• recognize and explain how the scientific method is used to solve problems
• make observations and discriminate between scientific and pseudoscientific explanations
• weigh evidence and make decisions based on strengths and limitations of scientific knowledge and the scientific method
• use knowledge of biological principles, the scientific method, and appropriate technologies to ask relevant questions, develop hypotheses, design and conduct experiments, interpret results, and draw conclusions
1. Select one of the topics listed below (a-e).
2. Find at least three reliable information sources related to your chosen topic. You are encouraged to use the UMUC library in your search: http://libguides.umuc.edu/science.
3. Write a paper with title page, introduction, several paragraphs addressing the questions, conclusion and references. You must write in your own words and paraphrase information from the selected information sources, addressing each of the questions for your chosen topic. Your paper should consist of less than 10% direct quotes. Your paper should be 750-1500 words, excluding references and title page. Use APA style for references: https://www.umuc.edu/library/libhow/apa_tutorial.cfm
4. Submit your assignment to the Assignment folder by the due date listed in the course schedule.
Topics (select one)
a) Stem cells. Your friend has suffered a spinal cord injury after a bad car accident. The medical team has decided that he is a good candidate for a clinical trial using stem cell therapy. Your friend has not had a biology course since high school, so you decide to write him a letter sharing your knowledge of stem cells. Include in your letter a description of the biology of stem cells and how these cells are unique from other cells. Contrast the different types of stem cells, including pros and cons for each type. Explain how stems cells can be used to treat diseases and injury, with special focus on spinal cord injuries. Include information from at least one research study or clinical trial. Conclude with your own opinion.

b) Genetically modified organisms (GMOs). A friend tells you that she avoids foods containing GMOs because they are unhealthy. You decide to use the knowledge gained from your biology class and some additional research to form your own opinion on GMOs. Answer the following questions backed up by reliable information sources. What is the purpose of genetically engineering of crop plants? Include at least two specific examples of commonly grown GMO crops. How are GMOs created? Use the provided course materials and make a connection to the central dogma of molecular biology in your explanation. Which foods in your supermarket contain GMOs? Are foods that contain GMOs safe for human consumption? What types of regulations exist for these foods? Clearly explain your reasoning for each answer in your paper and conclude whether or not you agree with your friend.

c) Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) has been the most recent breakthrough discovery in bioengineering that enables scientists to edit DNA. Because you have studied biology in this course, you have volunteered at your niece’s Middle School Science Club to monitor a student debate about CRISPR. The students will be watching the following video before the discussion:https://www.com/watch?time_continue=252&v=2pp17E4E-O8and you need to be prepared in case there are any questions. Please research and write an answer to each of the following questions: What is “CRISPR”? What role does Cas9 play in the CRISPR process? How does the CRISPR-Cas9 system snip and replace any DNA sequence? What are the potential benefits and drawbacks of gene editing? Include specific examples. Do you believe that the inherent risks of modifying animal DNA is worth the rewards? Explain. Do you believe that it is ethical to genetically engineer humans and/or animals? Explain.

d) Vaccines. Your friend is worried about the many vaccines that his newborn son is scheduled to receive and asks you for advice since you are taking a biology course. Start with an explanation of how vaccines work. Briefly contrast the traditional methods used to create vaccines with more recently used biotechnology techniques. Then list some of the diseases that babies and children in the US are routinely vaccinated against. How has vaccinations impacted the frequency of these diseases over the past 100 years? Why are some people worried about giving their children vaccines? Is there scientific evidence to support these concerns? Conclude with advice to your friend in regard to getting the recommended vaccines based on what you learned from reliable information sources.

e) Fracking (hydraulic fracturing) and tar sands (oil sands). With society’s dependence on nonrenewable fossil fuels, the oil & gas industry is turning to hydraulic fracturing and tar (oil) sands to extract natural gas and oil. A friend asks you “What’s all this controversy in the news about fracking and tar sands?” Briefly explain to your friend how hydraulic fracturing and tar (oil) sands are used to obtain these fossil fuels. Then, in more detail, describe the environmental problems that may result from these processes and why they are controversial. Issues that should be addressed involves water, air and soil pollution with special focus on global climate change, effects on human health, and effects on other species and natural ecosystems. Finally, give your opinions on possible solutions to these environmental problems, with your reasoning backed by information from reliable information sources.

