5 Ways to Tell if Your Company Cares About Work Life Balance

5 Ways to Tell if Your Company Cares About Work Life Balance We all know that to get where we want to be, certain sacrifices are required–especially when we are starting out and getting the engine going in our career. That means late nights, extra hours, and constantly going above and beyond as a matter of expectation. Still, you can be willing to do all of this extra labor with a smile on your face and still want the possibility of a week of working remotely in the summer, or an afternoon off to see your kid’s recital.So when you’re going for the job, here are 5 ways of finding out (without alerting the hiring manager) whether your potential new company prioritizes work life balance.1. Reverse the reference checkThey’re going to be checking up on you, after all. That’s de rigueur.So why not check up on them? Sift through your online network and see if you know anyone (or anyone who knows anyone) who used to work for that company and might be willing to chat with you. Avoid asking them to answer any of your q uestions in writing, but do ask them to be candid. Ask about the culture, the flexibility, the diversity, and what they would have changed if they had the chance.2. Stake it outTry and schedule your interview for super early or late in the day. If it’s 7 a.m. or 7 p.m. and the office is crammed despite being advertised as a 9-5 job, then you have your answer. Not a lot of family dinners appear to be happening. Then, be sure to look for signs of life outside of work: family photos, vacation memorabilia, etc. If you don’t get past the lobby or the boardroom, ask for an office tour. Evidence that families and outside interests are prized in the office is a very good sign.3. Social media stalkingNot the creepy kind, just the quick search. Try to get a sense of different tiers of employees, from executives to interns. Are people complaining? Working all the time? Taking vacations? Do they have families? What sort of press has been generated by the company or its employees?4 . Do your homeworkRead up on other companies also, to get a sense of work-life balance policies in your industry. Try Maybrooks, Glassdoor, or Fairygodboss for starters. If you don’t get this job, or decide you don’t want this job, then you’ll have a good idea of companies you might try next.5. Ask around itDirect questions can raise suspicions about your work ethic or intentions. Save them for after you receive the offer and are negotiating with HR. And, in the interview process, ask questions that might get the answers you want without tipping your hand–questions like what they love about the company that has nothing to do with their direct work, or the type of person who does best in that environment, or even just asking them to describe the company culture. Pay attention to what they’re saying- and what they aren’t saying.If you keep your wits about you, it is possible to glean quite a bit about a company’s particular work-life ba lance- all without damaging your chances of getting the job.

Importance of National Income Essay Example

Importance of National Income Essay Example Importance of National Income Essay Importance of National Income Essay A variety of measures of national income and output are used in economics to estimate total economic activity in a country or region, including gross domestic product (GDP), gross national product (GNP), net national income (NNI), and adjusted national income (NNI* adjusted for natural resource depletion). All are specially concerned with counting the total amount of goods and services produced within some boundary. The boundary is usually defined by geography or citizenship, and may also restrict the goods and services that are counted. For instance, some measures count only goods and services that are exchanged for money, excluding bartered goods, while other measures may attempt to include bartered goods by imputing monetary values to them. National accounts Main article: National accounts Arriving at a figure for the total production of goods and services in a large region like a country entails a large amount of data-collection and calculation. Although some attempts were made to estimate national incomes as long ago as the 17th century,[2] the systematic keeping of national accounts, of which these figures are a part, only began in the 1930s, in the United States and some European countries. The impetus for that major statistical effort was the Great Depression and the rise of Keynesian economics, which prescribed a greater role for the government in managing an economy, and made it necessary for governments to obtain accurate information so that their interventions into the economy could proceed as well-informed as possible. [edit]Market value Main article: Market value In order to count a good or service, it is necessary to assign value to it. The value that the measures of national income and output assign to a good or service is its market value – the price it fetches when bought or sold. The actual usefulness of a product (its use-value) is not measured – assuming the use-value to be any different from i ts market value. Three strategies have been used to obtain the market values of all the goods and services produced: the product (or output) method, the expenditure method, nd the income method. The product method looks at the economy on an industry-by-industry basis. The total output of the economy is the sum of the outputs of every industry. However, since an output of one industry may be used by another industry and become part of the output of that second industry, to avoid counting the item twice we use not the value output by each industry, but the value-added; that is, the difference between the value of what it puts out and what it takes in. The total value produced by the economy is the sum of the values-added by every industry. The expenditure method is based on the idea that all products are bought by somebody or some organisation. Therefore we sum up the total amount of money people and organisations spend in buying things. This amount must equal the value of everything produced. Usually expenditures by private individuals, expenditures by businesses, and expenditures by government are calculated separately and then summed to give the total expenditure. Also, a correction term must be introduced to account for imports and exports outside the boundary. The income method works by summing the incomes of all producers within the boundary. Since what they are paid is just the market value of their product, their total income must be the total value of the product. Wages, proprieters incomes, and corporate profits are the major subdivisions of income. [edit]The output approach The output approach focuses on finding the total output of a nation by directly finding the total value of all goods and services a nation produces. Because of the complication of the multiple stages in the production of a good or service, only the final value of a good or service is included in the total output. This avoids an issue often called double counting, wherein the total value of a good is included several times in national output, by counting it repeatedly in several stages of production. In the example of meat production, the value of the good from the farm may be $10, then $30 from the butchers, and then $60 from the supermarket. The value that should be included in final national output should be $60, not the sum of all those numbers, $90. The values added at each stage of production over the previous stage are respectively $10, $20, and $30. Their sum gives an alternative way of calculating the value of final output. Formulae: GDP(gross domestic product) at market price = value of output in an economy in the particular year intermediate consumption NNP at factor cost = GDP at market price depreciation + NFIA (net factor income from abroad) net indirect taxes[3] [edit]The income approach The income approach equates the total output of a nation to the total factor income received by residents or citizens of the nation. The main types of factor income are: Employee compensation (cost of fringe benefits, including unemployment, health, and retirement benefits); Interest received net of interest paid; Rental income (mainly for the use of real estate) net of expenses of landlords; Royalties paid for the use of intellectual property and extractable natural resources. All remaining value added generated by firms is called the residual or profit. If a firm has stockholders, they own the residual, some of which they receive as dividends. Profit includes the income of the entrepreneur the businessman who combines factor inputs to produce a good or service.

