“Castles Don’t Have Phones, Asshole!” by Jodi Parker Essay Example for Free

â€Å"Castles Don’t Have Phones, Asshole!† by Jodi Parker Essay

Australian Wine Essay Example for Free

Australian Wine Essay The Australian Wine industry is one of the largest exporters of wine around the world. Wine is produced in every state. There is approximately 160,000 hectares under vine, about 2500 wineries and 8000 growers. Australia’s wine regions are mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country, with vineyards located in South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. South Australia produces over 50% of all Australian wine. The wine regions in these states produce different wine varieties and styles which take advantage of the particular Terroir such as climatic differences and soil types. The common wine is blended wine especially red wine. E. g. Grenache Syrah Mouvedre (GSM) One example of multi-state blend is Cabernet Syrah. Cabernet is from South Australia and the Syrah is from Victoria. First vines arrived from Cape of Good Hope to New South Wales by Governor Philip on the First Fleet (1788). First attempt at wine making from these vines failed, but other settlers managed to successfully cultivate vines for winemaking. The first vineyard was established at Parramatta by a German settler, Philip Schaffer in 1791. The very first Australian vintage is in 1795. Early Australian winemakers faced many difficulties and problems due to the unfamiliar Australian climate. In 1880s Australia was struck by Phylloxera. South Australia survived the well as lot of the land was resistant to the Aphid. Australian wine was available for sale domestically by the 1820s and during this time Gregory Blaxland became the first person to export Australian wine, and was the first winemaker to win an overseas award. There are 2 distinct weather patterns. Firstly, the spring rains, dry summers, average temperature of 25-35 degrees Celsius and some maritime influences affects West Australia, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. Secondly, the tropical based systems bring higher temperatures and higher humidity from the north. It affects mainly New South Wales and northern territories. The low cloud in New South Wales is an advantage to grape growing. The modern challenges are drought, fire and flood. The red varietals are Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot noir. The White varietals are Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Australia has no native grapes, and Vitis vinifera varieties were introduced from Europe and South Africa. Some varieties have been bred by Australian viticulturalists. E. g. Cienna and Tarrango. About 130 different grape varieties are used by commercial winemakers. Australian winemaking results have been remarkable and it has established standard number of varietals, such as Chardonnay and Shiraz.

