Compare and Contarst essays

Compare and Contarst essays Although the films Seven Samurai and A Bugs Life may seem like two very different movies, they actually have a lot more in common than one might think. The plots of the two films are nearly identical. Basically, there is a group that is invaded once a year by a group of outlaws who come to raid and attack their place of habitation. The violated group finally becomes fed up with this routine and decides to enlist the help of a troop of warriors to help them fight off and defeat the raiders. Akira Kurosawas film epic Seven Samurai is set in the 16th century and deals with war, honor, and courage. It is a classic action film that was made in 1954, and is set in the country of Japan during the feudal era. The story is about a poor farming village that is plagued yearly by bandits who come to take their women and raid their prized rice crop. As harvest time nears, the bandits begin to appear in the village. The desperate farmers request the services of a group of samurai, who at one time were respected, noble warriors but now could be had for a low price. At first, the warriors have no idea what they are getting themselves into. The leader is Kanbei, and he recruits five others. The seventh one is Kikuchiyo, who is a silly, drunken man who wants to be a samurai. He follows the other men and eventually they accept him into their group. The beginning deals with the bonding of this group, their uneasy relations with the people of the village, and the strategies they develop for fighting the bandits. The rest of the film is a series of stunningly visualized scuffles that lead to the final battle, in which the villagers are victorious, and all but two of the heroes are killed. Disney-Pixars 1998 animated film A Bugs Life follows an almost identical blueprint. However, instead of people as the characters, there are bugs. The setting is Ant Island, and the...

Find and Claim Your Unclaimed Pension With PBGC.gov

Find and Claim Your Unclaimed Pension With PBGC.gov As of 2014, the federal Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBGC), reports there are more than 38,000 people who, for any number of reasons, have not claimed pension benefits they are owed. Those unclaimed pensions are now north of $300 million, with individual benefits ranging from 12 cents to almost $1 million. In 1996, PBGC launched the Pension Search directory Web site to help people who may have forgotten about, or been unaware of pensions they earned during their career. The pension database can be searched by last name, company name, or state where the company had its headquarters. The online service is absolutely free and available 24-hours a day. Updated regularly, the current list identifies some 6,600 companies, primarily in the airline, steel, transportation, machinery, retail trade, apparel, and financial services industries that closed pension plans in which some former workers could not be found. Benefits waiting to be claimed range from as little as $1 up to $611,028. The average unclaimed pension is $4,950. The states with the most missing pension participants and money to be claimed are: New York (6,885/$37.49 million), California (3,081/$7.38 million), New Jersey (2,209/$12.05 million) Texas (1,987/$6.86 million), Pennsylvania (1,944/$9.56 million), Illinois (1,629/$8.75 million) and Florida (1,629/$7.14 million). Does It Work? ​ According to PBGC, in the past 12 years, more than 22,000 people have found $137 million in missing pension benefits through the Pension Search program. The states with the most found participants and pension money claimed are: New York (4,405/$26.31 million), California (2,621/$8.33 million), Florida (2,058/$15.27 million), Texas (2,047/$11.23 million), New Jersey (1,601/$9.99 million), Pennsylvania (1,594/$6.54 million) and Michigan (1,266/$6.54 million). What to Do If You Don't Have Internet at Home For those without access to the Internet at home, many local public libraries, community colleges, and senior centers make computers available to the public that can be used for searching the Pension Search directory. Searchers can also e-mail foundpbgc.gov or missingpbgc.gov if they believe they are entitled to a benefit. What Happens If You Find a Missing Pension? ​ Once the PBGC is contacted by people who find their names in the directory, the agency asks them to provide more details including proof of age and other vital statistics. The identification process generally takes 4-6 weeks. After the PBGC receives a completed application, people currently eligible for a benefit should receive their checks within two months. Those entitled to future benefits will receive their benefits when they reach retirement age. Things You Might Need to Claim Your Pension Several documents may be required or helpful in proving proof of eligibility for a pension. These include: A notification from the company of plan administrator that you are vested in the planAn individual statement of annual plan benefitsA plan exit letter (sent by the employer) noting participation in the plan and a summary plan description showing the plan’s rules, including the rules for vestingA Notice of Potential Private Pension Benefit Information, if sent by the Social Security Administration (SSA) The SSA automatically sends a Notice of Potential Private Pension Benefit Information to people who may be due pensions when they apply for Social Security and Medicare benefits. How Do Pensions Become "Lost?" Many of the names in the Pension Search directory are workers with pensions whose former employers closed pension plans and distributed benefits. Others are workers or retirees missing from underfunded pension plans taken over by the PBGC because the plans did not have enough money to pay benefits. Included in the directory are people who may be able to document that they are owed a benefit, even though current PBGC records show that no benefit is due. Some reasons pensions might go lost or unclaimed include: The company went bankrupt or simply closed and vanished;The company moved to another town, city, or state;The company was bought by or merged with another company and given a new name; orThe company was divided into separate parts, none of which retained the company’s old name. For More Information The PBGCs booklet Finding A Lost Pension also provides tips, suggests potential allies, and details numerous free information sources. It is particularly helpful for those trying to find pensions earned from former employers whose identity may have changed over the years because of changes in company ownership. About the PBGC The PBGC is a federal government agency created under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. It currently guarantees payment of basic pension benefits earned by 44 million American workers and retirees participating in over 30,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. The agency receives no funds from general tax revenues. Operations are financed largely by insurance premiums paid by companies that sponsor pension plans and investment returns.

