How do western media cover China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

How do western media cover China - Essay Example Historically, western nations of the world have risen and developed much earlier than those from the far east, especially South East Asia. Such developments in the west from the fifteenth century have radically shaped the image of Europe being a forerunner in progress. It has set the standard for the rest of the world to emulate (Cao, 2012). This has developed an arrogance which claims the western portrayal of the ‘orient’ as incapable of ‘modernization’ (Said, 1978). From nineteenth century scholars such as Marx and Hegel, to modern authors such as Fukuyama (1989), non-Western nations have been portrayed as technologically and socio-politically inferior to western countries. Three Events Meriting Media Coverage for the World Guo (2012) identified three major events in Chinese history in 2008 that have been portrayed by western media in several ways. These are the Tibetan riots in March, The Wenchuan Earthquake in May and the Olympic Games in August. With th ese three events happening in a span of a few months, China has received a wide variety of impressions from all over the world thanks to the subjectivity/ objectivity of news delivery of western media. The Tibetan riots were impelled by political causes and were highlighted with the conflicts and disputes on religion, freedom of speech and politics between Chinese society and western media. These riots attracting much attention from media and may have conveyed to the world that political instability can result from such a spectacle. The overall perception created by the western media was allegedly â€Å"inaccurate, ideologically biased against and unfair towards China† (Guo, 2012, p. 78). Chinese scholars thought that western media coverage of the Tibetan riots portrayed it as a government crackdown instead of a mere act of riot or unrest from a minority of the population of civilians (Guo, 2012). They felt that the foreign correspondents sided with the Tibetan rioters who we re described as suppressed in their fight for freedom and equal human rights. On the other hand, these correspondents were critical and suspicious of the Chinese government. Further, such reporting of the news on the riots was not constrained to the event itself but was linked and analyzed with other protest actions such as the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 and a possible boycott of the forthcoming Beijing Olympics a few months after the riots (Zhao, 2008). The negative impression created by this western media coverage affected people’s anticipation of negative outcomes in the holding of the Olympics in China in the same year. What was expected to be an exciting and momentous sports event was marred by an anti-Chinese torch relay during the Olympics because of the earlier Tibetan riots (Zhang & Yu, 2008). Such display of rebellion has turned world opinion against China, and this was highlighted by western media (Guo 2012). Hosting the Olympics meant a big deal to China si nce it represented an achievement of a long-held ambition to show the world that sport is taken quite seriously in this country, not merely for fun or physical competition. For China, it is about national honor, pride or shame. The Olympic spirit is tightly intertwined with the Chinese nationalist sentiment (Guo 2012). The great anticipation in planning this grand event was disappointed by the natural disaster of an earthquake and the human intervention of a rambunctious riot meant to divert attention from the grandeur of the Olympics. In contrast, the Wenchuan

Discuss evolutionary explanations of intelligence Essay Example for Free

Discuss evolutionary explanations of intelligence Essay Intelligence has been considered a unique feature of human beings as it gives us the ability to devise elaborate strategies for solving problems. There are three key evolutionary explanations of intelligence, which are, foraging/ecological, social and sexual selection.  Foraging is when animals learn food preferences from others. This ability has clear survival advantages because the animal can learn from others rather than using trial and error process to identify which foods are harmful. The larger the range of food required, the larger the foraging area must be and the greater the requirement for more complex abilities. Many primates have to balance their diet by selective eating through successful hunting, which requires forethought, planning, cunning and the ability to coordinate the actions of a number of individuals. Finding food over a particular area may require a cognitive map (memorized spatial knowledge).Obtaining the food requires tool use and hunting techniques, which is another indication of intelligence in both human and non-human species. Visalberghi and Trinca (1987) did a study to look at the effects of tool use. Capuchin monkeys were given task of pushing peanut butter out of a tube. They found that the monkeys were quick at finding a suitable stick but tried out many unsuitable ones first. This suggests no understanding of causal relationships and that many animals develop the skill through trial and error rather than insight. Only the great apes show the sophisticated understanding of cause and effect so this supports the link between tool use and intelligence. The association between the growth of hunting and intelligence shows that more intelligent individuals are more intelligent than less intelligent. However many species with very successful hunting techniques are not very intelligent and therefore it is unlikely that the benefits of hunting would account for human levels of intelligence. The efficiency in foraging of a particular animal has been shown by various psychologists. Galef (1988) did a study in which a rat was allowed to eat food with a distinctive flavour, with cocoa or cinnamon. A test rat was then put in with the demonstrator for 30 minutes, but with no food present. This test rat then had to choose between cocoa-flavoured and cinnamon-flavoured food. It was found that the test rats preferred food of the same flavour as that eaten by the demonstrator. This was still the case 4 hours after the demonstrator had eaten and when 12 hours had elapsed before the test rat made its choice. Therefore it can be concluded that interacting with a rat after it has eaten creates a particular preference for that food. These results could be interpreted in a number of ways, in terms of the rats been neophobic, meaning unwilling to try anything new. The test rat could have picked up on the smell of the particular food on the breath of the demonstrator and will have been choosing between what was familiar and unfamiliar rather than been influenced directly by the demonstrator actually eating the food. However despite this Galef also found similar results even when the test rats were familiar with both cocoa and cinnamon flavoured food. The social theory says that interactions with other members of a social group present an intellectual challenge and primate intelligence has been evolved in response to this challenge. It has been suggested that intelligence is an evolutionary adaptation for solving social problems. The most intelligent species are the social animals, which are bees, parrots, dolphins, elephants, wolves, monkeys, etc. The group living could have set the stage for the evolution of intelligence in two ways; sociality which increases the value of having better information, because information is one commodity that that can be given away and kept at the same time. For example a more intelligent animal within a group has the benefit of knowledge and what it can get in exchange for the knowledge. Secondly group living itself has new cognitive challenges. Social animals send and receive signals to coordinate predation, defence, and foraging and sexual behaviour. They exchange favours, repay and enforce debts, punish cheaters and join coalitions. Machiavellian Intelligence Hypothesis came from various related hypotheses, which Bryne and Whiten (1988) brought together. This suggests that deceiving and detecting deception are the primary reason for the evolution of intelligence. Evidence supports this, as Bryne and Whiten (1992) have shown that there is a strong positive correlation between neocortex ratio and the prevalence of tactical deception in various primates and this implies that there is a clear relationship between social manipulation and intelligence.

