The Significance of Colonialism Essay Example

The Significance of Colonialism Essay Example The Significance of Colonialism Essay The Significance of Colonialism Essay Essay Topic: Burial Rites Whether it is all consuming character of Prospero, the vainglorious superiority of the Utopians or the savage greed of the first English Virginian colonists; there is a common will exercised in these three literary texts: conquer and take all. It is my aim in this essay to prove how an underlying theme of colonialism is being operated and advocated in these three texts, as a means of the progression and enrichment of a society specifically European and even more specifically white and English. To attempt to discuss the discourse of colonialism in these texts, it is important to locate them in the historical and political climate of the time. During the late 16th and early 17th centuries, England was experiencing a vast array of problems, both internally and externally. The foremost of these were a private-enterprise seaborne war against Spain (James 5), and a litany of potentially subversive Catholics resident within England itself and of course the newly acquired issue of overpopulation. An influential group of English courtiers and councillors, including the Earl of Leicester, Sir Francis Walsingham and Sir Walter Raleigh, (James 5) saw the vision of an expansionist Empire across the sea in the New World as the solution to many of these difficulties. Many plays, pamphlets and images were circulated which accorded with these aspirations. In fact, accounts of the miraculous survival of members of the company of the Sea Adventure, wrecked off Bermuda in 1609, are said to have provided Shakespeare with an immediate source for The Tempest (Tmp) (Brown 48), and there is much evidence to suggest that Shakespeare had America in mind when writing this play as, the spirit, Ariels songs are seen to be based on Algonquian dances and intended Caliban to be representative Indian and Prospero a planter. (Wilson 333). Utopia is said to be inspired by accounts of the communistic way of life observed in some of these new found lands, although it is an imaginary world whose backbone is based upon slavery. Needless to say, Utopia seems to have inspired some of the ideology behind the concept of colonialism during this era, such as this portion from the play Eastwood Ho, which was written by George Chapman, Ben Jonson and John Marston and first performed in London during the summer of 1605. In this fragment, Captain Seagull describes th e wealth of the Virginian Indians: Why, man, all their dripping pans and their chamber pots are pure gold: and all the chains, with which they chain up their streets, are massy gold; all the prisoners they take are fettered in gold; and for rubies and diamonds, they go forth on holidays and gather em by the seashore, to hang on their childrens coats. (James 4) This description bears an uncanny resemblance to the Utopians treatment of gold, written by More almost a century earlier, and proves that Utopia contributed greatly to the adventurous beliefs associated with these new lands across the ocean. they make their chamber pots and close-stools of gold and silverof the same metals they likewise make chains and fetters for their slavesThey find pearls on their coast, and diamonds and carbuncles on their rocks; they do not look after them, but, if they find them by chance, they polish them, and with them they adorn their children (More 25) A Map of Virginia (Virginia) was written by John Smith as a promotional literary piece to encourage new settlers to the Virginia colony, for al is open for labor of a good and wise inhabitant (Smith 80). It is a historical, anthropological and geographical piece of literature which details the people and the commodities of the region and how those commodities may be used and made profitable. Consequently it is evident that a theme of colonialism is deep rooted in these texts, as Tmp and Virginia were written at the epicentre of the expansionist age, and Utopia written at the dawn of this era, when news of these new lands and peoples as just beginning to reach English shores and a dream of an empire was being pondered upon. It is interesting to note that the word colony comes from the Roman colonia which meant farm or settlement, and referred to Romans who settled in other lands but still retained their citizenship (Loomba Colonialism 7). In Tmp, Prospero is ousted from his dukedom of Milan and arrives on the island on which the play is set and sets up his own colonia on the isle, after expropriating it from its previous owner, the poisonous slave (Shakespeare 1.2.319), Caliban. This subjugation of Caliban, is justified by Prospero due to the tyranny of his mother, thy wicked dam (Shakespeare 1.2.320) Sycorax and to his innate savage behaviour, on whose nature / Nuture can never stick (Shakespeare 4.1.188-9). Although when Prospero first arrived on the isle, relations were quite cordial between the two, as Caliban recounts: When thou camst first, / Thou strokst me and made much of me ; wouldst give me / Water with berries int, and teach me how / To name the bigger light and how the less and then I loved thee, / And showed thee all the qualities othisleCursed be that I did so! (Shakespeare 1.2.332-339) Prospero masked his dependence on Caliban for information about the island with displays of physical affectionOnce petted, Caliban now remains penned like a pig, but on a rock barren of all food. Tales of initial native hospitality and sharing of fold and resources were stock-in-trade of English colonisers (Seed 203). Similarly, in Virginia, initial relations were positive, with regards to the relationship between that of John Smith and the Powhatan tribe of Amerindians. When the colonists first arrived in the Cheapeseake Bay area, the people in al parts kindly intreated them (Smith 31/32), and even after some disorder between the two groups, so moved are the Indians by the suffering that the starving colonists are enduring that they even share their corn with them: God the patron of all good indeavours in that desperate extreamity so cha~ged the harts of the Salvages, that they brought such plenty of their fruits, and provision as no man wanted. (Smith 35) After Smith is captured by the Powhatans, he manages to mesmerise them with his knowledge of science and geography, and in doing so is able to trick them into believing that he and his associates are of a superior power to them and come in friendship. This is reminiscent of the way that Prospero once loved and petted Caliban, teaching him how to name the bigger light and how the less burn by day and night. So he had incha~ted those poore soules (being their prisoner) in demonstrating vnto them the roundnesse of the world, the course of the moone and stares, the cause of day and night the largenes of the seas the qualities of our ships, shot and powder, The devision of the world, with the diversity of people, their complexions, customes and conditions. All which he fained to be vnder the command of Captaine Newport, whom he tearmed to them his father. (Smith 16-17 (38)) Prospero and John Smith use their knowledge to gain control over the dominions that they seek to conquer. Prospero has an aide in the spirit Ariel, who can subject the poor Caliban to endure tremendous pain and torments: Thou shalt have cramps,/ Side-stitches that shall pen thy breath up. Urchins/ Shall, for that vast of night that they make thy work, / All excercise on thee. Thou shalt be pinched / As thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging / Than bees that made em. (Shakespeare 1.2.325-330)) One of the ways that Prospero marks out Caliban as inferior is by his physical appearance. He is described as a freckled whelp, hag-born-not honoured with a human shape. (Shakespeare 1.2.283-284), and later in Act 2 Trinculo arrives on the island and encountering Caliban, gives a description of his appearance: What have we here-a man or a fish?A strange fish ! Were I in England now, as once I was, and / had but this fish painted, not a holiday-fool there but would give