The Incas essays

The Incas essays The Incas were South American Indian people who ruled one of the largest and richest empires in the Americas. The capital of the Incas was centered in Cusco, Peru. The Inca empire was conquered by Spanish forces soon after their arrival in 1532. The Inca were skilled in engineering and in crafts. They built a network of roads linking distant provinces of the empire, and their architecture is known for its great size and skillful construction. Overall Incas were very highly skilled people or professionals at heart. The Incas way of life was not like the Northern Americans way of life. The Incas may have been skilled in craftworks but they were not the most literate people around. They did not develop a writing system so until after the Spanish conquered them there were no written records about them. The Incas survived off of their farms. They did not have plows pulled by animals, in turn they had irrigation systems of their own they built. The main crops of the Inca were corn, potatoes, and oca. They used the corn to make chich, a type of beer. There were many different types of clothing styles for the Incas, it basically depended on what region you lived in. Some of the outfits consist of: alpacas, and llamas made of wool, cotton clothing, fine cloth and jewelry. Another different way of life of the Inca was that they lived in extended-families. The Incas back then were just like people now a days in ways too. Point being that they were determined by social rank. Religion back then was another way they were similar to todays society. They believed that their most important God, Viracocha created them. The Inca had no system of money. They normally would trade things to pay people, although the government controlled that. Other ways to get around other than their network of roads consisted of things such as suspension bridges that still are visible today. The government of the Inca were ruled b...

Vis-à-vis Has More Than One Use

Visvis Has More Than One Use Visvis Has More Than One Use Visvis Has More Than One Use By Maeve Maddox A French borrowing, visvis [VEEZ-uh-VEE] means literally, â€Å"face to face.† Visvis as a noun One meaning of visvis is â€Å"a political or diplomatic counterpart.† For example, a commenter in a Thai political forum refers to the US president as â€Å"Putin’s vis-a-vis in the White House.† Other meanings for visvis as a noun include â€Å"dancing partner,† â€Å"person seated opposite,† â€Å"conversational partner,† etc. Here are examples: No, replied  his vis-a-vis, with a falling inflection The man looked suspicious, and exchanged glances with  his vis-a-vis: both were middle-aged, and of the very middle class. She did not wish to  dance; she was faint- she had no  vis-a-vis. As a noun, visvis can also mean meeting, interview, or rendezvous: Thus, a  suitor  having a discreet  vis-a-vis with  his beloved would cautiously ascertain her fathers whereabouts Visvis as an adverb The literal meaning is implicit in the use of visvis as an adverb, like this example from a movie site: All the star teams dancing efforts are honeys. Miss Rogers in this one goes beyond the role of dancing vis-a-vis for Astaire and emerges as a corking stepper in her own right. Note: This quotation uses for, but to and with are more common when the adverb takes a preposition: â€Å"dancing vis-a-vis to Astaire,† â€Å"seated vis-a-vis with her uncle.† Here are two more examples of adverbial use: Dancing vis-a-vis  they again sidestepped and each position was repeated five or six times. The design represents two females,  seated, vis-a-vis, upon chairs without  backs. Visvis as an adjective In cruising the Web for examples to use in this post, I came upon a Mercedes advertisement for the Ares Atelier, S Class XXL. The description boasts â€Å"Vis-a-vis first class seats.† These are seats arranged so that passengers face one another. Visvis in corporate-speak Visvis is frequently met in writing about government and business, in which the term is used to mean regarding, concerning, relating to, compared with, with respect to, or re. Here are examples of this usage: History of US policy vis-a-vis Cuba inconsistent at best That’s one of the reasons the President made the decision he made vis-a-vis US companies in the telecommunications area. Moscow has visibly hardened its stance vis-a-vis the West even as President Vladimir Putin arrived in Milan late Thursday for the ASEM summit With the rise of Spender and Whitlam as dominant influences in the early 1950s, Australia’s policy became marked by an emphasis on the distinct nature of moral human rights  vis-a-vis  legal human rights. Note: The OED, Merriam-Webster, and The Chicago Manual of Style all show visvis with the accent, but most of the examples I found were written without an accent. The expression is not italicized. The use of visvis to mean â€Å"with respect to† seems to me to be an unnecessary obfuscation and waste of the â€Å"face-to-face† sense. Writers who desire to decorate their writing with a French expression that means â€Å"with regard to† or â€Å"in respect of,† can always fall back on apropos. 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 Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Writing a Reference Letter (With Examples)In Search of a 4-Dot Ellipsis20 Clipped Forms and Their Place (If Any) in Formal Writing

Economic history Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic history - Essay Example The growth of the United States economy in the period from 1790 to 1860 can be seen in terms of an expansion and a growing complexity (Suranovic, 1997). The local market relations that existed before canals and railroads were personally run on trade and a mixture of cash and barter. With the growth of the South’s cotton industry in the period after 1815, the country branched out and developed an interregional trade system that was structured around a growing number of banks and currency (Whitman, F.K., 2000, p. 535). Between 1807 and 1815, U.S. foreign trade was severely disrupted by Jefferson’s trade embargo, subsequent non-importation measures, and the War of 1812. These disruptions are commonly believed to have spurred early U.S. industrialization (Zuckerman, 2006). Because of the aforementioned disruptions, especially the embargo, domestic industry was encouraged and emerging local industries were protected from import competition by preventing foreign manufactured goods from reaching the U.S. market (Davis, J.H., 2003, p. 228). Due to the resulting trend of interregional trade, new manufacturing firms were established and existing domestic producers rapidly expanded output to replace previously imported goods (Zuckerman, 2006). Interregional trading also led to the American economy becoming industrialized, first in the Northeast, in order for inter-region commerce to become more convenient (Herbst, 1997). New inventions and capital investment led to the creation of new industries and economic growth. As transportation improved, new markets continuously opened. The steamboat made river traffic faster and cheaper, but development of railroads had an even greater effect, opening up vast stretches of new territory for development. Furthermore, the United States became an economic power with the dramatic expansion of domestic markets, as the set of regional

