What changes in the variables would be necessary in your valuation to Essay

What changes in the variables would be necessary in your valuation to best approximate the market valuation - Essay Example Part A – Fundamental Valuation Growth Rate of Dividends- Wal-Mart1 Estimated Value Growth Rate = 12.55% Discount Rate = 12.50% D0 = $1.21 D1 = 1.21 + 1.21 * 12.55% = $ 1.361 P0 = D1 / K-G = 1.361 / 12.50% - 12.55% = 1.361 / 0.05 = $ 27.22 Estimated Value = $ 27.22 Current Market Value = $ 52.082 What changes in the variables would be necessary in your valuation to best approximate the market valuation? It is possible that the actual market value of a share may differ from its calculated value as different variables may be perceived differently by each investor. It is also important to understand that each investor has different perceptions about the risks and rewards and therefore there can be some differences in the two sets of prices. In order to best approximate the valuation with the market valuation, it is important to adjust the discount rate. The discount rate given in this case study is 12.5% which seems to be higher given the overall risk profile and fundamentals of W al-Mart. It is therefore important that the discount rate is adjusted in order to approximate two values with each other. Lower required rate of return therefore outlines that the investors have more confidence in the fundamentals of the firm therefore they will be requiring lower rate of returns because the overall level of risk will be low. Part-B Relative Valuation The above calculations are made based on the assumption that the growth rate required will be 7%. 4) It is important to note that the assessment of the stock regarding under or over valuation is always performed by comparing the current market value with the assessed value. Considering the current market value of the stock, it seems that the stock is relatively undervalued and the investors can actually be advised for buying or hold. The current market price of the stock is approximately $53 per share whereas the value of the stock computed through PE ratio model suggests that the fair value of the stock is $59 suggest ing that the stock is relatively under-valued. It is therefore important that those investors who are already holding the stock shall hold their positions and wait for the price to further increase before they can actually sell the stock and profit from the position. 5) Based on the fundamentals of the stock as well as the successful track record of Wal-Mart as one of the leading firms in the world, I would invest into the firm. Though the firm is working in the retail sector with low profit margins however, given the successful history of delivering results, I as an investor would invest into this stock. It is also important to understand that based on the computations made above suggests that the fair value of the stock is higher than the current value of the stock therefore there is a cushion of approximately $6 per share if invested now and sold at the fair value