The Arab Socialist Regimes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Arab Socialist Regimes - Essay Example The socialist regimes in the Arab countries of the Middle East had a number of characteristics that makes them different from the current systems in the countries. These features were mainly evident in Syria, Egypt and Iraq. Some of the features included central planning in which control and planning of economic activities and other government activities. The government took the initiative of setting up the production goals, wage limit and costs of goods and services. It also ensured total control of all the public assets and resources. This was contrary to the current system in which the countries such as Egypt, Afghanistan and Iraq are approaching planning through the laissez-faire system where they do not directly control the economy. The regimes ensured a welfare state approach in the distribution of public resources. In Iraq, people were guaranteed universal healthcare, education and provision of support funds to the old members of the society. This is still applied in those cou ntries since welfare is not the same thing as socialism. The socialist regimes aimed at achieving self-sufficiency in the production process, initiating public investment so as to raise the capacity level and finally promoting import substituting form of industrialization.This is different from the current Arab regimes that are advocating for capitalism in which people are motivated to produce their own wealth. The locals who include farmers and low-scale workers have lost the socialized form of life in education, medicine and agriculture.

Write a summary of the video The Secrets of the Sun-NOVA. You may Assignment

Write a summary of the video The Secrets of the Sun-NOVA. You may include your own thoughts as well - Assignment Example Due to this, the scientists explain that there was a need for the prediction of the occurrence of solar flares and storms and their effect of earth. The discoveries noted for the explanation of the start of solar storms and flares is that the sun generates sound waves that, according to the interviewed scientists, can be used to understand occurrences in the sun. The sound waves could be caused by movement of fault lines similar to those of the earth creating disturbances that cause increased activity on the sun’s surface. The video goes on to expound on theories focusing on the sun’s magnetic field and an exposition of sunspots is provided. The main basis for the inclusion of the theories is the launching of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) that has aided the scientists in the determination of the reaching of solar mars by the sun again in 2013. From this understanding, the scientists reveal that they are working on the theories and measures for the protection of the Earth from coronal mass ejections coming towards to Earth. The conclusion is that there is no one theory that ultimately predicts the exact time for coronal mass ejections coming to Earth. In my opinion, Secrets of the sun is an excellent exposition of the technological augmentation of exploration equipment in terms of use of telescopes on earth and in spacecrafts that have aided the understanding of the sun for better preparedness on disasters such as sun flares. It is evident that recent developments have been beneficial in getting a better understanding of the sun as shown in Secrets of the Sun and will be helpful in abating coronal mass ejections, solar flares, and