Working Environment of Lloyds TSB

Working Environment of Lloyds TSB Introduction: Lloyds TSB group is the UK‘s biggest organisation. More than 66000 are working for this organisation in UK and in 27 countries around the globe. The business serves around 16 million customers operating in a range of financial markets, including personal and private banking, corporate banking, insurance and mortgages. Lloyds TSB is working globally and competes within rapidly changing markets for the delivery of financial services to personal and business customers. Customers expect a high range of services to be available 24 hours a day and delivered with first class customers service. In order t remain top in this demanding market, Lloyds TSB has acquired the services of innovative human resource management policies to ensure Lloyds TSB is a great place to work and that its staff are happy, motivated and committed to give highest levels of performance to the organisation and its customers. In 1998, the Group conducted reseach with employees, which showed that one of their main concerns was being able to balance a demanding job with outside commitments, such as family life, hobbies and leisure activities. This led to the Group designing and introducing a unique flexible working policy, called Work Options one year later. This gave a chance to workers to structure their working arrangements in a way that helps them to achieve a better Work Life Balance. According to this policy all staff has got the right to request a different working pattern form standard 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lloyds TSB is widely recognised as one of the best employers for providing flexibility for its staff. Because of this positive and flexible approach, Lloyds TSB is able to attract, appoint, motivate and retain the best staff available, which in turn keeps customers happy and keeps the organisation at top of the financial services field. The Changing Work Environment Lloyds TSB has always given importance to change in work environment and this proves the key to drive the bank out from the crises Lloyds TSB has rejected the traditional. Work routine of the 20th century. Lloyds TSB has offered flexible work options to all of its staff and put into place it own procedures to allow every member of staff, not just with young children, the right to request to work flexibly. This Lloyds TSB stands out from other employers. By 2010, it is estimated that 85% of the growth in the UK workforce will be women. 62% of the Lloyds TSB workforce is female and around 2,000 staff takes maternity leave each year. Of these, around 87% return to work for the company after their leave. This is an important statistic. In a tightening labour market, business must attract high calibre staff and then retain their services. Lloyds TSBs reputation on flexible working is a very important factor in achieving this. The Business case for Flexibility Flexible working is not merely of benefit to staff but it makes excellent business environment too. Lloyds TSB believes its ability to deal efficiently and effectively with the need for flexibility strengthens its position as an employer of choice and enables the group to deliver levels of service that differentiate Lloyds TSB from its competitors. Customers take advantage by getting to deal with professional, friendly enthusiastic and well knowledgeable persons. In an increasingly competitive market place where retailers, supermarkets and other companies can also offer financial services. Lloyds TSB needs customer service excellence around the clock to stay in competition. Lloyds TSB developed its own flexible approach in 1999 to help attract and retain the best staff. The Group‘s own leaver surveys (questionnaires completed by people leaving the business) showed that flexibility was the main reason for them joining them initially. This is also supported by a national survey which showed that flexible working was a more important factor that pays for graduates in choosing an employer. Employees need motivation and commitment. Research shows that people are more productive and experience less stress when they have control over the hours they work. So flexible working helps Lloyds TSB to gain the long term commitment and motivation of well qualified and experienced staff. It is far more expensive to recruit and train new staff than to retain existing ones. Flexible working generates cost savings too. Traditional work patterns usually involved fixed hours between 9.00 am to 5pm. Work beyond these hours was paid by employers overtime rates like time and half or more driving up staff costs. With the introduction of flexibility, Lloyds TSB has been able to extend staff cover at no added cost. In todays world, people with lifestyles require financial services at any time. Peak customer demand does not follow a traditional 9.00 am to 5pm working day either. For Lloyds TSB flexible arrangements allow employees personal benefits to suit their own lives and deliver a more complete service to customers. So from the above it is clear Lloyds TSB was ahead of the game when it came to introducing flexible working patterns. The Group was aware that economic and social changes meant that people often live complex lives in and out side of work. Far sighted management at Lloyds TSB saw the benefits to the business of recruiting and keeping excellent people, who would be willing to build a career in the Group. The impact of credit crunch on Lloyds TSB The phase means a severe shortage of money or credit and this comes about when banks and other lenders lose confidence and are no longer wiling to lend to each other or to other borrowers. According to report published at Yorkshire Post dated 06 May 2008, Lloyds TSB revealed a further  £387 million hit from the credit crunch but signalled there would be no need for a cash call to investors. In a another report published in Herald Scotland dated 30 July 2008, writes that credit crunch hammers Lloyds TSB as bank profits drop 70 % But Lloyds TSB has worked according to a certain plan faced the situation well. Continuous Improvement and Lloyds TSB Lloyds TSB believes in excellent customers service and smooth and transparent banking. Lloyds TSB has introduced online banking, provided numerous ATM machines to their customers and made the banking relatively easy and convenient. Lloyds TSB and IT transformation Realizing that the effort to improve its IT capabilities would require faster, deeper change than it could manage in-house, Lloyds TSB partnered with Accenture to create an IT competency that aligns IT delivery with the banks strategic priorities. Processes, tools and methodologies were brought closer to best practise, and the skills and experience of IT staff were improved. Lloyds TSB is making significant progress towards creating a high performance IT environment that aligns IT delivery with the banks strategic priorities. The Accenture/ Group IT team is confident that the improving IT initiative will help Lloyds TSB create a high performance business propelled by consistent increase in customer satisfaction and competitive differentiation.

