Saturday, November 30, 2019

Shila Gonsalves Essays - Cancer, RTT, Medicine, Colorectal Cancer

Shila Gonsalves Eng 102 Professor Streeter Essay #3 Colon Cancer C ancer is a malignant disease that is widespread nowadays . It can potentially up shoot anywhere in the body with no unique warning signs. A sufferer might come to kn ow at a very later stage that they have got cancer . There may well be a chance that he or she is warned way before the disease reaches the stage where it can not be treated. All this is a matter of luck rather than anything else. C ancer can occur in many forms for example liver cancer, breast cancer, thyroid cancer, cervical cancer, colon cancer etc. In short a cancerous tissue can form anywhere in the body. We will focus on colon cancer in this essay. Colon cancer or colorectal cancer is a cancer , which occurs in rectum. The colon is known as the large intestine o r large bowel and t he rectum connects the colon to the anus . If colon cancer is diagnosed at an early stage it can be cured through chemotherapy or surgical treatment however that i s only possible if it spreads in t o the near by lymp h nodes. The American Cancer society stated that colon cancer is one of the main reasons of deaths in America . U nlike breast c ancer or cervical cancer, which a ffects women only , colon cancer can a ffect men and women alike, irr espective of class, race or eth nicity . Despite this it has been seen that it i s more common in men than in women. Colon cancer s ymptoms are simply the apparent changes that one can notice. Many colon cancer patients do not notice any visible change how ever there are few thi ngs that indicate if a person is affect ed by this disease. F or example , according to Cappell (2008), a person might feel abdominal p ain and tenderness in the lower abdomen . D iarrhea or constipation may also be one of the symptoms but many patients tend to ignore such symptoms as these may be caused by food poisoning or not eating enough fibrous food. H owever if the blood comes in the stool or the re is a constant weight loss or intestinal obstruction then the se symptoms are often taken relatively seriously by the people. In almost all cases as stated in Lieberman (2009) , with proper screening , doctors can detect colon cancer before symptoms develop. T he doctor will simply perform a physical test, he or she will press the belly or abdomen and if t he y feel a mass then t he y will c onfirm doubts through fecal occult blood test (FOBT), this test can detect small amounts of blood in the stool but t he loop hole here is that it can also come negative for pati ents who do have colon cancer thus for this reason it must be done along with colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy ( these are the imaging tests that show the entire colon). I f these tests show that a person has colorectal cancer then the doctor s further confirm it through a CT or MRI scan of the abdomen and pelvic area. S ometimes the docto r might also get a CT scan of brain and chest to see how far the cancer has spread and at until which stage the cancer has matured . " C olon cancer is divided into 5 stages; stage 0 is the early stage where it only affects the inner most layer of the intestine and the first stage affects the inner layer . By the end of stage three, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes and fifth stage is where it has affected the other organs ( the chance of survival at thi s stage is very less). " T he kind of treatment given to the patient depends upon the stage of cancer the person is going through. G enerally there are three kinds of treatments ; surgery, radiation therapy and chemo therapy. S urgery means removing the cancerous cell through an operation. I t is more often

