The History of Automobile Names

The History of Automobile Names The automobile has gone by several names in the past and still continues to as variations of motor vehicles have been spun off. For example, there is the common car term, but word automobile is often used as well. Then theres truck, jeep, station wagon, bus, van, minivan and hatchback among others. However, it all began with a battle of semantics that pre-dated the word automobile, which was coined at the turn of the 20th century. So what other names for motor vehicles have famous inventors used prior to automobile? One good way to find out is to look at the names that were used in their patent applications. Heres a brief rundown of various car names throughout history: American inventor, engineer and businessman Oliver Evans  applied for a U.S. patent in Philadelphia in 1792 for an invention he called oruktor amphiboles, which translates to â€Å"amphibious digger.† His vehicle was designed to be a steam-powered car that rolled out of his shop in 1804. Initially created for the Philadelphia Board of Health for the purpose of dredging and cleaning docks, the vehicle was capable of moving on both water and land.George Selden, a patent attorney from Rochester, New York, received a patent for something he called a road machine in 1879. Due to existing laws at the time, the patent was pre-dated to 1877. Selden expanded its claims over the years. And by 1895, he had a patent for a three-cylinder motor vehicle. While he never actually produced a car, the patent allowed him to collect royalties from all American car manufacturers. Companies paid Seldens holding company, the Association of Licensed Automotive Manufacturers, for the patent licensing rights to build cars. The fact that Selden hadn’t actually followed through with his idea made the patent questionable to some manufacturers. Henry Ford,  industrialist and founder of the Ford Motor Company, was one of those who took issue with Seldon’s licensing fees and refused to pay it. Selden took Ford to court in 1904, but the judge ordered an automobile built according to the Selden patent. It was an utter failure and Selden’s patent was overturned in 1911. Selden could no longer collect royalties and car manufacturers were free to build their vehicles at lower cost without this added expense.  The  Duryea brothers  patented their motor wagon in 1895. They were bicycle makers who became fascinated with the concept of automobiles and gasoline engines.   "The new mechanical wagon with the awful name automobile has come to stay..."New York Times (1897 article) The New York Times mention of the name â€Å"automobile† was the first public use of the term by the media and eventually helped to popularize the name for motor vehicles. Credit for the name actually goes to a 14th century Italian painter and engineer named Martini. While he never built an automobile, he did draw up plans for a man-powered carriage with four wheels. He came up with the name automobile by combining the Greek word auto meaning self and the Latin word, mobils, which means moving. Put them together and youve got a self-moving vehicle that doesnt need horses to pull it. Other Names for Motor Vehicles Over the Years Of course, the other popular name for an automobile is the car is thought to be derived from Latin word carrus or carrum, which means wheeled vehicle. It can also be a variation of the Middle English term carre, meaning cart. Other possibilities include the Gaulish word karros (a Gallic chariot) or the Brythoic word Karr. These terms originally referred to wheeled horse-drawn vehicles such as a cart, carriage or wagon. Motor car is the standard formal name for cars in British English. There were other early media references to motor vehicles and these included names such as autobaine, autokenetic, autometon, automotor horse, buggyaut, diamote, horseless carriage, mocole, motor carriage, motorig, motor-vique and the oleo locomotive. The word truck may have come from truckle, which means small wheel or pulley. Its derived from the Middle English word trokell from the Latin word trochlea. It may have also come from the the Latin word trochus. The first known usage of truck was in 1611, used in reference to the wheels on ships cannon carriages. The word bus is a shortened version of the Latin word omnibus and van is short for the original word caravan.

Referring to Decades in Spanish

Referring to Decades in Spanish How do you refer to decades (such as the 70s) in Spanish? The most common way to refer to the 70s would be los aà ±os 70 or los aà ±os setenta. Note that when the decade is written numerically, most writers do not precede it by an apostrophe as is usually done in English. (Doing so would usually be seen as an ill-advised imitation of English.)  The 70 forms and the setenta form appear to be used about equally, although the spelled-out version is more common in formal writing. Note that the number of the decade is not made plural. It is also fairly common to use a longer form, la dà ©cada de los setenta, which again is somewhat formal. The longer form also would normally be used when the century isnt clear from the context, as in la dà ©cada de 1870 or, less commonly, la dà ©cada de los 1870. The form la dà ©cada de los 1870s (note the s after the year) is very seldom used. It is possible to use phrases such as los setentas or los cincuentas alone to refer to the 70s and 50s, but it is probably not best to use that form unless you hear it being used by native speakers. Again, these can be seen as anglicisms. The word decenio is also used as a translation for decade. Thus it is possible to say el decenio de los setenta or el decenio de 1970. Decenio is more formal or literary than dà ©cada.

