This guest blog is brought to you courtesy of The Company Corporation.
Business owners may choose from a variety of company structures, based on their needs and preferences, and with the advent of the Limited Liability Company (LLC), the choices for small businesses are wider and better than ever before. Therefore, it is important for small business owners to consider and understand the advantages of both a corporation and an LLC when forming a new company. Selecting the right structure can help you maximize your chances for success.
So, what is a corporation? A general corporation, also known as a ?C? corporation, is the most common corporate structure. A general corporation may have an unlimited number of stockholders and it provides limited liability for directors, officers, shareholders and employees.? Also, corporations provide perpetual existence, even if the owners leave the company. There may be certain tax advantages like tax deductible expenses when forming a corporation.
Another option for business owners that has become very popular is to form a Limited Liability Company (LLC).? The LLC is not a corporation, but it offers many of the same advantages. Many small business owners and entrepreneurs prefer LLCs because they combine the limited liability protection of a corporation with the ?pass through?" taxation of a sole proprietorship or partnership.
To help make it a little easier to compare a corporation to an LLC, the chart below gives a snapshot of the advantages and disadvantages of both:
Advantages of an LLC
Advantages of a Corporation
no limit on the number of owners
profit and loss are passed through to the owners? individual tax returns
no annual meeting or minute book requirements
may issue shares of stock to attract investors
corporate income splitting may help lower overall tax liability
Disadvantages of an LLC
Disadvantages of a Corporation
cannot engage in corporate income splitting to lower tax liability
cannot issue stock
double taxation of corporate profits and shareholder dividends
must hold annual meetings and record minutes
S Corporations have restrictions on number of owners
Every business is unique with different needs.? The legal structure that works best for your neighbor?s business may not be the best for yours.? Take the time to understand the difference in legal structures before you incorporate your business.
Join The Company Corporation for a complimentary webinar on Thursday, May 3rd, 2012 at 12:00 PM Eastern Time to learn more about incorporating your business.
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Tagged as: corporation, incorporating your business, LLC
New Domain: International team installs first of 3 telescopes in AntarcticaPublic release date: 23-Apr-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Shana Hutchins 979-862-1237 Texas A&M University
DOME ARGUS, Antarctica, April 23, 2012 A team of scientists representing several international institutions, including Texas A&M University, has succeeded in installing the first of three Antarctic Survey Telescopes (AST3-1) at the Chinese Kunlun Station at Dome Argus, the highest point of the Antarctic Plateau.
The telescope is the first of three, half-meter devices to be installed at PLATeau Observatory (PLATO-A), a fully robotic observatory established at "Dome A" in 2008 and intended to reveal new insights into the Universe once possible only from space. In combination, the three telescopes are expected to find planets around other stars about the size of Earth, hundreds of supernovaes useful for cosmological studies and many other variable objects relevant to future discoveries in astrophysics.
Texas A&M is joined in the international project by the Chinese Center for Antarctic Astronomy (CCAA) and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), which built PLATO-A and the control computers responsible for its autonomous operation. Lifan Wang, associate professor of physics and astronomy at Texas A&M, also serves as director of the CCAA.
"This is an astounding achievement," says Michael Ashley, head of the UNSW team responsible for PLATO-A. "A stand-alone telescope in the pristine environment of Antarctica can conduct scientific research that would otherwise only be possible from space, but at a few percent of the cost."
Four years after a making only the second arduous trek to Dome A in history in order to found PLATO-A, the same team returned to finish the latest leg of the adventurous international undertaking led by the Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC). The telescope installation project was carried out over a three-month period by four astronomers as part of China's 28th Antarctica Expedition. The 26-member team left Tianjin, China, aboard the Xuelong Icebreaker on November 3, reaching the Chinese Zhongshan Station at the Antarctic Coast 26 days later. On December 16, they started their inland traverse, arriving at Dome A on January 4 and completing their installation of the telescope during the subsequent three weeks before returning to Zhongshan Station on February 9.
