Lucky place free essay sample

It was February 8, 2013. I remember this day because there was a blizzard. It was cold and foggy. Despite this, I decided to visit my hometown, Ridgewood. The streets were empty, gray concrete and it was about 4pm. It had not yet began to snow , but the roads were oddly empty and I was the only one walking to the train station. Then I was the only one waiting for the train. The train took about 15 minutes to arrive and I was losing patience, but it got here. The MTA is always messing up everyones schedule.I wasnt the only one on the train. To my left, there was a homeless guy with his trash, trying to stay warm with the comfort of the train. To my right, there was a couple who wouldnt stop making out. There were two other people, but I didnt pay much attention to them. We will write a custom essay sample on Lucky place or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I paid more attention to the homeless guy and the couple. The homeless guy made me sad, knowing that he probably didnt have anyone. The couple made me think what would happen if they broke up? Who would take it harder? The guy or the girl?And to be honest, I didnt want to think about it. The train crossed the Manhattan Bridge as it always does. Its the kind of bridge where the sun is shining directly at it and on the window of train you can see the dust floating around in the air. But this time, it was different and it was snowing. I couldnt see the city, all I saw were the snowflakes hitting the window and their speed. 11 more stops to go. They went by quickly and I was there in less than 20 minutes. I got out the station and everything was the same as I remembered. This sameness made me feel the warmth I feel once I step into my grandmothers house, or that of any elderly person. The kind where it is freezing outside and I decide to go to my grandmothers and she always has the hot chocolate ready.The places that I would always go were still there. The same Duane Reade with the McDonalds across from it. The decorations attached from the light post on one side of the sidewalk to the one across from it. It read Merry Christmas like every other year and it would light up the avenue with joy. At least it did to me. The snow had just started to pile up, so I walked to the nearest coffee shop to grab a hot chocolate, like grandma would always have. I sat there for one and a half hours, looking at the blizzard pass by and finishing up the chapters on one of my favorite books, The Catcher in the Rye.The feeling of relief, from being able to go somewhere by myself in a night like this, made me think of a time back here in Ridgewood. It was snowing, much like this day and the whole family was outside trying to build a snowman. We didnt have enough gloves, so some of us, including me, wore socks on our hands instead. The whole family was outside and everyone was happy, throwing snowballs at each other. The hardworking people building the snowman would get mad if we ruined it even one bit. Even so we knocked out a piece of snow from its body and head, but they still were having fun when they had to rebuild it. On that day, a snowman was built and everyone gathered around it to take a picture with it.Just when I was about to leave the coffee shop, I took a quick glimpse at the streets covered in a white sheet of snow. No one was outside, no people, cars, just me. I took a picture of it with a film camera I had bought before hand. The last shot on it. But the picture is long gone now. At the time, I thought it would make a nice picture. But now I realize that its worth something more to me. For once, I took a risk of going out independently. Of course, I go out by myself, but never like this. Never to just sit down and read in my hometown. Its a nice feeling and Id like to do this again. Its so strange how after a long period of time, the only thing that changes is the person in you, but your favorite thing always remains the same.

Sample Essay About Elementary School

Sample Essay About Elementary SchoolWriting a sample essay about elementary school can be one of the hardest assignments at school. The average student is not very prepared to write a proper essay about their coursework. The average student will expect his or her teacher to find the answers and instruct them on the proper way to do things. For the average student this does not happen.The average student does not want to be told how to do things. In fact the average student is not interested in figuring out how to do things. They are interested in finishing their work. There is a place in the classroom for the average student. It is not in writing a good essay about elementary school.Teachers want to know how the average student learned. This will help the teacher to figure out what lessons the average student should be taught. The average student is not going to tell you that he was taught 'I want you to be Mr. S Epistleman or Mrs. S A here.'Teaching will become a more enjoyable expe rience for the student if the teacher can recognize that lesson the student needs help with. The average student is not a reflection of the teacher's ability. If the average student does not excel in his or her class, then it does not mean that the teacher is the wrong person for the job.College students often begin their education by reading an average composition texts, then a little further they start to read letters and essays. College students usually have a lot of time to read and complete a lot of work. It is a different scenario for the average student.One major problem is that most students are not assigned to write papers until they are about two years of age. By that time most students have already begun to read in their own time. The average student learns to read at such a young age that a written essay seems pointless to him or her.Writing a perfect essay about elementary school will take some effort on the part of the student. For the average student it takes much les s effort. For the average student the assignment can be more of a chance to write something than an assignment to read and complete. The average student is always eager to please the teacher and it is not unusual for the average student to help the teacher to finish a project.

