Banking Industry in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance

Journal of Business Research, vol. 3, 2001 This article is brought to you by www. bdresearch. org Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance Sharif Rayhan Siddique* A F M Mafizul Islam** Abstract: The paper attempted to highlight the prospects and opportunities of banking sector in Bangladesh. Like other economic sector in the country, Banking is one of major sectors which contribute to the national economy. The study tried to furnish the overview of the performances of banking sector and also find out the comparison among the various categories of banks with respect to the Profitability.Finally, the paper tried to establish the linear relationship among the various variables and net profit of the banking sector. 1. Introduction Banking sector of Bangladesh is one of the major sectors, which contributes significantly to the national economy. The sector comprises a number of banks in various categories. Considering ownership the sector can be classified in to four major categories – such as Nationalized Commercial Banks (NCBs), Specialized Banks (SPBs), Private Commercial Banks (PCBs), and Trans-National Banks (TNBs). The list of banks under different categories is furnished in the appendix – A.The study has been initiated to analyze the contribution of this sector and its profitability. This paper attempts to provide an overview of the contribution of the sector in national economy. The paper also analyzes the profitability of different categories of banks. Finally a regression analysis has been done to examine the relationship between the profitability and other variables. 2. Contribution of the Banking sector in National Economy Economic development – of the country is executed by the contribution of various economic sectors. Like agriculture, industries, power, transport, rade service, etc. , banking sector also has a contribution to the economic growth. In mid 80s Banking and Insurance contributed 1. 69% of GDP and g radually the figure was increasing. The maximum contribution was 2. 09% of GDP in the year 1993 and it was 2. 00% in 1996-971 Average growth rate of this contribution was 1. 51% of GDP, which shows a positive trend. Again, the sector makes a positive impact on the economic development by generating employment. In the year 1980 total number of employees in this sector was 59,235 but with in 15 years of time the figure shoot approximately double to 101,444. The average growth rate of employment generation was 3. 76% (1980-1995). Countries like Bangladesh have a burden of its unemployment, where as banking sector still keep certain impact on employment generation. __________________________ * Assistant Professor, Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka. ** Associate Professor, Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka. 1 Calculated from the data collected from Economic Trend, December 1997. 2 Ibid. 2 Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and P erformance Branches of the banks were also growing significantly.Increasing branches indicate a wide service provider to the population of Bangladesh. Overall growth rate of the bank branches was 2. 11% (1980-1995). But before 1990 the rate was 3. 00% and after 1990 it was 0. 92%. In early 80s for the first time Government of Bangladesh (GOB) allowed private sector to operate commercial banks. At that time number of bank branches was growing rapidly. In the early 90s this growth rate was reduced, which may be because of the saturation stage. Individuals and business organizations used to deposit their savings in the bank and borrow money form it.More the bank branches more people can be covered to avail them in banking services. Average population per branch was 19,875 during the period from 1984 to 1995. Because of the higher population growth rate (2. 22%),3 in spite of increasing branches, the population per branch was also increasing. Commercial banks are one of the profit makin g organizations, they are also making money by investing their deposits to the profitable venture through lending to the entrepreneurs. Commercial banks earn money from interest for loan and commissions and service charges for the services and it incurred expenditure as well.Average profit per taka of expenditure was 0. 10. Before 1991 this figure was quite good, but after 1991 the ratio was negative up to 1993. Maximum figure was in the year 1982 that was 0. 23 and minimum was -0. 04 in the year 1991. Recently the ratio became 0. 07 in the year 1995. During 1991 to 1993 net profit was negative. i. e. commercial banks spent more than earning but again they improved the situation by reducing their expenditure compared to income. Banks' income generated by the positive efforts of their employees.Efficient employees can earn more which observed a positive impact to profit generation. Income per employee can be one of the indicators of commercial banks' performance. Average income per e mployee from 1980 to 1995 was Tk. 227,046, i. e. per employees' contribution to income was more than Tk. 2 lacs. The ratio was increasing significantly with the average growth rate of 12%, to Tk. 371,297 in the year 1995. A country leads itself to the economic development by investing and producing more in the local area. Investment can be ensured through increased savings rate.Monetization ratio indicates a positive impact to the economic growth. This ratio is Broad Money to GDP. Average monetization ratio was 28% of GDP, and it was growing significantly from 17% in the year 1981 to 35% in the year 1995. 4 Commercial banks, as a whole, performing well and contributing to the economic development of the country. The average profitability of all banks collectively was 0. 09% during 1980 to 1995, which means profit Tk. 0. 