Human Blueprint Thoughts on Genetic Modification Essay...

Humans have strived for improvement in every facet of their lives, all the way from technology down to their diet. In this current day and age, humans are now capable of gene manipulation in their children, meaning mankind is taking a great step in familial modification. Yet even with our advancements in the medical field, we still fall to the ills of cancer, Alzheimer’s, or anything else on the laundry list of genetic disorders. With such opportunity to better improve our children, what mother or father would not wish to â€Å"give their child the best chance of living a happy and successful life?† (Fox, D. American Journal of Law and Medicine, 567) The first thing we can do with genetic modification is remove the genes that, when†¦show more content†¦By choosing genetic combinations expressing a mixture of overall better health, children of the future will grow up to be happy and healthy. Such blueprints can then be passed on to their children, who will conti nue the process. Parents can rest assured their child will come into the world without any surprises such as red hair in a brown haired family, or an extra pair of toes. For those who believe such a program is unattainable due to financial reasons should consider the program to be run by a government organization through the state or federal government. Such polarization of our biological makeup has no physical prrof that it could create a sect between the enhanced and non-enhanced (Fox, D. American Journal of Law and Medicine, 572). In fact, such a breakthrough in modern science would also be advocated alongside planned pregnancy, allowing doctors to recommend and support families seeking to improve their future children. These parents to be are left with â€Å"the genetic constitution of the offspring for themselves,† (Fox, D. American Journal of Law and Medicine, 569). 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American Dream for Women- Yes or No Free Essays

Gender- Inequality in labor force The American Dream, one of the most attractive things which draw thousands people to the United States, is just a simple promise: equality. This is where people can work hard and expect to gain from their effort. This is where opportunities are equally provided for anyone who has determination to improve his or her life. We will write a custom essay sample on American Dream for Women- Yes or No or any similar topic only for you Order Now Anyone can have equal access to the American Dream. However, it depends. If you are White, you can dream that dream. If you are non-White, you cannot. If you belong to the middle and upper class, you have the right to dream. If you find yourself struggling to have daily meals, you do not have that right. Similarly, if you are male, go ahead, but if you are not, you have to step back. Gender has always been a big problem with the American Dream. Women cannot move themselves to better lives in the same way that men are able to. Gender creates deep-rooted inequality against women in the labor force, through the social construction of gender roles and femininity. Inequality between two genders shows up as early as in the beginning of one’s career. Influenced by gender roles, women and men tend to choose jobs that can help them fulfill their social expectations (Weisgram, Dinella, and Fulcher 245). For example, men would prefer jobs with high monetary reward to fulfill their breadwinning roles, and women would choose jobs which allow them to have time with their family as they are supposed to be the main caretakers. Women, raised with the idea of femininity, would choose careers related to caring or serving such as teachers and nurses, while men would be more attracted to careers in technology and management fields, which require the supposedly masculine characteristics such as decisiveness. As a result, women have a tendency to choose their careers in female-dominated fields, whose monetary reward generally is lower than those of male-dominated fields. This division of the work force also influences women’s expectation of their future salaries. Research shows that men overall have higher pay expectation than women, and people intending to work in male-dominated fields have much higher pay expectation than those who want to work in female-dominated fields (Hogue, DuBois, and Fox- Cardamone 222). Low pay expectation can result in receiving lower pay offers in an equally qualified pool of job applicants, and starting wages can affect one’s career in his or her long term payment (Hogue, DuBois, and Fox-Cardamone 215). This reflects that in reality women who work in ale-dominated fields earn 26% more than other women who have female-dominated jobs, as the U. S. Department of Labor reported in 2008 (qtd. in Hogue, Dubois, and Fox-Cardamone 215). Women, influenced by their gender roles and the concept of femininity, experience inequality in their work choices and pay expectations. Women face difficulties during their careers because of their traditional gender roles as main family caretakers. Wives, not husbands, are genera lly the ones who have primary responsibilities in domestic work, either household chores or child care. In dual-earner families, men usually share housework with their partners, yet women still have the main responsibility in organizing family life (Rubin 247). Most people used to consider women entering the work force as expanding their traditional role without men changing theirs (Gilbert and Rader 164). Women were seen as being in conflict between outside work and family; the more time they spent on working outside, the more they would neglect their supposedly main role. Questions were then raised about whether working mothers had negative effects on their children as well as the family as a whole. Although research showed that having dual-earner families had no effect on preschool-age children, especially if additional income was used in daily childcare, this whole viewpoint discouraged women from working outside for a long time (Gilbert and Rader 164). Even though our society is now more accepting toward working mothers, women still cannot have the same opportunities as men when it comes to careers, which involve