Thursday, March 19, 2020

The History, Patent, and Uses of MDMA

The History, Patent, and Uses of MDMA MDMA’s full chemical name is â€Å"3,4 methylene-dioxy-N-methylamphetamine† or â€Å"methylenedioxymethamphetamine.† The 3,4 indicates the way in which the components of the molecule are joined together. It’s possible to produce an isomer which has all the same components but is joined differently.   Although MDMA is derived from organic material, it does not occur in nature. It must be created in a complex laboratory process. Various popular street names for MDMA include Ecstasy, E, Adam, X, and Empathy. How MDMA Works   MDMA is a mood and mind-altering drug. Like Prozac,  it works by affecting the level of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter which is naturally present and can alter emotions.  Chemically, the drug is similar to amphetamine, but psychologically, its whats known as an empathogen-entactogen. An empathogen improves ones ability to communicate with and feel empathy towards others. An entactogen makes an individual feel good about himself and the world. The MDMA Patent   MDMA was patented in 1913 by the German chemical company Merck. It was intended to be sold as a diet pill, although the patent doesn’t mention any specific use. The company decided against marketing the drug. The U.S. Army experimented with MDMA in 1953, possibly as a truth serum, but the government has not revealed its reasons. Modern Research   Alexander Shulgin is the man behind modern research of MDMA. After graduating from the University of California at Berkeley with a Ph.D. in biochemistry, Shulgin landed a job as a research chemist with Dow Chemicals. Among his many achievements, there was the development of a profitable insecticide and several controversial patents for what would ultimately become popular street drugs. Dow was happy with the insecticide, but Shulgins other projects forced a parting of the way between the biochemist and the chemical company. Alexander Shulgin is the first reported human to use MDMA. Shulgin continued his legal research into new compounds after leaving Dow, specializing in the phenethylamines family of drugs. MDMA is but one of 179 psychoactive drugs which he has described in detail, but it is the one which he felt came closest to fulfilling his ambition of finding the perfect therapeutic drug. Because MDMA was patented in 1913, it holds no profit potential for drug companies. A drug cannot be patented twice, and a company must show that a drug’s potential side effects are justified by its benefits before marketing it. This involves long and expensive trials. The only way of recouping that expense is by obtaining exclusive rights to sell the drug by holding its patent. Only a few experimental therapists researched and tested MDMA for use during psychotherapy sessions between 1977 and 1985. Media Attention and Lawsuits   MDMA or  Ecstasy received massive media attention in 1985 when a group of people sued the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency to try to prevent the DEA from effectively outlawing the drug by placing it on Schedule 1. Congress had passed a new law allowing the DEA to put an emergency ban on any drug that might be dangerous to the public, and this right was used for the first time to ban MDMA on July 1, 1985.   A hearing was held to decide what permanent measures should be taken against the drug. One side argued that MDMA caused brain damage in rats. The other side claimed this might not be true for humans and that there was proof of the beneficial use of MDMA as a drug treatment in psychotherapy. After weighing the evidence, the presiding judge recommended that MDMA be placed on Schedule 3, which would have allowed it to be manufactured, used by  prescription, and subject to further research. However, the DEA decided to place MDMA permanently on Schedule 1 regardless.   Trial research into the effects of MDMA on human volunteers resumed in 1993 with the approval of the Food and Drug Administration. It is the first psychoactive drug to be approved for human testing by the FDA.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