Among its many unprecedented features, the AST3-1 is equipped with a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera that is 110 megapixels in size the largest single-piece detector in use in astronomy today. The telescope will be used to search for planets around stars other than the Sun, enabling the continuous monitoring of hundreds of millions of stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, Wang explains.
"The ability to monitor stars during the dark austral winter makes AST3-1 a unique facility for astronomical studies," Wang adds.
Ashley says the autonomous observatory is accompanied by an onsite computing system that analyzes the massive amount of data from the CCD camera in real-time to catch transient events, such as supernova explosions and gamma-ray-burst afterglows. Supernova explosions, which are caused by the death of massive stars, are visible to distances far beyond the Milky Way Galaxy. Wang notes that it was precise measurements of these explosions in Type Ia supernovae which led to the discovery of accelerated expansion of the Universe a breakthrough recognized with last year's Nobel Prize in Physics.
"AST3-1 aims to discover these Type Ia supernovae within one day after they become visible," Wang says. "Such early discovery is important in resolving the mysterious physics that leads to supernova explosions."
In addition, the telescope can be used for observations of the optical afterglows of gamma-ray bursts, which are important in early detection of supernovae as well as timely data collection and measurement.
"We are able to process the data from each exposure within two minutes after they are taken to promptly alert the science team when a new supernova occurs," says Prof. Zhaohui Shang of the National Astronomical Observatory of China and Tianjin Normal University.
Wang says the AST3-1 telescope is fully steerable, meaning it is capable of pointing to any sky area visible from Dome A a huge technological leap in comparison to CSTAR, an array of four 14.5-centimeter telescopes installed in 2008 which had no moving parts. AST3-1's CCD camera also employs a frame-transfer-readout scheme that avoids the use of a mechanical shutter, making the overall system much more robust.
Team members say data collected thus far from PLATO-A confirms that Dome A, with its cold temperature, dry air and stable atmosphere, is likely the best site for establishing ground-based astronomical observatories. However, the site is not without its challenges the least of which is navigation, according to Prof. Xiangqun Cui of the Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics Technology (NIAOT).
"The observatory has to withstand the most extreme conditions on Earth," Cui says. "The winter temperature can be as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius, and the air pressure is barely half that of sea level. It has to be able to prevent ice from building up on mirror surfaces and the telescope support structure."
###
To learn more about the AST3-1 telescope and the overall Dome A project, visit http://mcba11.phys.unsw.edu.au/~plato/.
For more on Wang and his research, go to http://dome-a.physics.tamu.edu/~lifanwang.
CONTACTS:
Prof. Lifan Wang
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Texas A&M University
(979) 845-4881
wang@physics.tamu.edu
Prof. Michael Ashley
University of New South Wales
+61 29385 5465
m.ashley@unsw.edu.au
Prof. Zhaohui Shang
National Astronomical Observatory of China
+86 134 3916 1838
zshang@gmail.com
Prof. Xiangyan Yuan
Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics and Technology
+86 135 0515 9459
xyyuan@niaot.ac.cn
Shana Hutchins
College of Science
Texas A&M University
(979) 862-1237
shutchins@science.tamu.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
New Domain: International team installs first of 3 telescopes in AntarcticaPublic release date: 23-Apr-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Shana Hutchins 979-862-1237 Texas A&M University
DOME ARGUS, Antarctica, April 23, 2012 A team of scientists representing several international institutions, including Texas A&M University, has succeeded in installing the first of three Antarctic Survey Telescopes (AST3-1) at the Chinese Kunlun Station at Dome Argus, the highest point of the Antarctic Plateau.
The telescope is the first of three, half-meter devices to be installed at PLATeau Observatory (PLATO-A), a fully robotic observatory established at "Dome A" in 2008 and intended to reveal new insights into the Universe once possible only from space. In combination, the three telescopes are expected to find planets around other stars about the size of Earth, hundreds of supernovaes useful for cosmological studies and many other variable objects relevant to future discoveries in astrophysics.