Steubenville, Ohio Case Revisited Discussion Question# 1
For this discussion post, you will be examining the Steubenville, Ohio rape case that occurred in August 2012 and received national news coverage. If you are not familiar with this case, please familiarize yourself with the facts of the case. This case involved two 16-year-old high school football players accused of raping a 16-year-old girl in the small town of Steubenville, Ohio. Friends of the alleged perpetrators were noted to be joking about the rape on video and online, including posting pictures of the victim unconscious. Rape Trauma Syndrome has been discussed and the unique symptoms that rape survivors often experience. Please address what symptoms you might expect the victim in this case to exhibit. Also include a discussion of what factors might impact her recovery and predict whether or not she develops PTSD from this tragic rape. In your discussion, also examine what community services might be helpful to the victim and what the most efficacious treatment might be. Please also discuss whether you think the criminal justice system may have re-traumatized this victim. Feel free to include a history of relevant laws pertaining to the prosecution of rape cases. Other considerations could include the role of culture (i.e., this rape occurred in a small town in the foothills of the Appalachia) and relevant legal issues (i.e., prosecution of teenage defendants, whether a fair trial is possible, etc.).

3 references

In Chapter 1 of the textbook (The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft), Stein and Stein explain how anthropologists, unlike many other social scientists, seek a holistic perspective on culture. Anthropologists therefore study religion as something that is connected to other aspects of people’s lives and values, such as, for example, household economics, gender, and migration experiences. The following questions ask you to reflect on some of these connections. Submit all question answers as a single document to the assignment dropbox.

What do the stories that Brown shares about Marie Noelsine Joseph (“Sina”) and Philomise (Mama Lola’s grandmother and mother) reveal about Mama Lola’s worldview? (Anthropologists’ understanding of worldview is defined in Chapter 2 of the textbook. For example, you could write about things such as gender roles, family ties, or connections to Haiti and Africa.) (250-300 words; worth 50 points)

Economic exchange and reciprocity are big parts of the birthday party ritual that Mama Lola threw for Azaka, (described in Chapter 2 of Mama Lola), and the trip that Mama Lola and Karen McCarthy Brown made to Haiti, described on pages 169-182 (for those of you using digital versions, these pages fall in the Kousinn chapter, starting with the section called “A Trip to the Provinces” and ending just before the section called “Storytelling.”) Briefly describe these economic practices and analyze how they bind people both to one another, and to specific spirits. (250-300 words; worth 50 points)
Additional information:

Your essay answers can go a little bit over the word count guide if you like, but if they are shorter than the lower number, they will lose points. The only two sources that should be used in this exam are the class textbook and the ethnography, Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn. There is therefore no need to spell out the full names or the book titles each time you want to refer to them, or to include a bibliography. HOWEVER, it should be clear which book you are using (for example, you can use statements such as “Brown wrote that,” or “according to the textbook,” or “In Mama Lola, we learn…”). Also, when referring to specific sections, you must indicate the year of publication and which pages you are referring to in parentheses. For example:

According to Stein and Stein, legends are seen by believers as true stories, even if certain aspects of the story may be exaggerated to emphasize a particular message (2011: 31). (for when you use specific information, but put it in your own words).

OR “In contrast to folktales, legends are seen by members of the culture as representing events that have actually taken place, although some embellishment often occurs” (Stein and Stein 2011: 31). (for when you quote something directly)
There are two books necessary for this: The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft 3rd edition by rebecca steins and philip steins.
the second book is Mama lola by Karen McCarthy Brown

measuring satisfaction (utility) Discussion
Discussion question Chp 7 microeconomic
Identify people who would be likely to value time very highly and others who would place a low value on time. Discuss how those two groups of people would react to such situations as:
(a) waiting in line to buy a product.
(b) shopping for hours to find the best prices on products such as cars, stereo
equipment, and soft drinks…
(c) purchase of services such as: cleaning, laundry, landscaping, and other services…
Use examples and real-world scenarios to support your argument the response must be a minimum of 500 words to receive full credit.

