Friday, December 27, 2019

Practice English Using This Dialogue With a Famous Actor

Use this interview with a famous actor to practice speaking and pronunciation skills as well as review important grammar points on tense usage. Read, practice with a partner, and check your understanding of important vocabulary and grammar rules. Afterward, create your own dialogue using provided cues. Vocabulary take time off: to stop working in order to do something elseaverage day: a normal or typical day in someones lifestudio: the room(s) in which a movie is madeshoot some scenes: to record scenes being acted out on a video camerascript: the lines an actor needs to speak in a moviecareer: the job you have for most of your lifefuture projects: the work that you will do in the futurefocus on something: to try to do only one thing at a timedocumentary: a type of film about something that happened in real liferetire: to stop working permanently Present Simple and Present Continuous Tense The first part of  this interview dialogue concerns daily routines and other activities regularly/still taking place.  The  present simple tense  is used to speak and ask about daily routines. The following sentences are examples of the present simple tense. I usually get  up early and go to the gym.How often do you travel for work?She doesnt work from home.   The  present continuous tense  is used to speak about what is happening at a specific moment in time, usually at or around the moment that a conversation is taking place. The following sentences are examples of the present continuous tense. Im studying French for a test right now. What are you working on this week? Theyre getting ready to open the new store. Part One of the Interview Pay close attention to the use of the present simple and present continuous tense in the following interview excerpt. Interviewer: Thank you for taking some time off from your busy schedule to answer a few questions about your life!Tom: Its my pleasure. Interviewer: Could you tell us about an average day in your life?Tom: Sure. I get up early, at 7 in the morning, then I have breakfast. After breakfast, I go to the gym. Interviewer: Are you studying anything now?Tom: Yes, Im learning dialogue for a new film called The Man About Town. Interviewer: What do you do in the afternoon?Tom: First I have lunch, then I go to the studio and shoot some scenes. Interviewer: Which scene are you working on  today?Tom: Im acting out a scene about an angry lover. Interviewer: Thats very interesting. What do you do in the evening?Tom: In the evening, I go home and have dinner and study my scripts. Interviewer: Do you go out at night?Tom: Not always, I like going out at weekends. Present Perfect and Future Tenses The second section of the interview focuses on the actors experiences over time. The  present perfect  tense is used to speak about an event or experience that has already happened (from the past) in the present tense. The following sentences are examples of the present perfect tense. Ive visited many countries throughout the world.Hes made more than fifteen documentaries.Shes worked at that position since 1998. The  future tense  is used to talk about the future and uses forms such as going to and will to do this. The future tense can be used to reference scheduled events, predictions, and even conditional events that depend on the occurrence of other conditions to take place. Going to is often used for future plans and will is often used to make predictions. The following sentences are examples of the future tense. Im going to visit my uncle next week.Theyre going to open up a new store in Chicago.I think Ill take a vacation in June but Im not sure.She thinks he will get married soon. Part Two of the Interview Pay close attention to the use of the present perfect and future tense in the following interview excerpt. Interviewer: Lets talk about your career. How many films have you made?Tom: Thats a hard question. I think Ive made more than 50 films! Interviewer: Wow. Thats a lot! How many years have you been an actor?Tom: Ive been an actor since I was ten years old. In other words, Ive been an actor for twenty years. Interviewer: Thats impressive. Do you have any future projects?Tom: Yes, I do. Im going to focus on making a few documentaries next year. Interviewer: That sounds great. Do you have any plans beyond that?Tom: Well, Im not sure. Maybe I will become a film director and maybe Ill just retire. Interviewer: Oh, please dont retire! We love your films!Tom: Thats very kind of you. Im sure Ill make a few more films. Interviewer: Thats good to hear. Thank you for the interview.Tom: Thank you. Practice Creating Your Own Dialogue Use these sentence pieces to create your own dialogue with a famous actor. Pay careful attention to the time and context provided in order to choose the correct tense and dont forget to use correct punctuation and capitalization when writing your sentences. Try to come up with a few different possibilities for each response. Interviewer: thank you/interview/know/busyActor: welcome/pleasure Interviewer: work/new/filmActor: yes/act/in/Sun on My Face/month Interviewer: congratulations/ask/questions/about/lifeActor: yes/any/question Interviewer: what/do/after/workActor: usually/relax/pool Interviewer: what/do/todayActor: have/interview/today Interviewer: where/go/eveningActor: usually/stay/home Interviewer: stay/home/this/eveningActor: no/go/movies Interviewer:  which/movieActor:  not/say Sample Solution Interviewer:  Thank you for letting me interview you today. I know how busy you are.Actor:  Youre welcome. It was  a pleasure to meet you. Interviewer:  Are you working on any new films these days?Actor: Yes, Im acting in Sun in My Face this month. Its a great film! Interviewer:  Congratulations! May I ask you some questions about your life?Actor:  Of course you can! I can answer almost any question! Interviewer:  Great. Acting is hard work. What do you like doing after work?Actor:  Yes, it is very hard work. I  usually relax by my pool.   Interviewer:  What are you doing today for relaxation?Actor: Im having an interview today!   Interviewer:  Thats very funny! Where do you enjoy going in the evening?Actor: I usually just stay home! Im boring! Interviewer:  Are you staying home this evening?Actor: No, actually. This evening Im going to the movies. Interviewer:  Which movie are you going to see?Actor: I cant say, its a secret!