Situational Leadership Theory and Organizational Leadership Research Paper

Situational Leadership Theory and Organizational Leadership - Research Paper Example Leadership is the process of the influence a leader instils on others to achieve an objective and make an organization productive. Situation leadership theory is useful and relevant in developing an effective leadership culture. Fiedler contingency model, House and Mitchell’s Path-goal theory, and Hersey-Blanchard situational leadership are three situational leadership theories that are effective in management. In accordance to Fielder, situational leadership, especially in a high stress situation is largely mismatched by the leader’s inability to use his intellectual resources to solve the problem or ease the stress in organization. The use of intelligence as opposed to criticism or stress is vital in the organization (Fiedler, 1992). The focus on the effective tasks structuring and directing both the white collar and blue collar employees, enhancing relationships between leaders and subordinates in times of stress and finally the focus on the leader’s power, or the positive attributes of the leadership style to reduce stress in organizations undergoing difficult situations. In relation to the strengths of the model, it focuses on a single leadership style, which incorporates all leadership styles possible depending with the situation. The main emphasis is not on the alteration of the style of leadership, but rather the use of the key advantages of the leadership style a manager or leader is used to, in issuing direction and motivating the subordinates to achieve a set task or goal. The model also emphasizes that if a certain trait about the leadership style that suits the subordinates, will lead to self-motivation. As such, instead of concentrating on the stressfulness of the situation, using one’s strengths to increase their own strengths would marginally reduce the stressful nature of the situation. However, one of the key weaknesses of the model is that it lacks to acknowledge that some of the leaders have low

The Application of Operant Conditioning Techniques in a Secondary Classroom Essay Example for Free

The Application of Operant Conditioning Techniques in a Secondary Classroom Essay The Application Of Operant Conditioning Techniques In A Secondary Classroom Background A plethora of Studies have reported the effectiveness of operant conditioning techniques in altering the behavior of children in a number of different situations. There has been many studies in which teacher-supplied consequences have had effects on preschool and elementary school children in a regular classroom, but almost none in the secondary schooling classrooms. The results of these studies were that in smaller classrooms, students’ behavior improved with consequences given by the teacher. McAllister, Stachowiak, Baer, and Conderman now take a look at the effects of these consequences on a larger scale. This study sought to take an entire class of secondary school students and apply teacher-supplied consequences for misbehavior to discover if the behavior of the students improved. Methods The subjects consisted of 51 students ranging in age from 16-19 years, who all had similar I. Q. s and economic backgrounds. The experimental group consisted of 25 students (12 boys and 13 girls), Where as the control group consisted of 26 students (13 boys and 13 girls). Also, The experimental class was 70 minutes long and the control class was 60 minutes long. The teacher was a 23-year-old female who held a bachelors degree in education. She had one year’s experience in teaching secondary level English. The basic design of the experiment was a pretest-posttest control group design combined with the use of a multiple baseline technique in the experimental class. The behaviors chosen to be targeted were Inappropriate talking and turning around due to the fact that these behaviors had a high rate of occurrence. Inappropriate talking was classified as any vocal behavior portrayed by a student without the teacher’s permission. Also, any vocal behavior required that the student raise his or her hand before speaking, unless engaged in a group discussion. Inappropriate turning around was classified as any turning-around behavior in which the student turned more than 90 degrees away from the front of the room. An exception to this was when a student was required to turn around to distribute papers to their classmates as directed by the teacher. The observations were recorded for the experimental class using a sequentially numbered, 70-box table for each behavior. The observations of the control class were recorded using a similar, 60-box table. If either of the target behaviors occurred during any minute interval of time, it was recorded by placing a check mark in the corresponding box for that interval. Any further occurrences of the target behavior during the same time interval were not recorded. Thus, each time interval represented whether or not the behavior had occurred during the time interval opposed to the number of occurrences. A daily quantified measurement of each behavior was obtained by dividing the number of checked time intervals by the total number of intervals in that class period, which gave us a percentage of intervals in which the behavior occurred at least once. The baseline condition lasted for 28 days in which the teacher was asked to behave in her usual manner. The Average reliability for talking behavior was 90. 49% in the experimental class, and 89. 49% in the control class. Average reliability for turning behavior was 94. 27% in the experimental class and 90. 98 in the control class. Also, two aspects of the teacher’s behavior were recorded. The average reliability for teacher reprimand behavior was 92. 78% in the experimental class and 94. 84% in the control class. Average reliability for teacher praise behavior was 98. 85% in the experimental class and 97. 65% in the control class. The first experimental condition began in the experimental class on the 28th day. The teacher was to attempt to disapprove of all instances of inappropriate talking behavior whenever they occurred in a direct and verbal manner. The teacher was also asked not to threaten students with or apply other consequences such as keeping them after class or sending them to the office. In addition to these guidelines, the teacher was also asked to praise the entire class with remarks like â€Å"thank you for being so cooperative today†. The second experimental condition took place after the first one had been in effect in the experimental class for 26 days and had markedly reduced talking behavior. In this condition, the contingent social consequences for talking behavior were continued as well as implementing the same system of consequences for turning behavior. Results Inappropriate talking behavior during the baseline condition in the experimental class and the control class yielded similar results (25. 3% in the experimental class, and 23. 81% in the control class). On day 28 when the first experimental condition was implemented, inappropriate talking behavior immediately reduced. This decrease continued as time went on and finally stabilized at a level below 5%. At the same time, the control class continued to portray its previous level of inappropriate talking behavior. Inappropriate turning behavior during the baseline condition in the experimental class and control class was slowly increasing (15. 13% in the experimental class, and 14. 45% in the control class). On day 54 when the second experimental condition was implemented, the inappropriate turning behavior also began to decrease. This behavior continued to decrease during the remaining days of the study. The number of times the teacher reprimanded students for inappropriate behavior during the baseline period were 25. 76% in the experimental class and 22. 23% in the control class. During the first experimental condition, the teacher disapproved an average of 93. 33% of inappropriate talking behavior. During the second experimental condition, the teacher disapproved an average of 95. 0 % of inappropriate turning behavior. Conclusions The results clearly portray that by the teacher’s actions of praise and disapproval, she was able to reduce the amount of inappropriate talking behavior as well as the amount of inappropriate turning behavior. In reprimanding the students in a more direct manner, using names and calling the students out for misbehaving, the teacher was able to make a deeper impact on the student for his or her actions. Also, in taking away consequences such as staying after class, the teacher removed fear from the tudents and instead implemented proper behavior. The teacher also used praise to decrease the amount of inappropriate behavior of her students. She would say things like â€Å"what a great class today† or â€Å"you guys were on your best behavior today† to make the students feel good about being on their best behavior.