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 10

Case Study Example Despite the fact that many retailers even close down during weak economic periods, Wal-Mart manages to maintain high profits due to huge volumes of sales it makes. It has succeeded due to its low cost strategy that attracts an array of consumers (Yang & Linowes, 2009). Significantly, this prompts it t enjoy cost advantage through controlling the market as the cost leaders. Despite its placement, it is therefore necessary to addresses the weaknesses and strengths Wal-Mart possess in order to maintain its position in market, which this case study will analyse the appropriate solutions to the weaknesses and enhancing its strengths. One major threat that Wal-Mart faces are varied pricey lawsuits filed against the company. Many employees and customers have complained of discrimination instances in the company. Due to these, the company has lost a lot of money as they pay off damages to those offended by the same. Approximately 815,000 employees of female gender and most often than not have experienced cases of unfair treatment (Reed, 2013). The unfairness is quite evident for they are sometimes underpaid compared to men whom they work together. It is quite ill-fated that the same females end up jobbing hard and for long to the extent of even surpassing the males but remain unrecognized (Reed, 2013). In addition, these women comprise the majority of employees but still do not get appear anywhere in assuming key positions meant for the enterprise’s managerial roles. As per 2010, most of its managers were men. Being the biggest retail company, this enterprise ought to set a pace for the smaller retail compan ies so that they embrace equality and not injustices. Evident from Duke Vs Wal-Mart case, 5 million females accused the enterprise of discrimination when it came to promotions as well as allocation of certain vital assignments (Reed, 2013). To add on, to date numerous people due to unfair experiences they have ever had are filling case suits with the intention

SWOT Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

SWOT Analysis - Essay Example Sustainable business practices and strong commitment to corporate social responsibility are other major strengths of Trader Joes. â€Å"Trader Joe’s is committed to providing selective products that cannot be found in grocery stores† (â€Å"What is Trader Joe’s Strategy?†). In other words, unique products are the major strength of Trader Joes. Expanding global market, growing demand for organic foods and growing ecommerce opportunities are providing many opportunities to Trader Joes. India and China like Asian countries are developing rapidly at present provides excellent opportunities to Trader Joes like companies. Product recalls and the increased focus on some geographical areas alone are some of the weaknesses of Trader Joes. It should be noted that Trader Joe has limited presence outside California. Inability to expand business to other territories not only in America but also in other parts of the world is some of the major weaknesses of Trader Joes. Increasing manpower cost, increasing competition and the entry of substitute products are some of the major threats of Trader Joes. Manpower cost in America is extremely higher compared to that in countries such as India or China. As a result of that Indian and Chinese products are causing big threats to the products of Trader

The Meaning of Suffering Essay Example for Free

The Meaning of Suffering Essay We must never forget that we may also find meaning in life even when confronted with a hopeless situation, when facing a fate that cannot be changed. For what then matters is to bear witness to the uniquely human potential at its best, which is to transform a personal tragedy into triumph, to turn ones predicament into a human achievement. When we are no longer able to change a situationjust think of an incurable disease such as inoperable cancerwe are challenged to change ourselves. Let me cite a clear cut example: Once, an elderly general practitioner consulted me because of severe depression. He could not overcome the loss of his wife who had died two years before and whom he had loved above all else. Now, how could I help him? What should I tell him? Well, I refrained from telling him anything but instead confronted him with the question, â€Å"What would have happened, Doctor, if you had died first, and your wife would have had to survive you? â€Å"Oh,† he said, â€Å"for her this would have been terrible; how she would have suffered! † Whereupon I replied, â€Å"You see, Doctor, such a suffering has been spared her, and it was you who have spared her this suffering – to be sure, at the price that now you have to mourn her. † He said no word but shook my hand and calmly left my office. In some way, suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning, such as the meaning of sacrifice. Of course this was no therapy in the proper sense since, first, his despair was no disease; and second, I could not change his fate; I could not revive his wife. But in that moment I did succeed in changing his attitude toward his unalterable fate inasmuch as from that time on he could at least see a meaning in his suffering. It is one of the basic tenets of logotherepy that man’s main concern is not to gain pleasure or to avoid pain but rather to see a meaning in his life. That is why man is even ready to suffer, on the condition, to be sure, that his suffering has a meaning†¦ There are situations in which one is cut off from the opportunity to do ones work or enjoy ones life; but what can never be ruled out is the unavoidability of suffering. In accepting this challenge to suffer bravely, life has a meaning up to the last moment, and it retains this meaning literally to the end. In other words, lifes meaning is an unconditional one, for it even includes the potential meaning of unavoidable suffering Victor Frankl in Mans Search for Meaning (pg 112-115)