Changing Commodity Prices Impact On Common Agricultural Policy Economics Essay

Changing Commodity Prices Impact On Common Agricultural Policy Economics Essay In the wake of an increasingly globalized economy, one that has seen the emergence of large trade blocs and common markets, the nations of the world have been competitively forced into becoming more economically integrated year after year. In light of hundreds of years of consumer theory, this would almost certainly lead one to a conclusion of necessarily lower prices and more efficient production on almost all products. However, as is the case in many nations, the European Union (EU) has succeeded in creating an artificial market for agricultural products through the use of a Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P). The Common Agricultural Policy is a policy, set forth by the European Union (EU), which is comprised of a set of rules that regulate the production, trade, and processing of agricultural products. The C.A.P currently accounts for almost fifty percent of the EU budget, however, this number continues to decrease over the years. The C.A.P is significant in that it symbolizes Europes switch from sovereignty on a national level to a European level. (McDonald and Dearden, (2005), European Economic Integration, Prentice Hall, 4th edition.) Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P). The EUs agricultural policy dates back to 1957, when the creators of the Treaty of Rome defined the general objectives of a common agricultural policy, post-war food shortages still fresh in minds. The principles and mechanisms of the Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P) were adopted by the six founding members of the European Economic Community, and in 1962 C.A.P came into force. C.A.P was designed to secure Europes self-sufficiency in food production. The basic principles of C.A.P remained the same for decades: guaranteed prices for agricultural products, often above world price levels, and subsidies based on the quantity of production, with little concern for the problem of surplus production. C.A.P has been the most fully integrated of EU policies. In the 1970s, nearly 70% of the EU budget went into agriculture. After a series of reforms, agriculture expenditures in the budget have dropped to 35 % for the 2007-2013 financial period. Over the same period, more money (9.7%) has been allocated for rural development and the expansion of EUs other responsibilities. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Common Agricultural Policys reforms. The C.A.P has had a long history of reform, and is nowhere near perfect. The first attempt at reform came just ten years after its implementation. In 1968, the Mansholt Plan was put into effect in an attempt to reduce the number of people in the agriculture business and to promote more efficient means of agricultural production. In 1972, the extensive food surpluses were targeted through the creation of structural measures designed to modernize European agriculture. This attempt at reform is generally regarded as a failure because many of the problems it tried to fix were still left unchecked. In 1983, a publication was released entitled, The Green Paper, which sought to balance the ongoing disparities between supply and demand through improvements in production. In 1988, the European Council agreed on various reform measures. The most important was the agricultural expenditure guideline, which limited the percentage of C.A.P expenditure in the overall budget. In 1991-92, the future of the C.A.P was addressed through what has been called, the MacSharry Reforms. The key aspects of the reforms included the cutback of agricultural prices to make the products more competitive, compensation for farmers that incurred a loss in income, and environmental protection. The reform of 1992 was generally regarded as successful, with positive effects on European agriculture. However, international trends, the enlargement towards Central and Eastern Europe, the preparation of the single currency causing budget constraints, the increasing competitiveness of products from non-member countries, and a new round of World Trade Organization negotiations forced further adaptation of the C.A.P (europa.eu.int). In July 1997, Agenda 2000 was created to address many of the important issues facing the EU and the C.A.P. The key focuses of this new agenda are the reinforcement of the competitiveness of agricultural commodities in domestic and world markets, the promotion of a fair standard of living, the creation of extra sources of income for farmers, a new rural development policy, revamped environmental considerations, better food quality and safety, and the simplification of C.A.P legislation. The first wave of C.A.P reforms had decreased over-production, brought down butter mountains and emptied the milk lakes. But by 2002, several factors made it a necessity to undertake major review of the EUs farm policy, including several food crises, the EUs planned eastward expansion, World Trade Organizations objections to the C.A.P and the sustainable development strategy defined during the Gothenburg Summit. In 2003, Franz Fischler, then the Commissioner for Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, presented a C.A.P reform package he described as the most radical improvement to the EUs agricultural policy ever. His main proposals included: decoupling of subsidies and production high requirements of environmental, food safety and animal welfare standards as prerequisite for getting subsidies more money to rural development as opposed to direct and market subsidies cuts in intervention prices in many sectors After heated debate, farm ministers agreed to go through with the C.A.P reform. Although, the link between farm subsidies and the amount of production was not totally abolished, as originally proposed, a major shift did take place, with the bulk of farmers income now coming from direct aid, based on the size of their holdings and not production. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). The reform also prepared the EU for the WTO Doha round of international trade liberalization talks, where the EU offered to eliminate export subsidies altogether by 2013. The talks were put on hold in 2006. Whatever the result of the trade talks, the EU remains the worlds largest importer of food, especially from developing countries. A number of sensitive sectors were left out of the 2003 C.A.P reform, including sugar, wine, bananas and other fruits and vegetables. Since then, a profound reform of the sugar sector was agreed on in 2005. In 2006 and early 2007 the Commission also proposed reforms for the wine, banana and fruit and vegetables sectors. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Under the Barroso Commission, Mariann Fischer Boel took over stewardship of the renamed Agriculture and Rural Development DG. She continues to strive for higher food quality and safety, efficient application of the Rural Development Policy 2007-2013, energy crop schemes and simplification of the C.A.P and cutting of red tape. The enlargement of the EU from 15 to 27 members has brought new challenges to C.A.P the number of farmers in the EU increased by over 70%. Meanwhile, farming organisations have welcomed the EUs decision to set a minimum 10% target for the use of biofuels for transport by 2020. The EU has also created the possibility for agriculture to play a bigger role in the fight against climate change, according to the COPA organisation. A key aim of the 2008 French EU Presidency was to bring the C.A.P up to speed with new global challenges. To this end, with the backing of the Commission and a vast majority of member states, four texts were adopted in November 2008, focusing on rural development, direct aid to farmers, and regulation mechanisms for the single market (dairy quotas, interventions, etc.). (A health check'(CAP)by Europa (European Commission) (2009)). These agreements officially launched the EU debate on the future of the C.A.P post-2013, also taking stock of global food balances, competitiveness, sustainable development, and the economic dynamism of rural areas. The Czech Presidency of the EU, in the first semester 2009, failed to secure an agreement on the future of the C.A.P post-2013. However, the Agriculture Council did agree unanimous conclusions on agricultural product quality and the retargeting of aid in Less Favoured Areas (LFA). (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). The quality policy paves the way to clearer labelling and, it is hoped, better communication and understanding among farmers, wholesalers and consumers. The Council also said it would consider national and private food certificates that follow Commission good practice guidelines and pledged to cut red tape for farmers and producers who want to apply for EU schemes like the organic label and geographical indications. The LFA programme is designed to improve the targeting of aid to farmers in areas with natural handiC.A.Ps. Member states have been asked to produce maps by 31 January 2010, including specific details on climate, soil, and terrain. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Global food prices and C.A.P reform. The European Unions common agricultural policy protects and subsidizes agriculture so heavily as to bring serious social losses to the Economic Union. The policy creates inefficiencies in the agriculture sector as well as other sectors of society such as manufacturing, textiles, and service industries. Furthermore, there have been many economic consequences of the C.A.P, including the high level of protection, the burdens on consumers, taxpayers, and the EU budget, environmental damage, the harm to international trading relations, and the failure to raise farmers incomes (The Common Agricultural Policy:Past, Present and Future. Brain E.Hill. `Metheuen Co. Ltd, London. (page 117). There are a lot factors responsible of the food price rise: speculation in commodity markets, low global food stocks, subsidies, high cost of energy, concentration of important agricultural markets in the hands of a few firms, trade restrictions by important exporters to protect domestic consumers, deprecia tion of the US dollar and lower productivity growth due to low investment in agricultural researchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ As global prices  hit new highs,  the European Commission had to intervene. First they sold its intervention stocks, removed the obligation to set aside 10% of arable land for the 2008 harvest, increased milk quotas by 2% and suspended import duties on cereals. (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). Then, the  Commission  proposed  policy  measures aimed at improving market transparency. It decided to enhance monitoring of  developments in agricultural markets and  analyze the impact of price speculation.  The EU executive also announced plans to  investigate the functioning of the food supply chain for potential unfair commercial practices, which may be holding back competition  and  driving up prices.   Overall, the Commissions  policy to address rising global food prices comprises three  strands of action: Mitigating short and medium-term effects of the food price shock  by monitoring price developments and speculative investments, changing the CAP Increasing agricultural supply and ensuring food security in the longer term  by strengthening the sustainability  of EU and global policies on biofuels, boosting agricultural research  to increase productivity and maintaining an open but vigilant GMO policy,  and;   Contributing to the global effort to help the poor  by promoting an open trade policy and concluding the Doha round of World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks,  offering humanitarian  aid and supporting  agricultural and rural development policy changes in developing countries. (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). C.A.P effects upon the environment. The C.A.P has also caused concern for the environment as well as concerns for the economy. Because of the subsidies provided to farmers, they have the incentive to produce more agricultural products because they will receive more money. The C.A.P price policies have encouraged intensive farming and the overuse of antibiotics, pesticides, and nitrates. This has put a strain on the environment and has concerned the people of the European Union. The policy did not foresee farmers overproducing and over using chemicals, but this has become an indirect cost created by the policy. Europeans are also concerned with food safety because of farmers using so many chemicals in production. Farmers have been getting away with using the chemicals and unsafe practices because of the limited food safety regulations. Policymakers believed that high price supports would lead to higher food safety and quality. High support prices do not increase either food safety or quality: indeed, minimum prices and intervention guarantees encourage low quality and standardized produce (The European Community: Economic and Political Aspects. (V.Lintner and S.Mazey. `Mcgraw-Hill, Maidenhead. (page 107) (1991). CCL: C.A.P has been seen as a monument to the determination of politicians, especially in the early years of integration, to work together for a united Community. It has become a symbol of co-operation. C.A.P has economic and social dimensions. There are many reasons put forward to explain  rising  food prices. These range from changing eating habits to trade restrictions and climate change. The  European Commission  insists that there is no connection between EU agricultural subsidies and rising food prices, and  stresses that the C.A.P is  much less trade-distorting than the American policy.  (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). ANNEXES: Figure 2: EU agricultural payments, 1963-2013. Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 3: EU expenditure: 1988-2006. Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 4: Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 5 and 6: Source  : Europa. REFERENCES: WEB SITES: Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009) http://www.euractiv.com/en/cap/global-food-prices-cap-reform/article-184329 Accessed 15th February 2010. Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) by European Journalism Centre (EJC). (2009) http://www.eu4journalists.eu/index.php/dossiers/english/C8 Accessed 16th February 2010. Agriculture CAP by Europa (European Commission) (2009) http://europa.eu/pol/agr/index_en.htm accessed 16th February 2010. The Doha Development Round of trade negotiations: understanding the issues by OCDE. (2008). http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00HYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlHYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlHYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlen-USS_01DBC.html Accessed 17th February 2010. Fortress EuropeOne vision, one market: Europe as a success story? (2008) http://www.groupedebruges.eu/Word docs/manifest_chapter_4_(draft_version_1).doc Accessed 20th February 2010. LECTURE: Lecture 11: Agriculture. SEMINAR: Seminar 11: Agriculture. Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt REPORTS: CAP reform document  : 970 Future CAP.pdf  ; 981 Future CAP.pdf CAP report: Open Europe CAP report.pdf

Importance of Costumes in As You Like It, Twelfth Night, and Henry IV, Part One :: As You Like It

Importance of Costumes in As You Like It, Twelfth Night, and Henry IV, Part One The Jewish holiday Purim celebrates the rescue of the ancient Jews of Persia from certain destruction at the hands of Haman. The fair queen Ester tricks the villain, and Haman betrays himself before the king. Each year the story is read aloud amidst great celebration. The children, and even the adults, dress up as their favorite character in the story. Each time Haman’s name is uttered, everyone makes as much noise as they can to blot out his evil name. According to Jewish tradition, the adults should become so intoxicated on Purim that they can not distinguish Haman from the heroes, Mordechai and Ester. (This is one of the few times that overindulging of this sort is condoned.) On the eve of Purim Jews dress up as part of the holiday celebration. Being in costume gives a certain freedom of action because one is not â€Å"himself.† This same freedom prevails in William Shakespeare’s As You Like It. Rosalind dresses up as the male character Ganymede. Hidden behind the costume of Ganymede, she speaks freely with Orlando as she would not be able to in her female role, and Orlando loses his shyness and lack of words. Similarly in Henry IV, Part One Falstaff and Prince Henry play the part of the king. They are putting on a mini-play within a play and are filling roles that are not their own. In order to enter the holiday spirit, people must leave their everyday selves and put on a costume. In the modern world, people have their working and studying attitudes and their free-time costume. The costume may not be literal, although it could be in the case of a costume party, but these attitudes are easily put on and taken off to fit the occasion. Prince Henry, after a discussion with Poins about the great jest they will play on Falstaff, changes his speech pattern from prose to blank verse. Hal speaks to himself about when he will eventually become a serious man and â€Å"when this loose behavior I throw off/And pay the debt I never promised† (I.ii.205-6). He very easily switches from the free pattern of prose to the more serious blank verse. Ester's tricking Haman was more serious than a mere practical joke.