more commitment than jobs. ( Jobs vs careers ) Women are encouraged to have paid jobs to balance their families’ finance, to better their children’s and husbands’ lives. In other words, women’s working outside is seen as part of their traditional role, or part of their femininity: supporting men. Women who want to pursue their professional careers especially those in high levels, have to spend a lot of time working just like their male colleagues. However, unlike men, they are usually criticized as not fulfilling their traditional role. Women who challenge the idea of gender roles are facing a lot of pressure, both from the work place and from their families. As women’s major career is family work, they will not be considered successful if they fail as wives and mothers. Their occupational success will not be viewed seriously as it is still their secondary role. These negative effects of gender cause a lot of difficulties for women who want to seriously pursue their careers, and create a deep inequality between women and men in the labor force. Although there are more and more women working in male-dominated jobs, it is not the case for the most male-dominated field: leadership. Only 21% of women hold middle management positions, and just 15% can be senior level managers (Sipe, Johnson, and Fisher 340). Only 1. 2% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women, according to a Catalyst study (Gorski). Leadership positions have much better monetary awards than other positions; they can be indications of one’s expertise and success in his or her job and can promote self-esteem as well as confidence. Even though women now have chances to work in diverse fields, they are not given equal opportunities to take leadership roles, which perpetuates the inequality in the workplace. This can be explained, again, by the idea of femininity and masculinity. Masculinity usually includes those traits such as ambitious, analytical, assertive, decisive, independent, etc. , while femininity denotes characteristics such as affectionate, gentle, caring, warm, soft-spoken, etc. â€Å"The first [masculinity] expresses the intellect, the second [femininity] â€Å"the heart†; the first the â€Å"rational† faculties, the second the â€Å"intuitive† or â€Å"emotional†Ã¢â‚¬ ( Jamieson 124). Those feminine traits are not considered suitable for a leader or for a management position, which traditionally requires those masculine traits such as decisiveness and independence. Because of the effect of gender stereotypes, people view women as possessing the â€Å"natural† femininity, and women are often raised in a way which encourages them to develop such traits to live up to their social expectations. Not all men possess these appreciated characteristics, and not all women are feminine in the way our society thinks. However, women as a group have suffered from this idea of femininity as people refuse to acknowledge their strength but focus on their gender- based inability to perform leadership. As a result, in a society that considers men as natural leaders, women find it difficult to break those gender stereotypes in order to prove themselves as effective leaders. According to Noble and Moore (2006), many women who are able to achieve leadership eventually give up their positions (qtd. in Sipe, Johnson, and Fisher 340). In her book Beyond the Double Bind, Kathleen H. Jamieson analyzed the gender-caused prejudice against women who were already leaders. As femininity is opposed to the traditional leadership style, women in those positions must be able to show some certain masculine characteristics. They are then perceived as not acting feminine, which is inappropriate in our gender-based society, or as not being masculine enough for effective leadership (Jamieson 121). For example, if a female leader talked assertively, she would be considered unfeminine or even rude for a woman, yet if she did not, she would be criticized as having poor leadership skills. Women with their traditional gender role and their assigned femininity have always confronted difficulties in the workplace. The unequal process starts as soon as they begin to form their ideas about what career they want to pursue, to their lives with a double role as family caretakers and normal employees. It also affects their effort to get promoted to management level; even if they already achieve something, the process works to diminish it. Women have always had to work much harder than men in order to achieve equal statuses. They have to overcome many disadvantages, as well as work against men’s privilege. Men are viewed as natural leaders; women are not. In order to be equal, they have to prove themselves as effective leaders as well as better leaders than those supposedly natural leaders. Women were raised in a society which views them as inferior, and to achieve equality means to work hard to change their own minds, as well as others’. Women have never enjoyed the real equality which many politicians mentioned in their articulate speeches. They have never had the right to dream the American Dream, which promises that everyone will have equal chances to work themselves out of poverty and live their dream lives. Works Cited Gilbert, Lucia A. , and Rader, Jill. â€Å"Current Perspectives on Women’s Adult Roles: Work, Family, and Life. † Handbook of the Psychology of Women and Gender. Ed. Rhoda K. Unger. New York: John Wiley Sons, Inc, 2001. 156-169. Print. Gorski, Paul C.. â€Å"Class and Poverty Awareness Quiz†. Edchange. 2011. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. Houge, Mary, DuBois, Cathy L. Z. , and Fox-Cardamone, Lee. â€Å"Gender Differences in Pay Expectations: the Roles of Job Intention and Self-View. † Psychology of Women Quarterly. 34. 2. (2010): 215-227. Academic Search Premier. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. Jamieson, Kathleen H.. Beyond the Double Bind. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995. Print. Rubin, Lillian. â€Å"Families on the Fault Line†. The Social Construction of Difference and Inequality. Ed. Tracy E. Ore. New York: McGraw Hill, 2006. 245-254. Print. Sipe, Stephanie, Johnson, C. Douglas, and Fisher, Donna K.. â€Å"University Students’ Perceptions of Gender Discrimination in the Workplace Reality Versus Fiction. † Journal of Education for Business. 84. 6 (2009):339-349. Academic Search Premier. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. Weisgram, Erica, Dinella, Lisa, and Fulcher, Megan. â€Å"The Role of Masculinity/ Femininity, Values, and Occupational Value Affordances in Shaping Young Men’s and Women’s Occupational Choices. † Sex Roles. 65. 3/4. (2011): 243-258. Academic Search Premier. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. How to cite American Dream for Women- Yes or No, Essay examples

