Song of hummingbrd Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Song of hummingbrd - Essay Example societies are usually divided into classes based on either economic and political affiliations or interests, with factors varying from one culture to the other. However, in the case of Aztec society, the hierarchal structures were strictly based on the social, political, and religious perspectives. With divisions into eight different social classes, the Aztec society was made of rulers, worriers, noble priests, poor, slaves, servants, and the middle class members of the society. Each of these individuals had a specific role that they played in the society. The worriers were a group of brave men trained and equipped with skills to combat war and battles. For the priests and the priestesses were bestowed with many responsibilities such as watching the planets and prophesizing, and divining incarnations for the gods among others. The servants and the slaves were owned by the nobility, with the only distinctive aspect between the two being that slaves were considered property while the servants were not considered property, with options of marrying. For middle, class whom also the largest of the society, comprised of lawmakers, accountants, and potters among other

Environmental Racism Essay Example for Free

Environmental Racism Essay Melissa Checker’s Polluted Promises: Environmental Racism and the Search for Justice in a Southern Town (2005) New York: New York University Press. Is one of checker’s best books and has gained fame over the times. Scholars have argued that this novel is set up in an environment which is imbalanced. Environmental inequity is evident in the lives of the leaders who are the main characters in the book. The author comes in to give solutions to the chaos that exist in this Augusta Georgia setting. The ethnographic account of this book shows the struggles faced in urban centers. These are mainly countries in the African region in the third world country. The writer further illustrates the extent of inequality that exists in these countries. A lot of emphasis rests on the resentment that the African Americans receive. This is further coupled with apartheid and the underclass level that they are put in. the book lays down goals to try and unveil the response of other citizens to the lifestyle of the blacks. The strength of the polluted promise is seen with the achievement of information about the treatment of Africans. The information that comes out shows racial separation and shows that the attitude towards the Africans is experienced in all the spheres including politics (p. 12). Racism is a serious offence that is seen to be covered in the book. Checker explains that existence of classes is a more evil way of segregating some people. This may be true but the fact still remains that racism is going on in this society. The leadership actually fights to cover racism by saying that classes are rather more serious. This is supported by Wilson’s hidden agenda ideas. The gap in this society exists in terms of wealth. The white are seen to have a lot of wealth compared to the black urban poor. This is supported by Wilson’s findings. The ethnographic account of this book dwells a lot on the overflow of racism in almost all the activities of the community. Political arena is also caught up in identity politics in which people form factions. This further influence the way resources are distributed in the society. This book displays possibility of arriving at a safe destination. This comes in the proposal of having convergence in the systems. Environmentalism and civil rights and new forms of society movements are the key aspects to be embraced in forming the convergence. Such a unitary community is characteristic of equality and love amongst all the citizens (p. 33). The environment is further displayed to have more challenges. Checker uncovers them as to include: problems faced while working with experts of the environment and the technical talk of experts. Another challenge seen is on building lasting relationship with protection agencies. Alliances and coalition formation is another challenge that exist in the society as explained by the author. Checker’s work further supports environmental injustice by its summary on politics, economic decisions like resource distribution and human relations. People are seen to compromise on the environmental justice in all these aspects. This is what makes the book; polluted promises a rich ethnography. Source Melissa Checker. (2005). Polluted Promises. New York: New York University Press

Smoking Essay -- Tobacco Cigarettes

Smoking Introduction Some governments have banned smoking in all public places. Smoking has been proven to be very dangerous to health. Nonetheless 40 % of the population smokes. Actually I am a non smoker, although I used to be a smoker. Most people try out smoking when they are young ; many youths think smoking is a good grown-up habit. Furthermore many young people begin smoking as an act of rebellion and independence. Young smokers start smoking at their age of 12 or 13 just to get a taste of , what it is like. Some of them find it disgusting and unhealthy and some of them find it cool. Fact’s and Figures Tobacco use kills about 420, 000 smokers each year. According to recent studies 53.000 nonsmokers die each year from second-hand smoking. It is not surprising. Despite having plenty of anti-tobacco commercials on Television, and on every single pack of cigarettes there being an important note, chainsmokers can’t kick their bad habit. In Hungary a packet of cigarettes costs around 2 Euros. The average smoker buys a packet a day which comes to 730 Euros per year. Could you imagine , what you could do with all that money? Government intervention in the workplace Last month while I was reading the newspaper, I came across this article: „Smoking is not allowed in any public places anymore.† I found this ministerial decree, a very good decision, due to there being many smokers in my workplace. There is no assigned smoking area for them. As a consequence I ...