a piece of silver. There would this monster make a man-any strange beast there makes a man. / When they will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian. Legged like a man, and his fins like arms! (Shakespeare 2.2.24-34). What Trinculo could possibly be making reference to here is to the possibility that Indians who died in England could have possibly been embalmed, clad in their indigenous attire and put on show for paying audiences, as no records attest to the departure or burial of more than a dozen Amerindians whose presence in England during Shakespeares lifetime is certain (Vaughan 58-59). Calibans subjugation is also justified because he is the spawn of a wicked dam (Shakespeare 1.2.320), the foul witch Sycorax (Shakespeare 1.2.257). There is no doubt that Sycorax was an African woman, as Prospero outlines her banishment from Algiers by the king of Tunis. Sycorax is branded as inferior due to her blackness, her female gender and then finally for the black arts that she practised and did harm with. The magical power that Prospero holds never comes into question for he is a white male and even though his sorcery too is evil and causes harm, he is protected by the colonial hegemony he has establis hed upon the island. Thus Prospero establishes a colonial power which is specifically white and male. He goes to great pains to enroot this belief by reminding the spirit Ariel of the cruel life enforced upon him by the islands old queen: This damned witch Sycorax, / For mischiefs manifold and sorceries terrible / To enter human hearing, from Algiers / Thou knowst was banished-for one thing she did / They would not take her lifeThou, my slave, / As thou reportst thyself, was then her servant,Refusing her grand hests, she did confine theeInto a cloven pine (Shakespeare 1.2.264-277). Prospero sees himself as superior and therefore reasonable in his enslavement of Caliban; because of Calibans assumed physical defects, his lineage from the corrupt witch Sycorax and his uncivilised behaviour. Prospero has confined Caliban on the hard rock (Shakespeare 1.2.343) because of an unsuccessful attempt to rape Miranda, but previous to this act, Prospero and Miranda had attempted to educate and civilise Caliban with disappointing results. Abhorred slave, / Which any print of goodness wilt not take, / Being capable of all ill! I pitied thee, / Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour but wouldst gabble like / A thing most brutish But thy vile race- / Though thou didst learn-had that int which good natures / Could not abide to be with ; therefore wast thou / Deservedly confined into this rock, / Who hadst deserved more than a prison. (Shakespeare 1.2.350-361). Caliban is a failure at learning properly the language that Miranda has gone to such great pains to teach him. Prospero once even once lodged thee/ In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate / The honour of my child (Shakespeare 1.2.346-348). Miranda teaches Caliban language with the intention of conscripting him within the project of moral renewal but his wicked deed culminates in him being dispossessed and driven from her presence (Gillies The Figure 194). Calibans fall is reminiscent of Aristotles theory of the natural slave; unable to learn a language succinctly and incapable of bridling his sexual desires, Calibans punishment is a lifetime of servitude and shame. Thus his failure at education and misdemeanour provides Prospero with rationale for the expropriation and enslavement of Caliban. Patriarchal colonial rule is established upon the isle with Prospero as supreme head of state; protecting his pure, virginal daughter (even though she is quite capable of uttering a pr ofanity herself) from the unchecked carnal desires of the deformed Caliban. This preoccupation with preventing sexual connections (or even the threat of such contact) between English women and native men (Seed 211), has proven itself to be an enduring characteristic of many British colonies, where it has often been used the reasoning behind many cruelties and displays of violence (Seed 211). Something that would have resonated with Shakespearean audiences who watched this play were the many images circulating during this time, depicting the Sceptred isle as full and the New World as empty (Seed 205) as English colonists wanted to begin peopling the excess English population into this new territory; a concept which resonates with The Tempest during Calibans speech upon his failed attempt of raping Miranda and therefore unable to realise his dream: Thou didst prevent me-I had peopled else/ This isle with Calibans. (Shakespeare 1.2.348-349) In Virginia, special attention is also paid to the physical appearance and habits of the native Indians. He describes their attire as being assembled in a rude manner and the natives are viewed in subhuman, animalistic terms. In describing the character of the Powhatan tribe, Smith writes: Some are of disposition fearefull, some bold, most cautelous, all SavageThey are soone moved to anger, and so malitious, that they seldom forget an injury (37). (A stark contrast to Smiths description of them as seeming of an honest simple disposition earlier in the text). Smith accuses the Indians of child sacrifice, and of executing a fellow colonist, George Cassen, of a most merciless and cruel method of death (de-jointing a victim, then disembowelling him, finally setting him alight while being bound to a tree throughout the entire ordeal). Although these situations could have possibly occurred, he has evidence to support neither of them. Both accounts are merely hearsay, are hardly objective and obviously entered with the desired effect of swaying the judgment of the reader to thinking of the engrained savage nature of these Indians. There are many other tirades launched against the Indians (despite them saving the colonists from starvation out of compassion) but the cornerstone of his argument for civilising them is their religion, as Smith outlines their Chiefe God they worship is the Diuell. Him they call Oke serve him more of feare then loue. Smith writing this during a period of extreme religious piety in England and the actuality that the majority of the first colonists were God fearing Puritans, highlights the point that Smith was trying to make that these Indians were heathens and to colonise and therefore civilise them was Gods will. And end to the high glory of God, to the erecting of true religion among Infidells, to the overthrow of superstition and idolatrie, to the winning of many thousands of wandering sheepe, vnto Christs foldhave strayed in unknowne paths of Paginisme, Idolatrie and superstition (Smith ?). These new aims that claimed by Smith and his followers are quite different from the aims that Smith acknowledged the Virginia Company had outlined for them as to discover the country, subdue the people, bring them to be tractable, civil and industrious, and teach them trades, that the fruits of their labours might make vs recompence, or plant such colonies of our own that must (Smith ?). The use of religion as a means of suppression advocated by Machiavelli years before hand; he himself having traced the idea back to the foundation of the Roman Empire, when Romuluss successor, Numa Pompilius, finding a very savage people, and wishing to reduce them to civil obedience by the arts of peace, had to recourse to religion as the most necessary and assured support of any civil society (Greenblatt 20). The Virginia colonists aspirations to introduce the Indians to Christianity seem to be very suspicious especially when one considers the occasion when Smith fooled the Indians into thinking he was of a status of a demigod; capable of raising the poor Indian boy from the dead once his brother swore never to steal again. Even though Smith portrayed himself as a staunch Christian and as outlined previously stated that he wanted to bring an end to Paginisme, Idolatrie and Superstition, he exploited the superstitions of the Indians. The Indian king, Powhatan, asked Smith, what will it availe you, to take that perforce, you may quietly have with