Falling Asleep on the Job: The Story of Narcolepsy Essay example -- Bi

Falling Asleep on the Job: The Story of Narcolepsy Have you ever pulled two all nighters in a row? If you have then you know that afterwards, during the day, you drift off to sleep very easily. You feel physically and mentally exhausted and your body tells you that you need to rest. This is a normal reaction by the body to the lack of sleep. This however is something that people suffering from narcolepsy must deal with on a daily basis even when they have had a full nights sleep. One of the major symptoms they suffer from is overwhelming daytime sleepiness. Imagine you are in a boring lecture and you start to drift to sleep, usually you can manage to force yourself to wake up. This may be common occurrence but try to imagine falling asleep while driving or walking. These situations seem more rare. A narcoleptic’s body doesn’t care what it is doing when it goes into these paralyzed sleeping episodes. The sudden overwhelming feeling drives the narcoleptic person to fall asleep. One type of episode that they experience is called cataplexy, which is usually caused by some stressful situation or other common activities such as laughing or running (6). During these periods the person suffers from muscle weakness and paralysis. Although the person appears to be sleeping, they are still conscious, but unable to move. They can hear and feel but cannot react to stimulation. For this reason narcolepsy is a very dangerous condition to have without receiving treatment because serious vehicle accidents can result as well as an general i nability to succeed in school (6). Another major symptom that affects narcoleptics is called hypnagogic hallucinations, which they experience when they are falling asleep. These hallucinations can in... ... narcolepsy as well. 6) Narcolepsy: Althogh people with the disorder do not fall face-first into their soup as in the movies, narcolepsy is still a mysterious disease. But science has new leads., Siegel really knows what he is talking about. http://www.sciam.com/missing.cfm 7)Mystery of Human Narcolepsy Solved, He is the master of these studies http://websciences.org/narnet/current_news/01_winter1.html 8)University of Pennsylvania Narcolepsy Research Project, A nice summary http://www.nursing.upenn.edu/Narcolepsy/narcolepsy.htm 9)Organization of amygdaloid projections to brainstem dopaminergic, noradrenergic and adrenergic cell groups in the rat, Brain Res Bull, 1992, volume 28, pp 447-454, Very detailed info 10)Living with Narcolepsy, Go info about the lives of Narcoleptics http://www.sleepfoundation.org/publications/livingnarcolepsy.html