Latin American Civilization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Latin American Civilization - Essay Example The staple corn can be pounded into tortillas, taco shells or any desired shape. Beans, rice, and squash also serve as dietary staples. Avocado dip and other moles, or sauces, are popular for dipping tortilla chips. Tequila, in all its various grades, is an internationally popular drink and Cinco de Mayo festivals are becoming prominent fixtures in Mexican restaurants the world over. The Virgin of Guadalupe, whose main house of worship is the Basilica of Guadalupe, serves the Mexican people on multiple layers. Her repeated appearances in 1531 to Juan Diego led to the consecration of the holy mother and her eventual title of Patroness of the Americas conferred upon her by Pope John Paul II. She is a savior particularly to women, but serves all those in need. In 1810, rebels called upon her guardianship in their battle again Spanish colonists. She has long been considered an integral symbol of Mexican religious, national, and political identity. The fiery painter, Frida Khalo (1907-1954), lived a short but brilliant life. When a teenager, she survived a harrowing bus accident that left her with internal damage and chronic pain. However, Frida’s unique painting fused events from her life with indigenous earth mother imagery. The painting at right, titled The Love Embrace of the Universe,the Earth (Mexico), Me, Diego, Mr. Xolotl, depicts such a concept showing a green clay goddess enveloping Frida, wearing a long traditional red skirt with a white fringe, holding a babe-like Rivera. This magical world rests in the penumbras between light and dark in the transformative cycle of birth and death. Chile’s national flag expresses deep historical significance. The star in the blue sky acts as a shining beacon to guide her people in honorable progress. The white represents the snow-capped Andes while the red represents the blood of the martyrs in the

In pregnant patients, does the use cabbage leaves decrease the Research Paper

In pregnant patients, does the use cabbage leaves decrease the incidence of breast engorgment as well as the application of brea - Research Paper Example However, this paper intends to analyze the effectiveness of swift nursing interventions along adequate patient teaching in relieving engorgement compared to the use of binders. After the comparison, the paper will highlight the best alternative for relieving engorgement. Research Question The research question in this case was to analyze whether the swift action from nurses in offering support pregnant patients before and immediately after delivery can help them in handling engorgement. On the other hand, the paper will analyze the efficiency of breast binders in minimizing the pain brought about by the condition. Mothers face a lot of anxiety after birth, and often need reassurance from informed nurses that they can handle the breastfeeding experience. The action from nurses also involves highlighting the crucial breastfeeding tips to mothers. Therefore, the intervention from nurses must come along adequate patient teaching. This research seeks to examine whether both medical and no n-medical support from nurses is more efficient in reducing breast engorgement in comparison to the advocated use of breast binders. The Search Process The EBSCO database proved to be a reliable source because it provides a wide range of resources. However, it was essential to customize the advanced search settings in order to get access to the most relevant range of articles. Therefore, limits for results included full text research articles, peer reviewed and from journals. Moreover, other limits included customizing the geographical setting to United States of America and limiting the search to articles dated 2007 to 2012. The search words were ‘breast engorgement’. Numerous articles addressing this issue appeared. Among these articles, five proved relevant to the issue and served as reliable sources for this search. The use of CINAHL database proved very resourceful because of the vast collection of nursing articles from renowned journals. How Engorgement Results In the first few days after birth when the baby begins to breastfeed, the milk may not flow easily. In this initial phase of the breastfeeding process, colostrum flows out to supply the baby with both nutritional and immunological components. However, its flow presents irregularities. At first, the mother may not succeed to feed the baby despite her efforts. However, with time the milk may flow to the breast in large amounts. The sudden inflow may cause the breast to swell and become tender. For many mothers, the breastfeeding experience ranging from the anxieties to the pain of engorgement may prove unbearable. Strong (2011) highlights that the pain of engorgement may extend for the initial six days under normal cases, but pain occurring beyond the first week of breastfeeding has other causes. A pregnant patient will require this knowledge prior to delivery. Critical understanding of the causes and remedies of engorgement is an important aspect to each pregnant patient. The pregnant patient requires relevant information concerning the implications of both natural birth and caesarian option concerning engorgement. Nurse Interventions and Adequate Patient Teaching According to Martucci (2012), the entire procedure of initiating breastfeeding can be a lot easier if nurses present the mothers with relevant informat