Computer Networks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Computer Networks - Essay Example The larger firms have their own computers connected in the topology suiting best to their requirements. They choose for themselves from the different options available like bus, ring, star, mesh and the like. The protocols used for the data transfer stays to be the same. We take the example of the call center, as they require a large number of computers for providing online support to a large number of people utilizing the services provided by the firm. The protocols used for the data transfer are standard and are generated utilizing the international standards for communication languages. The call center backbone should be strong enough so as to meet the pressing requirements of online support to millions of users staying far and wide and utilizing the services of the organizations. The critical issue in the call center stays to be that the information and the calls need to be routed to the lines which are free at that very moment and these lines should be relieved back to the pool when they are no more used. Next, the information needs to be collected in the central database so as to store the information and personal details about the scheme offered to the clients and their personal information too. The financial system at the back needs to be connected to the front end Customer relationship and maintenance software package, so that the information updated by the CRM department directly gets recorded in the back end ERP system. This saves a considerable amount of time and effort by eradicating the factor for double data entry in both the front end and the back end. For this the cutting edge technology is utilized to develop new softwares and other data integration and migration utilities which connect both the financial system as well as the front end CRM. Next important factor is to maintain the connectivity of the database with the financial system, so as to maintain the records in the system and all the information in a systematic format following the specific schema. The topology preferred for the call center is the bus topology wherein several computers need to be bifurcated in the form of branches from the central bus which is stronger enough to provide the connectivity to a wide number of computers. The chief advantage of the bus topology stays to be that the network is never disconnected even if a single computer is not upright in the channel i.e. it doesn't affect the connectivity of the other computers connected together in the firm. [Computer Networks] The connection stays to be the same for the complete network of the organization as well as the subnet of it. All the smaller subnets are connected with each other via an instrument called a router which routes the call to the desired departments within the organization. These routers and the gateways are the interconnecting devices which can be either active or passive depending on the amount of the power they consume. This connecting device helps in connecting and forming a bigger network. The whole network is protected with the firewalls so as to maintain the security and integrity of the system. The protocols for the network stay to be the same whether it is a small firm or a large wide area network. The protocol used for the call ce