In this part of the project you are to assume to have been hired to join a team serving as an internal financial analyst to THE COMPANY. Your client plans to invest in bonds and (or) stocks issued by THE COMPANY (SELECTED BY INSTRUCTOR). In part 6 of the assignment you are asked to provide some recommendations to THE COMPANY’S management.
THE COMPANY for part 2 of the project can be the company that you were using for the Research Project Part 1 or ANOTHER COMPANY determined by your professor. THE COMPANY for this part of the project must have bonds listed on the website http://finra-markets.morningstar.com/BondCenter/Default.jsp. To find the information on bonds, click on Search in the middle of the screen (under Market Center Bond Guide), under Quick Search type the Issuer Name and the Symbol, and click SHOW RESULTS.
Alternatively, you can request approval of another publicly traded company. This request must be submitted before the end of the first week of the course. The request must include
• identification of the company by ticker symbol and name
• a reasonable and appropriate explanation of why you want to examine the alternative company
• the source of the analyst’s report that will be used in the analysis (which must be submitted to me)
• acknowledgement by you that all the specific elements of the assignment (see below) will be prepared by you and included in the final research project report
SUGGESTED WEBSITES
www.morningstar.com – To find the information for your company you need to type the stock symbol in the Quotes window to get into the company’s page.
http://finra-markets.morningstar.com/BondCenter/Default.jsp – To find the information on bonds, click on Search in the middle of the screen (under Market Center Bond Guide), under Quick Search type the Issuer Name and the Symbol, and click SHOW RESULTS.
www.marketwatch.com -To find the information for your company you need to type the stock symbol in the Search window to get into the company’s page.
www.money.cnn.com -To find the information for your company you need to type the stock symbol in the Search window to get into the company’s page.
www.finance.yahoo.com – To find the information for your company you need to type the stock symbol in the Search window to get into the company’s page.
www.nyse.com – Click on Data, then click on Stocks (under Quotes), and type the name of the company or the stock symbol in the window “Keyword or symbol” to get into the company’s page.
www.nasdaq.com – To find the information for your company you need to type the stock symbol in the Search window to get into the company’s page.
Company’s websites

YOUR SPECIFIC ASSIGNMENT
Using the information from the websites the student will develop evaluation of bond and stock performance for THE COMPANY (SELECTED BY INSTRUCTOR). (The evaluation portion will total 85% of the assignment grade)
-1—Background and Industry (one short paragraph).
-2- The financial leverage ratios (10% of the project grade)
a) Find the financial leverage ratios for THE COMPANY assigned for you of the project for the last 3-5 years in the Internet. Present these ratios as the table(s) in your project.
• Debt-to-assets ratio (Debt ratio)
• Debt-to Equity ratio
• Interest Coverage ratio (the Times Interest Earned)
b) Write (about) 1 page of the analysis of the ratio results. In your analysis you should answer the following questions. Please explain your answer to each question.
How is THE COMPANY financing its assets? Discuss how much risk is associated with the bonds issued by the company? How can this risk be measured? Please explain.
-3- Collect and evaluate the data about bond performance of the assigned company. (15% of the project grade)
1. Copy the quotations of two bonds issued by THE COMPANY (SELECTED BY INSTRUCTOR) that contain the Price. Present these quotations in your project.
2. Assume that par value of the bond is $1,000. What were the last prices of the bonds in $$$ (listed in the Price column)? Show your work in your project.
3. Assume that par value of the bond is $1,000. Calculate the annual coupon interest payments. Show your work in your project.
4. Assume that par value of the bond is $1,000. Calculate the current yield of the bonds. Show your work in your project.
5. Write a 1-2 page of the analysis of the bonds. In your analysis you should answer the following questions. Please explain your answer to each question.
a) How much is the YTM listed in quotations is for the bonds? Explain the meaning of YTM?
b) If you are going to buy a bond issued by THE COMPANY, which bond would you choose? Why?
c) Are these bonds callable? If the bonds that you chose are callable (non-callable), will it change your decision to buy them?
d) If you are an investor who is looking for a bond to invest in, are you going to buy a bond that you chose? You should develop a specific recommendation, with supporting rationale to explain your answer.