Honesty and Trust Essay -- Dishonesty Ethics Morals Essays

Honesty and Trust Several decades ago I used to enjoy an occasional lunch in with the late Professor G. Warren Nutter, a distinguished economist who taught at the University of Virginia. Professor Nutter had considerable expertise in comparative economic systems, particularly that of the former Soviet Union. While he had a deep understanding of economic theory, he always stressed that markets do not operate within a vacuum and we gain a greater understanding of human behavior if we paid attention to the role of institutions and other non-market forces. At one of our luncheons, just out of the clear blue sky, and maybe just to tease me into an argument, Professor Nutter said that if we had to stop to count our change each time we purchased something, economic activity would grind to a halt. That’s a bit of exaggeration, but Professor Nutter was making the point that the institutions of trust and honesty are vital to human well-being. Honesty and trust are not simply matters of character and morality; they’re crucial for efficient human interaction and a smoothly working economy. To gain an appreciation for the significance of honesty and trust, consider what our day-to-day life would be if we couldn’t trust anyone. We purchase a bottle of a hundred folic acid tablets from our drugstore. How many of us bother to count the tablets to ensure that we in fact received a hundred? We drive into a gasoline station and the meter reads that we put ten gallons of gasoline into our fuel tank. When was the last time anyone of us bothered to verify whether in fact we received ten gallons instead of nine and a half? We paid seven dollars for a one-pound package of steak. How many of us bother to verify that it was in fa... ... honesty. Many More Victims The fact that honesty and trust are vital should make us re-think the treatment of the dishonest and untrustworthy. Dishonest people impose losses that go beyond those suffered by their direct victims. If pack-ages are stolen from people’s doorsteps, the rest of us incur costs when delivery companies stop leaving packages unless someone is home. If people rob bus operators and taxi drivers, all of us are required to have exact change or small bills. Considering the large economic effects of dishonesty and of not being able to trust one another, we should show little tolerance for violators. Fortunately, we live in a society where we can generally trust and accept the word of one another. That’s the good news. The bad news is there’s nowhere near the level of trust and honesty there was as recently as a half-century ago. Honesty and Trust Essay -- Dishonesty Ethics Morals Essays Honesty and Trust Several decades ago I used to enjoy an occasional lunch in with the late Professor G. Warren Nutter, a distinguished economist who taught at the University of Virginia. Professor Nutter had considerable expertise in comparative economic systems, particularly that of the former Soviet Union. While he had a deep understanding of economic theory, he always stressed that markets do not operate within a vacuum and we gain a greater understanding of human behavior if we paid attention to the role of institutions and other non-market forces. At one of our luncheons, just out of the clear blue sky, and maybe just to tease me into an argument, Professor Nutter said that if we had to stop to count our change each time we purchased something, economic activity would grind to a halt. That’s a bit of exaggeration, but Professor Nutter was making the point that the institutions of trust and honesty are vital to human well-being. Honesty and trust are not simply matters of character and morality; they’re crucial for efficient human interaction and a smoothly working economy. To gain an appreciation for the significance of honesty and trust, consider what our day-to-day life would be if we couldn’t trust anyone. We purchase a bottle of a hundred folic acid tablets from our drugstore. How many of us bother to count the tablets to ensure that we in fact received a hundred? We drive into a gasoline station and the meter reads that we put ten gallons of gasoline into our fuel tank. When was the last time anyone of us bothered to verify whether in fact we received ten gallons instead of nine and a half? We paid seven dollars for a one-pound package of steak. How many of us bother to verify that it was in fa... ... honesty. Many More Victims The fact that honesty and trust are vital should make us re-think the treatment of the dishonest and untrustworthy. Dishonest people impose losses that go beyond those suffered by their direct victims. If pack-ages are stolen from people’s doorsteps, the rest of us incur costs when delivery companies stop leaving packages unless someone is home. If people rob bus operators and taxi drivers, all of us are required to have exact change or small bills. Considering the large economic effects of dishonesty and of not being able to trust one another, we should show little tolerance for violators. Fortunately, we live in a society where we can generally trust and accept the word of one another. That’s the good news. The bad news is there’s nowhere near the level of trust and honesty there was as recently as a half-century ago.

