Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Biography of John W. Young

Biography of John W. Young John Watts Young (September 24, 1930 - January 5, 2018), was one of the best-known of NASAs astronaut corps. In 1972, he served as commander of the Apollo 16  mission to the moon and in 1982, he served as commander of the first-ever flight of the space shuttle Columbia. As the only astronaut to work aboard four different classes of spacecraft, he became known throughout the agency and the world for his technical skill and calm under pressure. Young was married twice, once to Barbara White, with whom he raised two children. After their divorce, Young married Susy Feldman. Personal Life John Watts Young was born in San Francisco to William Hugh Young and Wanda Howland Young. He grew up in Georgia and Florida, where he  explored nature and science as a Boy Scout. As an undergraduate at Georgia Institute of Technology, he studied aeronautical engineering and graduated in 1952 with highest honors. He entered the U.S. Navy straight out of college, eventually ending up in flight training. He became a helicopter pilot, and eventually joined a fighter squadron where he flew missions from the Coral Sea and the USS Forrestal. Young then moved to become a test pilot, as so many astronauts did, at Patuxent River and the Naval Test Pilot School. Not only did he fly a number of experimental aircraft, but he also set several world records while flying the Phantom II jet. Joining NASA In 2013, John Young published an autobiography of his years as a pilot and astronaut, called Forever Young. He told the story of his incredible career simply, humorously, and humbly. His NASA years, in particular, took this man- often referred to as an astronauts astronaut- from the Gemini missions of the early to mid-1960s to the Moon aboard Apollo, and eventually to the ultimate test pilot dream: commanding a shuttle to orbital space. Youngs public demeanor was that of a calm, sometimes wry, but always professional engineer and pilot. During his Apollo 16 flight, he was so laid-back and focused that his heart rate (being tracked from the ground) barely rose above normal. He was well-known for thoroughly examining a spacecraft or instrument and then zeroing in on its mechanical and engineering aspects, often saying, after a blizzard of questions, Im just asking... Gemini and Apollo John Young joined NASA in 1962, as part of Astronaut Group 2. His classmates were Neil Armstrong, Frank Borman, Charles Pete Conrad, James A. Lovell, James A. McDivitt, Elliot M. See, Jr, Thomas P. Stafford, and Edward H. White (who died in the Apollo 1 fire  in 1967). They were referred to as the New Nine and all but one went on to fly several missions over the next decades. The exception was Elliot See, who was killed in a T-38 crash. Youngs first of six flights to space came in March 1965 during the early Gemini era, when he piloted Gemini 3 in the first manned Gemini mission. The next year, in July 1966, he was the command pilot for Gemini 10 where he and teammate Michael Collins did the first double rendezvous of two spacecraft in orbit. When the Apollo missions began, Young was immediately tapped to fly the dress rehearsal mission that led to the first Moon landing. That mission was Apollo 10 and took place in May 1969, not quite two months before Armstrong and Aldrin made their historic trip. Young didnt fly again until 1972 when he commanded Apollo 16 and achieved the fifth human lunar landing in history. He walked on the Moon (becoming the ninth person to do so) and drove a lunar buggy across its surface. The Shuttle Years The first flight of the space shuttle Columbia required a special pair of astronauts: experienced pilots and trained space fliers. The agency chose John Young to command the maiden flight of the orbiter (which had never been flown to space with people aboard) and Robert Crippen as the pilot. They roared off the pad on April 12, 1981. The mission was the first manned one to use solid-fuel rockets, and its objectives were to get to orbit safely, orbit Earth, and then return to a safe landing on Earth, as an airplane does. Young and Crippens first flight was a success and made famous in an IMAX movie called Hail Columbia. True to his heritage as a test pilot, Young descended from the cockpit after landing and did a walk-around of the orbiter, pumping his fist in the air and inspecting the craft. His laconic responses during the post-flight press briefing were true to his nature as an engineering and pilot. One of his most-quoted lines answers was to a question about ejecting from the shuttle if there were problems. He simply said, You just pull the little handle. After the successful first flight of the space shuttle, Young commanded only one other mission- STS-9 again on Columbia. It carried the Spacelab to orbit, and on that mission, Young stepped into history as the first person to fly into space six times. He was supposed to fly again in 1986, which would have given him another space flight record, but the Challenger explosion delayed the NASA flight schedule for more than two years. In the aftermath of that tragedy, Young was very critical of NASA management for its approach to astronaut safety. He was removed from flight duty and assigned a desk job at NASA, serving in executive positions for the rest of his tenure. He never flew again, after logging more than 15,000 hours of training and preparations for nearly a dozen missions for the agency. After NASA John Young worked for NASA for 42 years, retiring in 2004. He had already retired from the Navy with the rank of captain years earlier. Yet, he remained active in NASA affairs, attending meetings and briefings at the Johnson Space Flight Center in Houston. He made occasional public appearances to celebrate important milestones in NASA history and also made appearances at specific space gatherings and a few educators meetings but otherwise remained largely out of the public eye until his death. John Young Clears the Tower for the Final Time Astronaut John W. Young died from complications of pneumonia on January 5, 2018. In his lifetime, he flew more than 15,275 hours in all kinds of aircraft, and nearly 900 hours in space. He earned many awards for his work, including the Navy Distinguished Service Medal with Gold Star, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters, and NASA Exceptional Service Medal. He is a fixture in several aviation and astronaut halls of fame, has a school and planetarium named for him, and received Aviation Weeks Philip J. Klass award in 1998. John W. Youngs fame extends well beyond his flight time to books and movies. He will always be remembered for his integral role in space exploration history.

