a)True (b) False 15 Monopolistic competition is a market structure characterized by a large number of relatively small firms. (a)True (b) False 16 A monopolist can sell more of his output only at a lower price and can reduce the sale at a high price. a)True (b) False 17 A monopoly is a market structure in which there is not only one producer/seller for a product. (a)True (b) False 18 A perfectly competitive firm produces the profit-maximizing quantity of output that equates marginal revenue and marg inal cost. (a)True (b) False 19 A perfectly competitive firm faces †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. production alternatives based on a comparison of price, average total cost, and average variable cost. a. four short-run b. three short-run c. five short-run d. All of these 20 A perfectly competitive firm’s marginal cost curve that lies above the †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. of the average variable cost curve is its supply curve. . minimum b. maximum c. both(a) and (b) d. None of these Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (d) 2 (c) 3 (a) 6 (d) 7 (d) 8 (a) 11(a) 12(b) 13(a) 16(b) 17(b) 18(a) 4 (c) 9 (c) 14(a) 19(b) 5 (b) 10 (a) 15(a) 20(a) Chapter-13 OLIGOPOLY AND PRICING STRATEGIES 1 A price- and quantity-fixing agreement is known as: a. game theory. b. price leadership. c. collusion. d. price concentration. 2 A group of firms that gets together to make price and output decisions is called: a. a cartel. b. price leadership. c. an oligopoly. d. a concentrated industry 3 Products produced by oligopolistic ? rms are: a. Homogeneous. b. Heterogeneous. . Differentiated. d. Heterogeneous or differentiated. 3 Oligopoly is the only market structure characterized by: a. Interdependence in pricing and output decisions. b. Differentiated products. c. Barriers to entry. d. Pro? t-maximizing behavior. 4 Oligopoly is characterized by all of the following except: a. A few large ? rms. b. Differentiated product. c. Difficult entry into the industry. d. Price competition 5 A major threat to longer term profits exists when barriers to entry into an industry are high. (a)True (b) False 6 Under kinked demand theory the prices of oligopolists are predicted to be rather rigid or ‘sticky'. a)True (b) False 7 In contestable markets, large oligopolistic firms end up behaving like: a. a monopoly. b. monopolistically competitive firms. c. a cartel. d. perfectly competitive firms 8 Which of the following types of oligopoly competition would you expect to result in the highest market out put, other things equal? a. b. c. d. Stackelberg. Bertrand. Cornet. Collusion 9 The demand curve has a kink at the price which is equal to full cost price. (a) True (b) False 10. An pro? t maximizing, oligopolistic firms produces at an output level where: a. P = ATC. b. MR = MC. c. MR = ATC. d. AVC > MR. e.P = MR 11 Cartels are most likely to arise in which of the following market structures? a. Perfect competition. b. Monopolistic Competition. c. Oligopoly. d. Monopoly. 12 A cartel is a formal collusive organization of the oligopoly firms in an industry. (a) True (b) False 13 Needs such as training the group, setting standards and maintaining discipline, and appointing sub-leaders may be called: a. team functions. b. work functions. c. individual functions. d. task functions. 14 The Hall and flitch model of the kinked demand curve is based on an empirical survey of a sample of 38 well managed arms in England. a) True (b) False 15 The model uses the analytical tools of reaction func tions of the duopolists derived on the basis of is not profit curves. (a) True (b) False 16 The important models of non-collusive oligopoly are: (a) Cournot model, (b) Kinked Oligopoly demand curve models. (a) True (b) False 17 Which of the following is not an operations strategy? a. response b. low-cost leadership c. differentiation d. technology 18 Which of the following is not one of the leadership styles identified in House’s pathgoal theory? a. Participative. b. Employee-centered. c. Directive. d. Achievement-oriented. 9 The petroleum industry is an example of a. monopolistic competition. b. pure oligopoly. c. duopoly. d. differentiated oligopoly. 20 The kinked demand curve model assumes that a. firms match price increases, but not price cuts. b. demand is more elastic for price cuts than for price increases. c. changes in marginal cost can never lead to changes in market price. d. None of the above is correct. Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1 (c) 2 (a) 3 (d) 6 (b ) 7 (a) 8 (b) 11(b) 12(c) 13(a) 16(a) 17(d) 18(b) 4 (a) 9 (b) 14(a) 19(b) 5 (d) 10 (a) 15(b) 20(d) Chapter-14 PROFIT ANALYSIS 1.A variable cost is a cost that a. varies per unit at every level of activity b. occurs at various times during the year c. varies in total in proportion to changes in the level of activity d. may not be incurred, depending on management's discretion 2. A cost which remains constant per unit at various levels of activity is a a. variable cost b. fixed cost c. mixed cost d. manufacturing cost 3. A fixed cost is a cost which a. varies in total with changes in the level of activity b. remains constant per unit with changes in the level of activity c. varies inversely in total with changes in the level of activity d. emains constant in total with changes in the level of activity 4. Cost behavior analysis is a study of how a firm's costs a. relate to competitors' costs b. relate to general price level changes c. respond to changes in activity levels within the co mpany d. respond to changes in the gross national product 5. Cost behavior analysis