Gas Turbine Engine Compressors - Comparison Essay

Gas Turbine Engine Compressors - Comparison - Essay Example Its working fluid is air. The compressor then utilizes the mechanical energy that is imparted from outside so as to enhance static pressure head. In its configuration, it has four basic components: an inlet, impeller, a diffuser and a collector. The impeller increases the velocity of the fluid (Kerrebrock, 1992). In its working, the impeller rotates with a shaft and the casing which encloses the impeller. Due to this rotation, fluid is forced into the inlet as a result of the upstream pressure. As the impeller rotates, fluid moves to the discharge side. Movement of fluid to the discharge side creates a void. This implies that there is reduced pressure at the inlet of the impeller. There is pressure development in the compressor casing inlet. This provides additional air (fluid) into the impeller so as to fill the void (Carl, 2002). On reaching the impeller, the entering fluid flows along the impeller vanes. The fluid velocity increases as it progresses. Fluid at the impeller tip outlet is at maximum velocity. Fluid then enters the casing and expansion of the cross section area occurs. Diffusion occurs in the diffuser as fluid velocity reduces. The diffuser converts the high velocity (kinetic energy) of the fluid into pressure by increasingly diffusing the velocity of the gas. All these lead to the increase in the pressure of fluid (static pressure/ potential energy). This follows the Bernoulli’s principle (Carl, 2002). The final component of the centrifugal compressor is the collector. This is the chamber where diffuser discharges. Axial compressors are aerofoil based compressors utilizing rotatory movement. In the axial compressors, the working fluid flows in a parallel direction to the rotation axis. Axial flow compressors are capable of generating high pressure ratio on a single shaft. Several axial flow stages are combined so as to lead to high pressure ratios. Therefore, the axial flow compressor