Accounting Research Paper Ultimate Writing Guide

Accounting Research Paper Ultimate Writing Guide In contemporary highly technical and complex business environment, today’s and tomorrow’s accountants and accounting leaders have to be proficient in all communication skills. That’s why teaching the writing skills is integrated into accounting curriculum. Students are assigned to write different formal essays, term papers, research papers, reports. In this way, they learn to analyze and synthesize while thinking about accounting topics in the process of organizing and structuring their thoughts to produce a logical and sequential flow of ideas. Students who take senior-level accounting courses usually have to write complex research papers in some areas of accounting theory. When writing traditional research papers in accounting, students have to prepare a well-documented manuscript on a specific topic or thesis. These assignments are rather challenging and require doing an independent research that includes a lot of stages such as identifying a problem, gathering data, reflection, implementing changes, monitoring, etc. Such assignments can also include applying the theories to some real-world situations. In this article, you will find a complete accounting research paper writing guide that will help you to cope with any difficulties that you may encounter at every stage of the writing process. What Is an Accounting Research Paper? An accounting research paper is a complicated assignment that cannot be treated as just the sum of your sources or a review of the existing literature on your topic. In your research paper, you have to analyze the perspective or argue your point. No matter what type of research paper you have to write, you need to present your own thinking that should be backed by other’s ideas and relevant information from credible sources. There are two types of research papers: analytical and argumentative. In an analytical research paper, you have to inform your readers about different opinions on your topic. In an argumentative research paper, you should take your side on an issue and persuade your readers to support your position. Research papers are very formal in style and require that you should take a more scientific approach to the material. They commonly suggest having a hypothesis on a certain topic and your task is to prove or reject this hypothesis with the help of outside sources. All research papers have to achieve specific goals: They must meet the needs of the assignment. When working on your research paper, you should strictly follow specific requirements provided by your instructor that detail topics, documentation methods, and use of sources. Research papers must have a clear focus. For that matter, you should narrow your topic to stay on the track. Research papers have a clear thesis statement or statement of purpose. You should focus on your own opinions and interpretations and not on the views of the others. Research papers give comments on the quality and quantity of sources. You should distinguish between reliable and biased sources, facts and opinions, authoritative and questionable statistics. Steps in the Writing Process There is not a single template for writing a research paper so the process is determined by practice, organization, and experience and begins with your properly understanding your assignment or identifying an interesting topic. Accounting research papers may vary in page lengths and guidelines. To become an experienced writer and researcher, you should pay attention to the genre of your research paper, topic, and audience. Besides, you should work on improving your research skills, and become experienced in outlining, drafting, and revising. The most common stages of writing a research paper in accounting are: choosing and narrowing a researchable topic; reading sources and documenting information; writing an outline; writing the first draft; revising and editing; proofreading the final draft. Choosing a Topic Commonly, the instructor provides a list of research paper topics from which you may choose so there is no stress of having to decide upon a topic of your own. But very often, your instructor may simply hand out an assignment sheet that covers general requirements for the research paper, leaving the choice of topics to the students. Of course, research paper topics should be relevant to some aspect of the course so making the right choice can be rather challenging for inexperienced researchers. That’s why you should start thinking about the topic for your accounting research paper early and plan your work beforehand. One of the most successful techniques is brainstorming – you should write down all the ideas that might have come to your mind during the day. This technique is especially helpful when you have some ideas but need to narrow your topic. But you should keep in mind that the initial topic that you come up with may be changed in the process of doing the research. Have a look at some accounting research topics ideas that may be useful for first-time researchers. Accounting Research Paper Topics Accounting Cycle Process of a Certain Company Accounting for Stock Options Accounting for Income Taxes Accounting Regulation in the USA Current and Non-current Assets Management Accounting Techniques Financial Statement Analysis Techniques Tax Formula and Its Components Tax System in the USA Accounting for the Environment Strategies for Conducting Research Every research paper poses unique challenges. Some research papers may require extensive library research, while other papers can be based on surveys, field research, original experiments, and interviews. Although different topics may require different approaches, there are several general strategies that you can use to work more productively. Review the assignment and make sure you fully understand what you are required to do; Conduct a preliminary research on your topic to learn basic terms and details and develop an overview of the existing research; Narrow your topic and find out what range of evidence is available; Create questions to choose sources and develop a working thesis statement; Make a timeline that allows to finish your research on a fixed date; Record the information that you need to cite sources; Sketch an outline as you collect sources to understand where they might appear in your research paper; Prioritize your sources and choose the most valuable; Refine and revise your thesis statement or research question if needed. Organizing a Research Paper on Accounting The purpose of organizing a research paper is to give your readers an opportunity to read your paper selectively, depending on what type of information they are looking for. Your paper should have a clear structure and include several parts with headings and