Customer Review Essay

1. Describe the Michelson Morley experiment and discuss the importance of its negative result. 2. Calculate the fringe shift in Michelson-Morley experiment. Given that: [pic], [pic], [pic], and [pic]. 3. State the fundamental postulates of Einstein special theory of relativity and deduce from them the Lorentz Transformation Equations . 4. Explain relativistic length contraction and time dilation in special theory of relativity? What are proper length and proper time interval? 5. A rod has length 100 cm. When the rod is in a satellite moving with velocity 0.9 c relative to the laboratory, what is the length of the rod as measured by an observer (i) in the satellite, and (ii) in the laboratory?. 6. A clock keeps correct time. With what speed should it be moved relative to an observer so that it may appear to lose 4 minutes in 24 hours? 7. In the laboratory the ‘life time’ of a particle moving with speed 2.8x108m/s, is found to be 2.5Ãâ€"10-7 sec. Calculate the proper life time of the particle. 8. Derive relativistic law of addition of velocities and prove that the velocity of light is the same in all inertial frame irrespective of their relative speed. 9. Two particles come towards each other with speed 0.9c with respect to laboratory. Calculate their relative speeds. 10. Rockets A and B are observed from the earth to be traveling with velocities 0.8c and 0.7 c along the same line in the same direction. What is the velocity of B as seen by an observer on A? 11. Show that the relativistic invariance laws of conservation of momentum leads to the concept of variation of mass with speed and mass energy equivalence. 12. A proton of rest mass [pic] is moving with a velocity of 0.9c. Calculate its mass and momentum. TUTORIAL SHEET: 1 (Module1: Special Theory of Relativity) . 13. The speed of an electron is doubled from 0.2 c to 0.4 c. By what ratio does its momentum increase? 14. A particle has kinetic energy 20 times its rest energy. Find the speed of the particle in terms of ‘c’. 15. Dynamite liberates about 5.4Ãâ€"106 J/Kg when it explodes. What fraction of its total energy is in this amount? 16. A stationary body explodes into two fragments each of mass 1.0 Kg that move apart at speeds of 0.6 c relative to the original body. Find the mass of the original body. 17. At what speed does the kinetic energy of a particle equals its rest energy? 18. What should be the speed of an electron so that its mass becomes equal to the mass of proton? Given: mass of electron=9.1Ãâ€"10-31Kg and mass of Proton =1.67Ãâ€"10-27Kg. 19. An electron is moving with a speed 0.9c. Calculate (i) its total energy and (ii) the ratio of Newtonian kinetic energy to relativistic energy. Given: [pic] and[pic]. 20. (i) Derive a relativistic expression for kinetic energy of a particle in terms of momentum. (ii) Show that the momentum of a particle of rest mass [pic] and kinetic energy [pic], is given by[pic]. 21. Find the momentum (in MeV/c) of an electron whose speed is 0.60 c. Verify that v/c = pc/E TUTORIAL SHEET: 2(a) (Module2: Wave Mechanics) 1. What do you understand by the wave nature of matter? Obtain an expression of de Broglie wavelength for matter waves. 2. Calculate the de-Broglie wavelength of an electron and a photon each of energy 2eV. 3. Calculate the de-Broglie wavelength associated with a proton moving with a velocity equal to 1/20 of the velocity of light. 4. Show that the wavelength of a 150 g rubber ball moving with a velocity of [pic] is short enough to be determined. 5. Energy of a particle at absolute temperature T is of the order of [pic]. Calculate the wavelength of thermal neutrons at[pic]. Given: [pic], [pic] and [pic]. 6. Can a photon and an electron of the same momentum have the same wavelengths? Calculate their wavelengths if the two have the same energy. 7. Two particles A and B are in motion. If the wavelength associated with particle A is [pic], calculate the wavelength of the particle B if its momentum is half that of A. 8. Show that when electrons are accelerated through a potential difference V, their wavelength taking relativistic correction into account is [pic] , where e and [pic] are charge and rest mass of electrons, respectively. 9. A particle of rest mass m0 has a kinetic energy K. Show that its de Broglie wavelength is given by [pic] TUTORIAL SHEET: 2(a) (Module2: Wave Mechanics) 16. Explain Heisenberg uncertainty principle. Describe gamma ray microscope experiment to establish Heisenberg uncertainty principle. 17. How does the Heisenberg uncertainty principle hint about the absence of electron in an atomic nucleus? 18. Calculate the uncertainty in momentum of an electron confined in a one-dimensional box of length[pic]. Given:[pic] . TUTORIAL SHEET: 2(b) (Module 2: Wave Mechanics) 1. Differentiate between ÃŽ ¨ and IÃŽ ¨I2. Discuss Born postulate regarding the probabilistic interpretation of a wave function. 