Regenerative medicine Essay Example for Free

Regenerative medicine Essay Regenerative medicine Is the process of replacing or regenerating human cells, tissues or organs to restore or establish normal function. It can be used for many things by many different techniques. It can benefit many different people in many different ways. Regenerative medicine replaces/repairs tissues that the body cannot repair on its own. This includes things such as organs like kidneys; if one needs to be removed we may be able to replace/repair It. Regenerative medicine can save lives and be a lot more useful than average people may think it Is. Using state of the arc technology we may be able to prevent organ transplant rejection due to the fact that we can grow the organ from the patients owns cells/tissue. Current estimates say that approximately one in three Americans can benefit from regenerative medicine. Stem cells are used a lot in regenerative medicine. The stem cells are what are used to create the organ in the lab. The scientists first take the stem cells and place them and a model for them to grow on. Once the stem cells have grown and formed tissues around the mold they add what the organ needs to do its function. They then end electrical signals to bring the organ to life, like a heartbeat, almost as if they are reviving it. This has the potential of saving millions of lives in the long run, maybe even billions, or eventually trillions if mankind last that long. Of course technology will advance and there will be dfferent techniques and approaches for regenerative medlclne, but technology Is developing faster than ever in the past 100 years, so we may not be as far away from achieving great things as you might think. Say someone needs a new bladder, but no bladders that match them are currently available. Well with regenerative medicine we can create a new bladder in a hopefully short period of time with the tissues and cells of the person who needs the bladder. Therefor there will be no shortage of organs and no problems regarding the body rejecting the organ anyways. The only downside of this Is that growing tissues and cells takes time. So, If the patient needs a new bladder Immediately, growing one will not be an opuon because It will not grow fast enough In time for the person to live. But I see that there are three solutions. Solution one is that people could regularly visit their octor to be sure nothing is wrong, so if something is wrong we may be able to notice it before Its too late. Solution two is that in the future we can only hope that technology will be advanced enough for us to speed up the growth of these tissues, this will help In situations where the patients does not have a lot of time. The third solution Is that If we have the materials needed, we could eventually create enough organs with enough different tissues that nine times out of ten, one of the organs will match. I believe that any of these three solutions could work, but they ingredient to chieving this is time and effort. This is why I feel like more people should be choosing careers in science. It is very interesting and can help benefit all humans on the plant in the long run. So If more people worked with regenerative medicine who knows what the limits could be. Fasclnatlon wltn ty to regenerate tlssues ana organs nas exlstea slnce mankind first realized that it is possible (This was thousands of years ago, even though they couldnt really do anything and the term regenerative medicine was not used). Long before the term Regenerative Medicine was came up with, humans were ealizing the effects and capabilities of medicinal intervention. The Ancient Civilizations of Sameria, Egypt, China, India, and South America all pioneered medical discoveries and techniques that still impact the field today. Practices that we take for granted, such as cleansing and debridement of wounds using vegetable and mineral concoctions were common. Hundreds of scientists and philosophers over thousands of years have worked to establish our current technologies. The early 1800s saw a huge expansion in the fields of biology and medicine when scientists revealed that all ife depends on chemical reactions that occur within cells, which could, in fact, be reproduced in the laboratory. The discovery and official introduction of antibiotics by Alexander Flemming in 1928 changed the field of health-care forever. Followed shortly after by the discovery of cell division and heritability in the form of a helical, ladder-like structure, called DNA, science was geared to bring a whole other ball game. These discoveries meant that human biology and the systems contained within could now be brought into and manipulated in the laboratory. As the turn of he 20th century hit, previously mystical processes of life science finally become tangible. Regenerative medicine has grown from prior activities including surgery, surgical implants (artificial hips), and increasingly sophisticated bio-material scaffolds (skin grafts). The work that truly launched regenerative medicine into a tangible area of science began as cell therapy. Work in the field of transplantation in the mid-1950s gave rise to some of the first therapeutic surgeries in medicine. Performed on identical twins, the first kidney transplant occurred in 1954 followed by he first liver and lung transplants in 1963, pancreas transplant in 1966, and the first heart transplant in 1967. Bone marrow transplants for treatment of leukemia patients had the public and scientific communities in an uproar of excitement. Following this wave of enthusiasm, cell biologists began to question the capabilities of the integrity of the tissues being transplanted and wondered whether it was possible to create, grow, and harvest these tissues in the laboratory. Thus began the era of Tissue Engineering which has lead us into the field of Regenerative Medicine. Cell therapy is a therapy in which cellular material is injected into a patient. Cell therapy originated in the nineteenth century when scientists experimented by injecting animal material in an attempt to prevent and treat illness. Although such attempts produced no positive benefit, further research found in the mid twentieth century showed that human cells could be used to help prevent the human body rejecting transplanted organs, leading in time to successful bone marrow transplantation. Today two distinct categories of cell therapy are recognized. The first ategory is cell therapy in mainstream medicine. This is the subject of intense research and the basis of potential therapeutic benefit. Such research, especially when it involves human embryonic material, is controversial. The second category is in alternative medicine, and perpetuates the practice of injecting animal materials in an attempt to cure disease. This practice, according to the American Cancer Society, Is not DacKea Dy any mealcal evidence 0T erectlveness, ana can nave aea01y consequences.

