The Desert Fox essays

The Desert Fox essays Winston Churchill once said We have, a daring and skillful opponent against us, and, may I say, across the havoc of war, a great general. Churchill was always fond of Field Marshall Erwin Rommel and his abilities as a leader, as seen by his previous words. Giving praise to a general of enemys forces is relatively unheard of, especially when this general is threatening the safety of your country. This just goes to show how truly great Rommel was. He was an unorthodox leader; he was always at the center of the conflict. He would push through enemy forces at full speed. He wasnt concerned with the danger exposed to his flanks when he did this; he felt the enemy would be too confused to fight back in this situation. These tactics proved to be very successful for Rommel. Field Marshall Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel was born on the 15th of November 1891 in the small town of Heidenheim, near the city of Ulm, Germany. He was the second son born to Professor Erwin Rommel, a schoolmaster. His elder brother, Manfred, died in infancy. He also had two younger brothers and one sister. Their father died in 1913 after an operation, making Erwin the man of the house at the age of twenty-two. When Erwin turned 18 he had aspired to join his fathers old regiment, but was turned away. The same result occurred when he tried to join the engineers. On the 19th of June 1910 Rommel became a cadet stationed at the 124th Wurttemberg Regimental headquarters in Weingarten. Rommel was quick to impress his superiors and as such found himself with the rank of Sergeant after only eight months. While attending the Royal Officer Cadet Academy in Danzig Rommel met his future wife, Lucie Maria Mollin. They were wed on the 27th of November 1916. In 1912 Rommel was promoted to Second Lieutenant, he also began his daily ritual of writing to Lucie. In March of 1914 Rommel was stationed in Ulm with the 49th Field Artillery Regiment. He was obs...

Lucy Burns Was a Militant Activist for Womens Votes

Lucy Burns Was a Militant Activist for Women's Votes Lucy Burns played a key role in the militant wing of the American suffrage movement and in the final win of the 19th Amendment. Occupation: Activist, teacher, scholar Dates: July 28, 1879 - December 22, 1966 Background, Family Father: Edward BurnsSiblings: Fourth of seven Education Parker Collegiate Institute, formerly Brooklyn Female Academy, a preparatory school in BrooklynVassar College, graduated 1902Graduate work at Yale University, Universities of Bonn, Berlin, and Oxford More About Lucy Burns Lucy Burns was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1879. Her Irish Catholic family was supportive of education, including for girls, and Lucy Burns graduated from Vassar College in 1902. Briefly serving as an English teacher at a public high school in Brooklyn, Lucy Burns spent several years in international study in Germany and then in England, studying linguistics and English. Womens Suffrage in the United Kingdom In England, Lucy Burns met the Pankhurst: Emmeline Pankhurst and daughters Christabel and Sylvia. She became involved in the more militant wing of the movement, with with the Pankhursts were associated, and organized by the Womens Social and Political Union (WPSU). In 1909, Lucy Burns organized a suffrage parade in Scotland. She spoke publicly for suffrage, often wearing a small American flag lapel pin. Arrested frequently for her activism, Lucy Burns dropped her studies to work full time for the suffrage movement as an organizer for the Womens Social and Political Union. Burns learned much about activism, and much, in particular, about the press and public relations as part of a suffrage campaign. Lucy Burns and Alice Paul While at a police station in London after one WPSU event, Lucy Burns met Alice Paul, another American participant in the protests there. The two became friends and co-workers in the suffrage movement, beginning to consider what might be the result of bringing these more militant tactics to the American movement, long stalled in its fight for suffrage. The American Womens Suffrage Movement Burns moved back to the United States in 1912. Burns and Alice Paul joined the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), then headed by Anna Howard Shaw, becoming leaders in the Congressional Committee within that organization. The two presented a proposal to the 1912 convention, advocating for holding whatever party was in power responsible for passing womens suffrage, making the party the target of opposition by pro-suffrage voters if they did not. They also advocated for federal action on suffrage, where the NAWSA had taken a state-by-state approach. Even with the help of Jane Addams, Lucy Burns and Alice Paul failed to get the approval of their plan. The NAWSA also voted not to support the Congressional Committee financially, though they did accept a proposal for a suffrage march during Wilsons 1913 inauguration, one which was infamously attacked and two hundred marchers were injured and which brought public attention back to the suffrage movement. Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage So Burns and Paul formed the Congressional Union - still part of the NAWSA (and including the NAWSA name), but separately organized and funded. Lucy Burns was elected as one of the executives of the new organization. By April of 1913, NAWSA demanded that the Congressional Union no longer use the NAWSA in the title. The Congressional Union was then admitted as an auxiliary of NAWSA. At the 1913 NAWSA convention, Burns and Paul again made proposals for radical political action: with Democrats in control of the White House and Congress, the proposal would target all incumbents if they failed to support federal womens suffrage. President Wilsons actions, in particular, angered many of the suffragists: first he endorsed suffrage, then failed to include suffrage in his State of the Union address, then excused himself from meeting with representatives of the suffrage movement, and finally backed off from his support of federal suffrage action in favor of state-by-state decisions. The working relationship of the Congressional Union and NAWSA was not successful, and on February 12, 1914, the two organizations officially split. NAWSA remained committed to state-by-state suffrage, including supporting a national constitutional amendment that would have made it simpler to introduce woman suffrage votes in the remaining states. Lucy Burns and Alice Paul saw such support as half measures, and the Congressional Union went to work in 1914 to defeat Democrats in Congressional elections. Lucy Burns went to California to organize women voters there. In 1915, Anna Howard Shaw had retired from the NAWSA presidency and Carrie Chapman Catt had taken her place, but Catt also believed in working state-by-state and in working with the party in power, not against it. Lucy Burns became editor of the Congressional Unions paper, The Suffragist, and continued to work for more federal action and with more militancy. In December of 1915, an attempt to bring the NAWSA and the Congressional Union back together failed. Picketing, Protesting, and Jail Burns and Paul then began working to form a National Womans Party (NWP), with a founding convention in June of 1916, with the primary goal of passing a federal suffrage amendment. Burns applied her skills as an organizer and publicist and was key to the work of the NWP. The National Womans Party began a campaign of picketing outside the White House. Many, including Burns, opposed the entry of the United States into World War I, and would not stop picketing in the name of patriotism and national unity. Police arrested the protestors, over and over, and Burns was among those sent to Occoquan Workhouse for protesting. In jail, Burns continued to organize, imitating the hunger strikes of the British suffrage workers with which Burns was experienced. She also worked to organize the prisoners in declaring themselves political prisoners and demanding rights as such. Burns was arrested for more protesting after she was released from jail, and she was in Occoquan Workhouse during the infamous Night of Terror when the women prisoners were subjected to brutal treatment and refused medical help. After the prisoners responded with a hunger strike, the prison officials began force-feeding the women, including Lucy Burns, who was held down by five guards and a feeding tube forced through her nostrils. Wilson Responds The publicity around the treatment of the jailed women finally moved the Wilson administration to act. The Anthony Amendment (named for Susan B. Anthony), which would give women the vote nationally, was passed by the House of Representatives in 1918, though it failed in the Senate later that year. Burns and Paul led the NWP in resuming White House protests - and more jailings - as well as in working to support the election of more pro-suffrage candidates. In May of 1919, President Wilson called a special session of Congress to consider the Anthony Amendment. The House passed it in May and the Senate followed in early June. Then the suffrage activists, including in the National Womens Party, worked for state ratification, finally winning ratification when Tennessee voted for the amendment in August 1920. Retirement Lucy Burns retired from public life and activism. She was embittered at the many women, especially married women, who did not work for suffrage, and at those she thought were not sufficiently militant in support of suffrage. She retired to Brooklyn, living with two of her also-unmarried sisters, and raised the daughter of another of her sisters who died shortly after childbirth. She was active in her Roman Catholic Church. She died in Brooklyn in 1966. Religion: Roman Catholic Organizations: Congressional Union for Women Suffrage, National Womans Party