The cult of Stalin and the purges Essay Example

The cult of Stalin and the purges Paper How far do you agree with this opinion? There is little doubt that Joseph Stalin made drastic and continual efforts to retain his supreme power during the 1930s. The two main methods and perhaps the most memorable are the great purges (otherwise known as the great terror) and the cult of Stalin. Although Stalin had been triumphant in the power struggle against Leon Trotsky in 1929, rather than alleviating his insecurities, Stalin became increasingly paranoid. It seems that the more power and control he gained over Russia and its people, the more irrational and mistrustful he became. This was more than likely because he had more to lose and this encouraged him to instigate a more brutal and controlling regime. Other examples of his vindictive rule were the purging of kulaks during collectivisation and the excessive demands he made during industrialisation and the five-year plans. He also conducted purges targeted at Bolshevik opposition. He insisted on members reapplying for their membership to the party using excuses like corruption, drunkenness and being politically inactive to dismiss them, thus frightening members into submission. This was because if they lost their party cards they could lose their jobs, which ultimately meant they lost their homes, their privileged rations and public status. At the time, Stalin was the General Secretary and consequently controlled whose memberships were renewed and as a result any member suspected of betrayal or opposing his policies had their membership revoked. We will write a custom essay sample on The cult of Stalin and the purges specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The cult of Stalin and the purges specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The cult of Stalin and the purges specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Although Stalin gained a great deal of success via industrialisation, collectivisation and the five-year plans, he ultimately acquired many enemies due to the suffering and numerous deaths caused during these policies. Owing to Stalins extreme tactics, party members began to oppose his policies and ultimately repudiated him, this included Sergei Kirov who until now had been devoted to Stalin. Stalin was all too aware of this mounting threat! Stalin viewed Kirov as his proti gi and in 1926 he rewarded Kirovs loyalty by appointing him as Head of the Leningrad Party. In 1930, Kirov was elected to join the Politburo and eventually he became one of the leading figures of the party. [1] During the Seventeenth Party Congress, held in February 1934, Kirov gained the fewest negative votes, giving him an advantage over Stalin in the contest for the party leadership and for this reason Stalins aides fixed the vote to ensure a draw between the two candidates. Due to this result, the position of General Secretary was abolished and Kirov and Stalin shared the position of Secretary of Equal Rank. Knowing that his proti. was favoured above him caused an increase in Stalins mistrust of his clique because even those he trusted and depended on were beginning to show signs of desertion. Over the next five years 1,108 of the 1,966 delegates who had attended the Seventeenth Party Congress were arrested, seventy of whom were tried in public while the rest were tried in secret before being executed or sent to the Gulags (labour camps). [2] On 1st December 1934, a young party member named Leonid Nikolayev murdered Kirov, in the Smolny Institute, in Leningrad and was consequently arrested and executed. To this day there is still a mystery surrounding Kirovs assassination as there were few actual witnesses to the event. This means that historians can only speculate with regard to what actually took place during this significant event. Although Nikolayev was arrested, there are varied theories about who led the conspiracy behind the assassination, one conjecture being Stalin himself was involved, although no solid evidence has ever been found to prove this. To destabilize this belief Stalin portrayed Trotsky as the culprit, giving him the pretext to introduce a series of anti-terrorist measures and to purge the party of so-called Trotskyites and Zinovievites, including Gregory Zinoviev himself, Lev Kamenev and 14 other party members, who were arrested by Genrikh Yagoda the Head of the NKVD (secret police), tried and executed. [3][4] As a result of Kirovs death and the betrayal Stalin had encountered during the period surrounding the assassination, Stalin began enforcing the great purges. The first phase began in 1935 and was devised to rid the Party of any political opponents or threats. The first show trial was held in August 1936 and heralded the beginning of the great purges. The show trials were held in public to generate public humiliation for the defendants, to illustrate consequences to other potential rivals and to convey the threat of conspiracies against the government, thus resulting in fear amongst the nation. They were also open to western journalists and were intended to show the world communist justice. The great purges gave Stalin tremendous control over people, mostly through fear alone. There was a constant threat of being purged from the party, show tried and executed or sent to the Gulags. Gulags were labour camps, placed in remote areas of Russia (e. g. Siberia), where conditions were so horrific nobody would ever choose to work there of their own freewill. The prisoners were subjected to severe weather conditions, abuse by guards, long working hours and insufficient food and clothing. Prisoners were exploited as lumber jacks, for construction and mining