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Fonderia di Torino S.P.A. Case Study - 860 Words

Fonderia di Torino S.p.A. 1. Please assess the economic benefits of acquiring the Vulcan Mold-Maker machine. What is the initial outlay? What are the benefits over time? What is an appropriate discount rate? Does the net present value(NPV) warrant the investment in the machine? Initial Case Outlay Price of new machine (1,010,000) Current after-tax market value of old machine [130,000+{(415,807-130,682) -130,000}*0.43]= 196,704 Net outlay for new machine -1,010,000+196,704 = -813,296 Appropriate discount rate Rs = Rf+B(Rm-Rf) =5.3%+1.25*6% =12.8% Rb = 6.8%*(1-0.43) = 3.88% R(wacc) = (33%)*(3.88%)+(67%)*(12.8%) = 9.86% Net Present Value Since we are not provided with the information or evidence about cash inflow needed to†¦show more content†¦*For the sake of simplicity we put sales as zero Replace with New(automated) Machine Initial Cash Outlay (813,296) OCF {0-(2*2*11.36*8*210+59,500+26,850-5,200)}* (1-0.43)+(1,010,000/8*0.43)=-35,481.34 Raw NPV (1,003,555) EAA (187,153) Keep Old(semi-automated) Machine Opportunity cost (196,704) OCF {0-(24*7.33*8*210+2*3*7.85*8*210+4000+12300)}* (1-0.43)+(47,520*0.43)=-265,520.35 Raw NPV (1,357,874) EAA (310,500) Keep using the old machine incurs higher cost(higher EAA) than replacing it with the new one. Therefore assuming sales are equal for both cases, when sales is smaller than 328338.07 and greater than 434036.67, Fonderia di Torino S.p.A should definitely replace the old machine with the new automated machine. Benefit over time The three scenarios illustrated above clearly shows that the investment in the new machine creates greater value to the company, unless there should be some unexpected turnout in sales. By acquiring the Vulcan Mold-Maker machine Fonderia di Torino S.p.A will be able to replace labor intensive required semi-automated machines with automated machines, thus reducing medical claims. The company will also benefit from higher levels of product quality and lower scrap rates. Labor costs will be reduced by almost 298,334.4Show MoreRelatedFonderia Di Torino S.P.A.1148 Words   |  5 PagesFinance Case Study: Fonderia di Torino S.p.A. Case Overview: Company considering purchase of Vulcan Mold-Maker automated molding machine. Machine prepares sand molds into molten iron using iron castings, automates manual intensive process. Questions: 1. Assess the economic benefits of acquiring the Vulcan Mold-Maker machine. What is the initial outlay? What are the benefits over time? What is an appropriate discount rate? Does the net present value (NPV) warrant the investment in the

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Project Management Library Renovation free essay sample