American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

American History - Essay Example The confederates lost the war because it was outclassed militarily by the north. Though it had strong generals by the book, they failed to mount an offensive that could defeat the commitment of the Northern forces. The North had a strong Navy to put blockades ion river ways and southern seaports. In terms of size, the south was not able to provide a force as big as the north (Bancroft and Nye 32). Dependency on the north for economic progress was also a weakness well exploited by the North. They had industries to produce finished goods and also make weapons. The South did not have many industries with huge economic capabilities. They even had to import their weapons and some of the finished goods. Black men serving in both the union and confederate forces had reduced roles with most of them helping in labor positions. There was the initial fear of arming black men especially in the south where they still remained slaves. They also served as nurses, blacksmiths and cooks in the army. More advanced military roles executed by the blacks included spying and scouting. The use of the black men was not widespread because the white men did not approve of their capabilities. Together with continuous racial discrimination, black men were termed inferior by fellow white men who even failed to train or equip them adequately. The black soldiers serving in the war also received lower payments for their services. The captured black soldiers received harsher punishment than the white prisoners of war. The objective of reconstruction was to make the rebel states come back to the union as well as help freedmen integrate into the society. The political wave by some section intended for those rebel states to face punishment and be subjugated. The punishment occurred but not the subjugation. The goals of the punishment were also not achieved. There were many divided opinions regarding the course of action that hampered the plan (Bancroft and