Can You Earn a Living as an Administrative Freelancer

Can You Earn a Living as an Administrative Freelancer Many people have discovered that working as a freelancer on the Internet or in an office provides more flexibility in employment and allows workers to pick and choose the jobs they want to do. Administrative freelancers find that they can also apply their office skills to earn a living similar to an in-house employee. Since most individuals working as administrators have talents in multiple areas, they can choose whether to concentrate on one area, such as bookkeeping, or work in several different areas.How to Start Out as an Administrative FreelancerYou can find work as an administrative freelancer by using your skills. Think about the skills you possess and make a list. Include what you enjoy doing the most and what you are best at doing. Do you enjoy customer service, support projects related to sales or management, accounting, scheduling or other facets of administrative work? Doing job searches in each area widens your potential work base and gives you the opportunity to pick an d choose the jobs you like the best.Finding WorkThe first thing a freelance worker needs to know is where to find jobs. The Internet offers multiple job sites to search for freelance work, advertised by different companies. There are also sites that offer multiple listings from different companies that you can search. TheJobNetwork searches multiple sites for you and sends you the listings as alerts so you dont have to do the job hunting yourself.Write a New ResumeA freelance administrative assistant can target jobs related to his or her skills and experience. However, the jobs you apply for may want someone capable of doing specific types of administrative work. Using a professional template to write your resume can give you a boost by using different formats, layouts and content to apply for particular types of jobs. For instance, if you are applying for a position as a worker who sets up meetings and keeps the daily office schedule, you can write up a resume geared toward that po sition. A job opening for office accounting work can require a different approach.What Information to Include in Your ResumeThe type of information and style you use in a resume depends on your preference. An individual who has been searching for a job for a period of time or who has employment gaps in the work history may not want to include dates in a resume. In addition, a worker with little experience might prefer to leave the dates of employment off. A functional resume of this type can highlight your skills and experience without exposing gaps in the work history.Making a Living as an Administrative FreelancerWhen deciding to take a job, keep in mind that as a freelancer you will be paying your own self-employment taxes and other expenses that might have been taken care of by your boss in a regular job. One way to decide how much you should charge for your services is to look in your area at the salaries offered for that type of job. Include a profit margin, money to pay taxes and health care and other expenses that you will be paying yourself. However, you need to keep in mind that if you are working from home and can set aside space for an office, you may have tax deductions from your self-employment that will lower your net income.Searching for jobs using TheJobNetwork platform makes it convenient to do. Put in your credentials and the type of job you are looking for and TheJobNetwork does the work. It searches multiple sites using your criteria and emails alerts to let you know a job has been located. TheJobNetwork ranks the job so you can tell how closely it meets your expectation.

Saturday, February 15, 2020

Critical Analysis of a Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critical Analysis of a Film - Essay Example ted nuclear warfare against Russia through a fleet of B-52 bombers each carrying 40 megatons of nuclear warheads directed strategically to Russia’s centers of military activity. The plot thickens as Russian Ambassador Alexi de Sadesky informs U.S. President Merkin Muffley that his country has the Doomsday Device that when triggered would produce a set of nuclear explosions that will eventually lead to the annihilation of all living creatures on earth. Even more alarming is the fact that the device, once triggered, cannot be recalled. The intense subject of the film, especially at a time right after the Cold War, was treated in a different light by its director. No one would have probably expected a political about this topic but this was exactly what Kubrick did. The film shows, in all its legitimate comedic value, the political and social stereotypes that would prevail as a matter of human nature and despite surrounding circumstances. The juxtaposition in the film is an important element to consider in its overall theme. The catchphrase â€Å"Peace is our Profession† is a re-appearing visual that comes out a number of times. In the opening scenes, the audience sees Gen. Ripper on the phone with Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake giving the instructions to implement Plan R and that his order is not a drill. We see him serious on the phone and smoking a cigar intently. On his back is a poster with the phrase and an illustration inside a plaque shape with a clenched fist holding thunderbolts and leaves together with clouds on the background. The same words were not seen immediately on Capt. Mandrake’s background. But as soon as Gen. Ripper can be heard signaling Plan R, the camera changes angles and one can see on his side the same phrase but on a different poster. Instead of the clenched fist, the phrase is unassumingly placed on top of a map with different coordinates around it. This is shown to create the contrast between upholding of peace and starting a war. In