subheadings. Before you start writing the paper parts, you should make your thesis statement or statement of purpose (or write your hypothesis) that will help you stay focused and organize your material in a logical manner. You should plan your writing and make an outline that will help you organize information and ensure that the structure of your paper is complete and logical. Structure of an Accounting Research Paper While research papers in different academic disciplines may vary in style and format, most research papers have a similar structure and are usually divided into parts that follow the same logical flow. Your accounting research paper should include the following parts. The title should be concise and specific and it should show what problem is discussed in a paper, using specific keywords. The abstract helps readers to quickly get an idea about the content of a research paper. It should be very brief – about 200 words and it might be rather challenging to write. You’d better write the abstract after you have finished your research paper because it is actually a summary of the entire research paper. Your abstract should provide a quick synopsis of the content and introduce the problem to be investigated, objectives of the study, methods of research, and statements about the results and findings. The introduction should introduce the broad overall topic and give basic background information. Then, you should narrow down to the specific research question, explain the key terms and outline what your research paper will cover. The introduction provides the focus and the purpose for the rest of the paper. The literature review describes existing important research on the topic and relates it specifically to the research problem that is addressed in the paper. In this part of the research paper, you should examine the major accounting theories related to your topic. You should review all relevant findings from credible sources, for example, journal articles and academic books. In the methods section, you should describe the context of the study, provide specific details about the study design, and outline methodology that you used to complete the study, including analysis methods. In the results/findings section, you should present the results of the analysis in a clear and logical sequence. You should report the key findings related to the research question and provide enough details so that your readers would be able to replicate your study. You can include charts, table, graphs, and pictures. If you have a lot of information that supports your analysis but which is not essential for the explanation of your findings, you should place it in the appendix. The discussion/analysis section should present interpretation of the main findings of the study and the implications of the results. You should also mention the limitations of your study. In this section, you can discuss how your findings relate to the previous research that you have mentioned in the literature review. In the conclusion, you have to sum up your findings and offer perspectives for future research. The references/bibliography section should present an alphabetical list of all sources that you have used for obtaining information. All your sources should be cited according to the requirements of the citation style specified by your instructor. The format of the references is the same as the format and style that you use in your research paper. The format of an accounting research paper outlined above is standard but it is always better to ask your instructor about his/her expectations. Writing a Draft When writing your first draft, you shouldn’t be too much concerned about the formal issues. There is no need to worry about your grammar or spelling because this draft will be revised later. You should focus on the content and write all your ideas, following your outline. Besides, you have to expand your ideas with the data from your notes. You should write with a purpose and consider your thesis statement or research question to be a compass that helps you stay on the track and follow the direction. Revising, Editing, and Proofreading When you have completed drafting your accounting research paper, you should read it and revise it. You’d better take a break for a couple of days. It will give you enough time to think about the topic of your research and you will reread your piece of writing with fresh eyes. You need to pay particular attention to the general organization of your paper and the content and you are sure to find lots of different ways how to improve your work. Revising and editing your accounting research paper may require a lot of readings and each of them can have its own specific goal. You can also ask someone else, for example, your family member, a friend or a classmate to look through your accounting research paper and help you find any mistakes. You can also hire a copy editor to read your paper. The final stage of the accounting research paper writing process is proofreading your final draft for technical errors. You should reread your final draft carefully in order to find and fix any spelling, punctuation or grammar mistakes or typos that you might have overlooked in the previous revisions. Final Remark from Our Writing Experts: Revising and editing are different processes and require different approaches and actions. When revising, you can: make changes to the various drafts of your project evaluate your word choice and improve it remove paragraphs or even pages of your text think again about your project and rewrite it completely When editing, you should take care of the general appearance of your text. You should: evaluate the logical flow between major ideas and paragraphs analyze the consistency of tone and voice throughout your research paper correct minor error in typography and mechanics. Make sure you don’t mix the notions and do editing, then revising.

Plural French Subject Pronouns Nous Vous Ils and Elles