African American Culture Essay Example for Free

African American Culture Essay African American culture in the United States includes the various cultural traditions of African ethnic groups. It is both part of and distinct from American culture. The U. S. Census Bureau defines African Americans as people having origins in any of the Black race groups of Africa. [1] African American culture is indigenous to the descendants in the U. S. of survivors of the Middle Passage. It is rooted in Africa and is an amalgam of chiefly sub-Saharan African and Sahelean cultures. Although slavery greatly restricted the ability of Africans in America to practice their cultural traditions, many practices, values and beliefs survived and over time have incorporated elements of European American culture. There are even certain facets of African American culture that were brought into being or made more prominent as a result of slavery; an example of this is how drumming became used as a means of communication and establishing a community identity during that time. The result is a dynamic, creative culture that has had and continues to have a profound impact on mainstream American culture and on world culture as well. After Emancipation, these uniquely African American traditions continued to grow. They developed into distinctive traditions in music, art, literature, religion, food, holidays, amongst others. While for some time sociologists, such as Gunnar Myrdal and Patrick Moynihan, believed that African Americans had lost most cultural ties with Africa, anthropological field research by Melville Hersovits and others demonstrated that there is a continuum of African traditions among Africans in the New World from the West Indies to the United States. The greatest influence of African cultural practices on European cultures is found below the Mason-Dixon in the southeastern United States, especially in the Carolinas among the Gullah people and in Louisiana. African American culture often developed separately from mainstream American culture because of African Americans desire to practice their own traditions, as well as the persistence of racial segregation in America. Consequently African American culture has become a significant part of American culture and yet, at the same time, remains a distinct culture apart from it. History From the earliest days of slavery, slave owners sought to exercise control over their slaves by attempting to strip them of their African culture. The physical isolation and societal marginalization of African slaves and, later, of their free progeny, however, actually facilitated the retention of significant elements of traditional culture among Africans in the New World generally, and in the U. S. in particular. Slave owners deliberately tried to repress political organization in order to deal with the many slave rebellions that took place in the southern United States, Brazil, Haiti, and the Dutch Guyanas. African cultures,slavery,slave rebellions,and the civil rights movements(circa 1800s-160s)have shaped African American religious, familial, political and economic behaviors. The imprint of Africa is evident in myriad ways, in politics, economics, language, music, hairstyles, fashion, dance, religion and worldview, and food preparation methods. In the United States, the very legislation that was designed to strip slaves of culture and deny them education served in many ways to strengthen it. In turn, African American culture has had a pervasive, transformative impact on myriad elements of mainstream American culture, among them language, music, dance, religion, cuisine, and agriculture. This process of mutual creative exchange is called creolization. Over time, the culture of African slaves and their descendants has been ubiquitous in its impact on not only the dominant American culture, but on world culture as well. Oral tradition Slaveholders limited or prohibited education of enslaved African Americans because they believed it might lead to revolts or escape plans. Hence, African-based oral traditions became the primary means of preserving history, morals, and other cultural information among the people. This was consistent with the griot practices of oral history in many African and other cultures that did not rely on the written word. Many of these cultural elements have been passed from generation to generation through storytelling. The folktales provided African Americans the opportunity to inspire and educate one another. Examples of African American folktales include trickster tales of Brer Rabbit and heroic tales such as that of John Henry. The Uncle Remus stories by Joel Chandler Harris helped to bring African American folk tales into mainstream adoption. Harris did not appreciate the complexity of the stories nor their potential for a lasting impact on society. Characteristics of the African American oral tradition present themselves in a number of forms. African American preachers tend to perform rather than simply speak. The emotion of the subject is carried through the speakers tone, volume, and movement, which tend to mirror the rising action, climax, and descending action of the sermon. Often song, dance, verse and structured pauses are placed throughout the sermon. Techniques such as call-and-response are used to bring the audience into the presentation. In direct contrast to recent tradition in other American and Western cultures, it is an acceptable and common audience reaction to interrupt and affirm the speaker. Spoken word is another example of how the African American oral tradition influences modern American popular culture. Spoken word artists employ the same techniques as African American preachers including movement, rhythm, and audience participation. Rap music from the 1980s and beyond has been seen as an extension of oral culture. Harlem Renaissance [pic] Zora Neale Hurston was a prominent literary figure during the Harlem Renaissance. Main article: Harlem Renaissance The first major public recognition of African American culture occurred during the Harlem Renaissance. In the 1920s and 1930s, African American music, literature, and art gained wide notice. Authors such as Zora Neale Hurston and Nella Larsen and poets such as Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, and Countee Cullen wrote works describing the African American experience. Jazz, swing, blues and other musical forms entered American popular music. African American artists such as William H. Johnson and Palmer Hayden created unique works of art featuring African Americans. The Harlem Renaissance was also a time of increased political involvement for African Americans. Among the notable African American political movements founded in the early 20th century are the United Negro Improvement Association and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The Nation of Islam, a notable Islamic religious movement, also began in the early 1930s. African American cultural movement The Black Power movement of the 1960s and 1970s followed in the wake of the non-violent American Civil Rights Movement. The movement promoted racial pride and ethnic cohesion in contrast to the focus on integration of the Civil Rights Movement, and adopted a more militant posture in the face of racism. It also inspired a new renaissance in African American literary and artistic expression generally referred to as the African American or Black Arts Movement. The works of popular recording artists such as Nina Simone (Young, Gifted and Black) and The Impressions (Keep On Pushin), as well as the poetry, fine arts and literature of the time, shaped and reflected the growing racial and political consciousness. Among the most prominent writers of the African American Arts Movement were poet Nikki Giovanni; poet and publisher Don L. Lee, who later became known as Haki Madhubuti; poet and playwright Leroi Jones, later known as Amiri Baraka; and Sonia Sanchez. Other influential writers were Ed Bullins, Dudley Randall, Mari Evans, June Jordan, Larry Neal and Ahmos Zu-Bolton. Another major aspect of the African American Arts Movement was the infusion of the African aesthetic, a return to a collective cultural sensibility and ethnic pride that was much in evidence during the Harlem Renaissance and in the celebration of Negritude among the artistic and literary circles in the U. S. , Caribbean and the African continent nearly four decades earlier: the idea that black is beautiful. During this time, there was a resurgence of interest in, and an embrace of, elements of African culture within African American culture that had been suppressed or devalued to conform to Eurocentric America. Natural hairstyles, such as the afro, and African clothing, such as the dashiki, gained popularity. More importantly, the African American aesthetic encouraged personal pride and political awareness among African Americans. Music [pic] Men playing the djembe, a traditional West African drum adopted into African American and American culture. The bags and the clothing of the man on the right are printed with traditional kente cloth patterns. African American music is rooted in the typically polyrhythmic music of the ethnic groups of Africa, specifically those in the Western, Sahelean, and Sub-Saharan regions. African oral traditions, nurtured in slavery, encouraged the use of music to pass on history, teach lessons, ease suffering, and relay messages. The African pedigree of African American music is evident in some common elements: call and response, syncopation, percussion, improvisation, swung notes, blue notes, the use of falsetto, melisma, and complex multi-part harmony. During slavery, Africans in America blended traditional European hymns with African elements to create spirituals. Many African Americans sing Lift Evry Voice and Sing in addition to the American national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, or in lieu of it. Written by James Weldon Johnson and John Rosamond Johnson in 1900 to be performed for the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the song was, and continues to be, a popular way for African Americans to recall past struggles and express ethnic solidarity, faith and hope for the future. The song was adopted as the Negro National Anthem by the NAACP in 1919. African American children are taught the song at school, church or by their families. Lift Evry Voice and Sing traditionally is sung immediately following, or instead of, The Star-Spangled Banner at events hosted by African American churches, schools, and other organizations. In the 1800s, as the result of the blackface minstrel show, African American music entered mainstream American society. By the early twentieth century, several musical forms with origins in the African American community had transformed American popular music. Aided by the technological innovations of radio and phonograph records, ragtime, jazz, blues, and swing also became popular overseas, and the 1920s became known as the Jazz Age. The early 20th century also saw the creation of the first African American Broadway shows, films such as King Vidors Hallelujah!, and operas such as George Gershwins Porgy and Bess. Rock and roll, doo wop, soul, and RB developed in the mid 20th century. These genres became very popular in white audiences and were influences for other genres such as surf. The dozens, an urban African American tradition of using rhyming slang to put down your enemies (or friends) developed through the smart-ass street jive of the early Seventies into a new form of music. In the South Bronx, the half speaking, half singing rhythmic street talk of rapping grew into the hugely successful cultural force known as Hip Hop. Hip Hop would become a multicultural movement. However, it is still important to many African Americans. The African American Cultural Movement of the 1960s and 1970s also fueled the growth of funk and later hip-hop forms such as rap, hip house, new jack swing and go go. African American music has experienced far more widespread acceptance in American popular music in the 21st century than ever before. In addition to continuing to develop newer musical forms, modern artists have also started a rebirth of older genres in the form of genres such as neo soul and modern funk-inspired groups. Dance [pic] The Cakewalk was the first African American dance to gain widespread popularity in the United States. [pic] African American dance, like other aspects of African American culture, finds its earliest roots in the dances of the hundreds of African ethnic groups that made up African slaves in the Americas as well as influences from European sources in the United States. Dance in the African tradition, and thus in the tradition of slaves, was a part of both every day life and special occasions. Many of these traditions such as get down, ring shouts, and other elements of African body language survive as elements of modern dance. In the 1800s, African American dance began to appear in minstrel shows. These shows often presented African Americans as caricatures for ridicule to large audiences. The first African American dance to become popular with White dancers was the cakewalk in 1891. Later dances to follow in this tradition include the Charleston, the Lindy Hop, and the Jitterbug. During the Harlem Renaissance, all African American Broadway shows such as Shuffle Along helped to establish and legitimize African American dancers. African American dance forms such as tap, a combination of African and European influences, gained widespread popularity thanks to dancers such as Bill Robinson and were used by leading White choreographers who often hired African American dancers. Contemporary African American dance is descended from these earlier forms and also draws influence from African and Caribbean dance forms. Groups such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater have continued to contribute to the growth of this form. Modern popular dance in America is also greatly influenced by African American dance. American popular dance has also drawn many influences from African American dance most notably in the hip hop genre. Art [pic] Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Ossawa Tanner 1859-1937 From its early origins in slave communities, through the end of the twentieth century, African-American art has made a vital contribution to the art of the United States. During the period between the 1600s and the early 1800s, art took the form of small drums, quilts, wrought-iron figures and ceramic vessels in the southern United States. These artifacts have similarities with comparable crafts in West and Central Africa. In contrast, African American artisans like the New England–based engraver Scipio Moorhead and the Baltimore portrait painter Joshua Johnson created art that was conceived in a thoroughly western European fashion. During the 1800s, Harriet Powers made quilts in rural Georgia, United States that are now considered among the finest examples of nineteenth-century Southern quilting. Later in the 20th century, the women of Gee’s Bend developed a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional African American quilts with a geometric simplicity that developed separately but was like that of Amish quilts and modern art. After the American Civil War, museums and galleries began more frequently to display the work of African American artists. Cultural expression in mainstream venues was still limited by the dominant European aesthetic and by racial prejudice. To increase the visibility of their work, many African American artists traveled to Europe where they had greater freedom. It was not until the Harlem Renaissance that more whites began to pay attention to African American art in America. [pic] Kara Walker, Cut, Cut paper and adhesive on wall, Brent Sikkema NYC. During the 1920s, artists such as Raymond Barthe, Aaron Douglas, Augusta Savage, and photographer James Van Der Zee became well known for their work. During the Great Depression, new opportunities arose for these and other African American artists under the WPA. In later years, other programs and institutions, such as the New York City-based Harmon Foundation, helped to foster African American artistic talent. Augusta Savage, Elizabeth Catlett, Lois Mailou Jones, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence and others exhibited in museums and juried art shows, and built reputations and followings for themselves. In the 1950s and 1960s, there were very few widely accepted African American artists. Despite this, The Highwaymen, a loose association of 27 African American artists from Ft. Pierce, Florida, created idyllic, quickly realized images of the Florida landscape and peddled some 50,000 of them from the trunks of their cars. They sold their art directly to the public rather than through galleries and art agents, thus receiving the name The Highwaymen. Rediscovered in the mid-1990s, today they are recognized as an important part of American folk history. Their artwork is widely collected by enthusiasts and original pieces can easily fetch thousands of dollars in auctions and sales. The Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s was another period of resurgent interest in African American art. During this period, several African-American artists gained national prominence, among them Lou Stovall, Ed Love, Charles White, and Jeff Donaldson. Donaldson and a group of African-American artists formed the Afrocentric collective AFRICOBRA, which remains in existence today. The sculptor Martin Puryear, whose work has been acclaimed for years, is being honored with a 30-year retrospective of his work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York starting November 2007. Notable contemporary African American artists include David Hammons, Eugene J. Martin, Charles Tolliver, and Kara Walker. Literature [pic] Langston Hughes, a notable African American poet of the Harlem Renaissance. African American literature has its roots in the oral traditions of African slaves in America. The slaves used stories and fables in much the same way as they used music. These stories influenced the earliest African American writers and poets in the 18thcentury such as Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano. These authors reached early high points by telling slave narratives. During the early 20th century Harlem Renaissance, numerous authors and poets, such as Langston Hughes, W. E. B. Dubois, and Booker T. Washington, grappled with how to respond to discrimination in America. Authors during the Civil Rights era, such as Richard Wright, James Baldwin and Gwendolyn Brooks wrote about issues of racial segregation, oppression and other aspects of African American life. This tradition continues today with authors who have been accepted as an integral part of American literature, with works such as Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, and Beloved by Nobel Prize-winning Toni Morrison, and series by Octavia Butler and Walter Mosley that have achieved both best-selling and/or award-winning status. Museums The African American Museum Movement emerged during the 1950s and 1960s to preserve the heritage of the African American experience and to ensure its proper interpretation in American history. Museums devoted to African American history are found in many African American neighborhoods. Institutions such as the African American Museum and Library at Oakland and The African American Museum in Cleveland were created by African Americans to teach and investigate cultural history that, until recent decades was primarily preserved trough oral traditions. Language Generations of hardships imposed on the African American community created distinctive language patterns. Slave owners often intentionally mixed people who spoke different African languages to discourage communication in any language other than English. This, combined with prohibitions against education, led to the development of pidgins, simplified mixtures of two or more languages that speakers of different languages could use to communicate. Examples of pidgins that became fully developed languages include Creole, common to Haiti,and Gullah, common to the Sea Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia. African American Vernacular English is a type variety (dialect, ethnolect and sociolect) of the American English language closely associated with the speech of but not exclusive to African Americans. While AAVE is academically considered a legitimate dialect because of its logical structure, some of both Caucasians and African Americans consider it slang or the result of a poor command of Standard American English. Inner city African American children who are isolated by speaking only AAVE have more difficulty with standardized testing and, after school, moving to the mainstream world for work. It is common for many speakers of AAVE to code switch between AAVE and Standard American English depending on the setting. Fashion and aesthetics [pic]. A man weaving kente cloth in Ghana. Attire The cultural explosion of the 1960s saw the incorporation of surviving cultural dress with elements from modern fashion and West African traditional clothing to create a uniquely African American traditional style. Kente cloth is the best known African textile. These festive woven patterns, which exist in numerous varieties, were originally made by the Ashanti and Ewe peoples of Ghana and Togo. Kente fabric also appears in a number of Western style fashions ranging from casual t-shirts to formal bow ties and cummerbunds. Kente strips are often sewn into liturgical and academic robes or worn as stoles. Since the Black Arts Movement, traditional African clothing has been popular amongst African Americans for both formal and informal occasions. Another common aspect of fashion in African American culture involves the appropriate dress for worship in the Black church. It is expected in most churches that an individual should present their best appearance for worship. African American women in particular are known for wearing vibrant dresses and suits. An interpretation of a passage from the Christian Bible, every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head , has led to the tradition of wearing elaborate Sunday hats, sometimes known as crowns. Hair Hair styling in African American culture is greatly varied. African American hair is typically composed of tightly coiled curls. The predominant styles for women involve the straightening of the hair through the application of heat or chemical processes. These treatments form the base for the most commonly socially acceptable hairstyles in the United States. Alternatively, the predominant and most socially acceptable practice for men is to leave ones hair natural. Often, as men age and begin to lose their hair, the hair is either closely cropped, or the head is shaved completely free of hair. However, since the 1960s, natural hairstyles, such as the afro, braids, and dreadlocks, have been growing in popularity. Although the association with radical political movements and their vast difference from mainstream Western hairstyles, the styles have not yet attained widespread social acceptance. Maintaining facial hair is more prevalent among African American men than in other male populations in the U. S. In fact, the soul patch is so named because African American men, particularly jazz musicians, popularized the style. The preference for facial hair among African American men is due partly to personal taste, but because they are more prone than other ethnic groups to develop a condition known as pseudofolliculitis barbae, commonly referred to as razor bumps, many prefer not to shave. Body image The European aesthetic and attendant mainstream concepts of beauty are often at odds with the African body form. Because of this, African American women often find themselves under pressure to conform to European standards of beauty. Still, there are individuals and groups who are working towards raising the standing of the African aesthetic among African Americans and internationally as well. This includes efforts toward promoting as models those with clearly defined African features; the mainstreaming of natural hairstyles; and, in women, fuller, more voluptuous body types. Religion While African Americans practice a number of religions, Protestant Christianity is by far the most popular. Additionally, 14% of Muslims in the United States and Canada are African American. Christianity [pic] A river baptism in New Bern, North Carolina near the turn of the 20th century. The religious institutions of African American Christians commonly are referred tocollectively as the black church. During slavery, many slaves were stripped of their African belief systems and typically denied free religious practice. Slaves managed, however, to hang on to some practices by integrating them into Christian worship in secret meetings. These practices, including dance, shouts, African rhythms, and enthusiastic singing, remain a large part of worship in the African American church. African American churches taught that all people were equal in Gods eyes and viewed the doctrine of obedience to ones master taught in white churches as hypocritical. Instead the African American church focused on the message of equality and hopes for a better future. Before and after emancipation, racial segregation in America prompted the development of organized African American denominations. The first of these was the AME Church founded by Richard Allen in 1787. An African American church is not necessarily a separate denomination. Several predominantly African American churches exist as members of predominantly white denominations. African American churches have served to provide African American people with leadership positions and opportunities to organize that were denied in mainstream American society. Because of this, African American pastors became the bridge between the African American and European American communities and thus played a crucial role in the American Civil Rights Movement. Like many Christians, African American Christians sometimes participate in or attend a Christmas play. Black Nativity by Langston Hughes is a re-telling of the classic Nativity story with gospel music. Productions can be found a African American theaters and churches all over the country. Islam [pic] A member of the Nation of Islam selling merchandise on a city street corner. Despite the popular assumption that the Nation represents all or most African American Muslims, less than 2% are members. Generations before the advent of the Atlantic slave trade, Islam was a thriving religion in West Africa due to its peaceful introduction via the lucrative trans-Saharan trade between prominent tribes in the southern Sahara and the Berbers to the North. In his attesting to this fact the West African scholar Cheikh Anta Diop explained: The primary reason for the success of Islam in Black Africa consequently stems from the fact that it was propagated peacefully at first by solitary Arabo-Berber travelers to certain Black kings and notables, who then spread it about them to those under their jurisdiction Many first-generation slaves were often able to retain their Muslim identity, their descendants were not. Slaves were either forcibly converted to Christianity as was the case in the Catholic lands or were besieged with gross inconviences to their religious practice such as in the case of the Protestant American mainland. In the decades after slavery and particularly during the depression era, Islam reemerged in the form of highly visible and sometimes controversial heterodox movements in the African American community. The first of these of note was the Moorish Science Temple of America, founded by Noble Drew Ali. Ali had a profound influence on Wallace Fard, who later founded the Black nationalist Nation of Islam in 1930. Elijah Muhammad became head of the organization in 1934. Much like Malcolm X, who left the Nation of Islam in 1964, many African American Muslims now follow traditional Islam. A survey by the Council on American-Islamic Relations shows that 30% of Sunni Mosque attendees are African Americans. African American orthodox Muslims are often the victims of stereotypes, most notably the assumption that an African American Muslim is a member of the Nation of Islam. They are often viewed by the uneducated African-American community in general as less authentic than Muslims from the Middle East or South Asia while credibility is less of an issue with immigrant Muslims and Muslim world in general. Other religions. Aside from Christianity and Islam, there are also African Americans who follow Judaism, Buddhism, and a number of other religions. The Black Hebrew Israelites are a collection of African American Jewish religious organizations. Among their varied teachings, they often include that African Americans are descended from the Biblical Hebrews (sometimes with the paradoxical claim that the Jewish people are not). There is a small but growing number of African Americans who participate in African traditional religions, such as Vodou and Santeria or Ifa and diasporic traditions like Rastafarianism. Many of them are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean and South America, where these are practiced. Because of religious practices, such as animal sacrifice, which are no longer common among American religions and are often legally prohibited, these groups may be viewed negatively and are sometimes the victims of harassment. Life events For most African Americans, the observance of life events follows the pattern of mainstream American culture. There are some traditions which are unique to African Americans. Some African Americans have created new rites of passage that are linked to African traditions. Pre-teen and teenage boys and girls take classes to prepare them for adulthood. They are typically taught spirituality, responsibility, and leadership. Most of these programs are modeled after traditional African ceremonies, with the focus largely on embracing African ideologies rather than specific rituals. To this day, some African American couples choose to jump the broom as a part of their wedding ceremony. Although the practice, which can be traced back to Ghana, fell out of favor in the African American community after the end of slavery, it has experienced a slight resurgence in recent years as some couples seek to reaffirm their African heritage. Funeral traditions tend to vary based on a number of factors, including religion and location, but there are a number of commonalities. Probably the most important part of death and dying in the African American culture is the gathering of family and friends. Either in the last days before death or shortly after death, typically any friends and family members that can be reached are notified. This gathering helps to provide spiritual and emotional support, as well as assistance in making decisions and accomplishing everyday tasks. The spirituality of death is very important in African American culture. A member of the clergy or members of the religious community, or both, are typically present with the family through the entire process. Death is often viewed as transitory rather than final. Many services are called homegoings, instead of funerals, based on the belief that the person is going home to the afterlife. The entire end of life process is generally treated as a celebration of life rather than a mourning of loss. This is most notably demonstrated in the New Orleans Jazz Funeral tradition where upbeat music, dancing, and food encourage those gathered to be happy and celebrate the homegoing of a beloved friend. Cuisine [pic] A traditional soul food dinner consisting of fried chicken, candied yams, collard greens, cornbread, and macaroni and cheese. The cultivation and use of many agricultural products in the United States, such as yams, peanuts, rice, okra, sorghum, grits, watermelon, indigo dyes, and cotton, can be traced to African influences. African American foods reflect creative responses to racial and economic oppression and poverty. Under slavery, African Americans were not allowed to eat better cuts of meat, and after emancipation many often were too poor to afford them. Soul food, a hearty cuisine commonly associated with African Americans in the South (but also common to African Americans nationwide), makes cre.