3D Cone Beam Imaging in Dental Practices

3D Cone Beam Imaging in Dental Practices Abstract Cone Beam Imaging is increasingly being considered as an important source of three dimensional (3D) imaging in orthodontics ever since it was introduced back in 1998. This manuscript has been designed to highlight the applications of cone beam imaging, its background, efficiency and its scope over the years. Although its advantages are more over the routine radiography cases, and its ever increasing popularity, there are a few disadvantages that exist under the surface and this manuscript tends to explore that as well. Similarly, there are some dentists who use it frequently while some refuse to use it in the office. All such scenarios have been evaluated in this research manuscript. Keywords: radiography, orthodontics, cone beam CT, computed, tomography, dental practices, instrumentation 3D Cone Beam Imaging in Dental Practices For quite a while now, the use of advanced imaging for most dental practitioners has been limited due to the considerations of radiation doses, availability and cost. However, after the introduction of Cone Beam Imaging with the help of Computed Tomography, the opportunities for multi-planar imaging have made their way for applications in maxillofacial regions. Introduction to 3D Cone Beam Imaging Cone beam imaging is based on volumetric tomography, in which an extended two-dimensional digital array is used in combination with a three-dimensional x-ray beam and an area detector. The technology uses a single scan of 360 degrees in which the detector and x-ray source move around the head of the patient in a synchronization, which is fixed in a stable position with the help of a head holder. At specific intervals of degrees, basis images or the single projection images are acquired by the device. These basis images resemble the lateral cephalometric radiographic pictures, and the series of these images is termed as the projection data (Lofthag-Hansen, Thilander-Klang, Kerstin, 2011). Different software are then used to employ back-filtered projection to these images in order to generate a 3D set of volumetric data, which is then used to provide reconstruction images in the coronal, sagittal and axial planes (Noo, 2010). Although the principle of cone beam imaging has been into applications for the last two decades, the recent availability of powerful computers, high-quality detector systems and affordable x-ray tubes have given way to more commercial usage of this technology. Ever since the introduction of first cone beam imaging back in 2001 as NewTom QR DVT 9000 (Benavides, et al., 2012), a lot of systems have been introduced in the market. All of these systems can be categorized on the basis of their detection system. For maxillofacial applications, most of these units used a charge-coupled device and an image intensifier tube. Only recently, a flat panel imager was brought into applications which consisted of a scintillator made up of cesium iodide and an amorphous silicon thin film transistor (Shah, Mann, Tornai, Richmond, Zentai, 2014; Stratemann, Huang, Maki, Miller, Hatcher, 2014). These systems generated lesser noise and did not need the preprocessing for the reductions of geometric disto rtions present in the configuration of detectors. Applications of Cone Beam Imaging in Clinical Dental Practice Cone beam imaging technology is suitable for usage in clinical dental practice due to its size, unlike the conventional computed tomography scanners that are expensive and large to maintain and purchase (Poeschl, et al., 2013). In dental practices where space is at a premium, dose considerations and costs are taken under consideration and the scanning scope is limited to the head, cone beam imaging systems become quite popular. All cone beam imaging technology units provide sagittal, coronal and axial images, with basic enhancement options of magnification, zoom and visual adjustments, have the capability of cursor-driven measurement and annotation additions. Other enhancements include color ranges and contrast levels within the frame window. Values of cone beam imaging technology imaging in post-operative assessment of craniofacial fractures (Wortche, et al., 2014; Mischkowski, et al., 2014), TMJ assessments (Honda, et al., 2014; Tsiklakis, Syriopoulos, Stamatakis, 2014; Kijima, et al., 2014), surgical assessment of pathology and implant planning (Weitz, et al., 2011; Maret, et al., 2014; Liang, et al., 2010) have been evaluated into applications. Similarly, cone beam imaging technology has also been found into popular applications in the field of orthodontics for the assessment of development and growths (Stratemann S. , Huang, Maki, Hatcher, Miller, 2011), with popularity increasing evermore at the Wes t Coast of the United States. Advantages of Cone Beam Imaging Cone beam imaging technology is highly suitable for the craniofacial area as it provides clear images of bones and contrasted structures. There are a number of advantages for cone beam imaging technology over the conventional computed tomography which include: Limitation of X-Ray Beam With the reduction of the size of irradiated area to the area of interest by the collimation of primary x-ray beam, the amount of radiation dose is greatly reduced. Most units can be adjusted to scan the beam perfectly allowing the scan of entire craniofacial complex whenever necessary. Accuracy of Images In the conventional computed tomography, the voxels are rectangular and anisotropic, whereas the voxels in cone beam imaging are square and isotropic. This allows the units to produce high quality images varying from as high as 0.4mm down to as few as 0.125mm of resolution. Rapid Scan Time Since all the images are acquired within a single rotation, the scan time is rapid and comparable to the medical spiral systems ranging from 10 seconds to 70 seconds. The reduction in scan time also reduces the probability of motion