2. Write down the set of conditions which a solution of Schrà ¶dinger wave equation satisfies to be called a wave function. 3. What do you mean by normalization and orthogonality of a wave function? 4. Show that if potential energy V(x) is changed everywhere by a constant, the time independent wave equation is unchanged. What is the effect on the energy Eigen values? 5. Show that[pic], where [pic]the reduced mass and B is the binding energy of the particles. 6. Show that [pic]is an acceptable eigen function, where k is some finite constant. Also normalize it over the region[pic]. 7. Explain the meaning of expectation value of x. write down the Eigen operators for position, linear momentum and total energy. 8. Show that time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation is an example of Eigen value equation. 9. Derive the time independent Schrà ¶dinger equation from time dependent equation for free particle. 10. For a free particle, show that Schrà ¶dinger wave equation leads to the de-Broglie relation [pic]. 11. Derive expression for probability current density or particle flux. Also , show that the probability density Ï  and probability current density [pic] satisfy the continuity equation[pic] TUTORIAL SHEET: 2(b) (Module 2: Wave Mechanics) 12. Write Schrà ¶dinger equation for a particle in a box and determine expression for energy Eigen value and Eigen function. Does this predict that the particle can possess zero energy? 13. Find the expectation values of the position and that of momentum of a particle trapped in a one dimensional rigid box of length L. 14. The potential function of a particle moving along positive x-axis is given by V(x) = 0for x < 0 V(x) = V0for x [pic] 0 Calculate the reflectance R and transmittance T at the potential discontinuity and show that R+T=1. 15. An electron is bounded by a potential which closely approaches an infinite square well of width[pic]. Calculate the lowest three permissible quantum energies the electron can have. 16. A particle is moving in one dimensional box and its wave function is given by [pic]. Find the expression for the normalized wave function. 17. Calculate the value of lowest energy of an electron moving in a one-dimensional force free region of length 4[pic]. 18. A particle of mass [pic]kg is moving with a speed of [pic] in a box of length[pic]. Assume this to be one dimensional square well problem, calculate the value of n. 19. A beam of electron impinges on an infinitely wide energy barrier of height 0.03 eV, find the fraction of electrons reflected at the barrier if the energy of the electrn is (a) 0.025 eV (b) 0.030 eV (c) 0.040 eV TUTORIAL SHEET: 3(a) (Module 3: Atomic Physics) 1. What are the essential features of Vector Atom model? Also discuss the quantum numbers associated with this model. 2. For an electron orbit with quantum number l = 2, state the possible values of the components of total angular momentum along a specified direction. 3. Differentiate between L-S coupling (Russel-Saunders Coupling) and j-j coupling schemes. 4. Find the possible value of J under L-S and j-j coupling scheme if the quantum number of the two electrons in a two valence electron atom are n1 = 5 l1 = 1 s1 =1/2 n2 = 6 l2 = 3 s2 = 1/2 5. Find the spectral terms for 3s 2d and 4p 4d configuration. 6. Applying the selection rule, show which of the following transitions are allowed and not allowed D5/2 [pic] P3/2; D3/2 [pic] P3/2 ; D3/2 [pic] P1/2 ; P3/2 [pic] S1/2 ; P1/2 [pic] S1/2 7. What is Paschen back effect? Show that in a strong magnetic field, anomalous Zeeman pattern changes to normal Zeeman pattern. 8. Why does in normal Zeeman effect a singlet line always splitted into three components only. 9. Illustrate Zeeman Effect with the example of Sodium D1 and D2 lines. 10. An element under spectroscopic examination is placed in a magnetic field of flux density 0.3 Web/m2. Calculate the Zeeman shift of a spectral line of wavelength 450 nm. 11. The Zeeman components of a 500 nm spectral line are 0.0116 nm apart when the magnetic field is 1.0 T. Find the ratio (e/m) for the electron. 12. Calculate wavelength separation between the two component lines which are observed in Normal Zeeman effect, where – the magnetic field used is 0.4 weber/m2 , the specific charge- 1.76x1011Coulomb/kg and ÃŽ »=6000[pic]. TUTORIAL SHEET: 3(b) (Module 3: Atomic Physics) 1. Distinguish between spontaneous and stimulated emission. Derive the relation between the transition probabilities of spontaneous and stimulated emission. 2. What are the characteristics of laser beams? Describe its important applications. 