Manual Vacuum Aspiration for First Trimester Pregnancy Loss

Manual Vacuum Aspiration for First Trimester Pregnancy Loss Dr. Sindhoo TO DETERMINE THE EFFICACY OF MANNUAL VACUM ASPIRATION IN MANAGEMENT OF FIRST TRIMESTER PREGNANCY LOSS INTRODUCTION: An estimated 46 million abortions are performed globally each year, with one-third of all abortions are performed under unsafe conditions leading to 13% of all maternal death1. 10–12% of these abortions are performed in the early first trimester1, 2. Local data shows an annual abortion rate of 29 per 1000 in women aged 15-49 years. Incomplete and missed miscarriage being the commonest occurs in approximately 15 % of clinically recognized pregnancies and in 890,000 women per year3. One study conducted by Shonali Agarwal and Dolly Gupta reported the efficacy of MVA 90% in management of first trimester pregnancy loss5. First trimester of pregnancy ranges between 5–13 weeks and is associated with 3 to 5 times lower maternal mortality and morbidity risks than termination during second trimester4. Although the etiologies of first trimester loss are multi factorial and often remain unknown, certain risk factors increase the likelihood of pregnancy loss. Findings such as absenc e of cardiac activity after 5 wks, gestational sac smaller than expected for dates, an abnormal-appearing yolk, intrauterine hematoma (sub chorionic hemorrhage), vaginal bleeding after 7 weeks of gestation are potential markers for subsequent pregnancy loss4. Once a first trimester pregnancy loss has been diagnosed, there are three forms of management: expectant, medical, or surgical evacuation (with electrical or manual vacuum aspirator). The optimal mode of management is determined by gestational age, whether the pregnancy loss is delayed or incomplete, maternal hemodynamic stability, the presence of infection, and, most importantly, patient preference5. Manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) employs a vacuum pump in which the vacuum is created using a hand-held, hand activated plastic syringe. 4,5,6 Manual vacuum aspiration is safe, effective, easy to use, portable, and reusable. It is appropriate for use in many different clinical settings (Including office, emergency room, or the operating room) thus avoiding the need for the use of an operating theatre and the risks of general anesthesia. It does not require lengthy training for proper operation, and may be performed by a wide range of trained medical personnel including midwives and nurses. When conducted in the outpatient setting rather than operating room, manual vacuum uterine aspiration can result in substantial cost savings, electrical power saving and significant reduction in procedure time (3.7 minutes for MVA vs. 10.2 minutes for DC).The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends MVA as a preferred method of uterine evacuation2,7. RATIONALE: On robust literature search there was scant relatively old data available on efficacy of MVA but no one focused on efficacy of manual vacuum aspiration in management of first trimester pregnancy loss. This provide me the strong rationale to conduct this study, the aim of my study is to set a baseline data which will help to generate the current local statistics of MVA in terms of efficacy on this particular group of women with loss of pregnancy. If we found the significant efficacy of MVA then we will recommend MVA as first line of treatment in future in management of first trimester pregnancy loss. OBJECTIVES: The aim of our study is to determine the efficacy of Manual vacuum aspiration in management of first trimester pregnancy loss. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION: FIRST TRIMESTER PREGNANCY LOSS: An abortion is the spontaneous or induced loss of an early pregnancy. Miscarriage occurs within 12 weeks of gestation will be confirmed on ultrasound. EFFICACY: If an empty uterus with no evidence of retained products of conception seen within 24 hours on Ultrasound will be label as efficacy positive. MATERIAL AND METHODS: SETTING: Liaquat university hospital Jamshoro /Hyderabad DURATION: Six months after approval of synopsis. STUDY DESIGN: Case series study. SAMPLE SIZE: By using WHO sample size calculator taken efficacy of MVA i.e P=90% (5) margin of error (d) = 5.5% confidant interval 95% then the estimated sample size will be at least n=115. SAMPLING TECHNIQUE: Non-probability consecutive sampling INCLUSION CRITERIA: All women with gestational age of ≠¤ 12 weeks confirm from last menstrual period with pregnancy loss (as mention in operational definition) Age 18-35 years Women with any parity Exclusion Criteria: Women who are hemodynamically unstable (systolic B.P Ectopic pregnancy assess on ultrasound Known systemic disease including hepatic or renal dysfunction. Had a history of cervical surgery. DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURE: All patients fulfilling inclusion criteria and not having any of exclusion criteria attending Outpatient department/emergency department of Liaquat university hospital Jamshoro after evaluation by consultant will be included in the study. Informed consent will be taken from each patient about procedure and this study. Approval of the ethical committee will be sought. Patients will undergo elective abortion. All operations will be performed by fourth year residents under supervision of consultant having more than 5 years of post-fellowship experience. Intravenous anesthesia will be used in all the cases. Manual vacuum aspiration will be performed under par cervical block with 10-20 ml of 1% lignocaine using Glick technique3. MVA will be performed using a flexible Ipas Easy Grip cannula attached to a 60 ml syringe (aspirator), with a double locking valve mechanism. To assess the efficacy(as mentioned in operational definition) of MVA. Patients will be fallowed till 24 hours. Demographi c variables of name, gestational age, and parity will be noted. The final outcome in terms of efficacy will be noted after 24 hours will be recorded on approved Performa. DATA ANALYSIS PROCEDURE: Statistical analysis will be performed using statistical software SPSS version 16 on computer. Mean  ± standard deviation will be calculated for age gestational age and parity. Frequency and percentage will be calculated for efficacy. Effects modifier will be controlled through stratification of age gestational age and parity to see the association with outcome i.e (efficacy) by applying Chi-square test taking P≠¤0.05 will be considered statically significant. REFERENCES Wen J, Cai QY, Deng F, Li YP. Manual versus electric vacuum aspiration for first-trimester abortion: a systematic review. BJOG. 2008 Jan;115(1):5-13.Review. PubMed PMID:18053098. Yan J, Saravelos SH, Ma N, Ma C, Chen Z-J, Li T-C. Consecutive repeat miscarriages are likely to occur in the same gestational period. Reproductive BioMedicine;2012;24:634-38. Tasnim N, Mahmud G, Fatima S, Sultana M. Manual vacuum aspiration: a safe and cost-effective substitute of electric vacuum aspiration for the surgical management of early pregnancy loss. J Pak Med Assoc. 2011 Feb;61(2):149-53.PubMed PMID: 21375164. Allison JL, Sherwood RS, Schust DJ. Management of first trimester pregnancy loss can be safely moved into the office. Rev Obstet Gynecol. 2011;4(1):5-14.PubMed PMID: 21629493; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3100102. 5. Agarwal S, Gupta D. Comparison of manual vacuum aspiration (mva) versus traditional suction evacuation in first trimester medical termination of pregnancy. Int J Res Med.2013;2(1);11-14. Farooq F, Javed L, Mumtaz A, Naveed N. Comparison of manual vacuum aspiration,and dilatation and curettage in the treatment of early pregnancy failure. J Ayub Med Coll Abbottabad. 2011 Jul-Sep;23(3):28-31. PubMed PMID: 23272429. Harwood B, Nansel T; National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.Management of Early Pregnancy Failure Trial. Quality of life and acceptability of medical versus surgical management of early pregnancy failure. BJOG. 2008 Mar;115(4):501-8. Doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2007.01632.x. Pubmed PMID: 18271887;pubmed Central PMCID: PMC2424403. PROFORMA TO ASSESS THE EFFICACY OF MANUAL VACUUM ASPIRATION IN MANAGEMENT OF FIRST TRIMESTER PREGNANCY LOSS Date: ________________ Reg No: serial No: ___________________ Name: W/O Age: Gestational age: weeks Parity: EFFICACY: YES NO