Gender Roles in North and South

Tierney Deggelman Morrissey Engl 209 October 1, 2012 Gender Roles in North and South It is no surprise that the novel North and South is one that frequently employs the literary style of placing two entities in juxtaposition as the very title coincides with the idea of comparison. Similarly, the chapter headings often mirror this literary style: â€Å"Masters and Men,† â€Å"Likes and Dislikes,† â€Å"Roses and Thorns†. The most significant of these comparisons is masculinity and femininity.Through the development of the novels female heroine Margaret Hale and through John Thornton’s perspectives of her, Emily Gaskell is in essence taking a stand against gender stereotypes and highlighting the underestimated value of female empowerment in Victorian society. Throughout the novel Margaret Hale proves herself to be a strong, outspoken, capable and irrepressible spirit. These descriptions of Margaret however were more likely to be attributed to men in this tim e, as they were viewed as the superior gender. Gaskell describes Margaret as â€Å"full of a soft feminine defiance, always giving strangers the impression of haughtinessâ€Å" (58).In attempts to draw attention to the fact that Margaret is out of the ordinary with a personality unlike most women of her time, Gaskell incorporates Mr. Thornton’s first impressions of her as well. â€Å"He almost said to himself he did not like her, before their conversation ended; he tried so to compensate himself for the mortified feeling, that while he looked upon her with an admiration he could not repress† (59). This passage is significant because it shows the discontent Thornton feels due to Margaret’s reluctance to conform to stereotypes of femininity.However, even with feelings of discontent, Thornton looks at her with admiration showing he cannot help but be captivated with her strong-minded manner. Perhaps this is Gaskell’s way of showing us that if breaking gend er stereotypes can be admired by a high class powerful man such as Thornton, then why cant it be admired by society as a whole? Another instance where Margaret demonstrates her unusual strength is in regards to her mother’s illness. When she finds out her mother is dying she decides to keep it from her father as she says, â€Å"He will not bear it as I can† (119).The instant she convinces the doctor to reveal the severity of her mothers illness marks the moment she takes on the role of authoritative figure in her family. The authoritative position in a family would again usually belong to a man but Margaret claims her father could not handle it and that she will have to step forward. Margaret’s strength through her mothers illness, taking power over her father is yet another characteristic of hers that’s advocates female empowerment. This is reinstated in the actual event of her mother’s death. Her eyes were continually blinded by tears, but she ha d no time to give way to regular crying. The father and brother depended upon her; while they were giving way to grief, she must be working, planning, considering† (230). This quote depicts Margaret acting as backbone for the family. She has allowed her family members to look to her for stability, which is extremely rare in a time where women were viewed as delicate. The most memorable demonstration of Margaret’s character is in the event of the strike when she comes outside of the Thornton household and steps in front of John Thornton.Margaret puts herself in a spot of grave danger in between Mr. Thornton and the strikers who are described as beastly, animalistic creatures who have lost all traces of their previous humanity. The stepping in front of Mr. Thornton symbolizes the crossing of his masculinity. In essence she is stating herself more masculine than Thornton by doing so. The irony of this situation is as she is preceding his masculinity, the very thing she ban ks on not getting hurt is gender. She thinks that as a woman she will not be subjected to any violence delivered by man.Margaret’s attitude toward her mother’s death and her approach to confronting the strikers shows her strong and brave character. Such character that contradicts the social norms of gender roles is attributed to the female protagonist in attempts to convey the author’s values of female empowerment. The fact that Mr. Thornton is not oppressive toward women instead attracted to Margaret’s challenging nature marks Gaskell’s attempt at getting readers to believe that women can be just as strong as their male complements despite what society says.