Sunday, February 2, 2020

Quantitative Techniques for Business Project Essay

Quantitative Techniques for Business Project - Essay Example This assignment studies behavior of stock prices at daily interval for the period from July 20, 1988 to July 20, 2009. Figure 1, 2 and 3 illustrate the dynamic character of stock prices respectively of companies Microsoft, Intel, and H&P. The graphical views tell us that these three stocks exhibited exponential growth from the beginning until the middle of 2000. All three stocks later dropped in prices by 30%-% 40% in about 24 moths. They never achieved the previous peak. Microsoft maintained stable prices for the rest of the period while Intel and Hewlett & Packard went through bumpy roads. The dynamic character of Apple stock was different from that of previously mentioned stocks. Figure 4 shows the asymptotic behavior of Apple stock prices from the beginning of the observation period until the middle of 1999. In the latter period, Apple stock price exhibited exponential growth until was hit by the global financial crisis of 2008. Apple’s sudden growth after the mid-1999 can be associated with the release of new products and services. The exponential growth of Microsoft, Intel and H&P stock prices from 1988 until 2000 should be contributed to the development of digital technology of that time. Thus, we can conclude that the innovation and new products influence the rise in stock prices. At the same time, irrespective of innovation, the overall market condition also causes influence on the stock prices. Figure 5 depicts S&P 500 index values from September 26, 2008 to November 21, 2008. In 41 days, the index dropped by 34%. This incident is named as the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. It caused a drop in prices of Microsoft, Apple, Intel and H&P stocks respectively by 27.69%, 35.61%, 31.13%, and 27.55%. This assignment is using time-series data of stock prices. Let Pt be the price of an asset at a time index t and P t-1 at a time t-1. We assume

Saturday, January 25, 2020

Sealed Air Company Essay -- Business Marketing essays

Sealed Air Company 2. SUMMARY The protective packaging market is becoming more competitive. Sealed Air company is encountering a growing number of competitors in its field. Similar or alternative systems are now proposed against those of Sealed Air. These new systems are often cheaper but as argued by Sealed Air less effective concerning the protection they offer and therefore less cost-effective. A new company (GAFCEL) has entered the market with an uncoated product and is having success on the New York, California and Ohio market. Sealed Air will face further erosion of its US market share. Based on the analysis of the AirCap ® product as well as on the analysis of the market, we will answer questions regarding Sealed Air's reaction to its new competitor GAFCELL and the opportunity to introduce a new uncoated product in the market. We will make marketing recommendations on how to introduce this new product and in which geographical market to launch it in order to maintain Sealed Air as a leader of the protective packaging market. 3. QUESTIONS 3.1. What should Sealed Air be trying to accomplish in any decision it makes in response to the GAFCEL threat? †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It should be trying to gain back the market share that was taken by GAFCEL and it should ensure it does not loose anymore market share. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It should ensure it keeps its reputation of a company built on ‘technical accomplishments’ and must ensure its image does not suffer from the possible introduction of this new uncoated product. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It should not ‘cannibalise’ itself and therefore it should ensure the products are segmented correctly. 3.2 What has been happening in the market and how is Sealed Air doing? In order to answer this double question, we have completed and focused our analysis mainly on the AirCap product manufactured by Sealed Air. 3.2.1 Strengths and Weaknesses MIX  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  STRENGTHS  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  WEAKNESSES PRODUCT  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  quality & reliability -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  benefit to customers -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  barrier coating with saran -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8 different grades to fit all applications -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  patent protection -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  registered trade mark  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  only coated products offered in the USA PRICE  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10[%] margin to distributors for direct sales -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  quantity discount  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  higher than competitors, up to 50[%] (England) COMMUNICATION  Ã‚  Ã‚  ... ...nd this will be effective only with specific selling training sessions with real life scenarios. 5. Conclusion Sealed Air Group will now be able to offer a complete range of products : uncoated and coated. Sealed Air Group will maintain its reputation, its image of quality regarding the coated products. Sealed Air Group with its accurate and well-thought strategy will avoid the cannibalism effect as much as possible. Sealed Air Group will regain market share and sustain its leadership across the US, Europe and in the developing countries (expansion programme). Sealed Air Group will be able to propose and sell the appropriate product to the appropriate customer through the appropriate distributor. Sealed Air Group will set up tailored-made programmes for each country according to the buying mentalities, the purchasing habits and specificities of each country . Sealed Air Group is fully aware that key success factor of its above strategy is the distributor network : Sealed Air Group will build up loyalty with the key distributors through exclusivity, special incentives, special events and higher commissions, in the US and even more across Europe.