Plural French Subject Pronouns Nous Vous Ils and Elles Before you start this lesson, I encourage you to read my Singular French Subject Pronouns lesson, or even start with introduction to French subject pronouns if you have not read it yet. Now, lets take a closer look to the plural French subject pronouns. The French Subject Pronoun for We Nous   Nous is the pronoun to use when you are talking about a group of people that includes yourself.Ex : nous regardons la teÃŒ leÃŒ  : we are watching TV. Nous is also referred to as the first person plural (premieÌ€re personne du pluriel). Pronunciation: the s of the nous is silent when followed by a consonant.Ex : Nous regardons, nous faisons, nous sommes.Nous makes a strong liaison in Z when followed by a vowel or an h ; nous ‘Z’eÃŒ tudions, nous ‘Z’habitons, nous ‘Z’utilisons. Important: in colloquial French,  « On  » is used instead of nous. The verb will agree with  « On  » (3rd person singular), but the adjectives will agree with the meaning, therefore being plural when on means we. Here is my lesson about the obscure French subject pronoun on.Ex : Anne et moi, on est brunes : Ann and I, we are brunettes. Note: other words related to nous are: notre, nos, le noÌ‚tre, la noÌ‚tre, les noÌ‚tres. The French Subject Pronoun for You Vous   Vous is the pronoun to use when you are talking to a group of people.Ex : vous regardez la teÃŒ leÃŒ  : you are watching TV   Vous is also referred to as the second person plural (deuxieÌ€me personne du pluriel). Pronunciation: the s of the vous is silent when followed by a consonant.Ex : Vous regardez, vous faites, vous parlez.Vous makes a strong liaison in Z when followed by a vowel or an h ; vous ‘Z’eÃŒ tudiez, vous ‘Z’habitez, vous ‘Z’eÌ‚tes. Important: vous may also refer to one person that you are being formal to. Like an adult you don’t know, or a business partner, or someone that is older. The verb will agree with vous (2nd person plural), but the adjectives will agree with the meaning, therefore being feminine or masculine singular. To understand this notion, you need to read my article on tu versus vous. Ex : M. le PreÃŒ sident, vous eÌ‚tes grand : Mr President, you are tall.Ex : Mme la PreÃŒ sidente, vous eÌ‚tes grande : Mrs President, you are tall. Note: other words related to vous are : votre, vos, le voÌ‚tre, la voÌ‚tre, les voÌ‚tres. The French Subject Pronoun for They Ils   Ils is the pronoun to use when you are talking about a group of people.Ex : ils regardent la teÃŒ leÃŒ  : they are watching TV. Ils is also referred to as the third person plural, masculine (troisieÌ€me personne du pluriel, masculin). Pronunciation: the S of the Ils is silent when followed by a consonant. It’s pronounced exactly as the â€Å"il† singular.Ex : ils regardent, ils font, ils sont.For a regular ER verb starting with a consonant, you cannot hear the difference between Il singular and Ils plural : il regarde (singular), ils regardent (plural). Ils (plural) makes a strong liaison in Z when followed by a vowel or an H ; ils ‘Z’habitent, ils’Z’eÃŒ tudient, ils ‘Z’utilisent. Important: ils refers to a group of people or things either all masculine, or masculine and feminine. Note: other words related to ils are : se, les, leur, leurs, le leur, la leur, les leurs.   The French Subject Pronoun for They Elles   Elles is the pronoun to use when you are talking about a group of people that are women, or feminine things.Ex : Elles regardent la teÃŒ leÃŒ  : they are watching TV (they here are only women). Pronunciation: the S of the elles is silent when followed by a consonant.Ex : elles regardent, elles font, elles parlent.For a regular ER verb starting with a consonant, you cannot hear the difference between Elle singular and Elles plural : elle regarde, elles regardent. Elles makes a strong liaison when followed by a vowel or an H ; elles ‘Z’habitent, elles’Z’eÃŒ tudient, elles ‘Z’utilisent. Important: elles refers to a group of people or things only feminine. Note : other words related to elles are : se, les, leur, leurs, le leur, la leur, les leurs.   Voil, now that you know all about the French subject pronouns, you can go to the next step and study my French Verb Introduction lesson. If you are serious about learning French, I strongly suggest you find a good French learning audio method. Written French and spoken French are like two different languages, and you need audio - and someone who can not only list the grammar points but explain them well - to conquer French. I suggest you take a look at  my own French learning method  as well as my article on the  Best French tools for the self-learning student. I post exclusive mini lessons, tips, pictures and more daily on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest  pages - so join me there! https://www.facebook.com/frenchtoday https://twitter.com/frenchtoday https://www.pinterest.com/frenchtoday/

Diffie-Hellman key exchange protocol Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Diffie-Hellman key exchange protocol - Essay Example nowledge of each other to effectively establish a joint, shared secret key over an insecure public communication channel (Blake and Garefalakis, 2004, p.27). Although diffie-Hellman Key Exchange is a non-authenticated (anonymous) key agreement protocol, it provides a basis for a diverse variety of authenticated protocols and has widely been used to provide important forward secrecy particularly in transport layer security’s ephemeral. This paper critically reviews diffie-Hellman Key Exchange protocol with particular focus to some of the common attacks on the protocol, potential counter-measures to mitigate or address such attacks as well as a calculation of the value of the symmetric key as well as the value of R1 and R2 in the diffie-Hellman protocol for the given set of values. i. Denial of Service Attacks: These are the attacks against Diffie-Hellman Protocol whereby the attacker attempts to stop Alice and Bob from carrying out the protocol successfully. This can particularly be accomplished by attackers through a number of ways some of which include deleting the messages sent by Alice and Bob to each other or even by overwhelming the communicating parties with unnecessary communication or computation. ii. Outsider Attacks: Outsider attacks is a malicious attack in which the attackers may try disrupt the protocol by removing, adding or replaying the messages in order to retrieve some vital information that they may have otherwise not gotten just by looking at the public values. iii. Insider Attacks: This is where one of the participants in a Diffie-Hellman Protocol intentionally creates a breakable protocol in an attempt to gain knowledge of the secret key of his/her communication peer on the other side ( Kaufman, Perlman and Speciner, 2002, p.95). There are currently a number of countermeasures that can effectively be applied and implemented in order to mitigate, avoid or address the various common attacks on Diffie-Hellman Protocol. For example, to