artifacts (Suomalainen, Vehmas, Kortesniemi, Robinson, Peltola, 2014). Reduction in Doses Different reports indicate that the effective radiation dose is reduced greatly in conic beam imaging systems as compared to conventional computed tomographic systems. The average dosage of the conventional systems is reduced up to 98% in the cone beam imaging systems (Tyndall Kohltfarber, 2012; Pauwels, et al., 2012; Tyndall, et al., 2012). Reduced Image Artifacts Cone beam imaging technology images produce low image artifacts due to the suppressed algorithms and increased number of projections, especially in the reconstructions designed secondarily for observing teeth and jaws (Miles, 2013). Conclusion The rapid commercialization and development of cone beam imaging technology has undoubtedly increased the access of dental practitioners to 3D radiographic procedures dedicated to imaging the maxillofacial region in the clinical dental practice. Cone beam imaging technology imaging provides sub-millimeter, high quality images with spatial resolution and short scanning times ranging between ten seconds to a minute, defining it as a convenient source of diagnostic procedures. References Benavides, E., Rios, H. F., Ganz, S. D., An, C. H., Resnik, R., Reardon, G. T., Wang, H. L. (2012). Use of cone beam computed tomography in implant dentistry: the International Congress of Oral Implantologists consensus report. Implant dentistry, 78-86. Honda, K., Matumoto, K., Kashima, M., Takano, Y., Kawashima, S., Arai, Y. (2014). Single air contrast arthrography for temporomandibular joint disorder using limited cone beam computed tomography for dental use. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Kijima, N., Honda, K., Kuroki, Y., Sakabe, J., Ejima, K., Nakajima, I. (2014). Relationship between patient characteristics, mandibular head morphology and thickness of the roof of the glenoid fossa in symptomatic temporomandibular joints. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Liang, X., Jacobs, R., Hassan, B., Li, L., Pauwels, R., Corpas, L., Lambrichts, I. (2010). A comparative evaluation of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) and multi-slice CT (MSCT): Part I. On subjective image quality. European journal of radiology, 2(75), 265-269. Lofthag-Hansen, S., Thilander-Klang, A., Grà ¶ndahl, K. (2011). Evaluation of subjective image quality in relation to diagnostic task for cone beam computed tomography with different fields of view.European journal of radiology,80(2), 483-488. Maret, D., Peters, O. A., Galibourg, A., Dumoncel, J., Esclassan, R., Kahn, J. L., Telmon, N. (2014). Comparison of the Accuracy of 3-dimensional Cone-beam Computed Tomography and Micro-Computed Tomography Reconstructions by Using Different Voxel Sizes. Journal of endodontics, 9(40), 1321-1326. Miles, D. A. (2013). Atlas of cone beam imaging for dental applications. Quintessence Pub. Mischkowski, R. A., Scherer, P., Ritter, L., Neugebauer, J., Keeve, E., Zoller, J. E. (2014). Diagnostic quality of multiplanar reformations obtained with a newly developed cone beam device for maxillofacial imaging. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Noo, F. (2010, March). X-ray cone-beam computed tomography: principles, applications, challenges and solutions. In APS March Meeting Abstracts , 1, 5003. Pauwels, R., Beinsberger, J., Collaert, B., Theodorakou, C., Rogers, J., Walker, A., Horner, K. (2012). Effective dose range for dental cone beam computed tomography scanners. European journal of radiology, 2(81), 267-271. Poeschl, P. W., Schmidt, N., Guevara-Rojas, G., Seemann, R., Ewers, R., Zipko, H. T., Schicho, K. (2013). Comparison of cone-beam and conventional multislice computed tomography for image-guided dental implant planning.Clinical oral investigations,17(1), 317-324. Shah, J., Mann, S. D., Tornai, M. P., Richmond, M., Zentai, G. (2014, March). MTF characterization in 2D and 3D for a high resolution, large field of view flat panel imager for cone beam CT. In SPIE Medical Imaging. Stratemann, S. A., Huang, J. C., Maki, K., Miller, A. J., Hatcher, D. C. (2014). Comparison of cone beam computed tomography imaging with physical measures. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Stratemann, S., Huang, J. C., Maki, K., Hatcher, D., Miller, A. J. (2011). Three-dimensional analysis of the airway with cone-beam computed tomography. American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, 5(140), 607-615. Suomalainen, A., Vehmas, T., Kortesniemi, M., Robinson, S., Peltola, J. (2014). Accuracy of linear measurements using dental cone beam and conventional multislice computed tomography. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Tsiklakis, K., Syriopoulos, K., Stamatakis, H. C. (2014). Radiographic examination of the temporomandibular joint using cone beam computed tomography. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Tyndall, D. A., Price, J. B., Tetradis, S., Ganz, S. D., Hildebolt, C., Scarfe, W. C. (2012). Position statement of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology on selection criteria for the use of radiology in dental implantology with emphasis on cone beam computed tomography. Oral surgery, oral medicine, oral pathology and oral radiology, 6(113), 817-826. Tyndall, D., Kohltfarber, H. (2012). Application of cone beam volumetric tomography in endodontics. Australian Dental Journal(57), 72-81. doi:10.1111/j.1834-7819.2011.01654.x Weitz, J., Deppe, H., Stopp, S., Lueth, T., Mueller, S., Hohlweg-Majert, B. (2011). Accuracy of templates for navigated implantation made by rapid prototyping with DICOM datasets of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). Clinical Oral Investigations, 6(15), 1001-1006. Wortche, R., Hassfeld, S., Lux, C. J., Mussig, E., Hensley, F. W., Krempien, R., Hofele, C. (2014). Clinical application of cone beam digital volume tomography in children with cleft lip and palate. Dentomaxillofacial Radiology.