09 earned by utilizing assets of Tk. 100. In every aspect of profit, banking sector contributes to national economy as well as to the individual organization.Despite overall growth of the banking sector was positive, but the performances of different categories of banks were not equally attractive. Following section would compare analytically the performances of various categories of banks. _____________________________________________ 3 4 Calculated from the data collected from Statistical Yearbook, 1996. Ibid. Journal of Business Research, Vol. 3, 2001 3 3. Profitability of the Different Categories of Banks: A Comparative Analysis Main focus of this comparison on net profit earned by the banks.Profit ratio, profit per taka of expenditure, profit per employee, profit per branch, profit per advance account, profit per taka of investment, profit per taka of deposit (savings), and per capita profit earned by the banks will be the variables for this analysis. Various groups of banks have different performances in terms of profit. Average measures were calculated for different categories of banks over the period from 1980 to 1995. 3. 1 Profit Ratio In case of profitability, i. e. amount of profit per Tk. 100 of asset. The ratio indicates the effective utilization of assets.Performance of the organization can be expressed by this ratio. Average profitability ratios for the various categories of banks during 1980 to 1995 were exhibited in the table below: Table 1: Profit Ratio for Various Banks Banks Profit Ratio (%) NCBs 0. 08 SPBs -0. 32 PCBs 0. 13 TNBs 0. 71 Over all 0. 09 Source: Adopted from data in Appendix – B. The table indicated the performances in terms of utilization of assets in generating profit TNBs were the best. Specialized Banks had a very worst situation in utilizing of their assets, by showing negative average net profit.Though as of 1990 net profits were increasing positively, but from 1991 to 1995 these net profit were gradually decreased to negative because of their declining income. On the other hand TNBs performance was excellent as compared to overall banks performance. Average growth rate of net profit for TNBs was 39%, which was extremely good. 3. 2 Profit per Taka of Expenditure Banks earned profit by incurring expenditure for their operations. Effective usage of financial resources led to a commendable profit situation. â€Å"How much profit earned by spending one taka† is the measure of efficiency of an organization.Following table shows net profit per taka of expenditure for the different banks Table 2 : Profit per Taka of Expenditure for Various Banks Banks Profit per taka of expenditure (Tk. ) NCBs 0. 029 SPBs -0. 092 PCBs 0. 033 TNBs 0. 307 Overall 0. 10 Source: Adopted from data in Appendix – B. 4 Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance Over all average profit was Tk. 0. 1 by incurring expenditure of Tk. 1. i. e. average return on expenditure was 10%. But in case of individual performance SPBs had negative average return on expenditure (-9. %), on the other hand TNBs performance (30. 7%) was above the industry average. Other th an these two NCBs and PCBs both had vulnerable situation. 3. 3 Profit per Employee Effective utilization of human resources produces higher return. Earned more profit by few numbers of employee indicates commendable performance of the banks and human efficiency. Since the nature of the industry is service oriented, so human efficiency depends on intellectual abilities of the employees. Following table shows the comparison among various banks Table 3 : Profit per Employee for Various BanksBanks Profit per employee (Tk. ) NCBs 4,538 SPBs -34,216 PCBs 9,659 TNBs 285,659 Over all 12,88 Source: Adopted from data in Appendix – B. Over all profit per employee was Tk. 12,880, i. e. each employee's average contribution to the net profit was Tk. 12,880 in a year. TNBs as compared with overall, the figure was extremely good (Tk. 285,659). There are two indications for this picture, one is TNBs had highly efficient employees, and other is less number of employees. On the other hand excep t SPBs (which had negative figure), NCBs average profit per employee was Tk. ,538, which was far below from TNBs, even below from overall performance, which shows un-utilized human resources. 3. 4 Profit per Branch All categories of banks have numbers of branches covering wide range of the population of the country. To provide service to the wide range of people, banks have to establish multiple branches. Contribution to the total profit of different branches was varied, depending on the amount of deposits and advances. Table below expresses average profit contribution by the branches. Table 4 : Profit per Branch for Various Banks Banks Profit per branch (Tk. ) NCBs 6,205 SPBs -491,827 PCBs 181,548 TNBs 13,171,737 Over all 210,481 Source: Adopted from data in Appendix – B. 5 Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance Considering all commercial banks in Bangladesh, these were earned on an average Tk. 0. 064 from investing one taka. The average Return on Inv estment (ROI) was not inadequate (6. 4%) as compared to any business. In case of TNBs this rate was very attractive (12. 7%), but except SPBs, both NCBs and PCBs had 1. 2% and 2. 5% respectively. 3. 7 Per Capita Profit Commercial banks are operating countrywide by offering services.Accumulating funds and distributing them to entrepreneur was the main function of commercial banks. Wider area coverage makes the commercial bank more comfortable in terms of operation. Per capita profit earned by the commercial bank would indicate overall economic strength of banking system. Average profit gained per head can be expressed in the table below: Table 7 : Per Capita Profit for Various Banks Banks Per Capita Profit (Tk. ) NCBs 2. 53 SPBs -5. 25 PCBs 1. 46 TNBs 2. 51 Over all 10. 66 Source: Adopted from data in Appendix – B. Average profit per individual in the country for all banks was Tk. 0. 