Organizational Structure of Walgreens Essay

This week’s learning team assignment focused on the organizational structure and design. Team C will examine the organizational chart of Walgreens and restructure it to make it more efficient and beneficial for the company. The students have decided the CEO of the organization is overwhelmed with departments reporting to him. Therefore, some departments will be consolidated and moved to more specialized officers under the CEO for a more productive company. The officers to receiver these additional departments will be Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) and Chief Informational Officer (CIO). This paper will discuss structural changes, the work to be completed and how this work can be done effectively. Financial Reorganization Currently, the Administration and the Human Resources departments report directly to the Chief Executive Officer. We have proposed a change to the chain of command with Human Resources being combined with the Administration department and have that new, combined department report directly the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Human Capital Management (Human Resources) directly affects the bottom line of an organization through the workforce, benefits costs, training and development and finally employee engagement. The Administration department manages the overall direction of Walgreens. Since the management of the workforce is one of the main driving factors that directly relate to the financial success of an organization, it will be efficient and cost effective to reorganize and combine these departments under the CFO. To accomplish this reorganization, we will use cross-functional teams to address each department’s work specializations, strengths and weaknesses. And then outlay an effective plan of action. The CFO’s financial expertise will be used to analyze the underlying financial  implications of the reorganization as well as the daily cost of business operations. Strategy and Community Management Reorganization The Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) will continue to report to the CEO. To be more efficient in work specialization, we have decided to move the following departments and make them branches under Strategy: Customer Experience, Customer Experience and Daily Living and Community Management. As Walgreens embraces today’s consumer, creating a unique customer experience is apart of the strategy to build their trusted brand and set them apart from the competition. Moving these departments will be beneficial because the leaders in each department can collaborate on strategies and plans that are customer focused. In addition to reporting to the CSO now, the Community Management department will also receive new responsibilities. Currently Facilities Development and Store Operations report to them. In order to create a more efficient department they will now oversee two additional departments; Well Experience and Operations Community. The Community Manager will have Store Operations and Operation Community work as a specialized team focused on lowering operational cost for the company. One of Walgreens key strategies is to create a â€Å"Well Experience† (Walgreens 2014). The Well Experience â€Å"starts with leading-edge store design, new layouts, enhanced product assortments and state-of –the-art pharmacies, including bringing the pharmacist from behind the counter for a greater interaction with patients (Walgreens 2014). They will work with the Community Management department in collaborating together to create a partnership for success in â€Å"Well Experience† initiative. Once the pharmacist is engaged with the customers in their community it creates transparency and trust not only in them but also in the Walgreens’ brand. Information Technology Reorganization The eCommerce and Design departments will be moved under the direct supervision of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) to reduce the direct reports of the CEO. Consolidating these two departments under the CIO will help turn Walgreens into a technology-driven company that has consistent creative across all platforms. These two departments will also benefit from the CIO’s more specialized technical skills. The Chief Information Officer  already oversees the enterprise technology that supports Walgreens operations, including security software. For eCommerce, security is a major concern for Walgreens’ customers. The CIO’s specialization in the information technology will help him better implement the eCommerce tools and keep those tools secure. The Design department produces the creative that is used to promote the Walgreens’ brand. As Walgreens expands its digital presence with an enhanced web experience and new mobile app (Walgreens, 2014), it is important that creative remain consistent and functional across all platforms. Having the Design department working hand-in-hand with Information Technology and eCommerce will produce consistent creative that is technology-focused across all marketing channels. The CIO’s technical skills will allow him to lead the Design department in an every-growing online world. Conclusion The team decided to restructure the organizational chart of Walgreens. Ultimately, taking responsibilities off the CEO and moving those departments to more specialized officers. In doing so, this will allow the CEO to be more productive because his or her workload is more manageable. The reorganization of these departments under the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Information Officer and Chief Strategy Officer, will make these departments more efficient because they will benefit from their specialized skills. References Robbins, Stephen, & Coulter, Mary (2012). Management, 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Press. 978-013253894-7 The Official Board (2014). 2014 organizational chart of Walgreens Co. Retrieved from http://www.theofficialboard.com/org-chart/walgreen Walgreens Co. (2014). 2013 annual report of Walgreens. Retrieved from http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/WAG/3514601079x0x709191/5F506D54-9148-47D1-9494-D4E4A4CB95B1/WAG_2013_AR_lo.pdf

Never Overlook the Arc

Never Overlook the Arc Never Overlook the Arc Never Overlook the Arc By Guest Author This is a guest post by Vic Shayne. If you want to write for Daily Writing Tips check the guidelines here. There are many elements that are key to creating a good story, and the arc is one of the most important of all. It doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about fiction, nonfiction, a fantasy story, documentary or screenplay. I could say that even Noah knew the importance of an ark, but homonyms lose their charm in writing. What is an arc? In the world of physics, an arc is a curve. In writing we can explain it in similar terms - it’s the path that a story and its characters follow, from their introduction to their finale. It starts here and ends there, so to speak. I’ve seen a lot of people’s writing that completely misses this fundamental element, and they wonder why their work is flat or unsalable. If they set their egos aside, they can learn from their mistakes. If not, they go on chalking up their failures to stupid editors or readers who just don’t get their genius. To make sure your work is rich, plan your arcs from the outset. Before you sit down to write your story, make an outline that includes an arc for the story and all its characters. Figure out how your story begins and how it ends, including all the changes in points in between. Figure out how your characters act at first compared to how they act when your work comes to a conclusion. If they do not exhibit change or growth, then something’s wrong and your work will lack dramatic interest. This is true of a silly comedy, a farce, a musical, a slice of life story, a science fiction work and a tear-jerking drama. Everything has to keep moving in a direction that exhibits change. They say if a shark stops moving, it dies. Don’t let your writing go belly up. Let’s get more specific. Take a look at your own life as an example. Your life, like everybody else’s has an overall arc with a series of events in between. You started off as a baby, moved through childhood and got to where you are now. You’ve changed, changed some more and changed again so that you are not the same person you were in the beginning. Your life story has an arc. At this present moment, you have accumulated wisdom. You have experienced sorrow, happiness, hard work and moments of reprieve - all of which are evidence of your arc. Remember too that in addition to an overall story arc, there are also many in between arcs that need to be written. Each chapter needs to have an arc in which something is accomplished, ruined, created, thwarted, grown, deconstructed and/or abandoned. Only by creating these chapter or scene arcs is your audience or reader compelled to move to the next event. Many movies suffer from an absence of arcs and even uninformed audiences will complain that the film they just watched â€Å"didn’t go anywhere,† even if they can’t articulate the exact source of the flaw. I have a friend, John, who goes to the movies on a regular basis. John has little patience. If there’s nothing that compels him to watch what happens after the first ten minutes, he leaves the theater. He considers sitting any longer in his seat a waste of his valuable time. Worse, John is angry at the writer and director for taking advantage of him and robbing him for an unfulfilled promise. John’s a tough critic, but to me he’s a reminder of the importance of giving your readers something to look forward to from scene to scene and chapter to chapter until, by the end of the affair, you’ve taken them through a journey. This â€Å"something† depends on well-crafted arcs. Vic Shaynes latest book, Remember Us, just hit the bookstores nationwide. Vic has been a professional writer since 1978, with six books and more than 500 articles over his career, as well as screenplays, stage plays and commercial work. To learn more about him and his work, you can visit his website. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Exquisite AdjectivesUsed To vs. Use ToPeople vs. Persons