Developmental Apraxia Symptoms, Causes, and Treatments Essay

Apraxia of speech is a neurological condition in which a person finds it impossible to move their mouth or tongue to speak (Apraxia, 2005). There are two main types of apraxia; they are acquired apraxia of speech and developmental apraxia of speech (Apraxia of Speech, 2002). This paper is about Developmental Apraxia of Speech, its symptoms, causes, and appropriate treatments. Developmental apraxia of speech is also called childhood apraxia of speech, because it is present from birth (2002). There are many symptoms of developmental apraxia, and each child may have different symptoms (Childhood, 1997). Some symptoms of very young children include problems eating, not cooing as an infant, late first words, problems combining sounds, and deleting difficult sounds and replacing them with easier ones more often than normal children (1997). In older children, symptoms can include making inconsistent sound errors, understanding of language better than their ability to talk, difficulty imitating speech, difficulty saying long phrases or words clearly, difficulty for others to understand their speech, and speech which sounds choppy or monotonous (1997). Other symptoms may include delayed language development, word order confusion, word recall issues, difficult fine motor development and coordination, over sensitivity or under sensitivity of the mouth, and trouble reading, writing, and spelling (1997). Because there are so many possible symptoms of developmental apraxia, it is important to have children evaluated by a professional to rule out other causes of speech problems (1997). Developmental apraxia is believed by many researchers to be a neurologically based speech-motor disorder, but exact causes have not been isolated (Causes of Apraxia, 2010). Researcher’s studies have not shown a difference or abnormalities in the brains of children with developmental apraxia (2002). Children with developmental apraxia often have family members with learning disabilities or communication disorders (2002). Researchers continue to conduct studies to find any brain abnormalities and genetic factors which may cause developmental apraxia (2005). Speech language therapy is used for treating developmental apraxia. Intensive intervention which begins early is best for children with this disorder (Lederman, 2012). In the beginning, children should have treatment 3-5 times per week (1997). Children diagnosed with developmental apraxia show improvement more quickly when they receive treatment individually (1997). Speech language therapy for children with developmental apraxia differs from the therapy of children with other language disorders (2012). Treatment is based on the principles of motor learning, including repetition to establish and develop motor plans, practice opportunities to maintain learned patterns, use of relevant words and phrases, increased sensory feedback, and work on sound and word sequences (2012). There are still many things to learn about developmental apraxia, and studies regarding causes and treatments are still ongoing (2002). There is also research being done to find more specific criteria to identify and diagnose developmental apraxia and to distinguish it from other communication disorders (2002). References American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Childhood Apraxia of Speech (1997). www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/childhoodapraxia.htm Lederman, D. (2012). Speech Language Therapy for Childhood Apraxia of Speech. www.donnalederman.com/disorder-types/apraxia-of-speech.php National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Apraxia of Speech (2002). www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/pages/apraxia.aspx University of Rochester Medical Center. Causes of Apraxia (2010). www.urmc.rochester. edu/speech-pathology/speech-language-disorders/apraxia/causes-apraxia.cfm Web MD. Apraxia: Symptoms, Causes, Tests, Treatments (2005). www.webmd.com/ Brain/apraxia-symptoms-causes-tests-treatments

The Legitimacy Of The Armed Struggle Of The Tamil People Essays

The Legitimacy Of The Armed Struggle Of The Tamil People Essays The legitimacy of the armed struggle of the Tamil people Democracy may mean acceding to the rule of the majority, but democracy also means governments by discussion and persuasion. It is the belief that the minority of today may become the majority of tomorrow that ensures the stability of a functioning democracy. The practice of democracy in Sri Lanka within the confines of a unitary state served to perpetuate the oppressive rule of a permanent Sinhala majority. It was a permanent Sinhala majority, which through a series of legislative and administrative acts, ranging from disenfranchisement, and standardisation of University admissions, to discriminatory language and employment policies, and state sponsored colonisation of the homelands of the Tamil people, sough to establish its hegemony over people of Tamil Eelam. These legislative and administrative acts were reinforced from time to time with physical attacks on the Tamil people with intent to terrorise and intimidate them into submission. It was a course of conduct which led eventually to rise of Tamil militancy in the mid 1970s with, initially, sporadic acts of violence. The militancy was met with wide ranging retaliatory attacks on increasingly large sections of the Tamil people with intent, once again to subjugate them. In the late 1970s large numbers of Tamil youths were detained without trial and tortured under emergency regulations and later under the Prevention of Terrorism Act which has been described by the International Commission of Jurists as a 'blot on the statute book of any civilised country'. In 1980s and thereafter, there were random killings of Tamils by the state security forces and Tamil hostages were taken by the state when 'suspects' were not found. The preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reads: "Whereas it is essential if man is not compelled as a last resort to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law." The rise of the armed struggle of the Tamil people constituted the Tamil rebellion against a continuing Sinhala oppression over a period of several decades. The gross consistent and continuing violations of the human rights of the Tamil people have been well documented by innumerable reports of human rights organisations as well as of independent observers of the Sri Lankan scene. Walter Schwarz commented in the Minority Rights Group Report on Tamils of Sri Lanka, 1983 "...The makings of an embattled freedom movement now seem assembled: martyrs, prisoners and a pitiful mass of refugees. Talk of 'Biafra' which had sounded misplaced in 1975, seemed less unreal a few years later... As this report goes to press in September 1983, the general outlook for human rights in Sri Lanka is not promising. The present conflict has transcended the special consideration of minority rights and has reached the point where the basic human rights of the Tamil community - the rights to life and property, freedom of speech and self expression and freedom from arbitrary arrest have in fact and in law been subject to gross and continued violations. The two communities are mow polarised and continued repression coupled with economic stagnation can only produce stronger demands from the embattled minority, which unless there is a change in direction by the central government, will result in a stronger Sinhalese backlash and the possibility of outright civil war". David Selbourne remarked in July 1984: "The crimes committed by the Sri Lankan state against the Tamil minority - against its physical security, citizenship rights, and political representation -are of growing gravity.. Report after report by impartial bodies - By Amnesty International, By the International Commission of jurists, By parliamentary delegates from the West by journalists and scholars - have set out clearly the scale of growing degeneration of the political and physical well being of the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka... Their cause represents the very essence of the cause of human rights and justice; and to deny it, debases and reduces us all". A Working Group chaired by Goran Backstrand, of the Swedish Red Cross at the Second Consultation on Ethnic Violence, Development and Human Rights, Netherlands, in February 1985 concluded: "There was a general consensus that within Sri Lanka today, the Tamils do not have the

Free Essays on Rise Of The Supperpowers

It is often wondered how the superpowers achieved their position of dominance. It seems that the maturing of the two superpowers, Russia and the United States, can be traced to World War II. To be a superpower, a nation needs to have a strong economy, an overpowering military, immense international political power and, related to this, a strong national ideology. It was this war, and its results, that caused each of these superpowers to experience such a preponderance of power. Before the war, both nations were fit to be described as great powers, but it would be erroneous to say that they were superpowers at that point. To understand how the second World War impacted these nations so greatly, we must examine the causes of the war. The United States gained its strength in world affairs from its status as an economic power. In the years before the war, America was the world’s largest producer. In the USSR at the same time, Stalin was implementing his ‘five year plans’ to modernise the Soviet economy. From these situations, similar foreign policies resulted from widely divergent origins. Roosevelt’s isolationism emerged from the wide and prevalent domestic desire to remain neutral in any international conflicts. It commonly widely believed that Americans entered the first World War simply in order to save industry’s capitalist investments in Europe. Whether this is the case or not, Roosevelt was forced to work with an inherently isolationist Congress, only expanding its horizons after the bombing of Pearl Harbour. He signed the Neutrality Act of 1935, making it illegal for the United States to ship arms to the belligerents of any conflict. The act also stated that belligerents could buy only non-armaments from the US, and even these were only to be bought with cash. In contrast, Stalin was by necessity interested in European affairs, but only to th... Free Essays on Rise Of The Supperpowers Free Essays on Rise Of The Supperpowers It is often wondered how the superpowers achieved their position of dominance. It seems that the maturing of the two superpowers, Russia and the United States, can be traced to World War II. To be a superpower, a nation needs to have a strong economy, an overpowering military, immense international political power and, related to this, a strong national ideology. It was this war, and its results, that caused each of these superpowers to experience such a preponderance of power. Before the war, both nations were fit to be described as great powers, but it would be erroneous to say that they were superpowers at that point. To understand how the second World War impacted these nations so greatly, we must examine the causes of the war. The United States gained its strength in world affairs from its status as an economic power. In the years before the war, America was the world’s largest producer. In the USSR at the same time, Stalin was implementing his ‘five year plans’ to modernise the Soviet economy. From these situations, similar foreign policies resulted from widely divergent origins. Roosevelt’s isolationism emerged from the wide and prevalent domestic desire to remain neutral in any international conflicts. It commonly widely believed that Americans entered the first World War simply in order to save industry’s capitalist investments in Europe. Whether this is the case or not, Roosevelt was forced to work with an inherently isolationist Congress, only expanding its horizons after the bombing of Pearl Harbour. He signed the Neutrality Act of 1935, making it illegal for the United States to ship arms to the belligerents of any conflict. The act also stated that belligerents could buy only non-armaments from the US, and even these were only to be bought with cash. In contrast, Stalin was by necessity interested in European affairs, but only to th...

