An Overview of the USS Massachusetts

An Overview of the USS Massachusetts In 1936, as the design of the North Carolina-class was being finalized, the US Navys General Board met to converse regarding the two battleships that were to be funded in Fiscal Year 1938.   Though the Board preferred building two additional North Carolinas, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral William H. Standley opted to pursue a new design.   As a result, construction of these battleships was delayed to FY1939 as naval architects commenced work in March 1937.   While the first two ships were officially ordered on April 4, 1938, the second pair of vessels was added two months later under the  Deficiency Authorization which passed due to rising international tensions.   Though the escalator clause of the Second London Naval Treaty had been invoked allowing the new design to mount 16 guns, Congress required that the battleships stay within the 35,000-ton limit set by the earlier Washington Naval Treaty. In designing the new South Dakota-class, naval architects created a wide array of plans for consideration.   A principal challenge proved to be finding ways to improve upon the North Carolina-class while staying within the tonnage limit.   The answer was the design of a shorter, by approximately 50 feet, battleship that incorporated an inclined armor system.   This offered better underwater protection than earlier vessels.   As naval leaders called for vessels capable of 27 knots, designers sought a way to obtain this despite the reduced hull length.   This was achieved through the creative layout of machinery, boilers, and turbines.   For armament, the South Dakotas equaled the North Carolinas in mounting nine Mark 6 16 guns in three triple turrets with a secondary battery of twenty dual-purpose 5 guns.   These weapons were supplemented by an extensive and constantly changing complement of anti-aircraft guns.   Assigned to Bethlehem Steels Fore River Shipyard, the third ship of the class, USS Massachusetts (BB-59), was laid down on July 20, 1939.   Construction on the battleship advanced and it entered the water on September 23, 1941, with Frances Adams, wife of former Secretary of the Navy Charles Francis Adams III, serving as sponsor.   As work moved towards completion, the US entered World War II after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.   Commissioned on May 12, 1942, Massachusetts joined the fleet with Captain Francis E.M. Whiting in command.   Atlantic Operations Conducting shakedown operations and training during the summer of 1942, Massachusetts departed American waters that fall to join Rear Admiral Henry K. Hewitts forces which were gathering for the Operation Torch landings in North Africa.   Arriving off the Moroccan coast, the battleship, heavy cruisers USS Tuscaloosa and USS Wichita, and four destroyers took part in the Naval Battle of Casablanca on November 8.   In the course of the fighting, Massachusetts engaged Vichy French shore batteries as well as the incomplete battleship Jean Bart.   Pounding targets with its 16 guns, the battleship disabled its French counterpart as well as struck enemy destroyers and a light cruiser.   In return, it sustained two hits from shore fire but received only minor damage.   Four days after the battle, Massachusetts departed for the US to prepare for redeployment to the Pacific. To the Pacific Transiting the Panama Canal, Massachusetts arrived at Noumà ©a, New Caledonia on March 4, 1943.   Operating in the Solomon Islands through the summer, the battleship supported Allied operations ashore and protected convoy lanes from Japanese forces.   In November, Massachusetts screened American carriers as they mounted raids in the Gilbert Islands in support of the landings on Tarawa and Makin.   After attacking Nauru on December 8, it aided in the assault on Kwajalein the following month.   After supporting the landings on February 1, Massachusetts joined what would become Rear Admiral Marc A. Mitschers Fast Carrier Task Force for raids against the Japanese base at Truk.   On February 21-22, the battleship helped defend the carriers from Japanese aircraft as the carriers attacked targets in the Marianas. Shifting south in April, Massachusetts covered the Allied landings at Hollandia, New Guinea before screening another strike against Truk.   After shelling Ponape on May 1, the battleship departed the South Pacific for an overhaul at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.   This work was completed later that summer and Massachusetts rejoined the fleet in August.   Departing the Marshall Islands in early October, it screened American carriers during raids against Okinawa and Formosa before moving to cover General Douglas MacArthurs landings on Leyte in the Philippines.   Continuing to protect Mitschers carriers during the resulting Battle of Leyte Gulf, Massachusetts also served in Task Force 34 which was detached at one point to aid American forces off Samar. Final Campaigns Following a brief respite at Ulithi, Massachusetts and the carriers returned to action on December 14 when raids were mounted against Manila.   Four days later, the battleship and its consorts were forced to weather Typhoon Cobra.   The storm saw Massachusetts lose two of its float planes as well as one sailor injured.   Beginning on December 30, attacks were made on Formosa before the carriers shifted their attention to supporting Allied landings in Lingayen Gulf on Luzon.   As January progressed, Massachusetts protected the carriers as they struck French Indochina, Hong Kong, Formosa, and Okinawa.   Beginning on February 10, it shifted north to cover raids against mainland Japan and in support of the invasion of Iwo Jima.      Ã‚         In late March, Massachusetts arrived off Okinawa and commenced bombarding targets in preparation for landings on April 1.   Remaining in the area through April, it covered the carriers while fighting off intense Japanese air attacks.   After a short period away, ​Massachusetts returned to Okinawa in June and survived a second typhoon.   Raiding north with the carriers a month later, the battleship conducted several shore bombardments of the Japanese mainland beginning on July 14 with attacks against Kamaishi.   Continuing these operations, Massachusetts was in Japanese waters when hostilities ended on August 15.   Ordered to Puget Sound for an overhaul, the battleship departed on September 1. Later Career   Leaving the yard on January 28, 1946, Massachusetts briefly operated along the West Coast until receiving orders for Hampton Roads.   Passing through the Panama Canal, the battleship arrived in the Chesapeake Bay on April 22.   Decommissioned on March 27, 1947, Massachusetts moved into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet.   It remained in this status until June 8, 1965, when it was transferred to the Massachusetts Memorial Committee for use as a museum ship.   Taken to Fall River, MA, Massachusetts continues to be operated as a museum and memorial to the states World War II veterans.  Ã‚   Selected Sources: DANFS: USS Massachusetts (BB-59)NHHC: USS Massachusetts (BB-59)Battleship Cove Museum