The History Of Limnology

The History Of Limnology Limnology is an interdisciplinary field of study that has been around since the 16th century, however, as a distinct field of science, has existed less than 60 years. The word Limnology in Greek means lake knowledge and is defined as the study of inland waters with reference to the biological, chemical, physical, geological, and other attributes to inland waters (running and standing waters, both fresh or saline, natural or man-made) (Wikipedia definition, 2010), hence the multidisciplinary status. Limnology is essentially a synthetic science composed of elements some of which extend beyond the limits of biology as ordinarily conceived. Beginnings of knowledge concerning fresh water life, like those of marine life, arose in the remote past, possibly before the days of Aristole (384-322 B.C). These early beginnings, often strange mixtures of fact and fancy, have no scientific value (Welch, 1952). As time went on and mans knowledge of his surroundings slowly increased, certain unusual fresh water phenomena were observed and recorded in simple fashion, often with increasing accuracy. However, aside from the historical interest involved, no significant contributions of a strictly limnological nature were made for at least nineteen hundred years after the time of Aristole, although, certain facts about the habitats of fishes, emergencies of aquatic insects, aquatic plants, and so on, easily observable happenings had been described. The study around limnology has attracted many scientists, usually ecologists simply for reasons of aesthetic appeal of being by a lake. Since the early studies of lakes and other water bodies, one of the main points of study was biological aspect of what was found in the lakes and finding relationships between animals and their environment with regard to the population and community level of organization and their experimental testing. In addition to being intellectually stimulating, limnology is of great practical importance in that the limited supply of fresh water must be shared by an ever growing human population, thus becoming subject to pollution, misuse, and depletion. While Peter Erasmus Muller is sometimes credited with laying the foundation of limnological research with his plankton discoveries in fresh water, and while it appears that Anton Fritsch began lacustrine investigations in the Bohemian Forest as early as 1871, it remained for F. A. Forel (1841-1912), a professor at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, to recognise the real biological opportunity in lake investigations and, by his work, to become the founder of modern limnology. Limnology first came to be in 1901 through the publication of the first ever text on the subject which led to world-wide recognition. Before this time since 1650, the progression and development of limnology was rather slow and steady, however the work that was done was influential and set a platform for other scientists to build on methodology and application. Such an influential figure emerged as one, Anton van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723), a Dutch tradesman and scientist from Delft, Netherlands. He is commonly known as the father of microbiology, and considered to be the first microbiologist (Wikipedia 2010). He created his own microscopes and was the first person to observe single celled organisms. In 1674 he first described filamentous green alga (Spirogyra) from a Dutch lake and an early recognition of seasonal differences in algal populations as well as descriptions of rotifers. Limnology slowly progressed further and in 1787, Clark was the first to determine depths of some English lakes which for its time was a huge stepping stone for lake science. In 1865, development of the Secchi disk used for measuring water transparency in oceans and lakes was created by Professor Pietro Angelo Secchi, priest/scientist on the SS Immacolata Concezione, a steam corvet of -the papal navy travelling in the Adriatic Sea (Kalff 2002). A major trend in the studies around this time was found to be more of an ecological nature (studies revolved around ecology), as expressed in the 1867 distribution and ecology of crustacean zooplankton in Danish lakes by E. Muller, however, these studies had not been recognised by the wider community and limnology was still left in the shadows. It was the efforts of Francois Alphonse Forel (1841-1912) and his early studies on Lac Leman (Lake of Geneva) which would get world wide recognition and response and saw this form of science accelerate and change throughout the years, surviving two world wars, depressions, revolutions, and many other social, political, and economical occurrences that shaped and defined a period in history. In 1869 appeared his Instruction à ¡ là ©tude de la fauna profonde du Lac Là ©man; in 1892-1879, Matà ©riaux pour server à ¡ là ¨tude de la fauna profonde du Là ¨man; in 1892-1904 he published his monumental and epoch-making work Le Là ¨man. Monographie limnologique, in three volumes, which was not only the first comprehensive limnological treatise but which also opened up a whole new field of biological research. In 1885 appeared his La fauna profonde des lacs Suisses for which he was awarded a prize. Then in 1901, he published the Handbuch der Seenkunde. Allgemeine Limnologie, a book whic h is the first general presentation of limnology from the modern standpoint. It could even be said to be the first textbook foe the study of limnology. The integrative nature of limnology was stressed even before Forel coined the term limnology. In a prescient article published in 1887, Stephen Forbes described lakes as microcosms, or little worlds (CGER 1996). Although the term ecosystem was not introduced for another half century (Tansley, 1935), Forbes defined an approach that presaged this concept. He proposed that lake studies should focus on many of the processes that today define the field of ecosystem ecology: mineral cycling, production and decomposition of organic matter, food web interactions and their impacts on the structure of biological communities, and the effects of physical conditions on biological communities. Forbes viewed these topics as essential to understanding lakes as functioning, integrated systems. Shortly after the publication of the first limnology text in 1901, came another study in 1904 (following pioneering work in 1897) delivered another aspect to this form of science, hydrology. Hydrology had been practised before, but was not of central focus and studies conducted were basic principles of stream inflows (B. Varenius 1650), water balance in determining lake size, salinity, and sediment retention (J. P. Jackson, GB), and the like. Description of internal waves or thermocline seiches in Loch Ness was carried out by E. E. Watson following work by Lord Kelvin (GB). Then in 1908 the establishment of the first limnological journal, Internationale revue der gesamten Hydrobiologie und Hydrographie, encompassing limnology and hydrology was created. Also a systematic attempt to use a component of the biota (diatoms) as indicators of (stream) water quality was done by R. Kolkwitz and M. Marsson (DE). The period in history believed to be the catalyst for such a strong revival and explosive development was due to the hiatus produced by World War 1, and saw a new generation of limnologists eager to recover lost momentum. Limnology developed rapidly between the two World Wars , mostly in Europe, north America and Japan, because of its emphasis on fundamental research, the more applied components of limnology (fisheries, waste-water biology hydrology) went their own way. One of the key reasons for the acceleration of limnology can be put simply to the sheer number of practitioners, meaning there was a lot of relevant work going on around the world, such that, by the end of this period at least some of the limnologists had figured out, what by todays standards is considered fundamental limnology. Most of the work done around this time was on estimations of the input and output of materials in lakes, measured primary production, and recognized that changes in the nutrient supply brought about changes in the biota and affected the geo chemistry of iron (Kalff, 2002). Limnology continued to develop as a field of study and expand its geographic base during the first half of the twentieth century. Limnologists of the 1920s and 1930s founded many field stations, used them to collect a wealth of information on individual lakes, and synthesized this information at the regional scale. As practiced during these decades, limnology was essentially an observational science: knowledge gained was largely from sample collection and analysis of the resulting data rather than from controlled experiments (CGER 1996). August Thienemann (1882-1960) and Einar C. L. Naumann (1891-1934) were two prominent