to achieve targets set for industrialisation and the five-year-plans. Most of the prisoners sent there eventually died from hunger, exhaustion, ill health or maltreatment before the end of their usually long sentences. [5] Stalins second phase of the great purges was aimed at the Russian people, rather than party members alone and was identified as Yezhovshchina, named after Nikolai Yezhov (Head of the NKVD). Yezhov was appointed in September 1936 in place of Yagoda who had failed to obtain enough evidence to convict Bukharin and was consequently discharged. Yezhov quickly arranged the arrest of all the leading political figures in the Soviet Union who were critical of Stalin. [6] During this purge, a tell tale society was formed, encouraging people to denounce fellow citizens, creating mistrust among the nation. Informants mostly denounced citizens such as the intellectuals, for instance artists, writers, and journalists, who were more likely to pose as a threat to Stalin. A quota system was enforced commanding the NKVD to make a designated number of arrests and the full quota had to be achieved. As a result it is likely that a large number of accusations had been invented by the NKVD to fulfil the quota and that many of those arrested had not actually committed any crimes against the State. Among those arrested, 28% were to be shot and the remainder would be forced into Gulags. Official figures suggest that between January 1935 and June 1941, 19. 8 million people were arrested by the NKVD. An estimated seven million of these prisoners were executed. [7] Although Stalin instigated the great purges there are indications that suggest the NKVD intensified the demands and infiltrated their own desires into the modus operandi. Everyone was a potential victim during this phase of the purges. The NKVD massacred kulaks, priests, former members of anti-Bolshevik armies, those who had been abroad or had relatives abroad, immigrants and even citizens. [8] The second show trial was held in January 1937, in which seventeen people stood accused, among them were Karl Radek, Yuri Piatakov and Grigory Sokolnikov. Thirteen of the defendants were executed, while the remainder were sent to the Gulags. The third show trial, held in March 1938, involved 21 defendants allegedly belonging to the Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites, whose leaders consisted of Nikolai Bukharin, Alexei Rykov, Genrikh Yagoda (former Head of the NKVD), Christian Rakovsky and Nikolai Krestinsky, all of whom were executed. The third phase of the great purges began in the spring of 1937 and was led by the NKVD which targeted the armed forces. Previously, many of the Red Army officers had been officers under the Tsarist regime and during Lenins rule had been forged into the Red Army by Trotsky, causing Stalin to fear that they would turn against him and form a military dictatorship as an alternative government to his style of communism. Officers were by now living in fear of World War II breaking out and because they had earned their ranks on merit and had not bought them, they did not feel they owed Stalin any loyalty, increasing his fear of a military coup. Fearing a rebellion, Stalin began purging officers (1937-1938) and in particular he targeted Marshall Mikhail Tukhachevsky, who was Chief of The General Staff. Tukhachevsky was potentially a major rival as he had previously worked under Lenin and was now in control of all the armed forces (i. e. army, navy and air force) and was very popular with the troops. In all, the NKVD purged the armed forces of eighteen Army War Commissars who were all shot, five Marshals of the Soviet Union, three of whom were shot (including Tukhachevsky), 80 Officers of the Supreme Military Council, 75 of whom were executed, sixteen army commanders, fourteen of whom were shot, 280 divisional colonels, of whom two thirds were killed, 70,000 commissioned officers, half of whom were killed or imprisoned, all the Navy Admirals were executed and only one air force officer survived. Altogether thousands of other officers were executed or imprisoned, spying for Germany or Japan was amongst the most common of accusations against officers and because of the amount of executions in all three forces they were left severely undermanned. The few newly appointed officers left were inexperienced and incompetent as leaders, causing major disarray in the Soviet Unions armed forces. It has been claimed that Tukhachevsky (Marshal of the Soviet Union) was executed as part of a secret fourth trial, held in June 1937, in which he stood accused before a military tribunal of a group of Red Army generals. However, the evidence presented against the accused was almost nonexistent and convictions relied on confessions extracted through torture and threats against family members. [9] One of Stalins cunning tactics to achieve this purge without mutiny was to switch officers among regiments. This might have appeared impractical but he knew the troops trusted their officers and when confronted with a new officer, who they did not know or trust, the troops didnt dispute any accusations made against them or their colleagues because they feared condemnation. By late 1938, the great purges had achieved its purpose and the mass arrests were stopped. Stalin had carried out a complete renovation of the Communist Party and had brought in people owing their loyalty to him. His rule was now unchallenged, but in liquidating key elements of the society he had devastated the country and left it badly prepared for the apparent onset of World War II. [10] As a result of the previous purges there was insufficient demand for the NKVD, as most threats to Stalin had already been eradicated. This alarmed Yezhov, who feared he and his squadron would lose their jobs and as a consequence he began inciting Stalins paranoia. Nevertheless, he became a target of his own doing when an informant accused him of being a British agent and of killing innocent people resulting in his arrest, a trial (held in 1939) and ultimately execution. Whilst the purges were about ridding the party of opposition, the Cult of Stalin was more about brainwashing the nation into worshipping Stalin as an Idol. His campaign included ordering all