Agreement may not be necessary

Agreement may not be necessary Disclaimer: This work has been submitted by a student. This is not an example of the work produced by our Law Essay Writing Service . You can view samples of our professional work here . Agreement may not be necessary Every contract is an agreement but agreement may not necessary to be considered as contracts if the agreement does not made in lawful way. A binding contract consists of these four essentials which consist, an offer s.2(a) CA1950, an acceptance s.2(b) CA 1950, consideration s.2(d) CA1950, as well as intention to create legal relations (Adams 2010). On the other hand, (Ayus, 2009,page 197) defined an offer as â€Å"an ‘intimation’, by words or conduct, of a willingness to enter into a legally binding contract, and which in its terms expressly or impliedly indicates that it is to become binding on the offeror as soon as it has been accepted by an act, forbearance or return promise on the person to whom it is addressed†. However, based on the opinion given by Duxbury (1991), an acceptance may be defined as an unconditional assent, which communicated by the offeree to the offeror, to all terms of the offer, made with the intention of ac cepting. It should be noted here that a contract will not be binding unless the parties have expressed themselves with reasonable certainty. 1.0 Issue The issue of this question is about a sale of car for RM30, 000 that advertised in the local newspaper by Ah Chong, whether or not he has a contract with any of the three parties. This question is regarding offer and acceptance whereby offeror signifies his willingness to do something or not to do, with a view to obtaining the consent given from the offeree. 2.0 Law S.2(a) CA1950 defined offeror/proposal as stated in appendix. In unilateral contracts, the party who offers something to offeree/acceptor may not necessary to be an offeror, but an offeree which is stated in s.2(b) CA1950. A contract binds between offeror and offeree by completing communication of proposal, acceptance, and revocation that stated in s.4(1), s.4(2), and s.4(3) of CA1950 respectively. According to s.4(1) CA1950, it stated that: â€Å"the communication of a p roposal is complete when it comes to the knowledge of offeree†. In other word, proposal is effective upon its communication has been communicated to the offeree. When offeree reply his/her acceptance (by email, by post, by hand) to the offeror, there is an official contract exists between the both parties – s.4(2)(b) CA1950. In postal rule, the moment offeree posted his/her acceptance letter into postbox, the contract binds offeror provided that the letter has been placed into the hand of the relevant postal authorities – s.4(2)(a) CA1950. Acceptance must be made within a reasonable time embodied in s.6(b) CA1950. On the other hand, in situation whereby offeree posted an acceptance, it must be certain and fixed based on the condition given by the offeror since the offer contained the element of consideration [s.2(d) CA1950] by offeror and shall not be in the midst of negotiating or bargaining s.7(a) CA1950. Hence, a purported acceptance that is different from the stipulated in the offer would not be an acceptance in law and may end up to a counter-offer. (Nabi Baksh & Arujunan 2005)