Levy (2002) says, rather than blindly following a methodology, the project manager must be able to adapt procedures to meet the demands of the work in hand. How the manager plan on a two-week project is likely to be very different from how they plan on a two-year project. Understand the customer’s requirements and put them under version control. Thoroughly understand and document the customer’s requirements, obtain customer agreement in writing, and put requirements documents under version identification and change control. Requirements management is the leading success factor for systems development projects. Business justification: every project should lead to a worthwhile return on investment. In other words, we need to understand the benefits that a particular project will bring, before committing ourselves to any significant expenditure. During the lifecycle of a project, however, circumstances can change quickly. If at any point it becomes clear that a return on investment is no longer feasible, then the project should be scrapped and no more money wasted. Manage by exception: project sponsors should avoid getting too bogged down in the day-to-day running of projects and instead allow the project manager to concentrate on this area. Levy (2002) goes on to say Micro-management by a project sponsor is a hindrance, not a help. Project sponsors should set clear boundaries for cost and time, with which the project manager should work. If he/she cannot provide the agreed deliverables within these constraints, concerns must be escalated to the sponsor for a decision. Manage by stages: break the project up into smaller chunks, or stages. Each stage marks a point at which the project sponsor will make key decisions. For example, is the project still worthwhile? Are the risks still acceptable? Dividing a project into stages, and only committing to one stage at a time, is a low risk approach that enables the sponsor to manage by exception. Focus on products: it is vital that clients and customers think carefully about the products, or deliverables, they require, before the project begins. The clearer they can be about their requirements, the more realistic and achievable the plans that can be produced. This makes managing the project much easier and less risky. Learn from experience: dont risk making the same mistakes on every project; consider why certain aspects went well or badly, then incorporate the lessons learned into your approach to your next project. Humans have an amazing capacity to learn, but when it comes to repeating errors made during previous projects, we all too often fail to learn the lessons. Business justification: every project should lead to a worthwhile return on investment. In other words, we need to understand the benefits that a particular project will bring, before committing ourselves to any significant expenditure. During the lifecycle of a project, however, circumstances can change quickly. If at any point it becomes clear that a return on investment is no longer feasible, then the project should be scrapped and no more money wasted. Defined roles and responsibilities: everybody working on the project needs to understand the nature of their involvement: for what is each person responsible, and to whom are they accountable? Without clear roles and responsibilities, nobody will know precisely what he or she is supposed to be doing (and everybody will pass the buck at the first sign of trouble). In such a chaotic environment, the progress of the project will be seriously jeopardised. Quality issues that must be addressed by the project manager Chris Jones (2011) points that Poor quality management can stand in the way of a successful project. The two keys to avoiding lapsing into substandard quality management are to remember, first, that the project sponsor and your client determine quality—the project manager and project team do not. The library building design concerns of the senior residents was a quality criteria be considered when building instead of increasing space for children and teen’s activities. Secondly the project manager as O. Levy (1995) suggested had to resist the urge to think that quality means the best material, the best equipment, and absolutely zero defects. While the project out more space for computers, and less space for books also more entertainment features the local senior group was displeased and thought the quality of the library had reduced. The library had changed from the traditional, quiet library they once knew. There was nobody on staff and no feature or design that made the library a special place senior-related services. In most cases, the client does not expect, and cannot afford, a perfect solution. If there are just a few bumps in the project, the client can still say that the project delivered to a high level of quality. Spinner (2007) said, however a flawlessly designed, defect-free solution that does not meet the clients needs will not be considered high quality. Due to less involvement of the client the project had to be reworked on giving higher maintenance costs and client dissatisfaction. The purpose of quality management is to first understand the expectations of the client in terms of quality, and then put a proactive plan and process in place to meet or exceed those expectations. Quality control refers to the ongoing activities that the project team will perform to ensure that the deliverables are of high quality (Stephen Glaister, 1994). This can include deliverable walk-thorough, testing of subcomponents, completeness checklists, and so on. As the project manager, to ensure quality and satisfaction of the clients information is to be gathered from them on what the need and expect from the library. Rework has to ensure that the library features accommodate the local citizens needs and the best way to achieve this notion is to consult with them while building. Recruitment of a senior client service specialist will add to the quality assurance of the project. Evaluation of Existing Systems for Appropriate Decision Making Project Management Institute (2008) denotes that good monitoring and evaluation design during project preparation is a much broader exercise than just the development of indicators. A good evaluation design should have the following five components: 1. There has to be clear and concise statements of measurable objectives and targets for the building project such as the design needs of the local users such as better facilities for senior citizens of which their indicators could be clearly defined. 2. There is need for a structured indicator set that is simple to use foe all project stakeholders at any instant which can allow estimation of output state which include the services that were likely to be generated by the project and the impact they would have on the beneficiaries. 3. There should be an easy mechanism for collecting data that impacts the project and data that can be used to manage the project such as client needs to reduce dissatisfaction of the end product and to enable communication of impediments. The indicators are required to be interlinked with statistics available and should also be affordable for the project budget. 4. There has to be devised arrangements for collecting the data, analysing it and reporting for further investment proposals to sponsor during the project or before and for the clients to improvise their needs according to the possible respective of resources and expertise. 5. Evaluation should have mechanism for which the results of the project can be effectively reported back to decision making and other stakeholders. There can be use and implementation of outsource skill to monitor projects or acquisition of automated evaluation tools such as a logical framework. A Logical Framework Matrix (LFM) constitutes a central element of the project management system (Kathy, 2008). It defines projects objectives and describes the approach taken to implement it. The Logical Framework is accompanied and complemented by other monitoring and evaluation tools. A full set of LFM instruments is presented in the diagram below. Main sources of data / information are listed in the first column. They are addressed and utilized in the LFM system via specific tools that are provided in a logically and relevantly designed table or any other format that can be easily read or documented. System approach, Project lifecycle and Product development lifecycle and Evaluation The Systems Approach Most elements within a project were dependent on each other and each one of them would have their own special needs or characteristics except the client need element which is however the most important aspect of a project. The project manager worked on the goals of tackling the project stage by stage with quality results in all stages but however they overlooked the importance of the end result was to satisfy the client rather than themselves. However from a technical point of view all aspects of the project were interlinked and led to the achievement of the project as required by the project manager. Table : Systems Approach †¢All inputs into a project were have determined and kept constant or added to whenever necessary. The external element of client need was however overlooked to the project and impacted on the end result in terms of quality, money and time. †¢The feedback from clients which is part of effective monitoring led to conflicts and thus the project did not run smoothly. †¢The project manager did not have alternative methods as required in a systems approach so as to improvise when conflict rose between the project executors and the initiators or clients. Using a systems approach to project management enables a project manager to keep the objectives and end results constantly in mind so that the end results are as desired by the client. Project Life Cycle The project life cycle was defined by Snyder (2009) as the phases identified and documented by the project teams management style. Dividing the project into different phases allowed increased control by the organisation as a whole and in the building phase conflict arose due to design while the completion stage the end product was not satisfactory as the library was deemed more noisy with too much space for the kids and teenagers and more noisy. Product Development life Cycle The product life cycle which develops from the business plan, through idea, to product, ongoing operations and product divestment was not well developed in the planning phase and also through to the operations. The product had to be redesigned which is the design and end service for the library. Critical appraisal of the project from a technical and team working perspective Technical appraisal is an in-depth study to ensure that a project is soundly designed, appropriately engineered and follows accepted standards. There has to be concentration on the inputs needed for the project and the resulting outputs of goods services when a project is being appraised technically (Wysocki, 1999). The pre-requisites for this project were not all essentially covered as the wrong choices were made in terms of design of the project . The space put after the project for children and teen activities was rather more than required by the consumers or clients and the entertainment facilities installed rather made the library users unsatisfied as they required the library to serve senior citizens better rather than entertain teens. The library became much more noisy than what the frequent users wanted and there was no specialist serving the senior citizens after the project as they required. While the work done was perfect , it was not done according to requirements of the clients which led to client dissatisfaction The project team was well skilled and worked cooperatively but however an important element of the team which are the consumer representatives was ignored which led to the project accomplishing the wrong needs.