Miwok Social Life :: essays research papers

History Final Miwoks set many standards for themselves and the tribe. They were usually very hard workers, working harsh numbers of hours a day to keep the tribe alive. There were hunters, fishers, and many other jobs for people. A non-nomadic people, the Miwoks settled in the Yosemite Valley. My report is on the Miwok Social Life. Games, customs, jobs, and many other things about the Miwok Indians will all be covered in this. The way they lived, what they ate, and what they farmed. They all had a job, some of the women wove baskets, and some of them cooked. The men hunted, fished, made canoes, and fought. The first step of stepping into the life of a Miwok is to understand their dress. They were generally very lenient on clothing, some children going completely naked. Many wore flaps and when the men hunted, they camouflaged themselves in deerskins and grasses. Now you must know how they lived. What they lived in, how they built their homes, and such. U-ma-cha is the named of the home they lived in. Much like a "tee-pee", These homes were made of the thick bark of the Sequoia Redwoods. Mud and dirt was piled on the bottom of these homes, to keep water and rodents out, and heat in. They were at times coated with a layer of pine needles. About 8-15 feet in diameter, these homes were small. They did not bathe, but instead sat in sweat houses until they sweat the smell off and then ran out and jumped in a cold stream (Chilly Willy). Most slept on Deerskins, but a few slept on willow frames lifting them only inches from the ground, while the chief slept on a bearskin. The fire, at the center of each U-ma-cha, was used for cooking and heat. It was vital to have this fire burning constantly. There was also a ceremonial sweat house used for special ceremonies. This had a roof of 5 inches thick and was in the center of the village. The foods the Miwoks ate are also another step. With plentiful amounts of food in the Yosemite Valley, the Miwok stayed where they were. With out the need to move about in a nomadic fashion, their villages grew. This meant for a large need of food. Their main food was acorns. The women prepared this by cracking and shelling the acorns, then drying them.

Compare and Contrast Two Shopping Centres

Nguyen Le Thi Phuc 24/3/2013 A shopping plan Last week, I thought of a plan to go to the shopping centre with my friend who is going to visit Singapore. Both my friend and I like shopping, I wanted to take her to go shopping. But I could not make up my mind that where we would go. I had ever come to Thomson Plaza and Lucky Plaza that all of them were very nice. Then I compared the location, structure and goods of two centres that I could finally come to my decision to go Lucky Plaza.First, I considered about their location. Thomson Plaza is a shopping centre located in urban areas, in the heart of private and public residential estates at Upper Thomson Road. However, Lucky Plaza is situated in the midst of Singapore’s premier shopping district and located along the Orchard road. So both Thomson Plaza and Lucky Plaza are easy to move by any transportation. Lucky Plaza is closer the MRT Station but farer my home than Thomson Plaza.Besides, Lucky Plaza had been identified as one of the most accessible landmarks for the tourists. Second, I thought of their structures. While Thomson Plaza’s logo is an orange – gray leaf, Lucky Plaza’s logo looks like double â€Å"S† with yellow color. The appearance of Thomson Plaza looks nice and specially, and Lucky Plaza does too. Thomson Plaza has 3 floors and a basement carpark. In contrast, Lucky Plaza has 6 floors, 1 basement and a large parking lot. So there are many shops in Lucky Plaza more than Thomson Plaza.From their structures, they both buy the diverse variety of goods with many different brands. They serve quality goods, good services and sometimes they have some goods on sale with low price. Specially, Lucky Plaza has many kinds of foods, Photo studio, Bossini, Levi’s, Bata shops that we like most. On the orther hand, Thomson Plaza doesn’t have those shops. In conclusion, after taking everything into consideration, I think I made the right decision. We will have a sho pping trip in Lucky Plaza with our favourite shops.

Hydrogen Bond Examples in Chemistry

Hydrogen Bond Examples in Chemistry Hydrogen bonds occur when a hydrogen atom undergoes dipole-dipole attraction to an electronegative atom. Usually, hydrogen bonds occur between hydrogen and fluorine, oxygen, or nitrogen. Sometimes the bonding is intramolecular, or between atoms of a molecule, rather than between atoms of separate molecules (intermolecular).   Examples of Hydrogen Bonds Here is a list of molecules that exhibit hydrogen bonding: water  (H2O): Water is  an excellent example of hydrogen bonding. The bond is between the hydrogen of one water molecule and the oxygen atoms of another water molecule, not between the two hydrogen atoms (a common misconception). How this works is that the polar nature of the water molecule means each hydrogen atom experiences attraction to both the oxygen its bound to and to the non-hydrogen side of the oxygen atoms of other water molecules. Hydrogen bonding in water results in the crystal structure of ice, making it less dense than water and able to float.chloroform  (CHCl3): Hydrogen bonding occurs between hydrogen of one molecule  and carbon of another molecule.ammonia (NH3): Hydrogen bonds form between hydrogen of one molecule and nitrogen of another. In the case of ammonia, the bond that forms is very weak because each nitrogen has one lone electron pair. This type of hydrogen bonding with nitrogen also occurs in methylamine.acetylacetone  (C5H8O2): Intramolecular   hydrogen bonding occurs between hydrogen and oxygen. DNA:  Hydrogen bonds form between base pairs. This gives DNA its double helix shape and makes replication of the strands possible, as they unzip along the hydrogen bonds.nylon:  Hydrogen bonds are found between the repeating units of the polymer.hydrofluoric acid (HF): Hydrofluoric acid forms what is called a symmetric hydrogen bond, which is stronger than the regular hydrogen bond. This type of bond also forms in formic acid.proteins:  Hydrogen bonds result in protein folding, which helps the molecule maintain stability and assume a functional configuration.polymers:  Polymers that contain carbonyl or amide groups can form hydrogen bonds. Examples include urea and polyurethane and the natural polymer cellulose. Hydrogen bonding in these molecules increases their tensile strength and melting point.alcohol:  Ethanol  and other alcohols contain hydrogen bonds between hydrogen and oxygen.