Consumer Behavior and Purchase Decision Making Process

Consumer behavior and purchase decision making process Every day we need to make a decissions – buy or not to buy anything. There are many things which helps us to make decissions like location, mood, advertisments and other. Consumer behavior is the mental and emotional processes and physical activities people engage in when they select, purchase, use, and dispose of products or services to satisfy particular needs and desires. A consumer goes through several stages before purchasing a product or service: 1. need; 2. information gathering/search; 3. evaluation of alternatives; . purchase of product/service; 5. post purchase evaluation. In my opinion, in this process there are two main steps – information gathering and evaluation of alternatives. These steps help to understand how much you need the product and how good it is. The buying process starts with comming needs. A need can be activated through internal or external stimuli. A need can also be aroused by an exter nal stimulus such as sight of a new thing in a shop while purchasing other things. Need is the most important factor which leads to buying of products and services.Need infact is the catalyst which triggers the buying decision of individuals. After need arousal, the consumer tries to solve it and gathers the sources and information about the product. Depending upon the intensity of need, it produces two states of individual. The first state is called heightened attention when the consumer becomes more receptive to the information regarding the item he needs. If a consumer needs to purchase a refrigerator, he will pay mere attention to fridge ads and the remarks made by friends and associates about fridges.If need is more intense, the individual enters a state of active information search and he tries to collect more information about the product, its key attributes, qualities of various brands and about the outlets where they are available. There are a lot of consumer information so urces like family, friends, advertisements, mass media, salesman. In my opinion, it is hard to arrange in the order wich one is the best source where get information about product. All these sources have pluses and minuses.If I prefer get information from family there is possibility that I do not get info about technical stuff. Or if I choose only salesman advice he can aggrandize about product advantages. That is why I recommend to take information as much as possible from every source. Having collected the information, the consumer clarify and evaluate the alternatives. There is, unfortunately no simple and single evaluation process used by all consumers or even by one consumer in all buying situations. Consumers can make choices based on their emotions and feelings.They elicit from memory their overall evaluations of products and choos the alternative for which they have the most positive feelings. One of the most current process of evaluation is to judge the product largely on a conscious and rational basis. Various considerations form the part of judgment such as product attributes, importance, weights, brand image, utility function for each attribute, and attitude and other. After evaluation of various alternatives, he takes the decision to buy or not to buy.Ofcourse, people can make choice on the spur of the moment, often without prior problem recognition. But I recommend going through all theese five steps focusing on information gathering and evaluation of alternatives. And always remember that the best impression about product you can get only after you try it. Izmantota literatura: http://www. managementstudyguide. com/consumer-decision-making-process. htm http://uwmktg301. blogspot. com/2010/01/evaluation-of-alternatives. html http://www. slideshare. net/Annie05/consumer-buying-behavior-and-decision-making-presentation