Differences Between Hills and Mountains

Differences Between Hills and Mountains Hills and mountains are both natural land formations that rise out of the landscape. Unfortunately, there is no universally accepted standard definition for the height of a mountain or a hill. This can make it difficult to differentiate between the two. Mountain Versus Hill There are characteristics that we typically associate with mountains; for example, most mountains have steep slopes and a well-defined summit while hills tend to be rounded. This, however, is not always the case. Some mountain ranges, such as the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, are geologically old and are therefore smaller and more rounded than more classic mountains such the Rocky Mountains in the western United States. Even leaders in geography, like the United States Geological Survey (USGS), do not have an exact definition of a mountain and a hill. Instead, the organizations Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) uses broad categories for most land features, including mountains, hills, lakes, and rivers. Though no one can agree on the heights of mountains and hills, there are a few generally accepted characteristics that define each. An Attempt to Define the Height of a Mountain According to the USGS, up until the 1920s the British Ordnance Survey defined a mountain as a geographic feature rising higher than 1000 feet (304 meters). The United States followed suit and defined a mountain as having a local relief higher than 1000 feet. This definition, however, was dropped in the late 1970s. There was even a movie about the battle over mountain and hill. In  The Englishman That Went Up a Hill and Down a Mountain  (1995, starring Hugh Grant), a Welsh village challenged cartographers attempts to classify their mountain as a hill by adding a pile of rocks to the top. What is a Hill? In general, we think of hills as having a lower elevation than a mountain and  a more rounded/mound shape than a distinct peak. Some accepted characteristics of a hill are: A natural mound of earth created either by faulting or erosion.A bump in the landscape, rising gradually from its surroundings.Low altitude and elevation, often less than 984-1968 feet (300-600 meters).A rounded top with no well-defined summit.Often unnamed.Easy to climb. Hills may have once been mountains that were worn down by erosion over many thousands of years. Contrariwise many mountains- such as the Himalayas in Asia- were created by tectonic faults and would have, at one time, been what we might now consider hills. What is a Mountain? Though  a mountain is typically taller than a hill, there is no official height designation. An abrupt difference in local topography is often described as a mountain, and such features will often have  mount  or mountain  in their name; examples include Mount Hood, Mount Ranier, and Mount Washington. Some accepted characteristics of a mountain are: A natural mound of earth created by faulting.A very steep rise in the landscape that is often abrupt in comparison to its surroundings.High altitude and elevation, often higher than 1968 feet (600 meters).A steep slope and a defined summit or peak.Often has a name.Depending on the slopes and elevation, mountains can be a challenge to climb. Of course, there are exceptions to these assumptions and some features that would otherwise be called mountains have the word hills in their name. For instance, the Black Hills in South Dakota can also be thought of as a small, isolated mountain range. The highest peak is Harney Peak at 7242 feet of elevation and 2922 feet of prominence from the surrounding landscape. The Black Hills received their name from the Lakota Indians who called the mountains  Paha Sapa, or black hills.