A Beginners Guide to the Industrial Revolution

A Beginner's Guide to the Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution refers to a period of massive economic, technological, social, and cultural change which affected humans to such an extent that its often compared to the change from hunter-gathering to farming. At its simplest, a mainly agriculture-based world economy using manual labor was transformed into one of industry and manufacturing by machines. The precise dates are a subject for debate and vary by historian, but the 1760/80s to the 1830/40s are most common, with the developments beginning in Britain and then spreading to the rest of the world, including the United States. The Industrial Revolutions The term industrial revolution was used to describe the period before the 1830s, but modern historians increasingly call this period the first industrial revolution. This period was characterized by developments in textiles, iron, and steam (led by Britain) to differentiate it from a second revolution of the 1850s onwards, characterized by steel, electrics, and automobiles (led by the U.S. and Germany). What Changed Industrially and Economically The invention of steam power, which replaced horses and water, was used to power factories and transportation and allowed for deeper mining.The improvement of iron-making techniques allowing for vastly higher production levels and better material.The textile industry was transformed by new machines (such as the Spinning Jenny) and factories, allowing for much higher production at a lower cost.Better machine tools allowed for more and better machines.Developments in metallurgy and chemical production affected many industries.New and quicker transport networks were created thanks to first canals and then railways, allowing products and materials to be moved cheaper and more efficiently.The banking industry developed to meet the needs of entrepreneurs, providing finance opportunities that allowed the industries to expand.  The use of coal (and coal production) soared. Coal eventually replaced wood. As you can see, an awful lot of industries changed dramatically, but historians have to carefully untangle how each affected the other as everything triggered changes in the others, which triggered more changes in return. What Changed Socially and Culturally Rapid urbanization led to dense, cramped housing and living conditions, which spread disease, created vast new city-dwelling populations, and a new sort of social order that helped to establish a new way of life: New city and factory cultures affecting family and peer groups.Debates and laws regarding child labor, public health, and working conditions.Anti-technology groups, such as the Luddites. Causes of the Industrial Revolution The end of feudalism changed economic relationships (with feudalism used as a useful catch-all term and not a claim that there was classic-style feudalism in Europe at this point). More causes of the Industrial Revolution include: A higher population because of less disease and lower infant mortality, which allowed for a larger industrial workforce.The agricultural revolution freed people from the soil, allowing (or driving) them into cities and manufacturing, creating a larger industrial workforce.Proportionally large amounts of spare capital for investment.Inventions and the scientific revolution, allowing for new technology.Colonial trade networks.The presence of all the required resources located close together, which is why Britain was the first country to experience the industrial revolution.A general culture of hard work, taking risks, and developing ideas. Debates Evolution, not revolution? Historians such as J. Clapham and N. Craft have argued that there was a gradual evolution in industrial sectors, rather than a sudden revolution.How the revolution worked. Historians are still trying to pry apart the heavily interwoven developments, with some arguing that there were parallel developments in many industries and others arguing that some industries, usually cotton, surged and stimulated the others.Britain in the 18th century. The debate still rages over both why the industrial revolution began when it did and why it began in Britain.

Manufacturing Systems and Quality Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Manufacturing Systems and Quality - Coursework Example otal productive maintenance are some of the management concepts that serve to be very useful in developing efficient mechanisms for the modern manufacturing systems. The text discusses how this concepts have been used in modern industrial practice to run industrial systems for best efficiency and production with minimal cost. Most manufacturing companies have the goal of trying to ensure that they produce the best products for their customers at the cheapest value possible while at the same time ensuring they use the least amount of resources and time. This has led to the development of theory used in running such manufacturing plants based on various principles of efficiency. The difference in the approach and the target goals of this theories is what differentiates the different systems of management. In this text, modern manufacturing management systems have been addressed from theory to a sample solutions point of view.The aim is to provide enlightenment on how the processes are implemented. Lean is a manufacturing principle derived from the Japanese Manufacturing Industries which implies maximizing customer value by reducing the amount of waste created from a manufacturing session of a product. Any potential product or service pf the process that can be paid for by the customer is considered as having value hence utilized accordingly to generate profit. The method involves using the minimum inventory to generate the highest amount of through put. The process entirely relies on reducing the wastes during manufacturing to improve quality, reduce time of production and increase the profit returns form the work. The system uses a method where each part of the production line is examined immediately after manufacture such that a defect in the production line is corrected before affecting other products (DENNIS, 2007). Lean thinking allows the management to focus on optimizing the manufacture of products from a value stream that horizontally incorporates

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management Essay - 1

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management - Essay Example The economics of non-OPEC supply, the economics of supply of other liquids and the investment and production decisions of OPEC countries will definitely influence the spot price over the next three months. For other liquids and petroleum, the main long-term prices and supply determinants can be summed up in four main categories that include other liquids supply economics, non-OPEC supply economics, global demand for other liquids and petroleum, and OPEC production and investment decisions (Elton, Gruber, Agrawal & Mann, 2004: 27247). Factors that should influence PMC while deciding on whether to enter into a forward or spot contract should include the consideration of the deference between the forward and spot prices in the sense that the two-price difference preferably should be equivalent to any earnings and finance charges that are due to the contract holder. In addition, opting for the forward contracts mainly would depend on factors like, festivity, season, and climate cycles that mostly affect the demands. A factor that would discourage the use of forward contracts is the lack of explicit mechanism for processing new information on the production costs and inventory surprises. Another factor to consider will be oil market participants who are a diverse group and trade at different maturities and objectives. The varying degrees in the involvement of major commercial oil producers will affect this decision. In terms of spot prices, supply and demand will influence such a decision. When demand goes up and sup ply decreases, the spot prices are automatically expected to go up. Likewise when demand decreases and supply goes up, the prices should go down. Spot prices for both crude oil and petroleum product prices are likely to be affected by events that disrupt the flow of these products in the market. This may include weather-related and geopolitical factors. These should be considered in the decision of whether to use spot prices or not. By taking

Management skill Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Management skill - Personal Statement Example The celebration of birthday states how old a person would be. It is the way of being thankful for what we have in life and a time to celebrate the joy of life i.e. birth itself. A surprise birthday party may sound exciting but is not an easy task. Being a part of event planners, I have already been organizing birthday parties in the past, so I was given the responsibility of planning and organizing a surprise birthday party for my best friend which was to be held in October. For this I took help of my other friends to organize and manage this event. With the beginning of the preparations I was faced with conflicts among my two friends over the responsibility of making the list of the guests, both were of the point that he can make the list better, so in order to face this situation I allotted both of them the responsibility but for different areas so that they both can do the same work in different manner. Both friends started with making list of her friends, family, relatives and co -workers to be invited in the party. This is how I handled this conflict and made the work progressed. This was started fifteen days prior to the birthday date. The overall work was divided between five of us who were organizing the party with me leading and managing everything (Devney, 2001). One friend was given the work of selecting and sending the birthday invitation cards because he was good at attending and communicating with people. It was started two weeks in advance of birthday so that guests can R.S.V.P. thus giving a confirm status of who all will be attending the party. My house was chosen as the venue for celebration. After getting confirmation of people who would be attending the party I then started with making list of food, beverages and party supplies etc. which would be required in the party. Two friends were given the responsibility of decoration and booking of band while other two were to take care of party supplies and catering on the day of the party. My friend s were nervous due to their participation in first such surprise event, so I motivated them by telling that everything will be alright as they are doing extremely well and are on the right track. I was deciding the food menu for the party and gift to be given to her. The budget for party was preplanned by me and was divided between all 5 friends and activities as per the requirement and need for each activity, I have taken this responsibility because I am quite good at handling finances. The work given to other four friends of decoration, booking of band, taking care of party supplies and catering was done by them. I being from event organizer’s background had various contacts in all the fields and departments. So I advised my friends about where to get the decoration done so that they may go and finalize the theme of decoration. I also suggested them few orchestra and bands for the party to be booked. The catering was finalized and booked and also the party supplies were ord ered well I advance. The food menu for the party was to be decided by me, which I after considering everybody’s taste opted for Chinese and Italian food along with soft drinks and juices (Devney, 2001). The catering was booked from a renowned hotel where we placed the order keeping in mind the gathering we were expecting, though an issue of home delivery was raised by the hotel but I somehow managed it by increasing the pay to them and made them forced to deliver at the party venue. A dark