Qualitative Article Review Essay Example for Free

Qualitative Article Review Essay Purpose The purpose of this article is to show that there is a correlation between dropout rates and teen pregnancy, and to discuss ways to prevent teen pregnancy. The American Promise Alliance evaluated data on school districts that struggle with both poor school completion and high numbers of teen births. They identified 25 schools with the highest dropout and teen pregnancy rates. And they also evaluated school districts with high school completion rates and innovative pregnancy prevention programs to help students avoid early pregnancy and parenthood. The 25 persistently low achieving school districts account for twenty percent of all high school dropouts in the USA. Thirty percent of all teen girls that drop out of school cite pregnancy or parenthood as the reason. Thirty four percent young women who were teen mothers did not earn a diploma or GED. Less than two percent of teen mothers attained a college degree by age 30. School districts with higher school completion rates recognized the correlation between teen pregnancy and school dropout; they initiated programs to address these two high priorities. School districts collaborated with organizations receiving federally funded teen pregnancy prevention grants, such as US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Adolescent Health’s (OAH), and evidenced based Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program(TPP). Through their collaboration, grantees could use the funds in a variety of evidenced based models to meet the needs of their school, community and the age of the students being served. Description of Participants/Sample The participants in this study were all the teenagers in the USA. All USA students that attended public schools were a part of the data collection. School completion, pregnancy rate and dropout rate data was gathered from every public school in all the US school districts. Research Design/Data Analysis America’s Promise Alliance analyzed data from four reputable sources on teen pregnancy and dropout rates, and identified the school districts with the highest dropout rates. They also analyzed the data on teen birth rates or teen pregnancy rates from these school districts with high dropout rates. Method Diplomas Count 2011, Common Core of Data (CCD), VitalStats and Child Trend were the four sources of data information that was used to examine the number of dropouts and teen births within the 25 persistently lowest achieving school districts. Diplomas Count is a national report from Education Week and Editorial Projects in Education (EPE) Research Center, which provides graduation rates and graduation trends for all the public schools in the USA. Diplomas Count then identifies the 25 persistently lowest achieving school. Data on total school enrollment and enrollment by grade level was extracted from CCD. VitalStats and Child Trends provided data on teen birth rates and numbers. Results The data draws a parallel between high school dropouts and teen births. The data shows the school districts that struggle with poor school completion and high numbers of teen births and how various school districts are tackling these issues. Opportunities for Further Research The America’s Promise Alliance needs to collect more data for evidence that teen pregnancy caused dropouts, rather than just being correlated with dropout rate. After the 25 identified school districts with the high dropout and teen pregnancy rate implemented pregnancy prevention, the Alliance could check back in a year with these school districts to see if the dropout rate changed. Threats to Validity The four sources cited in this study are all very reputable sources that are cited often in the field of education. But although the America’s Promise Alliance spent a lot of discussion regarding the link between dropout rates and teen pregnancy, and suggesting that combating teen pregnancy could lower dropout rates, they ended the article by saying â€Å"readers should note that this data is meant only to draw a parallel between high school dropouts and teen births. No quantitative analysis to examine the statistical significance of the association between these two issues was performed and, therefore, causality should not be inferred.† They spent most of the article talking about things (teen pregnancy and dropout rates) that only made sense if there was causation, and then at the end of the article they retracted this conclusion from the readers. Insight and Criticism Teens getting pregnant while still in school are more likely to drop out of school, but the data in this article does not prove this, but I think it made a strange correlation between the two. There may be other factors that make pregnancy and dropping out more likely. Implications of Findings Thirty percent of teen girls who drop out of school cite pregnancy or parenthood as their reason. The connection between teen pregnancy or teen parenthood and educational attainment is strong. All interested parties in the prospect of these teen parents and their children need to collaborate and develop strategies to reduce the risk of them dropping out of school. References Shuger, L. (2012). Teen pregnancy and High School Dropout: What Communities are Doing to Address These Issues. Washington, DC: The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned pregnancy and America’s Promise Alliance. Retrieved November 2012, from www.thenationalcampaign.org/resources//teen-preg-hs-dropout.pdf