propaganda (e. g.photos, leaflets) to be altered, to enhance Stalin so that he would stand out as a hero and to make him appear to be a significant role in the Revolution. Towns, streets and prizes were renamed in his honour, statues of him were erected and pet names such as Brilliant Genius of Humanity were applied to him. [11] Anyone he suspected as a potential rival was erased from literature, documents and photos. This was especially true of Trotsky. Trotskys role was censored from history books to conceal the fact that he had ever existed or taken part in the Revolution. This provided Stalin with a role to step into and gave credence to his assertion that he had never encountered any major contenders for his supremacy. These tactics gave the appearance that Stalin was in complete control and that nobody disagreed with him, only worshipped him. Stalin achieved celebrity status among the nation and to an extent around the world. There is no question that Stalin used the Great Purges and the Cult of Stalin to retain his supreme power. However, the reasons for Stalin becoming more controlling are debatable. Some historians claim he was seeking notoriety (the great man theory), some believe he suffered from mental illness and others regard him as a dictator. The fact that he used such brutal, calculating and extreme tactics suggests to me that he would go to any lengths to meet his aspirations and would on no account allow anyone, regardless of the cost to the nation, to compromise his aim for control of the State. With each purge he exceeded the limits of the previous purge, becoming even more powerful, yet more and more paranoid. Whether Stalin needed to go to such extreme lengths to conceal his enemies and cultivate such an iconic persona of himself, is still questionable. In order to have been able to accomplish such campaigns, Stalin must have already possessed a great deal of control and support. To this day some people regard him as an icon and believe his brutality was justified to turn the Soviet Union into a modern and industrialised State. In 1953 indication of a Doctors plot emerged alleging that nine Kremlin doctors were engaged in a plot to assassinate Stalin and other political leaders. As a result Stalin commanded Lavrenti Beria, the new Head of the NKVD, to purge the Communist Party of candidates for his leadership. However, on 2nd March Stalin suffered a brain haemorrhage resulting in the plan being terminated. [12] To this day, events surrounding his death have been shrouded with enigma as it has been claimed that the night before the haemorrhage, his guards were given orders, from Stalin himself, to retire for the night and not to disturb him. When he did not rise the next day at his usual time, the guards became concerned but did not interrupt him as they feared the repercussions of disobeying the dictator. That evening one of the guards was ordered to enter Stalins room to investigate and on entry he found Stalin lying on the floor, paralysed, soon after he slipped into a coma. The guard summoned the senior party men of the Politburo and family members to the Dacha, Stalins favourite holiday home. His daughter, Svetlana Alliluyevas testimony claims that after 3 days (5th March 1953) Stalin briefly regained consciousness, looked around the room, raised his hand and pointed upwards as if bringing down a curse upon us all and then he died. [13] Conversely, due to the tardiness of the Politburo in calling for medical assistance, the Russian historian Edvard Radzinski asserts that Stalin was injected with poison by the guard Khrustalev, under the orders of his master (KGB chief, Lavrenty Beria to prevent Russia participating in the initiation of World War III. [14] In the end it was Stalins own paranoia and tyranny that led to his demise. Bibliography Clare, John D. , Russia 1971-1941: Stalins Terror (Greenfield History Site, 2002/2008) http://www. johndclare. net/Russ12. htm [accessed on 11 May 2008]Grant, Jim, Stalin and the Soviet Union (1998; repr. London: Addison Wesley Longman Limited, 2003) Internal Workings of the Soviet System: The Gulag (Library of Congress) http://www. loc. gov/exhibits/archives/gula. html [accessed on 2 June 2008] Knight, Amy, Great Purge (Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 1997-2008) http://encarta. msn. com/encyclopedia_761588286/great_purge. html [accessed on 11 May 2008] Krushelnycky, Leonida, The Last Mystery of Stalin (BBC: Radio 4, 2000) Online http://news. bbc. co. uk/1/hi/world/europe/2793501. stm [accessed on 20 May 2008]. Lee, Stephen J. , Questions and analysis in history: Stalin and the Soviet Union (London: Routledge, 1999) Mawdsley, Evan, The Stalin Years: The Soviet Union 1929-1953, 2nd edn (1998; repr. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2001) Oxley, Peter, Oxford advanced history: Russia 1855-1991: From Tsars to Commissars (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001) Service, Robert, A history of twentieth century Russia (London: Penguin Group, 1997) Siegel, Paul, The Last Years of Stalin and Trotsky (Socialist Action, 2001) Sources: 62: Khrushchev, 631, 63: Alliluyeva, 10. Online http://www. socialistaction. org/news/200103/last. html [accessed on 16 May 2008] Simkin, John, The Soviet Union: 1920-45 (Spartacus Educational, 1997) www. spartacus. schoolnet. co. uk [accessed on 10 May 2008] , Russian Revolution: 1917-20 (Spartacus Educational, 1997) www. spartacus. schoolnet. co. uk [accessed on 10 May 2008] Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr I. , Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: vol. 1, (Colorado: West.View Press, 1998) p. 408. Online http://www. gendercide. org/case_stalin. html [accessed on 19 May 2008]. Subtelny, Orest, Ukraine A History, 2nd edn (University of Toronto Press, 1993), pp. 420-421. Online http://www. brama. com/ukraine/history/greatpurge/index. html [accessed on 22 May 2008] Westwood, J. N. , The short Oxford history of the modern world: Endurance and endeavour: Russian history 1812-1986, 3rd edn (1973; repr. New York: Oxford university Press, 1987) Whitlock, Martin, Questions in history: Stalins Russia (London: Collins Educational, 1997) Wood, Alan, Stalin and Stalinism (1990; repr. London: Routledge, 2002). 