Critiquing Gender Constancy as Practice and as Model :: Gender Sex Research Essays Papers

Critiquing Gender Constancy as Practice and as Model "What is REAL?" asked the rabbit one day..."It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." A current debate in Developmental Psychology centers around when gender labeling, identity, and stereotyping first occur in children, and how the timing of these events correlates with a moment in every child's life where they reach what is called "gender constancy." Gender constancy, briefly, is the knowledge that the mechanical sex one has been assigned will always be his or her sex, but also the knowledge that he or she will always be a girl or boy, and the characteristics that go along with that gender are a part of his or her permanent future identity. Before the age of around three or four, children state that they believe that they can grow up to be a different gender than they are now, and they can change genders based on how they dress or cut their hair. I guess fortunately slower than many children, I struggled with this concept of gender constancy long after mastering that rabbit-hat illusion, and it never really caused me a great deal of pain or confusion until the end of high school. The fact that I never really liked girls, but that I was a girl never really occurred to me as a problem. Looking back now, I was such a contradiction because I did so many "girl" things, but I didn't think I respected "girl" things. I could easily observe and then decide not wear make up or high heels and my protests of "girl" were obvious, but I was quiet and polite in my way of acting and speaking I didn't have gender constancy when I was 3 or 4; I was 18 when I finally realized, "I'm a girl", and despite my respect for "boy" things, I was never going to be a boy, and although I could do as many "boy" things as I wanted, society would always treat me differently.