Essay --

Before the Civil War ended, President Lincoln signed for the Emancipation Proclamation to be passed. When the Emancipation Proclamation was passed on January 1, 1863, it was a step toward freedom for African Americans. Although the proclamation freed few, and did not apply to â€Å"slaves in border states fighting on the side of the union,† it sent a message. Lincoln was sending a strong message, not only to the United States of America, but to the world, that the Civil War was no longer being fought to preserve the Union, but was being fought to end slavery (Ask Jones which citation from extra paper). African Americans described the proclamation as the â€Å"document for freedom,† it was hope. The Emancipation Proclamation, while it did not free the slaves, it was a road way toward the thirteenth amendment. In 1865 when President Lincoln was still in office, the Civil War ended, and left the South in shambles. The war left no option except the need to rebuild the Sout h. This was the beginning of reconstruction. Reconstruction originally began under President Lincoln, until April 15, 1865, when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, then President Andrew Johnson took over, and reconstruction took a turn for the worst. Under the short reign of Lincoln, blacks were able to reunite their families, receive land and work for themselves, as well as get an education, and establish black churches. When Johnson took office, after Lincoln’s assassination, reconstruction began to shift for the blacks; it no longer held the same meaning. Their land was taken, and their freedom to work for themselves began to diminish, slowly reconstruction began to return to the idea of slavery. Economics At the war’s end Congress established the Freedmen’s Burea... ...ural music, provide charity and support to those in need and developed the black political leaders. The black church was the beginning of the establishment of the black community, and the most important part of the black church: it was free of white supervision. Blacks struggled to save to build their churches, and often founded Baptist and Methodists churches. One of their most prominent churches was the African Methodist Episcopal (AME). Churches in the black community were a form of ranking. The Presbyterian, Congregational, and Episcopal churches were attended mostly by the â€Å"upper-class† blacks, such as the blacks that had been free prior to the civil war. Poorer blacks, found the â€Å"upper-class† black churches unappealing. Besides churches, blacks understood that they must learn to read, or they were not free. To blacks freedom and education were inseparable.

Noise Pollution and Its Effects

Noise has a big impact on people all day everyday. But with people not noticing it, makes it hard for anyone to do anyhting about it. It is causing many different problems to people mentally, socially, and physically. There are many ways to help or prevent it, but these changes are not immediately visible, so they are left unattended to. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Exposure to very loud sounds that are enjoyable, and not technically noise to the listener, can lead to hearing impairment.A survey of hearing was tested among youngsters between the ages of 6 and 19. They found that 1 out of 8 of them suffered a noise-related hearing problem. Teens attend dances, equip vehicles with systems, and even work in loud fast food restaraunts. Noises are especially bothersome at night when one is trying to sleep, which is vital to good health. Noise from snowmobiles, jet skis, and supersonic jets has also intruded on the environment, affecting animals’ abilities to communicate, protect their young, and mate.MENTAL HEALTH: Noise pollution is not believed to be a cause of mental illness, but it is assumed to accelerate and intesify the development of latent mental disorders. Some of theses cases would be : anxiety, stress, nervousness, nausea, headache, emotionally instability, argumentatives, sexual impotence, changes in mood, and increase in social conflicts. The news media reguraly report violent behavior arising out of disputes over noise which in many cases these disputes ended in injury or death. SOCIAL HEALTH:Noise is a prominent feature of the environment including noise from transport, industry, and neighbors. Exposure to transport noise disturbs sleep I nthe laboratory, but not generally in field studies where adaptation occurs. Noise interferes in complex task performances, modifies social behavior and causes annoyance. Studies of occupational and environmental noise exposure suggest an association with hypertension, where as community studies show only weak relationships between noise and cardiovascular disease. PHYSICAL HEALTH:Noise health effects are the health consequences of elevated sound levels. Elevated workplace or other noise can cause hearing impairment, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, annoyance, premature ejaculation, bowell movements, sleep disturbance, death and decreased sexual performance. Changes in the immune system and birth defects have been attributed to noise exposure, but evidence is limited. Elevated noise levels can create stress, increase workplace accident rates, and stimulate aggression and other anti-social behavior.PERSONAL GROWTH: It takes a role in everyones life to help lower noise pollution. 1. Noise proof rooms for music or people playing music 2. Don’t slam doors. 3. Turn tv or music off when not listening to it 4. Train your dog to not bark as much. 5. Don’t rev up motorcycle or vehicle unless it is actually needed I nthe drive. 6. Don’t beep your horn â€Å"just cause† only when you need to. 7. Don’t yell. Have civil conversations.