Research Methods Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Research Methods - Assignment Example This paper is an evaluation of an article by Belon et al.,(2007) discussing research methodology and implications for research in homeopathy. Groundwater arsenic contamination poses a great risk to millions of people worldwide. Since supply of arsenic free water is inadequate, a pilot study was conducted to determine if homeopathic remedies Arsenicum Album 30 and Arsenicum Album 200 have beneficial effects on a random population of Ghetugachi and Dakshin Panchpota, which are arsenic contaminated villages (Khuda-Buksh et al.,2005). Improvement in their general health as well as blood toxicity levels was observed on administration of homeopathic therapies (Milazzo, et al., 2006). However, during the investigation, the volunteers were strictly advised to refrain from taking arsenic contaminated water. This created doubt as to whether the changes observed were due to the homeopathic remedies or intake of the arsenic free water (Moffett et al., 2006). Therefore the present study by Belon et al,.(2007), was organised in an arsenic-contaminated village where arsenic free drinking water was unavailable. The parameters used in the study are either directly or indirectly implicated to the development of hapato-toxicity, and are important toxicity biomarkers. A hepato-toxic change is a primary feature associated with chronic arsenic poisoning and can lead to modulation of lipid peroxidation (LPO), which is associated with tissue damage and necrosis. 39 subjects comprising of 20 males and 19 females, showing no initial signs or symptoms of arsenic poisoning from the village of Dasdiya which has been recently marked as an arsenic-contaminated village, in Haringhata block under Nadia District, West Bengal volunteered by signing a consent form. Nevertheless, initially some participants were initially reluctant. The volunteers represented a subset of the population making Belon’s procedure convenient. It may be costly for an entire population to participate in a

Differentiate Between Investment Speculation And Gambling Finance Essay

Differentiate Between Investment Speculation And Gambling Finance Essay Investment has different meanings in finance and economics. Finance investment is putting money into something with the expectation of gain, that upon thorough analysis, has a high degree of security for the principal amount, as well as security of return, within an expected period of time.[1] In contrast putting money into something with an expectation of gain without thorough analysis, without security of principal, and without security of return is gambling. Putting money into something with an expectation of gain with thorough analysis, without security of principal, and without security of return is speculation This is the ups and downs of the market. When the market experiences big swings up and down, especially down, this can make a lot of folks sick. The sicker it makes you feel the more you should look at your portfolio and adjust it so you can handle the wild swings of the market. This could mean that you invest a higher percentage of your portfolio in bonds, which are a less risky type of investment. Inflation Risk The cost of living goes up. If you invest in something that returns 2% and inflation goes up 4% then youve lost 2% of the value in your investment. My parents and parents-in-law thought they would be able to live their retirement years with $100,000.00. Back then, 1930s thru 1940s, $100,000.00 made people feel they were rich forever. Opportunity Risk Opportunity Risk is when you decide to invest in one type of investment, youre also deciding not to invest in others. So if you commit money to a certain investment and it goes down in value, youre stuck in that investment and are not able to participate in another investment that might be more attractive. This is especially apparent when you purchase your own bonds for instance. You could be stuck in a 10-year bond and you want to get out because of high interest rates. You would then be forced to sell for a loss. Its much better to invest in bond funds because the fund manager has the ability to invest in many different types of bonds. Reinvestment Risk Reinvestment Risk has to do with timed investments like CDs and bonds that you purchase yourself. A mutual fund manager has the ability to diversify a portfolio of these types of investments by selecting from a larger basket of different types of CDs and bonds to reduce the risk. Concentration Risk Diversification, Diversification, Diversification. Dont concentrate your investment dollars in one type of investment. Read my article here on Diversification. Interest Rate Risk When the Fed messes around with the interest rates moving them up and down, the markets react. The value of bonds go up when interest rates go down. The value of bonds go down when interest rates go up. Keeping a well diversified portfolio will reduce the affects the Feds have on your portfolio. Credit Risk The Credit Crunch is what weve been in lately. The financial sector has taken a hit. The financial sector includes lenders like Countrywide Bank. On another note, Im watching that sector with everyone else because it just might be getting ripe to pick. Since I write about options at this site thats how Id play it if something comes up that looks interesting. Marketability Risk Having the ability to sell you investment(s). This pertains to a low interest in stocks, bonds or CDs that you may personally own. By low interest I mean not enough buyers. This is reduced immensely if you invest in a mutual fund. Currency Translation Risk The value of the dollar goes up and down in the international market depending on what country. This is one reason why its good to just have 10% of your portfolio in the international market. Timing Risk The market goes down and you feel uncomfortable about it so you sell one of your investments that you shouldnt sell bad timing. Difference between Investment , Speculation : The main difference between speculating and investing is the amount of of risk undertaken in the trade. Typically, high-risk trades that are almost akin to gambling fall under the umbrella of speculation, whereas lower-risk investments based on fundamentals and analysis fall into the category of investing. Investors seek to generate a satisfactory return on their capital by taking on an average or below-average amount of risk. On the other hand, speculators are seeking to make abnormally high returns from bets that can go one way or the other. It should be noted that speculation is not exactly like gambling because speculators do try to make an educated decision on the direction of the trade, but the risk inherent in the trade tends to be significantly above average. The term investment is used to suggest a commitment that is relatively free from certain risk of loss.It is restricted to situations promising dependable income , relatively stable value, a modest rate of return and a relatively little chance for spectacular capital appreciation. People who seek high income yields or large capital gains are therefore said to forsake investment for speculation. Speculation differs from investment with respect to the limit of the investor i.e the period for which a person is investing and the risk-return characteristics of the investment.An investor is always interested in a good and consistent rate of return for a long period of time. However , a speculator is less interested in earning very large returns , higher than the normal rate of return , in a short time. The word speculate comes from the latin word, speculate meaning to see ahead . Speculation is a reasoned anticipation of future conditions. A speculator tries to perceive investment values ahead of the general public. It attempts to organize the relevant knowledge as a support for judgements. Infact , everything we do in this world is a speculation. One must have the courage to make decisions when the conditions are unfavorable such as panic , despair or optimism. Most successful speculators operate on a single principle of buying in underpriced markets and selling out in overpriced markets. Thus speculation is a deliberate assumption of risks in ventures , which offer the hope of commensurate gains. These expected gains might be much larger than an investment would offer.The speculation are more interested in price gains than in income. Difference between Investment and Gambling: According to most dictionaries , gambling is an art of risk taking without the knowledge of the exact nature of risk. Many people speculate heavily on the strength of tips or gossip and plunge into situation , which they do not understand. This is gambling even though the commitment is of reasonable speculative quantity. Gambling is based on tips , rumours and it is an unplanned and non-scientific act. A gambler risks more than he/she can afford. It is considered to involve the shortest time period and highest risk. Typical examples of gambling are betting on horse riding , game of cards , lottery etc.Holding shares for the duration of a stock exchange fortnightly account might be termed as speculation . but to bet on the course of the stock market over the same period with a book maker is considered to be a gambling. Difference between Gambling and Speculation Gambling and Speculation are popular among those who want to make easy money. One cannot deny that money has been ruling the world today. People always thrive to profit, and the easier it is to earn money, the better. With that mindset comes the popularity of gambling and speculation. But what might we overlook is the fact that even if these two seems to have the same goal, there is difference between gambling and speculation. Gambling If you want cash within a snap, maybe gambling can help you with that. When one say gambling, it would usually connote casinos, lotteries and slot machines. And every time you gamble, there are only two things you can expect, it is either you win, or you lose. This has been popular because you only have to spend a small amount of money for stakes that are very high. For example, in lottery, the jackpot would amount to millions of dollars, but you can bet for just a couple of bucks. Speculation If one wants to increase his chances to profit one might try to speculate. Speculation is just like investment, you initially put in a capital expecting a profit in return. This is also defined as the act of placing funds on a financial vehicle with the intention of getting satisfactory returns over an amount of time. The stock market is a widely known rendezvous for speculators. The main points of difference are as follows: Gambling and speculation are vehicles to profit easily. The probability to succeed in either gambling or speculation is undetermined. The success of a speculator would be because of his skills and knowledge while the success of a gambler would be due to his luck. Gambling can be done without thinking while speculation needs in depth study. 5. Speculation needs a lot more hard work compared to gambling Q2 : What are Financial Markets with examples? What is the difference between Money Market and Capital Market? Explain in detail one money market instrument and one capital market instrument. Ans :A financial market is a market in which people and entities can trade financial securities, commodities, and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that reflect supply and demand. Securities include stocks and bonds, and commodities include precious metals or agricultural goods. Structure of Financial Market FINANCIAL MARKET MONEY MARKET CAPITAL MARKET DERIVATIVES MARKET EQUITY MARKET LONG TERM DEBT MARKET FUTURES MARKET OPTIONS MARKET GOVT DEBT MARKET CORPORATE DEBT MARKET SECONDARY MARKET PRIMARY MARKET Types of financial markets: Within the financial sector, the term financial markets is often used to refer just to the markets that are used to raise finance: for long term finance, the Capital markets; for short term finance, the Money markets. Hence we can say that basically there are two types of markets: Capital Market Money Market Capital markets which consist of: Stock markets : which provide financing through the issuance of shares or common stock, and enable the subsequent trading thereof. Bond markets : which provide financing through the issuance of bonds, and enable the subsequent trading thereof. Commodity markets, which facilitate the trading of commodities. Capital markets are markets that trade equity (stocks) and debt (bonds) instruments having maturities more than a year. Due to their longer maturity , these instruments experience wider price fluctuations , higher credit and interest rate risks than the money market instruments. In contrast to money markets, capital markets are used for long term investments. They provide an alternative to investment in real assets such as real estate or gold. Money markets, which provide short term debt financing and investment. Money market consists of: Certificate of deposit Treasury Bills Commercial Papers etc The need for money market arises because of the immediate cash needs of individuals , corporation and govt do not necessarily coincide with their receipts of cash. The money market enables large sum of money to be transferred quickly and at a low cots from one economic unit ( business , govt , bank etc.) to another economic unit for relatively shorter period. Difference between Money Market and Capital Market: Money market is distinguished from capital market on the basis of the maturity period, credit instruments and the institutions: Maturity Period: The money market deals in the lending and borrowing of short-term finance (i.e., for one year or less), while the capital market deals in the lending and borrowing of long-term finance (i.e., for more than one year). Credit Instruments: The main credit instruments of the money market are call money, collateral loans, acceptances, bills of exchange. On the other hand, the main instruments used in the capital market are stocks, shares, debentures, bonds, securities of the government. Nature of Credit Instruments: The credit instruments dealt with in the capital market are more heterogeneous than those in money market. Some homogeneity of