young scientists, ecologists of better description, from Europe. Naumann divided lakes on the basis of their implied nutrient content, and in the process acknowledged them to be open systems linked to their catchments or drainage basins through the supply of nutrients from the land. He came up with the use of glass slides to study the attaching organisms in nature in 1915 which was a huge success. Thienemann was considered a very good scientist (ecologist) and was the major player in the development of research not only on individual insects (autecology) but also on functional groupings (producers, consumers, and reducers) which, as early as 1914, laid the foundations for later research on energy flow in aquatic systems (Vollenwieder and Kerekes 1980) and anticipated the ecosystem concept (Rhode 1979). Between 1910 and 1914, he was involved with studies on the volcanic Eifel Maar lakes in Germany, which provided the basis for his organization of lakes in terms of bottom-dwelling invertebrate communities and their relationships to chemical conditions, in particular the oxygen content, of bottom waters of lakes. A. Thienemann and E Naumann were among the most highly regarded limnologists who led a 30 year effort, largely between the two World Wars, to classify lakes, they also aided the development of limnology through the establishment of the International Association for Theoretical and Applied Limnology in 1922, an organisation with strong educational programs and communication networks linking professional limnologists. Limnologists in the United States were organized as the Committee on Aquaculture in 1925 and as the Limnological Society of America in 1936. It joined with oceanographers to become the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography in 1948; its journal, Limnology and Oceanography, one of the premier research periodicals on lake limnology in the world, was launched in 1955. Birge and Juday are usually included among the founders of limnology (Wetzle 1996). Their contribution to the study of progressive limnology began the foundation of knowledge among the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of lakes. Fig 1. Edward Birge and Chancey Juday with plankton trap on Lake Mendota in Madison, Wisconsin, circa 1917. SOURCE: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Visual and Sound Archives. Edward A. Birge (1851-1950) and Chancey Juday (1871-1944) were two scientists studying out of the University of Wisconsin studied many different types of lakes that differed in morphometry and size and in geologically varying basins and were generally sceptical about the possibility of constructing new data points from the relatively few non-humic lakes and some of those lakes were accessible to Thienemann and colleagues in northern Germany. By investigating many of these lakes, they were able to distinguish between what they called autotrophic lakes and allotrophic lakes, among others (Kalff 2002). They also recognised differences between lakes without stream inflows or surface outflows (seepage lakes), which receive most of their water and nutrients directly from the atmosphere or from groundwater, and lakes with a larger catchment area able to nourish in and outflowing streams (drainage lakes) that in-turn provide much of the water and nutrients originating from land. Birge and Ju day were considered ahead of their time by the fact that they were able to recognize the existence of both internally autochthonous and externally allochthonous derived carbon sources underpinning lake food chains. Characterization of lake types along environmental gradients was hugely rewarding for Birge and Juday, however, the descriptive phase ended mainly because of the rise to superiority after World War 2 of G. E. Hutchinson (US). G. Evelyn Hutchinson (1903-1991) dominated limnology stimulating a great deal of research between 1945 and 1980 about, among other topic, understanding the behaviour of whole ecosystems through assembling work on biological components (species) and their interactions with each other and their environment , the backbone of the field of ecology. He was a pioneer in the development of innovative experimental techniques (CGER 1996), using radioisotopes of phosphorus in lakes as early as the 1940s and bioassays of nutrient effects on phytoplankton population dynamics as early as 1941. The post war period heralded an unprecedented rapid growth of limnology starting in the mid to late 1950s. Its growth was fuelled in the western world by increased funding, the opening of new universities and research centers, and the development of much better analytical (electronic) and sampling equipment that was the result of technical advances made during the war. In the period from 1960 1980, there were major changes in the way limnological research was carried out (Kalff 2002). Until this time, all projects done had been related and research almost exclusively by single scientists alone, sometimes assisted by one or more graduate students or a technician. During the decades of 1960 and 1980 and aided by funding from the International Biological Programme multidisciplinary teams were established in economically strong countries. This now meant that limnologists could answer bigger questions, were able to locate, observe and record data of not only entire lake systems, but of virtually any body of water from the biology to the morphometry. The 1960s and 1970s saw the beginning of research funding shifts away from fundamental or basic research, where direction and questions are chosen by the scientist. These days research is conducted through government, therefore focussing on important issues or perhaps problems which took a large portion of the funding away from the basic research previously conducted. During the past few decades, limnological research has led to impressive conceptual and practical advances on all types of inland aquatic ecosystems (CGER 1996). Within the past 15 years, three new North American societies have formed, each resulting from the expanding activities in a particular aspect of limnology and its related aquatic sciences: -The North American Benthological Society (NABS) 1974. -The North American Lake Management Society (NALMS) 1980. -The Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS) 1980. These days North America and Europe, particularly north America is where limnology has become more frequent, such that, courses for limnology are provided at many research institutes across these countries, and graduate training in limnology is offered at many of these institutions, even though only a few universities have distinct degrees or programs called limnology. Limnology has grown and evolved over the years into a multidisciplinary mode of science practiced throughout the world and attractive to young scientists and amateur scientists alike. The limnological timeline has seen certain periods in history shape and influence different science techniques and created a myriad of methodologies, ideas, and approaches to applying knowledge to the field of limnology. Many people played a part in the success and rapid development of this brand of science that has helped people understand our surroundings with how they work and why, and also acknowledge what can be found in these water-based environments and how they are important in certain dynamics through the roles they play. Limnology continues to develop from strength to strength and initiate a level of interest throughout the world that will ensure its popularity. An example of this is the international limnology society, Societas Internationalis Limnologiae (SIL), known in English as the Intern ational Association for Theoretical and Applied Limnology, that was founded in Germany under the kindly endorsement and guidence of Thienemann and Naumann. Limnologists in the United States were organized as the Committee on Aquaculture in 1925 and as the Limnological Society of America in 1936. From a starting base of 221 members in 1936, the American society grew to include 4,000 scientists today. The rapid development of applied limnology, starting in the 1960s and 1970s, continues to contribute much to fundamental limnology, but has naturally stimulated much healthy argument about the true goals of science. References: Books Limnology : inland water ecosystems / Jacob Klaff. 2002. Limnology. Paul S. Welch, Professor of Zoology , University of Michigan. Second Edition, 1952. Fresh water Ecosystems: Revitalising Educational Programs in Limnology (1996). Commission on Geosciences, Environment and Resources (CGER). Training of Aquatic Ecosystem Scientists. Robert G. Wetzel, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama. Ecosystems and human well-being: A Framework for Assessment. Arthur Tansley 1935. Websites: . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonie_van_Leeuwenhoek. August 23 2010.