Friday, January 17, 2020

Violence in the Workplace Essay

Workplace violence includes threatening behaviors, verbal abuse and physical assault. In any given week about 20 workers are murdered in the United States (Bruce& Nowlin, 2011). This can include the harming of an employee or client/customer of an organization by another employee, client/customer, or member of the general public. Many internal and external factors, including socioeconomic conditions, problems related to drug and alcohol abuse, layoffs, dictatorial workplaces, stress over job security, and domestic problems, are leading causes of workplace violence. Organizations have to deal with human productivity and economic costs from incidents of workplace violence. For example, employees and customers or clients can be seriously injured or killed. In addition, a loss of productivity generally occurs during the incident because the business may be closed or on reduced hours pending investigation and employees may fear that another incident could occur within days or months. Some employees also may quit as a result of fear of another incident or dissatisfaction with the employer for failing to prevent or properly respond to the incident. Physical injuries or emotional difficulties that result from the violent incident may cause increases in workers’ compensation claims. Organizations with policies on workplace violence are more likely to implement practices that can reduce the potential for workplace violence. The managers in these organizations indicated that counseling for potentially violent employees, investigating unfairness in the workplace, disciplining/arresting people responsible for violent acts, mandating fair treatment for terminated employees, using mediation to resolve disputes that have the potential for becoming violent, and intervening in problems between employees were part of their workplace violence policies. These elements are further evidence that organizations that initiate formal policies for workplace violence are more likely to consider ways to be proactive, rather than reactive. Organizations must take steps to ensure that employees feel safe and secure. While organizations are unable to anticipate all situations, basic preventive measures can deter some violence in the workplace. While every employee with the potential for workplace violence cannot be pre-identified at the point of hire, organizations should have a variety of pre-employment assessments in place to ensure selection of individuals whose credentials, work experience, personality, and life experiences appropriately correspond to organizational needs and values. At the pre-incident strategy stage, the organization should create a zero tolerance policy. The organization should document all forms of aggression that have occurred against people and property associated with their organization. Employees should be encouraged to report incidents of which they are aware. Furthermore, for a second strategy, pre-employment screening should include psychological testing, background checks to validate an applicant’s resume, reference checking, employment history verification, or even integrity interviewing. Training should include interpersonal communication, conflict resolution techniques and hostage survival skills to ensure that employees are prepared for any violence that should occur in the workplace.