Fast Food in the United States Essay

Food prepared quickly for consumers is how we define fast food. Fast food restaurants main purpose is to provide food in a short amount of time for the customers. They are inexpensive, quick, and convenient. The first or the earliest fast food restaurant that had started this fast food chain is the infamous McDonalds. The first McDonalds was not how the current one is like now. It was actually a restaurant that served barbeque foods in the 1940s. The brothers, Dick and Maurice McDonald were the first ones to come up with the idea of â€Å"eating quickly†. Therefore, they developed the idea of preparing food in a speed like way and so they changed their menus and started with hamburgers, french fries, and milkshakes. The business was successful and the brothers decided to expand their company and therefore opened their restaurants in different locations (Ganzel, 2007). Although fast food is inexpensive and convenient, consuming too much of it can impact the human health and environment. McDonalds is the most popular fast food chain. Currently, every McDonald is open in every state in the U. S. not to mention internationally too. We see McDonalds everywhere even if we go on a road-trip there will be McDonalds in the middle of nowhere. McDonalds is located in every local area for convenience. Since it is very convenient, many American consumers would drop by because it is quick and easy. Fast food chain expanded very quickly because it became high in demand because of the convenience (USDA). Thus, more and more people with busy lives start to rely on them because they are fast and ready to go. According to CBS news, in the year of 2009 â€Å"Americans spend over $110 billion on fast food more than they’ll spend on movies, books, magazines, etc. , every day about one quarter of the U. S. population eats fast food. † This shows that many Americans have become highly obsessed with fast foods. Since this article was published in 2009, then in 2012 Americans most likely would spend more. The price of each meal attracts consumers, making them believe that having more amount of food for that price is a great deal. Those who are in financial crisis rely on these fast food chains to survive. That is why fast food businesses like McDonalds are very successful. Their advertisement also targets children by including toy figures in the meal, which entices them to consume the meals. I’m sure that many children in the U. S. has eaten McDonalds, even I used to love eating them when I was a kid. I loved to collect the toys from happy meals, and in order to collect them I had to consume their meals. Since McDonalds attracts many children, nowadays children are having the issue of obesity. Even though McDonalds and other food chains are very convenient and inexpensive, however it can lead to other problems such as our health. Money is important in life and without money surviving in this society would be difficult, however health should be the priority in life. I believe that being healthy should be our number one priority instead of money. Being healthy allows us to earn profits so that we can live an easier life. If something were to happen, then we would have to spend an enormous amount of money to recover our health. Therefore, staying healthy can help conserve money. Consuming fast foods frequently can affect the health of the individual. According to the National Institutes of Health, adolescents who often eat at fast-food restaurants tend to gain additional weight and have a higher chance of increasing insulin resistance. If they continue to frequent at these fast food chains then there could be a high risk of attaining type 2 diabetes. Diabetes can also be the cause of heart disease (NIH). The reason why people can gain weight so easily through frequent fast food consumption is because of the calories intake. They consume more calories than they usually need per day, and whatever that is left over, the extra becomes fat especially foods that have trans fat in them. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U. S. population that consumes fast foods which contains sodium exceeds the amount the body needs. Excessive sodium consumption increases blood pressure, which is a high possibility in getting heart diseases and strokes. CDC stated, â€Å"51% and 27% of sodium consumed came from foods obtained at fast food/pizza restaurants. † People need to value their eating habits, the alternative from fast food chains to home made foods can make a great difference in life. The infamous McDonalds food productions are similar to all of the other fast food restaurants. According to food safety magazine, McDonalds purchase their ingredients from different suppliers. They work with not just hundreds but thousands of suppliers so that the foods would be stocked up. The meat, bread, vegetables, and packaging all have their own factories (Food Safety Magazine, 2006). Each one of them produce that certain product and McDonalds purchases it from them and puts all the ingredients together then serve it to the customers. McDonalds food production process is not simple, for example they not only have to produce the food but also test every single one of them. â€Å" The McDonald’s system requires constant quality checks throughout the supply chain process and proven traceability programs, at least one step back to the ingredient supplier, and in some cases, tracking all the way back to the farm. † (Food safety magazine, 2006) Their suppliers are required to meet the standards of food safety so that there wouldn’t be anything wrong with the product when the customers consume it. McDonalds was also one of the first ones to test the safety of fresh-cut produce in packages for distributing to other restaurants (FDA). They tried this so that in hope it could reduce any microbial hazards. McDonalds is the ideal role of a fast food restaurant, and many others try to follow its standards. McDonald consumption does not only affect health but it also impacts the environment. Due to McDonald’s food packaging many individuals liter and that trash harms the wildlife. Since McDonald’s is located everywhere in the city, state, and country the area always has McDonald’s packaging remains. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), they have been trying to reduce the packaging at fast food establishments. They tried to develop this reduction program for those take out food containers, which are the â€Å"largest documented contributor of trash in urban waterways that flows into SF Bay, and, with partner cities, conduct outreach at fast food establishments (EPA). † This shows that McDonald’s is also the contributor in harming the environment, though McDonalds is not the only one the other fast food chains also contribute to this. Since McDonalds has expanded and has survived for all these years that means food production factories has expanded also to keep the restaurants in stock. Which means that the cattle have increased and seizing more land for the factories. This also involves in harming the environment because that means more wastes from factories and cattle. McDonalds is one of the largest fast food chains in the world. According to business week, McDonald’s corporation annual earnings in 2011 are $5. 27 per share as of January 24, 2012. McDonald’s corporation’s third quarter of 2012 revenues is about 7. 2 billion dollars, which has increased compared to before. As you can see McDonald’s profits are quite a lot. By selling inexpensive food you would think that they probably wouldn’t earn much, however having many customers consuming everyday in all of U. S. is very profitable. Food Safety Magazine stated, as of 2006 including all around the world, around 13,700 restaurants served nearly 26 million customers per day. Since this article is published in 2006, that means at present, 2012 McDonalds most likely expanded their restaurants twice as much and most likely restaurants would be serving at least 26 million customers per day. With that many consumers, fast food companies especially McDonalds profit a lot. Honestly, I used to eat McDonalds at least once in every two weeks and I was under the category of overweight. I liked eating it because it was very fast and convenient especially every time I get hungry, it satisfies my hunger. However, after watching this video in middle school called Super Size Me. It changed my perspective on fast food restaurants. The video portrayed about this man who tried to eat McDonalds Food everyday for a month. He bought everything super sized and constantly consumed it for thirty days straight. You could see that he has gained a lot of weight and he just didn’t look healthy at all, but sick instead. At some times he would throw it up. This video had changed my eating habits, and I have been eating healthy. Eating healthy has energized my body and exercising is easier because eating healthier helps you lose weight. After watching this video, I have not eaten McDonalds as much. Maybe once in awhile lets say about once in six months, but my body felt great without eating fast foods. Overall, fast food companies at present are everywhere and people especially those who are not financially supported through jobs are relying on these inexpensive foods. Foods that are able to satisfy their hunger but is unhealthy. Frequently consuming fast foods cause health problems. The number one that fast food causes is obesity that could lead to heart diseases and diabetes. People need to change their eating habits, by eating healthier foods. Changing eating habits by eating healthier can change the lifestyle of that individual so that it could prolong their life. References Gale, S. Y. (2006, February). CASE STUDIES IN FOOD PROTECTION McDonaldds USA: A Golden Arch of Supply Chain Food Safety. Food Safety Magazine. Retrieved from http://www. foodsafetymagazine. com/article. asp? id=491&sub=sub1. Chapter VI. Microbiological Safety of Controlled and Modified Atmosphere Packaging of Fresh and Fresh-Cut Produce. (2012, June 15). U S Food and Drug Administration Home Page. Retrieved November 5, 2012, from http://www. fda. gov/Food/ScienceResearch/ResearchAreas/SafePracticesforFoodProcesses/ucm091368. htm Frequent Fast Food Meals Increase Weight, Diabetes Risk, Study Says, December 30, 2004 Press Release. (2004, December 30). National Institutes of Health (NIH). Retrieved from http://www. nih. gov/news/pr/dec2004/nhlbi-30. htm Stewart, H. , Blisard, N. , Bhuyan, S. , & Nayga, R. (2004, January). The Demand of Food Away From Home Full-Service or fast food? USDA ERS – Home. Retrieved from http://www. ers. usda. gov/media/306585/aer829_1_. pdf. Vital Signs: Food Categories Contributing the Most to Sodium Consumption — United States, 2007–2008. (2012, February 10). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www. cdc. gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6105a3. htm? s_cid=mm6105a3_w Yogi, D. (2012, October 17). 10/17/2012: EPA Awards $6. 5 Million for Ten Projects to Restore. Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved from http://yosemite. epa. gov/opa/admpress. nsf/931381dfcd9a5c308525779700424ccd/82c31b3e568b570585257a9a0058ed1c! opendocument MCDONALD’S CORP (MCD:New York): Earnings Estimates – Businessweek. (2012, November 6). Investing & Stock Research by Company and Industry – Businessweek. Retrieved from http://investing. businessweek. com/research/stocks/earnings/earnings. asp? ticke r=MCD Ganzel, B. (2007). Fast Food during the 1950s and 60s. Wessels Living History Farm, Inc. Retrieved from http://www. livinghistoryfarm. org/farminginthe50s/life_16. html Schlossar, E. (2009, February 9). Americans Are Obsessed with Fast Food: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. CBS News. Retrieved from http://www. cbsnews. com/2100-204_162-326858. html.