1 Simkin, John, Sergei Kirov, Online http://www.spartacus. schoolnet. co. uk/RUSkirov. htm 2 Simkin, Communist Secret Police: NKVD, Online /RUSnkvd. htm 3 Mawdsley, Evan, The Stalin Years: The Soviet Union 1929-1953, 2nd edn (1998; repr. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2001) pp. 98-99 4 Wood, Alan, Stalin and Stalinism (1990; repr. London: Routledge, 2002)pp. 36-37 5 Internal Workings of the Soviet System: The Gulag (Library of Congress) http://www. loc. gov/exhibits/archives/gula. html [accessed on 2 June 2008] 6 Simkin, Communist Secret Police: NKVD, Online /RUSnkvd. htm 7. IBID 8 Subtelny, Orest, Ukraine A History, 2nd edn (University of Toronto Press, 1993), pp. 420-421. Online http://www. brama. com/ukraine/history/greatpurge/index. html [accessed on 22 May 2008] 9 Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr I. , Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: vol. 1, (Colorado: West View Press, 1998) p. 408. Online http://www. gendercide. org/case_stalin. html [accessed on 19 May 2008] 10 Knight, Amy, Great Purge (Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 1997-2008) http://encarta. msn. com/encyclopedia_761588286/great_purge.html [accessed on 11 May 2008] 11 Simkin, Russian Revolutionaries 1914-20: Joseph Stalin, Online /RUSstalin. htm 12 Wood, Alan, Stalin and Stalinism, p. 58 13 Siegel, Paul, The Last Years of Stalin and Trotsky (Socialist Action, 2001) Sources: 62: Khrushchev, 631, 63: Alliluyeva, 10. Online http://www. socialistaction. org/news/200103/last. html [accessed on 16 May 2008] 14 Krushelnycky, Leonida, The Last Mystery of Stalin (BBC: Radio 4, 2000) Online http://news. bbc. co. uk/1/hi/world/europe/2793501. stm [accessed on 20 May 2008].

Convention Exhibition Centre Essays

Convention Exhibition Centre Essays Convention Exhibition Centre Essay Convention Exhibition Centre Essay On the 18th February 2009, several lucky year 11 drama students at Santa Maria College saw Nostalgia by Ishinha at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre. This play extended for 2 hours, which was a reasonable time frame for such an astounding performance. Prior to the performance, I had very low expectations for the play because I assumed I wouldnt understand the plot, for the dialogue is in Japanese. However, the performance definitely exceeded my expectations because I understood the plot through the non-verbal communication and greatly appreciated this. The performance put aside, the audience was disappointing because I was forced to mix with people I would not normally mix with, and these people carried out rude habits, such as eating and talking during the performance. Nevertheless, the play was that brilliant that I didnt notice this often. Nostalgia is a play about Japanese immigrants migrating to Brazil in 1908. It is the story of Noichi, who wonders around the world, falling in love with Ann along the way. Ann, Noichi, and their new companion, Chikino, wander throughout South America. Unfortunately, they get separated because of racism and struggle to find each other again. Along with racism, Nostalgia faces such issues as friendship, immigration, and discrimination. The dramatic form of Nostalgia is non-realism because of certain theatrical devices. For example: the characters broke the fourth wall; language was stylised through repetition; and dance, song, and unrealistic costume were employed. Even though the form was non-realism, it also included aspects of a representational style because it attempted to create the illusion of life progressing on stage. The settings were extremely detailed and realistic, and the audience is expected to emphasise with the characters. I liked how the action of the play was clearly structured into thirteen obvious scenes, which generally didnt include narrative devices. Each scene had an individual tone. For example, scene 9 had a joyful tone, involving several cheerful children singing questions. Whereas, scene 3 had a distressing tone, because the privacy of the immigrants was violated. The overall tone of the play would be reflective because each scene reflects on different aspects along their journey. The performance space used was a box stage and the set changed every scene. The set was mostly representational in style because it was very realistic, especially in the newspaper factory in scene five. However, it did consist of few presentational scenes because the set was unachievable. Some of these unachievable sets included the beach in scene one, the river in scene six, and the desert in scene eight. The set was extremely effective in creating a sense of place because it was so realistic and believable. The set contributed to the various moods of the play because it emphasized the issues by situating them on a more believable level. There are numerous scenes in Nostalgia that used lighting, which consequently impacted my opinion of the play. Some scenes cleverly used realistic lighting to convey to the audience the time of day. For example, in scene five, the lighting was bright during the day, and then dimmed when it was nighttime. The use of symbolism through lighting really impacted my view of the play. One of the many brilliant examples was in scene three: during the physical examination, there was an extremely bright light symbolising the violation of the immigrants privacy, which contributed to the distressed mood of the scene. There were many sound effects used throughout the duration of the play. One of the powerful examples occurred in scene five: after the protests, fire, rape, and shootings, there was unbelievably loud music, which intensified the scene. This contributed to the chaotic mood of the scene because the loud music added more havoc to the issues already presented. Overall, I definitely enjoyed watching Nostalgia. I believe the play is amazing because of the theatrical techniques, such as music; lighting; song and dance; and scene structure. Surprisingly, I could actually understand the plot, regardless of not being able to recognise the dialogue, because I understood the non-verbal communication. This was a new experience for me, as I had never seen an international play before. Without a doubt, I would recommend everyone to watch Nostalgia!