loue, or to destroy them that provide you food? (Smith). Powhatan was completely aware of the Virginia Companys true intentions, and there was very little Christian compassion and love engrained in them. Like Prospero, once Smith had gotten the information that he needed in order for James Town to prosper, he required a valid reason to force the Indians into submission, for as he said, For we haue a rule to finde beyond your knowledge (Smith). The Utopians, on the other hand, have already mastered the art of subduing and colonising, for although they do not hasten to go into war; when they do, they totally vanquish the enemy. Firstly, they do not use their own men in the war but employ a mercenary army of a neighbouring tribe, the Zapolets, who are a rude, wild and fierce nation, who delight in the woods and rocks, among which they were born and bred up. They are hardened both against heat, cold and labour, and know nothing of the delicacies of life (More 39). Once the Utopians have struck down their enemies and entered into their lands, they never lay their enemies country waste nor burn their corn, and even in their marches they take all possible care that neither horse nor foot may tread it down, for they do not know but that they may have use for it themselves (More 41). The use that they make of these newly conquered lands is to establish somewhat a form of a colony, extracting taxes from the occupied country. When a war is ended, they do not oblige their friends to reimburse their expenses; but they obtain them of the conquered, either in moneyor in lands, out of which a constant revenue is to be paid themThey send some of their own people to receive these revenues, who have orders to live magnificently, and like princes, by which means they consume much of it upon the place; and either bring over the rest to Utopia, or lend it to that nation in which it lies. (More 41). In Utopia, the whole foundation of their civilisation has been founded upon conquest and colonisation. For as their history records: Utopus that conquered it (whose name it still carries, for Abraxa was its first name) brought the rude and uncivilized inhabitants into such a good government, and to that measure of politeness, that they now far excel all the rest of mankind (More 17). The Utopians regard slavery as a normal part of their culture, and similar to Prosperos chastisement of Caliban, use it as the punishment even of the greatest crimes; for as that is no less terrible to the criminals themselves than death, so they think the preserving them in a state of servitude is more for the interest of the commonwealth than killing them; since as their labour is a greater benefit to the public than their death could be, so the sight of their misery is a more lasting terror to other men than that which would be given by their death. If their slaves rebel, and will not bear their yoke and submit to the labour that is enjoined them, they are treated as wild beasts that cannot be kept in order, neither by a prison nor by their chains, and are at last put to death. (More 35). Another sort of slaves are the poor of the neighbouring countries, who offer of their own accord to come and serve them; they treat these better, and use them in all other respects as well as their own countrymen, except their imposing more labour upon them, which is no hard task to those that have been accustomed to it. (More 33). A form of communal living presides in the countryside, people living together in country families, which consist of no fewer than forty men and women in it, besides two slaves (More 17). All of the most menial and unpleasant tasks of Utopian life are performed by these slaves, such as the slaughter and butchering of animals, for they suffer none of their citizens to kill their cattle, because they think that pity and good natureare impaired by the butchering of animals. (More 23). The Utopians regard themselves as morally and intellectually superior to these slaves, but due to their love of education, take it upon themselves to redeem these slaves through knowledge and pestilence.

Plato, Descartes, and Freud's Take on Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Plato, Descartes, and Freud's Take on - Essay Example In an attempt to do just this, a well known philosopher by the name of, Plato, asked the question, â€Å"What is a good life for a human being?† This question carries with it the supposition that all humans have at least two of the same built in devices, reason and human nature. It also implies that these two devices steer people toward the same goal or purpose. It is philosophy that undertakes the study of discovering what this purpose is, by turning people away from mere appearance and toward reality. The ultimate goal of any philosopher is to uncover how the world looks objectively instead of subjectively, and from what truly is good instead of what just appears to be good. By the use of reason three theories have been developed by the world’s most prominent philosophers during their attempt to divide what is reality, and what is merely and illusion of reality. The first theory, The Divided Line Theory, was developed by Plato. The second theory, Method of Doubt, was created by Descartes. The final theory, Psychoanalysis, was developed by Freud. By taking an in-depth look into how each philosopher reasoned his conclusion and the similarities and differences each theory contains, one might develop a broad answer to one of philosophy’s most probing questions. Divided Line Theory To develop his, Divided Line Theory, Plato used the reasoning that human beings live in a world of visible and intelligible things. The visible world is made up of those things that surround humans. What they can feel, tough, taste and see. However, Plato states that the visible world is made up of uncertainty. The intelligible world on the other hand is made up of unchanging products of human reason; this would consist of anything arising from reason alone, such as mathematics, or abstract definitions. The intelligible world therefore is made up of eternal â€Å"forms† or in Greek â€Å"ideas† of things; the visible world, then, is the imperfect and c hanging manifestation in this world of these unchanging forms. An example would be the Form or Idea of a horse is intelligible, and applies to all horses. This form or idea never changes, even though each horse may vary wildly individually, the form of a horse would never change even if all horses across the world were to disappear. An individual horse, on the other hand, is a physical changing object that can easily case to be a horse. Plato therefore describes these two worlds as existing with a line between them; the intelligible world and the visible world. He says that in the intelligible world one can have knowledge and in the visible world one can have opinion. He then further divides each of the worlds in two. The visible world he divides into illusion which is made up of â€Å"shadows† paintings, poetry, etc. and beliefs which is made up of things that can change, such as an individual horse. The intelligible world is then divided into the sub-categories of reason, w hich is things such as mathematics, and intelligence, which is the understanding of the ultimate good. Plato’s theory differs from Descartes and Freud’s in that he doesn’t attempt to apply it in any way, it is a simple method of grouping aspects of the world to further uncover the ultimate truth. Method of Doubt Descartes Method of

Infectious Disease and Public Health (Microbiology) Essay