Computer Clusters essays

Computer Clusters essays Computer clustering involves the use of multiple hardware, typically personal computers (PCs) or UNIX workstations, storage devices, and redundant interconnections, to form what appears to users as a single integrated system (Cluster computing). Clustering has been available since the 1980s when it was used in Digital Equipment Corp.'s VMS system. Today, most leading hardware and software companies support clustering because of its demand for parallel processing, batch processing, load balancing and Parallel processing is the processing of program instructions by dividing them among multiple processors with the objective of running a program in less time. Parallel processing is normally applied for rendering and high computational based applications. Rather than using expensive specialized supercomputers for parallel processing, implementers have begun using a large cluster of small commodity servers. Each server runs its own operating system, to take a number of jobs, process them, and send the output to the primary system (Grama, 2003). Clusters provide the ability to handle a large task in small bits, or lots and lots of small tasks across an entire cluster, making an entire system more affordable and The first PC cluster to be described in scientific literature was named Beowulf and was developed in 1994 at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (Beowulf clusters compared to Base One's batch job servers). Beowulf initially consisted of sixteen PCs, standard Ethernet, and Linux with modifications and achieved seventy million floating point operations per second. For only $40,000 in hardware, Beowulf produced the processing power of a small supercomputer costing about $400,000 at that time. By 1996, researchers had achieved one billion floating point operations per second at a cost of less than $50,000. Later, in 1999, the University of ...