Did Credit Rating Agencies do good work (with impact on the Qatari Term Paper

Did Credit Rating Agencies do good work (with impact on the Qatari Context) - Term Paper Example The research will analyze the roles and benefit of CRAs in the last financial crisis of 2007 – 2009. The research will provide evidence of the financial crisis on the credibility and accountability of credit rating agencies. The credit crunch will be explained and also the contribution of credit rating agencies to the financial crisis. The benefit of credit rating agencies to investors is also discussed in the paper. The research methodology and design and reporting and analysis will be dealt with by the research paper. The role of credit rating agencies during and before the financial crisis will also be discussed in the paper. The implication of the financial crisis in the economy of Qatar will be discussed a bit to establish the impact of it is on the people. Contents Abstract 1 Contents 2 Introduction-What Is Credit Rating? 3 Research Objectives 4 Literature Review 4 Role of Credit Rating Agencies During and Before Financial Crisis 6 Credit Ratings Assignment Process 7 Res earch Methodology and Design 8 Reporting and Presentation of the Project 9 Credit Rating Agencies as Coercive Regulators 10 How CRAs Impact On Financial Market Participants 10 Relation between Credit Rating and Agency Problem 11 Implications of Financial Crisis on Qatar’s Economy 12 Conclusion 12 References 13 Introduction-What Is Credit Rating? Crediting rating is a common statement that refers to opinion concerning a debt instrument and its issuer company. It gives an investor a clear indication on whether the debt instrument is safe or risky. It also tells the investor the capability of the issuer company to pay interest and the principal amount in time. However, credit rating is simply an opinion rather than a recommendation and thus does not require an investor to buy or sell an instrument. Currently, global rating is undertaken by several credit rating agencies with the general ones are Standard and Poor’s (S&P), Moody’s Corporation both of whom are based in the USA and Fitch Rating Firm. The above named rating agencies hold the majority of the credit rating share. However, there are more than 100 minor credit rating agencies in the market offering quality credit rating in national markets and industries (Benmelech 2009). Credit rating is usually done by experts who examine various factors and provide the rating is expressed in either alphabetical or alphanumeric symbols. AAA is the highest possible rating as per the S&P agency. High quality credit investment grades are grades AAA and AA whereas grades A and BBB offer medium credit quality investment grades. However, grades BB, B, CCC, CC and, C means that the issuer has a low credit quality and maybe there is no existence of investment credit quality. Grade D is the lowest possible credit rating, and this means that there is no way that the creditor will recover his interest plus the principal amount. According to this credit rating, those companies with AAA, AA, A and, BBB grades p resents less risk and thus most investors will be attracted to invest in them since they have assurance that there will be a gain in their market share. Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs) plays a bigger role in today’s financial markets in Qatar. The rating is normally followed closely by the investors, issuers, borrowers and government’s financial institutions. Research Objectiv