Infectious Disease and Public Health (Microbiology) - Essay Example Therefore, this exposes people, who are nearby to these bacteria, thereby increasing chances of being infected. Actually, TB bacteria are activated by the state of low immunity system in a person, who is infected. In United States, the government has made necessary strategic plans aimed at eliminating TB since 1989, which was a period that America experienced re-emergence of TB (CDC, 2005). In fact, the high prevalence of HIV contributed significantly to resurgence of TB, though there were other factors such as increased immigration of people from countries with high TB prevalence and availability of multidrug-resistant TB (CDC, 2005). On the other hand, the government has made necessary effort to improve infrastructure to facilitate control of TB in America. Therefore, this led to correction of the problem that had deteriorated, through crucial deployment of resources at a state and local levels in the country. In addition, CDC (2005) explains that effort made by American government to deal with the negative implications of TB led to a forty-four percent decrease of its prevalence during the period between 1993 and 2003. Government’s effort to deal with implications of TB is attributable to articulate national approach, which facilitated response to initial reappearance of TB (CDC, 2005). Furthermore, this effort can also be attributed to coordination of government officials in health care field at the local and state level. Nevertheless, the government has been ensuring that there are ample resources to deal with this problem; thus leading to spectacular decrease of TB cases among Americans. Nonetheless, government effort increased possibility of eliminating TB in 1999 and reaffirmation of objectives to expunge TB through America by Advisory Council for the Elimination of Tuberculosis (ACET) (CDC, 2005). According to a recent research by CDC (2012), there were 10,528 incidences of

International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts Essay Example for Free

International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts Essay Bloodstain pattern analysis is one technique of several in the discipline of forensic science. This technique of using bloodstains as evidences is not new; however, the application of modern science has made bloodstain analysis more and more reliable (Wikipedia). When current technologies and advances within DNA analysis become available to enforcement agencies, the apprehension of criminals and offenders become less problematic (Wikipedia). The forensic science of bloodstain pattern analysis applies scientific knowledge from other disciplines in order to solve a myriad of practical problems. Bloodstain pattern analysis can draw on biology, chemistry, math, and physics, among others (Wikipedia). When an analyst follows a strict scientific process, this applied science can produce strong, solid evidence (Wikipedia). This is an imperative tool when in the hands of law enforcement. An understanding of bloodstain analysis may allow first responders to a crime scene the know-how in currently collecting and preserving any bloodstain data (Wikipedia). Bloodstain analysts receive specialized training. The foundation course in bloodstain pattern analysis is the Basic Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Course. This is taught at many government and private institutions. The course criterion was developed by the International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts (IABPA) with the following stated purpose: A course of instruction designed for investigators, crime scene technicians, forensic technicians, and others involved in criminal and medical-legal investigations and crime scene analysis. The course is intended to develop a fundamental knowledge of the discipline of bloodstain pattern analysis. The course should illustrate to the student basic principals of bloodstain pattern analysis and the practical application of the discipline to actual casework. The course syllabus is not intended to create an â€Å"instant† expert. There are three classifications of bloodstains: passive, projected, and transfer/contact. These classifications were developed by the IABPA. Passive stains are developed when the acting force creating it is gravity. A passive pattern is then divided into three sub-categories: passive drop, drip pattern, and flow pattern (IABPA). Passive drops are created by the force of gravity alone, and the drip pattern is created when blood drips into blood. The flow pattern is a change in shape or direction due to influence of gravity or movement of the object (IABPA). Projected blood patterns are the result of an energy source being transferred through blood. There are several types: low velocity impact spatter (LVIS), medium velocity impact spatter (MVIS), high velocity impact spatter (HVIS), and expiratory blood (IABPA). The three types of velocity impact patterns are caused when an impact at either a low, medium, or high velocity make contact with the blood source (i. e. medium impact = a battery; high impact = a gunshot). An expiratory pattern is blown out of the nose, mouth, or a wound as a result of air pressure and/or air flow which is the propelling force (IABPA). A transfer/contact stain is the result of a blood bearing object coming in contact with a non-blood bearing object – thus causing the transfer of blood. Two types of transfer/contact patterns are the wipe and swipe pattern. A wipe bloodstain pattern created when an object moves through an existing stain, removing and/or altering its appearance. A swipe pattern is the transfer of blood from a moving source onto an unstained surface (IABPA). Blood splatter flight characteristics show that blood tends to form a sphere in flight opposed to the artistic teardrop shape. This is the result in the surface tension that binds the molecules together. This spherical shape is important to the calculation angle of incidence of blood when it hits a surface. This angle is then used to determine the point of origin (PO) – the original area where the blood originated in (Wikipedia). In 1954, Marilyn Sheppard was bludgeoned to death in her home. Her husband, Dr. Sam Sheppard survived what he called an attack by an intruder. Dr. Sheppard reported that he had been knocked unconscious as he tried to defend his wife (Lyle). Their home was ransacked. Investigators would come to realize that Dr. Sheppard had no blood located on his body nor clothing, and he denied ever cleaning up before the police arrived (Lyle). This troubled the police. The attack was so brutal that the killer would have been covered in blood, and Dr. Shepard should have had blood transfers located on his body or clothes. Sheppard had no blood located on his hands, which would be impossible because he said he checked for a pulse of his wife’s neck, which was covered in blood. Furthermore, Sheppard claimed that his watch, wallet, ring and keys were missing. This was true. A bag with these items was found no too far from the house; however, they had to traces of blood. Moreover, Sheppard’s pants had no blood on them – impossible is the killer robbed him with bloody hands (Lyle). The watch, however, did have traces of blood. Theses blood splatters came from flying droplets, indicating that the watch must have been close when the victim was received the fatal blows. If the watch made contact with her neck – as he checked for a pulse – the watch would have blood smears and not droplets (Lyle). Police determined that Dr. Sheppard most likely bludgeoned his wife to death. Then he cleaned himself and trashed the items outside the house were police would find them and made the house look as if it was a burglary (Lyle). Based in large part on the blood evidence, or lack of it, Sheppard was convicted of murder. After spending ten years in prison, Sheppard was released when the U. S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction. A representative from the coroner’s office stated that the blood located on Sheppard’s watch represented a blood splatter. This means the watch must have present when the blows were struck (Lyle). A renowned criminalist, Dr. Paul Kirk testified that the blood on the watch was a result of Sheppard checking his wife’s pulse. If so, why was the watch found outside the house? This controversy still surrounds the case. In 2004, Nick Berg was horrifically murdered by insurgents in Iraq. His throat was cut and he was decapitated. His body was found by an Iraqi overpass. The tape was on review on May 11, 2004 for a type of bloodstain analysis. Laura Mansfield, certified in bloodstain analysis by the Laboratory of Forensic Science