Texas A&M is joined in the international project by the Chinese Center for Antarctic Astronomy (CCAA) and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), which built PLATO-A and the control computers responsible for its autonomous operation. Lifan Wang, associate professor of physics and astronomy at Texas A&M, also serves as director of the CCAA.
"This is an astounding achievement," says Michael Ashley, head of the UNSW team responsible for PLATO-A. "A stand-alone telescope in the pristine environment of Antarctica can conduct scientific research that would otherwise only be possible from space, but at a few percent of the cost."
Four years after a making only the second arduous trek to Dome A in history in order to found PLATO-A, the same team returned to finish the latest leg of the adventurous international undertaking led by the Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC). The telescope installation project was carried out over a three-month period by four astronomers as part of China's 28th Antarctica Expedition. The 26-member team left Tianjin, China, aboard the Xuelong Icebreaker on November 3, reaching the Chinese Zhongshan Station at the Antarctic Coast 26 days later. On December 16, they started their inland traverse, arriving at Dome A on January 4 and completing their installation of the telescope during the subsequent three weeks before returning to Zhongshan Station on February 9.
Among its many unprecedented features, the AST3-1 is equipped with a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera that is 110 megapixels in size the largest single-piece detector in use in astronomy today. The telescope will be used to search for planets around stars other than the Sun, enabling the continuous monitoring of hundreds of millions of stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, Wang explains.
"The ability to monitor stars during the dark austral winter makes AST3-1 a unique facility for astronomical studies," Wang adds.
Ashley says the autonomous observatory is accompanied by an onsite computing system that analyzes the massive amount of data from the CCD camera in real-time to catch transient events, such as supernova explosions and gamma-ray-burst afterglows. Supernova explosions, which are caused by the death of massive stars, are visible to distances far beyond the Milky Way Galaxy. Wang notes that it was precise measurements of these explosions in Type Ia supernovae which led to the discovery of accelerated expansion of the Universe a breakthrough recognized with last year's Nobel Prize in Physics.
"AST3-1 aims to discover these Type Ia supernovae within one day after they become visible," Wang says. "Such early discovery is important in resolving the mysterious physics that leads to supernova explosions."
In addition, the telescope can be used for observations of the optical afterglows of gamma-ray bursts, which are important in early detection of supernovae as well as timely data collection and measurement.
"We are able to process the data from each exposure within two minutes after they are taken to promptly alert the science team when a new supernova occurs," says Prof. Zhaohui Shang of the National Astronomical Observatory of China and Tianjin Normal University.
Wang says the AST3-1 telescope is fully steerable, meaning it is capable of pointing to any sky area visible from Dome A a huge technological leap in comparison to CSTAR, an array of four 14.5-centimeter telescopes installed in 2008 which had no moving parts. AST3-1's CCD camera also employs a frame-transfer-readout scheme that avoids the use of a mechanical shutter, making the overall system much more robust.
Team members say data collected thus far from PLATO-A confirms that Dome A, with its cold temperature, dry air and stable atmosphere, is likely the best site for establishing ground-based astronomical observatories. However, the site is not without its challenges the least of which is navigation, according to Prof. Xiangqun Cui of the Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics Technology (NIAOT).
"The observatory has to withstand the most extreme conditions on Earth," Cui says. "The winter temperature can be as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius, and the air pressure is barely half that of sea level. It has to be able to prevent ice from building up on mirror surfaces and the telescope support structure."
###
To learn more about the AST3-1 telescope and the overall Dome A project, visit http://mcba11.phys.unsw.edu.au/~plato/.
For more on Wang and his research, go to http://dome-a.physics.tamu.edu/~lifanwang.