Moral Conflicts in Crime and Punishment Essay -- Crime Punishment Essa

Moral Conflicts in Fydor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment  Ã‚   Crime and Punishment by Fydor Dostoyevsky has been hailed as the greatest literary work in the Western hemisphere. Crime and Punishment was written in pre-Communist Russia under the Tsar. Dostoyevsky's writing shows insight into the human mind that is at once frightening and frighteningly real. His main character, around who all other characters are introduced, is Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov. Raskolnikov murders an old pawnbroker woman for seemingly no reason at all. His sister and mother move to St. Petersburg following his sister's engagement to a man whom Raskolnikov was extremely displeased. Raskolnikov undergoes severe mental trauma, and falls ill after the killing. The reader isn't sure why Raskolnikov killed the woman, indeed it appears that Raskolnikov didn't know himself. He is surrounded by friends and his family and draws in other characters to him during his illness. He befriends a woman, Sofya Seymonavitch, who prostitutes herself to support her mother and her drunken father. As the police come closer onto his trail Raskolnikov faces serious threats to his sister from her two suitors, one of which tries to rape her and kills himself after he finds that he can't bring himself to. At the end Raskolnikov gives himself up, and gives his family into the care of his friend Rauzumihin, who marries Raskolnikov's sister Douina. Dostoyevsky exposes the darkest sides of human nature in with characters that are completely human. The tale Dostoyevsky weaves is a murder mystery, with the murderer and all the facts of the murder known in the very first pages of the book. How then can it be a murder mystery? The mystery is finding out why Raskolnikov comm... ...and then gives all of his money in the world to Marmeledov's family after his death? Who befriends and supports Sofya? Who time and time again defends his sisters honor and safety? Can the reader call this man murderer, shun him, and cast him out, make him the bad guy? Or must the reader be forced to see the suffering Raskolnikov is inflicting upon himself, the acceptance that what he did was evil, his urge to confess to the world what he had done. Must the reader in the end admit that this horrible criminal is human? That Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov was neither brute nor hero, but one of us? Dostoyevsky leaves the reader who was looking to divide the characters with the sword of moral right and wrong with the sword pointing directly at himself. Works Cited: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Crime and Punishment. Trans. Constance Garnett. New York: Modern Library, 1950.