Population control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Population control - Essay Example Theological reasons are also given birth control. But birth control is extremely necessary for sustainable long term growth of the world. It is not possible for the world to absorb great population pressure. The resources available are limited and they will deplete sooner or later. Also it is evident from highly populated countries what problems population increase can cause. In this essay we will give arguments in favor of population control. Arguments presented by the other side will also be put under scrutiny. After a thorough analysis it will be established that population control is essential for survival and prosperity. Population Control is Must The most obvious reason why population control should be advocated is that the natural resources of this world are limited. Water, land and minerals will not continue to serve this world for eternity. These resources and limited and increase in population will put more and more pressure on these natural reserves. We should fear the day when these reserves will end. What the world do that day? It is also important to understand that growth should be sustainable and should not be at the expense of nature (Tan, Wu-Meng, 2000). Also human made things like schools and hospitals are not growing at a great pace. With an upward population pressure these institutions will soon be not enough for the population. This will be the case all over the world if population control is opposed globally. The problems of population are evident in highly populated countries like India where poverty is very high (Tully, M. 2004). Children do not get education and food just because there are too many children. Parents cannot bear the burden of these children. These problems accompany when there is an increase in population. Another reason why population control is essential is that increasing demand hikes the prices up and then only some factions of population are able to afford goods. This can be seen in oil and food products. A decreas e in population will cause prices of these valuable commodities to go down. These commodities will also be then available for everyone. Population increase is directly responsible for increase in poverty. People who lack knowledge have a large number of kids and then they cannot support them with their income. Then their children also grow up and do the same. In this way generations and generations fall into the pitfalls of poverty and hunger. Education is not ubiquitous in developing countries and this is why population is increasing rapidly. Small families are also easy to manage. Parents can give time to their children when they have a small family. Children require attention and their up brining is mostly in the hand of parents. A lot of children can therefore reduce the time each child gets from parents. This is another reason why small families are advisable. In such a fast moving world time is valuable and parents will only be able to give sufficient time to their children if and only if they have small families. Population control can also increase the participation of women in workforce. Fewer children will mean that women will have more time to work and in this way productivity of the economy can be increased. More children will mean more time and energy on the part of mother and this will directly result in reduction of her productivity. Productivity of women should be increased because it will allow the economies of countries to expand. This can be achieved by

Is Prejudice and Discrimination a Myth or a Real Life Situation Essay Example for Free

Is Prejudice and Discrimination a Myth or a Real Life Situation Essay Prejudice is a cultural attitude that rests on negative stereotypes about individuals or groups because of their cultural, religious, racial, or ethnic background. Discrimination is the active denial of desired goals from a category of persons. A category can be based on sex, ethnicity, nationality, religion, language, or class. More recently, disadvantaged groups now also include those based on gender, age, and physical disabilities. Prejudice and discrimination are deeply imbedded at both the individual and societal levels. Attempts to eradicate prejudice and discrimination must thus deal with prevailing beliefs or ideologies, and social structure. Although there is no wide agreement as to the cause of prejudice and discrimination, there is a consensus that they constitute a learned behaviour. The internalization of prejudice starts with parents and, later, teachersthe groups primary in the formation of attitudes within children. The media and social institutions solidify prejudicial attitudes, giving them social legitimacy. In a sense, it is incorrect to speak of eradicating prejudice, since prejudice is learned. At best, one can reduce prejudice and discrimination. Society looks most often to education and legislation to alleviate prejudice and discriminationfor reasons still not clearly known, inter-group contact alone is not enough to reduce prejudice. On one hand, multicultural education, whether direct or indirect, constitute the mainstay of educational efforts to eliminate prejudice. On the other hand, the emphasis on civil rights, enlightened immigration policies, and mandates for quota hiring are the cornerstone of legal approaches to alleviating the effects of prejudice and discrimination. The most overlooked area in resolving the problems of prejudice and discrimination lies in the web of close relationships where genuine feelings of love can be fostered and strengthened. The private sphere may indeed be the last frontier where a solution to the problems of prejudice may have to be found.