Apple Marketing Strategy analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Apple Marketing Strategy analysis - Essay Example The firm that is analyzed in the paper is Apple red as giant in the consumer electronics market and its products are considered as one of the most successful and hot selling items. From a mediocre organization to the best firm in the industry, Apple has made tremendous progress in terms of product innovation and service delivery. It started as a computer manufacturing and selling firm however, it has now transformed itself into a consumer electronics manufacturing firm with product range as wide as TVs, MP3 Players, Smartphones and Tablet Computers. Apple started as Apple Computers Inc during 1977 however, Apple rolled out its first personal computer during 1976. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak started the company with an aim to manufacture and sell personal computers. As a result of this effort, Apple-1 was introduced during 1976 and Apple afterward continued to build upon its technical superiority and was able to expand its overall range of products. Over the period of time, Apple rem ained under the control of different CEOs however; its glory and success came under the leadership of Steve Jobs – the co-founder of the company who was also later on removed from this position during 1990s. One of the key reasons for the success of Apple as a firm was the leadership style and approach adapted by Steve Jobs. It is argued that Steve Jobs broke almost every principle of leadership and cultivated a new and unique style which allowed Apple to dominate different markets at the same time. Considered by many as dictator and tyrannical, it was the unique vision and micromanagement ability of Steve Jobs which contributed mostly towards the success of the firm (Emerald Group Publishing Limited). It was because of this leadership style of Steve Jobs that the overall culture of Apple evolved as a culture with strong accountability and very clear and swift communication from the top. Most of the decisions were centralized and revolved around Steve Jobs owing to his person al genius and detailed oriented leadership style. Much of the Apple’s culture as well as corporate success was dependent upon the innovative genius of Steve Jobs, his ability to manage everything on his own and enforcement of a strict corporate culture with very little tolerance for dissent and low performance. (Allen) The Mission Statement â€Å"Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.†1 The above Mission Statement of the firm suggests that Apple has been able to dominate four different market niches in consumer electronics industry i.e. personal computers, digital music, mobile phones and mobile media and computing. Though the mission statement seems vagu e but it clearly outlines the current ambitions of Apple and its will to dominate different markets at the same time. Exceptional factors contributing to the success of firm One of the key factors behind the success of Apple was the leadership of Steve Jobs under whose visionary presence; firm was able to transform itself into a giant in consumer electronics industry. Steve Jobs expanded the overall vision for the firm and included other product ranges coupled with effective market strategies which allowed Apple to become number 1 firm in the industry. The leadership and corporate culture of firm helped Apple to enforce strict accountability and create further room for creativity and innovation. Such approach therefore resulted into the development and marketing of products which became hot selling due to their innovativeness and ease of use for end users. Apart from this, Apple’s products are considered as of highest quality and durability along with their ability to offer a complete experience to customers. Apple started its music