3. Calculate the number of photons emitted per second by 5 mW laser assuming that it emits light of wavelength 632.8 nm. 4. Explain (a) Atomic excitations (b) Transition process (c) Meta stable state and (d) Optical pumping. 5. Find the intensity of laser beam of 15 mW power and having a diameter of 1.25 mm. Assume the intensity to be uniform across the beam. 6. Calculate the energy difference in eV between the energy levels of Ne-atoms of a He-Ne laser, the transition between which results in the emission of a light of wavelength 632.8nm. 7. What is population inversion? How it is achieved in Ruby Laser? Describe the construction of Ruby Laser. 8. Explain the operation of a gas Laser with essential components. How stimulated emission takes place with exchange of energy between Helium and Neon atom? 9. What is the difference between the working principle of three level and four level lasers? Give an example of each type. 10. How a four level Laser is superior to a three level Laser? TUTORIAL SHEET: 3(c) (Module 3: Atomic Physics) 1. Distinguish between continuous X-radiation and characteristic X-radiation spectra of the element. 2. An X ray tube operated at 100 kV emits a continuous X ray spectrum with short wavelength limit ÃŽ »min = 0.125[pic]. Calculate the Planck’s constant. 3. State Bragg’s Law. Describe how Bragg’s Law can be used in determination of crystal structure? 4. Why the diffraction effect in crystal is not observed for visible light. 5. Electrons are accelerated by 344 volts and are reflected from a crystal. The first reflection maxima occurs when glancing angle is 300 . Determine the spacing of the crystal. (h = 6.62 x 10-34 Js , e = 1.6 x 10-19 C and m = 9.1 x10-31 Kg) 6. In Bragg’s reflection of X-rays, a reflection was found at 300 glancing angle with lattice planes of spacing 0.187nm. If this is a second order reflection. Calculate the wavelength of X-rays. 7. Explain the origin of characteristic X-radiation spectra of the element. How Mosley’s law can explained on the basis of Bohr’s model. 8. What is the importance of Mosley’s law? Give the important differences between X-ray spectra and optical spectra of an element? 9. Deduce the wavelength of [pic] line for an atom of Z = 92 by using Mosley’s Law. (R= 1.1 x 105 cm-1). 10. If the KÃŽ ± radiation of Mo (Z= 42) has a wavelength of 0.71[pic], determine the wavelength of the corresponding radiation of Cu (Z= 29). 11. The wavelength of LÃŽ ± X ray lines of Silver and Platinum are 4.154 [pic]and 1.321[pic], respectively. An unknown substance emits of LÃŽ ± X rays of wavelength 0.966[pic]. The atomic numbers of Silver and Platinum are 47 and 78 respectively. Determine the atomic number of the unknown substance. TUTORIAL SHEET: 4(a) (Module 4: Solid State Physics) 1. Discuss the basic assumptions of Sommerfeld’s theory for free electron gas model of metals? 2. Define the Fermi energy of the electron. Obtain the expression for energy of a three dimensional electron gas in a metal. 3. Prove that at absolute zero, the energy states below Fermi level are filled with electrons while above this level, the energy states are empty. 4. Show that the average energy of an electron in an electron gas at absolute zero temperature is 3/5[pic], where[pic], is Fermi energy at absolute zero. 5. Prove that Fermi level lies half way down between the conduction and valence band in intrinsic semiconductor. 6. Find the Fermi energy of electrons in copper on the assumption that each copper atom contributes one free electron to the electron gas. The density of copper is 8.94(103 kg/m3 and its atomic mass is 63.5 u. 7. Calculate the Fermi energy at 0 K for the electrons in a metal having electron density 8.4x1028m-3. 8. On the basis of Kronig – Penney model, show that the energy spectrum of electron in a linear crystalline lattice consists of alternate regions of allowed energy and forbidden energy. 9. Discuss the differences among the band structures of metals, insulators and semiconductors. How does the band structure model enable you to better understand the electrical properties of these materials? 10. Explain how the energy bands of metals, semiconductors and insulators account for the following general optical properties: (a) Metals are opaque to visible light, (b) Semiconductors are opaque to visible light but transparent to infrared, (c) Insulator such as diamond is transparent to visible light. 11. Discuss the position of Fermi energy and conduction mechanism in N and P-type extrinsic semiconductors. TUTORIAL SHEET: 4(b) (Module 4: Solid State Physics) 1. What do you mean by superconductivity? Give the elementary properties of superconductors. 2. Discuss the effect of magnetic field on a superconductor. How a superconductor is different from a normal conductor. 3. Discuss the effect of the magnetic field on the superconducting state of type I and type II superconductors. 