The Necklace by Guy De Maupassant Essay -- Literary Review

â€Å"The Necklace† The late Irish poet Oscar Wilde once stated, "In the world, there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.† This quote accurately describes human nature to the extent that man is never fully satisfied with his current possessions. In fact, most people who rely on materialistic items for happiness are typically desolated and miserable. This story is based on an archaic view on women, where women have no caste or hierarchy. The people grade women based off their looks and beauty. Money â€Å"practically makes nobility† (Shmoop). It â€Å"enables the user to pay for the high life† (Shmoop) and confine the person with luxurious items known to man. Money controls the life of people, rather than vise versa, causing greed. Malthide, who is the wife of a minor clerk, has immense greed to live a sumptuous life. Malthide’s greed led to her destruction and turmoil, however her grief is what taught her an everlasting les son. The story opens with the description of how miserable Mathilde is. Maupassant describes her as â€Å"suffering constantly, feeling herself destined for all delicacies and luxuries† (Maupassant 4). Malthide is but â€Å"one of those pretty and charming woman, born, as if by an error of destiny, into a family of clerks and copyists† (Maupassant 4). â€Å"The reality of Malthide’s situation is that she is neither wealthy nor part of the social class of which she feels she is a deserving member of† (Sparknotes). Malthide feels like life cheated on her. She sits dreaming of silent rooms nicely decorated and her own private room, scented with perfume to have intimate â€Å"tete- a-tetes† with her closest friends. Then she is awakened, only to realize that she is in her own grim apartm... ... through life just the way it was before. She came from a simple life into a more miserable life. The greed and jealousy that she kept was a sin. One would not feel sympathy to her as she had it coming. Malthide’s greed brought a considerable amount of misery to them both, but in the end she learned a valuable lesson, where one should value themself, rather than what one possess. Works Cited Cummings, Michael J. â€Å"The Necklace.† Cummings Study Guide. Michael J. Cummings, 2010. Web. 24 February 2011. Maupassant, Guy De. â€Å"The Necklace.† Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, 2008. 4-11. Print Shmoop. â€Å"The Necklace.† Shmoop. Shmoop University, n.d. Web. 24 February 2011. SparkNotes Editors. â€Å"SparkNote on The Necklace.† SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2007. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. The Necklace by Guy De Maupassant Essay -- Literary Review â€Å"The Necklace† The late Irish poet Oscar Wilde once stated, "In the world, there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.† This quote accurately describes human nature to the extent that man is never fully satisfied with his current possessions. In fact, most people who rely on materialistic items for happiness are typically desolated and miserable. This story is based on an archaic view on women, where women have no caste or hierarchy. The people grade women based off their looks and beauty. Money â€Å"practically makes nobility† (Shmoop). It â€Å"enables the user to pay for the high life† (Shmoop) and confine the person with luxurious items known to man. Money controls the life of people, rather than vise versa, causing greed. Malthide, who is the wife of a minor clerk, has immense greed to live a sumptuous life. Malthide’s greed led to her destruction and turmoil, however her grief is what taught her an everlasting les son. The story opens with the description of how miserable Mathilde is. Maupassant describes her as â€Å"suffering constantly, feeling herself destined for all delicacies and luxuries† (Maupassant 4). Malthide is but â€Å"one of those pretty and charming woman, born, as if by an error of destiny, into a family of clerks and copyists† (Maupassant 4). â€Å"The reality of Malthide’s situation is that she is neither wealthy nor part of the social class of which she feels she is a deserving member of† (Sparknotes). Malthide feels like life cheated on her. She sits dreaming of silent rooms nicely decorated and her own private room, scented with perfume to have intimate â€Å"tete- a-tetes† with her closest friends. Then she is awakened, only to realize that she is in her own grim apartm... ... through life just the way it was before. She came from a simple life into a more miserable life. The greed and jealousy that she kept was a sin. One would not feel sympathy to her as she had it coming. Malthide’s greed brought a considerable amount of misery to them both, but in the end she learned a valuable lesson, where one should value themself, rather than what one possess. Works Cited Cummings, Michael J. â€Å"The Necklace.† Cummings Study Guide. Michael J. Cummings, 2010. Web. 24 February 2011. Maupassant, Guy De. â€Å"The Necklace.† Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, 2008. 4-11. Print Shmoop. â€Å"The Necklace.† Shmoop. Shmoop University, n.d. Web. 24 February 2011. SparkNotes Editors. â€Å"SparkNote on The Necklace.† SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2007. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.

A well run business Essay

J. B. Priestley ‘An Inspector Calls’ is a play set in 1912 in the Birling’s family dining room. It was written in 1945 and set in Brumley. It features a typical affluent upper class family who own a well run business. The play starts with a small family celebration in which the daughter, Sheila Birling, is getting engaged to Gerald (a business man of the same class). The head of the family, a very prominent opinionated man, makes several toasts to the couple and lectures them about his knowledge of the world. Everything is going cosily until an unexpected visitor turns up on the Birling family’s doorstep. It’s a very sleek, mysterious inspector. The Inspector brings news of a young girl’s suicide. The Birling Family and Gerald first deny all connections with the suicide until the inspector rigorously questions each one of them and their shameful secrets are revealed. One of the reasons why J. B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’ has remained popular is because there is some hope for the younger generation. During most of the play the atmosphere is depressing, drab and sad. The play is based on the inspector accusing each member of helping with the suicide of the young girl. The family all concentrate on how it’s not their fault. They try to blame it on each other and remain in a haze of selfishness. Towards the end of the play the younger generation, mostly Sheila, rise above this haze and look at the consequences. Sheila says ‘But you’re forgetting one thing; everything we said had really happened and if it didn’t end with the girl’s suicide, then lucky for us. But it might have done. ‘ Sheila rises above the dilemma and tries to turn the investigation of the inspector from a depressing and pointless conversation to a well learned lesson. During this Mr and Mrs Birling seem not to care about their harsh involvement with the girl. The younger generation care more and are deeply affected with their participation of the suicide. During ‘An Inspector Calls’ both the children argue with their parents. Eric accuses Mr Birling as ‘Not the kind of father a chap could go to when he’s in trouble. ‘ Mr Birling disagrees sternly with Eric and makes a point that he has treated him more than fairly. Mr Birling argues back with ‘Your trouble is that you have been spoilt. ‘