66, i. e. banking sector earns over Tk. 10 per head. But using same coverage for different cat egories of banks, the picture would be different. In case of NCBs operation they gained on an average Tk. 2. 53 per individual, where as TNBs earned Tk. 2. 51 per head. Apparently these two figures were same but considering the coverage in terms of number of branches, NCBs have 170 time more branches than TNBs. 3. 8 Overall Situation Considering all variables regarding profit, TNBs were doing extraordinarily good operation in this sector. Because of the policies and managements TNBs performance was better.Keeping TNBs aside, PCBs performance comparatively better. As far as the ownership was concerned both NCBs and SPBs were same. PCBs started their operations in 1982, before the Government of Bangladesh controlled that total financial sector. But after allowing private sectors to operate commercial banks, PCBs were gradually capturing the market share. Surprisingly SPBs had negative performances in every aspect because of their negative net profit. 4. Relationship of Profit With Oth er Variables In the above section comparison of profitability among various groups of banks has been discussed.But it was desired to know about the sensitivity of profit on various variables. Journal of Business Research, Vol. 3, 2001 6 Multiple regression analysis has been done to analyze the relationship between net profit as dependent variable and asset, expenditure, number of employees, number of branches, number of advance accounts, investment, time deposit are as independent variables. In this paper it was assumed that the relationship among the variables was linear, which is ? = A + B? + C? + D? + E? + F? + G? + H? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. i) where, ? is net profit ? is number of employees ? is amount of expenditure ? is number of branches ? is amount of investment ? is amount of asset ? is amount of time deposit ? is number of advance accounts A is constant The following section e xpressed the determination of coefficient of the independent variables, which indicate the degree of influences on net profit by corresponding variables. 4. 1 Regression Result Based on data provided in appendix – C, the values of coefficients and constant were calculated and also found the relationship among them.Multiple linear regression equation is expressed in equation (ii). ? = – 68459+0. 002 ? -0. 186 ? +0. 159? -0. 084? +0. 003? +0. 133 ? -1. 03Ãâ€"10-6?†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. (ii) Above linear equation shows that some of the independent variables have positive relationship and others have negative. Amount of expenditure, amount of investment and number of advance accounts all have negative relationship with net profit. On the other hand amount of asset, number of employees, number of branches and amount of time deposit have positive relationship with net profit.Further, the strength of the relationship among the variables measured by the coefficient of determination (r2). The value was calculated as 0. 89, indicating very strong relationship. Therefore, the independent variables collectively may play important role on earning net profit in the banking sector as a whole. 4. 2 Scope to Improve of Profit In the equation (ii), it was evident that some of the independent variables have positive impact on net profit, though the degree of influences was very low. Net profit may increases by increasing values, which have positive relations.From equation (ii), it was 7 Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance clear that number of employee, number of branches, amount of asset and amount of time deposit have positive relations with net profit. From above relationship, it can be explained that if number of employee increased by one, the net profit will increase by Tk. 0. 002 crores, i. e. every 1,000 employees can contribute Tk. 2 crores to net profit. This indicated that there might be still opportunities to generate employment in th is sector and can contribute to the national economy.Again number of branches has also positive impact on net profit. Equation (ii) reflects that increase in one branch may increase net profit by the amount of Tk. 0. 159 crores, which also testifies that there was still scope to increase branches. In Bangladesh there were opportunities to establish branches in the rural areas where lots of business potentials were looking for the banking service. Another variable the amount of asset has positive relationship with net profit. Even it has very little influences on profit; every Tk. 1,000 crores of assets would increase net profit by the amount of Tk. 3 crores.Therefore, it was apparent that there was still room to increase the amount of asset to earn more profit. Finally, the amount of time deposit was other variable, which has positive influences on net profit. Coefficient of this variable in equation (ii) was 0. 133, this indicated that every Tk. 1,000 crores increase in time deposi t would increase profit by the amount of Tk. 133 crores. Analyzing above relationship, time deposit has stronger influences on net profit. Therefore, banking sector as a whole may increase their contribution to national economy if the amount of time deposit was increased.Analyzing the regression equation it was clear that some of the independent variables have positive control over the generation of net profit, and also might increase the contribution of the banking sector to national economy by increasing the values of those variables. 