The Fantastical Elements of Lerouxs The Phantom of the Opera Essay exa

The Fantastical Elements of Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera      Ã‚   In Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera fantastic literature is displayed at its best. Originally published in 1911, this French writer produced one of the most famous novels in French history. Created into a play and a musical produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber, this story has touched millions. However, this transition from a novel to a theatrical performance has caused much of the story to be left out of the production. When viewed in its entirety, the novel exhibits many fantastical elements. Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera meets all of the requirements of fantastic literature. These characteristics do not resemble those of Magical Realism extensively. The novel has many realistic qualities that may mask the fantastic elements. The background and setting are recognizable as a French opera house set in Paris. The characters use familiar, if out dated, dialect. The era in which the story takes place, the late eighteen hundreds, is also very realistic. Horses and carriages are still used as the mode of transportation, the musical pieces sung in the novel are pieces that would be sung at other operas during that time period, and the style of clothing is what would be expected of the era. This base of reality is common to both Magical Realism as well as Fantastic literature. The attitudes of the characters are also very realistic. At the masked ball, the Parisians take part whole heartedly, accepting the idea of masking their identity as the normal ball activity. In today's time, the dressing incognito idea is an unusual one. The characters do not accept the idea of the "Opera Ghost" as a real ghost and many exhibit a disbelief, as they would in rea... ...re into a masterpiece that would be famous for almost one hundred years after its publication date. He also creates a false history of the tale, claiming it can found in any French records, if one only takes the time to look. Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera meets all of the requirements of fantastic literature. Through meeting these requirements of the Fantastic, this work also pulls itself out of the category of Magical Realism. Written in such an eerie tone, and with the horror found in its pages, it is no wonder that The Phantom of the Opera is included as horror or mystery besides its standing as a classical novel. Works Cited Leroux, Gaston. The Phantom of the Opera. New York: Signet Classic, 1987. Todorov, Tzvetan. The Fantastic: A Structural Approach to a Literary Form. Cleveland: The Press of Case Weston Reserve University, 1973. pp 168-174. The Fantastical Elements of Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera Essay exa The Fantastical Elements of Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera      Ã‚   In Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera fantastic literature is displayed at its best. Originally published in 1911, this French writer produced one of the most famous novels in French history. Created into a play and a musical produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber, this story has touched millions. However, this transition from a novel to a theatrical performance has caused much of the story to be left out of the production. When viewed in its entirety, the novel exhibits many fantastical elements. Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera meets all of the requirements of fantastic literature. These characteristics do not resemble those of Magical Realism extensively. The novel has many realistic qualities that may mask the fantastic elements. The background and setting are recognizable as a French opera house set in Paris. The characters use familiar, if out dated, dialect. The era in which the story takes place, the late eighteen hundreds, is also very realistic. Horses and carriages are still used as the mode of transportation, the musical pieces sung in the novel are pieces that would be sung at other operas during that time period, and the style of clothing is what would be expected of the era. This base of reality is common to both Magical Realism as well as Fantastic literature. The attitudes of the characters are also very realistic. At the masked ball, the Parisians take part whole heartedly, accepting the idea of masking their identity as the normal ball activity. In today's time, the dressing incognito idea is an unusual one. The characters do not accept the idea of the "Opera Ghost" as a real ghost and many exhibit a disbelief, as they would in rea... ...re into a masterpiece that would be famous for almost one hundred years after its publication date. He also creates a false history of the tale, claiming it can found in any French records, if one only takes the time to look. Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera meets all of the requirements of fantastic literature. Through meeting these requirements of the Fantastic, this work also pulls itself out of the category of Magical Realism. Written in such an eerie tone, and with the horror found in its pages, it is no wonder that The Phantom of the Opera is included as horror or mystery besides its standing as a classical novel. Works Cited Leroux, Gaston. The Phantom of the Opera. New York: Signet Classic, 1987. Todorov, Tzvetan. The Fantastic: A Structural Approach to a Literary Form. Cleveland: The Press of Case Weston Reserve University, 1973. pp 168-174.