Gas Laws Essay -- Chemistry Gas Gasses Essays Science

Gas Laws Since the days of Aristotle, all substances have been classified into one of three physical states. A substance having a fixed volume and shape is a solid. A substance, which has a fixed volume but not a fixed shape, is a liquid; liquids assume the shape of their container but do not necessarily fill it. A substance having neither a fixed shape nor a fixed volume is a gas; gases assume both the shape and the volume of their container. The structures of gases, and their behavior, are simpler than the structures and behavior of the two condensed phases, the solids and the liquids Pressure and the Law of Boyle Quantitative measurements on gases were first made in a rational manner by the English chemist Robert Boyle (1627 - 1691). The instruments used by Boyle to measure pressure were two: the manometer, which measures differences in pressure, and the barometer, which measures the total pressure of the atmosphere. A manometer is simply a bent piece of tubing, preferably glass with one end closed. When the liquid level in both arms is the same, the pressure of the sample of gas inside the closed end must equal the pressure of the external atmosphere since the downward force on the two columns of liquid is then equal. When the liquid levels are unequal, the pressures must differ. The difference in pressure can be measured in units of length of the vertical column of liquid. The mm Hg, or its modern version the torr, originated in this use of the manometer. Mercury is particularly convenient for use in manometers (and barometers) because at room temperature it has low vapor pressure, does not wet glass, and has a high density. Other liquids such as linseed oil or water have also been used in manometers. The barometer is a device for measuring the total pressure of the atmosphere. A primitive barometer can easily be constructed by taking a glass tube about a meter long, sealing one end, filling the tube completely with mercury, placing your thumb firmly over the open end, and carefully inverting the tube into an open dish filled with mercury. The mercury will fall to a height independent of the diameter of the tube and a vacuum will be created above it. The height of the mercury column will be the height which the atmospheric pressure can support. The standard atmospheric pressure, one atmosphere (atm), is 760 mm Hg but the actua... ... taking enough chemistry, you will see it showing up over and over and over. The Numerical Value for R R's value can be determined many ways. This is just one way: Assume we have 1.000 mol of a gas at STP. The volume of this amount of gas under the conditions of STP is known to a high degree of precision. We will use the value of 22.414 L. By the way, 22.414 L at STP has a name. It is called "molar volume." It is the volume of ANY ideal gas at standard temperature and pressure. (Siebring, Richard, Page 54) Let's plug our numbers into the equation: (1.000 atm) (22.414 L) = (1.000 mol) (R) (273.15 K) Notice how atmospheres were used as well as the exact value for standard temperature. Solving for R gives 0.08206 L atm / mol K, when rounded to four significant figures. This is usually enough. Remember the value. You'll need it for problem solving. Notice the weird unit on R: say out loud "liter atmospheres per mole Kelvin." This is not the only value of R that can exist. It depends on which units you select. Those of you that take more chemistry than high school level will meet up with 8.3145 Joules per mole Kelvin, but that's for another time.

How to Adapt and Thrive within Singapore’s Culture Essay -- Country An

How to Adapt and Thrive within Singapore’s Culture Expansion is an exciting and somewhat scary adventure. As Speedy Errands starts to embark into the global marketplace, we must learn more about the country to develop our branch. A new environment is harder to understand if we know nothing about the culture, landscape and its inhabitants. To achieve this branching-out Speedy Errands we must learn about the culture of Singapore, which includes the following: country history, social climate, family life, attitudes, religions, education, values, and economics. This report has been conducted to educate our company about the new environment and culture we want to become emerged. History of Singapore The history of a country will give us insight into their cultural environment and their values. The original occupants of Singapore were fishermen and pirates. Western countries did not know about Singapore’s culture until Sir Thomas Stanford Raffles of the British East trading company came to the island in 1819 looking for more trading posts. In 1825, Singapore became a major trading port. With the industrial development, in the 20th century, Western countries had a higher demand for tin and rubber, which helped Singapore emerge as one of the major ports in the world. After World War I, the British started to modernize Malayan defenses, and in 1921, a large naval base was built in Singapore. The establishment of an air base followed. During World War II, Singapore was occupied by the Japanese invaders in February 1942. The island remained under Japanese control until September 1945, when Japan surrendered to the Allied forces. In 1959, Singapore became self-governin g, but its defense and foreign policy were still under ... ...Asian Cultures. Sojourn: Journal Of Social Issues In Southeast Asia, 10(1), 65-89. Youngblood-Coleman, D. (2003). History: Country Watch Publications. Country Review:Singapore.http://www.countrywatch.com/cw_country.asp?vCOUNTRY=6 Weston, R., & Hayes, A. (2004). Celebrating families in Singapore. Family Matters, (69), 83-87. Hing Ai, Y. (2004). Ideology and Changing Family Arrangements in Singapore. Journal Of Comparative Family Studies, 35(3), 375-392. Koh, A. (2004). Singapore Education in "New Times": Global/local imperatives. Discourse: Studies In The Cultural Politics Of Education, 25(3), 335-349. How funds under Community Engagement Masterplan will be spent - Channel News Asia. (2012, April 10). Channel News Asia - Latest News, Singapore, Asia, World and Business News - channelnewsasia.com. Retrieved May 1, 2012, from http://www.channelnewsasia.com/storie

