Anthropology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Anthropology - Essay Example The first theory of a land bridge between Siberia and Alaska has been around for awhile. If an individual places a map of the world on a table, the continents look like they can fit together. The earth’s crust and upper mantle have plates. These plates slide and move. The moving of these plates cause earthquakes and tsunamis. It also causes land to break apart. Another factor is the ice age. When the great meltdown occurred a land bridge could have been submerged. This land bridge, Beringia, would have connected Siberia and Alaska. If that connection was made, then it is possible that the Native Americans migrated from Siberia. After reaching North America the Native Americas would have migrated south. Another theory is the coastal migration. The Native Americans would have sailed in canoes from Siberia to Alaska. Then the Native Americans would have migrated south to South America. Both continents would be populated before Columbus arrived. This theory would depend on the migrants knowing about the route. The passage would have to be during the summer, or when ice chunks were not present. This is the least likely of the scenarios. The final scenario is migrants came across the giant ice sheet. If an ice age was in full force, migrants might go south for a warmer climate. The trail would have gone toward westward and southward. If the ice shelves were as scientist think, than the ice would have melted without a trace. All three theories depend on one same element†¦food. Prehistoric people hunted for food and warmth from the furs. If the herds of caribou, wooly mammoth, or whatever was around at the time left, the hunter would have gone to search for prey. In the northern parts of Siberia planting a garden to provide for food year round is not an option. The hunters would have had to follow the food. As the animals’ natural instinct led them south, the hunters would have followed. Not only would the hunters

ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT PROJECT ON WALMART Essay

ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT PROJECT ON WALMART - Essay Example Wal-Mart values its inventories at the lower of cost or market value, which essentially means if the market value of inventory falls, the company will write-down the inventory value in its balance sheet. Wal-Mart is divided into three segments: Wal-Mart U.S, Wal-Mart International and Sam’s Club. All of the merchandise related to the U.S segment is valued using the Last in First out (LIFO) method. LIFO is an inventory valuation method allowed under US GAAP but not under IFRS (CFA institute, 2012). LIFO assumes that inventory items purchased most recently are sold first and hence the items remaining in the inventory are assumed to be the oldest items purchased. In period of rising prices, LIFO reports a higher cost of sales and lower ending inventory figure than other inventory valuation methods. Higher cost of sales lead to lower gross profit and hence results in tax savings. The company reports a LIFO reserve in its annual statements for reconciliation of LIFO cost of sales a nd inventory with FIFO cost of sales and inventory. This is to ensure that comparisons can be made with other companies in the retail industry that use FIFO as their inventory valuation method. Wal-Mart’s inventory turnover rate has been on the lower side considering the diverse range of product it sells. Inventory turnover rate fell from 8.6 times in 2011 to 8.2 times in 2012 which means that it took almost 44 days for Wal-Mart to convert its inventory into sales in 2012 and 42 days in 2011. Wal-Mart uses accrual accounting to prepare its annual statements. Accrual accounting is different from cash accounting in the sense that in accrual accounting revenues are recorded when they are earned and expenses are recorded when they are incurred whereas in cash accounting revenues are recorded when the money is received and expenses are recorded when cash is paid out (Investopedia, 2009). Wal-Mart has accrued liabilities of $18.154B indicating that these liabilities are due and Wal -Mart has not yet paid them. Moreover, prepaid expenses amounted to $1.685B in 2012 indicating that these expenses have already been paid in advance (Wal-Mart, 2012). In cash accounting, prepaid expenses and accrued liabilities are not recorded since these are obligations that are due but no cash outflow has been made in lieu of these obligations. Accrual accounting can be manipulated to show higher earnings by using estimates that inflate the income. For instance, unjustly inflating the ending inventory figure can result in a lower cost of sales and consequently inflate the net income of a company. In Wal-Mart’s case, figures are presented conservatively so that the income is not inflated unreasonably. The receivables of Wal-Mart increased by 16.7% from 5.089B in 2011 to $ 5.937B in 2012 (Wal-Mart, 2012). Wal-Mart records a provision for doubtful debts, which is a contra-asset account and is recorded to account for the prudence concept. According to the prudence concept, imp robable expenses are recorded whereas improbable revenues are not accounted for. Provision for doubtful debts is created to account for debts that will remain unpaid. The reserve for doubtful accounts is based on historical trends in collection of the past due amounts that debtors owe to a company and on the write-off history of the company. The total provision for doubtful accounts increased by 28% from $252M in 2011 to $323M in 2012