About the Geodesic Dome in Architecture

About the Geodesic Dome in Architecture A geodesic dome is a spherical space-frame structure composed of a complex network of triangles. The linked triangles create a self-bracing framework that is structurally strong yet elegantly delicate. The geodesic dome could be called the manifestation of the phrase less is more, as a minimum of building materials geometrically arranged ensures a design both strong and lightweight- especially when the framework is covered with modern siding materials like ETFE. The design allows massive interior space, free from columns or other supports. A space-frame is the three-dimensional (3D) structural framework that enables a geodesic dome to exist, as opposed to a typical buildings two-dimensional (2D) frame of length and width. The space in this sense is not outer space, although the resultant structures sometimes look like they come from the Age of Space Exploration. The term geodesic is from Latin, meaning earth dividing. A geodesic line is the shortest distance between any two points on a sphere. Inventors of the Geodesic Dome: Domes are a relatively recent invention in architecture.  Ã‚  Romes Pantheon, rebuilt around 125 AD, is one of the oldest large domes. In order to support the weight of the heavy building materials in early domes, the walls beneath were made very thick and the top of the dome became thinner. In the case of the Pantheon in Rome, an open hole or oculus is at the domes apex. The the idea of combining triangles with the architectural arch was pioneered in 1919 by German engineer Dr. Walther Bauersfeld. By 1923, Bauersfeld had designed the worlds first projection planetarium for the Zeiss Company in Jena, Germany. However, it was R. Buckminster Fuller (1895-1983) who conceived and popularized the concept of geodesic domes being used as homes. Fullers first patent for a geodesic dome was issued in 1954. In 1967 his design was shown to the world with Biosphere constructed for Expo 67 in Montreal, Canada. Fuller claimed that it would be possible to enclose mid-town Manhattan in New York City with a two-mile wide temperature-controlled dome like the one presented at the Montreal exposition. The dome, he said, would pay for itself within ten years...just from the savings of snow-removal costs. On the 50th anniversary of receiving a patent for the geodesic dome, R. Buckminster Fuller was commemorated on a US postage stamp in 2004. An index of his patents can be found at the Buckminster Fuller Institute. The triangle continues to be used as a means to strengthen architectural height, as evidenced in many skyscrapers, including One World Trade Center in New York City. Note the massive, elongated triangular sides on this and other tall buildings. About Space-Frame Structures: Dr. Mario Salvadori reminds us that rectangles are not inherently stiff. So, none other than Alexander Graham Bell came up with the idea of triangulating large roof frames to cover large, barrier-free interior spaces. Thus, write Salvadori, the modern space frame sprang from the mind of an electrical engineer and gave rise to a whole family of roofs having the enormous advantage of modular construction, easy assemblage, economy, and visual impact. In 1960, The Harvard Crimson described the geodesic dome as a structure composed of a large number of five-sided figures. If you build your own geodesic dome model, youll get an idea of how triangles are put together to form hexagons and pentagons. The geometry can be assembled to form all kinds of interior spaces, like architect I.M. Peis Pyramid at The Louvre and the gridshell forms used for the tensile architecture of Frei Otto and Shigeru Ban. Additional Definitions: Geodesic Dome: A structure consisting of a multiplicity of similar, light, straight-line elements (usually in tension) which form a grid in the shape of a dome.- Dictionary of Architecture and Construction, Cyril M. Harris, ed., McGraw- Hill, 1975, p. 227 Space-Frame: A three-dimensional framework for enclosing spaces, in which all members are interconnected and act as a single entity, resisting loads applied in any direction.- Dictionary of Architecture, 3rd ed. Penguin, 1980, p. 304 Examples of Geodesic Domes: Geodesic domes are efficient, inexpensive, and durable. Corrugated metal dome homes have been assembled in undeveloped parts of the world for only hundreds of dollars. Plastic and fiberglass domes are used for sensitive radar equipment in Arctic regions and for weather stations around the world. Geodesic domes are also used for emergency shelter and mobile military housing. The best-known structure built in the manner of a geodesic dome may be Spaceship Earth, the ATT Pavilion at EPCOT in Disney World, Florida. The EPCOT icon is an adaptation of Buckminster Fullers geodesic dome. Other structures using this type of architecture include the Tacoma Dome in Washington State, Milwaukees Mitchell Park Conservatory in Wisconsin, the St. Louis Climatron, the Biosphere desert project in Arizona, the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden Conservatory in Iowa, and many projects created with ETFE including the Eden Project in Britain. Sources: Why Buildings Stand Up by Mario Salvadori, Norton 1980, McGraw-Hill 1982, p. 162;   Fuller, Nervi Candela to Deliver 1961-62 Norton Lecture Series, The Harvard Crimson, November 15, 1960 [accessed May 28, 2016]; History of Carl Zeiss Planetariums, Zeiss [accessed April 28, 2017]