-4- Collect and evaluate the data about stock performance of the assigned company for the last one year. (totally 35% of the project grade).
1) Find the market ratios for the company for the last 1-3 years and its major competitor for the last year in the Internet. (10% of the project grade)
a. Present the market ratios as the table(s) in your project.
b. Write about 1 page of analysis of the market ratio results that you found. Compare the market ratio results against the industry or main competitor. In your report please answer the question: Are the common stockholders receiving an adequate return on their investment?
c. Compare the P/E ratio of your company with the industry average or 5-year average. Is the stock overvalued, undervalued, or properly valued? Why? In accordance with your findings, is it reasonable to buy the stock? Please explain your answers.
-2) Analysis of the historical stock prices trend for the last year. (10% of the project grade)
a. Collect and evaluate the data about stock prices of the assigned company for the last one year for the company and its major competitor.
b. Create the chart(s) using the stock price chart tools on the websites or Excel. Present the chart(s) in your project.
c. Write about 0.5 page of analysis the historic stock prices trend for the last year.
3) Apply the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) Security Market Line to estimate the required return on THE COMPANY stock. Note that you will need the risk-free rate and the market return. Show this information in your project. (15% of the project grade)
1. Apply the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) Security Market Line to estimate the required return on stock. Note that you will need the risk-free rate, beta, and the market return.
a) To get the current yield on 10-year Treasury securities go to www.finance.yahoo.com -click on Markets – U.S. Treasury Bonds Rates. You will use the current yield on 10-year Treasury securities as the risk-free rate to estimate the required rate of return on stocks. Discuss how appropriate this rate is as a measure of risk.
b) Between 1926 and 2014, the compound annual rate of return of S&P 500 is estimated a 7.5%. We will use this number as the market return. Discuss how appropriate this rate is as a measure of return.
c) Beta is listed in www.finance.yahoo.com under Trading Information – Stock Price History, as well as on the company’s front page. What is the beta listed for the company? What does it mean?
d) Calculate the required return on the stock using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) Security Market Line. Please show your work.
2. There are several methods how to calculate the growth rate. One of the possible ways is to calculate the sustainable growth rate as g = ROE *(1- Dividend payout ratio). You can find ROE and the dividend Payout Ratio on www.finance.yahoo.com under Statistics.
Calculate the company’s sustainable growth rate. Please show your work.
3. Apply the Gordon model (constant growth rate model) to calculate the intrinsic (economic) value of the stock. Please show your work.
Please note that for some companies it is not possible to use the Gordon model. If that is the case, please explain why it is not possible to use this model for your company. What other models is it possible to use?
4. Compare the result of your calculations with the current stock price. Is the stock overvalued, undervalued, or properly valued? Why? In accordance with your findings, is it reasonable to buy the stock? Why? Please explain your answer.
-5- Develop a specific recommendation, with supporting rationale for your client, as to whether the assigned company’s recent trend in financial and stock performance is of sufficient financial strength to warrant entering in a long-term investment in bonds and/or stocks of the company. Explain your answer (about 1 page) (10% of the project grade).
-6- Develop a specific recommendation, with supporting rationale for the COMPANY’S management – Think about the financial strategy of the company, how to best balance THE COMPANY’S financial leverage to optimize shareholder wealth going forward taking into consideration the company’s current market position, credit rating, dividend policy, etc. (10% of the project grade).
-7- Reflection – the students should write a paragraph in their own words reflecting on what they learned from the assignment and how they think they could apply what they learned in the workplace. (5% of the project grade).

You can watch the movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5VZDGYGQGw&t=549s or just read summaries about it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clean_(film)
Essay One
Clean, by Olivier Assayas
Argument title
14 point font, double spaced
Introduction of 10 – 16 lines that includes the title of the story/film,
and the essay thesis in the last line.
Two paragraphs of between 22 – 26 lines each
Beginning with an argumentative topic sentence,
containing the name of the character you discuss in that paragraph

Clean
The characters:
Emily (mother of Jay, wife of Lee)
Lee (rock star who dies of drugs)
Albrecht (father of Lee, guardian of Jay
Jay (son of Emily and Lee)
Rosemary (wife of Albrecht, mother of Lee)
Elena (friend of Emily, allowed Emily to live with her)
Vernon (manager of Lee, friend of Lee and Emily)
Tricky (rock artist, friend of Lee, and of Albrecht)
Irene Paolini (friend of Emily who has a TV show)
Sandrine (works for Irene, likes Emily)
Jean Pierre (loyal friend of Lee and of Emily in Paris)

Can Emily Do It?

Emily lost custody of Jay while she was in prison (six months). She wanted to regain custody of Jay, but she had many ‘marks’ against her. In the later part of the story, she seemed to be trying to turn things around, and behave like a good mother. Albrecht is ready to give Jay to Emily, finally, but that might partly be because he believes that he and his wife Rosemary are too old and unhealthy to do the job anymore.