and is a member of the IABPA, begins her analysis of the footage (Crime Library). It’s reported: â€Å"The time displays 13:45:47 in the lower right corner, the victim is pushed onto his left side where his legs are bent at the knees and raised toward his chest and his arms still tied behind his back. At this point, the video becomes out of focus and essentially useless for the purposes of analysis from approximately 90 frames. As the video comes back into focus, the primary assailant is viewed using the knife to cut the throat of the victim, beginning at the area near his left carotid artery. Almost immediately, blood is seen pouring onto the floor (target surface) from the wound caused by the incision (Crime Library). † There appears to be an edit point. At this point the primary insurgent is no longer holding the knife. â€Å"The individual wearing the white hood and previously standing on the right side of the primary assailant is now using the knife in a saw-like manner, holding the knife in (his) right hand while holding the victims hair with (his) left hand. At 13:47:xx, the individual wearing the white hood ultimately detaches the victims head from his body and holds the head outward in (his) left hand, still holding the knife in (his) right (Crime Library). † The frames that follow appear to jump, at which time the victim’s head is completely detached and the primary object in the frame. Through out the video, time changes frequently from military time back to â€Å"regular† time and vice versa. â€Å"Interestingly, the time display on the video changes to 2:46:20 (regular time format) and then switches back to 13:48:45 (military format) while the victims head is shown detached from his body in a similar series of frames (Crime Library). † Bloodstain pattern analysis is an age-old technique, which with new technologies and advancements aid in the capture and prosecution of criminals. This analysis procedure is used in many different ways and draw upon a myriad of disciplines. In result of a strict process, bloodstain pattern analysis will prove solid, concrete evidence and is a useful tool in the hands of law enforcement. References IABPA (International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts). Suggested IABPA Terminology List. Date visited 8 April 2006. http://www. iabpa. org/Terminology. pdf Lyle, D. P. , MD. Uncovering the Evidence: Those Messy Bloodstains. Forensics for Dummies. John Wiley Sons Inc. p. 98 Nick Berg Tape. Crime Library. Court Tv. Date visited 8 April 2006. http://www. crimelibrary. com/about/authors/mansfield/ Wikipedia Online. Bloodstain Pattern Analysis. Date visited 9 April 2006. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Bloodstain_pattern_analysis

A Review on an Article: If the European Economy Is So Shaky, Why Is the

The article on the Economist, â€Å"If the European economy is so shaky, why is the euro so strong?† by R.A is explaining why and how the value of euro is still remaining strong, even though the economy of Europe is going through many struggles. Throughout the article, it is discussed how appreciation of a currency may not always be good improvement and what negative consequences the appreciation of a currency can lead to. The article also states how the moves of the exchange rates cannot easily be explained and goes into further details about the euro exchange rates. The article starts by stating that recently the euro zone has been facing a good trend of improvement in terms of economy and managed to pull out of the recession. In the euro zone, the unemployment is decreasing and worries regarding the crises are disappearing by the time. However, there is the fear of deflation. As the article continues, it explains how appreciation of a currency can cause problems that are very significant and serious. In order to better explain this point, an example of the US cars is given in the article; if US dollar appreciates compared to euro or yen while the price of the cars do not vary, it will be more expensive for the countries that uses euro or yen as their currencies to purchase US cars. As a result of this appreciation in the value of dollars, the number of cars exported will decrease in the United States. This is exactly the same reason why Europe has a fear for a strong currency; the strong euro currency makes European goods and services more expensive to other nations and thus, lowers the amount sold abroad. Also, since the households, firms and government is cutting back, the development and growth of the economy is highly dep... ...s products and services in demand throughout the globe, hence the euro's strength, at least as determined by the "demand" side of the equation. The "supply" side of the equation would involve to what degree the European Central Bank is pushing credit expansion, which tends to push the value of the euro downwards. In addition to this, the article uses some expressions that does not sound very right when thinking about a big economy as Europe; for example, it is mentioned in the end of the article that, â€Å"The surest way to bring it down is to make more euros†. European system certainly has a slow, hardly predictable response time, many variables, and its behavior is definitely nonlinear. Thus, using such a simple and straight forward expression regarding the exchange rate of euros may not be very right thing to do, even though it is a correct statement to some extent. A Review on an Article: If the European Economy Is So Shaky, Why Is the The article on the Economist, â€Å"If the European economy is so shaky, why is the euro so strong?† by R.A is explaining why and how the value of euro is still remaining strong, even though the economy of Europe is going through many struggles. Throughout the article, it is discussed how appreciation of a currency may not always be good improvement and what negative consequences the appreciation of a currency can lead to. The article also states how the moves of the exchange rates cannot easily be explained and goes into further details about the euro exchange rates. The article starts by stating that recently the euro zone has been facing a good trend of improvement in terms of economy and managed to pull out of the recession. In the euro zone, the unemployment is decreasing and worries regarding the crises are disappearing by the time. However, there is the fear of deflation. As the article continues, it explains how appreciation of a currency can cause problems that are very significant and serious. In order to better explain this point, an example of the US cars is given in the article; if US dollar appreciates compared to euro or yen while the price of the cars do not vary, it will be more expensive for the countries that uses euro or yen as their currencies to purchase US cars. As a result of this appreciation in the value of dollars, the number of cars exported will decrease in the United States. This is exactly the same reason why Europe has a fear for a strong currency; the strong euro currency makes European goods and services more expensive to other nations and thus, lowers the amount sold abroad. Also, since the households, firms and government is cutting back, the development and growth of the economy is highly dep... ...s products and services in demand throughout the globe, hence the euro's strength, at least as determined by the "demand" side of the equation. The "supply" side of the equation would involve to what degree the European Central Bank is pushing credit expansion, which tends to push the value of the euro downwards. In addition to this, the article uses some expressions that does not sound very right when thinking about a big economy as Europe; for example, it is mentioned in the end of the article that, â€Å"The surest way to bring it down is to make more euros†. European system certainly has a slow, hardly predictable response time, many variables, and its behavior is definitely nonlinear. Thus, using such a simple and straight forward expression regarding the exchange rate of euros may not be very right thing to do, even though it is a correct statement to some extent.