5. Conclusion The performance of the banking sector in terms of net profit varies in various groups of bank. The study revealed that in every aspect, TNBs had a commendable performance. But comparing among other groups of banks (NCBs, SPBs, and PCBs), PCBs had preferred achievement aiming profit. On the other hand Specialized Banks in Bangladesh had a very poor performance.This meager activity affected the overall banking sector's performance. The co mparison among various categories of banks has been done on the basis of the profit with respect to some other variables. The study also revealed the relationship among the dependent variable and independent variables. The equation (ii) shows the weights of the independent variables that influences net profit of the banking sector. Finally, the paper intended to identify the scopes and opportunities of the factors by which over all net profit might increase, and contribute to the national economy.Journal of Business Research, Vol. 3, 2001 8 References 1. Mohammad Moqbul Hossain Bhuiyan. (1995). Managerial Effectiveness of Private Commercial Banks : A Comparative Study. Journal of Business Studies, Vol. XVI, No-1, June. 2. Sujit Ranjan Saha. (1996). Ancillary Business and Profitability of Banks : Trends and Prospects. Bank Parikrama. Vol. XXI, Nos – 1 & 2, March & June. 3. Taufic Ahmad Choudhury and others. (1994). Comparative Characteristics of Profit Earning and Loss Incurri ng Rural Bank Branches in Bangladesh. Bank Parikrama. Vol. XIX, Nos – 3 & 4, September & December. 4.Abdul Ghafar Ismail. (1993). Deregulation and Bank Behaviour in Mixed markets. The Asian Economic Review. Vol. XXXV, No – 2, August. 5. Dipendra Sinha. (1996). Savings and Economic Growth in India. The Asian Economic Review. Vol. XXXVIII, No – 3, December. 6. Amar Chand Kaushik. (1996). Impact Study of Regional Rural Bank's Credit on Income Generation an d Poverty Alleviation in Rural Haryana. The Asian Economic Review. Vol. XXXVIII, No – 1, April. 7. David Lynch. (1996). Measuring Financial Sector Development : A Study of Selected Asia-Pacific Countries. The Developing Economics. Vol.XXXIV, No – 1, March. 8. Schiller, Bradley R. (1994). The Macro Economy Today. Sixth Edition. McGrawHill Inc. , New York, USA. 9. McConnell, Campbell R. and Brue, Stanley L. (1993). Macro Economics. Twelfth Edition. McGraw-Hill Inc. , New York, USA. 10. Fischer, Stanle y. , Dornbusch, Rudiger. And other. (1988). Introduction to Macroeconomics. 2nd Edition. McGraw Hill, New York, USA. 11. Department of Statistics. (1997). Monthly Economic Trends. Bangladesh Bank. December. 12. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. (1997). Statistical Yearbook of Bangladesh 1996. Seventeenth Edition. November. 9Banking Sector in Bangladesh: Its Contribution and Performance Appendix – A List of Banks: [a] Nationalized Commercial Banks (NCBs) Agrani Bank Janata Bank Sonali Bank Rupali Bank Ltd. [b] Specialized Banks (SPBs) Bangladesh Krishi Bank Bangladesh Shilpa Bank Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank [c] Private Commercial Banks (PCBs) Arab Bangladesh Bank Ltd. Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd. National Bank Ltd. The City Bank Ltd. IFIC Bank Ltd. United Commercial Bank Ltd. Pubali Bank Ltd. Uttara Bank Ltd. Al-Baraka Bank Bangladesh Ltd. BSIC Bangladesh Ltd. Eastern Bank Ltd. National Credit and Commerce Bank Ltd.Prime Bank Ltd. Southeast Bank Ltd. Dhaka Bank Ltd. Al-Arafah I slami Bank Ltd. Social Investment Bank Ltd. Dutch-Bangla Bank Ltd. [d] TNBs Hanil Bank Hongkong Bank Society General Bank American Express Bank Ltd. ANZ Grindlays Bank Plc. S tandard Chartered Bank State Bank of India Habib Bank Ltd. Citi Bank N A Banque Indosuez National Bank of Pakistan Muslim Commercial Bank Ltd. J ournal of Business Research, Vol. 3, 2001 10 Appendix – B Various Data for PCBs Year 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 Advance Assets Net Profit Expenditure Employees BranchesAccounts (cror (cror Tk. ) (cror Tk. ) (no. ) (no. ) (no. ) Tk. ) 82 2132 1877 8 173 11562 628 8429 5202 14 245 11813 653 283320 6381 16 281 12756 693 267393 7768 22 366 13552 715 178460 7208 25 438 14810 771 160220 9072 14 594 16107 824 160834 9514 2 682 16916 865 165290 11059 (11) 765 17486 902 169549 12445 (8) 886 18034 942 84913 15502 12 819 17826 943 90599 15783 16 865 18806 1000 102055 24190 72 907 19777 1047 117985 26794 Various Data for TNBs Net A dvance Expenditure Employees Branches Year Profit Accounts (cror Tk. ) (no. ) (no. ) (cror Tk. ) (no. ) 1980 3 20 912 21 1882 1981 8 25 984 21 542 1982 11 32 999 21 2910 1983 12 45 1061 20 2888 1984 15 62 1042 20 3098 1985 18 77 1051 20 3610 1986 14 98 1064 22 3929 1987 22 119 1114 22 4144 1988 21 146 1124 22 4887 1989 7 147 1123 22 3971 1990 18 154 1135 22 3890 1991 25 99 789 18 2355 1992 38 65 826 18 2463 1993 54 92 826 18 3969 1994 68 106 888 19 6329 1995 90 146 926 23 9215 Investment (cror Tk. ) 76 293 346 327 396 506 554 787 750 653 879 1266 1439 Assets Investment (cror Tk. ) (cror Tk. ) 757 1280 1526 1476 1848 2281 2887 3245 4330 4697 4694 5575 4297 4377 5832 7111 51 70 109 118 156 163 177 196 300 279 358 340 228 203 260 266 Related article: Padma Bridge

12 Controversial Essay Topics on Alfred Russel Wallace vs Charles Darwin

12 Controversial Essay Topics on Alfred Russel Wallace vs Charles Darwin If you are tasked with writing a controversial essay on Alfred Russel Wallace versus Charles Darwin, it is important that you include many facts related to the two key figures in support of your claim. Chances are, this type of assignment is one which requires you to address the controversy that exists between the contributions and theories proposed by both men. In that case, look over the facts below to see if any of them are useful in your next writing assignment: Wallace was born in 1823 and was a key figure in the idea of natural selection and its relation to evolution. This biologist is hardly ever mentioned by name today, even though he was quite famous with a glistening reputation during his lifetime. He did not shy away from controversy and was proud of the fact that he believed the spirits of those deceased were among us. He also was the first biologist to note any concerns about the negative impact that humans were