Water for Elephants Analysis

Water for Elephants Every book has the same basic hero archetype; a protagonist that faces a problem and rises up to save the day. My book was water for elephants and the protagonist was Jacob. He is the main character of the book. He is seen through two different perspectives. He is seen as the ninety something year old in a retirement home and as a 23 year old that makes a life changing decision. The journey starts when Jacob is days away from getting his degree in veterinary science from Cornell University, Jacob learns that his mother and father have been killed in car accident.His life changes as he finds put that his parents were in dept paying his tuition bills and that the bank was going to take away his father’s practice. When Jacob realizes that he is all alone with no home he jumps a train, not knowing were its going. As it turns out that it was a circus train. And his new life begins. The chapters in the book switch through the ninety year old and 20 year old persp ective. On the circus train he meets the love of his life Marlena, a performer in the circus. The two of them share a love for animals and bond over their friendship that evolves into a relationship.The main problem is that Marlena is married with Jacobs’s boss, August. The two of them fight against their love in the beginning, but circumstances bring them together to the point where they cannot deny how much they want to be together. August is a man with a split personality. He is categorized as schizophrenic. When he is in a good mood, August is generous person giving gifts to his favorite people, making them feel appreciated and adored. But when August does not feel good about himself, he is violent. He becomes irrational and paranoid.He is alternately charming and brutal, both to the humans and animals aboard the Benzini Brothers train. He beats up Marlena throughout the book. He is also abusive towards the animals he trains, denying their emotions. At a point in the book when Jacob is tired of the abusive attitude August has, he takes Walter's knife and sneaks out of the stable car. Jacob makes his way through the train to Augusts’ room. Jacob finds August asleep and alone. Jacob wants to kill him but cannot bring himself to do so. Jacob leaves the knife on Augusts’ pillow and sneaks back to his own room.This is the moment Jake almost loses sight of who really is, but he realizes it was the wrong thing and turns away from the bitterness. August eventually gets what he deserves when Queenie, the elephant at the circus that August abuses, kills him. After having an affair with Marlena, Jacob discovers that she is pregnant. The young parents wanting to the best thing for their family try to get away. Uncle Al is another important character. Uncle Al, the violent and abusive owner of the circus, is a symbol more than a character. Al represents â€Å"misguided humanity†.He is only after power and money, he has no heart. He takes adv antage of other people’s misfortune. He is known for redlighting circus workers; having them thrown off the moving circus train in the middle of the night to avoid paying them, in which he hopes that they die or are severely injured. He is an antagonist along with August. I feel kind of bad for August he is the head animal trainer and he was abusive and deserve what he got. But he did have a mental illness he was a  paranoid schizophrenic, so I don’t think that he should be completely blamed for his actions.This fits into the hero archetype because Jacob is the protagonists. He faces protagonist like Uncle Al and August. He is alone at first and he is faced with great loss. He travels with the circus not knowing where he is headed. He stands up to August who abuses Marlena and the animals. He takes care of Jake and protects him from being redlighted when he gets sick with. He is very intelligent and this helps him throughout the book. He faces a quest to stand for wh at he believes in without losing sight of who he really is. He fights for his love and gives Marlena a home.He does the right thing by going back to Cornell to get his degree and give a better life to Marlena. He is the hero because he helps people, stands up for what he believes in and does the right thing. I liked the cyclic ending. The ninety year old Jacob finds his home, at last. He goes to see the circus that’s in town and meets with the manager Charlie. He begs him to accompany the circus by selling tickets. Charlie eventually agrees and Jacob believes he has finally come home. The best years of his life even with the downturns were at the circus where he met his wife. I think this was a peaceful ending to a great book.

Charge Definition and Examples (Physics and Chemistry)

In the context of chemistry and physics, charge usually refers to electric charge, which is a conserved property of certain subatomic particles that determines their electromagnetic interaction. Charge is a physical property that causes matter to experience a force within an electromagnetic field. Electric charges may be positive or negative in nature. If no net electric charge is present, the matter is considered to be neutral or uncharged. Like charges (e.g., two positive charges or two negative charges) repel each other. Dissimilar charges (positive and negative) attract each other. In physics, the term charge may also refer to color charge in the field of quantum chromodynamics. In general, charge refers to a generator of continuous symmetry in a system. Charge Examples in Science By convention, electrons have a charge of -1 while protons have a charge of 1. Another way of indicating charge is for an electron to have a charge of e and a proton to have a charge of e.Quarks possess what is known as color charge.Quarks may possess flavor charges, including charm and strangeness.Although hypothetical, magnetic charge has been postulated for electromagnetism. Units of Electric Charge The proper unit for electric charge is discipline-dependent. In chemistry, a capital letter Q is used to indicate charge in equations, with the elementary charge of an electron (e) as a common unit. The SI derived unit of charge is the coulomb (C). Electrical engineering often uses the unit ampere-hour (Ah) for charge.