Qualities of Good Leadership †Humanities 4 Page Essay

Qualities of Good Leadership – Humanities 4 Page Essay Free Online Research Papers Qualities of Good Leadership Humanities 4 Page Essay A good leader needs to know when to make decisions and when to let others decide. If people are always left to do what they want, time and resources get wasted. On the other hand, if people always follow orders, morale starts to decline, wasting even more time and resources. In a survival situation, this can be a matter of life or death. About a year back, me and some friends were out for a nice brutal birthday party. We found ourselves in a forest somewhere near Campbellsville, split into two teams, armed with paintball guns. Each team had two objectives in this particular game of capture the flag. The first was to bring the enemy’s flag back to your own base, and the second was to survive. We decided that we would set up a democratic system in which if a problem occurred, we would let everyone vote on who would get the flag and who would defend ours. As it turned out, everyone wanted to get the other flag and leave our flag alone, which posed a problem because we couldn’t leave our own flag unattended. We put our government into action, in the end leaving me and a good friend of mine in charge of offence. We left and began our trek through the forest looking for any sign of the enemy flag. Meanwhile, the other two also left after we were out of sight and worked their way to the flag. In the end, we ended up shooting down our own men defending the new flag we had just acquired, because they decided to take matters into their own hands and neglect their jobs. When two members of the other team returned with our flag, we realized what had happened. We had mistaken o ur friends as two opponents because they didn’t follow the plan. In the end, we lost because of poor leadership. Guidelines were put in place that were not favored by part of the group, and as such were not followed. We failed to realize that jobs had to be made and people made to do them to keep our biggest priority, winning, in perspective. A good leader needs to be able to keep their long term goals in check while all the time keeping tabs on what needs to be done in the present. We lost our balance between offense and defense, causing us to lose the game. Good leadership requires a bit of democracy and a bit of dictatorship. We live in a world where with privilege comes responsibility. Taking William Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ as an example, Ralph’s leadership style failed because priorities, like keeping the signal fire going, were forgotten. Likewise, Jack’s leadership style failed because it was on the other side of the equation; nobody had their say in what went on and Jack made poor decisions for the group. If both styles were combined, everyone could be assigned a job that must be done as well as have their own say in how things run on the island. Just as the two defensive players did in our game of paintball, Jack decided to leave his responsibilities and focus on his privileges, causing the group to lose as a whole. Confusion as to who our team members were appeared, and in the end we saw them as enemies. The confusion seen in the book ‘Lord of the Flies’ during Simon’s death can, in a way be compared to the way our teammates were shot down in a lack of understanding caused by poor leadership. The kids on the island needed to rely on each other to survive, but instead were split apart and misled. They lost sight of their main priority, survival. Guidelines are a part of any leader’s job. Take laws for instance; they are all guidelines as to how one should act under different circumstances. If you forget about your responsibilities and break a law, you have to deal with the consequences. In some scenarios you get a fine, while others might land you in jail. Who decides what will happen to you, should you forget your responsibilities? The penalties associated with breaking various laws are made by the government of the country you live in. Some countries have similar laws, some do not. The death sentence is a hot topic in the United States today; its management feels that if certain guidelines are not met, people should be put to death, whereas a good percent of the population feel this sort of sentence should never be taken into consideration. When there is some disagreement between how certain guidelines should be handled, conflict emerges and governments split in two, each side with its own ideology. This can be seen in ‘The Lord of the Flies’, at the point where Jack decides he is fed up with Ralph’s approach and forms his own tribe, separate from the original. Different guidelines emerge in the two groups, Jacks having more severe punishment for the most part, because he feels that certain levels of punishment are necessary to prevent a rehash. In our game, members of the team that did not follow the plan would be hog tied and subjected 8 rounds of paintballs, we probably would have won. Generally, the consequences associated with not adhering to a guideline are made to be unfavorable enough that the guideline will be followed, if only to forgo any punishment later down the road. A good leader needs to know where to draw the line with these punishments, which never happened in the case of Ralph and Simon from ‘Lord of the Flies’. On the one hand, we have Ralph, who chose not to punish those who waive their duties, and Jack, who went far beyond the threshold of insanity in his punishments. A good leader needs to find a sort of balance between these two methods, not leaving everything up in the air, but also never controlling with fear. The last, but certainly not least vital quality of a good leader is the ability to not only prioritize, but manage several levels of priorities in equality. Just as in the game of paintball we had more than one priority, the kids in ‘The Lord of the Flies’ also had many. Their goals were broken up into short and long term; the long term goal was to be brought home, and the short term goal was to survive on the island until that time came. The passing of the boat while the signal fire was out, was an example of poor leadership and the inability to keep both long and short term goals under control. Having the hunters also keep the fire going was a mistake, because they could only manage these goals one at a time. While they were hunting, the signal fire was dwindling away, and while they were keeping the fire going, they were missing possible good opportunities to catch a pig. If the hunters were put only in charge of hunting and the group building huts was split off into two groups, one to continue building and one to watch the signal fire, each would have a job to do that didn’t interfere with any other job. There would have been no arguments over the signal fire, Jacks tribe might well have not formed into its own dictatorship government, and all the kids would have been able to return home at the first passing of the ship. Research Papers on Qualities of Good Leadership - Humanities 4 Page EssayThe Hockey GameBringing Democracy to Africa19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraCapital PunishmentHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayQuebec and CanadaBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XTrailblazing by Eric AndersonHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionWhere Wild and West Meet

M4 U2 Notes Essay

M4 U2 Notes Essay M4 U2 Notes Essay Advantages of budgeting and budgetary control Budgeting is obviously a sensible thing for a business to do because it controls how much money a business should be spending on rent, wages etc. If departments keep to the budget or spend less than they actually can then the company in this case Legend T-shirts should have a favourable variance depending on how many sales they make. Legend T-shirts had anticipated to spend  £80,000 on fixed costs and  £72,000 on variable costs which has a total of  £152,000. They actually spent  £79,000 on fixed costs and  £54,000 on variable costs with a total of  £133,000. This means they organised the budget control correctly as only heating and lighting spent over their budget but misc spent less so it all worked out. The problem was they didn’t sell enough so this isn’t the fault of budgeting the blame will fall on sales & marketing. The whole point of budgeting is to compel the management to think about the future they need to make sure they are achieving targets and this is for every department they should aim to keep their expenditure the lowest they possibly can. The one expense in Legend T-shirts that didn’t achieve its target was heating and lighting the one expense that overachieved was misc as they lowered their total costs by a  £1000. This whole thing enables them to see what they’re doing wrong and how they can improve their budgeting for the future. Coordination & Communication Budgeting promotes coordination & communication because the senior management will have to coordinate & communicate with departments about their future plans, and how they intend to manage the budget, and how much each department should get to spend. This also lets them know how much they should be spending on all the resources. Coordination is essential in every business as poor coordination can lead to errors which affect the business. Communication is essential so everyone in their respective departments knows how things are going to be structured. The business needs to communicate correctly and effectively to make sure everyone knows how they should use their budget in this case. Miscommunication however can lead to errors and can affect the business; an example of a miscommunication is for example in the budgeting department they could miscommunicate the budget for the marketing department and this could cause them to over spend. This will have a bad impact on the business because they have miscommunicated information which could affect the businesses revenue/profits causing the business to make a loss. An example of effective communication is where budgeting effectively tell the departments how much they should spend on each expense. This is great for the business especially if everyone keeps to the budget. This is because the aim of budgeting is to keep the costs low to keep the breakeven point as low as possi ble. Coordination is essential in most businesses it is the senior management’s role to coordinate the budgets and make sure everything is done appropriately and in the correct way. The senior management of Legend t-shirts coordinated wrongly with the department or function which was in charge of the heating and lighting expense this caused the business to make a loss. Responsibility Budgeting clearly defines the areas of responsibility tells everyone how much they need to spend and on what and they are required to stick to the budget and try to get costs lower. They will require managers for the budget that are responsible for the achievement of budget targets and for the operations under their personal control. Legend T-shirts need to make sure they are responsible with their money by this I mean sticking to their budgets. For example finance should only spend a certain amount of money on the T-shirts/resources/rent etc. This is to

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 14

Business Law - Essay Example ct to gain the protection of the law, it must satisfy the element of offer, acceptance, purpose to create legal representation, and there must be a consideration. Under the element of offer, a promisor invites a promisee to a responsibility and he makes it in such a way that he expects an acceptance from the promisee1. For example, person A offers to rent out his building to person X, for business purposes. In this example, â€Å"responsibility† is denoted by the building that person A wants to rent to person X, for business purposes. In acceptance, a promisee agrees to take up the responsibility offered by the promisor. For example, after person A offered to rent out his building to person X, person X agree to become a tenant under the conditions offered. This amounts to acceptance. For a contract to exist, it must be legally binding document. It must be recognizable by the law, and its provision acceptable by the legal principles of the nation. Finally, a valid contract must have some values exchanged, and this is termed as consideration. For instance, take our case above. He can pay either in cash, or through some valuable products. This paper also identifies the public, social and business issues that influenced the courts in their rulings. This paper has a conclusion, which is a summary of the main points addressed2. One key fact that relates to the enforceability of a contract is whether there is an element of substantial performance within a contract. This fact is better portrayed in the case involving, Jacob and Young vs. Kent (1921). In this case, the plaintiff did not build the house as per the contractual agreement with the defendant. However, the portion left was minimal, and redoing the work would have meant demolishing a large percentage of the whole building, and on this basis, the plaintiff refused to re-do it. The plaintiff won the case, as the court ruled that when there is a defect in contract performance, and it is minimal, then the concept of

Weekly Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Weekly Journal - Essay Example After reviewing our procedures, I became increasingly impressed by their effectiveness. I became more conscious of the means we use make our parents and clients comfortable, and the necessity for incorporating that into the educational environment. I considered how it’s necessary to establish a friendly environment by staging the initial meeting in a comfortable library room with a fire place. This removes the issue of being over authoritarian. In my own experience with language learning I remember "No hacer gestos obscenos", and how I figured out "gestos" means gestures and "obsenos" is obscene, intuitively using cognates. The articles motivated me to begin web searches to obtain lists of cognates and to look for additional methods for implementing them while working with ELL learners. I’d like to develop a lesson plan that would appeal to Junior and High School language-learners, rather than just primary students. My theory is that within the lesson on cognates the actual nature of grammatical differences between the languages could be addressed. For instance, pointing out to students that English allows consonant endings where in Spanish you will consistently see cognates ending in vowels. This is a key distinction in the Helman article and I believe consistently addressing this in lessons, as a supplement to the lesson on cognates, would be of great effectiveness to older students. As I compiled a list of words that will be helpful to students, I developed a new understanding and empathy for ELL learners. I realized first-hand the effort it takes to complete work in a language that isnt my own, and how it is very easy to discredit the home language. Attempting to do class work in a foreign language, acquire vocabulary and develop proper syntax in a foreign tongue is intensely challenging and all methods of sheltering should be used to promote cultural

Understanding the New Digital Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Understanding the New Digital Economy - Essay Example The rapid development brought about in the areas of technology has also boosted up one crucial factor which cannot be ignored when it comes sustainable and continued economic growth (Gumah & Jamaluddin, n.d.). This crucial factor can be commonly referred to as the communication process. In relation to the above fact, communication can be considered as a vital factor contributing to the social and cultural development of an economy. Through the effective use of communication, multiple business processes has come up and are expected to flourish in the later years. More specifically, the entire concept of globalization can be stated to have been dependent on technology. As for the current marketing trend, the entire business world has turn digitised. At present, people across the world can be widely seen to be eager to perform digital or online marketing with the sole purpose of saving both time as well as money. Although the concept of digitization is not so old but it has got a great perspective in terms of acting as an economic development factor (Gumah & Jamaluddin, n.d.). Digitization in general can be seen to be promoting trade which in turn benefiting the economy in myriad ways (Gumah & Jamaluddin, n.d.). The main objective of this discussion is to evaluate and understand the new digital economy. This topic also includes sub parts such as understanding of the aspects which have directly or indirectly contributed towards transition of traditional economy into a new digitised economy. This section will comprise of the thoughts and ideas of few authors who seem have quoted in context to this topic. As per the Strategy Dynamic Global SA (2013), technology have helped multiple nation in segregating their ‘ previous economic stance’, ‘education system’ and ‘social obligations’. This group also quoted that the

Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences Essay

Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences as producers of the first draft of history - Essay Example Ethics and journalism have always had an uneasy relationship, James Carey (1987) states that ethics were introduced as an attempt to control journalists, he is of the view that ethics reflect status and class conflict between the owners of the press, the readers and the reporters. Other theories surrounding the emergence of ethics in journalism state that it was an attempt to stop large corporations from giving freebies and junkets to journalists in return for a favourable piece in the press (Christi 1989). In the modern world, journalism ethics are fundamentally governed by the Human Rights; which includes the right to freedom of expression, the right to privacy and the right to information. Society’s expectations of the press and mass media also contribute towards deciding of journalistic ethics. Journalists and the mass media have influential power, which is inherent in their role as informers to the general public. It is their fundamental duty to provide complete informati on, and not distort the picture in any way; however it is easier said than done. Not only are journalists reporters; but they are also human beings, with an opinion. They have a particular view of circumstances,and do not always see the truth; therefore it is important that they carry out their task as objectively as possible and not involve their own opinion- for their opinion can distort the facts . As Wolfgang Donsbach (1992) points that ethical journalism consists of the efforts of finding out complete information, and present the facts in a neutral way. Journalists who state their opinion, and influence facts to back up their opinion are not only unprofessional, but also un-ethical. An opposing view is expressed by Malcom (1989) where he states every journalist... Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences as producers of the first draft of history? Information is an increasingly important resource and journalists play a crucial role in producing and disseminating that information. Technology has made broadcasting information easier, which makes information more powerful, and therefore makes journalists the carriers of this power. Journalists have influential power on the public; their views can shape decisions and recollections of past events. Given the freedom of expression, journalists now have the power to hold the government accountable for their misgivings, they are able to raise questions on behalf of the public and subsequently force the government to correct their mistakes. They can make history, alter how we remember history and choose what not to include in history. Journalism, Ethics and Society In a democratic world, journalist have the responsibility of reporting corruption, abuse of power and any other item of information that the public has the right to know. They have a special political purpose to seek the trut h, and resist the pressure to convey distortions. Journalism is indeed a first draft of memory, as Zarecka (1994) states, thatthe elements of the past that are remembered are worth knowing about. Hence journalists must seek to solidify the pieces of information that are deemed to go down in history books, and to conceptualize them by depicting them through mass media.

Timeline of Historical Events, Movements or Individuals (History of Research Paper

Timeline of Historical Events, Movements or Individuals (History of the USA to 1865) - Research Paper Example it was initiated by the Virginia Company. Thomas Jefferson is included among the list of Presidents of United States of America who played a vital role towards the constitution formation and obtaining the declaration of independence of United States of America. He was born in 1743 and he was an integral part of the American Revolution and overall process. Also he due to his innumerable achievements and contributions is listed among the few who are called the founding fathers of United States of America. He also remained the Secretary of State and further, remained the United States Minister to France. His other contributions in the professional capacity include his standing and duty performance as the Governor of Virginia. He remained the Vice President as well. A decade long war that started in 1753 and lasted till 1764. It is important in the history of American nation on number of accounts. Firstly, it served as the foundation step towards the internal resentment against the English, secondly it was fought in the form of a proxy war between the English and the French who had their influence and presence in the region. Third was the fact that it set the grounds for the later on Seven Years War which was to be fought directly between the Great Britain and France. The warring territories engaged in this battle were Nova Scotia and parts of Virginia in the modern day United States. The final outcome came about in the form of victory towards the English. The first Continental Congress proceedings lasted between September and October of 1774. It was important on number of grounds. The first was the fact that nearly all the states sent over their representatives for the grand gathering with the mere exception of Georgia. The event was held in Philadelphia. It was significant on the account of fact that a platform was made where it was established that this platform would make efforts to overcome the obstacles

Organisational Behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Organisational Behaviour - Essay Example It is, however, vital to learn the organisation’s background to delve any further. IKEA prides itself to be the most successful and largest furniture retailer in the world, and boasts provision of everything and anything for a home, having products suited for people of all ages, and all this at low prices. The company promises excellent value for money spent with all of their products designed with an emphasis on natural colours to bring a light and airy atmosphere within a home. This concept is based purely on IKEA’s Swedish origins, where people pride themselves in living in harmony with nature with simple home designs which offer maximum efficiency in all weathers (http://www.iamaceo.com/marketing/ikea-brand-success-strategy/). IKEA’s vision, â€Å"to create a better everyday life for the many people† is reportedly largely aimed at the global middleclass which is also evident from their business idea, â€Å"to offer a wide range of well designed, funct ional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them† (http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/student_info.html). To achieve this global mission, IKEA is well known for having a rapid internationalisation process from its Swedish origins and its rapid expansion into countries with cultures very different from its original Swedish national culture (Hollensen, 2007). With 265 stores worldwide, where 235 are owned by the IKEA group while the remaining 30 by franchisees outside the group; the extent of IKEA’s expansion is obvious (IKEA, 2007). Although owned by franchisees in some countries, the IKEA concept and trademark are solely owned by Inter IKEA Systems B.V in Netherlands. This means Inter IKEA Systems B.V is the franchiser for all IKEA stores within or outside of the IKEA group, ensuring uniformity of corporate values right from the centre (IKEA, 2007). Having looked into the organisation’s ba ckground, it is now important to study Morgan’s metaphors, which can then be applied to the organisation. Firstly, Morgan suggests that organisation theorists, after decades of comparing organisations as mechanistic entities, have moved to the biological sciences for more apt comparisons, where individuals, groups, organisations, populations or species of organisations, and their social ecology are paralleled with molecules, cells, complex organisms, species and ecology (Morgan, 2006, pg 34). The idea derived from drawing such comparisons is that certain species of organisation are adapted to certain external conditions just as certain species of organisms are to certain environments (Morgan, 2006, pg 33). Such metaphoric views have changed the classical mechanistic focus on efficiency, and structure to the basic element of survival with more emphasis on the organisation-environment relationship (Morgan, 2006; 1998). This can be further complimented with modern environmental analysis methods like SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) and PEST (political, economical, sociological and technological) analyses, that have been developed solely for comparing an organisation’s internal abilities to the external factors that may or are affecting its survival and performance in that environment (Johnson et al, 2008; Kotler, 2003). Within the metaphor of an organisation as a living organism, Morgan introduces certain

Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences Essay

Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences as producers of the first draft of history - Essay Example Ethics and journalism have always had an uneasy relationship, James Carey (1987) states that ethics were introduced as an attempt to control journalists, he is of the view that ethics reflect status and class conflict between the owners of the press, the readers and the reporters. Other theories surrounding the emergence of ethics in journalism state that it was an attempt to stop large corporations from giving freebies and junkets to journalists in return for a favourable piece in the press (Christi 1989). In the modern world, journalism ethics are fundamentally governed by the Human Rights; which includes the right to freedom of expression, the right to privacy and the right to information. Society’s expectations of the press and mass media also contribute towards deciding of journalistic ethics. Journalists and the mass media have influential power, which is inherent in their role as informers to the general public. It is their fundamental duty to provide complete informati on, and not distort the picture in any way; however it is easier said than done. Not only are journalists reporters; but they are also human beings, with an opinion. They have a particular view of circumstances,and do not always see the truth; therefore it is important that they carry out their task as objectively as possible and not involve their own opinion- for their opinion can distort the facts . As Wolfgang Donsbach (1992) points that ethical journalism consists of the efforts of finding out complete information, and present the facts in a neutral way. Journalists who state their opinion, and influence facts to back up their opinion are not only unprofessional, but also un-ethical. An opposing view is expressed by Malcom (1989) where he states every journalist... Do journalists have an ethical responsibility towards future audiences as producers of the first draft of history? Information is an increasingly important resource and journalists play a crucial role in producing and disseminating that information. Technology has made broadcasting information easier, which makes information more powerful, and therefore makes journalists the carriers of this power. Journalists have influential power on the public; their views can shape decisions and recollections of past events. Given the freedom of expression, journalists now have the power to hold the government accountable for their misgivings, they are able to raise questions on behalf of the public and subsequently force the government to correct their mistakes. They can make history, alter how we remember history and choose what not to include in history. Journalism, Ethics and Society In a democratic world, journalist have the responsibility of reporting corruption, abuse of power and any other item of information that the public has the right to know. They have a special political purpose to seek the trut h, and resist the pressure to convey distortions. Journalism is indeed a first draft of memory, as Zarecka (1994) states, thatthe elements of the past that are remembered are worth knowing about. Hence journalists must seek to solidify the pieces of information that are deemed to go down in history books, and to conceptualize them by depicting them through mass media.

Organisational Behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Organisational Behaviour - Essay Example It is, however, vital to learn the organisation’s background to delve any further. IKEA prides itself to be the most successful and largest furniture retailer in the world, and boasts provision of everything and anything for a home, having products suited for people of all ages, and all this at low prices. The company promises excellent value for money spent with all of their products designed with an emphasis on natural colours to bring a light and airy atmosphere within a home. This concept is based purely on IKEA’s Swedish origins, where people pride themselves in living in harmony with nature with simple home designs which offer maximum efficiency in all weathers (http://www.iamaceo.com/marketing/ikea-brand-success-strategy/). IKEA’s vision, â€Å"to create a better everyday life for the many people† is reportedly largely aimed at the global middleclass which is also evident from their business idea, â€Å"to offer a wide range of well designed, funct ional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them† (http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_GB/about_ikea/press_room/student_info.html). To achieve this global mission, IKEA is well known for having a rapid internationalisation process from its Swedish origins and its rapid expansion into countries with cultures very different from its original Swedish national culture (Hollensen, 2007). With 265 stores worldwide, where 235 are owned by the IKEA group while the remaining 30 by franchisees outside the group; the extent of IKEA’s expansion is obvious (IKEA, 2007). Although owned by franchisees in some countries, the IKEA concept and trademark are solely owned by Inter IKEA Systems B.V in Netherlands. This means Inter IKEA Systems B.V is the franchiser for all IKEA stores within or outside of the IKEA group, ensuring uniformity of corporate values right from the centre (IKEA, 2007). Having looked into the organisation’s ba ckground, it is now important to study Morgan’s metaphors, which can then be applied to the organisation. Firstly, Morgan suggests that organisation theorists, after decades of comparing organisations as mechanistic entities, have moved to the biological sciences for more apt comparisons, where individuals, groups, organisations, populations or species of organisations, and their social ecology are paralleled with molecules, cells, complex organisms, species and ecology (Morgan, 2006, pg 34). The idea derived from drawing such comparisons is that certain species of organisation are adapted to certain external conditions just as certain species of organisms are to certain environments (Morgan, 2006, pg 33). Such metaphoric views have changed the classical mechanistic focus on efficiency, and structure to the basic element of survival with more emphasis on the organisation-environment relationship (Morgan, 2006; 1998). This can be further complimented with modern environmental analysis methods like SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) and PEST (political, economical, sociological and technological) analyses, that have been developed solely for comparing an organisation’s internal abilities to the external factors that may or are affecting its survival and performance in that environment (Johnson et al, 2008; Kotler, 2003). Within the metaphor of an organisation as a living organism, Morgan introduces certain