applies to a. retailers b. wholesalers c. manufacturers d. all entities 6. The relevant range of activity refers to the a. geographical areas where the company plans to operate b. activity level where all costs are curvilinear c. levels of activity over which the company expects to operate d. evel of activity where all costs are constant 7. Which of the following is not a plausible explanation of why variable costs often behave in a curvilinear fashion? a. Labor specialization b. Overtime wages c. Total variable costs are constant within the relevant range d. Availability of quantity discounts 8. Firms operating constantly at 100% capacity a. are common b. are the exception rather than the rule c. have no fixed costs d. have no variable costs 9. Which one of the following is a name for the range over which a company expects to operate? a. Mixed range b. Fixed range c. Variable range d.Relevant range 10 The graph of variable costs that behave in a curvilinear fashion will a. approximate a straight line within the relevant range b. be sharply kinked on both sides of the relevant range c. be downward sloping d. be a stair-step pattern 11. A mixed cost contains a. a variable cost element and a fixed cost element b. both selling and administrative costs c. both retailing and manufacturing costs d. both operating and non-operating costs 12. The variable costing method is also known as the direct costing method indirect costing approach absorption costing method period costing approach 13.The costing approach that charges all manufacturing costs to the product is referred to as a. variable costing b. contribution margin costing c. direct costing d. absorption costing 14. Variable costing is acceptable for a. financial statement purposes b. profit tax purposes c. internal use by management only d. profit tax purposes and for internal use by management 15. CVP analysis does not consider a. level of activity b. fixed cost per unit c. variable cost per unit d. sales mix 16. Which of the following is not an underlying assumption of CVP analysis? a. Changes in activity are the only factors that affect costs b.Cost classifications are reasonably accurate c. Beginning inventory is larger than ending inventory d. Sales mix is constant 17. Which of the following would not be an acceptable way to express contribution margin? a. Sales minus variable costs b. Sales minus unit costs a. b. c. d. c. d. Unit selling price minus unit variable costs Contribution margin per unit divided by unit selling price a. b. c. d. 18. The level of activity at which total revenues equal total costs is the variable point fixed point semi-variable point break-even point 19. The break-even point is where a. otal sales equals total variable costs b. contribution margin equals total fixed costs c. total variable costs equal total fixed costs d. total sales equals total fixed costs 20. Gross profit also includes rent that arises from the entrepreneur’s own land used in his production of output. a. True b. False Answers for Self Assessment Questions 1. (c) 2. (a) 3. (d) 4. (c) 7. (c) 8. (b) 9. (d) 10. (a) 11. (a) 14. (c) 15. (b) 16. (b) 17. (b) 18. (d) 5. (d) 12. (a) 19. (b) 6. (c) 13. (d) 20. (a) Chapter-15 1. There are †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. methods which can be used to appraise any investment project: (a) 1 (b) 2 (c) 3 (d) 4 2.National income is the total of the value of the goods and the services which are produced in an economy. (a) True (b) False 3. Which two of the following are likely to raise the equilibrium value of National Income? (a) Rise in savings. (b) Rise in imports. (c) Rise in government spending. (d) Rise in exports. 4. Which two of the following are excluded when measuring National Income? (a) Value added in the output method. (b) Value of intermediate inputs in the output method. (c) Consumer spending in the expenditure method. (d) Transfer payments in the income method. 5.The return on an investment comes in the form of a stream of earnings in the future. (a) True (b) False 6. Cost-benefit analysis is a process for evaluating the merits of a particular project or course of action in a systematic and rigorous way. (a) True ` (b) False 7. ‘Real’ investment is not (a) the amount that shareholders are willing to provide for shares in a company (b) the cost of development of a new product (c) expenditure on public relations, staff training or research and development (d) expenditure on non-current assets such as plant, machinery, land and buildings 8.Which of the following statements about IRR and NPV is not correct? (a) NPV always gives the correct investment decision. (b) IRR gives an unreliable answer with non-conventional projects. (c) IRR can accommodate changes in the cost of capital. (d) IRR is a useful relative measure if comparing projects of differing sizes. 9. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total market value of all final goods and services currently produced within the domestic territory of a country in a year. (a) True (b) False 10. Which of the following will not be a relevant factor when using the payback method of capital investment appraisal? a) The timing of the first cash inflow (b) The total cash flows generated by the asset (c) The cash flows generated by the asset up to the payback period (d) The cost of the asset 11. Why the payback method is often considered inferior to discounted cash flow in capital investment appraisal? (a) I is more difficult to calculate (b) It does not calculate how long it will take to recoup the money invested (c) It does not take account of the time value of money (d) It only takes into account the future income of a project 12.Gross National Product is the total market value of all final goods and services produced in a year. (a) True (b) False 13. In 2005†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. was the least significant liability of U. S. nonfinancial businesses i n terms of total value. (a) bonds and mortgages (b) bank loans (c) inventories (d) trade debt 14. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. are examples of financial intermediaries. (a) Commercial banks (b) Insurance companies (c) Investment companies (d) All of the above 15. Financial assets †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. a) directly contribute to the country's productive capacity (b) indirectly contribute to the country's productive capacity (c) contribute to the country's productive capacity both directly and indirectly (d) do not contribute to the country's productive capacity either directly or indirectly 16. The means by which individuals hold their claims on real assets in a welldevelopedeconomy are (a) investment assets. (b) depository assets. (c) derivative assets (d) financial assets 17. Capital budgeting is the process of evaluating and selecting long-term investments that are consistent with the goal of the firm. a) True (b) False 18. Although derivatives can be used as speculative instru ments, businesses most often use them to (a) attract customers. (b) appease stockholders. (c) offset debt. (d) hedge 19. The investment in fixed assets increases the fixed cost of the firm which must be recovered from the benefit of the same project. (a)True (b) False 20. National Income is defined as the sum total of all the goods and services produced in a country, in a particular period of time. (a) True (b) False Answer 1. (c) 2. (a) 3. (c) 4. (b) 5. (a) 6. (a) 7. (a) 8. (c) 9. (a) 10. (b) 11. (c) 12. (a) 13. (b) 14. (d) 15. b) 16. (d) 17. (a) 18. (d) 19. (a) 20. (a) Chapter-16 1. In period of inflation, phantom or paper profits may be reports as a result of using the: (a) FIFO costing assumption (b) Perpetual inventory method (c) LIDO costing assumption (d) Periodic inventory method 2. Inflation is: (a) an increase in the overall price level. (b) an increase in the overall level of economic activity. (c) a decrease in the overall level of economic activity. (d) a decrease in th e overall price level. 3. Aggregate supply is the total amount: (a) produced by the government. (b) of goods and services produced in an economy. c) of labour supplied by all households. (d) of products produced by a given industry. 4. The value of a dollar does not stay constant when there is inflation. (a) True (b) False 5. The inflation rate in India was recorded at 7. 23% in†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ (a) April of 2009 (b) April of 2010 (c) April of 2011 (d) April of 2012 6. The function of money that helps assess the opportunity cost of an activity is money's use as a (a) medium of exchange. (b) store of value. (c) unit of account. (d) store of debt. 7. An official measure of money in the United States is M1, which consists of the sum of (a) currency plus traveler's checks. b) currency plus checkable deposits. (c) currency plus traveler's checks plus checkable deposits. (d) currency plus traveler's checks plus time deposits. 8. Implies no trade-off between unempl oyment and inflation. (a) GDP deflator (b) Shoe leather’ costs (c) Long-run Phillips curve (d) ‘Menu’ costs 9. The inflation rate is used to calculate the real interest rate, as well as real increases in wages. (a) True (b) False 10†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ the quantity of money in the United States. (a) The State Department controls (b) The Department of Treasury controls (c) The Federal Reserve System controls (d) Commercial banks control 11.There are broadly †¦.. ways of controlling inflation in an economy. (a) 2 (b) 3 (c) 4 (d) 5 12. The balance of payments of a country is said to be in equilibrium when the demand for foreign exchange in exactly equivalent to the supply of it. (a) True (b) False 13. A general decline in prices is often caused by a reduction in the supply of†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. (a) money or debit (b) money or credit (c) money (d) None of these 14. The opportunity cost of holding money is the (a) inflation rate minus th e nominal interest rate. (b) nominal interest rate. (c) real interest rate. (d) unemployment rate. 15.If the Fed is worried about inflation and wants to raise the interest rate, it (a) increases the demand for money. (b) increases the supply of money. (c) decreases the demand for money. (d) decreases the supply of money. 16. The circular flow of goods and incomes shows the relationship between: (a) income and money. (b) goods and services. (c) firms and households. (d) wages and salaries. 17. Fiscal measures to control inflation include taxation, government expenditure and public borrowings. (a) True (b) False 18. Hyperinflation (a) occurs in the United States during each business cycle. b) occurs only in theory, never in reality. (c) has never occurred in the United States. (d) happens in all countries at some time during their business cycle. 19. Hyperinflation refers to a situation where the prices rise at an alarming high rate. (a) True (b) False 20. The inflation rate is used t o calculate the real interest rate, as well as real increases in wages. (a)True (b) False Answer 1. (b) 2. (a) 3. (b) 4. (a) 11. (a) 12. (a) 13. (b) 14. (c) 5. (d) 6. (c) 15. (d) 16. (c) 7. (c) 8. (c) 17. (a) 18. (c) 9. (a) 10. (c) 19. (a) 20. (a)