Thursday, January 9, 2020

Human Trafficking And The United States - 1417 Words

Each year about 17,500 individuals are brought into the United States and become victims of human trafficking. Every country has this problem and it has become the 3rd largest illegal industry worldwide. Human Trafficking is the trade of humans mainly for sexual slavery, but also forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker and sometimes others who take part in this act. Human trafficking is also used for organs or tissues, including surrogacy, ova removal, or making these victims spouses for traffickers or their customers. Human trafficking is defined as a sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act induced by force (isolation and confinement to the brothel: transportation to multiple locations for the trafficking network and occasional physical and sexual abuse), fraud (false promises of a better life), or coercion (the practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats), or someone performing commercial sex under the age of 18. This is a crime that has newly risen to the public over the last decade and has been labeled as one of the most serious humanitarian crisis. Human trafficking is about profit. In 2004 the total annual income for trafficking in persons was estimated to be between $5 billion to $9 billion. Trafficking of children involves recruitment, transportation, etc. of children for the purpose of exploitation. Commercial sexual exploitation of children includes child prostitution and child pornography. IOMShow MoreRelatedHuman Trafficking And The United States1066 Words   |  5 PagesHuman trafficking has always been a though subject. Most Americans prefer to believe that this is a problem of the past, that it simply does not occur anymore. Others accept the fact that human trafficking exist, but in a far away reality, an incident homed only in poor, third world countries. This couldn’t be farther away from the truth. Human trafficking is a real and current problem in the United States, California being a hotspot for this issue, and with the Super Bowl in 2016 the problem willRead MoreHuman Trafficking And The United States962 Words   |  4 Pagestakes for cases to be prosecuted and to gain protections is very extensive. Intensifying the existing laws to better defend human trafficking victims is critical.The United States Government, in 2000, certified the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act. This act helps prosecute traffickers and support victims. Since then the number of recognized victims of trafficking has risen as well as trials and social service providers working with survivors. Because of this it gives researchers anRead MoreHuman Trafficking And The United States Essay1585 Words   |  7 PagesLooking the other way while close to 50% of the human trafficking in the United States end up in prostitution, what is going on in these states. The over sexed country does not help to stop it when we constantly promote sex in almost every aspect of life. People are losing their life to find a way to get to the United States through different forms of smuggling. Are these the people that we should be letting get in this country? Right under our nose the women, girls are being coerced into prostitutionRead MoreHuman Trafficking : The United States1740 Words   |  7 PagesHUMAN TRAFFICKING IN THE UNITED STATES: WHY SOME STATES HAVE MORE HUMAN TRAFFICKING CALLS THAN OTHERS INTRODUCTION Human trafficking is a growing endemic affecting an estimated 35.8 million men, women, and children around the world annually, as reported by the Global Slavery Index (GSI). The United States is not immune to this problem and has successfully identified 21,434 cases of human trafficking through the National Human Trafficking Resource Center Hotline since 2007. As with crimes of thisRead MoreHuman Trafficking : The United States1250 Words   |  5 Pagessomeone talks about child trafficking? Do you think of children from third world countries being kidnapped or sold into the black market of human trafficking? Most of us probably think of human trafficking as being an issue that poor countries just have but, that isn’t the case. Human trafficking is alive and sadly thriving in the United States. According to Trafficking Source Center, 5,544 cases of human trafficking were reported in the United States in 2015. With human trafficking being around for soRead MoreHuman Trafficki ng And The United States Essay751 Words   |  4 PagesFACT SHEET Human trafficking in the United States Human trafficking, also known as trafficking in persons or modern day slavery, is an affront to the most basic of human freedoms. Human trafficking is a crime that strikes at the very heart of the American promise: freedom. In response to this abhorrent crime, government agencies and nongovernmental organizations have formed strong and growing partnerships aimed at ending this violation of fundamental civil rights and human dignity. 1. WhatRead MoreHuman Trafficking in the United States1603 Words   |  6 Pagesother countries to people in the United States. Imports and exports to and from the U.S include products as wide ranged as food, clothes, and even people. Human trafficking is a worldwide problem, including the United States. Currently, there are approximately 20.9 million people enslaved throughout the world with 2.5 million located in the United States. About 14,500 - 17,500 of foreign nationals are trafficked into the United States every year (Human trafficking statistics). These statistics showRead MoreHuman Trafficking in the United States2403 Words   |  10 PagesHuman Trafficking The United States has always been known for sticking their nose in places where it does not belong. America has been part of wars that could have been avoided, scandals that had nothing to do with the United States. Millions of lives over the years could have been spared if America would have just simply stayed where they belong. What if though, America feels like they have to get involved in forging affairs if they think it can cause or is causing a problem on American soil orRead MoreHuman Trafficking : The United States2136 Words   |  9 PagesHuman trafficking is a prominent problem within the United States that is often overlooked. The definition of human trafficking is, â€Å"Human trafficking - the illegal practice of procuring or trading in human beings for the purpose of prostitution, forced labor, or other forms of exploitation† (â€Å"Human trafficking†). People in the United States believe that human trafficking is a problem that occurs in other less dev eloped countries compared to the United States. What these individuals do not realizeRead MoreHuman Trafficking And The United States1230 Words   |  5 Pagesaround 15,000 are trafficked in the United States. Half of those are children. Not all cases are reported, and there are few victims rescued in comparison to the millions that are still helpless each and every year. Human trafficking is an epidemic all across the world and many countries are doing all they can to stop it. But what about the United States; what are we doing to stop it and is what we’re doing enough? What is human trafficking? It is defined by the United Nations as â€Å"the recruitment, transportation