Introduction to Eavan Boland

Boland is introduced to us as one of the most important poets in modern Irish literature. She is commended for her interest in feminist issues throughout her work, in particular the role of women society. In her poetry she expresses a more accurate view on the contributions and achievements of women in Irish history. Boland's early poems were about domestic issues such as marriage and children. Boland also showed an interest in the role of women in Irish literature and society. In â€Å"Child of our time† Boland introduces us to the theme of motherhood and dealing with the evil of war. The features of the this poem are important to interpreting what Boland is saying, she uses end-rhyme. The tone of Bolands poetry must also be considered, the overall the tone is shocked, but that it is up to us to do something about it. There is a sense of deep hurt conveyed in the last line of the second stanza, ‘you dead’. The first stanza has a sad, regretful tone while there is anger in the use of the word‘murder’. The images of caring for a child in the second stanza are conveyed in a tone of tenderness. The background to the poem is that it was written in response to the death of a child killed in a Dublin bombing in May ’74. Boland may also have been prompted by a newspaper photograph showing a fireman tenderly lifting a dead child from the debris â€Å"Sleep in a world your final sleep has woken. † This is the final line of the poem and it is one of hope and prayer. The initial image here is of the child waking up in a world where it will sleep peacefully and undisturbed, possibly heaven? As a poet she touches issues of concern and hopes that she can make a difference she cleverly points out that it is the adult’s job to teach the child, but in fact it is the child that has taught the adults a lesson. We see a how Boland continues with the theme of war and violence â€Å"The war horse†, this poem was written in the early 70's during the violence in northern Ireland. The context of this poem lies in the title. the war horse is a powerful horse ridden in war by a knight. In the poem the war horse is a large beast that has strayed from the traveller site. At first you may think that the poem is filled with bloody battles but the first two couplets eliminate the likelihood of this. She is comparing the horse to violence in Northern Ireland. The horse intruding into the suburb she lives in, ‘like a rumor of war, huge, ‘Threatening’ is like the intrusion of violence into Northern, and to a greater extent, Irish life. Boland even uses such words as ‘a maimed limb’ as comparisons to gardens uprooted to make the comparison more concrete. â€Å"I lift the window† As the poem continues Boland describes how she is left to observe the damage, â€Å"Only a rose which now will never climb.. only a crocus its bulbous head† The rose and crocus have both been destroyed, but the rose is ‘expendable’ life will continue with or without it. We are able see what message Boland is trying to convey as she mentions the ‘Line of defence’ and the ‘volunteer’ that symbolise the rose and crocus. She is aware of having escaped violence and that she is now safe but she also knows that war involves ‘fierce commitment’. She speaks of a fear of commitment – a fear of the threat of war. Boland is making us ask the hard questions here, why should we care? Based on the above text it is clear to see how Boland is a valuable poet to Irish literature, she discusses relevant issues of the time and feels the need for change. Boland's poetry is its link to her life. This including of a personal perspective in her poetry allows us to use her biographical details to understand and view the poem. In my own opinion that her views on life, war and death are relative to all eras, even though the poems are about the troubles the situations can be compared to war world wide whether its world war one, or the war in Iraq, everybody can learn from Bolands poetry. For these reasons I introduce you to the poetry of Eavan Boland.

