Sunday, June 21, 2020

Essay Topics About Moby Dick

Essay Topics About Moby DickIf you're looking for essays about life-altering situations, then one of the best choices for essay topics could be: Moby Dick! This book, written by Herman Melville in 1851, is often described as being the great work of American literature.Like most things in life, it's impossible to have a complete understanding of Moby Dick unless you've read it first hand. But you can still gain some knowledge of it through a little research, and by learning about the themes that are prominent throughout it. So if you're interested in writing a Moby Dick essay topic, you might want to study the various themes to see what types of ideas will help make the thesis statement and essay. Here are some of the most common Moby Dick essay topics:Writing the Profane - The subject of profanity in Moby Dick will get your students thinking about it. While most of the book is considered to be very light and less profane than say, Shakespeare's plays, there is also one instance where the author of the Moby Dick works includes a brief instance of full blown foul language, where Captain Ahab screams 'scurvy, scurvy, scurvy.' That might not sound like much to start with, but it's actually quite accurate to what happens throughout the novel.In the opening chapter of the novel, Ahab says he wants to sink the ship, but he'll get his revenge on the 'sons of Sperm' who killed a 'cayman'. The movie version of the story changes this to 'sons of dogs' as it was originally written in Herman Melville's time. Though this change in usage makes sense today, the book's original message remains as the book is meant to set forth the fact that whaling is wrong, and whaling ships should be sunk.Writing the Sacred - If you write Moby Dick and your studentsdo not like it, consider including some scenes from Christian art. In the first chapter of the book, Ahab describes how he's considered the great white hunter and goes into some religious reasoning to justify his action. Aside from its theological foundation, Moby Dick can also be seen as a kind of theology, as it examines religion as an obsession with power and the act of killing whales.Writing the Religious - There are certain passages in the book that Christian students will appreciate, if they're willing to go through the necessary process of Biblical interpretation. In the end of the story, after Ahab kills Moby Dick, he's said to be 'conquering the seas', or using his hunting skills to conquer 'the world'. This is a reference to his Christianity and to the idea that in the future, people will flock to Christian beliefs, making 'conquering the seas' a Biblical metaphor.Writing the Political - There are plenty of political topics in Moby Dick that can be used as subjects in your essay. Ahab is concerned with the status of whales in general, a subject that a lot of students enjoy because it involves the real world, rather than a fantasy tale. There's also the fact that the entire saga of Moby Dick is about the debate of whether whales should be protected or hunted, a topic that comes up in modern day debates.Whatever your opinion on the subject matter of the Moby Dick story is, if you choose to use essay topics of this nature, remember that you can do so without offending anyone. It's possible to incorporate some aspects of it into the course material, as long as you're careful to do so without an overabundance of profanity. And remember that students in all subjects love stories about men who decide to take control and walk away with what they want, so giving them something to talk about can be a real bonus.