Dracula characters :: Essays Papers

Dracula characters Bram Stoker’s characters  · Dracula - central character of the book: An old vampire who lives in a crumbling castle in Transylvania. As the book begins, he is planning to move to England, where he can feed on fresh blood. When we first meet him, Dracula is described as an old man with a white mustache, and he appears courtly and charming; as the book progresses and feeds upon his victims, he grows younger and becomes more like a beast.  · Van Helsing – A professor, who is described by his former pupil Dr. Seward as "a philosopher and metaphysician, and one of the most advanced scientists of his day." Van Helsing knows a lot about vampires, and when he is called in to help with Lucy Westenra's illness, he realizes that he is dealing with a vampire. Because of his intelligence, he is Dracula's main problem and the leader of the group that attempts to destroy the vampire.  · Jonathan Harker - A young English solicitor, or lawyer, who is sent to Transylvania to finish up a real estate transaction with Dracula. He becomes a prisoner in the castle and barely escapes by running down the castle wall. He is engaged to Mina Murray and marries her during the novel.  · Mina Murray - Jonathan Harker's fiancee and later wife, she is a practical young woman who works as a teacher. She is best friends with Lucy Westenra, the Count's first victim in the book, and also gets sucked by Dracula as well.  · Lucy Westenra - Mina's best friend and an attractive, young woman. She is loved by Arthur, Quincey, and John and becomes engaged to Arthur.

Euro Disney: from Dream to Nightmare (1987-1994)

For years, the Disney Theme Park Empire was built upon three crown jewels located in California, Florida, and Japan. Combining the familiar, family-friendly characters and images upon which the Disney reputation was built. With clean and well-operated theme parks helped Disney set new standards for efficient, friendly customer service in the theme park industry. Its parks became major international tourist attractions. However, when Euro Disney opened in Paris in 1992, the standard model of Disney theme parks ran into trouble.Tackling the many problems faced by Euro Disney operations has posed many new challenges to Disney, forcing them to reconsider their standard model for success. Disney must find ways to adapt their theme park model in a manner which preserves the best of Disney. 9. 1 The challenges facing Euro Disney Early hopes for a similar success soured soon after Euro Disney opened, and the experience of opening Euro Disney delivered unexpected surprises to Disney managemen t. The park soon encountered several major problems: AttendanceDisney’s consulting firm has projected first year park attendance to range between 11. 7 and 17. 8 million attendees. To be cautious, Disney used the littlest figures and predicted eleven million attendees. While initial hotel bookings at the theme park during the summer looked promising, as the theme park entered its first winter, bookings dropped to twenty percent or less of monthly projects. Staffing Staffing shortages created a negative cycle in which extra workloads on employees resulted in increased turnover, which in turn hurt Disney’s ability to retain and develop its employees.Poor union relations caused by reactions to Disney’s exacting requirements for dress and appearance, such as a ban on facial hair and colored stockings, as well as to Disney’s high standards of customer service, further hurt their ability to attract employees. Customer Service Euro Disney was failing to deliver the high level of customer service standard to Disney theme parks, as well as failing to provide the service needs that were unique to the European market.Many employees failed to conform to the high standards of customer service that were expected in Disney theme parks. Lack of local management and autonomy Walt Disney Company owned a 49% share in Euro Disney. This resulted in management by remote control, in which decisions were often made by people who were far removed from the day-to-day operations of the park, and who did not have a strong understanding of the culture and the market. 9. 2 Recommendations Upon reviewing the key problems faced by Euro Disney, there are several issues which require attention.These include: Improving customer service Accommodations and services should be made to better fit the needs and desires of the multi-lingual and multi-cultural European customer base. Greater efforts should be made to identify and retain employees that are compatible with the corporate values of Disney with regards to customer service. Decentralize management Disney should hire local consultants to provide insight of local governmental ordinances, as well as customs that the business should follow.Decision making should be more decentralized, away from the U. S. parent company. Procedures should be made specifically for France. Communications with its employees and the overall morale among employees have to be improved. Options to overcome the housing shortage should be explored to allow workers to live closer to the theme park. In addition, Disney should make a greater effort to increase the diversity of its workforce, to provide a better level of service for visitors from outside of France.Better culture adaptation and understanding of the European market Disney must better understand and meet the different habits, expectations, and needs of the European theme park visitors. In addition, a greater role should be given to European investors in planning and decision making, to provide more of a European perspective in managing the operations of the theme park. Maintain operational flexibility As the organization is still dealing with a large range of unknowns, flexible problem-solving attitudes should be encouraged to help allow Disney to learn and adapt to its new environment.Disney has achieved a strong market position in other locations, and there is no reason to believe the organization cannot achieve a similar success in Europe, provided it is willing to make the same long-term commitment. Develop more realistic planning Plans for a second phase should not have been allowed to advance until such time that the problems facing the first phase were corrected, giving them a more secure base of knowledge upon which plans and decisions could be made. Otherwise, the company risks duplicating and compounding the problems encountered with its first phase.