Power of Plutonium

Power of Plutonium Free Online Research Papers I believe that we should we begin to manufacture one of the most destructive and powerful elements on the planet again? Nuclear chemists and engineers say yes, but the public says no. The United States stopped making this element with the United Nations ban on manufacturing nuclear weapons. But, with the continuing problem with our thinning energy resources, some want us to begin using more nuclear energy and less energy from natural resources. This paper is going to discuss what plutonium is, the advantages and disadvantages of its use, and why we should think about restarting our production of this useful element. during World War two United States dropped two nuclear bombs, Fat Man and Little Boy on Japan ending the war, the public has had some type of understanding about the power of plutonium and its devastating properties, but that is all anyone heard. After WWII, Americans started to think about what the atomic bomb could do to the people of the United States. When the U.S. started to build more reactors and produce more of the substance but mostly for our nuclear weapons programs. But some times this reaction can get out of hand, this is called a melt down. this can produce harmful effects if it isnt controlled quickly enough. After such instances as the Hanford, Washington reactor meltdown and the accident in the U.S.S.R. at Chernobyl. The United States government banned nuclear testing and also ended the production of plutonium.(Ref. 5) Now we have a problem. We are in need of future sources of energy to power our nation. We are running out of coal and oil to run our power plants.(Ref. 7) We also need it to further our space exploration program. People need to understand the advantages to using plutonium and that the disadvantages are not as catastrophic as they seem. With the turn of the century on its way, the reemergence of plutonium production will need to be a reality for us to continue our way of life. In 1941, a scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, discovered something that would change our planet forever. Glenn T. Seaborg, is credited for the discovery of the element plutonium.(ref. 10) Plutonium, or Pu #94 on the periodic table, is one of the most unstable elements on the earth. Plutonium is made when Uranium 235, absorbs a neutron. Plutonium is a silver metal that has a very high density of 19.816 g/cm3.(ref. 10 ) It is rarely found in the earths crust but the majority of the substance has to be produced by man at the core of nuclear reactors. Plutonium can be found fifteen different forms, or isotopes and their mass number can range from 232-246.(ref. 13) Radionuclide batteries used in pacemakers use Pu-238, while Pu-239 is used in reactors and for Nuclear weapons.(ref. 13) This paper will focus on the isotopes Pu-238 and Pu-239. Plutonium can be very helpful to the United States. there are many reasons for its use. The three major advantages to using this element are for an energy source, power for nuclear propulsion in space exploration and thermo-electric generators in cardiac pacemakers. The first use for plutonium, nuclear power, is obviously the most beneficial use. Plutonium 239 can be used to power nuclear reactors. The average nuclear reactor cont ains about 325 kilograms of plutonium within its uranium fuel.(ref. 7) This complements the uranium fission process. With the continually decreasing supply of coal and oil to power our nation, we need a substitute to complement our energy needs and right now the best replacement is that of nuclear energy.(ref. 7) At the moment there are one hundred and ten nuclear power plants in the United States and they produce one-fifth of the nations electricity. Nuclear energy has been proven to be the cheapest, safest, cleanest and probably the most efficient source of energy.(ref. 7) Nuclear power plants do not use as much fuel as the plants burning coal and oil. One ton of uranium produces more energy than several million tons of coal and plutonium can produce much more energy than uranium.(ref. 12) Also the burning of coal and oil pollute our air and the last thing we need is more pollution to worsen the greenhouse effect. Nuclear power plants cannot contaminate the environment because they do not release any type of pollution.(ref. 2) Plutonium can also be recycled by using a enrichment process. This will produce even more energy. Coal and oil can not be recycled. What is left by their uses is what has been contaminating our atmosphere since the 1800s. You might ask how exactly is plutonium converted into an energy source? Well it is obviously quite complicated to explain. Basically, power comes from the fission process of an atom of the element and produces over ten million times the energy produced by an atom of carbon from coal. One kilogram of plutonium co nsumed for three years in a reactor can produce heat to give ten million kilowatt-hours of electricity. This amount is enough to power over one-thousand Australian households.(ref. 7) Presented with this information, it is only common sense that we should not depend upon fossil fuels to take us into the 21st century. It is obvious that our future lies in the hands of nuclear reactors and the use of plutonium. The second major use for plutonium is for space exploration with its ability to power nuclear propulsion. Nuclear electric propulsion is using energy from plutonium to power space vehicles.(ref. 3) One of the major goals of NASA space program is to, one day, get to Mars, and it looks like the only way it is going to happen in our current fiscal condition, is if we use plutonium, instead of chemical fuel, to power our explorations. Nuclear electric propulsion can be defined as using small plutonium based bricks, to power space vehicles for interplanetary trips. Nuclear electric systems provide very low thrust levels and use only very small amounts of fuel during the voyage.(ref. 3,4) Using electric propulsion also allows the use of less fuel making the spacecrafts launch weight much lower than it would be with chemical fuel.(ref. 3) The last beneficial use for plutonium is for cardiac pacemakers. The thermo-electric generator, which is powered by radionuclide batteries, that powers the pacemaker uses Pu-238. One of the obvious uses of plutonium, whether is an advantage or disadvantage, is for weaponry. It is an advantage if we need to use it against a foe, but it is disadvantageous is our foes use it against the United States. Now that we are at the hands of the Non-proliferation Treaty and the Test Ban Treaty, we no longer can make and/or test nuclear weapons. (Ref. 5) This should help end ideas about nuclear war and other disadvantages to having plutonium in other country’s supplies. Now that we have recognized three important uses for Plutonium and that the threat of nuclear war is no longer as feasible as before, we should recognize the disadvantages of this great energy source. They mostly have to do with excess waste and health effects from the use of nuclear energy. In 1986, a reactor located in Russia at the Chernobyl power plant had a meltdown and radiation escaped from the plant.