American Beauty Film Critique Essay Example for Free

American Beauty Film Critique Essay There are few films that achieve the high level of quality exhibited by that of the 1990 beautiful tragedy, American Beauty. The film is a true masterpiece in both content and how this content is delivered to the viewers. It excels at being an enlightening and relevant drama about American life, and never fails to keep the audience entertained by providing many instances of well-placed humor. Every scene is filmed including metaphoric elements that not only show great stylistic and aesthetics, but also create a mood and feeling for the theme of the movie. American Beauty, directed by Sam Mendes, is a film that is set in suburban America, in a normal neighbourhood, following the everyday life of the central protagonist, Lester Burnham, who is living the typical ‘American Dream’. He appears to have a great job, big house, loving wife and daughter and even a white picket fence. However, all is not as it seems as appearance can often be deceiving; if we just â€Å"look closer†, we as audience members soon see that he realises both his wife, over bearing and controlling Carolyn and jaded teenage daughter, Jane think that, in the words of Jane, he is â€Å"this gigantic loser† and they’re right. The character of Lester is initially portrayed as a depressed, sad and lonely forty-year-old man, deprived of freedom and struggling to find anything worth living for. However as the film progresses Lester’s persona as a character is dramatically developed with the introduction of an equally intriguing character, Angela Hayes. Everything changes for Lester the night he is forced by his wife to his daughters school to see her perform as a cheerleader. There on the floor, engrossed in a pompon routin, parading and dancing around the court, he sees his ‘angel’: Angela his daughters high-school classmate. Angela fulfills the stereotypical idea of what beauty physical beauty is. She is thin, blonde, big blue-eyed and immediately catches Lester’s attention; Angela is not Lesters highway to bliss, but she is at least a catalyst for his freedom (Ebert, 1999). His thoughts, and the dissatisfaction they stimulate, blast him free from years of emotional torture and bring him right back to his youth. It is from this moment on that Lester transforms into a spontaneous hormone-driven teenage boy, who smokes marihuana, works out, and uits his job all in order to impress his Angel-a. American Beauty uses Angela as the image of Lester’s broader want; that being his underlying desire for freedom and evidentially beauty. However, she symbolizes the potential underlying superficiality of physical beauty that is slowly revealed towards the end of the film. The film portrays many of the hidden problems within the white picket fence American dream along with addressing the problems many Am ericans have with feeling free and accepting their own identity. The film shows the vastly different worlds that people can live in whilst still living on the same street, and the disorder and frenzy that lies veiled in a society that we all try to portray as being as perfect as possible. In doing so, American Beauty reveals that the only way to calm the chaos is to find beauty in everything. To â€Å"look closer† is a must for truly understanding and identifying with the continuous bombardment of symbolism that is constantly being illustrated in this film. American Beauty portrays such themes as the falseness in lust, power and appearance and that we need to remind our selves â€Å"†¦of all the beauty there is in the world†, as beauty is a matter of opinion. Beauty however, is the most significant and explored theme in American Beauty. Another prevailing theme is the notion of the characters journey and transformation throughout the film. Lester’s journey can almost be compared to one from childhood from adulthood, figuratively speaking as evidentially, he steps into a mature, paternal phase where he takes responsibility and finds meaning in life, as an adult. Many techniques were used to portray these themes and influence audiences opinions of characters and events, including film techniques of cinematography, soundtrack as well as such visual techniques of symbolism, colour and contrast and both aesthetic and stylistic elements. American Beauty is a complex film that relies so heavily on mis-en-scene and cinematography to portray its message. In particular this is showcased during one scene that truly puts the ‘American Beauty’ into perspective; the opening scene or as it is often referred to as, the â€Å"High Point Scene†. The film explores the concepts of what true beauty really is and as suggested in the title of the film, the American Dream and how far this ‘dream’ really goes and what it actually means; this is explored further from the films tagline â€Å"look closer†; to think about perceived desire and to analyze more what these wants are. Through the exploration of the opening scene and a study of how the cinematography, mise en scene and sound foreshadows plot points in the rest of the film, the underlying messages and symbolism will be uncovered. The movie opens with a grainy shot of Jane Burnham reclining on a bed, complaining about her father. The scene begins with what is referred to as a flash forward, in cinematic terms. The line â€Å"Someone really should just put him out of his misery† is a hint towards the mid life crisis that the father Lester is currently going through and the ways in which she is aware of the pain he is dealing with, not knowing what he truly wants. Through the mise en scene and cinematography displayed throughout the scene, the audience is enabled to receive a glimpse into the events that have just occurred. Through the use of a lesser quality picture, shaky footage and dimmed lighting the audience is able to identify with the fact that the imagery being presented has that of a ‘home movie’ feel. The utilization of ‘raw footage’ within this drama genre of film gives the audience a sense of reality towards the character, hence making the dialogue seem more legitimate and believable. The addition of a pause into the characters dialogue helps to support and express the sense of ‘reality’ further, as it is as if she is really thinking about what she is saying. The rather ambiguous approach to the delivering of the line â€Å"You want me to kill him for you? † helps to draw attention to Jane’s reaction as apposed to the interviewers own intensions. This poses both Jane Burnham, the daughter and the unidentified interviewer as suspects to her father’s upcoming murder. However the abstruse approach from the interviewer combined with the daughters reply is foreshadowing what is to come later in the film, as each character related to the father is set up to be the possible murderer of his death. By using the body language as a primary tool for communication, the reply of â€Å"Yeah, would you† to the previous statement, suggests that she is almost daring the interviewer to kill him. This is expressed through the dominant changing of levels when she sits up, almost creating a shift in power, and looks down and straight into the camera, but at the same time also insinuates some sarcasm on her part. The audience learns in the very first lines of the movie that Jane’s dad, Lester, is not the father that she wants. The opening credits roll, and the shot switches to an aerial view of a neighborhood. The exact location is not specified, and that is very intentional. It is important that this not be a critique of a specific area, but of American culture as a whole. The scene begins with an aerial shot of a suburb, with Lester Burnham introducing the audience to his life and informing them that In less than a year, Ill be dead, and in a way, Im dead already. This dialogue is heightened through the following shots of Lester lying alone on a bed in a very dull coloured room, thus signifying the meaninglessness life in which he is leading. The utilization of an aerial shot here creates the idea that the world is looking down on him. The dominant use of bright lighting also indicates that it is the morning, however through the use of shadowing casted over Lester, it expressed to the audience that he is still in ‘the dark’; he is yet to be enlightened. Visual techniques are a constant feature in American Beauty, including the use of colour, contrast and symbolism. The primary recurring prop that is introduced at the beginning of the film is a rose, in which the audience first sees in a close up before Lesters wife Carolyn Burnham picks it up. The first shot of the rose seems out of place, beginning with the flower filling the frame and then moving down to focus on the thorns before Carolyn’s clippers cut it. The rose symbolizes the impotence of not only the love life between Lester and Carolyn but the idea of the American Dream. This shot not only draws attention to the rose as a recurring object in the film, but it also serves as a metaphor for the Burnhams: on the outside they appear perfect, like the flower, but underneath they are rotten and broken (represented by the thorns). In this shot the character of Carolyn is also introduced and is instantly perceived as a cold, workaholic who is obsessive about how they (the family) is presented. This portrayal is demonstrated through the line â€Å"See the way the handle on those pruning shears matches her gardening clogs? That’s not an accident†, thus showing the audience what level she will go to, to maintain order and control. What is also noticeable about this shot is the mise en scene, in particular the red roses, white picket fences and the blue painting on the house. These colours in specific represent the American flag and therefore the American dream. These objects are most perceived to be included within the American dream as well as stereotypical figure of Carolyn, the suburban housewife. This ideology however, creates contrast with the cinematography. Many scenes are metaphoric in how they are shot, and what is in the frame symbolizes a higher, deeper meaning. This is demonstrated when, Lester looking out the window of his house at his wife, and the blinds on the window represent jail cell bars. Even the blocks of text on his computer screen at work, (shown later in the film) represent jail cell bars. Lester is â€Å"in jail† because his life at this point is so empty and missing substance. This cinematography technique often used in film nior is utilized to convey the emotions of disassociation and distance which in this case, is the way in which Lester feels towards his wife; he is no longer associated with her. American Beauty is more than a biting satire on suburban life. This somewhat contrived story is meant to be an allegory. Alan Balls richly textured screenplay, brilliantly executed stylistic and aesthetic elements such as cinematography, mise en scene and symbols are effectively demonstrated throughout this masterpiece of a film. Every single shot is so carefully taken and layered with such vast significance that it is a marvel to behold. â€Å"Look closer, the films tag line tells us. Look closer at the beautiful things we yearn for and spend our life chasing. There isn’t a single example of a film done better. Not only is the content top-notch, but the technical aspects of the movie are excellent as well. American Beauty truly demonstrates the power of film.