4. What are the elements of the BCS theory? Explain the formation of Cooper pairs. 5. Explain the phenomena of Meissner effect and zero resistivity with the help of BCS theory. 6. The metals like gold, silver, copper etc. do not show the superconducting properties, why? 7. Describe the V-I characteristics of p-n junction diode. What do you understand by drift and diffusion current in the case of a semiconductor? 8. Explain the working and characteristics of a photodiode by using I-V curve. 9. Describe the phenomena of carrier generation and recombination in a semiconductor. 10. Define the phenomenon of photoconduction in a semiconductor. Deduce the relation between the wavelength of photon required for intrinsic excitation and forbidden energy gap of semiconductor. 11. Establish the relation between load current and load voltage of a solar cell. Describe the applications of solar cell in brief.

Evaluate How Effective Sand Play Was Essay

When given the choice of seven activities all three of the children, aged two years old, went straight for the sandpit to draw letters in the sand with thick and long sticks. The children doing the activity love to draw by making shapes and different movements with a variety of implements, for example paint, colouring pencils or chalk, which is similar to writing in the sand in many different ways. This means spelling out the letters in the sand can be used as a way of stimulating interest in writing. Whilst spelling letters in the sand pit the children were developing in many different ways. In terms of personal, social and emotional development the children were all confident to try a new activity, initiated ideas about the sand and made links to the beach and all spoke happily in the small group. Whilst I was instructing the children as to what we would be doing they sat quietly, maintained concentration and attention. They then took off their shoes and socks independently, demonstrating they can manage their own personal hygiene by undressing. One child in particular was very keep to be shown how to draw the letters and showed a real interest to learn. It also enabled me to continue building a good relationship with the children. In terms of physical development it gave the children to use a range of small and large equipment, mainly a variety of sized sticks. The children were handling the sticks and other objects safely and with increased control. In terms of communication, language and speech development the children used language to imagine and recreate experiences, ideas and feelings they had that related to sand. They were not very good at taking it turns in conversation, which made it challenging to have group conversations. By doing this sort of activity enabled the children to extend their vocabulary, exploring the meanings and sounds of new words as a group. In terms of literacy development this activity gave the children the opportunity to use familiar and common words whilst developing their writing skills by drawing out the different letters. With one child I was supporting them whilst writing their own name. By the end of the activity they were all using a pencil and holding it effectively to form recognisable letters. In terms of numeracy, the children were drawing a variety of shapes in the sand which allowed me to use new words with them to further develop their vocabulary. I  also used everyday words to help reinforce their existing vocabulary in a new context. In terms of arts and design development the children got to explore a different texture and produced a variety of shapes where there was space in the sand. They also responded in a variety of ways to what they saw, heard and felt. In terms of understanding of the world the children used their senses to investigate objects and materials by used. The children also constructed letters with an object and adapted their work where necessary. As demonstrated the children were extending their learning and development throughout the activity in all seven developmental areas. They also all demonstrated their enjoyment during the activity by smiling, laughing, talking and happily asking questions. It is important when planning and co-ordinating an activity your expectations are of the right level to encourage the child to achievement. If you do not expect enough, children rarely complain. However, they underperform and lose confidence in their abilities to achieve. They show symptoms of anger, anxiety, and depression. Although differing abilities and learning styles in children cannot be ignored, children may achieve more and fulfil adults’ expectations if more is expected of them. High standards can be effective motivators. Furthermore, by having too higher expectations can also cause problems for