10 bases de datos para buscar trabajo en Estados Unidos

10 bases de datos para buscar trabajo en Estados Unidos Al igual que sucede en otros paà ­ses, en Estados Unidos se obtiene frecuentemente empleo a travà ©s de familiares o amigos que ponen en contacto a la persona interesada en trabajar con el empleador. Adems, es comà ºn encontrar trabajo recurriendo a bases de datos especializadas en empleo. En este artà ­culo se informa sobre bases de datos reputadas a la hora de emplear. Adems, se informa sobre quià ©nes pueden trabajar legalmente en Estados Unidos y quà © empresas o instituciones tienen un rà ©cord notable patrocinando tarjetas de residencia permanente, tambià ©n conocidas como green cards, o visas temporales de empleo a trabajadores extranjeros. Tome en cuenta: Bà ºsqueda de empleo en Estados Unidos Si no se tiene un documento para trabajar legalmente en Estados Unidos (y si no hay otros impedimentos migratorios), debe obtenerse patrocinador. Las empresas e instituciones solo pueden patrocinar si cumplen requisitos estrictos establecidos por las leyes migratorias.  ¿Quà © documentacià ³n requieren los extranjeros para trabajar legalmente en EE.UU.? Es muy importante entender que en Estados Unidos las opciones para que los extranjeros puedan trabajar legalmente estn reguladas por la ley y son bsicamente: Residencia permanente, que se puede sacar de muchas maneras, incluida por patrocinio laboral y en casos excepcionales de  personas absolutamente brillantes se les permite patrocinarse a ellas mismas.Visas con las que se puede trabajar, como las H, las de intercambio conocidas como J, las O para personas con habilidades especiales u otras.Visas que no permiten trabajar salvo en casos muy particulares, como la F-1 de estudiante.Permisos de trabajo, que no deben confundirse con las visas de trabajo . 10 bases de datos para encontrar trabajo en EE.UU. El siguiente listado incluye 10 bases de datos generalistas de interà ©s tanto para quienes buscan visa o green card, como para quienes ya tienen documentos para trabajar.   1.  Careerjet.com. Permite buscar entre aproximadamente cuarenta millones de ofertas de empleo en todo el mundo, de las que unos siete millones corresponden a Estados Unidos. 2.  Disney. Ofrece diferentes trabajos en distintos paà ­ses, incluyendo Estados Unidos, Canad, Reino Unido e Irlanda. 3. Higheredjobs.com. Ms de dos mil universidades, casi todas de los Estados Unidos, publicitan en esta pgina sus ofertas laborales para profesores tanto en colleges de cuatro aà ±os como en community colleges de dos. 4.  Hispanic-jobs.org. Oferta empleos para personas bilingà ¼es inglà ©s-espaà ±ol. 5.  iHipo.com. Esta web permite buscar trabajo internacional, incluido en Estados Unidos, a licenciados universitarios. Adems, ofrece programas de prcticas en empresa, tanto para estudiantes como para recià ©n licenciados. Y en empresas relevantes como ABB o Goldman Sachs. 6.  Indeed.com. Este es un portal con variaciones en multitud de paà ­ses. La bà ºsqueda se puede hacer por compaà ±Ãƒ ­a, por lugar donde radica el puesto de trabajo que se oferta o por el tipo de empleo que se busca. 7.  Jooble.org. Un gran mapamundi permite presionar sobre cualquier paà ­s marcado en verde y comenzar la bà ºsqueda de empleo. Hay ofertas en prcticamente toda Europa, Estados Unidos, Canad, Latinoamà ©rica, Australia y buena parte de Asia. 8.  Linkup.com. Aquà ­ se puede buscar trabajo y aplicar directamente con las compaà ±Ãƒ ­as que ofertan empleo. Adems, tiene portales propios para ofertas en Canad y el Reino Unido. 9.  Naciones Unidas. El portal de la ONU ofrece todas las novedades en empleo en las organizaciones que dependen de esta institucià ³n. Para trabajar en la sede de Nueva York conviene destacar que se podrà ­a disfrutar de la visa G-4, que ofrece grandes ventajas. 10.  Simplyhired.com. En esta base de datos se puede realizar la bà ºsqueda por ciudad, compaà ±Ãƒ ­a, profesià ³n o categorà ­as en las que no es infrecuente la contratacià ³n de extranjeros con necesidad de patrocinio de visa, como la ingenierà ­a, software o enseà ±anza. Adems, todos los profesionales deberà ­an tener en cuenta la red social LinkedIn a la hora de buscar trabajo, tanto para buscar empresas como para colocar visible un perfil profesional para atraer a posibles empleadores. Asimismo, es recomendable verificar las oportunidades que brindan bases de datos de empleo especialistas en trabajo para latinos, como latpro, ihispano o latinosinhighered, à ©sta à ºltima para empleos en universidades. Los cruceros son tambià ©n una fuente de empleo a tener en cuenta ya que brindan posibilidad de empleo a categorà ­as de trabajos muy distintas e incluso en las menos cualificadas el sueldo bsico suele ser superior al sueldo mà ­nimo de EE.UU. Varias agencias estn especializadas en seleccionar trabajadores para cruceros, para los que serà ­a posible obtener la visa C1/D para trabajar. Por à ºltimo, para las personas que ya tienen papeles, pueden considerar como carrera las oportunidades que brinda el Ejà ©rcito y tambià ©n las ofertas de empleos en el gobierno federal.   Empresas con rà ©cord de patrocinar green card y visas de trabajo Si se busca una green card por trabajo, un buen lugar para empezar la bà ºsqueda de patrocinador es verificando las 100 empresas que en el à ºltimo aà ±o patrocinaron ms tarjetas de residencia. Adems, hay informacià ³n sobre el nà ºmero de patrocinados, salarios medios brindados y sector.  Debe tener en cuenta que la mayorà ­a son del sector de las tecnologà ­as, pero hay muchos ms, incluso trabajos para los que no es necesario tener estudios universitarios, algunos muy bien pagados. En cuanto a los patrocinadores de las visas H-1B, para profesionales, estas son las 100 empresas con mayor nà ºmero de patrocinados. Cabe destacar que estas visas son muy codiciadas y que, dependiendo del trabajo, es posible que se tenga que esperar muchos meses para obtener una, o incluso a pesar de tener patrocinador, no obtenerla por no ganar la loterà ­a. Adems, existen empresas privadas de colocacià ³n que a cambio de un pago se dedican a encontrar posibles patrocinadores de esta visa para buenos candidatos extranjeros. Algunas de ellas estn especializadas en determinados trabajos, por ejemplo, Randstad es buena para ingenieros y tambià ©n theengineeringjob. En cuanto a las visas H-2A para agricultura y H-2B para trabajos temporeros no agrà ­colas, estos son reclutadores en Mà ©xico para empresas estadounidenses.  