Saudi Arabia and Iran Relationship

Saudi Arabia and Iran Relationship Syria and Lebanon: the main scene for Saudi-Iranian rivalry Relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran are characterized by religious-ideological antagonism and competition for regional influence. The current turmoil in the Middle East is often reflected in the hostility between the two states as their struggle over the character of the region has escalated and intensified.[1] The potential negative implications of the Arab spring, along with the initial Iranian attempt to consolidate regional achievements, have largely roused Saudi Arabia out of its relative passivity in foreign policy and led it to attempt to promote a new inter-Arab alignment as a potential counterweight to Iran. Saudi Arabia perceives Iran as a main threat for several reasons. The first relates to Iran’s desire to promote a security system in the Gulf free of foreign involvement—particularly that of America—in which Iran will assume a greater leadership role. The second refers to Iran’s view of itself as the more genuine representative of the Muslim world and as the state that is challenging Saudi Arabia’s role of dominance (alongside its Wahabi religious establishment) within the Muslim world, as a depiction of the Sunni–Shia rift. Iran’s pursuit of military nuclear capability and the potential impact this capability would have on shaping the regional agenda also threatens Saudi Arabia. Iran’s ambition and its military capabilities might be used, in a Saudi perspective, to further Iranian influence over OPEC and over the Shiites minority population in the Saudi kingdom.[2] The Sunni-Shiite conflict plays a critical role in relations between the two opposing sides of the Gulf in general and between Saudi Arabia and Iran in particular. Saudi Arabia has committed intense efforts to draw pro-Iranian Middle East players into the Saudi-Sunni camp and to establish a multi-national front, based upon sectarian divisions, against Iran’s regional ambitions. Saudi Arabia’s relations with Syria, Iran’s main ally have deteriorated due to the violent suppression of the protests in Syria, which began in March 2011. Even prior to this, Saudi Arabia failed in its attempt to rescue Syria from the clutches of Iranian influence and create a united anti-Iranian bloc composed of Sunni states. The protests in Syria gave the kingdom a new opportunity to promote its agenda. By weakening the Assad regime, the Saudis hope they will help reduce the power of the â€Å"Shiite axis†.[3] In this vein, the Saudi media has regularly criticized Iran’s less-than covert attempts at supporting the Syrian regime. Saudi Arabia’s current policy constitutes a change in its attitude toward the Assad regime. After the rift between the two states in the wake of the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Al-Hariri in 2005, King Abdullah led a policy of relative openness toward Syria in an attempt to drive a wedge between it and Iran. As unrest in Syria grew, however, he recalled his ambassador back to Riyadh in August 2011. This, along with its support to quell Shiite insurgency in Bahrain, is evidence that Saudi Arabia intends to stand up to the radical front headed by Iran.[4] Saudi Arabia, together with Qatar, has also taken action in order to further weaken the Iranian-Syrian axis. The two nations, for example, worked together to suspend Syria’s membership in the Arab League and continue to provide financial and military support to different elements within the Syrian opposition.[5] These measures fit with the approach Saudi Arabia has adopted since the beginning of the Ar ab spring, which is both more assertive than in the past, and expresses its attempt to reshape the map of alliances in the region in accordance with its interests. Over the years, Saudi Arabia have preferred to avoid confrontation, focusing on attempts at mediation in the Arab world for the purpose of eliminating dangers while attempting to avoid being aligned with any side.[6] In the case of Syria, the kingdom has preferred American leadership. When this did not materialize, however, Saudi Arabia, with its large coffers and affluent Sunni Islamic influence, entered the resulting vacuum. As noted its previous attempts at distancing Assad from the Iranian axis were unsuccessful, but the rebellion against Assad gave the Saudis an unusual opportunity to weaken Iranian influence in the area. The Arab world began to adopt a tougher stance vis-à  -vis Assad in the summer of 2011, when the Gulf Cooperation Council called on Syria to stop its â€Å"deadly suppression of citizens, followed by an unusually sharp statement by Saudi King Abdullah, who demanded that Syria â€Å"stop the killing machine†.[7] This new tone resulted from the King’s frustration with the Alawite minority regime (which he considers heretical) regarding Saudi attempts at mediation, combined with the realization that Syrian opposition achievements are likely to tip the balance against Iran. The King’s anger increased following the killing of members of cross-border tribes that were the tribal lineage of his mother and two of his sisters, and the widespread killing of Sunnis during the holy month of Ramadan. Since then, Saudi Arabia, with some coordination with Qatar (which has since cut back on its involvement) and the United Arab Emirates, has been aiding rebel forces that it regards as suitable for the Anti-Iranian cause in Lebanon and the Syrian opposition sometimes without taking into account American restrictions on armaments.[8] The strategic goal of overthrowing Assad (and weakening Iran and Hizbollah) currently spearheads Saudi Arabias foreign policy. Its aim is to strengthen elements among the rebels, so that if and when Assad falls, those elements will gain control over what remains of the Syrian state. The Arab Gulf countries tried to persuade the United States that the Assad regime had crossed the red line announced by President Obama in August 2012 and again in March 2013 concerning the use of chemical weapons. According to the Wall Street Journal, Saudi Arabian intelligence found proof that this weapon was used already in February 2013, and presented this evidence to the United States.[9] However, American disinclination to get involved in Syria has caused the Gulf States to doubt the credibility of the US, their main â€Å"defense provider, to deliver. A manifestation, in their eyes, of Americas diminishing regional influence. It was reported that the Saudi king, frustrated with American policy in the region, sent Obama a message saying â€Å"Americas credibility was on the line if it let Assad prevail†.[10] Elements within the Gulf States, notably in Kuwait and the UAE, started privately financing different Sunni rebel groups – causing further radicalization and fragmentation within the rebel ranks in a rampant competition for funds and influence. The Saudis are reportedly providing 3 billion dollars as an aid package to the Lebanese armed forces, as a part of their effort to support Pro–Sunni factions in Lebanon.[11] These efforts are backed, according to Hizbollah members, by an unprecedented intelligence campaign, led by the Saudi prince Bandar bin Sultan to cripple the Shia organization’s infrastructure, target its assets and weaken Hizbollah’s political position within the Lebanese political arena.[12] This may very well be a Saudi attempt to force Hizbollah to allocate more forces back to Lebanon and away from Syria, while delegitimizing it on the home front as a destabilizing and a sectarian force. There are no Saudi illusions about a sweeping victory in Syria and Lebanon. They too are aware of advantage in weaponry, organization, and external support enjoyed by Assad and his allies. They hope, however, that the support they provide will tip the scales in their favor, bleeding their adversaries financially and militarily,[13] as an historical payback for supporting Shiite subversion over the years in Iraq, the gulf and in the Saudi kingdom. Their enemies – the Assad regime, Iran, and Hizbollah – have been weakened on a daily basis, and are suffering economically, with thus far at little to no significant cost to the kingdom. Concern based on past experience, however, indicates that ramifications of radical elements operating in Syria and Lebanon are liable to boomerang back to the Gulf and upset stability between Shia and Sunni communities in Iraq, Kuwait and the Saudi Kingdom itself.[14]Tensions between Shiites and Sunnis are joined by tensions between parties favoring stability and anti–Iranian hardliners within different regimes in the gulf. Along, with many in the Arab countries, the hardliners believe that the overthrow of the Assad regime could restrain Iran and restore Iran to its natural size, hopefully without leading to a frontal confrontation between Iran and the Saudis. This confrontation has been avoided until now. Those in the Sunni side vying for stability in contrast are alarmed at the possibility that by funding fighters abroad, they might be fueling extremists and Sunni radicals, such as Al Qaeda.[15] With these seasoned veterans bound to return to their Sunni homelands eventually, those concerns might be realized in the form of subsequent radicalization and implementation of terrorist tactics from abroad in the Saudi kingdom and across the gulf. The Saudis have at times acted as a revolutionary force and at times as a counter-revolutionary force, depending on their interests. They engineered the deal on the removal of Yemens President Saleh from office, were involved in consolidating the new regime in Tunisia, and helped to overthrow the Qaddafi regime. On the other hand, they used force to maintain the al-Khalifa regime in Bahrain and sought to keep Mubarak’s regime in power in Egypt. When this effort was unsuccessful, they gave billions in aid to the military regime in Egypt, which recently regained power. Saudi efforts in Lebanon and Syria to assist Anti–Iranian parties[16] are consistent with these trends. With the Saudis testing Iranian resolve to the limit, despite the kingdom’s inferior demographic and geopolitical position and Iran and its allies, cornered by a vast Sunni majority yet more than eager to fight,[17] it is unclear how and when this bloody deadlock will be resolved. 1 [1] Paul Aarts, and Joris Van Duijne, Saudi Arabia after US-Iranian dà ©tente: left in the lurch.Middle East Policy16.3 (2009), p. 70. [2]Vali Nasr When the Shiites rise.Foreign Affairs85 no. 4(2006): p. 59. [3]AdamEntousandSioban Gorman, Behind Assads Comeback, a Mismatch in Commitments.Wall Street Journal, 31Dec.2013 [4]MehranKamrava, â€Å"The Arab Spring and the Saudi-led counterrevolution†.Orbis, 56, no.1,(2012):101 – 103 [5] Assad: Our Battle With Saudi Is Open-Ended. Al Akhbar, 30 Nov. 2013 [6]HermanF. Elits.Saudi Arabias foreign policy.Diplomacy in: L C Brown (ed.)the Middle East: The International Relations of Regional and Outside Powers (London: I.B. Tauris,2004), pp. 238 – 240. [7]AdrianBlomfield, Syria unrest: Saudi Arabia calls on killing machine to stop.,The Telegraph, 8 August, 2011 [8]Kim Ghattas, Saudi Arabia to give Lebanon army $3bn grant,BBC,29Dec.2013. [9]Adam Entous, NourMallas, and Margaret Coker. A Veteran Saudi Power Player Works To Build Support to Topple Assad, Wall Street Journal, 25 Aug. 2013. [10] Ibid. [11]Anna Barnard, â€Å"Saudis’ Grant to Lebanon Is Seen as Message to U.S†, The New York Times, 6 Jan 2014. [12]Nasser Chararah, Hezbollah escalates rhetoric against Riyadh.,Al Monitor 10 Dec. 2013. [13]JobyWarrick. Syrian conflict said to fuel sectarian tensions in Persian Gulf,Washington Post, 19Dec.2013. [14]Elizabeth Dickenson,.Playing with Fire: Why Private Gulf Financing for Syria’s Extremist Rebels Risks Igniting Sectarian Conflict at Home. The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings (6 Dec. 2013), p. 6. [15]Ibid: 18 20 [16]Nasser Chararah, Hezbollah escalates rhetoric against Riyadh., Al Monitor 10 Dec. 2013. [17]Doyle McManus, â€Å"Syria and the perils of proxy war†, LA Times, 12 Jan 2014.