children. Highly competitive goals that feel impossible to achieve can cause children to procrastinate, give up, feel stressed, and show the same symptoms of anger, anxiety, and depression. Of course, that does not mean they are unable to achieve those expectations; it only means that they do not believe they can. They feel pressured, which is important to avoid. However, the children involved in the sandpit activities expectations and achievements have been reached without putting pressure on them. All children that were involved worked at their own speed. The children were able to work together and respecting each other’s work. The children also explored the materials and tools and figured out by themselves what they could do with them. I feel it is important not to put the children under pressure so they are achieving what you want them to as it maybe too early for some children’s developmental rate, let them work at their own pace so they will achieve what they are able when they are able. However, as I was planning all seven activities based on the children’s age and had used their learning journals, previous observations and evaluations and previous  planning sheets and evaluations I was sure that all the children would enjoy any one of the activities and be able to do it at their own pace to get the most out of it developmentally.

Museum Project Essays

Museum Project Essays Museum Project Essay Museum Project Essay 10 November 2010 Museum Project Ansel Adams, The Tetons and The Snake River, Grand Teton National Park. 1942. Gelatin Silver Print. Featured at Phoenix Art Museum. Phoenix, Arizona. Ansel Adams (1902-1984) was born in San Francisco, California. Being raised in the shadows of the great Golden Gate Bridge was the motivation for his deep appreciation for nature and his early childhood would become his primary inspiration to pursue photography. Strangely enough the 1906 earthquake made a permanent mark on him as he was thrown to the ground breaking his nose. When he was 17 he gained his early experience and inspiration by working for the Sierra Club at the Clubs LeConte Memorial Lodge, in Yosemite National Park. Ansel eventually became a photographer for the clubs annual outings. He is best known as a visionary figure for natural photography as well as for his passion in preserving the wilderness. In 1980, Ansel received the prestigious Presidential Medal of Freedom for his efforts to preserve the wilderness. He played a significant role in the environmental consciousness of the United States and his photography, to this day; continue to inspire both artists and conservationist (Adams 6)(Ansel). The genre is photography. The picture is of mountains in the backdrop, with a river flowing in front of it surrounded by forest. The three characteristics to describe the piece would be; perspective, value and composition. From the William Cronon website we learn of the two different perspectives in this photo. The author states that the first is a vantage-point perspective. This perspective gives us a stunning image of the landscape. The second perspective would be the birds-eye perspective where the viewer is distanced from the actual elements in the picture giving them an overall view of the picture (Hung). The print is Geletin Silver, which provides the very rich blacks and grays. The value that is instilled in each part of the print makes the prints beauty just unfold before your eyes, giving you the feeling of almost being there. It value distinguishes the shapes and objects from one another in the photograph. Mr. Adams composition shows how he framed the photo to center the mountain and the river. The river leads our eyes to the mountain or looking down from the mountain to the river flowing in front of us. According to Ansel Adams, the picture represents bringing information about earth to the alien civilization. The purpose is showing what life on earth is. The picture gives us the raw beauty of the Teton Nation Park (Van-buskirk). His love for landscape and nature show as he literally brings this picture alive. To me it shows us what the National Parks were and should always be, left as nature intended them to be. Having an absolute love for nature and photography this picture captured my eye immediately and literally left me in awe. Alfredo Ramos Martin, La Malinche (Young Girl of Yalala Oaxaca). 