Canadian Culture Essay

Canada is located in the northern portion of the continent of North America, extending, in general, from the 49th parallel northward to the islands of the Arctic Ocean. Its eastern and western boundaries are the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans respectively. Its land area totals 3,851,809 square miles (9,976,185 square kilometers). The easternmost portion of the country is a riverine and maritime environment, consisting of the provinces of Newfoundland, Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick. The central portion of the country, in its southern areas, is primarily boreal forest (the provinces of Ontario and Quebec). This forest region extends across the entire country from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains through to the Atlantic coast, and is dominated by coniferous trees. These variations have had important social and cultural effects. The largest segment of the population resides in the central Carolinian region, which has the richest and most varied agricultural land and, because the Great Lakes waterway system dominates the central portion of the country, is also where most of the major manufacturing is located. The savanna or prairie region is more sparsely populated, with several large urban centers in a network across the region, which is dominated by grain farming, cattle and other livestock production, and more recently, oil and natural gas extraction. The two coastal regions, which have some agricultural production, are best characterized by the dominance of port cities through which import and export goods move. In the northern section of the center of the country, also sparsely populated, resource extraction of minerals and lumber, has predominated. The effect of this concentration of the population, employment, and productive power in the central region of the country has been the concentration of political power in this region, as well as the development over time of intense regional rivalries and disparities in quality of life. Equally important, as employment in the center came to dominate gross national production, immigration has tended to flow into the center. This has created a diverse cultural mix in the central region of the country, while the prairie and the eastern maritime region have stabilized ethnically and culturally. The consequence of these diverse geographies has been the development of a rhetoric of regional cultures: Prairie, Maritime, Central, and because of its special isolation, West Coast. A final differentiation is between urban and rural. Local cultural identity is often marked by expressions of contrasting values in which rural residents characterize themselves as harder working, more honest, and more deeply committed to community cooperation, in contrast to urban dwellers [pic] Canada who are characterized by rural residents as greedy, dishonest, arrogant, and self-interested. Urban dwellers express their own identities as more modern and forward looking, more sophisticated, and more liberal in their overall social values, and perceive rural residents as conservative, overdependent on outmoded traditions, unsophisticated, and simple minded. This distinction is most explicit in Quebec, but also plays a key role in political, social, and cultural contentions in Ontario. Demography . The official population at the last census calculation, in 1996, was 29,672,000, an increase over the previous census in 1991 of about 6 percent in five years. The previous five-year increase was almost 7 percent. There has been a slowing population increase in Canada over the last several decades, fueled in part by a decline in the crude birthrate. This slowing of growth has been offset somewhat by an increase in immigration over the last two decades of the twentieth century, coupled with a slowing of emigration. Statistics Canada, the government Census management organization, is projecting a population increase of as much as 8 percent between 2001 and 2005, mostly through increased immigration. Language Canada is bilingual, with English and French as the official languages. English takes precedence in statutory proceedings outside of Quebec, with English versions of all statutes serving as the final arbiter in disputes over interpretation. As of 1996, the proportion of Canadians reporting English as their mother tongue was just under 60 percent while those reporting French as their mother tongue was slightly less than 24 percent. The percentage of native English speakers had risen over the previous decade, while that of French speakers had declined. At the same time, about 17 percent of all Canadians could speak both official languages, though this is a regionalized phenomenon. In those provinces with the largest number of native French speakers (Quebec and New Brunswick), 38 percent and 33 percent respectively were bilingual, numbers that had been increasing steadily over the previous twenty years. In contrast, Ontario, which accounts for more than 30 percent of the total population of Canada, had an English-French bilingualism rate of about 12 percent. This is in part a result of the immigration patterns over time, which sees the majority of all immigrants gravitating to Ontario, and in part because all official and commercial services in Ontario are conducted in English, even though French is available by law, if not by practice. English-French bilingualism is less important in the everyday lives of those living outside of Quebec and New Brunswick. First Nations language groups make up a significant, if small, portion of the nonofficial bilingual speakers in Canada, a fact with political and cultural importance as First Nations groups assert greater and more compelling claims on political and cultural sovereignty. The three largest First Nations languages in 1996 were Cree, Inuktitut, and Ojibway, though incomplete census data on First Nations peoples continues to plague assessments of the extent and importance of these mother tongues. Immigration and cultures Changing immigration patterns following World War II affected linguistic affiliation. In the period, from 1961 to 1970, for example, only 54 percent of immigrants had a nonofficial language as mother tongue, with more than two-thirds of this group born in Europe. Almost a quarter of them reported Italian, German, or Greek as mother tongue. In contrast, 80 percent of the 1,039,000 immigrants who came to Canada between 1991 and 1996 reported a nonofficial language as mother tongue, with over half from Asia and the Middle East. Chinese was the mother tongue of just under 25 percent, while Arabic, Punjabi, Tagalog, Tamil, and Persian together accounted for about 20 percent. In 1971, the three largest nonofficial mother tongue groups were German, Italian, and Ukrainian, reflecting patterns of non-English and non-French immigration that have remained relatively constant through most of the twentieth century. In the period ending in 1996, this had changed, with the rank order shifting to Chinese, Italian, and German. This is reflected in regional concentrations, with Italians concentrated heavily in Ontario, Germans in both Ontario and the Prairie regions, and Chinese and other Asians most heavily represented in southern Ontario and in British Columbia. A gradual decline in out-migration from Europe, coupled with political changes in China and throughout Asia, leading to increased out-migration from these areas, is changing the ethnic and linguistic makeup of Canada. It should be stressed, however, that these changes are concentrated in two or three key urban centers, while linguistic affiliation elsewhere in the country remains stable. This is likely to change in the early twenty-first century as an aging cohort of European immigrants declines and out-migration from Europe continues to decrease. These shifts will come to have increasingly important cultural effects as immigrants from Asia and, most recently, from certain areas throughout the