An Interview with Steve

Life for me has amounted mainly to life here in Texas. IVe traveled a little; IVe been to both the west and east coasts of this country. IVe seen large cities and small towns, oceans, deserts and mountains. IVe traveled through several states and have met people from all kinds of backgrounds. Growing up we had classes in school. We learned of a whole new world out there, with different cultures and traditions.We had learned how our country began; how it was discovered, how it was populated, and of the wars our ancestors went through to ain independence and equality for all who live here. Through our parents and grandparents we learned that, with the exception of Native Americans, our ancestors emigrated here from countries far away, most of which are separated from us by vast oceans. Other than what we have read, the pictures we see in those books, the portrayals on television and film, most of us will never know the places our ancestors walked, or converse with people who presently live in those countries.With the development of the Internet and the World Wide Web, those countries are now coming literally to our fingertips. One of the most fascinating aspects of getting access to the Internet is how it brings the people of the world into our own homes. We can find out firsthand how those people live, what they believe, their customs, and their opinions of us. That is the focus of this essay. One of my good friends, for the past two and half years, is a man named Steve. We met online in a chat community and become fast friends. He is 48 years old and lives in Essex, England, which is a county northeast of London.Steve is a truck driver by trade and a musician by heart. He's sent me some of his songs, two of which he rote, and in my opinion, he's a very good musician, though he often says he's not. He's an avid Rolling Stones fan, and most of the songs he performs at pubs reflect this. This makes for amusing chats between us at times as he tries to convert anoth er wayward soft-rock-loving soul into a Stone's fan. I'm not really sure how Steve felt about me asking to do my essay on him. He undoubtedly thinks I'm being very nosey, ‘nosey peep' was the actual term he used, but he did consent to being interviewed.The only question he asked was if he had to be serious in his answers. When I asked him â€Å"Where do you live? † of course he nswered â€Å"modem land†. I told him that didn't help with my essay, and he replied, mfou know the answer, ask the stuff you don't. † And so our interview began†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ It seems that America has a great fascination with Great Britain. We see British actors every. vnere. We even nave some British snows on television. Many ot the stories covered in the news these days are telling of news of England, especially concerning the royal family. Why is this?IVe mentioned this fact to Steve a few times in chats. This opens up quite a little debate. He says it's only natural for us to lo ok to them, as England is the ‘parent' of us. I tell him that can't be. My ancestors came from France and Germany. He gets a chuckle, and then starts to lecture on how America as a whole was started by them, and we made the grave mistake of wasting good English tea, to which I happily reply that it's 0k, because I don't drink tea. I asked Steve if he sees himself as English or British. English, foremost, he says. I then asked him what he enjoys about his country.He said he enjoys the countryside, with its quiet rolling hillsides, spring flowers and gentle smooth rivers. He enjoys the music, and the English ale, with its bitter but smooth taste, and he adds it must be erved at room temperature. Somehow I think he was being extra poetic because I had asked him to elaborate on his original answer of â€Å"countryside, music, English ale†. He's generally a man of few words, at least typed words, but when gently prodded, he can say quite a lot, sometimes sarcastically, but o ften humorously. We discussed some of the history in England.He says that the English tend to take their historical sites for granted, though they do a good Job of protecting the old buildings and sights. When I asked if he goes out and enjoys the historical places, he said, â€Å"No, but IVe worked in a few places of historical interest†. He says â€Å"If you live in Manhattan, you don't go up to the Statue of Liberty. We take it all for granted really. We shouldn't but do. † I can easily see the truth in what he says, as much of our history here is being allowed to be forgotten. When speaking of lifestyles, Steve says that he likes to experience different cultures. â€Å"Big Ben is on my doorstep.I would rather travel the world and see differing ways of living. I can see Big Ben anytime. The world is changing. I'd like to see some of it before McDonalds gets there first. Even Bangkok has a McDonalds. † Steve is speaking f his recent trip to Bangkok, Thailand. I asked him if differing lifestyles was the big draw for so many British to immigrate to the states. He says that the draw for the English is that living in the states is similar to England's way of life, only much more comfortable. The main difference, he says, between England and the United States is that America is very inward looking.We seem to have 99% American news and Just 1% on the rest of the world. Though that may have changed since 9/1 1 . He says that Americans wish to know less of the world in general. Then he apologized for sounding insulting. He ent on to say that England ruled most of the world at one point, so theyVe always had interest in the world. He says that their news is about 50/50. I said that I wondered why England wants to rule so many countries. He said â€Å"We don't anymore. We've tried to give some countries back, but they won't have it. We tried to give Gibraltar back to Spain, but the people said they wanted to stay British † I asked why that was.He said, â€Å"They like us. We're quaint. † This moved us on toa subject Steve has much to say about. I asked him what life was like under the rule of a monarchy. He took no time to say, â€Å"Personally, it's dreadful. I hate being the Queen's subject. † Having only