By the final stages of the story, by the time Albrecht comes to Paris, does the evidence in the story suggest that Emily was ready to be given a chance to assume responsibility for Jay again, or not?

Make an argument, she is or she is not.

Whichever way you believe, yes she is ready, or no she is not ready, use evidence from the story to support your answer.
Since you are writing the first paragraph for me, be very careful that your topic sentence makes clear which of the essay assignments you have chosen, because you had two choices. The topic sentence should be in a clear argument form, and from reading it, I should know what you are going to do in the rest of the paragraph.

Also – one practical way that you might approach the assignment is to think in terms of the events of the story, and the two paragraphs. You are expected to use the facts of the story to support, to prove your argument. At all times.

This is not an abstract, general theoretical or analytical discussion — this is an argument paper backed by facts.

So, choose the four or five or six key points from the story that you want to use, that you want to make, and arranging them chronologically, split them in half and put half of your evidence in the first paragraph, and the other half of your evidence in the second paragraph.

So when I read your first paragraph, I should probably not be reading about things that happened at the end of the story, because then what do you plan to put in the second paragraph?

 

Interpretating the past Declaration of independence

What are the key arguments that the Declaration of Independence makes for the colonies’ separation from Great Britain? Where do the Founders get their ideas concerning the concepts of natural rights, personal liberty, and the role and dissolution of government? How does the Declaration of Independence define what the role of government should and should not be? Is the Declaration of Independence a conservative or revolutionary document? How/why? What did these men risk by putting their names to this document? Include Turabian-style citations as needed. Be sure to stay in third-person throughout the paper.

“Declaration of the Rights of Women” by Olympe de Gouge (1791)

the word source means Declaration of the rights of women.
-The first paragraph should introduce the source and review the bibliographic information (author, type, date).
-Second paragraph should summarize the contents of the source effectively and completely.
-Third paragraph (the conclusion) should explain how the source helps us better understand the larger context of world history as discussed in the assigned textbook chapters. Refer to specific people, events, ideas, etc. with notation of the correct pages in the textbook with (in-text and works cited) MLA formatting used in citations.

https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1791degouge1.asp

In this assignment, you will select a program, quality improvement initiative, or other project from your place of employment. Assume you are presenting this program to the board for approval of funding. Write an executive summary (850-1,000 words) to present to the board, from which they will make their decision to fund your program or project. The summary should include:
The purpose of the program or project.
The target population or audience.
The benefits of the program or project
The cost or budget justification.
The basis upon which the program or project will be evaluated.
Share your written proposal with your manager, supervisor or other colleague in a formal leadership position within a health care organization. Request their feedback using the following questions as prompts:
Do you believe the proposal would be approved if formally proposed?
What are some strengths and weaknesses of the proposal?
Submit the written proposal along with the “Executive Summary Feedback Form.”
Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to Turnitin. Please refer to the directions in the Student Success Center.
NRS451V. ExecutiveSummaryFeedbackForm_2-24-24.doc

This is for two different movies: Gattaca and My Sister’s Keeper
For the following questions, be sure that you are approaching your answers from an ethical perspective. What ethical principles apply to each question, and how? The answer for each should be 250 or more words

Discussion Questions – Gattaca
1. Genetic engineering offers the potential to eliminate genetic diseases, improve health and prolong life. It would seem reasonable to support such technologies for the positive benefits they can provide society. What seems less clear is whether we should be able to select traits that might have to do with improving social status, but not necessarily with improving health. If technology should advance (and it will) to the point where we can select physical attributes such as height, body type, eye color, hair color and type, etc.; should we take advantage of that technology, and why or why not?
2. Are Vincent’s and Jerome’s actions justified by the nature of the society in which they live? If you think they are, why or how? If you think they’re not justified, why not?
3. The Director at Gattaca makes the statement that no one can exceed their potential. Do you agree or disagree with this statement and why?

Discussion Questions – My Sister’s Keeper
1. Is Anna justified in seeking medical emancipation from her parents? Why or why not?
2. Is the agreement reached between Anna and Kate ethical? How? What principles apply?
3. Are Sara and Brian meeting their obligations as parents to their children? Answer this question separately in regard to each of the three children.
4. Under what circumstances (if any) should minor children be allowed to make an independent decision about their healthcare?
Use ” Nursing Ethics fourth edition