continent of Africa, come to influence the political and social life of the core urban centers in which they settle. Symbolism. This is an area of considerable dispute in Canada, in large part because of the country’s longstanding history of biculturalism (English and French) and perhaps most importantly because of its proximity to the United States, whose symbolic and rhetorical influence is both unavoidable and openly resisted. Ethnic and cultural diversity in Canada, in which different cultural groups were expected to maintain their distinctiveness rather than subsume it to some larger national culture, which is the historical effect of the English-French biculturalism built into the Canadian confederation, means that national symbols in Canada tend to be either somewhat superficial or regionalized. There are, however, certain symbols that are deployed at both official and unofficial events and functions which are generally shared across the entire country, and can be seen as general cultural symbols, even if their uses may not always be serious. The core values that inform these symbols are cooperation, industriousness, and patience—that is, a kind of national politeness. The Canadian symbolic order is dominated by a concern for order and stability, which marks Canadian identity as something communal rather than individualistic. Canada throughout its history might best be described as a nation of nations. Two European colonial powers dominate the history of Canada and its emergence as a nation: France and Great Britain. In time Britain emerged as the dominant political and cultural force in Canada, but that emergence exemplifies the sense of compromise and cooperation on which Canadian social identity is founded. While Britain, and later English Canada, came to be and remain the most powerful part of the Canadian cultural landscape, this dominance and power exists in a system of joint cultural identity, with French Canada, in Quebec and in other parts of eastern Canada, remaining a singular and distinctive cultural entity in its own right. This complex antagonism, which has been a thread throughout Canada’s emergence as a nation, has also led to a particular kind of nation. Most important, the development of the Canadian nation, however uneven the power of the English and the French, has been characterized by discussion, planning, and compromise. The gradual opening of all of Canada to European control, and its coming together in 1867 as a national entity, was not the result of war or revolution but instead, of negotiation and reconciliation. It was an orderly transition managed almost like a business venture, through which Canada obtained a degree of sovereignty and Great Britain continued to hold Canada’s allegiance as a member of the British Empire. When, in the early 1980s Canada would take the final step towards political independence by adopting its own constitution, it would do so through negotiation as well, and again, the antagonism between English and French Canada, which resulted in the Government of Quebec refusing to sign the constitutional enabling agreement would provide both the drama of the moment, and its fundamental character, one of compromise and collaboration. Leading up to and following the emergence of Canada as an independent political state in 1867, English Canada and English identity dominated the political and cultural landscape. The remaining French presence, in Quebec and throughout the eastern part of the country, while a strong cultural entity in itself, exercised only limited influence and effect at the national level. English symbols, the English language, and the values of loyalty to the English crown prevailed throughout the nation as the core underpinnings of national identity. The dominance of English Canada in terms of national identity, especially in a federal system in which binationalism and biculturalism were enshrined in the founding legislation of the country, exercised a powerful effect on ethnic relations, but that effect was not ethnic homogenization. Instead, the dominance of English Canada served as a major locus of ongoing tension between the two national identities of Canada, a tension which, in he period from the 1960s onward, has come to be expressed in growing French-Canadian nationalism and so far unsuccessful attempts on the part of French Canada to secede from the Canadian confederation. This tension—which is built into the principles of the confederation itself, which recognizes the duality of Canadian national identity— while regularly threatening the unity of the federation, has also had a mollifying effect on ethnic divisions more generally. The main exception to this has been the relationship between the dominant Fren ch-English state and aboriginal peoples. Colonial relations with indigenous ethnic groups worldwide have often been marked by violent conquest. While violence did play a role in these relationships in Canada, more often than not aboriginal peoples simply had their ethnic and cultural identities erased. The use of forced schooling, including the removal of children from their families, for example, sought to annul aboriginal cultural identities Food in Daily Life . The agricultural and ethnic richness of Canada has led to two distinctive characteristics of everyday food consumption. The first is its scale. Canadians are â€Å"big eaters,† with meat portions in particular dominating the Canadian meal. There are generally three regular meals in a given day. Breakfast, often large and important in rural areas, but less so in urban areas, is most often not eaten in a group. Lunch, at midday, is most often a snack in urban areas, but remains a substantial meal in rural centers. Dinner, the final formal meal of the day, is also the meal most likely to be eaten by a residential group as a whole, and it is the largest and the most socially important meal of the day. It is the meal most often used as a social event or to which invitations to nonfamily members are extended, in contrast with lunch which is often, for adults, shared with coworkers. Meat plays a key role in all three of the formal meals, but with increasing importance at breakfast and dinner. Dinner should have some special, and most often, large, meat portion as its key component. Each of these three meals can be, and often are, very substantial. There are general rules concerning appropriate foods for each meal, rules that can be quite complex. For example, pork can figure in each meal, but only particular kinds of pork would be considered appropriate. Pork at breakfast may appear as bacon, or sausage, in small portions. Both of these products are made with the least valuable portion of the pig. At lunch, pork may appear in a sandwich in the form of processed meats, also made from the least valuable portion of the pig. For dinner, pork appears in large and more highly valued forms, such as roasts or hams, which require often elaborate preparation and which are presented to diners in a way that highlights their value and size. The other main feature of Canadian food is diversity. The complex ethnic landscape of Canada and the tendency of ethnic groups to retain a dual cultural orientation have meant that Canadian cuisine is quite diverse in its content, with many ethnic dishes seen as somehow quintessentially Canadian as well. Whether pizza or chow mein, cabbage rolls or plum pudding, Canadian cuisine is best characterized as eclectic rather than consistent in content. There are a small number of food items that are considered distinctively Canadian, such as maple syrup, but overall the Canadian diet is drawn from a panoply of ethnic sources. Food Customs at Ceremonial Occasions. Ceremonial food does not generally differ greatly in content from everyday foods. What distinguishes food in ceremonial settings, such as state dinners, is not the type of food but the amount of food served and the complexity of its presentation and consumption. Ceremonial dinners are often made