Review of Home security Systems

Chapter 1IntroductionSecurity is one of the major issue in the present universe. Robbery, offense and larceny are the chief important causes that make security as an issue. Smart security system includes easiness of monitoring and observing the presence of the human utilizing different type of detectors like IR, PIR detector etc. Earlier security systems were personally monitored by security guards. Scope of this type of system was reduced due to unprofessional security guards. Therefore to get the better of this, many research workers have been done in the country of the place security to run into occupant’s convenience and safety. Conventional security systems were introduced which used cameras, burglar dismay. Main drawback of this system was the big power ingestion by cameras as they continuously enter the events traveling around it [ 1 ] . This system was costlier. To supply excess bed of security and to get the better of the disadvantage of conventional security system, machine-controlled security systems were introduced. Many researches have been done in the field of development and execution of automated security system. Automated security system uses different types of detector to observe the human presence and gesture. IR and PIR detectors are the most widely used detectors. Advantage of this system was low cost and easiness of observing the interloper presence. Home security system becomes as an of import thing, specially when we are populating in a topographic point where there is a possibility of high-crime rate. It is better to hold good security system alternatively of seting our lives into a hazard. Three chief constituents that are to be considered in put ining a place security system are detector, dismay and control unit. Sensor is the constituent that monitor the country continuously. Once it detects any motion, it will do the dismay to trip. Control unit helps the dismay to do sound so that if there is an invasion activity takes topographic point it could be identified. Home security system can be operated to run on electrical system or on batteries.Installing an battery operated place security system is easy but are less effectual compared to those system that run on electricity. Less functionality can be seen in battery operated system. There are many different types of dismay system. For smaller places self contained place security systems are easy to put in but for big houses or office infinite, place security system holding separate constituents leads to efficient security system compared to self contained place security system. 1.1 Problem Designation Main and of import consideration in the bing modern places is the security system. Earlier the place security systems were expensive and were really difficult to supervise. In order to get the better of the drawbacks of the earlier conventional security systems and to carry through the security concerns of the house proprietors, an efficient and cost effectual security systems were introduced. One of the chief job in the bing security system is the architecture and execution cost. Hence this undertaking aims at security system for places that introduces three different degrees of security and an notification signal via short directing message ( SMS ) will be achieved if any instance of security breach. 1.2Why do we Need Home Security System? Now-a-days with the emerging tendencies in the universe, condemnable activities like larceny, robbery has besides been increased. Homes without security systems will be the chief marks for the stealers. Homes equipped with the well developed security system will hold less opportunity of being robbed. Security system enables our place to be safe at any clip. As security system uses different constituents, these constituents will be monitored by the several security centre. Hence there will be decrease in the offense rates.Home security system is needed to forestall burglaries and place invasions. Installing a security system in places provides a piece of head that our household is under protection. Alarm systems will assist to hedge the place invasions. It is non possible to supervise the place continuously by manual hence this sytem will gives added protection when the place proprietors are off. security system will besides assist in protecting the place from fire. Early sensing of t he state of affairss by the monitoring station will assist in cut downing the harm to the home.Security is needed because of the undermentioned groundsTo protect the place and household from interlopers.To protect place from fires.To protect valuable things from being stolen.Provides medical aid if in instance of any exigency.Secured signifier of proctor can be achieved through radio signalling device.1.3 Types There are many different types of security system. Security systems are classified into two major classs viz. conventional and automated security system. Another categorization includes monitored and unmonitored security system. 