1940’s. Oil on Canvas. Featured at The Phoenix Art Museum. Phoenix, Arizona. Alfredo Ramos Martinez (1872 – 1946). He was born on November 12, 1872. His parents were from Monterrey Mexico, in the state of Nuevo Leon. His father was a middle-class storekeeper. His mother was very supportive of his artistic endeavors. He became a true artist very early at the young age of 9 by sending a portrait he painted of the governor of Nuevo Leon to a competition in San Antonio, Texas. This portrait won first place! Ramos caught the eye of American Phoebe Hearst by his work of painted ordinary life scenes, which he mastered after getting fed up with the system while attending the prestigious Academia Nacional de Bellas Artes in Mexico City for 8 years. His life scene work was created while he was still at the Academia. He was bored of the current curriculum and during those times where he would wander off tired of drawing from plaster casts is when he began crafting his style. Phoebe is the person who made arrangements to financially support his studies abroad. So in 1897 he went to Paris where he mastered his trade in the streets by embracing the Post-Impressionists style. This is where Ramos started painting on newsprint (Martinez). The genre of this painting is Latin American. The painting is of a young Aztec Indian woman. Three characteristics to describe the piece would be line, shape and color. Ramos is using diagonal lines in the background to draw you into the beautiful girl. His lines will guide you and lead you to the center of the painting, which is the young girl. It will make you command the attention of her, who is his main focus. Ramos further uses large shapes in his portraits, which again demand your attention, making her bold and beautiful. The shapes are large ad organic from the shape of her face to the shape of her lips, and all that are in between. The colors of browns and blacks make the picture warm and comfortable and also represent the genre it is from. It gives you the feeling of being there in the young woman’s culture as those colors represent the Indian culture. The portrait represents a young woman in the Aztec Indian culture as a heroine. It gives us an inside look at the women of this time and culture. His use of colors and boldness represent the strong women in the culture and their beauty, as the true heroines they are not the harlots some made them out to be. This portrait stopped me literally in my footsteps. I had to take a second and even a third look as the boldness, the strength and pure simplicity of the woman in the picture calls out to you demanding your attention. I fell in love at first site (La Malinche). Sandy Skoglund, Fox Games, 1989. Sculpture in clay. Featured at The Denver Art Museum. Denver, Colorado. Sandy Skoglund was born September 11, 1946. She currently resides in New York City where she has a studio and is a teacher at Rutgers University. Most of her childhood was spent in California, where her later work would get its influence. Sandy earned a B. A. from Smith College, where she studied art history and her M. A. and M. F. A. she received from the University of Iowa. She also studied art history at the Sorbonne and Ecole du Louvre in Paris, France during her junior year of college. It was in the late 70’s that Sandy took a new direction when commercial image making inspired her. Her work normally features Surrealist tableaux composed of bright colors and numerous recurring objects. Sandy Skoglund has had her work has been displayed in numerous museums around the country; such as Dayton Art Institute, Denver Art Museum, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Some of her most famous work is the Radioactive Cats and Revenge of the Goldfish. Sandy will create an environment like Fox Games and then photograph the piece and then exhibit the piece along with the photograph (The Free Library)(Fantasy). The genre of this sculpture: Fox Games, is Modern/Contemporary. The piece or pieces are of gray foxes in red rooms looking for food and playing amongst each other. Three characteristics to describe the piece would be form, texture and color. The form in this piece is the playful foxes, which are made of clay and are three dimensional and they are the visible elements of the piece. These pieces being of clay sculpture also show the texture of the pieces by touching the rough and smooth surfaces. You can also get the visual feel of the texture just by looking at the pieces. You see the lines and carvings in each piece. You can see where the pieces are smooth and rough in the texture of the clay. One of the most visual aspects of these pieces of art is the color and contrast. She uses the color red to represent the fear (the nightmare) while she uses the contrast of the soft gray foxes to give you more of the feeling of calmness (dreamlike). It leaves you feeling a bit confused by which message she is trying to convey. Sandy’s work represents surrealism and conceptualism as stated by The Nelson-Atkins Museum. The Nelson-Atkins Museum goes on to say that the pieces are humorous and inviting into almost a dreamlike interpretation but at the same time representing your worst nightmare (Nelson-Atkins).