having on the environment. Darwin explained the impact of his findings on philosophical points of view, as well as scientific and religious points of view. Those among the educated society of the time accepted his theory of natural selection, and in spite of the excessive support and evidence he has, there are still those today who doubt these claims. Wallace came from a middle class family which was not well off. He attended grammar school because it was free of charge and had no formal training in biology nor did he attend a university. He worked initially with his older brother as a land surveyor. It was his time spent out of doors which inspired him to read the works of Charles Darwin and Alexander von Humboldt and to collet insects. Wallace traveled to Brazil with Henry Bates in 1848 in an effort to emulate his heroes. He funded his trip by surveying the course of the Rio Negro for over four years, collecting Amazon based specimens for sale to British institutions and collectors, and by making observations about the people and languages he found in the Amazon. He spent a total of 6 years here prior to returning home with his specimens and writings. Unfortunately, while sailing home his ship caught fire on the ocean and he had to abandon ship. He was on an open boat for 10 days before being picked up. He lost the majority of his drawings, writings, and his specimens but he did take out insurance for the specimens and as such received a settlement for the loss. Darwin is famous for his publications on natural selection, which state that all species found on earth have evolved from common ancestors, a process whereby the most favorable traits in a species become the most common traits for successive generations while those less favorable traits begin to diminish. Darwin presented evidence from his five years on the HMS Beagle during which time he collected specimens and notes from the Falkland Islands, Brazil, Chile, the Galapagos Islands, and Australia. Wallace returned from Brazil and authored two books and was able to write and publish six papers for an academic journal. It was during this time that he was able to spend a great deal of time getting to know other naturalists in Britain. Wallace went to the East Indies when he turned 31 and enjoyed a successful expedition, even more so than Brazil. He was able to send over 100,000 new species back to Britain from New Guinea, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. He observed the short stretch of water found between Bali and Lombok, which changed the animal life there. This space today is referred to as the Wallace Line and it marks the place where the Australian wildlife meets the Asian wildlife. He returned at the age of 39. Wallace began to write about the theory of natural selection, before it was called that officially, after his trip to Brazil. He explained that there were geographical barriers which marked the boundaries of individual species. While in the East Indies he had tropical fever which resulted in hallucinations. He wrote that the theory of natural selection had come to him when he awoke. He stated that animals breed faster than humans and the annual destruction which results indicates that animals do not increase their breeding year to year, or that breed would have taken over the world at present. From this he asked why some species died and others survived, deciding that it was based entirely on which was best fitted to survive. Darwin suffered from many illnesses throughout the end of his life but continued with research and experiments. His work on natural selection took a few decades to be widely accepted by scientists across the fields. Darwin first authored his book on natural selection and the theory of evolution in 1859 after which he wrote multiple other books including â€Å"The Descent of Man†, and another book after that which was called â€Å"The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals†, as well as â€Å"The Power of Movement in Plants†, among many others. Today, Darwin’s books remain quote popular, as well as his publications on his travels and his correspondence. These all continue to remain widely accepted as substantiated scientific theories. In fact, the book on natural selection is a best seller even today and remains one of the most scientifically influential books even written. Wallace passed away at the age of 90 in 1913. Darwin was born in 1809 and passed away in 1882. Wallace was the recipient of the Royal Medal, the Darwin Medal, the Founder’s Medal, the Order of Merift, and the Linnean Medal, among many others. He was renowned as one of the greatest biologists in the world at the time that he died and had received many of these awards near the end of his lifetime. These facts can be perfectly combined with the special topics and a sample essay that are related to Darwin and Wallace. But if you have problems writing, then upgrade your skills by reading this guide on a controversial essay or contact our custom essay writing service online. References: Darwin, Charles.  The Autobiography of Charles Darwin. No. 487. Dana Robinson, 2015. Darwin, Charles.  The descent of man. Digireads. com Publishing, 2004. Darwin, Charles.  The origin of species by means of natural selection: or, the preservation of favored races in the struggle for life. Ed. William F. Bynum. AL Burt, 2009. Spruce, Richard, and Alfred Russel Wallace.  Notes of a Botanist on the Amazon and Andes. Vol. 2. Cambridge University Press, 2014. Wallace, Alfred Russel.  Darwinism: an exposition of the theory of natural selection with some of its applications. Cosimo, Inc., 2007. Wallace, Alfred Russel.  The Malay Archipelago: the land of the orang-utan and the bird of paradise; a narrative of travel, with studies of man and nature. Courier Corporation, 1869. Wallace, Alfred Russel, and Sir James Marchant.  Alfred Russel Wallace. Cassell, Limited, 1916.