1.3.1 Monitored security system: This is one of the most normally used security system. In this type of security system centre, place will be straight connected to security centre and this centre will supervise the position of the place continuously. Security centre will be active merely when any one of the constituents or supervising devices in the place are triggered. System includes dismay system that alerts call centre and near by constabulary station. In many of the systems, watchful causes the security centre to do an automatic phone call, text message, e-mail etc to the house proprietor or to the close by help-line centre for the immediate deliverance. BenefitsSystem includes 24/7 monitoring that ensures that the place is under changeless monitoring.Video surveillance system can besides be included to increase the security of the place.Video survelliance system is most effectual in monitoring and observing the interlopers, belongings tresspassers.As cameras are used in this type of system, it can besides be used as an grounds against an interloper.1.3.1.2 Types of monitoring Monitored place security system uses three different type of supervising methods they are ( a ) Monitoring utilizing land line: This is specially designed for families that have landline. Because of the ground that the security system control panel is connected to phone line, land line is used as monitoring device. ( B ) Internet/wireless monitoring: This system is used in places that don’t have landline. System makes usage of cyberspace or broadband connexion to direct watchful signal to security centre via short directing message or electronic mail. ( degree Celsius ) Two-way voice monitoring: This is one of the particular type of monitoring device that is used in supervising type of security system. One of the particular characteristic of this system is that it allows the individual inside the place to straight pass on with the individual in the security centre in instance of any exigency for immediate deliverance. 1.3.2 Unmonitored security system This is the another categorization of place security system which sets off a Siren inside and outside the place. Compared to monitored place security system, this system will be cheaper as it does non include more constituents for monitoring. Unmonitored security systems can besides utilize brassy visible radiations. If there is any invasion activity taking topographic point in the place, so automatically these brassy visible radiations will glow. Due to that high strength light breathing from the peculiar topographic point, the neighbors can come to cognize that there is any exigency. BenefitsNo monitoring fees.As loud Siren will be used this will deflect and scares the intruder/burglars.Cheaper as less monitoring constituents are used.DisadvantageIf the neighbor does non hear the Sirens so they can’t describe it to the close by constabulary station.1.4Overview of the proposed system Figure 1.4 Overview of the Proposed System Overview of the proposed smart security system for places is as shown in figure above. The undertaking is aimed at developing a smart security system for places. Undertaking has been planned to include three-tier security system. Three different degrees of security is used in this undertaking. Security system is designed and developed to supervise the place utilizing different type of detectors. Proposed system uses detectors like Finger-print detector, IR detector, PIR detector at different degrees and besides makes usage of Image treating tool in face acknowledgment procedure. At the first degree of security, finger-print detector is used for hallmark to let the individual into the place. When the person/intruder comes to the door, his/her finger print will be checked. If the finger print lucifers so the individual will be allowed to come in into the following degree of security procedure. At the 2nd degree of security, entry of the individual into the place will be detected utilizing IR detector. This detector will feel certain features of the milieus by either breathing or observing the infrared radiation that emits from the human organic structure. Hence the human presence will be detected at this phase. PIR detector is an gesture detection detector that detects the human gesture utilizing infrared radiation breathing from the human organic structure. As a individual passes in forepart of the detector, temperature at that point which is under detectors field of observation will alter. This alteration in temperature detects the human gesture. Finally at the 3rd degree, image of the individual will be captured. Here some images of the individuals belonging to the place will be pre-stored. Then the captured image is compared is compared with the pre-stored database, if the databases does non fit so an watchful signal will be generated. Alert signal includes doorbell and GSM engineering. If the image does non fit so at that clip doorbell will get down beeping and an short sending message will be sent to the authorised figure as an watchful signal utilizing GSM engineering. The full undertaking is designed and developed utilizing constituents like Finger-print detector, IR detector, PIR detector, accountant unit, consecutive port, webcam, doorbell, GSM etc. One of the characteristics of this designed place security system is that an Image processing tool is used in combination with the embedded system to plan three-level smart security system for places. Face acknowledgment is used as an 3rd degree of security. This method includes the face acknowledgment which is one of the important and of import process in face acknowledgment method. In this undertaking, cross correlativity attack is used. This is one of the basic statistical attack to image regristration. cross correlativity is one of the standard tool for measuring the similarity between two images. Main ground for choosing the cross correlativity attack in this undertaking is due to its advantages. First advantage is that attack is simple to calculate. Second is the calculation of cross correlativity can be achieved utilizing fourier methods. One more advantage is that cross correlativity method is independent of scaling and interlingual renditions in the strength. 1.5 Advantages The advantages of place security system are:Detects offenses, protects ownerships from larcenies.As the system includes three different degrees of security, there will be less opportunity of being theft as dismay sound will be generated that alerts the neighbors.There will be increase in the place resale value during sale in the market.