Research paper about India. ( How people make a living in india Essay

Research paper about India. ( How people make a living in india Current countrys economic status - Essay Example India grows and export major food commodities such as rice, sugar, wheat, cotton, and vegetables. The country also produces and export animal agricultural products, which include buffalo milk, eggs, meat, and chicken. Most of Indian farmers are small-scale farmers who grow their crops or rear their animals on small pieces of land. However, the country has favorable climate and soils that support agricultural activities. The agricultural sector contributes about 16% of the country’s GDP and provides employment opportunity to about 50% of the total Indian population (Department of Revenue web). The agricultural sector provides employment mainly to rural Indian population. The industrial sector is a major contributor to the Indian economy. Currently the sector contributes about 14% to the Indian GDP (Panagariya 453). India is known worldwide as a major manufacturing country. The sector employs about 25% of the Indian population. Majority of industrial workers live in urban centers and other industrial towns that spread across the country. The Indian industries are recognized worldwide for their production of affordable and long lasting commodities. Indian industries produce products ranging from heavy duty equipment such as steel beams to light duty equipment such as bicycles. Indian industries are also involved in production of pharmaceutical products that are marketed across the globe. Currently the industrial sector is eying the booming technology sector. The industrial sector provides employment opportunity to both the skilled and unskilled labor force. In addition, the industrial sector has small-scale industries that provide opportunities to tho usands of Indians. Cottage industries or home-based industries produce basic commodities for export and domestic market. Indians are known to be business people. Indian are successful business people who have set up businesses in many parts around the globe. The

Corporate Social Responsibility Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Corporate Social Responsibility - Essay Example These can include (but may not be limited to) employees, customers, suppliers, community oraganaizations, local neighborhood and shareholders.'-Wikipedia.CSR entails that corporations should contemplate the actual and impending effects of their decisions on other stakeholders as well. It is correlated with the principles of sustainable development, which propagate that social, environmental and other consequence of business decisions should be taken into consideration. These two aspects can be better understood by examining the shareholders and stakeholders theories. The main ideas of the two theories are juxtaposed under the following heads. Director's fiduciary duties: The Shareholder's theory advocates that value maximization should be the governing corporate objective. It makes a plea that the interest of the shareholders should precede over that of other constituents, based on the presumptions of capitalism. The supporting view is that, the directors fiduciary duty is to run the company in the interest of the shareholders.Tradional property rights are cited as a justification for this argument. The shareholders are the owners of the company, therefore they hold property rights. ... The chief proponents of the stakeholders' theory are Donaldson and Preston. According to this school of thought, directors should have multi fiduciary duties towards all the stakeholders. Stakeholders are the people who affect and are affected by the company. The stakeholders view of strategy is an instrumental theory of the corporatin, integrating both the resource based view and the market based view, it is opposed to the view where the company solely tries to increase the value for shareholding. The stakeholder group should not be treated as a mean to some end but must be participative in detreming the direction of the company in which they hold stake. Basis for determining business relationships: As per the shareholders' theory, business relationships are determined by legal contracts. Thus, it recognizes accountability towards those parties with whom explicit legal contacts have been signed. It follows Sternberg's argument that such contracts are made under 'libertarian free contracting". This vastly limits the scope of the corporation's obligations. On the other hand, the stakeholders' model advocates social and moral obligations towards all those who affect or get affected by the company, these obligations may be become binding on the company via legal or implied contracts. Both the theories accept that the firm is a nexus of contacts but differ about the basis for determing those contacts. Objective of wealth creation: The two theories take different stands about the nature of these contracts. Kay's work in strategic management (Kay1993), show that managing contracts on collaborative, 'relational' basis can lead to competitive advantages directly benefiting shareholders. Thus, shareholder's theory acknowledges that contacts should be