Friday, June 12, 2020

Comprehensive Annual Financial Report - Free Essay Example

Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Tyies Wells ACC/548 June 27, 2010 William J. Carter III, MSA Comprehensive Annual Financial Report The Office of Financial Management provides vital information, fiscal services and policy support that the Governor, Legislature and state agencies need to serve the people of Washington State (Investopedia, 2010). Included in this briefing, a comparison of the governmental and for-profit financial accounting will be discussed, an understanding of the government reporting and reporting entity, and an overview of the Management Discussion Analysis report for the state of Washington. The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) requires statistical evaluation, whereas for-profit accounting does not. A government budget document is a blueprint for a specific grouping of government agencies spending over the course of an annual financial period. The major differences between governments and for-profit financial accounting are they have different purposes, processes of generating revenues, stakeholders, budgetary obligations, and propensity for longevity. These differences require separate accounting and financial reporting standards in order to provide information to meet the needs of stakeholders to assess government accountability and to make political, social, and economic decisions (FASB, 2010). A reporting entity is any unit or activity that uses resources to provide goods or services. A reporting entity is an organization that is obliged to prepare general purpose financial reports (PSAB, 2010). The government uses the CAFR along with a budget document to compare the total financial standing to the general purpose annual budget with every thing else. The CAFR shows the total of all financial accounting the basic general purpose budget reports do not and should not be confused with any rainy day funds that are but one of many investment accounts included in government budgetary reports and process. In November 2 007, Washington State voters ratified Engrossed Substitute Senate Joint Resolution 8206, amending the state’s Constitution and establishing the Budget Stabilization Account (BSA). On July 1, 2008, the balance in the Emergency Reserve Fund of $303 million was transferred to the newly created BSA. An additional $115 million was transferred from the General Fund to the BSA in Fiscal Year 2009 in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. The Constitution details a limited number of circumstances under which funds can be appropriated from the BSA, one of which is a favorable vote of at least three-fifths of the members of each house of the Legislature (State of Washington, CAFR, 2009). The Management Discussion and Analysis section of the CAFR provides an overview of the previous year of operations and how the company fared in that time period. Management will usually also touch on the upcoming year, outlining future goals and approaches to new projects (Investoped ia, 2010). The state of Washington’s MDA offers a narrative overview and analysis of the financial activities for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2009. The information is presented in conjunction with the information include in the letter of transmittal and with the state’s financial statements. The three components discussed in the MDA includes: 1: government-wide financial statements, 2) fund financial statements, and 3) notes to the financial statements. The government-wide financial statements are designed to provide readers with a broad overview of the state of Washington’s finances. The concept of government wide reporting is the most dramatic change in the new approach. This is a significant move because, until now, government followed only the modified-accrual basis of accounting. The change is important to potential lenders and taxpayers because of the need to capitalize and depreciate general capital assets or infrastructure. Information concerning i nfrastructure will include the cost and anticipated life of roads, bridges, sewer and water systems and other capital assets. Since state and local governments invest $1 out of every $10 dollars ($140 billion to $150 billion annually) in the construction, improvement, and rehabilitation of capital assets, that information should be very interesting to local taxpayers (Business Encyclopedia, 2010). The government-wide financial statement includes: †¢ Statement of Net Assets – Information on all of the state of Washington’s assets and liabilities, with the differences between the two reported as net assets. Statement of Activities – Information showing how the state’s net assets changed during the most recent fiscal year. The fund financial statement is a group of accounts used to maintain control over resources that are segregated for specific activities or objectives. The state of Washington uses fund accounting to ensure and demonstrate complianc e with finance-related legal requirements. The state uses 649 accounts that are combined into 54 rollup funds. The state presents separate financial statements for governmental funds, proprietary funds, and fiduciary funds. Major individual governmental funds and major individual proprietary funds are reported in separate columns in the fund financial statements, with nonmajor funds being combined into a single column regardless of fund type. Internal service and fiduciary funds are reported by fund type (State of Washington, CAFR, 2010). Some of the major funds that are supported by the state of Washington are: †¢ General Fund †¢ Higher Education Special Revenue Fund †¢ Higher Education Endowment Permanent Fund †¢ Workers’ Compensation Fund †¢ Unemployment Compensation Fund †¢ Higher Education Student Services Fund The notes to the financial statements provide additional that is essential to a full understanding of the data provided in the government-wide and fund financial statements. The Constitution details a limited number of circumstances under which funds can be appropriated from the BSA, one of which is a favorable vote of at least three-fifths of the members of each house of the Legislature (State of Washington, CAFR, 2010). In the government-wide and proprietary fund financial statements, long-term obligations of the state are reported as liabilities on the Statement of Net Assets. Bonds payable are reported net of applicable original issuance premium or discount. When material, bond premiums, discounts, and issue costs are deferred and amortized over the life of the bonds. Conclusion While a budget might indicate that a specific government or agency has financial trouble and debt because of excess spending or mismanagement within the select grouping of general fund accounts presented, the CAFR may indicate, in whole, the same government entity, has many facets possessing large holdings considerably over what is shown in a budget report. References Business Encyclopedia. (2010). Government Financial Reporting. Retrieved from https://www. answers. com/topic/government-financial-reporting Financial Accounting Standards Board. (2010). Why Governmental Accounting and Financial Reporting is-and should be-Different. Retrieved from https://www. gasb. org/white_paper_full. pdf Investopedia. (2010). Management Discussion and Analysis – MDA. Retrieved from https://www. investopedia. com/terms/m/mdanalysis. asp Public Sector Accounting Board. (2010). About the Government Reporting Entity. Retrieved from https://www. psab-ccsp. ca/item14956. pdf Washington State Office of Financial Management. (2010). Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Retrieved from https://www. ofm. wa. gov/cafr/2009/CAFR09. pdf Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Briefing |Content |Points Available |Points Earned | |60% |4. 8 |3. | |Overview clearly and effectively demonstrates the following: |   | | |â € ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Differences in governmental accounting and for-profit | | | |financial accounting | | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   An understanding of the government reporting and reporting | | | |entity | | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   An assessment of the Management Discussion Analysis | | | |reporting unit (MDA). | | |Organization/Development |Points Available |Points Earned | |20% |1. 6 |1. 4 | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overview is at least 1,050 and no more than 1,400 words in |   |   | |length. | | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overview contains sufficient background on the selected | | | |organization and previews major points. | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overview is logical, flows, and reviews the major points, for | | | |example | | | | | | | |  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Major Revenues | | | |- Major Debts | | | |- Risk Management | | | |Mechanics |Points Available | Points Earned | |20% |1. 6 |1. 6 | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Formatting or layout and graphics are pleasing to the eye (font,|   |   | |colors, and spacing). | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rules of grammar, usage, and punctuation are followed, and | | | |spelling is correct. | | | |†¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   APA guidelines are followed. | | | |   |Total Available |Total Earned | |   |8 |  6. 8 | Instructor Comments Content – One of the requirements for content was comparing and contrasting government entities, not for profits, and businesses. I would have liked to see more details in this regard. There was a limited amount of information detailing the differences. I would have like to see the board members referenced so we know who the audience is. You did a good job assessing the MDA of Washington State. Organization/Development – Organization and development was good. I would have like to have seen more specifics in terms of revenue, expenditures and any major issues for the state of Washington. There were no detailed numbers to give an understanding of the financial health of the state. Mechanics – Your mechanics were great, no problems here.