Monday, March 2, 2020

How to Write a Perfect Retail Resume (Examples Included)

How to Write a Perfect Retail Resume (Examples Included) Retail might not be the most glamorous career around- complete with aching feet and a perma-smile that hides your suspicion that the customer is not always right- but if you’ve ever been on those front lines, you know how essential your services are. We’re a society of consumers, and retail professionals are the ones who keep that cycle going. If you’re an experienced retail sales associate or someone just starting out, we’ve got you covered. We at TheJobNetwork have put together a guide accompanied by resume templates on creating the perfect retail resume. Let’s look at three different retail professionals: One entry level, one seeking seasonal retail employment, and an experienced sales associate looking to become a manager.1.Entry Level  Retail Sales Associate Resume2.Seasonal Retail Sales Resume3.Retail Sales Manager ResumeFirst up: Bella, who’s seeking her first job in the retail world.Download This Resume in MS WordBella opts for a fu nctional, or skills-based resume, because she doesn’t have a lot of retail-specific experience to showcase (yet). So she puts her best qualities and her skills up front, to underline her summary statement: that she’s looking to take the skills and work ethic she already has and turn that into a retail job/career. She also presents herself as a recent grad, which can let the reader know up front that she probably doesn’t have years and years of experience behind her. Bella prioritizes her strongest skills (her responsibility/dependability, her ability to work with the public, and her familiarity with handling transactions), then her awards/certifications (which emphasize her reliability and her professional successes), then her experience, and finally, her education.Bella’s experience is mostly in food service, and includes part-time jobs. She includes the part-time jobs because those helped develop skills she listed above, like customer service and an out going personality. Bella’s high school experience is important to note, because she has completed her diploma, but unless her school experience is directly relevant to the job she’s applying for (in this case it’s not), she wisely just lists the school and the diploma.Let’s look at Marty, who has more experience, but is seeking a seasonal retail position (back-to-school, holiday season, etc.) rather than a full-time gig.Download This Resume in MS WordMarty puts his cards on the table up front: he’s a student, he has retail experience, and he’s not looking to put a ring on it- he just wants to find a gig for the upcoming holiday season. He opens with a detailed summary, with a brief statement and then a handful of bullets outlining his deal. An important point in his bullets: that he’s available to work a variety of shifts, which is key for a store looking to hire someone to come in and get their hands dirty even when others are at hom e eating leftover turkey.Next, he lists his experience, to show that he’s a pro at the seasonal holiday game. He may have other jobs along the way, but he’s not looking for a career here- he focuses on the seasonal retail experience he already has, so that the reader doesn’t have to cut through a bunch of information that isn’t necessarily relevant to the immediate goal of hiring for a brief period.Our final retail resume-writer is Erica, who’s got a lot of retail associate experience behind her, but wants to jump up a level in the store management food chain.Download This Resume in MS WordErica’s resume shows an accomplished retail professional. But what she needs, if she wants to apply for higher-level retail jobs and not associate-level jobs, is to show that she has demonstrated leadership. Thus, the first skill she lists is rallying team members (check) to increase sales (check-plus) in her experience. The remainder of her skill bullets are used to show the breadth of her retail experience. This format, the skills-based resume, is helpful for someone like Erica, who wants to emphasize that she has what it takes to step into a bigger role, not just the kind of job she’s already had. Even though she’s not changing career paths, she’s trying to change up her career within that path, and this format can be useful when you want to show what you can be, in addition to what you’ve already done.Erica also provides as much detail as possible, without crowding her resume. The overall sales of her current store, with some concrete stats on how she’s helped increase sales, are very impressive, and don’t take up much space in the resume. Erica is letting results do the talking for her. An interview is a great chance to provide more context than resume bullets allow, but whenever you have specific numbers and information you can include, that will likely catch the attention of the reader and help get you into the next round. Erica also goes out of her way to include various awards, which show she’s been a superstar at her current job. Overall, the picture here is of someone who has been successful, and has the drive to keep going and improving sales.