seen the monarchy on American television, I was curious as to why he would say that. He replied, â€Å"l resent their ways, their opinions. They are snobs of the worst kind; privileged and pampered while some of their people starve on the streets. Theyre hypocrites. † He goes on to say that the royals are expensive trophies for the tourists to view.Steve states, â€Å"They'll never change. The aristocracy survives to keep the working man in his place. Give him a beer, a bit of telly and football, and he'll be good and quiet. † I mentioned that they portray the royals here as heading oward a possible collapse, and he says, â€Å"It's not that simple, I'm afraid. They are too powerful, to o rich. They have low friends in high places. It would take a revolution to get rid of them, and the English people Just want a quiet life. † To lighten the conversation up, I turned the subject to English traditions. He states that there aren't many left.He says, â€Å"We have Guy Fawkes Day. It's fireworks to celebrate the capture of Guy Fawkes, who tried to blow up parliament. † He laughs, â€Å"When I worked there, down in the basement on a wall is scrawled ‘Guy Fawkes was here', and an email address. Guy Fawkes was like three hundred years ago. We also have Pancake Day, when we all eat pancakes. Some have pancake races, where women run while tossing pancakes in a pan. We also have egg and spoon races where you run with an egg balanced on a small spoon. All very sensible pastimes. † Our conversation rolled around to what the English think of America.Steve's impression seems to come through easily with his words. â€Å"It depends on whether theyVe been to America or not. IVe never met anyone who's been there that doesn't love America or Americans. Americans over here in England, though, can come across as a little loud and brash. The English that go over to the States tend to go to Florida for the climate and Disneyworld. It's where all the travel package companies sell holidays to. It's closer than California. Most English peeps like beaches. They fly 5000 miles to lie on a beach for two weeks. It doesn't make sense to me. I'd rather see the countryside or the cities. Then he quotes ‘Sunshine bores the daylights outta me,' a Mick Jagger line. Did I mention he was a Stone's fan? Steve has always been quick to say how much he loves America. He's traveled across the ocean about four times already, and driven from one coast to the other, a trek he ays he wants to do again, as soon as he can afford a month off from work. I asked if he thought it would be more difficult, since 9/1 1, to get a visa to come here. He said he has a l ife visa. If youVe been in the States a couple of times on short visas and haven't overstayed or misbehaved, they give you a life visa.Or at least they used to. He proudly admits to having one. With his views of the government in England, I couldn't help but ask if he'd ever considered moving here. He said he had, after his first visit here. And after his second. A d his third â€Å"The first couple ot times I was married My sister-in-law nad MS and my wife wouldn't leave England. I also had a cracking band, which in American terms means a really good band. On a later trip, the housing market crashed. If I had sold my house, I would have owed $120,000. † Going back to the discussion of England, I asked if they got much sunshine during the year.Steve, in his charming way said, mieah, we had a good summer. Think it happened on a Thursday. † I inquired about this because we've all seen the old classic movies depicting London always under a blanket of fog. When I mentioned this, he laughed. â€Å"No, that's a myth. We do get fog occasionally but mostly in the countryside, ot London. But when we get it, we get it, thick as soup. † He goes on to say that it rains a lot in England, which makes the country very green, which he likes. England is known for its poor maintenance on roads. I asked Steve about this.He says, â€Å"Potholes are everywhere in local roads. The weather breaks roads up and they won't pay for upkeep. England is famous for digging holes in the roads. They lay cables, pipes, etc. , fill them in, come back a week later, dig them up again. It's a British pastime. † I asked if people travel much. He says most people holiday abroad. It's cheaper to go to Spain than to stay in England. When asked if England was a majority of wealthy or poor, he says that most are not poor, but they have their money tied up in their houses. â€Å"On paper, there are a lot of rich people.I myself have $200,000 on paper, but it's tied up in my ho use. The cheapest apartment in my area costs $130,000. If you rent, it's usually from the local government. Then, as an example, after a few years you can buy it at a 66% discount. Then you pay maybe $30,000 for a house that's worth $100,000, so most people buy. The government does this for their own benefit. It's short term; they get cash and don't have to pay the maintenance costs. The downside is that there are no homes available for people to rent. I unfortunately bought on the open market, so no discount. It's interesting to know that, like here in America, they have a variety of accents. Steve speaks Cockney, which is known around the London area. If youVe seen the Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen film â€Å"Winning London†, my sister's favorite movie, you'll get a hint of it. To us it's fast spoken and hard to understand, and believe me, isn't much easier to understand in text, which he throws in from time to time Just to confuse me. He also mentions the Queen's English, whi ch is much more proper sounding, and hat we generally hear spoken on television.There are other accents as well, depending on the region you come from. I hated to end the interview. England has so much to learn about. I would have liked to delve much more deeply into the history and culture of his country, the things we don't hear and read about here in the States. But it's getting late for Steve. England is 7 hours ahead of Texas. It's very easy to forget the time difference and Just keep talking, on my end at least. I am very happy to have met Steve, even if we never get the opportunity to meet tace-to-tace.