(ref. 8) Several dozen died from this incident. Nuclear explosions produce radiation. When it comes within human contact, radiation hurts cells, which can sicken people. The cause of the Chernobyl meltdown was mostly because of human error. They tried to perform an experiment at a time when they shouldnt have, and many people paid for their incompetence. There are waste disposal problems that occur with the use of nuclear reactors. Waste also produces radiation, which can be lethal. Since waste ca n hurt and kill people who come in contact with the substance, it cannot be thrown away in a dumpster like other garbage. Waste has to be put in cooling pools or storage tanks at the site of the reactors. Another problem is that the reactors can last for a maximum of fifty years. Even though plutonium is chemically hazardous and produces harmful radiation, it isnt close to being the most toxic substance on the planet. Such substances as caffeine or radiation from smoke detectors, that have the same amount of mass as plutonium, can have a greater toxicity. (Ref. 2) There are basically three ways plutonium can hurt humans. The first is ingestion. Ingestion, though not totally safe, it is not as bad as we think. The fact is, plutonium passes through the stomach and intestines and cannot be absorbed and therefore, is released with other waste we produce.(ref. 1) The second route plutonium can take to be hazardous is through open wounds. This form of contact is very rare and basically cannot happen if the element is handled correctly with protective measures such as correct clothing and health monitor procedures.(ref. 1) The last, main threat to our society comes from inhalation. If inhale d, plutonium is exhaled on the next breath or gotten rid off through the spit flow from the throat and bronchial system and released as with ingestion. But if some could get trapped and put into the blood stream or lymph nodes.(ref. 1) This has the possibility to cause cancer in the future. This might sound frightening, but what we need to realize is that inhaling this type of substance is part of some of our daily lives. The problem of inhaling Pu-239 isnt much different than inhaling such radio nuclides like decaying particles from radon. Radon is a radioactive gas that can cause cancer. (Ref. 6) It comes from the decay of uranium in soil, rock and water. Inhaling this substance can damage your lungs and lead to cancer over a lifetime. The gas can affect everyone, no matter where you live, work or go to school. If you live in a brick house, you could be taking a serious risk if you dont get the radon level tested. A 1990 National Safety Council report showed that radon causes, on the average, approximately 14,000 deaths a year and can go as high as 30,000 deaths a year.(ref. 6) After learning about what radon gas can do to humans, shouldnt we be more concerned about what a naturally occurring substance can do rather than worrying about what plutonium, and its rare contamination might do. Also, how many American citizens will actually have a chance to come in contact with any plutonium isotope in their lifetime? As you can see, if we start to produce plutonium once again, we will benefit greatly from its use. We can use it to help power nuclear reactors, which can power our nation. It can also be recycled and used once again which is one thing fossil fuels cannot do. Nuclear electric propulsion and its use of plutonium will help power space exploration into the next century and maybe even get us to Mars. Pu-238 is also helpful in powering cardiac pacemakers, one of the great biomedical inventions of the1900s. With these constructive and productive uses, we sh ouldnt even debate on the fact that we need plutonium for the future. You may think that by producing plutonium, it will automatically go toward our nuclear weapons program. With non-proliferation and testing banned, this, obviously, is no longer an option. What about nuclear waste and radiation exposure? Well, unless an individual does not use safety precautions and other preventive measures when and if he handles the substance, he or she shouldnt expect anything less of radiation poisoning and contamination. If youre still concerned about exposure to nuclear radiation, youre in for a big surprise when you find out you cant avoid it. There is more of a chance you will die from radon gas than there is from plutonium.(ref. 6) After considering all these factors, whether they are advantages or disadvantages, it is obvious that the use of plutonium is, in fact, feasible and the disadvantages are highly unlikely to affect your health and well being. You probably should be more worried about dying in an automobile accident or a plane crash. Bibliography 1.) http://world-nuclear.org/reference/pdf/uoc-study.pdf 2.) laplace.ee.latrobe.edu.au:8080/~khstatements/perspectives -on-plutonium.html (A Perspective on the Dangers of Plutonium) 3.) letrs.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/LeTRS/browse.pl?1994/E-8242.html (Nuclear Electric Propulsion) 4.) spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov/NASA. Projeicles/Proposes.Sysytems/Nuclear.Propulsion ( NASA fact sheet, Dec. 1991) 5.) tqd.advanced.org/3471.nuclear_politics_body.html (Nuclear Politics) 6.) www.epa.gov/docs?RadonPubs/citquide.txt.html (Citizens Guide to Radon) 7.)www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/progress/nuclear-faq.html (Questions about Nuclear Energy) 8.) www.ieer.org/ieer/fctsheet/fm_hlth.html (IEER: Fissile Materials Health Environmental Dangers) 9.) www.nucmet.com/CompOver.html (NMI Company Overview) 10.) www.teleport.com/~aaugiee/plu.htm (Background on Pu-238/239) 11.) www.uilondon.org/nfc.html (The Nuclear Fuel Cycle) 12.) www.uilondon.org/ci3_plu.html (Core Issues no.3, The Uranium Institute 1995) 13.) www.uic.com.au/nip18.htm (Plutonium) C/ENS Zack Beecher Bn Public Affairs Officer Capt. Armed Regulation DT Research Papers on Power of PlutoniumThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationGenetic EngineeringPETSTEL analysis of IndiaBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfOpen Architechture a white paper19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XRiordan Manufacturing Production PlanTwilight of the UAW