Looking for Alibrandi Essay

â€Å"I’ll run one day. Run for my life. To be free and think for myself. Not as an Australian and as an Italian and not as an inbetween. I’ll run to be emancipated.† The novel ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ explores the senior years of Josephine â€Å"Josie† Alibrandi with her struggle in forming her identity, falling in love with Jacob Coote and the unexpected arrival of her father Michael Andretti. Through each of these important ideas the character of Josie, Jacob and Michael, grow to understand and achieve their emancipation. Being faced with hardships in life in life result in understanding of identity and knowledge. The character of Josie in the novel ‘Looking for Alibrandi is exposed to the secret of Nonna Katia’s secret affair. â€Å"Our lives, just like our names are lies.† Through the use of first person narration we are open to the frustration and confusion Josie is contemplating. â€Å"I’ve figured out that is doesn’t matter whether Im Josephine Andretti, who was as Alibrandi, who should have been a Stanford, who may never be a Coote.† This dialogue displays the maturity and understanding Josie receives in her identity and understanding of her emancipation. Through this momentous challenge the character now realises their freedom. Furthermore, Josie immaturity lead her to believe that one day she would be emancipated. â€Å"I’ll run one day. Run for my life. To be free and think for myself. Not as an Australian and as an Italian and not as an inbetween. I’ll run to be emancipated.† This dialogue displays the childlike behaviour Josie has lost on the outlook of her life. Through the novel, her self-knowledge grew as she stated, â€Å"My emancipation didn’t happen like I’d expected it to.† Through this first person narration the understanding of being a mature adult was shown towards Josie. Overcoming challenges allows the self-growth of an individual. When a character is faces with a hardship, the way in which they deal with it allows them to grow in themselves. Jacob Coote shared a romantic relationship with Josie which opened his out look on life. â€Å"I have never had to go out with an ethnic girl before.† Through this dialogue the audience is confronted with the different cultures and views Jacob believes compared to Josie. â€Å"I want all the things in life that John Barton wanted but he was too  scared to step out of his circle. But I cant do that with you.† The use of this dialogue clearly makes evident the maturity Jacob has gone through in undertaking his relationship with Josie. A characters self-knowledge is pushed to the limits through challenges. The confrontation of events allows growth through self-worth and family. Josie’s father, Michael Andretti revealed himself unexpectedly with no idea that he had a daughter. Through anger and confusion, both Josie and Michael are faced with hardships. â€Å"How dare you think that I want to be in your life!† The use of dialogue supports the frustration and hurt the character Josie is experiencing. Throughout the novel, the relationship between Michael and grows to a completely opposing, supporting and caring one. â€Å"I’d be so proud to be an Andretti†¦Dad.† Through this dialogue, it supports Michael and Josie’s discovering of their identity and outlook on life. Freedom is depicted from many struggles resulting in self discovery and self-worth. From your emancipation, to hidden family secrets, to an understanding of love, to discovering your father, all of these important undertakings result in self-knowledge and identity. Josephine Alibrandi, Jacob Coote and Michael Andretti are all characters of â€Å"Looking for Alibrandi† by Melina Marchetta who were not afraid to confront challenges within their lives.