China’s Relations with African Countries: Strategic Perspective (Case of Madagascar) Essay

Year 1st Semester Course: MEDIA IN CHINA [pic] TOPIC: CHINA’S RELATIONS WITH AFRICAN COUNTRIES: STRATEGIC PERSPECTIVE (CASE OF MADAGASCAR) STU. NAME: RANDRIANASOLO Fenolanto Salome STU. NO. CLASS SCHOOL LECTUERER: PROFESSOR LUO QING GRADE: Master CHINA’S RELATIONS WITH AFRICAN COUNTRIES: STRATEGIC PERSPECTIVE (CASE OF MADAGASCAR) INTRODUCTION In recent decades, while China can ignore other countries, other countries cannot ignore China. It is beginning to play an increasingly important role in many areas such as economics, political, and socio-cultural. This is a great new rising power at the beginning of the 21st century. This explosive growth of China has generated significant debates among policymakers, scholars and business leaders on a number of levels. China is now building relationships in several countries especially in Africa. There have been a number of contacts between China and African states in recent decades. This paper seeks to understand this recent shift in China’s relation with African countries such as Madagascar. Historical Background In 1955: 29 African and Asian states create the â€Å"Third world† to strengthen its base in Africa and Asia; Since 1960s: . The Chinese leader Mao supported the African independences. China supports the ambassadors of the emerging countries against Western interference in their internal affairs at the United Nations. In 1978: Deng Xiaoping decided to open the Chinese economy by establishing a new form of socialism; Since the 1990: African economies have opened up for the Asian powers including China; China becomes the spokesperson for developing countries within the WTO (world trade organization) Partnership China-Madagascar: China has become increasingly active on the African continent in recent years and this activity has drawn the attention of scholars and journalists, among others. Diplomatic Relations: Madagascar and China established diplomatic relations November 6, 1972 and bilateral relations between the two countries continue to consolidate, develop and to strengthen since. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1972, their relationship and cooperation in the economic, commercial and various grow without ceasing. In recent years, the leaders of both countries attach great importance the development of relations and exchanges of high-level increase, which gives great impetus to the rapid development of bilateral relations of friendship and Malagasy cooperation. The Minister of Foreign Affairs established the first diplomatic relations between China and Madagascar during the transition (1972-1975); The celebration of the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relationship between China and Madagascar held on 6th November 2012. Several high Malagasy personalities visited China since the 1990s such as the President of the Republic Albert ZAFY in 1994; Madagascar President Marc RAVALOMANANA arrived in Beijing in 2008. During the current transitional period, Ambassador of China Shen Yongxiang has presented his credentials to the Head of State Andrinirina RAJOELINA. Several high Chinese leaders such as the President of the National People’s Congress Chen Muhua; the Second Prime Minister Jiang Chungun and the Vice President of the Republic Hu Jintao was visited Madagascar. Economic Relations: If China’s economic weight is felt in African countries, in particular Madagascar by its commercial dynamism, the country begins to be an investor not negligible. Since 2005, the partnership agreements between Madagascar and China have continued to increase. For example, the establishment of a cement factory, the construction of a large 5 star hotel by a Chinese group, the future construction of a hospital. And even well before the year 2005, investment in China has already had its place in the economy, be it in the industry â€Å"trade†. China is the largest partner of Madagascar in terms of imports; 95% of products from Madagascar benefit from the Chinese treatment tariff exemption; The agreement of economic and technical cooperation between China and Madagascar was signed in 2006. Several Chinese companies investing in Madagascar in the infrastructure, energy, the exploitation of oil and raw materials. Bilateral cooperation in the economic and commercial widens constantly rapidly increasing bilateral trade, investment activates the  day and exchanges in cultural, educational and human intensify. The consultations between the two countries in international affairs reinforce more. Cultural Relation: During 40 years of partnership, China has provided more than 350 scholarships and has trained more than 860 government officials and journalist. CONFUCIUS Institutes were established in three provinces of the Big Island. Impact and perspective: The Chinese presence opens a new perspective for developing countries and it presents many more choices in terms of policy and developing model. It allows exploitation of natural resources with higher prices of raw materials and facilitates access to international aid. It promotes the diversification of investment, a new spirit based on the expression win-win more attractive. China’s growth is pushing up global demand and therefore  the price of commodities exported by African countries. In addition, China has become the main partner of several African countries: it provides cheaper manufactured goods and reduces their dependence on their ways traditional trading partners. In the case of Madagascar, the local market is still underdeveloped in that 20% of the population live in urban areas and in this context, the abundance of Chinese products (food, textiles, toys, shoes, appliances, †¦ Markets Local penalizes local industries to the extent that the price of Chinese products is well below the cost of local industries and supply is abundant. The competitiveness of local industries is low compared to the value of a product Chinese including textiles and food products. In the Capital Antananarivo, expansion and Chinese domination can be analyzed via the rapid development of a shopping center Behoririka (name of district) in the middle Capital in the image of Chinatown. Added to this is the development of restorations. However, these imports improve the well-being of people in that price consumer goods from China are within the powers of purchases population. The development of these businesses creates jobs but the salary level remains insufficient compared to the level of wages in the private sector in Madagascar. Chinese competition also exerts downward pressure on the cost of investment. Chinese equipment (transport, agriculture) is very cheap an alternative to higher quality goods. However, the lifetime of the equipment is not long compared to the same type of equipment from Europe. Chinese growth will boost African exports but will also increase volatility. China opened its market by treating preferential tariff least developed countries, but this has not yet been impacted on African exports. In the case of Madagascar, export to the China is still insufficient compared to the values of imports and has been a decade. This increases the trade deficit Malagasy and may undermine the external reserves position of the Central Bank of Madagascar. If Europe the main export destination from Madagascar, China still relatively low and represents 2. 2%. In terms of trade between China and Madagascar, relationships become increasingly important during the last decade. Current trends regional trade showed a significant increase and the value of continuous imports from China, and a modest increase in export exports Madagascar to China. Changes in imports and exports of Madagascar with China do not evolve at the same rate, resulting in an imbalance of trade. The exchanges are obviously in favor of China. CONCLUSION In short cooperation with China is mutually beneficial and China has promoted the cultural development in Madagascar. Projects underway in Madagascar, which involve Chinese aid, are also very visible. In terms of foreign direct investment, the weight of Chinese investors is not negligible and is around 10%. The majority of Chinese capital from Hong Kong. Chinese companies are among the providers of jobs in Madagascar. If the participation of France in the capital is very dominant in Madagascar, China’s participation has increased by 0. 8% to 10. 9% over the same period and has a negative influence on the situation in France. This attests to the strengthening of the position China and offset somewhat the impact of French colonization of the current situation. The friendly cooperation in the field of education, health and trade, have borne remarkable fruit. We think that with the principle of mutual benefit, cooperation between China and Madagascar will have a bright future. REFERENCES †¢ http://www. bbc. co. uk/news/world-africa-13864364 †¢ http://www. irinnews. org/Madagascar †¢ http://www. state. gov/p/af/ci/ma/ †¢ file:///F:/feed%20back%20de%2040%20ans. htm †¢ file:///F:/CCTV%20mirrroir%20d%20afrik%20frappe%20chinoise. htm file:///F:/mada%20chine%202. htm †¢ http://www. xinhuanet. com/english/home. htm †¢ Perspectives economiques en Afrique. OCDE. 2006 †¢ Plan cadre des Nations Unies pour l’assistance au developpement (UNDAF) Madagascar 2008-2011. Systeme des Nations Unies. Juin 2007 †¢ Rapport National sur le Developpement Humain Madagascar 2006 : Le s technologies de l’information et de la communication et developpement humain. PNUD. Avril 2007 †¢ Les echanges entre la Chine et L’Afrique : Situation actuelle, perspectives et sources pour l’analyse , Jean Raphael Chaponniere, STATECO N °100, 2006.