The eNotes Blog The LAWSCs All-Female Production of Shakespeares Hamlet

The LAWSCs All-Female Production of Shakespeares Hamlet For twenty years now, the L.A. Womens Shakespeare Company has been staging Shakespearean plays with an entirely female ensemble. Later this year (August 17-October 4), the company will take on Shakespeares greatest tragedy, Hamlet, with LAWSC founder and artistic director Lisa Wolpe in the title role. In 1993, the LAWSC was completely funded by private donations and played in the very small Hollywood Actors Theater. However, the company soon won a grant and were able to expand beyond the fifty-seat capacity of their original home and played larger venues. Eventually, the company was able to offer their players and support personnel a modest stipend but to this day, the company continues to be volunteer-base[d] and a grass-roots company even as their audiences continue to grow. Past productions have included  Romeo and Juliet (1993); Othello (1994); Richard III (1995); Much Ado About Nothing (1996); Measure for Measure (1997); Twelfth Night (2000), The Tempest (2002); The Merchant of Venice (2005);  Ã‚  and As You Like It (2007). So the big question: why an all-female cast? Because an all-female troupe can cause a transformation of the perceptions of womens roles in our society by working to create a deeper, more powerful, unbounded view of womens potential. Furthermore,   the   productions illuminate contemporary issues through a classical context, offering a unique political and social perspective. The mission of LAWSC is to provide a creative forum for the exploration of violence, victimization, power, love, race, and gender issues, and to provide positive role models for women and girls. The production met its $10,000  Kickstarter funding goal, but the company is hoping to raise a total of $40,000. If you would like to support this or future projects, click here. Check out the video below for a sample of Lisa Wolpe in action as Iago in Othello!

To Niche or Not to Niche

To Niche or Not to Niche One of the comments I hear most often when I tell friends about my books is, Your writing is too narrow. You need to broaden your appeal. And in a sense, theyre right. There cant be that many people reading about disaffected Mormons. And its not every Mormon who will pick up a book entitled Zombies for Jesus or Sex among the Saints. I started my writing career with an MFA thesis, a collection of short stories about my two years as a gay Mormon missionary in Italy. Now thats specific. I was told at the time, You need to appeal to a larger audience. But my professors werent criticizing me for writing about Mormons. This was the 1980s. They were criticizing me for writing about gays. Today there are so many gay novels being written that a writer would be easily lost amidst the crush of publications. And this is my beef with the criticism in general. My friends tell me to stop writing about Mormons and ex-Mormons and instead just write about people. I assure them that it is hard enough rising to the top among a pool of fifty writers. It would be next to impossible even to be noticed among a pool of tens of thousands. I have another beef with the criticism, too. No good author writes the sentence, The woman put on her best dress, looked in the mirror, and knew she was ready for a fun evening. What in the world does the reader know about how that character looks? We need specifics. Details are what make a story interesting. William Faulkner created an entire career writing about the folks in small-town Mississippi. Those werent just people. They were from a very specific culture and environment. Ill go one further. Isaac Bashevis Singer wrote about ultra-Orthodox Jews in the shtetls of Eastern Europe. Hows that for a niche audience? Especially since Need I remind anyone that both Faulkner and Singer won the Nobel Prize for Literature? Theres no guarantee that Ill ever sell more than four hundred copies of Mormon Underwear or Marginal Mormons, much less win any recognizable awards. But if I just write about generic people, Im even less likely to be noticed. There is simply too much competition out there. Its not a matter of being a big fish in a small pond. Its a matter of finding any water to thrive in at all. Im involved in the Mormon literary community, such as it is. I proofread for a progressive Mormon magazine (yes, there are a good three or four hundred progressive Mormons out there!). I proofread for a small Mormon publisher. I post on the Mormon blogs I follow and my own Mormon-themed blog. I help critique the work of other Mormon and ex-Mormon writers, and I financially support their work as well. And I follow that age-old maxim: write what you know. Yes, I have a niche audience, but the fact is, at least I have an audience.