Of Mice and Men4 essays

Of Mice and Men4 essays Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, takes place on a ranch in the Salinas Valley of California, against the backdrop of the Great Depression. Steinbeck writes of two ordinary men trying to live the American Dream. Unfortunately they fail to fulfill those dreams. Steinbeck opens the book by vividly painting a picture of the Salinas River Valley. Two traveling laborers, George Milton and Lennie Small, are on their way to a job at a Californian ranch. George decides that they were to stay the night along the Salinas Rivers bank before reporting to work the next day. Over dinner George and Lennie discuss their plans. Through this conversation, Steinbeck reveals the contrasts between Lennie and George. Lennie is big and slow witted and George does the thinking for the pair. Lennie obeys Georges every word like a dog to his masters commands. At this point in the book it becomes apparent that George and Lennie want to pursue the American Dream. Lennie asks George to tell him of their future home. It would be just George and him. They plan to have many orchards, pigs, cows, rabbits. They plan to live off the fat of the land. The next morning the two friends travel to the ranch to obtain their work assignments. As the arrive at the ranch they are greeted by a man name Candy. He tells them of the ranch and its inhabitants. When interviewed by the boss, George answers all the questions. He even answers for Lennie. Due to this, the boss becomes suspicious. While in the bunk the Boss son Curly walks in looking for his father. Curly bullies Lennie, even though Curly is much smaller than him. George warns Lennie to stay away from him. At dinner, Slim introduces himself to George and is puzzled why they travel together. Later in the bunk George tells Slim about his life. He explains how Lennie likes to pet soft objects and how Lennie always gets them in trouble. George travels with Lennie because L ...

Political science Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Political science - Assignment Example Normally, the cycle is considered complete when feedback is given from decision maker. National security assistant behavior should involve strong team ethics, excellent people skills, reasonable level of fitness and sound judgment in all situations. Since matters of security are crucial a national security assistant should always be non partisan. Bureaucratic politic model deals with advocates for proper accountability; it strengthens participation and also ensures reasoned decision making by giving guidelines to be taken .This model promotes growth in the government as it enhances participation in policy formulations (Waterman,2004). The war resolution power of 1973 is a federal law which was formed for the intention of checking the president’s power to commit United States to an armed conflict without congress consent. The resolution was passed by two-thirds of the congress, further it requires president to notify the congress within 48 hours of committing armed forces to military actions. However, it forbids armed forces from staying there for more than 60 days with a further 30 days withdrawal period. In the past it has been alleged that the War powers resolution has been violated for instance President Clinton in 1999, on the bombing campaign n Kosovo. Isolationism is the coherent and complete grand strategy, it involves economic isolation, military and diplomatic non-intervention and cultural seclusion. In the past, isolation ideas have greatly influenced American foreign policy, most notably in the late 1930s and with disastrous consequences. According to George Herring, isolationism did not become fixed in the American political lexicon way until twentieth century. Realism just like other social sciences has analysis and prescription. It involves n efforts to explain both behavior of individual states and the characteristic of international system as whole. Realism ontological

Obama care or romney care.which care would you prefer and why (I Research Paper

Obama care or romney care.which care would you prefer and why (I prefer obama care) - Research Paper Example U.S. President Barack Obama offers the Obamacare as the health care for America while former Massachusetts Governor Romney offers the â€Å"Romneycare† healthcare program. It is very important that the healthcare program of the winning president favors the people. That it solves the long time problem of the state and benefits all the Americans. Many claim that Obamacare and Romneycare offer no difference. Though the two healthcare programs exhibit many similarities in their plan, they still hold key distinctions. These distinctions tend to show that Obamacare seems a lot more favorable to the American people. Healthcare programs concentrate on three main areas namely employer-provided insurance, Medicare for seniors and Medicaid for the poor. While both programs require individuals to purchase their own health insurance, they offer different plans on Medicare. Romney offers a â€Å"premium support† method of paying health insurance while Obama opposes it and plans to cut the health budget while maintaining the healthcare benefits. Obama plans to cut $716 billion from health budget by reducing reimbursement to health care providers and cutting overpayments to health insurance companies (Burd). In the long run, Obama’s healthcare program can actually improve the healthcare system of the U.S. and its whole economy. While providing quality Medicare to its people, a large amount of money will be saved from cutting the healthcare budget that goes into waste. This will also solve one of the country’s biggest financial problems. In addition, Romney claims that Obamacare is an inappropriate Healthcare program for the country and promises to replace it with his own Romneycare program. But then again, the Romneycare program includes many conditions that seem to be non-beneficial to its people. One of which is the Medicaid program which tends to provide health insurance subsidy for