Michel Foucault Biography and Intellectual History

Michel Foucault Biography and Intellectual History Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was a French social theorist, philosopher, historian, and public intellectual who was politically and intellectually active until his death. He is remembered for his method of using historical research to illuminate changes in discourse over time, and the evolving relationships between discourse, knowledge, institutions, and power. Foucault’s work inspired sociologists in subfields including sociology of knowledge; gender, sexuality and queer theory; critical theory;  Ã‚  deviance and crime; and the sociology of education. His most well-known works include Discipline and Punish, The History of Sexuality, and The Archaeology of Knowledge. Early Life Paul-Michel Foucault was born to an upper-middle-class family in Poitiers, France in 1926. His father was a surgeon, and his mother, the daughter of a surgeon. Foucault attended Lycà ©e Henri-IV, one of the most competitive and demanding high schools in Paris. He recounted later in life a troubled relationship with his father, who bullied him for being â€Å"delinquent.† In 1948 he attempted suicide for the first time and was placed in a psychiatric hospital for a period. Both of these experiences seem tied to his homosexuality, as his psychiatrist believed his suicide attempt was motivated by his marginalized status in society. Both also seem to have shaped his intellectual development and focus on the discursive framing of deviance, sexuality, and madness. Intellectual and Political Development Following high school Foucault was admitted in 1946 to the École Normale Supà ©rieure (ENS), an elite secondary school in Paris founded to train and create French intellectual, political, and scientific leaders. Foucault studied with Jean Hyppolite, an existentialist expert on Hegel and Marx who firmly believed that philosophy should be developed through a study of history; and, with Louis Althusser, whose structuralist theory left a strong mark on sociology and was greatly influential to Foucault. At ENS Foucault read widely in philosophy, studying the works of Hegel, Marx, Kant, Husserl, Heidegger, and Gaston Bachelard. Althusser, steeped in the Marxist intellectual and political traditions, convinced his student to join the French Communist Party, but Foucaults experience of homophobia and incidences of anti-semitism within it turned him off. Foucault also rejected the class-centric focus of Marx’s theory, and never identified as a Marxist. He completed his studies at the ENS in 1951 and then began a doctorate in the philosophy of psychology. For the next several years he taught university courses in psychology while studying the works of Pavlov, Piaget, Jaspers, and Freud; and, he studied relationships between doctors and patients at Hà ´pital Sainte-Anne, where he had been a patient after his 1948 suicide attempt. During this time Foucault also read widely outside of psychology into shared interests with his long-term partner, Daniel Defert, which included works by Nietzsche, Marquis de Sade, Dostoyevsky, Kafka, and Genet. Following his first university post, he worked as a cultural diplomat at universities in Sweden and Poland while completing his doctoral thesis. Foucault completed his thesis, titled â€Å"Madness and Insanity: History of Madness in the Classical Age,† in 1961. Drawing on the work of Durkheim and Margaret Mead, in addition to all of those listed above, he argued that madness was a social construct that originated in medical institutions, that it was distinct from true mental illness, and a tool of social control and power. Published in abridged form as his first book of note in 1964, Madness and Civilization is considered a work of structuralism, strongly influenced by his teacher at ENS, Louis Althusser. This, along with his next two books, The Birth of the Clinic and The Order of Things showcase his historiographical method known as â€Å"archaeology,† which he also used in his later books, The Archaeology of Knowledge, Discipline and Punish and The History of Sexuality. From the 1960s on Foucault held a variety of lectureships and professorships at universities around the world, including the University of California-Berkeley, New York University, and the University of Vermont. During these decades Foucault became known as an engaged public intellectual and activist on behalf of social justice issues, including racism, human rights, and prison reform. He was very popular with his students, and his lectures given after his induction into the Collà ¨ge de France were considered highlights of intellectual life in Paris, and always packed. Intellectual Legacy Foucaults key intellectual contribution was  his deft ability to illustrate that institutionslike science, medicine, and the penal systemthrough the use of discourse, create subject categories for people to inhabit, and turn people into objects of scrutiny and of knowledge. Thus, he argued, those who control institutions and their discourses wield power in society, because they shape the trajectories and outcomes of peoples lives. Foucault also demonstrated in his work that the creation of subject and object categories is premised on hierarchies of power among people, and in turn, hierarchies of knowledge, whereby the knowledge of the powerful is considered legitimate and right, and that of the less powerful is considered invalid and wrong. Importantly, though, he emphasized that power is not held by individuals, but that it courses  through society, lives in institutions, and is accessible to those who control institutions and the creation of knowledge. He thus considered knowledge and power inseparable, and denoted them as one concept, knowledge/power. Foucault is one of the most widely read and frequently cited scholars in the world.

The Serial Comma is OK with Me

The Serial Comma is OK with Me The Serial Comma is OK with Me The Serial Comma is OK with Me By Maeve Maddox After a lifetime of being wishy-washy about the serial comma, I’ve reached a decision: I’m going to use it all the time. Such a momentous decision is, of course, a deeply personal matter. The pros and cons are widely, frequently, and hotly debated. Here is some information that may enable you to make the decision for yourself, if you haven’t already done so. serial comma: (also Oxford comma) n. a comma used after the penultimate item in a list of three or more items, before and or or (e.g. an Italian painter, sculptor, and architect). Penguin Writer’s Manual. Oxford comma: n. [after the preferred use of such a comma to avoid ambiguity in the house style of Oxford University Press] a comma immediately preceding the conjunction in a list of items. OED Some writers call the Oxford comma the â€Å"Harvard comma.† Heres a sentence with a serial comma: The Three Stooges are Larry, Moe, and Curly. Here it is without a serial comma: The Three Stooges are Larry, Moe and Curly. PRO serial comma The Chicago Manual of Style (2009) When a conjunction joins the last two elements in a series, a comma- known as the serial or series comma or the Oxford comma- should appear before the conjunction. Chicago strongly recommends this widely practiced usage, blessed by Fowler and other authorities 6.19 The Elements of Style (2000) In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a comma after each term except the last. The stated rule seems ambiguous to me, but the examples that follow it are clear: red, white, and blue gold, silver, or copper Gregg Reference Manual (1993) When three or more items are listed in a series, and the last item is preceded by and, or, or nor, place a comma before the conjunction as well as between the other items. CON serial comma   AP Stylebook (2009) Use commas to separate elements in a series, but do not put a comma before the conjunction in a simple series: The flag is red, white and blue. He would nominate Tom, Dick or Harry. AP does allow a comma before and when ambiguity would result without one: Put a comma before the concluding conjunction in a series, however, if an integral element of the series requires a conjunction: I had orange juice, toast, and ham and eggs for breakfast. Penguin Guide to Punctuation (1997) Note also that it is not usual in British usage to put a listing comma before the word and or or itself (though American usage regularly puts one there.) So, in British usage, it is not usual to write The Three Musketeers were Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. On the fence regarding the serial comma Penguin Writer’s Manual (2002) It is becoming more common in British English (and is usual in American English) to place a comma before the and that precedes the final item in a simple list (numbers one, two, three, and four). Fowler’s Modern English Usage (1965) In promoting the use of the serial comma, CMOS observes that the usage is â€Å"blessed by Fowler† among other authorities. However, when I looked up the topic in Fowler (1965 edition) I found this remark, which seems neutral at best: The more usual way of punctuating such an enumeration as was used as an example in the preceding section is French, German, Italian and Spanish; the commas between French and German and German and Italian take the place of ands; there is no comma after Italian because, with and, it would be otiose [having no practical function; redundant; superfluous]. There are, however, some who favour putting one there, arguing that, since it may sometimes be needed to avoid ambiguity it may as well be used always for the sake of uniformity. So there you have it. My choice is to travel the path of otiosity for the sake of uniformity. What’s yours? 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 Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Apply to, Apply for, and Apply withComma Before ButWhile vs. Whilst