Carrie Chapman Catt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Carrie Chapman Catt - Essay Example After the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920, she organized the League of Women Voters for the political education of women (Levin 2006). Carrie assisted in the arrangement of the International Women Suffrage Alliance at the Berlin Conference. She then committed and restricted herself to the peace movements in 1923.This she made work through lecturing, writing and also recruiting in the Suffrage movement. Her moves were mainly to free women and be allowed to vote and b heard as the. In a nutshell it was all about eradicating male chauvinism (Keller 2006). She was a hardworking lady who never lost hope an even after some members led by Alice Paul had left the union, she strategized and developed a future plan to keep the group alive. After her great achievement of the successful amendment of the constitution, she began a worldwide campaign and tour to help the women develop the right to vote (Levin

Advantages and disadvantages of having hackers or other systems Essay

Advantages and disadvantages of having hackers or other systems intruders as your IT security guardians - Essay Example ‘Hacker’ is very commonly used term in computer technology and refers to wickedness, deceitful individual who is intended to steal some kind of information or data and burglarizes the business or personal computers. Despite the fact that there are some benefits of engaging a hacker as a member of corporation’s information technology staff since a corporation that upholds a corporate website and domestic network is capable to take advantage of the experiences built by the hacker. In other words, it can be said that all the hackers are not bad a number of them get through the network safety in an effort to teach various users (Marsh, 2011). This paper is also about the assessment of some of the main aspects regarding the varied nature of hackers. The basic aim of this research is to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of having hackers or other systems intruders as our business IT security guardians. What do hackers know that you (or your other IT people) don't know? Computer hackers have been using the weaknesses of any corporate network or else communication systems that are exposed to them, in computer networks. Though the reason can be that number of people using internet for some reason have been rising more and more every year, this outlines that a hacker can well be among one of them. As a matter of this realism, numerous unofficial groups of hackers explicitly have shown information, on, how they go about contravention effectively into some corporate computer systems (ISA, 2005). For the assessment of a hacker that is engaged for good intention will typically concentrate on how technology could be utilized to improve business production while illicit hackers pay their significant concentration on how technology is competent to be perverted as well as controlled (Purewire, Inc., 2010) and (Kelton, 2010). As the subsequent production of IT networking, the wireless 802.11 standard LANs are as well the novel playing fields for hackers . However, the security actions such as effectual encryptions and validation for standard wireless LANs are yet mounting; on the other hand, hackers have access to the user-friendly tools that are able to open more and more complicated attacks that are very dangerous to the information resources of the organizations. In this scenario, a number of enterprises make the blunder of considering that they do not need to agonize regarding wireless safety if they are operating non-mission decisive systems by means of non-susceptible data and information all through their wireless communication LANs. Though, a small number of networks function as isles of computerization. The majority of them make their connection with the enterprise backbone at a number of points, and hackers are capable to utilize the wireless LAN like a start point to the whole network. Therefore, each entrance indicating that network is supposed to be protected. During the summer time of year 2002, a trade chain was stat ed to be operating its typical wireless LAN with no some structure of encryption. The seller replied through stating that its wireless LAN simply managed its inventory function, consequently encryption was not desirable. Though, the open links invites hackers to watch about on the network to probably acquire access into secret client records or else sensitive business details plus information (AirDefense, Inc. , 2003) and (Kelton, 2010). Policies should IT security consultants be allowed to break in pursuit of security threats or threateners? There are two types of hackers. First type is known as White hat and other is Black hat. White hat hackers are those persons who are hired for positive purposes and for the effective management of business as well as corporate operations whereas the black hat hackers are opposite in nature. White

Product Design Air Compressor Set Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Product Design Air Compressor Set - Essay Example This report aims at investigating such a design, keeping in hindsight the requirements of the customer. All of these components would be incorporated in the new design for the customer. The set would have a basic frame of steel with 0.5% carbon content so that the frame is not too brittle to bear the weight of the set. A steel platform would hold the three compressors (it is a multi-compressor unit), the air reservoir/tank, and the motor. A small control panel would be fitted alongside the platform, and the whole set would be enclosed in a fabric glass case. Each compressor would have an independent belt for revolution, with separately adjustable speeds, to be switched on and off on demand. The reservoir would be divided into compartments of volumes of 100 liters each, to be utilised as per the demand. The whole system would be run by a motor attached to a power supply, with a second provisional motor that can be run if desired.

Carrie Chapman Catt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Carrie Chapman Catt - Essay Example After the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920, she organized the League of Women Voters for the political education of women (Levin 2006). Carrie assisted in the arrangement of the International Women Suffrage Alliance at the Berlin Conference. She then committed and restricted herself to the peace movements in 1923.This she made work through lecturing, writing and also recruiting in the Suffrage movement. Her moves were mainly to free women and be allowed to vote and b heard as the. In a nutshell it was all about eradicating male chauvinism (Keller 2006). She was a hardworking lady who never lost hope an even after some members led by Alice Paul had left the union, she strategized and developed a future plan to keep the group alive. After her great achievement of the successful amendment of the constitution, she began a worldwide campaign and tour to help the women develop the right to vote (Levin

Product Design Air Compressor Set Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Product Design Air Compressor Set - Essay Example This report aims at investigating such a design, keeping in hindsight the requirements of the customer. All of these components would be incorporated in the new design for the customer. The set would have a basic frame of steel with 0.5% carbon content so that the frame is not too brittle to bear the weight of the set. A steel platform would hold the three compressors (it is a multi-compressor unit), the air reservoir/tank, and the motor. A small control panel would be fitted alongside the platform, and the whole set would be enclosed in a fabric glass case. Each compressor would have an independent belt for revolution, with separately adjustable speeds, to be switched on and off on demand. The reservoir would be divided into compartments of volumes of 100 liters each, to be utilised as per the demand. The whole system would be run by a motor attached to a power supply, with a second provisional motor that can be run if desired.

Postmodernism, Hyperreality and the Hegemony of Spectacle in New Hollywood Essay Example for Free