Antes de cerrar un acuerdo con un reclutador, debe verificar  si tiene un buen rà ©cord o si en el pasado ha tratado mal o estafado a trabajadores. En las visas H-2A, el mayordomo, es decir, el capataz, con frecuencia es mexicano o centroamericano y pide a su patrono que aà ±o tras aà ±o contrate a personas de sus pueblos o zonas. Aunque con la administracià ³n del Presidente Donald Trump se ha dado un recorte en el nà ºmero de visas O y H-2B que se aprueban cada aà ±o fiscal, las H-2A han experimentado un movimiento contrario, es decir, al alza. Asà ­, en el aà ±o fiscal 2018 se aprobaron un total de 242.762 visas agrà ­colas segà ºn datos del Departamento de Trabajo de los Estados Unidos, lo que supone un incremento del 146 por ciento en apenas ocho aà ±os. En cuanto a las enfermeras/os, existen agencias de contratacià ³n especialistas en buscar trabajo a este tipo de profesionales extranjeros. Este es un trabajo siempre en gran demanda en los Estados Unidos y, en consonancia, son bien pagados. Los mà ©dicos y los maestros son tambià ©n profesionales en gran demanda. Los maestros suelen ser contratados con visas H-1A, con la J-1 de intercambio mediante agencias autorizadas o incluso patrocinados para una green card.   Las visas de intercambio J-1 son una categorà ­a muy amplia y en muchos de los programas agencias autorizadas brindan servicios de colocacià ³n a los candidatos extranjeros, como es el caso de nià ±eras (au pairs), staff de apoyo para campamentos de verano, trabajo en ONGs de los Estados Unidos, etc. Para los tripulantes y dems empleados de cruceros que estn interesados en obtener una visa C-1/D, se puede contactar directamente con las empresas, como Royal Caribbean, o tambià ©n se puede realizar la bà ºsqueda a travà ©s de agencias intermediarias, como Cruisehipjobs o uno de estos ms de 300 reclutadores en 65 paà ­ses.   Consejos para buscar trabajo en los Estados Unidos El primer consejo para buscar con à ©xito trabajo en los Estados Unidos es hacer un buen CV o resumà ©, y una excelente carta de presentacià ³n siguiendo uno de los modelos comunes en los Estados Unidos. Es importante que està © en inglà ©s y sin faltas de ortografà ­a. Adems es muy importante personalizar estos documentos segà ºn las caracterà ­sticas de la empresa a la que se le envà ­a. No se debe cometer el error de enviar el mismo a todas. Tambià ©n es importante ser proactivo. Es decir, buscar el mayor nà ºmero de empresas posible, ver quà © buscan y comunicarse con ellas. Por à ºltimo, tener mucho cuidado y evitar problemas con las autoridades migratorias. Cada visa es para lo que es. Por ejemplo, una visa de turista no es para estudiar a tiempo completo  ni tampoco para trabajar, tanto una como otra accià ³n constituyen una violacià ³n migratoria. Tampoco es correcto ingresar a Estados Unidos como turista con el fin de buscar trabajo. Si en algà ºn momento un oficial de Inmigracià ³n sospecha que ese ha sido el caso, se va a tener problemas. Otra cosa distinta es si una vez aquà ­ surge la posibilidad de que una empresa ofrezca una oportunidad de empleo.   La realidad de los salarios Para las personas interesadas, la oportunidad de trabajar o emigrar a Estados Unidos es una gran decisià ³n que, en general, compensa situaciones dolorosas como dejar a familia, amigos y paà ­s para hacer vida en un paà ­s extraà ±o. Entre las razones por las que las que se da el gran salto para trabajar en Estados Unidos estn las mejores condiciones econà ³micas y laborales. Y, por supuesto, que eso es asà ­. Pero no hay que estar ciego a las realidades. Por ejemplo, la vida es ms cara en Estados Unidos, por lo que a veces no se gana tanto como se cree como demuestra este comparativo salarial de 8 profesiones en 8 paà ­ses distintos. Esto es especialmente verdad en profesiones que pagan poco, como por ejemplo, el salario mà ­nimo  que puede ser insuficiente en las ciudades ms caras del paà ­s. Tambià ©n hay que tener en cuenta que se pagan impuestos federales y estatales y que estos à ºltimos varà ­an grandemente de estado a estado y pueden hacer una gran diferencia en ingresos reales. Por à ºltimo, tener presente que se han dado casos de fraude en ofertas laborales a trabajadores extranjeros, particularmente con las distintas visas de la familia de las H. En estos casos, es posible denunciarlo. Este artà ­culo es meramente informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal para ningà ºn caso concreto.

World Trade Organization Today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

World Trade Organization Today - Essay Example The study "World Trade Organization Today" describes the work of the institution responsible for the multilateral trading system. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the one and only international organization dealing with multilaterally agreed rules on trade among its member countries. Through WTO agreement, which spell out rights and obligations, member countries operate a nondiscriminatory multilateral trading system that has allowed world trade to grow. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, and exporters and importers, conduct their business in a manner that ensures predictability and stability. The supreme body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference which is held at least once in every two years. It comprises representatives of all members and functions to oversee the implementation of members' obligations as well as to negotiate new agreements. The day-to-day business of the WTO is conducted under the supervision of the General Council (GC) which comprises re presentatives of all members to the WTO who are usually of Ambassadorial level or equivalent. The GC has the authority to act on behalf of the Ministerial Conference and oversees the operations of agreements and ministerial decisions. As the principal institution with responsibility for the multilateral trading system, the WTO has the same status as institutions such as the World Bank and IMF. The WTO has legal personality and has been accorded privileges similar to those accorded to the specialized UN agencies.