Report on the Current Financial Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Report on the Current Financial Crisis - Essay Example They explain that increasing liquidity and increasing nontraditional mortgages which were deceptive and beyond the ability of borrowers to pay was another trigger of financial crisis. Another trigger of financial crisis was the failure in securitization and credit rating which made poorly performing mortgages into bad financial assets. Security markets and stakeholders brought down credit quality in mortgages they securitized even as credit-rating organizations erroneously rated such securities as viable investments (Bancel and Usha 179). The buyers did not carry out due diligence thereby leading to losses. The financial crisis had various impacts on the global economy and the financial markets. The crisis led to reduction in the gross domestic product in most countries. The decline in GDP in some European countries in 2009 ranged between 5 and 8 percent and the decline was highest in countries that had their financial systems highly leveraged and the credit growth was high before th e onset of the crisis. The financial crisis also led to increased rates of inflation in countries especially in countries where the financial sector has not been adequately regulated (Bancel and Usha 183). The rates of unemployment globally went up following the financial crisis. Unemployment increased due to slowed production and sales in most economic sectors thereby constraining the job opportunities. The financial crisis also led to a decline in global trade with the less developed countries suffering from huge deficits of trade. The other effect of the financial crisis was negative impacts on the exchange rates of most currencies (DLA Nordic 1). Most import dependent countries experienced a sharp decline in the value of their currencies as compared to other countries thereby disadvantaging importers. Systematic risk refers to the possibility of the whole financial system collapsing in contrast to the collapse of a single group or component. Systematic risk has spread throughout the globe due to integration of the globe in trade, markets and finance. Technology has enhanced integration thereby making the world a global village (Tchana Tchana 1). The other factor that led to the spread of systematic risks throughout the globe is regulation. Systematic risks cause increased flow of investment in different countries. This is because as the investors seek to diverse their profits and mitigate the negative impacts, they choose to invest in countries that have low risk levels. Additionally, the systematic risks caused by financial crisis causes reduction in investments as the banks lack adequate resources to loan out for capital investment. Consequently, long term investments become slowed. The financial crisis had two effects on credit such as bonds (Bancel and Usha 183). The first effect was a reduction in the number of creditors given that only those creditors able to issue good quality bonds could get to the market thereby increasing their credit ratings. Ad ditionally, average systematic risks of creditors also increased dramatically (Bancel and Usha 183). The Federal Reserve has implemented several short and long term measures to prevent the domino effects (Reddy and Joellen 1). The main aim for Fed’s involvement was to enhance liquidity given that during the period the liquidity was low. Fed offered improved liquidity via open

Group Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Group Process - Essay Example The concept of self censorship has been around since long. Firstly this term mainly got related with writers and journalists but now we literally see everyone doing it around us along with me. Many individual and social ingredients convince a person to censor himself to others. Duncan (1994) writes that, "People in different societies are more collectivistic than Americans, who tend to be individualistic." (p.79) Although, I agree strongly that we are products of our societies but Americans are little bit more loath to openly express their ideas and opinions. Most of times, I know my colleagues are wrong but I don't let them find out due to many reasons. At times, I lack confidence and I end up blocking my self to others. Other times, I fear that people will oppose me and question me. I feel challenged. It takes a lot from me to convince people and satisfy them with my answers. Eventually I feel embarrassed and rejected by my group. I also censor my views to avoid arguments. From time to time, I do it to avoid conflict of ideas and interests. I have also felt that when I get along with my group very well and feel close to them then I am afraid to raise a question due to peer pressure.