Postmodernism, Hyperreality and the Hegemony of Spectacle in New Hollywood Essay After the screening of The Matrix on its first release, a dear cousin of mine, film connoisseur and avid fan of classical movies, spontaneously made the following comment: â€Å"This is an entirely new cinema to me! † If anything, The Matrix is a clear marker of cultural change. A film with state-of-the-art production values like this is bound to elicit in us the belated realization of how slow our response has been to the cultural products of an entirely transformed film industry, that of New Hollywood. My cousin’s casual and unwitting remark reflects the embarrassment felt by both professional critic and layman alike in coping with contemporary movies, especially when we still tend to approach New Hollywood products with the standards of the Old Hollywood cinema. Because of our adherence to tradition, we still tend to look for those classical values of â€Å"development†, â€Å"coherence† and â€Å"unity† in narratives only to find with disappointment that narrative plots become thinner, that characters are reduced to one-dimensional stereotypes and that action is carried through by loosely-linked sequences, built around spectacular stunts, dazzling stars and special effects. Narrative complexity is sacrificed on the altar of spectacle† (Buckland 166) as today’s blockbusters turn out to be nothing but calculated exercises in profit-making, all high-concept, high-gloss and pure show. Similar cries of warning about the loss of narrative integrity to cinematic spectacle have been voiced at different periods, usually at times of crisis or change in the history of the American cinema. One could cite, for example, Bazin’s disdain at the â€Å"displacement of classicism† by the baroque style, marking the end of the pure phase of classical cinema. His coined term, â€Å"superwestern, †designates the â€Å"emergence of a new kind of western† (Kramer 290), that, according to Bazin, â€Å"would be ashamed to be just itself, and looks for some additional interest to justify its existence—an aesthetic, sociological, moral, psychological, political, or erotic interest† (150-1). Similarly, in 1957 Manny Farber, taking his cue from Bazin’s superwestern, laments the â€Å"disappearance of this [classical] roduction system and the closing of action-oriented neighborhood theaters in the 1950s†. He claims that directors like Howard Hawks â€Å"who had flourished in ‘a factory of unpretentious picture-making’ were pushed towards artistic self-consciousness, thematic seriousness, and big-budget spectacle â€Å"(Kramer 293, emphasis added). A decade later, Pauline Kael too expresses her fears at the disintegration of filmic narrative which she attributes to the abrasion of traditional film production in general. She laments not only the emphasis on â€Å"technique† â€Å"purely visual content,† and â€Å"open-ended, elaborate interpretations† of the experimental and innovative art film of the New American Cinema, but as Kramer puts it, she was equally critical of the experiences facilitated by Hollywood’s mainstream releases. The lack of concern for coherent storytelling on the part of producers and directors in charge of the volatile and overblown process of filmmaking was matched by the audience’s enthusiastic response to spectacular attractions and shock effects, irrespective of their degree of narrative motivation. 296) Voices of dissatisfaction were heard at another major turn in the history of Hollywood, that is in the late 1970s, when the â€Å"unprecedented box-office success of Jaws (1975) and Star Wars (1977), signaled Hollywood’s aesthetic, cultural and industrial re-orientation towards movies with more emphasis on special effects and cin ematic spectacle† (Kramer 301). Unlike the classical movies produced on the assembly line under the studio regime (films that respected narrative integrity and refined story ideas into the classical three-act of exposition, complication and resolution), the products of New Hollywood, says critic Richard Schickel, seem â€Å"to have lost or abandoned the art of narrative. [Filmmakers] are generally not refining stories at all, they are spicing up ‘concepts’ (as they like to call them), refining gimmicks, making sure there are no complexities to fur our tongue when it comes time to spread the word of mouth†(3). Contemporary cinema has come to depend so much on shrewd marketing and advertising strategies that its pictures, as Mark Crispin Miller points out, â€Å"like TV ads, aspire to a total ‘look’ and seem more designed than directed† (49). The difficulty that critics nowadays face with films like The Matrix and the new situation in Hollywood, is not only unlike the layman’s inability to assess â€Å"any recent Hollywood film as a discreet textual artifact that is either ‘better’ or ‘worse’ than the artifact produced under the studio regime,† Cook and Bernink note (99). It has also to do with regarding â€Å"the textual form of recent Hollywood as expressive of changed production circumstances that lead to a different kind of textual artifact†(ibid. ). In other words, as we move on in our globalized, high-tech age, it is becoming increasingly difficult to regard any single movie as a self-contained, autonomous text. On the contrary, as Eileen Meehan contends, it has become imperative to look upon any New Hollywood mainstream release â€Å"always and simultaneously as text and commodity, intertext and product line† (31). In order to revise our critical standards and respond effectively to the new status of the contemporary Hollywood movie, we need to grasp the dramatic changes that the American film industry has undergone in the post-classical period, which started right after World War II and culminated to a point of radical transformation in the post-1975 period, which has eventually come to best warrant the term New Hollywood. These changes have been lucidly described in a number of historiographic studies (Ray 1985, Balio 1985, 1990, Schatz 1983, 1993, Gomery 1986, Bernardoni 1991, Corrigan 1991, Hillier 1992, Wasko 1994, Kramer 1998, Neale and Smith 1998, Cook and Bernink 1999) which collectively shed ample light on the completely new situation defining New Hollywood. What has drastically changed is both the ways movies are made and the ways in which Hollywood has been doing business. After the government’s dismantling of the â€Å"vertically-integrated† studio system, the industry turned to producing and selling motion pictures on a film-by-film basis, resulting in the shift of power from studio heads to deal-makers (agents), in the rise of independent producers/directors, and in a more competitive and fragmented movie marketplace (Schatz 9). To the rise of TV and the emergence of other competing media technologies (VCRs, Cable and Satellite TV) Hollywood responded with a re-orientation towards blockbuster movies, â€Å"these high-cost, high-tech, high-stakes, multi-purpose entertainment machines that breed music videos and soundtrack albums, TV series and videocassettes, video games and theme park rides, novelizations and comic books† (Schatz 9). Despite the â€Å"increasingly fragmented but ever more expanding entertainment industry – with its demographics and target audiences, its diversified multimedia conglomerates, its global(ized) markets and new delivery systems†, the calculated blockbuster, as New Hollywood’s feature film, remains the driving force of the industry (ibid. ). This is testified by the monumental success of the blockbuster at the box-office. Schatz cites Variety’s commissioned study of the industry’s all-time commercial hits, in which only 2 movies of the classical period appear to have reached the top, whereas â€Å"90 of the top 100 hits have been produced since 1970, and all of the top 20 since Jaws in 1975†(9). The big-budget, all-star, spectacular hits of the late fifties and early sixties (such as The Ten Commandments, Ben Hur, Cleopatra, or Dr. Zhivago) have some sizable profits to show for (all in the vicinity of $25-to $50 million). By the standards of their age, they were considered colossal box-office successes; however, by today’s standards they seem quite puny contestants to the post-75 era of super-blockbusters which generate record-setting grosses, well beyond the $100 million barrier (always in constant dollars). And such a figure applies only to theatrical rentals, which accounts just for a percentage of the total revenue of a movie which also finds outlets in ancillary markets. he industry’s spectacular growth and expansion (its horizontal integration) is to a great extent owing to the take-over of the majors (Paramount, Fox, Columbia, MCA/Universal) by huge media empires (Warner/Time Communications, Murdoch’s News Corporations, Sony, Matsushita, respectively) forming multimedia conglomerates with diverse interests in the domestic and the global market, with holdings in movies, TV production, cable, records, book and magazine publications, video games, theme parks, consumer electron ics (both software and hardware). These huge corporations provide financial muscle for the multi-million production budgets of the blockbusters (since the production costs have themselves sky-rocketed), but also market muscle for promotion. Marketing and advertising strategies have been the key to the unprecedented success of the New Hollywood movie since Jaws: through pre-selling, usually cashing in on the popularity of a novel published prior to production, a movie becomes a media â€Å"event† by heavy advertising on prime-time TV and the press, as well as by the massive simultaneous release in thousands of mall-based multiplex theaters. Calculated blockbuster productions are carefully designed to ensure the greatest potential profit not only through extended theatrical rental (sequels, re-issues, remakes, director’s cut), but also though capitalization in ancillary markets: soon the movie will come out on videocassette, audio-cassette, novel, computer game, and the increasingly popular since the mid-nineties, DVD, let alone an extended market career through by-products ranging from the CD movie soundtrack to T-shirts and toys, which contribute to the impressive surge in profits. It becomes obvious thus why contemporary movies cannot be conceived of as individual entities and cannot be separately examined from their economic intertext that renders them part (or rather the driving belt) of a larger entertainment machine and advertising campaign. Expensive blockbusters, which in the early days of the post-classical period were the exception and now, as Schatz states, have become the rule, â€Å"are the central output of modern Hollywood. But what, aside from costs, are their dominant characteristics? How are they able to attract, engage and entertain millions of people? asks Warren Buckland (166). The blockbuster syndrome has also changed the movies’ mode of address. Designed around a main idea, what is called â€Å"high concept†, a blockbuster becomes increasingly plot-driven, increasingly visceral, kinetic, fast-paced, increasingly reliant on special effects, increasingly â€Å"fantastic† (and thus apolitical), and increasingly targeted at younger audiences. And significantly enough, the lack of complex characters or plot [as for example] in Star Wars opens the film to other possibilities, notably its amalgamation of genre conventions and its elaborate play of cinematic references. But while these movies enjoy a great popularity among younger audiences, as their huge box-office success indicates, the loss of narrative integrity to spectacle, and the sense of escapism and triviality usually associated with high-gloss, star glamour and dumb show, has driven most academics or old-cinema cinephiles to summarily shun or dismiss blockbusters as merely calculated exercises in shameless profiteering. Warren Buckland thinks that these arguments about the loss of narrative potential in the contemporary feature film are overstated and attempts to reverse the â€Å"unhelpful and hostile evaluative stance† (167) of the critics towards the blockbuster. Focusing on a typical action-adventure blockbuster, Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Arc heproposes adopting an analytical and descriptive approach to these films, an approach dubbed by Bordwell and Thompson â€Å"historical oetics. † Part of the argument he makes is that â€Å"historical poetics† can account for the popularity of movies with such a broad appeal (and allows us to take them seriously as aesthetic, cultural objects) â€Å"especially because movies are examined in terms of their individuality, including their response to their historical moment, in which style and composition respond to the historical questions posed in the culture in which the film is made† (168-169). In other words, the issue is not so much about the so-called death of narrative—because narrative is still alive and well—but the emergence of a new kind of narrative, whose meaning is conveyed not through traditional narration but by emphasis on spectacle and the visual impact of the pictures which provide additional narrative pleasure and have changed the patterns of viewer response. Thus Buckland’s concluding remark that â€Å"it is perhaps time to stop condemning the New Hollywood blockbuster and to start, instead, to understand it,† carries more merit than we have been ready to admit. My intention in this essay is to extend the argument about the narrative/ spectacle issue in the direction suggested by Buckland, but within a wider, cultural perspective. The supremacy of the visual and the spectacular over traditional narration in the textual form of contemporary movies is not only expressive of the changed production values and the text’s signifying practices; it is also reflective of the changed cultural patterns and lifestyle habits in postmodernity. Classical cinema favored traditional storytelling because it provided a univocal interpretation of life and reflected a uniformity in entertainment habits: cinema was the predominant form of entertainment, as â€Å"the movies attracted 83 cents of every U. S. dollar spent on recreation† (Ray 26). Its nineties counterpart, with its emphasis on the sensational and the spectacular, on episodic action and generic diversification, is a postmodern cinema entertaining the possibility of multiple signification and the hyperreality of the visual, subject to an increasing commodified experience. As Anne Friedberg puts it, â€Å"today the culture industry takes on different forms: Domestic electronics (fax, modems, cable television) follow the interactive model of dialogic telephone communications. The personal computer turns the home user into a desktop publisher, the microwave turns every cook into an instant gourmet, the Walkman transforms each listener into a radio programmer. Both production and reception have been individualized; the culture industry no longer speaks in a univocal, monolithic voice. 189) This proliferation of entertainment venues offered to the individual points to a general malaise often regarded as the central feature of postmodernism, what Featherstone terms â€Å"the fragmentation and overproduction of culture—the key-feature of consumer culture† (76). As Jameson says, â€Å"in postmodern culture, ‘culture’ itself has become a product in its own right; the market has become a substitute for itself and fully as much a commodity as any of the items it includes within itself† (1991 x). In the â€Å"cultural logics of late capitalism,† Jameson’s code-phrase for postmodernity, what is commodified is not simply the image, which has acquired central role in contemporary culture but lived experience itself. As Guy Debord diagnoses in The Society of the Spectacle, â€Å"everything that was lived directly has moved away into a representation (1983 np). Baudrillard, as Friedberg notes, also talks about â€Å"the same phenomenon—representation of the thing replacing the thing—and extends it into a mise-en- abime of the ‘hyperreal,’ where signs refer only to signs. Hyperreality is not just an inverted relation of sign and signifier, but one of receding reference, a deterrence operation in the signifying chain†(178). A part in this process of the commodification of the sign and the derealization of the real has been played by media technologies, especially electronics, as Vivian Sobchack points out: The postmodern and electronic â€Å"instant† constitutes a form of absolute presence (one abstracted from the continuity that gives meaning to the system past/present/future) and changes the nature of the space it occupies. Without the temporal emphases of historical consciousness and personal history, space becomes abstract, ungrounded, flat—a site for play and display rather than an invested situation in which action â€Å"counts† rather than computes. Such a superficial space can no longer hold the spectator/ user’s interest, but has to stimulate it constantly in the same way a video game does. Its flatness—a function of its lack of temporal thickness and bodily investment—has to attract spectator interest at the surface. In an important sense, electronic space disembodies.