Shaolin Monks Fight Japanese Pirates

Shaolin Monks Fight Japanese Pirates Ordinarily, the life of a Buddhist monk involves meditation, contemplation, and simplicity. In mid-16th century China, however, the monks of Shaolin Temple were called upon to battle Japanese pirates who had been raiding the Chinese coastline for decades. How did the Shaolin monks end up acting as a paramilitary or police force? The Shaolin Monks By 1550, the Shaolin Temple had been in existence for approximately 1,000 years. The resident monks were famous throughout Ming China for their specialized and highly effective form of kung fu (gong fu). Thus, when ordinary Chinese imperial army and navy troops proved unable to stamp out the pirate menace, Nanjings Vice-Commissioner-in-Chief, Wan Biao, decided to deploy monastic fighters. He called upon the warrior-monks of three temples: Wutaishan in Shanxi Province, Funiu in Henan Province, and Shaolin. According to contemporary chronicler Zheng Ruoceng, some of the other monks challenged the leader of the Shaolin contingent, Tianyuan, who sought the leadership of the entire monastic force. In a scene reminiscent of countless Hong Kong films, the eighteen challengers chose eight from among themselves to attack Tianyuan. First, the eight men came at the Shaolin monk with bare hands, but he fended them all off. They then grabbed swords; Tianyuan responded by seizing the long iron bar that was used to lock the gate. Wielding the bar as a staff, he defeated all eight of the other monks simultaneously. They were forced to bow to Tianyuan, and acknowledge him as the proper leader of the monastic forces. With the question of leadership settled, the monks could turn their attention to their real adversary: the so-called Japanese pirates. The Japanese Pirates The fifteenth and sixteenth centuries were tumultuous times in Japan. This was the Sengoku Period, a century and a half of warfare among competing daimyo when no central authority existed in the country. Such unsettled conditions made it hard for ordinary folks to make an honest living... but easy for them to turn to piracy. Ming China had problems of its own. Although the dynasty would hang on to power until 1644, by the mid-1500s it was beset by nomadic raiders from the north and west, as well as rampant brigandage along the coast. Here, too, piracy was an easy and relatively safe way to make a living. Thus, the so-called Japanese pirates, wako or woku, were actually a confederation of Japanese, Chinese, and even some Portuguese citizens who banded together. (The pejorative term wako literally means dwarf pirates.) The pirates raided for silks and metal goods, which could be sold in Japan for up to ten times their value in China. Scholars debate the precise ethnic makeup of the pirate crews, with some maintaining that no more than 10% were actually Japanese. Others point to the long list of clearly Japanese names among the pirate rolls. In any case, these motley international crews of seagoing peasants, fishermen, and adventurers wreaked havoc up and down the Chinese coast for more than 100 years. Calling Out the Monks Desperate to regain control of the lawless coast, Nanjing official Wan Biao mobilized the monks of Shaolin, Funiu, and Wutaishan. The monks fought the pirates in at least four battles. The first took place in the spring of 1553 on Mount Zhe, which overlooks the entrance to Hangzhou City via the Qiantang River. Although details are scarce, Zheng Ruoceng notes that this was a victory for the monastic forces. The second battle was the monks greatest victory: the Battle of Wengjiagang, which was fought in the Huangpu River Delta in July of 1553. On July 21, 120 monks met an approximately equal number of pirates in battle. The monks were victorious, and chased the remnants of the pirate band south for ten days, killing every last pirate. Monastic forces suffered only four casualties in the fighting. During the battle and mop-up operation, the Shaolin monks were noted for their ruthlessness. One monk used an iron staff to kill the wife of one of the pirates as she tried to escape the slaughter. Several dozen monks took part in two more battles in the Huangpu delta that year. The fourth battle was a grievous defeat, due to incompetent strategic planning by the army general in charge. After that fiasco, the monks of Shaolin Temple and the other monasteries seem to have lost interest in serving as paramilitary forces for the Emperor. Warrior-Monks: An Oxymoron? Although it seems quite odd that Buddhist monks from Shaolin and other temples would not only practice martial arts but actually march into battle and kill people, perhaps they felt the need to maintain their fierce reputation. After all, Shaolin was a very wealthy place. In the lawless atmosphere of late Ming China, it must have been very useful for the monks to be renowned as a deadly fighting force. Sources John Whitney Hall, The Cambridge History of Japan, Vol. 4, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999). Meir Shahar, Ming-Period Evidence of Shaolin Martial Practice, Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 61:2 (Dec. 2001). Meir Shahar, The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts, (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2008).