Critical perspectives Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Critical perspectives - Essay Example Thus, conjuring perspectives in social and economic programs have continuously battled through time. In this regard, we see that many aspects of economic, political, social, and cultural motivations underpin the processes of the society’s development. Changing political and social approaches is thus fundamental to forming new economic platforms and social goals. In Freefall (2010), Stiglitz re-establishes the ‘government-intervention’ approach (see Keynes 1926) to market economy by criticizing the current malfunctions of economic trend present in America and subsequently in most parts of the world. In his book, Stiglitz (2010) was able to illustrate the risks and failures that the ‘free-market economy’ (Smith 1776) encounters. Stiglitz (2010) enumerated the downfall of many aspects of social welfare, particularly the conditions of inequalities, by referring to many examples of the imbalances of power in the economic and political realms of the society . Freefall (2010) uncovers the allegedly ill-founded traditions of economic practices in America and other affected countries in the international arena. The book suggests change in approach and perspective in determining the more suitable policies towards economic stability and development. In this paper, a critical discussion of Stiglitz’s (2010) analysis of the present economic situations as drawn from the Great Recession in America will be presented. In line with this, the opposing arguments of the free-market and government-intervention economic perspectives will be examined in order to understand better the background of Stiglitz’s essay. Moreover, looking at the backdrop of the practiced economic programs, the effects of such accounts on the local and international conditions will also be talked about. In here, the influences of globalization movement will be substantiated and analyzed in terms of its effect in the local and international social welfare and econ omic status. The effects of the discussed perspectives in relation to culture and society will be considered. In addition, a discussion of the moral and ethical conditions underlying the issues will be examined. Thus, in this paper, a critical exploration of the perspectives involved in the matter will be done in order to see the significant points Stiglitz suggests in his essay. The Old and the New Economy In Freefall, Stiglitz (2010) emphasizes the grave conditions of world economy as a misleading approach to economic policies continues to prevail in the United States and subsequently in peripheral countries particularly in Asia. The Great Depression and the more recent Great Recession in the United States have tremendously shown how the local and global economy was constructed on a ‘sinking’ foundation (Stiglitz 2010). Stiglitz profoundly highlights the ill-conditions of some of the biggest international organizations facing economic retaliation namely the United Sta tes Treasury and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The long-practiced economic advocacy echoing Adam Smith’s laissez faire tremendously affects the world political-economic trends in history primarily through the said international organizations. In this regard, the political underpinnings of the world economic framework are apparently magnetized by the free-market policies. This

Astronomy 123 Homework Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Astronomy 123 Homework - Assignment Example He believed that everything in the space was located within the galaxy. Shapley advocated a proposition of relative size to support his idea that if the Andromeda galaxy had not been part of the Milky Way then the distance of it could have been 1000000000 light year. This research was not fully welcomed by most of the scientists during the period. The Andromeda spiral almost sparkled at an era of time in the Andromeda galaxy. Outwardly and for new star, the gross energy was not reasonable. Consequently, the Andromeda and new star should be in Milky Way. The evidence showed optical spectrum of the spiral nebula was not distinguishable from spectrum of the galaxy. Shapley also utilized the kind of absurdum and reduction fully. If Andromeda had been independent, then it had possessed a miraculous brightness so that people could have detected from far. 3. Andrew McKellar was a Canadian astronomer, who studied physics and mathematics in the University of British Columbia. He showed his first observations to astronomers in 1930 and early 1940s. He suffered a number of setbacks that made him not to realize it. One of the setbacks was non-uniformity in observations. This was due to coherent fluctuations on angular scales that were larger than cosmological horizon at combination. Instrumental errors due to the use of different instruments were another major cause of difficulty in data collection. Planck telescope which was more sensitive and had larger angular resolution confirmed the axis of evil observation. Non- equivalent dependent variable designs used by Andrew McKellar hindered effective collection of