credit instruments is needed for the operation of financial markets. Too much diversity creates problems for the investors. Institutions: Important institutions operating in the money market are central banks, commercial banks, acceptance houses, nonbank financial institutions, bill brokers, etc. Important institutions of the capital market are stock exchanges, commercial banks and nonbank institutions, such as insurance companies, mortgage banks, building societies, etc. Purpose of Loan: The money market meets the short-term credit needs of business; it provides working capital to the industrialists. The capital market, on the other hand, caters the long-term credit needs of the industrialists and provides fixed capital to buy land, machinery, etc. Risk: The degree of risk is small in the money market. The risk is much greater in capital market. The maturity of one year or less gives little time for a default to occur, so the risk is minimised. Risk varies both in degree and nature throughout the capital market. Basic Role: The basic role of money market is that of liquidity adjustment. The basic role of capital market is that of putting capital to work, preferably to long-term, secure and productive employment. Relation with Central Bank: The money market is closely and directly linked with central bank of the country. The capital market feels central banks influence, but mainly indirectly and through the money market. Market Regulation: In the money market, commercial banks are closely regulated. In the capital market, the institutions are not much regulated. Explanation of Treasury Bills (Money market instrument): Treasury Bills (T-Bills): Treasury Bills, one of the safest money market instruments, are short term borrowing instruments of the Central Government of the Country issued through the Central Bank (RBI in India). They are zero risk instruments, and hence the returns are not so attractive. It is available both in primary market as well as secondary market. It is a promise to pay a said sum after a specified period. T-bills are short-term securities that mature in one year or less from their issue date. They are issued with three-month, six-month and one-year maturity periods. The Central Government issues T- Bills at a price less than their face value (par value). They are issued with a promise to pay full face value on maturity. So, when the T-Bills mature, the government pays the holder its face value. The difference between the purchase price and the maturity value is the interest income earned by the purchaser of the instrument. T-Bills are issued through a bidding process at auctions. The bid can be prepared either competitively or non-competitively. In the second type of bidding, return required is not specified and the one determined at the auction is received on maturity. Whereas, in case of competitive bidding, the return required on maturity is specified in the bid. In case the return specified is too high then the T-Bill might not be issued to the bidder. At present, the Government of India issues three types of treasury bills through auctions, namely, 91-day, 182-day and 364-day. There are no treasury bills issued by State Governments. Treasury bills are available for a minimum amount of Rs.25K and in its multiples. While 91-day T-bills are auctioned every week on Wednesdays, 182-day and 364- day T-bills are auctioned every alternate week on Wednesdays. The Reserve Bank of India issues a quarterly calendar of T-bill auctions which is available at the Banks website. It also announces the exact dates of auction, the amount to be auctioned and payment dates by issuing press releases prior to every auction. Payment by allottees at the auction is required to be made by debit to their/ custodians current account. T-bills auctions are held on the Negotiated Dealing System (NDS) and the members electronically submit their bids on the system. NDS is an electronic platform for facilitating dealing in Government Securities and Money Market Inst ruments. RBI issues these instruments to absorb liquidity from the market by contracting the money supply. In banking terms, this is called Reverse Repurchase (Reverse Repo). On the other hand, when RBI purchases back these instruments at a specified date mentioned at the time of transaction, liquidity is infused in the market. This is called Repo (Repurchase) transaction Debentures ( A Capital Market Instrument): A debenture is a document which either creates a debt or acknowledges it. Debenture issued by a company is in the form of a certificate acknowledging indebtedness. The debentures are issued under the Companys Common Seal. Debentures are one of a series issued to a number of lenders. The date of repayment is specified in the debentures. Debentures are issued against a charge on the assets of the Company. Debentures holders have no right to vote at the meetings of the companies. Kinds of Debentures: (a)Bearer Debentures: They are registered and are payable to the bearer. They are negotiable instruments and are transferable by delivery. (b) Registered Debentures: They are payable to the registered holder whose name appears both on the debentures and in the Register of Debenture Holders maintained by the company. Registered Debentures can be transferred but have to be registered again. Registered Debentures are not negotiable instruments. A registered debenture contains a commitment to pay the principal sum and interest. It also has a description of the charge and a statement that it is Issued subject to the conditions endorsed therein. (c) Secured Debentures: Debentures which create a change on the assets of the company which may be fixed or floating are known as secured Debentures. The term bonds and debentures(secured) are used interchangeably in common parlance. In USA, BOND is a long term contract which is secured, whereas a debentures is an unsecured one. (d) Unsecured or Naked Debentures: Debentures which are issued without any charge on assets are insecured or naked debentures. The holders are like unsecured creditors and may see the company for the recovery of debt. (e) Redeemable Debentures: Normally debentures are issued on the condition that they shall be redeemed after a certain period. They can however, be reissued after redemption. (f) Perpetual Debentures: When debentures are irredeemable they are called perpetual. Perpetual Debentures cannot be issued in India at present. (g) Convertible Debentures: If an option is given to convert debentures into equity shares at the stated rate of exchange after a specified period, they are called convertible debentures. Convertible Debentures have become very popular in India. On conversion the holders cease to be lenders and become owners. Q3: What is the difference between Real Assets and Financial Assets? Explain in detail three