Examining Google Electronic Medical Records Information Technology Essay

Examining Google Electronic Medical Records Information Technology Essay A1) Google electronic medical records are a concept based on how the patients can store their medical records electronically (Plunkett, 2008). All over the world, there are many patients who visit to hospitals when they are ill. It is necessary for them to maintain their medical records. So, if we count each patients visit to the hospital for a year, it would be a big number. In such case, is difficult for the patient to maintain all medical records. So, Google has come up with a new task with all new features that help the patients to maintain their medical records. Google has given a name to this task as Google Health. This Google Health means current medical record storage system. Googles medical record system provides a feature where the patients can enter their medical records. These medical records are stored in a very secure place known as repository. The repository is provided with the best security, where it can be accessed only by the health care providers. Doctors are invi ted to give their advices and send relevant information to the medical records entered by the patients. This system is developed with many features. The features include health profiles for medication, reminder messages for prescription refills, reminder messages for the doctor visits, directories for doctors. The features also include the services for patients to enter their medical records, get advices from the doctors and personal health advices. The main purpose for developing this medical system is to make patients records easily accessible, more complete to streamline recordkeeping (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008). 2. What are the problems with Americas current medical recordkeeping system? How would electronic medical records alleviate these problems? A2) American current medical recordkeeping system has following problems It is difficult to maintain paper based medical record by patients, as they frequently visit to the hospital. The current record system is difficult to access. The process of accessing the records is time consuming for both patients and doctors. In certain medical emergencies, time is the most critical factor. In such situations, access to the records becomes difficult. There are security issues related to storage and retrieval of the medical records. As the medical records are highly confidential, any theft or unauthorized access to it can create ethical and legal issues. The medical records entered by the patients should be provided with the appropriate security or else the information can be tracked by the internet thefts. So, it is always important to provide security to the data or the medical record of the patients being stored online. Other problem, with the current system is that the medical records are not accessed from multiple locations. If the patient needs to get transfe rred to a hospital across cities, then he needs to carry his medical records. The solution to this problem, as explained in next paragraph, is to switch to electronic. Following features of Electronic medical records will alleviate these problems Google has developed a system called Google Health, which is designed with a purpose of storing the medical records. The main purpose for developing this system is to make patients medical records easily accessible. The system is developed with the best features that enable the patients to easily enter their medical records. This system is developed to benefit patients in storing their medical records. Google is one of the best companies with a dedicated mission to bring up online innovations. The mission is to organise the worlds information and make it universally accessible and useful. This means, the information that is being collected from all over the world should be made accessible and useful. The best way is to switch to electronic health records, which means storing all patients medical records electronically (Carter, 2008). This conversion to electronic health records stands to provide much needed organization and efficiency to the healthcare industry, which is the single l argest segment of Americas Gross Domestic Product. After the discussions between the individuals and the privacy advocates, they made this electronic medical health records to be stored in such a way that decreases the likelihood of privacy invasion (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008). 3. What management, organization, and technology factors are most critical to the creation and development of electronic medical records? A3) Developing the electronic medical records is not necessary but the most important thing is to maintain the medical records. The health care system is developed with the best features where in patients can enter his or hers medical information (Willis, 2008). There are some factors to which the management is responsible. The management is purely responsible for maintaining each medical record entered by each patient. The management looks after the security provided for the information. The managements work is to look how the records are being handled by the servers. Also, the privacy along with the security, the electronic records stored online is referred by many users in many different fields according to their requirement. Apart from this, the management must also manage their employees payments. The employees are the people who work to accomplish companys tasks. There are some factors to which the organization is responsible. The medical records entered by patients are stored in the databases which are managed by different organizations. These organizations must organise the databases in such a way that the medical records should be stored safely and permanently. These medical records are used by the patients for future retrievals. The organization is also responsible for updating the medical records of the patients and makes them accessible to the users without any trouble. They should also be able to manage, the operations performed by the users. Also, there are some more factors in which the technology can play a major role. The technology that is used and implemented should enhance security of the medical records rather than making the patients worried about their information. The technology that is used should be able to store the data or information to the database without missing any data and also retrieve the required data where and when required (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008). 4. What are the pros and cons of electronic patient records? Do you think the concerns over digitizing our medical records are valid? Why or why not? A4). Following are the few pros to the electronic patient records: It is easier to create, store and retrieve the information. As all records are stored in single database managed by a single service provider, the expertise can develop at the providers end. The information on electronic patient records can be accessed from anywhere across the world. When storing the medical records of the patients online, concerned databases allow some users to view the records and find solution to their medical problems. Even the doctors can view the advices given by other specialist doctors and can learn more about the medication. As all the medical records are stored electronically, the users can make changes to their records and retrieve the required records from any system just by making use of the internet. Following are the few Cons to the electronic patient records: The primary issue with electronic medical records is the data theft or ensuring that the security of the records is not compromised. The medical record can be either paper based or maintained electronically. In both the cases, the medical records need security. The security to printed records is a traditional and proven process while the security process for the electronic records has not been established so far. The security is provided to the medical records stored electronically by using some best technologies. At some point, these technologies provide limited security to the medical records. There have been many cases in the recent past when the personal data of the user was compromised with. As there is only one single service provider of online medical records, it can also mean a single point of failure. If such a system has to be established, it needs to be done with multiple players. Are concerns over digitizing medical records valid? Why or why not? Digitizing means storing or safeguarding the medical records online electronically by using some types of electronic gadgets. The concept of digitizing is to make the medical records accessible anywhere from the world any time. This concept is beneficial for the users as they can view their records where and when necessary. Sometimes, it may not be good to use this concept, if the security for the medical records is not good as this may lead to the track the medical records of many patients (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008). If any kind of emergency medical problem arises during the access to the medical records then it can become a critical issue as it means that someones life is at stake (Baren, 2007). 5. Should people entrust Google with their electronic medical records? Why or why not? A5) Google has developed amazing task where it organises all the medical information of the people and make them available to the users when it is necessary. The Google has named the task as Google Healthcare. By the name itself anyone can guess what the concept is all about. We can entrust Google with their electronic medical records as it benefits the users or the patients in many different ways. With this system the patients can enter their medical records, make changes to the records, and retrieve the medical records when necessary. The patients can retrieve and access the medical record from anywhere in the world. This is because of digitizing. Digitizing means the medical records that are entered by the patients are stored electronically. The medical records stored in this way need a very high security as they are chances for the medical records to be viewed by any other users. So, for this sake it is always necessary to provide high and best security for the medical records be ing stored electronically. Google has provided this security facility. Sometimes we may not entrust on Google with its electronic medical records. This is because the security reason. As the medical records entered online are stored in databases these require high security. These databases are managed by different organizations. The databases used should be enough reliable to store the entered medical records, make changes to the medical records and retrieve the medical records when required by the patients. If the database is unable to update the medical records entered by the patients, it may cause a problem when the patient tries to retrieve that medical record (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008). The concept of digitizing medical records are valid only when the security provided for the medical records is at the highest range when compared to other security features and must be checked by the organizations at times (Tanner, 2007). 6. If you were in charge of designing an electronic medical recordkeeping system, what are some features you would include? What are features you would avoid? A6) Concept of maintain medical records is useful to the users. It is a concept developed by the one of the greatest and biggest companies Google. This concept of Google is mainly about helping users in storing their medical records safely and provides access to their medical records when required by them. It provides the users to enter their medical records which can be accessed by the doctors and give relevant advices to the patients. There are some problems with this concept that were faced by the users. So, as a solution to these problems was to switch to electronic. This means that all the records are maintained electronically where each user is provided with unique username and passwords. If, I am required to design an electronic medical record keeping system, I would include all the required necessary features that will benefit the users of this system. I would also like used technologies which provide the best and high security for the medical records entered by the patients (Grady, 2007). I would provide different features like providing access to the medical records for the patients, organise each health department separately. I would maintain each patients records separately in a well organised manner, provide access to the information when required by different departments. Provide with best database that can store, change and retrieve the medical records entered by the patients. Organise all diseases and allergies according to the type which helps the patients to find the required information for which they are looking for. Provide with a search text for finding the exact solution, provide with lists of doctors of different department their timings of availability. And also provide a text box named as queries where the patients can query and seek for the advices, immediate response and advices to the patients. The things which I would like to avoid are less access speed which consumes patients time, bad or very poor security. Also, would avoid acce ss to medical records by unauthorised users, would avoid databases which are not reliable. Also, avoid limited access to the medical records, would avoid late responses to the queries or advices put by the patients (Laudon, Laudon, C., 2008).