The Evolution of Grant in Ernest J. Gaines A Lesson Before Dying Essay

After the Civil War ended, many blacks and whites, especially in the South, continued living as if nothing had changed with regards to the oppression and poor treatment of African Americans. Narrator Grant Wiggins, of Ernest J. Gaines' A Lesson Before Dying, possesses a similar attitude toward race relations. Through his experiences with a young man wrongly accused of murder, Grant transforms from a pessimistic, hopeless, and insensitive man into a more selfless and compassionate human being who can see the possibility of change in relations between whites and blacks. Grant Wiggins, one of the few black men of the time to have a college education, lives with his aunt on a plantation just outside Bayonne, Louisiana in 1948, and teaches at the all-black school held at the all-black plantation church. Considering the poor relations between blacks and whites at the time in which the story is set, it comes as no surprise that Grant sees tension frequently in his community – not only through the ways in which persons of various races treat one another, but also in the justice, or lack thereof, served in court cases. The white authorities accuse Jefferson, an innocent student Grant taught a few years prior, of first-degree murder. During the trial, Jefferson's state-appointed defense lawyer pleads for the jury to have sympathy on Jefferson as he is a hog and does not possess the intelligence to commit the crimes of which he is accused. Because the whites dominate the society, the court finds Jefferson guilty as charged and the judge sentences him to death by electrocution. Upon hearing the verdict, Miss Emma, Jefferson's aunt, resolves to persuade Grant to teach Jefferson that he is, in fact, a man – not a hog – and to get him to wal... ...statements as truth reveals Grant's transformation into a selfless, compassionate, and optimistic man. Grant realizes he has made mistakes and does not desire to be esteemed higher than he believes he deserves. Paul expresses his desire to befriend Grant, thus breaking the barriers of race and reaching out to Grant. Grant returns to his classroom, crying, a changed man. Work Cited Gaines, Ernest J. A Lesson before Dying. New York: Vintage, 1993. Works Consulted Folks, Jeffrey. â€Å"Communal responsibility in Ernest J. Gaines‘s A Lesson Before Dying. Mississippi Quarterly 52.2 (1999): 253 Piacentino, Ed. â€Å"The Common humanity that is in us all†: Toward Racial Reconciliation in Gaines’s A Lesson Before Dying.† Southern Quarterly 42.3 (2004): 71 Vancil, David. â€Å"Redemption According to Ernest Gaines,† African American Review, 28 (Fall 1994), 490.