up of a long list of dishes served in a rigid sequence, eaten with utensils specified for each portion, and presented in often elaborate arrangement either generally, on the table as a whole, or in the particular portions placed on each diner’s plate. The same general consideration applies to meals for more private special occasions, such as those marking important religious holidays such as Christmas. The number of discrete dishes is usually quite large, the preparation of each is often specialized and involved, and portions consumed are more often than not greater than what one would consume under other circumstances. These more private special occasion meals often involve entire extended families sharing in both preparing and eating the meal. There is another special meal worth mentioning, the potluck. Potluck† is derived from the word potlatch, a special occasion of many West Coast First Nations peoples. The potluck involves each guest preparing and bringing a dish to the event, to be shared by all the diners. The key component of this particular kind of meal is food sharing among friends as opposed to food making for family. In general, potluck meals are meals shared by friends or coworkers. They express the symbolic im portance of the meal as a part of the moral geography of social relations among nonkin, but distinguish this meal as an act of food sharing rather than an act of food preparation. That is, the potluck meal expresses a sense of community and kindness, while the family meal expresses a sense of service, duty, and family solidarity. Basic Economy. Canada is a resource rich, but land and people poor, country. While physically vast, there are geographic limitations on where people can live such that most of the population is located around the Great Lakes, and in the Saint Lawrence River Valley. This has meant, however, that the natural resources throughout the country can be exploited more fully. Key to Canada’s basic economy is its role as a resource base, not only for its own manufacturing, but for export as well. Minerals and ore, forestry products, and in particular in the twentieth century, oil and gas, have been the foundation of the Canadian economy since European conquest of the area. Farming is also key to the Canadian economy, although most of Canada’s agricultural production The single largest area of economic growth in Canada since the 1970s has been in the â€Å"service† sector, the part of the economy which provides services rather than goods for sale. r Trade. Canada exports around the world, but its most important export and import trading partner is the United States. The manufacturing and export of large equipment, and in particular farm equipment, is the second largest component of Canadian manufacturing and trade. At the same time, Canada remains a major resource exporter. In particular, Canada exports raw materials such as petro-chemi cals and oil, minerals and ores, and forestry products. Division of Labor. Labor in Canada is unevenly divided between skilled professional, skilled manufacturing, and general unskilled such as service workers. With increased manufacturing efficiency, the skilled manufacturing labor force has declined in size, though not in economic impact, while the general unskilled labor force has increased; at the same time skilled professionals—whether doctors, computer programmers, and other new economy professionals—has also increased. Access to different jobs is determined in part by education and training and in part by social networks.

Lewis Dot Structure Example - Octet Rule Exception

Lewis dot structures are useful to predict the geometry of a molecule. Sometimes, one of the atoms in the molecule does not follow the octet rule for arranging electron pairs around an atom. This example uses the steps outlined in How to Draw A Lewis Structure to draw a Lewis structure of a molecule where one atom is an exception to the octet rule. Review of Electron Counting The total number of electrons shown in a Lewis structure is the sum of the valence electrons of each atom. Remember: non-valence electrons are not shown. Once the number of valence electrons has been determined, here is the list of steps normally followed to place the dots around the atoms: Connect the atoms by single chemical bonds.The number of electrons to be placed is t-2n, where t is the total number of electrons and n is the number of single bonds. Place these electrons as lone pairs, starting with outer electrons (besides hydrogen) until every outer electrons has 8 electrons. Place lone pairs on most electronegative atoms first.After lone pairs are placed, central atoms may lack an octet. These atoms form a double bond. Move a lone pair to form the second bond.Question:Draw the Lewis structure of the molecule with molecular formula ICl3.Solution:Step 1: Find the total number of valence electrons.Iodine has 7 valence electronsChlorine has 7 valence electronsTotal valence electrons 1 iodine (7) 3 chlorine (3 x 7)Total valence electrons 7 21Total valence electrons 28Step 2: Find the number of electrons needed to make the atoms happyIodine needs 8 valence electronsChlorine needs 8 valence electronsTotal valence electrons to be happy 1 iodine (8) 3 chlorine (3 x 8)Total valence electrons to be happy 8 24Total valence electrons to be happy 32Step 3: Determine the number of bonds in the molecule.number of bonds (Step 2 - Step 1)/2number of bonds (32 - 28)/2number of bonds 4/2number of bonds 2This is how to identify an exception to the octet rule. There are not enough bonds for the number of atoms in molecule. ICl3 should have three bonds to bond the four atoms together. Step 4: Choose a central atom.Halogens are often the outer atoms of a molecule. In this case, all the atoms are halogens. Iodine is the least electronegative of the the two elements. Use iodine as the center atom.Step 5: Draw a skeletal structure.Since we do not have enough bonds to connect all four atoms together, connect the central atom to the other three with three single bonds.Step 6: Place electrons around outside atoms.Complete the octets around the chlorine atoms. Each chlorine should get six electrons to complete their octets.Step 7: Place remaining electrons around the central atom.Place the remaining four electrons around the iodine atom to complete the structure. The completed structure appears at the beginning of the example. Limitations of Lewis Structures Lewis structures first came into use early in the twentieth century when chemical bonding was poorly understood. Electron dot diagrams help illustrate electronic structure of molecules and chemical reactivity. Their use remains popular with chemistry educators introducing the valence-bond model of chemical bonds and they are often used in organic chemistry, where the valence-bond model is largely appropriate. However, in the fields of inorganic chemistry and organometallic chemistry, delocalized molecular orbitals are common and Lewis structures dont accurately predict behavior. While its possible to draw a Lewis structure for a molecule known empirically to contain unpaired electrons, use of such structures leads to errors in estimating bond length, magnetic properties, and aromaticity. Examples of these molecules include molecular oxygen (O2), nitric oxide (NO), and chlorine dioxide (ClO2). While Lewis structures have some value, the reader is advised valence bond theory and molecular orbital theory do a better job describing the behavior of valence shell electrons. Sources Lever, A. B. P. (1972). Lewis Structures and the Octet Rule. An automatic procedure for writing canonical forms. J. Chem. Educ. 49 (12): 819.  doi:10.1021/ed049p819Lewis, G. N. (1916). The Atom and the Molecule. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 38 (4): 762–85. doi:10.1021/ja02261a002Miessler, G.L.; Tarr, D.A. (2003). Inorganic Chemistry (2nd ed.). Pearson Prentice–Hall. ISBN 0-13-035471-6.Zumdahl, S. (2005). Chemical Principles. Houghton-Mifflin. ISBN 0-618-37206-7.