Profile of Robert Koch, Founder of Modern Bacteriology

Profile of Robert Koch, Founder of Modern Bacteriology The German physician  Robert Koch (December 11, 1843 - May 27, 1910) is considered the father of modern bacteriology for his work  demonstrating that specific microbes are responsible for causing specific diseases. Koch discovered the life cycle of the bacteria responsible for anthrax and identified the bacteria that cause tuberculosis and cholera. Fast Facts: Robert Koch Nickname: Father of Modern BacteriologyOccupation: PhysicianBorn: December 11, 1843 in Clausthal, GermanyDied: May 27, 1910 in Baden-Baden, GermanyParents: Hermann Koch and Mathilde Julie Henriette BiewandEducation: University of Gà ¶ttingen (M.D.)Published Works: Investigations into the Etiology of Traumatic Infective Diseases (1877)Key Accomplishments: Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine (1905)Spouse(s): Emmy Fraatz (m. 1867–1893), Hedwig Freiberg (m. 1893–1910)Child: Gertrude Koch Early Years Robert Heinrich Hermann Koch was born December 11, 1843 in the German town of Clausthal. His parents, Hermann Koch and Mathilde Julie Henriette Biewand, had thirteen children. Robert was the third child and the oldest surviving son. Even as a child, Koch demonstrated a love of nature and showed a high degree of intelligence. He reportedly taught himself to read at the age of five. Koch became interested in biology in high school and entered the University of Gà ¶ttingen in 1862, where he studied medicine. While in medical school, Koch was highly influenced by his anatomy instructor Jacob Henle, who had  published a work in 1840 proposing that microorganisms are responsible for causing infectious disease. Career and Research Upon earning his medical degree  with high honors from the University of Gà ¶ttingen in 1866, Koch practiced privately for a while in the town of Langenhagen and later in Rakwitz. In 1870, Koch voluntarily enlisted in the German military during the Franco-Prussian War. He served as a doctor in a battlefield hospital treating wounded soldiers. Two years later, Koch became the District Medical Officer for the city of Wollstein. He would hold this position from 1872 to 1880. Koch was later appointed to the Imperial Health Office in Berlin, a position he held from 1880 to 1885. During his time in Wollstein and Berlin, Koch began his laboratory investigations of bacterial pathogens that would bring him national and world-wide recognition. Anthrax Life Cycle Discovery Robert Kochs anthrax research was the first to demonstrate that a specific infectious disease was caused by a specific microbe. Koch gained insight from prominent scientific researchers of his time, such as Jacob Henle, Louis Pasteur, and Casimir Joseph Davaine. Work by Davaine indicated that animals with anthrax contained microbes in their blood. When healthy animals were inoculated with the blood of infected animals, the healthy animals became diseased. Davaine postulated that anthrax must be caused by the blood microbes. Robert Koch took this investigation further by obtaining pure anthrax cultures and identifying bacterial spores  (also called  endospores). These resistant cells can survive for years under harsh conditions such as high temperatures, dryness, and the presence of toxic enzymes or chemicals. The spores remain dormant until conditions become favorable for them to develop into vegetative (actively growing) cells capable of causing disease. As a result of Kochs research, the life cycle of the anthrax bacterium (Bacillus anthracis) was identified. Laboratory Research Techniques Robert Kochs research led  to the development and refinement of a number of laboratory techniques that are still in use today. In order for Koch to obtain pure bacterial cultures for study, he had to find a suitable medium on which to grow the microbes. He perfected a method for turning a liquid medium (culture broth) into a solid medium by mixing it with agar. The agar gel medium was ideal for growing pure cultures as it was transparent, remained solid at body temperature (37 °C / 98.6 °F), and bacteria did not use it as a food source. An assistant of Koch, Julius Petri, developed a special plate called a Petri dish for holding the solid growth medium. Additionally, Koch refined techniques for preparing bacteria for microscope viewing. He developed glass slides and cover slips as well as methods for heat fixing and staining bacteria with dyes in order to improve visibility. He also developed techniques for the use of steam sterilization and methods for photographing (micro-photography) bacteria and other microbes. Koch's Postulates Koch published Investigations into the Etiology of Traumatic Infective Diseases  in 1877. In it, he outlined procedures for obtaining pure cultures and bacteria isolation methods. Koch also developed guidelines or postulates for determining that a particular disease is due to a specific microbe. These postulates were developed during Kochs study of anthrax and outlined four basic principles that apply when establishing the causative agent of an infectious disease: The suspected microbe must be found in all instances of the disease, but not in healthy animals.The suspected microbe must be isolated from a diseased animal and grown in pure culture.When a healthy animal is inoculated with the suspected microbe, the disease must develop.The microbe must be isolated from the inoculated animal, grown in pure culture, and be identical to the microbe obtained from the original diseased animal. Tuberculosis and Cholera Bacteria Identification By 1881, Koch had set his sights on identifying the microbe responsible for causing the deadly disease tuberculosis. While other researchers had been able to demonstrate that tuberculosis was caused by a microorganism, no one had been able to stain or identify the microbe. Using modified staining techniques, Koch was able to isolate and identify the responsible bacteria:  Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Koch announced his discovery in March of 1882 at the Berlin Psychological Society. News of the discovery spread, quickly reaching the United States by April of 1882. This discovery brought Koch world-wide notoriety and acclaim. Next, as the head of the German Cholera Commission in 1883, Koch began investigating  cholera  outbreaks in Egypt and India. By 1884, he had isolated and identified the causative agent of cholera as  Vibrio cholerae. Koch also developed methods for controlling cholera epidemics that serve as the basis for modern day standards of control. In 1890, Koch claimed to have discovered a cure for tuberculosis, a substance he called tuberculin. Although tuberculin turned out  not to be a cure, Kochs work with tuberculosis earned him the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1905. Death and Legacy Robert Koch continued his investigative research into infectious diseases until his health began to fail in his early sixties. A few years prior to his death, Koch suffered a heart attack brought on by heart disease. On May 27, 1910, Robert Koch died in Baden-Baden, Germany at the age of 66. Robert Kochs contributions to microbiology and bacteriology have had a major impact on modern scientific research practices and the study of infectious diseases. His work helped to establish the germ theory of disease as well as to refute spontaneous generation. Kochs laboratory techniques and sanitation methods serve as the foundation for modern day methods for microbe identification and disease control. Sources Adler, Richard. Robert Koch and American Bacteriology. McFarland, 2016. Chung, King-thom, and Jong-kang Liu. Pioneers In Microbiology: The Human Side Of Science. World Scientific, 2017. Robert Koch - Biographical. Nobelprize.org, Nobel Media AB, 2014, www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1905/koch-bio.html. Robert Koch Scientific Works. Robert Koch Institute, www.rki.de/EN/Content/Institute/History/rk_node_en.html. Sakula, Alex. Robert Koch: Centenary of the Discovery of the Tubercle Bacillus, 1882. National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 1983, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1790283/.