Death Advantages vs Disadvantages

Death can be taken as an advantage or disadvantage, a blessing or a curse. It is an advantage or blessing as one is aware of his approaching death and can prepare himself for it. It is a disadvantage or a curse as since one is aware of approaching death, he realizes that human existence is pointless, which makes him unhappy, anxious and anguished. Among other things, Don DeLillo seems completely preoccupied with death and the difficult task of living with the knowledge of death in his novel White Noise. Rather than discuss the unavoidable mortality that connects all humankind with broad, generalized strokes, DeLillo is concerned with the particular late 20th century cultural and psychological mechanisms that attempt to define the unclear relationship between self and death. Perhaps, the character most responsive to death is Jack Gladney. Jack is so consumed by his fear of death that his ordinary thought processes are often interrupted by the question: â€Å"Who will die first† (DeLillo 15)? In Jack’s mind: â€Å"This question comes up from time to time, like where are the car keys† (DeLillo 15). Jack finds the aura of death to be very noticeable and real, and he relies on his consumer lifestyle as an escape from his fear of death. DeLillo uses Hitler to as a major component of his theme, death. Hitler has lived on past his death through the media. He lives because the Holocaust is probably the most tragic event in the history of the earth. In the novel Jack is obsessed with Hitler’s ability to live forever, Hitler’s power, Hitler’s self confidence, and the aura that surrounded Hitler and still surrounds Hitler. Jack is the total opposite of Hitler in the novel. He is terrified of death, has no power over anything in his life, and has zero self confidence. Jack has no way to capture these things, but through Hitler. Jack is a character with a major identity problem; Jack has no idea about who he is. No matter if a person is rich or poor, smart or foolish; he/she will sooner or later leave this world because of death. As no one can experience death until he/she dies, everyone fears it at some stage. For the most part, man fears death because he does not understand what death is, how it feels and if it is really the end of thought. On top of that, death is a stage of life, it does not mean the end of life – there may be a place where everyone goes when they are dead just as people go from teenagers to adulthood. Simply denying this fact is not the right route to take. DeLillo, through this novel, is trying to send a message to his readers that facing death is the best solution to its fear. Death is something beyond our control and so it is not a thing that we should worry that much about. Taking medication, and of course, killing others will not prevent death. Thinking and being afraid of death is an ordinary thing for a man to ponder about but too much can lead to more negatives than positives. Furthermore, taking a step to an unknown world can be extremely challenging for man. That is why they fear death so much. Fear of death does not prolong anyone’s life; in fact, it may shorten someone’s life. In the end, man must face death for all men are mortal. Babette, wife of Jack, is also a prime example of a person in life that suffers from her frequent fear of death. Both Jack and Babette fear death very much but their denial of this is very visible in chapter 20 when they had a long discussion in their bed. Both of them had informed the other that if it is their choice that they want to die first as if they are not afraid of death at all. â€Å"[Babette] says she wants to die first because she would feel unbearably lonely and sad without [Jack], especially if the children were grown and living elsewhere† (pg. 100). Jack also tells her more or less the same thing and they would argue whose death leaves a bigger hole in the other's life. By saying this, both of them want hope that they will at least seem to have no fear of death and thus can try to believe in it and avoid the fear. Unfortunately, this has not worked at all. Both of them have never felt less frightened from death even when they pretend they didn't. Babette says, â€Å"I do want to die first,†¦. But that doesn't mean I'm not afraid. I'm terribly afraid. I'm afraid all the time† (pg. 198). Her fear of death is further demonstrated when Babette by chance discovers an article about fear of death and she decides to go to the firm. Jack’s reaction to Babette’s fear seems misplaced. He is more upset that she could possibly be more afraid of death than him than he seemed to be about her sleeping with Mr. Gray. He goes on trying to tell Babette that maybe she isn’t sure that she is afraid of death, â€Å"death is so vague. † He tries to tell her that it might be her weight or height that is her problem. He cannot accept that she is scared of death. Much of this could stem that he depends on Babette mostly for psychological support. The major theme of the novel is that death lurks everywhere, especially in the White Noise of the modern world, specifically in the waves and radiation with which we surround ourselves. The airborne toxic event makes visible this submerged death, and also heightens Jack's already dominating fear of death when it infects his bloodstream. DeLillo outlines several possible solutions to humanity's natural fear of death: by embracing and confronting it, as Tibetans and other Eastern religions advise; by blocking fear through â€Å"mystical†; science, as Babette attempts through the drug Dylar; by using consumerism to deny it; and by ignoring it, although only Wilder seems able to do this, whereas in the hands of adults it becomes a weakened form of cruelty. We try to face death through crowds, through safety in numbers, but we must ultimately face death alone. Even to the end of the novel not much about the role of death in the eyes of Jack and Babette changes. The book ends when Wilder is crossing the road on his tricycle and cars are honking and swerving to not to hit the little boy while he is in a state of oblivion, he doesn’t hear the cars, and he doesn’t hear the women yelling at him to stop that’s all just White Noise to him. Suddenly he falls into a puddle off of his tricycle and begins to cry and he realizes that he brushed death for the first time. Throughout the story Wilder represented a kind of innocence not found in any character. He was the only one who was not concerned with death or dying, he didn’t even understand the concept of death. But soon his innocence fades away, and he becomes and starts thinking like everyone else surrounding him.