Archaeology of Olive Domestication

Archaeology of Olive Domestication Olives are the fruit of a tree that today can be found as nearly 2,000 separate cultivars within the Mediterranean basin alone. Today olives come in a huge variety of fruit sizes, shape, and color, and they are grown on every continent except Antarctica. And that may in part be why the history and domestication story of olives is a complicated one. Olives in their native state are virtually inedible by humans, although domestic animals like cattle and goats dont seem to mind the bitter flavor. Once cured in brine, of course, olives are very tasty. Olive wood burns even when wet; which makes it very useful and that may be one attractive characteristic that drew people towards the management of olive trees. One later use was for olive oil, which is virtually smoke-free and can be used in cooking and lamps, and in many other ways. Olive History The olive tree (Olea europaea var. europaea) is thought to have been domesticated from the wild oleaster (Olea europaea var. sylvestris), at a minimum of nine different times. The earliest probably dates to the Neolithic migration into the Mediterranean basin, ~6000 years ago. Propagating olive trees is a vegetative process; that is to say, successful trees are not grown from seeds, but rather from cut roots or branches buried in the soil and allowed to root, or grafted onto other trees. Regular pruning helps the grower keep access to the olives in the lower branches, and olive trees are known to survive for centuries, some reportedly for as much as 2,000 years or more. Mediterranean Olives The first domesticated olives are likely from the Near East (Israel, Palestine, Jordan), or at least the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, although some debate persists about its origins and spread. Archaeological evidence suggests that the domestication of olive trees spread into the western Mediterranean and North Africa by the Early Bronze Age, ~4500 years ago. Olives, or more specifically olive oil, has a significant meaning to several Mediterranean religions: see the History of Olive Oil for a discussion of that. Archaeological Evidence Olive wood samples have been recovered from the Upper Paleolithic site of Boker in Israel. The earliest evidence of olive use discovered to date is at Ohalo II, where ca 19,000 years ago, olive pits and wood fragments were found. Wild olives (oleasters) were used for oils throughout the Mediterranean basin during the Neolithic period (ca 10,000-7,000 years ago). Olive pits have been recovered from the Natufian period (ca 9000 BC) occupations in Mount Carmel in Israel. Palynological (pollen) studies on the contents of jars have identified the use of  olive oil presses by the early Bronze Age (ca 4500 years ago) in Greece and other parts of the Mediterranean. Scholars using molecular and archaeological evidence (presence of pits, pressing equipment, oil lamps, pottery containers for oil, olive timber, and pollen, etc.) have identified separate domestication centers in Turkey, Palestine, Greece, Cyprus, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Corsica, Spain, and France. DNA analysis reported in Diez et al. (2015) suggests that the history is complicated by admixture, connecting domesticated versions with wild versions throughout the region. Important Archaeological Sites Sites Archaeological sites important to understanding the domestication history of the olive include Ohalo II, Kfar Samir, (pits dated to 5530-4750 BC); Nahal Megadim (pits 5230-4850 cal BC) and Qumran (pits 540-670 cal AD), all in Israel; Chalcolithic Teleilat Ghassul (4000-3300 BC), Jordan; Cueva del Toro (Spain). Sources and Further Information Plant Domestication and the Dictionary of Archaeology. Breton C, Pinatel C, Mà ©dail F, Bonhomme F, and Bervillà © A. 2008. Comparison between classical and Bayesian methods to investigate the history of olive cultivars using SSR-polymorphisms. Plant Science 175(4):524-532. Breton C, Terral J-F, Pinatel C, Mà ©dail F, Bonhomme F, and Bervillà © A. 2009. The origins of the domestication of the olive tree. Comptes Rendus Biologies 332(12):1059-1064. Diez CM, Trujillo I, Martinez-Urdiroz N, Barranco D, Rallo L, Marfil P, and Gaut BS. 2015. Olive domestication and diversification in the Mediterranean Basin. New Phytologist 206(1):436-447. Elbaum R, Melamed-Bessudo C, Boaretto E, Galili E, Lev-Yadun S, Levy AA, and Weiner S. 2006. Ancient olive DNA in pits: preservation, amplification and sequence analysis. Journal of Archaeological Science 33(1):77-88. Margaritis E. 2013. Distinguishing exploitation, domestication, cultivation, and production: the olive in the third millennium Aegean. Antiquity 87(337):746-757. Marinova, Elena. An experimental approach for tracing olive processing residues in the archaeobotanical record, with preliminary examples from Tell Tweini, Syria. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, Jan M. A. van der Valk, Soultana Maria Valamoti, et al., 20(5), ResearchGate, September 2011. Terral JF, Alonso N, Capdevila RBi, Chatti N, Fabre L, Fiorentino G, Marinval P, Jord GP, Pradat B, Rovira N, et al. 2004. Historical biogeography of olive domestication ( Journal of Biogeography 31(1):63-77.Olea europaea L.) as revealed by geometrical morphometry applied to biological and archaeological material.

Popular Music Since The 1950s As The Exploitation Of Black Music By Essay

Popular Music Since The 1950s As The Exploitation Of Black Music By White Artists And Corporations - Essay Example A number of scholars propose the idea that African-American culture and music were effective expression forms and social inclusion means. Although they originate from the folk music of the African-American slaves, â€Å"the root cause of transnational black identity† (Gilroy The Black Atlantic 1992, p.60), it served as an effective instrument for cultural and social inclusion throughout the 20th century. The introduction of blues, jazz and other black music genres provided blacks a strong impact over American culture and a distinguishing place in a society that was fundamentally closed to black people well into the 20th century (Chiriguayo 2002), (Dwight 1995). In the study The Spirituals and the Blues the African-American scholar James H. Cone (1991, p. 130) argued that â€Å"whatever form black music takes, it is always an expression of black life in America and what the people must do to survive with a measure of dignity in a society which seems bent on destroying their ri ght to be human beings†. The book Blues People is the first real try to place major black music genres as blues and jazz within the setting of Afro-American social history, it illuminates the impact of blacks on American history and culture. Terry Jones (2005) asserts that the blues is a musical opera about life and times of Black America. The blues is the story of Black America in worldly musical form. However, Harrison (1997, p. 18) insisted that â€Å"blues was always a multi-racial music.... The Wikipedia encyclopedia, defines that the term exploitation may carry two distinct meanings: (1) the act of utilizing something for any purpose. In this case, exploit is a synonym for use; (2) the act of utilizing something in an unjust or cruel manner for one's own advantage. Most often, the word exploitation is used to refer to economic exploitation - the act of using another person's labor without offering them an adequate compensation. The Marxist theory is primarily concerned with the exploitation of a whole segment or class of society by another. From this point of view the black music is exploited by whites. Article of Phil Rubio 'Crossover Dreams' (1993) provides a curious vision of the confrontation between black art forms and white performers. In many cases white musicians are motivated by envy or admiration for the emulated black performers. And we see the utilization of African-American culture by whites to find the spirit and humanity, they feel they've lost. It is known that the end of a constant source of interchange and friction should not be seen as the start as 'whites have been playing black music for decades' (Davis 1995, p.84). We are not to locate the first white blues performer. The phenomenon of numerous white musicians taking up the black music is a fairly modern spectacle, beginning in the late 1950s and the early 1960s. One of the first objections to this phenomenon was made by Charles Radcliffe in the UK publication Anarchy (1965). Of course, many people did not consider singing in a black vocal style to be part of blues performance, moreover many feel that whites who have uneasy destiny, for example Hank Williams, sing in their own suffering manner, a distinctively non-black style. We can agree that