CONTACTS:
Prof. Lifan Wang
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Texas A&M University
(979) 845-4881
wang@physics.tamu.edu
Prof. Michael Ashley
University of New South Wales
+61 29385 5465
m.ashley@unsw.edu.au
Prof. Zhaohui Shang
National Astronomical Observatory of China
+86 134 3916 1838
zshang@gmail.com
Prof. Xiangyan Yuan
Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics and Technology
+86 135 0515 9459
xyyuan@niaot.ac.cn
Shana Hutchins
College of Science
Texas A&M University
(979) 862-1237
shutchins@science.tamu.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
This one?s going to be hard for you to believe, but here we go. A group of Italian Serie A soccer fans were so disgusted with the way their team was playing that they began throwing fireworks onto the field, saying that they would not stop until their team removed their jerseys and handed them over. And the team complied.
It happened at Genoa?s Luigi Ferraris Stadium on Sunday, as Genoa was getting clobbered, 4-0, by Siena in the 53rd minute. That?s when Genoa ?ultras? began throwing flares onto the pitch and climbing tunnels and barriers, causing a stoppage of play. As police in riot gear stood by, spokesmen for the fans demanded that the Genoa team remove their jerseys, because they were ?unworthy? of wearing the colors.
Captain Marco Rossi went to negotiate with the ultras ? After some time, the players accepted and there were tears from Giandomenico Mesto as he handed over his shirt.
Rossi was walking around the pitch with a pile of jerseys to show the fans, but Giuseppe Sculli refused to co-operate.
Sculli went over to speak to the fans himself and insisted with great passion that he was giving his all for Genoa, so would not take off the shirt.
He too was in tears and comforted by the head ultra. This proved a breakthrough and the game was allowed to resume.
Yep, the match resumed only after the ?head ultra? pulled back his troops. After a 45-minute delay, Siena went on to win 4-1.
I have a hard time picturing a Kansas City Chiefs game being stopped by rowdy fans in the third quarter, demanding that players turn over their jerseys. For one thing, there would be a stampede to the parking lot as fans rushed home to get the garments on eBay. For another, Nike makes them so tight now that some linemen wouldn?t be able to get them off. Roger Goodell would really be pleased with something like that, wouldn?t he?
Italian soccer officials were similarly unamused.
?This violence is unacceptable,? Italian soccer federation President Giancarlo Abete said. ?These are not fans. I hope these people are found and condemned. They shouldn?t ever be allowed to enter stadiums again.?
Genoa president Enrico Preziosi said ?it?s upsetting that 60 or 100 people have the impunity to do and say what they feel like without being stopped and sent home.?
?It?s not possible that they take over the stadium and impose their laws,? he said.
The whole things sounds like a deleted scene from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
I first used Windows on a TULIP portable computer, some twenty years ago. Graphical user interface, icons, mouse, an amazing new world was ushered in before my wide eyes. At uni, I scored a summer internship with Microsoft. I sported a Microsoft collared shirt and showed off my ?Microsoft Product Specialist? badge with infinite pride. When Windows 2000 launched, I distributed official evaluation copies to the School of Engineering. Lecturers didn?t hide their admiration, and wonder, about my infatuation with this company. They called me the "Microsoft man," which I saw as a compliment.
As I’ve mentioned before, the thing I haven’t liked about the iPads I’ve owned is the on-screen keyboard.? The virtual keys don’t lend themselves to touch typing.? None of the keyboard cases I’ve tried were what I’ve been looking for, because they have cramped, undersized keyboards, often with a non-standard layout.? The best keyboard I’ve [...]
Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, Verizon announced that its LTE service now covers two-thirds of the US population, and T-Mobile dropped its 'nice girl' image in attempt to position its HSPA+ network as a viable competitor to LTE. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of April 16th, 2012.
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Public release date: 23-Apr-2012
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I first used Windows on a TULIP portable computer, some twenty years ago. Graphical user interface, icons, mouse, an amazing new world was ushered in before my wide eyes. At uni, I scored a summer internship with Microsoft. I sported a Microsoft collared shirt and showed off my ?Microsoft Product Specialist? badge with infinite pride. When Windows 2000 launched, I distributed official evaluation copies to the School of Engineering. Lecturers didn?t hide their admiration, and wonder, about my infatuation with this company. They called me the "Microsoft man," which I saw as a compliment.