Essay Example on Cause of Crime

Essay Example on Cause of Crime Essay Example on Cause of Crime Essay Example on Cause of Crime Causes of crime are many and you cannot cover all of them sufficiently in your essay. Therefore, you should focus your essay to several key causes of crime and develop your essay on the chosen aspects. For example, you can write an essay about the alcoholism and its effect on crime. Alternatively, you may try to establish the link between crime and poverty. The following essay sample covers several causes of crime. We hope you will find a couple of useful ideas to develop your own essay. In addition, do not hesitate to contact us if you need help with essay writing or looking for any type of assistance. Moreover, we deliver free essay outline and cover page with every essay we write. Cause of Crime: Essay Excerpt Since people must recognize other abundant causes of crime than drink, but also that intemperance, if not a primary cause of crime, may have been an excitant to misconduct of secondary or even remoter importance, the first step in this investigation was to devise a scheme of inquiry which, although brief and simple, would bring out the essential facts in their proper relations. Our executive essay writers take note that it has been sought to cover the all-important ground by a schedule containing these queries: "Did any of the following causes lead to a condition which induced the crime: (a) Unfavorable environment of birth and early life, such as parental neglect, want of education, etc.? (b) Lack of industrial training? (c) Intemperance: (personal?) (ancestral?) (of associates?)" It might have been interesting to elaborate the schedule, asking with regard to intemperance, for instance, when drinking first began; when habitual inebriety became fixed; whether any deep-seated malady had followed or preceded intemperance, either causing it or not; whether vitality had in some way become exhausted before intemperance became a habit, etc. But brevity and simplicity were essential in order to get any results. By demanding consideration of perhaps the two most fruitful generic causes of crime besides intemperance, it was hoped that the main factors in the production of criminals could be studied, not only independently, but in their relation to each other. As a further means to this end, the investigator was requested to "state relative rank of the causes enumerated (a, b, c,), if more than one of them must be considered in the present case." That is, the causes were to be grouped according to their relative importance as first, second, or third. The schedule also ca lled for information relating to place of birth, kind of crime for which committed, and whether it was a felony or misdemeanor. The last-mentioned distinction seemed important in view of the generally accepted fact that the proportion of misdemeanants whose criminal career has been influenced by the liquor habit is very much greater than that of felons. To maintain this distinction in the tabulation was, however, impossible, because the terms felony and misdemeanor lack a uniform definition in the laws of different States. Moreover, from the nature of the prisons dealt with, the percentage of convicts committed for misdemeanors was insignificant in proportion to their whole number. It seemed prudent to restrict the investigation to convicts in state prisons and reformatories for adults. By the way, there is another great sample of personal essay: Read also: Cause and Effect Essay Argument Essay Writing Argumentative Essay Writing Thesis Papers Writing a Dissertation Proposal

The development process in Sweden reflects the success and efficiency Essay

The development process in Sweden reflects the success and efficiency of the fiscal policies of the government - Essay Example The United Nations Development Program has developed several indicators to assess and analyze the economic and employment status of the various countries of the world. The HDI and the HPI are examples of the human development indicators that are developed to give a notion about a country’s economic variables, such as poverty, human development, and unemployment. However, those indicators are not fully informative because they sometimes disregard some of the important criteria of development. For example, an HDI or an HPI of a certain country may not take into account the economic gap between the various sectors of the society of that country. In other words, there may be discrepancy between human development indicators and other indicators of poverty distribution, such as the Gini coefficient and the Lorenz curve. Thus, in this research paper, the development process in Sweden will be deeply analyzed, using the UNDP development indicators in addition to the other economic indi cators. In order for the analysis of development in Sweden to be clear and objective, it will be compared to the development processes in other countries, from various continents. ... , Africa, Central Europe and South Asia: Egypt Life expectancy at birth (years) (HDI), 2002 70.7 Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and above) (HDI), 2002 91.0 GDP per capita (PPP US$) (HDI), 2002 3,580 Education index 0.85 Human development index (HDI) value, 2002 0.735 HDI Rank 120 Human poverty index (HPI-1) Rank 20 Human Poverty Index (HPI-1) Value (%) 12.0 Paraguay Life expectancy at birth (years) (HDI), 2002 70.7 Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and above) (HDI), 2002 91.6 1 GDP per capita (PPP US$) (HDI), 2002 4,610 Education index 0.85 Human development index (HDI) value, 2002 0.751 HDI Rank 89 Human poverty index (HPI-1) Rank 15 Human Poverty Index (HPI-1) Value (%) 10.6 Mozambique Life expectancy at birth (years) (HDI), 2002 38.5 Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and above) (HDI), 2002 46.5 GDP per capita (PPP US$) (HDI), 2002 1,050 Education index 0.45 Human development index (HDI) value, 2002 0.354 HDI Rank 171 Human poverty index (HPI-1) Rank 89 Human Poverty Index (HPI-1) Value (%) 49.8 Sweden : Life expectancy at birth (years) (HDI), 2002 80.0 Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and above) (HDI), 2002 .. 1 GDP per capita (PPP US$) (HDI), 2002 26,050 Education index 0.99 Human development index (HDI) value, 2002 0.946 HDI Rank 2 Human poverty index (HPI-2) Rank 1 Human poverty index (HPI-2) Value (%) 6.5 Thailand Life expectancy at birth (years) (HDI), 2002 69.1 Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and above) (HDI), 2002 92.6 GDP per capita (PPP US$) (HDI), 2002 7,010 Education index 0.86 Human development index (HDI) value, 2002 0.768 HDI Rank 76 Human poverty index (HPI-1) Rank 22 Human Poverty Index (HPI-1) Value (%) 13.1 Therefore, from the above tables, one can get an idea about some important development indicators, such as GDP, life expectance, and adult illiteracy.