Thursday, June 11, 2020

Essay Tips For College Scholarships

Essay Tips For College ScholarshipsOne of the requirements to apply for a Wyzant College Scholarship is to write an essay on the theme of yourself. If you are looking for a scholarship, a great way to start to have your essay written is to look for a common theme that you might be able to address when writing your essay.The themes for college scholarships can be extremely varied and can go into incredible detail. However, one of the common themes for college scholarships is 'You'. It can be a good starting point to talk about why you want to attend Wyzant College and how you intend to go about that.Your essay will usually ask you to answer some questions. You should include the following questions:I am going to be attending Wyzant College, where do I want to major? What kind of career do you want to pursue in college?Essay topics for college scholarships are often changed every year but one of the most common themes for college scholarships are those that tackle college admissions an d student life. Another common theme for college scholarships is that you can 'help make a difference' and this can be accomplished through volunteer work, student groups, non-profit organizations, and other activities that you wish to participate in. The essay also can include general themes such as career focus, financial goals, and personal career aspirations.While some people may feel that essays are boring and dull, this is really not the case. While they may take longer to write than short letters or essays, the main thing to remember is that a college scholarships essay can be more challenging and will require more research and writing skills than other types of written assignments. The reason is that the content for an essay is relatively long and it can be hard to cover each topic in a short amount of time. In order to write an essay you will need to know what the author of the essay wants to convey. This means that you will need to research the subject matter at hand and c reate a strong outline for your essay. Writing a well-written essay is not difficult but it does require work and time.Some scholarship and essay writing tips for college scholarships are to never be afraid to write about yourself. By writing about your passions and interests and providing context for your background, you will be able to provide a very good outline for your essay.