Assignment

Finance

Discussion 1: "Bank Performance"

Please respond to the following:

• Considering the bank you currently use, create performance criteria and then rate your bank against the criteria you developed. Make a suggestion for one area of improvement based on your evaluation.

• Speculate how commercial banks will perform overall throughout the next three years as the economy rebounds. Then, determine the economic consequences for this performance. Provide examples or evidence to support your answer.

Discussion 2: "Thrift Operations"

Please respond to the following:

• Determine the risks that are unique to thrift operations compared to commercial banks. Describe how the thrift should manage each risk identified.

• From the e-Activity, generate an opinion about the overall health of thrifts compared to how banks performed during the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s, and determine what lessons can be learned.

Note: e-activiti e-Activity

• Research the Internet or the Strayer Library for examples on how thrifts are performing in the recent economic downturn. Be prepared to discuss.

Discussion 3: "Finance Company Operations"

Please respond to the following:

• In today's economic climate, determine which of the three types of risk - liquidity, interest rate, or credit - affects the finance company the most. Recommend a way to lessen the risk.

• Assess the advantages to a consumer to borrow from a finance company versus a commercial bank or thrift. Consider your own situation to decide when you might borrow from a finance company.

Discussion 4: "Mutual Fund Operations"

Please respond to the following:

• Assess how index mutual funds can mitigate various risks for investors. Include a discussion how the capital asset pricing model affects index fund risk.

• From the e-Activity, determine if more oversight or regulation is needed regarding hedge funds. Support your response with examples or evidence.

e-Activity

• Go to the SEC Website to read the article "Hedging Your Bets: A Heads Up on Hedge Funds and Funds of Hedge Funds," located at http://www.sec.gov/answers/hedge.htm. Be prepared to discuss.

BIOLOGY

QUESTION 1

With antibiotic resistance rising, researchers are looking for ways to reduce use of these drugs. Some cattle once fed antibiotic-laced food now get feed that includes helpful bacteria that can live in the animal's gut. The idea is that if a large population of beneficial bacteria is in place, then harmful bacteria with the same resource needs are less likely to thrive.

• Explain why this idea makes sense in terms of species interactions and provide an example with your response.

QUESTION 2

• Analyze the impact that the extinction of a species will have on an environment. Determine what you believe to be the most significant impact, and explain why.