non- marketable securities: Ans: Investment instruments or assets or securities are broadly classified into two categories : Financial assets and Real Assets. Real assets determine the wealth of an economy , whereas financial assets are merely claims to income generated by real assets . They are represented by paper and can also be termed as paper assets. Real Assets: A real asset is a tangible asset like gold, oil, and real estate.It has intrinsic value due to its utility. Its value is derived by virtue of what it represents.Real Assets have low correlations to traditional stocks and bonds. Because commodities have low correlations to stocks and bonds, they can be a good choice to lower your overall portfolio risk while enhancing your potential for better long-term risk-adjusted returns. A real asset is a tangible asset like gold, oil, and real estate.It has intrinsic value due to its utility. Its value is derived by virtue of what it represents.The types of real assets are as follows: Gold Oil Goodwill Trade Marks Patents Copyrights etc. Why invest in Real Assets? Real Assets have low correlations to traditional stocks and bonds. Because commodities have low correlations to stocks and bonds, they can be a good choice to lower your overall portfolio risk while enhancing your potential for better long-term risk-adjusted returns. What are financial assets Financial assets include Cash, and those assets that can be converted to cash in a reasonably short period of time one year at most, but less time in many cases. We will study the following financial assets: Cash Cash Equivalents Short Term Investments Accounts Receivable Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash is just as the word suggests. It includes cash money including paper and coins, checks and money orders to be deposited, money deposited in bank accounts that can be accessed quickly. The term liquid refers to Cash, and the ease or difficulty of converting an asset into Cash.   Cash Equivalents are highly liquid short term investments that can be turned into Cash very quickly. These include US Treasury bills, money market accounts and high grade commercial paper. When corporations need to borrow money for a very short time, they often sell commercial paper. These come due within a few months at most, and pay a higher interest rate than other investments.   Short Term Investments Short Term Investments include stocks and bonds that the company intends to hold only for a short time, and then sell and convert back to Cash. We consider it a good practice to convert unneeded cash to an investment account, where it can earn interest, dividends or show capital gains. These are shown on the balance sheet at their current market value, even if that is higher than the price paid for the investments. This is one of the few times we increase a balance sheet item above its historic cost. Accounts Receivable Companies often sell to their customers on credit. The amount the customers owe is called Accounts Receivable (AR). We would record AR at the same time the sale is made, deducting any cash paid at the time of purchase, etc. When customers pay, we subtract the payment from their accounts receivable balance.   Most companies use an Accounts Receivable Subsidiary Ledger, which is similar to the General Ledger. The subsidiary ledger contains detailed information about each customers account purchases, payments, returns, adjustments, etc. Most companies send statements at the of each month, listing the monthly transactions and ending balance due from each customer.   Difference between Real Assets and Financial Assets: With the advancement of economy , the relative importance of financial assets tends to increase . Even though the real assets differ greatly from financial assets , two forma are complementary and not competitive. The difference between real assets and financial assets can be summarised as follows: Real Assets determine the wealth of a society or economy whereas financial assets do not represent societys wealth. Real Assets contribute directly to the productive capacity of the economy while the contribution of financial assets to the productive capacity is indirect because they facilitate the transfer of funds to enterprises with attractive investment opportunities. Real assets produce goods and services whereas financial assets define the allocation of income or wealth among investors. Real assets appear only on the asset side of the balance sheet , while financial assets appear on both sides of balance sheet. Investing in real assets carries more risks than investing in paper assets. Non- Marketable Securities: Some financial assets are said to be non-marketable because they are neither transferable nor negotiable . The investors actually own these assets and cannot buy and sell them in the secondary market. Types of non-marketable securities are as follows: Bank Deposits: The most popular non-marketable assets held by an investor include deposits with the banks and their saving schemes. There are various types of deposits with banks such as current accounts, saving accounts and fixed deposits . Deposits on current account do not earn any interest whereas bank deposits earn intereest.The interest rate on these deposits vary depending upon the maturity period. Since saving accounts are deposited at regular interval, they have a fixed rate of interest.However , fixed deposits are recurring deposits with varying maturity period.Hence, the rates also vary. Features: They are best known type of investments that offers a high degree of safety on both the principal and the return on that principal. Bank deposits are highly liquid and can be encashed anytime. Loans can be raised against bank deposits. Non-Negotiable Certificate Of Deposit: Commercial banks and other financial institution offer a variety of savings certificates known as certificate of deposits (CDs). These instruments are available for various maturities. As the maturity increases , the rate of interest offered also increases. However large deposits may command higher rates , holding maturity constant . The credit risk associated with large CDs depend directly on the credit worthiness of the financial institution that issue them. Since large CDs are not insured , a CD holder may lose principal if the financial institution fails. Money Market Deposit Account: Financial Institutions offer Money Market Deposit Accounts with no interest rate ceilings.The Money Market Deposit Accounts require a minimum deposit to open. They pay competitive money market rates of interest and are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) if the issued bank is insured. Withdrawals can be made , as many times as desired , in person or through automated teller machines (ATMs). There are no limitations on the number of deposits.