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

Yeney Armenteros Essays - Human Development, Childhood,

Yeney Armenteros Professor Cox EDUN 101 22 October 2014 Advocacy Project Reflection After writing this Advocacy Project , I have learned that there are many different influences that can play a role in how a child grows and the person they eventually become. The culture that a child lives in adds yet another element to this already complex mix. For example, while Western cultures tend to focus more on individualism, Eastern cultures are known for having a greater collectivist focus, meaning that the culture stresses the needs of the community as a whole over the needs of each individual. Such cultural differences can lead to dramatic variations in how children are raised. Parents from Western cultures might stress the importance of their child developing a strong sense of self-esteem and independence, while parents from Eastern cultures might focus more on how their child can contribute to the family unit and to society as a whole. Nevertheless, it does n o t matter what the child's surrounding culture might be, the parental strategies used are designed to produce children who can meet the goals and expectations of the culture in which they live. Let's look at two hypothetical examples of how culture can influence development. Child A is born in an agricultural community in a poor country where resources are scarce, while Child B is born to an urban couple in an affluent nation. Clearly, the first child is going to grow up with different expectations than the child raised in an upper-class, urban environment. The child from the rural setting might be expected to learn how to help on the family farm and eventually contribute to the management of the family's source of food and income. During the early years, this child's parents might focus on basic protection and survival needs such as providing warmth and food. As the child grows older, teaching practical skills and helping the child gain hands-on experience might become more important. Because of the cultural emphasis on ensuring the child's survival, the goal of childhood in this situation is to survive to adulthood in order to become a provider for the family. For the child raised in the urban environment in the affluent country, early life might be considerably different. Because this child's parents worry less about basic needs, their focus will be more on lifestyle. During the early years, ensuring that the child has the best toys and participates in the best play group might be of the utmost concern. As the child grows older, the parents might shift their focus to making sure their child is enrolled in the most respected schools and attains the best possible grades. In this case, the child's culture suggests that the ultimate goal of childhood is to go to college and one day get a prestigious job. This newly found knowledge would support me in my teaching role in several ways. For example I would now remain more open to observe and learn from children, parents and the ir living community and include their culture in my teaching strategies . I would also try to develop cultural competency by continuing my education on the topic of culture and child development and attend multicultural workshops and/ or educational trainings.