The Problem with Immgration to the United States Essay -- Immigration

The Problem with Immgration to the United States The first move stopping immigration decided by Congress was a law in 1862 restricting American vessels to transport Chinese immigrants to the U.S. The Alien Contract Labor Laws of 1885, 1887, 1888, and 1891 restricted the immigration to the U.S. of people entering the country to work under contracts made before their arrival. Alien skilled laborers, under these laws, were allowed to enter the U.S. to work in new industries. By this time anti-immigrant felling rose with the flood of immigrants and in this period the anti-Catholic, anti-foreign political party the Know-Nothings, was already born. The problems and issues are still much the same today, as they were 150 years ago, but as the numbers and facts show the immigration problem is growing worse and worse. After World War I a marked increase in racism and the growth of isolationist sentiment in the U.S. led to demands for further tightened legislation. In 1921 a congressional act provided for a quota system for immigrants, which the number of aliens of any nationality admitted to the U.S. in a year could not exceed 3 percent of the number of foreign-born residents of that nationality living in the U.S. in 1910. (Potter, Gerald., Congressional Quarterly 1921) This law applied to nations of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Asian Russia, and certain islands in the Atlantic and Pacific. In the 1980s concern about the surge of illegal aliens into the U.S. has led Congress to pass legislation aimed at cutting illegal immigration. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 allows most illegal aliens who have resided in the U.S. regularly since January 1, 1982, to apply for legal status. Also, the law prohibits employers from hiring illegal aliens and mandates penalties for violations. Debate over immigration and immigration policy is not new to the nation's history. From time to time, Congress brought legislation to control the flow of immigration. As immigration rises and hatred grows more laws will be implemented trying to release some of the pressure. Illegal immigration has some pros and cons. Here are some of the so-called â€Å"pros† if they’re really that is debatable. It offers cheaper labor to businesses. By not paying minimum wages to the workers who are willing to work for a lower price, this gives the busi... ...ional handouts they could start to develop something they’ve yet to have the initiative to start. Industry & Hard work! Immigration has taken a great toll on the United States the immigrant population is growing faster then the native born population and it’s about time we do something about it and take back our country not theirs. Sure it’s true that we were all immigrants at one time but just as the constitution changes America has changed as well. We’re no longer the â€Å"Great Melting Pot† we’re our own separate culture and that culture has no more room for illegal immigrants and very minimal room for new immigrants. The idea of closing the borders up is not a â€Å"racial† issue or a â€Å"cultural† issue; it’s a simple matter of self-preservation. It’s the way to keeping our country great and keeping those undesirable for our country out. It’s way past time to find a cure for the Immigration Cancer. Works Cited Conover, Ted. A Journey Through the Secret World of America's Illegal Aliens. Vintage, 1987. Opinion, â€Å"The Immigration Crisis.†, SF Chronicle, July 4th 1998 Dan Carney, " Social Policy " Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report, 9/7/96, Vol. 54 Issue 36, p250 The Problem with Immgration to the United States Essay -- Immigration The Problem with Immgration to the United States The first move stopping immigration decided by Congress was a law in 1862 restricting American vessels to transport Chinese immigrants to the U.S. The Alien Contract Labor Laws of 1885, 1887, 1888, and 1891 restricted the immigration to the U.S. of people entering the country to work under contracts made before their arrival. Alien skilled laborers, under these laws, were allowed to enter the U.S. to work in new industries. By this time anti-immigrant felling rose with the flood of immigrants and in this period the anti-Catholic, anti-foreign political party the Know-Nothings, was already born. The problems and issues are still much the same today, as they were 150 years ago, but as the numbers and facts show the immigration problem is growing worse and worse. After World War I a marked increase in racism and the growth of isolationist sentiment in the U.S. led to demands for further tightened legislation. In 1921 a congressional act provided for a quota system for immigrants, which the number of aliens of any nationality admitted to the U.S. in a year could not exceed 3 percent of the number of foreign-born residents of that nationality living in the U.S. in 1910. (Potter, Gerald., Congressional Quarterly 1921) This law applied to nations of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Asian Russia, and certain islands in the Atlantic and Pacific. In the 1980s concern about the surge of illegal aliens into the U.S. has led Congress to pass legislation aimed at cutting illegal immigration. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 allows most illegal aliens who have resided in the U.S. regularly since January 1, 1982, to apply for legal status. Also, the law prohibits employers from hiring illegal aliens and mandates penalties for violations. Debate over immigration and immigration policy is not new to the nation's history. From time to time, Congress brought legislation to control the flow of immigration. As immigration rises and hatred grows more laws will be implemented trying to release some of the pressure. Illegal immigration has some pros and cons. Here are some of the so-called â€Å"pros† if they’re really that is debatable. It offers cheaper labor to businesses. By not paying minimum wages to the workers who are willing to work for a lower price, this gives the busi... ...ional handouts they could start to develop something they’ve yet to have the initiative to start. Industry & Hard work! Immigration has taken a great toll on the United States the immigrant population is growing faster then the native born population and it’s about time we do something about it and take back our country not theirs. Sure it’s true that we were all immigrants at one time but just as the constitution changes America has changed as well. We’re no longer the â€Å"Great Melting Pot† we’re our own separate culture and that culture has no more room for illegal immigrants and very minimal room for new immigrants. The idea of closing the borders up is not a â€Å"racial† issue or a â€Å"cultural† issue; it’s a simple matter of self-preservation. It’s the way to keeping our country great and keeping those undesirable for our country out. It’s way past time to find a cure for the Immigration Cancer. Works Cited Conover, Ted. A Journey Through the Secret World of America's Illegal Aliens. Vintage, 1987. Opinion, â€Å"The Immigration Crisis.†, SF Chronicle, July 4th 1998 Dan Carney, " Social Policy " Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report, 9/7/96, Vol. 54 Issue 36, p250

The Age Of Reason Essay -- Romanticism Essays

The eighteenth century saw unprecedented growth of literature and the arts in Europe and America. Britain during this time period also enjoyed prolonged periods of civil peace that stood in sharp contrast to the bloody and protracted civil and international conflicts that lasted throughout the 17th century. Furthermore, as the rising middle classes increasingly sought both education and leisure entertainment, the marketplace for artistic production swelled dramatically. One of the most critical elements of the 18th century was the increasing availability of printed material, both for readers and authors. The period was markedly more generally educated than the centuries before. Education was less confined to the upper classes than it had been in centuries, and consequently contributions to science, philosophy, economics, and literature came from all parts of the newly United Kingdom. It was the first time when literacy and a library were all that stood between a person and education . The first half of the century has often been aptly described as the Age of Reason, the Augustan Age and the Neo-classical Age. The very description of this period as Augustan throws light on the prosperity and growth of this period, drawing a direct parallel to the affluent era of Latin literature during the reign of Augustus and in the process, claiming a similar Golden Age of English literature and arts. It was an "age of reason" in that it was an age that accepted clear, rational methods as superior to tradition. The period saw the development and growth of a new attitude towards life and more importantly towards the role of nature around us. Rationalism, as an ideology, gained importance and influenced literary works to a large extent. Rationalism as a philosophical doctrine, asserts that reason and factual analysis, rather than faith, dogma or religious teaching should determine the truth. Such a philosophy provided stability and order to the society and was hence considered as a welcoming change from the chaos that Europe had recently experienced. The Age of Reason, hence, emphasized on the importance to perceive life in a scientific and detached manner. It rejected emotion or fashionable belief and stressed on a more rational, logical and scientific attitude towards life. The discoveries of Isaac Newton, the rationalism of Rà ©nà © Descartes, the skepticism of Pierre Bay... ...ight be taken to include the rise of individualism, as seen by the cult of the artistic genius that was a prominent feature in the Romantic worship of Shakespeare and in the poetry of Wordsworth, to take only two examples; a new emphasis on common language and the depiction of apparently everyday experiences; and experimentation with new, non-classical artistic forms. Romanticism also strongly valued the past. Old forms were valued, ruins were sentimentalized as iconic of the action of Nature on the works of man, and mythic and legendary material which would previously have been seen as "low" culture became a common basis for works of "high" art and literature. Romanticism played an essential role in the national awakening of many Central European peoples lacking their own national states, particularly in Poland, which had recently lost its independence. Revival of ancient myths, customs and traditions by Romanticist poets and painters helped to distinguish their indigenous cultures from those of the dominant nations (Russians, Germans, Austrians, Turks, etc.). Patriotism, revolution and armed struggle for independence also became popular themes in the arts of this period.