Who Benefits In Recession Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Who Benefits In Recession - Essay Example That would take care of the other factors in the economy and that would help to define the recession. (Brainard & Perry, 2001, Pp. 176-177). The recession has a severe effect on the economy as seen by the events during the recession. As the GDP decreases the country attracts less investment. There is a dearth of investment during the recession. There is decreased demand in the economy and the companies find it hard to make a commendable business. As a result, there is stock of unused goods and machinery. The consumption function of the economy decreases and this has a multiplier effect in the economy. As there is not a proper utilization of resources, there is a relatively higher production costs. As the production costs are high, therefore, it has an effect on the consumption. Though there is a rise in the production costs, the change in the wages is not uniform. In some cases the workers are thrown out of their jobs and the in the other5 cases there is a decrease in the wages of th e labor. In the case of the productivity, the volume of the production decreases. Therefore, the production of the companies decrease and the companies are on the verge of the extinction. From the typical recession scenario seen from the history of the world, it has been noted that the conditions of the economy needs some time to change. The economic conditions of the country are severe and the companies get closed. This effects the employment in the economy and the production. Most of the employees loose their jobs and experience a pay cut. This makes it hard for the survival of the people in the economy. The conditions are improved in the economy by the intervention strategies of the Government. The condition of the economy during the recession needs some thoughts put in by the Government and the economy needs financial support. In the modern world, most of the countries have minimum intervention strategies by the Government. But during the

The Toyota Production System Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Toyota Production System - Article Example This paper will review the article â€Å"The Toyota Production System† by the Public Affairs Division of the Toyota Motor Corporation (2003). The main issue then is that Toyota needed to become more competitive in producing global cars, but in a more organized manner. This section proceeds to the background of the issue. The manufacturing industry is a highly competitive sector that thrives in constant innovation. Toyota discovered that quality management is one of the keys to global competitiveness, and that its management can formulate the TP, which will be its driver of global strengths. TPS relies on years of trial and error, until it has been perfected and applied by Toyota worldwide. The trial and error system means that the company learned from actual mistakes of the system and developed realistic solutions. The TPS is the brainchild of Taiichi Ohno. The main manufacturing system then was the push system, where manufacturers made whatever they thought was in demand. Thi s created a great deal of waste and inventory, however, because real demand tends to fluctuate. Ohno, through repeated trial and error, changed the push to a "pull" system that disabled the factory from making unnecessary items. The pull system consisted of tools, including the kanban (information card), andon (display board), and poka yoke (error prevention). Minoura asserted that only when these "loose collection of techniques" were consolidated into a fully-fledged system that the company was able to deploy TPS across its manufacturing plants. The major points of the article are that the TPS can identify wastes in the production process and optimize the scheduling process, training people are fundamental to achieving quality products and processes, and good supplier-manufacturer relations are critical to an efficient production system. The article highlights the importance of just-in-time production that begins with cutting the lead-time for making things. Minoura argued that it is important to cut processes that do not add value. He noted that many delays come from transferring one part to another and so if it is possible to eradicate transfers, this greatly reduced lead-time. The TPS is also about developing people. The article argues the value of human development to TPS, because people are the ones making products. It asserts the importance of training people to following rules and regulations of kaizen so that Toyota's monozukuri (making things) can be attained. Minoura also underscores that localization or genchika is important. It is about promoting the attitude of TPS ingrained into the local employees of the company. Finally, suppliers are called to think like car manufacturers, so that they can also cut costs and customize their products. Toyota maintains good supplier relations to attain cost advantages and preserve trust, which is critical to the just-in-time system. Hence, TPS is truly a comprehensive approach to manufacturing, as it merges peo ple, technology, management, and systems thinking under one umbrella of total quality management. In conclusion, this article suggested the use of lean manufacturing in reducing lead time and generating a climate for developing a learning organization. I believe that lean manufacturing will truly have an impact on lead time, because its diverse tools and practices are crucial in identifying wasteful processes. These tools also stress the value of correcting mistakes as they occur and incorporating thinking when solving problems at individual work levels. Furthermore, TPS is not only a technological system with information system dimensions, but also a people management system dimension. The