Stakeholder analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Stakeholder analysis - Essay Example 4. Government –the organizations works with the local government of North Carolina. The identification of the stakeholders has been carried out based on what they do in the organization (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2006, p. 9). This information was analyzed in the following ways: collected using observation method, then sampled using systematic method and then reported utilizing the tabular form below. B). The stakeholders have been classified depending on what they bring to the table and their contribution to the whole organization. This is not more of an assumption on the first two classifications; that is the members and the management. The assessment here is that; for the management they make the decisions that involve the everyday activities of the company. For the members, these are the women who benefit from what the organization is doing at the given time (Jigna 2011, p. 12). Looking at what the organization does, one learns that the projects that they do are; physical activity buddy programs, cooking club education, fruit and vegetable purchases at a discount, increased access to produce vendors and increase access to places for physical activity. This means that the organization needs other stakeholders, such as gym owners and vendors, these are the stakeholders that are identified for the last classification of stakeholders above. Jigna D. (2011): Development of the Oxford Hills Healthy Moms Project using a social marketing process: a community-based physical activity and nutrition intervention for low-socioeconomic-status mothers in a rural area in Maine. Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina in Greensboro, Greensboro, USA retrieved on May 17, 2015. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2006). Healthy People 2010 midcourse review. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention

Why was Ancient Greek society as influential as it was, on the rest of Essay

Why was Ancient Greek society as influential as it was, on the rest of the world - Essay Example The classical Greek was mostly rocky and mountainous and colonized with many new states across the Mediterranean Sea (Ancient Greek Colonization, 2012). Greece as a society was a male dominated patriarchal society in nature where women did not had many rights. Their ranks were established in accordance of their husbands’ and fathers’. Most of the women in Athens were not entitled to reading, writing, ownership of property and right to politics. They were under the protection of their male counterparts, fathers and relatives. As we see in many states today those women have not been entitled to many rights, the influence seems to come from ancient Greece. The Greek society was actually divided between two types i.e. Citizens and Slaves. Citizens enjoyed all rights while slaves did not have right to property or families of their own while citizenship was only entitled to males of the city states who had freeborn parents (Ancient Greece and Rome, 2012). The Greeks has great influence on the intellectual history. They not only produced many philosophers but invented alphabets that led the foundations of modern day language. The alphabet was invented by the Semites of the Mediterranean coast,  including the Hebrews and the Phoenicians, who did not used words to represent consonants instead they used simple drawings. The Phoenicians apparently passed it on to the Greeks.   The Greeks improved on the idea by inventing vowels, using some extra letters their language had no use for. The word alphabet is believed to be taken from two Greek words Alpha and Beta (Boeree, 2012). Classical Greek philosophy is the most important factor that strengthened the footings of modern day intellectual work. Greece produced the world famous philosophers like Socrates and Plato and Aristotle etc. Socrates revolutionized many areas of western thought introducing the fields of democracy, epistemology and ethics. Then his student Plato introduced the idea of spiritualism a nd the existence of God by understanding the manifestations of the material world. Aristotle then produced a new philosophy where he demonstrated that the world is what we can sense through our five senses (Rise of Western Culture & Philosophy, 2012). The ancient philosophy gave us the basis for modern day philosophy by providing metaphysics. Meta physics is a branch of philosophy that is concerned with the questions of what this world is made of and what is the substance of this reality named as world. Greek philosophy provides us with the ancient concepts that provide the basis for modern day knowledge of ethics, cynicism and hedonism, empiricism and epistemology. That’s why Ancient society has been so influential in its era to other societies but it also provides the basis for modern day knowledge to excel and intellectualism to prevail (Boeree, 2012). Greece is one of the most powerful societies ever that impacted rest of the world in the most influential way. Especially Greece influenced the west in the past and today the ideas of political systems working in United Nations of America are profoundly influenced by the Greek and Romans. The Ancient Greek umpire practiced the citizen based political participation. In an Assembly, all male citizens of the time used to gather to discuss about the issues and vote. As the participation in Assembly was paid and full democratic in nature so every citizen could have participated in the affairs of government. The modern day representative democratic style of government has been derived from Greece too where the Greek had a council and each tribe used to send about 50 citizens to the council from which a representative was chosen.