Looking Deathworthy Essay

Researchers Jennifer L. Eberhardt, Paul G. Davis Valerie J. Purdie-Vaughns, and Sheri Lynn Johnson studied whether being stereotypically black influences the probability of receiving the death penalty. Sociologist have previously proven that people quickly apply racial stereotypes to blacks who have the stereotypically appearance of a black person. This racial profile effects how people judge an individual and this judgment may very well influence how one is treated by others. This study is important because it shows how racial stereotypes can affect the sentence given to a defendant guilty of murder. The relationship of the different sentences of black on black murders vs. black on white murders is also slightly exposed in this study. For science, this shows a new perspective of how modern society views and profiles African-American men. These stereotypes have and influence on how people treat one another, in this case African-American murder defendants, which is changing society as a whole. Judgment plays a major role in how we interact with one another. The researchers had a very basic research design. There topic was if being stereotypically black influences the possibility of being sentenced with the death penalty. They defined there problem by stating how previous researchers have found a correlation between racial profiling and how people judge others. Researchers have also found that murders of white victims are more likely than murderers of black victims to be sentenced to death. The article Looking Deathworthy by the researchers that conducted this experiment, states that the researchers reviewed plenty of previous studies, theories, and cases. They conducted the experiment in two methods. The first method they showed pictures of 44 black males convicted of murdering white victims in Pennsylvania and Philadelphia during 1979 and 1999, and showing their pictures to raters. The raters where Stanford University undergraduates who were not told the men in the pictures where convicted murderers. They simply rated the men according to how stereotypically black they looked. The researchers found that the defendants who appeared to be more stereotypically black than the others were more likely to receive a death sentence. In the second method, they used the same databases and procedures to see if the same result would be obtained in the experiment if the victims were black. They found that the perceived stereo typicality of black defendants convicted of murdering black victims did not predict a death sentence. There were a couple of limitations made by these researchers that might have effect the outcome of the research. The researchers only used black defendants from the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia area. These changes make the research only correct for that area at that particular time. They should have broadened their case studies to all the states in the U. S. the researchers also only used raters from Standford University. There is a greater chance the people from the same area and same age group judge individuals with the same mentality. They should have used different age groups and people from different backgrounds as raters. T would have made the study more valid. I feel that this was an excellent theory to experiment and I agree that it is true. Capital punishment does give harder sentences for murder defendants who look stereotypically black. However, the study should have been broader. The researchers had variables that if they removed, would have allowed their findings to be more valid.

How Alcohol Affects People essays

How Alcohol Affects People essays According to the survey about 70% of college students consume alcohol every month. How often do you drink? I have some opportunities to drink alcohol, and I have noticed that people react differently to alcohol. The reason is that the rate of alcohol metabolism varies among individuals, and it is largely determined by genetic factor and drinking behavior. Today, I would like to explain how alcohol affects people. First of all, when we take alcohol, about 20% is absorbed from stomach into the bloodstream. About 75% is absorbed through the upper part of intestine. The rate of absorption is affected by various factors. For example, food in the stomach slows the rate of absorption. On the other hand, carbonated beverage like champagne increases the rate of absorption. Secondly, alcohol is transported through the body by the blood. A large amount of alcohol is metabolized in the liver. The rest is metabolized in the stomach. From 2 to 10 % of ingested alcohol is not metabolized, but is excreted by the lungs, kidneys, and sweat glands. Next, I would like to talk about the effects of alcohol consumption. At low doses, alcohol makes people relaxed and causes a release of inhibition and alertness. Even people become more sociable. However, at higher doses, alcohol has negative effects. People more tend to get angry or cry easily and become emotionally instable. People become sleepy, and most sensory function is reduced. Finally, at very high doses, alcohol causes a dangerous circumstance. Most people are completely unable to function physically and psychologically. Usually, coma can happen. Also, alcohol poisoning occurs when people drink a large amount of alcohol in a short period of time. You should avoid rapid and binge drinking and notice how dangerous alcohol poisoning is because it results in not only unconsciousness but also death. In conclusion, we have the different rate of alcohol metabol ...