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

American education reform

American education reform The vision for all children, regardless of their societal setting, should be to receive meaningful education that prepares them for responsibilities, opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, in order to have a significant impact in not only their societies, but also the international economy.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on American education reform specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is for this reason that the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and their affiliates continue to push for Common Core State Standards (CCSS), though their efforts lack the support of policy makers, who are fixated on the use of standardized tests for the purpose of accountability. Following the enactment of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2001, more attention was given to fulfilling the needs of students by employing CCSS and assessments to evaluate student and school performance. However, this system left educators as the only par ty responsible for the performance of students and schools, while policy makers set out to increase the number of standardized tests administered to students as a way to benchmark their performance levels and set prerequisites for graduation or promotion. Educators acknowledge the importance of measuring student learning through the appropriate use of standardized testing and logical accountability measures, though they continue to assert that there should be proper balance between teaching and testing. As such, reforming the American education system requires a lot of work to be done, beyond the administration of regular assessments, through professional development, aligned curriculum, and access to resources for educators to advance their knowledge and collaboration efforts. One of the requirements of the NCLB is the administration of standardized testing in all 50 states on an annual basis for all students above the third grade. These tests are motivated by the notion that stude nts will feel increased pressure to perform well, owing to the eventual reward or punishment, which will then increase their learning and achievement. The use of tests is vital for monitoring student learning, but the current accountability system under the NCLB Act has brought about serious implications including: reduced attention to critical elements of the curriculum that are not mandated to accountability testing, compromise of student learning time to test preparation and testing, and the shift of educators attention to attaining a minimum score as opposed to gaining knowledge. Popham (11) claims that the use of a test-based accountability system is rational since it provides educators with a means to assess the comprehension level of their students, though the absolute reliance on this strategy obstructs proper teaching and learning.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Lu nenburg (2) argues that high-stakes testing does not increase student learning. Instead, it interferes with student motivation and narrows the curriculum as teachers provide instruction based on the appropriate response to test questions. This is done at the expense of vital skills traditionally provided in schools, including problem solving, critical thinking and group work. In the last decade, the time spent on test preparation and testing has increased drastically, in similar proportion to the lost instructional time and additional testing expenses. Proponents of more testing argue that the improved rate of student achievement, owing to additional tests, outweigh the extra costs of testing or money paid to testing companies, and fail to realize that the increase in number of ‘bubble students’, or those whose scores are concentrated at the minimum score, compromises the development of every student’s full potential (Nelson 8). There are different kinds of asses sments administered in schools including those mandated by the state and those developed at the district level, though the recent focus on data reporting and analysis has made all assessments high-stakes assessments with implications for students, schools and teachers. State tests mandated by NCLB are aimed at determining whether the students are satisfying state standards on an annual basis, and are administered in the spring to sum up the school year. The test scores are then compared to those of previous years in order to determine the effectiveness of a school. However, Lunenburg (3) argues that the use of a single summative test score to assess student achievement is flawed as it does not reflect on the progress of the students. A study performed by Nelson on two mid-sized urban school districts revealed that students in grade 3 to 10 spend between 20 and 50 hours every year taking high-stake tests, and an additional 60-110 hours preparing for those tests. In addition, an estim ated cost of $6.15 for every lost instructional hour translated to an annual testing cost of about $700 per students. However, this study did not take into consideration a variety of other time and testing costs including: cost of test prep materials, the teacher’s non-classroom time spent preparing the test, time and cost of special education testing, cost of preparing hardware and technology for testing, and time spent on data reporting and analysis.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on American education reform specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Other costs not incorporated in the study are those pertaining to time spent by students on quizzes or teacher-made tests, and the time spent on assessing homework and grading tests (Nelson). Nonetheless, Nelson (27) observed that the scrutiny of current testing policy, in regard to budgetary costs, would spark policymakers to consider alternative uses of teacher and stud ent time, like allocating more time to non-test subjects in the curriculum. According to the study performed by Nelson, the abolishment of testing would free up between 20 and 40 minutes in every school day for most grades, and in some cases, add an entire class period for students in grades 6-11. Furthermore, it would be possible to relocate about $100 of the amount used on every student for testing to buy instructional programs or provide technology. According to Nelson (28), reducing the time and costs of testing by even half of the current levels would still produce considerable benefits to the learning school day, and create funds for the preparation of tests that are better suited to enhance knowledge acquisition, and even increase the access of teachers, students and parents to valuable resources and information. In the recent past, different states have started to acknowledge the pleas of educators to focus less on excess-testing and more on imparting meaningful knowledge. T he Texas legislature, for instance, decided to slice the amount of high school end-of-course mandated exams for graduation from fifteen to five. On a similar note, the New York Orchard Park Central School District proposed that the 2013 state assessments be used in evaluating the progress of the state in introducing the CCLS, as opposed to assessing the performance of students or the effectiveness of educators (Popham). According to Popham, the level of poverty in the communities where various schools are situated does not serve as an indicator for the quality of education or instruction that occurs in the classroom, but has the largest impact on the variation of test scores from one institution to the other. Besides the amount of wealth in the community where a school is located, the resources available in that school also affect its performance and test scores; hence the distinction in the scores of Beverly Hills’ schools and those in Birmingham. Using test scores to evalua te teachers is erroneous since the scores of the students are only partly dependent on the kind of education that they receive. These scores are also a reflection of the interference of the community on the student’s education, long before the child interacted with the teacher in the classroom (Popham).Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The results obtained from high-stakes tests inform the state of the resources available in a school, and the socioeconomic status of the community, but not about the quality of education provided within those schools. If standardized tests continue to be administered, the outcomes of those tests should be provided to parents, teachers, school districts, and other relevant parties for accountability purposes instead of using them for research and intricate systems for evaluating schools and teachers (Lunenburg). In addition, the purpose of testing should be to enhance instructions offered to students and assist in improving schools, rather than to sanction, punish and shut down schools. It is not rational to issue tests to students for the sole purpose of determining the impact that their educators have on imparting knowledge. A measure of achievement should be one of the components used when assessing the school. Nelson (31) suggests that state and school districts should evaluate t he cost implications of the entire testing and assessment systems employed in typical school districts, including the cost and time for test preparation and lost instructional time. Nelson also proposes the incorporation of support measures to enhance the evaluation literacy of teachers that is required for improving and employing classroom assessments, as well as the appropriate utilization and interpretation of formal tests. It would then be the responsibility of the state to hold teachers accountable for employing the best assessment practices. It is important that all parties concerned with testing students to determine their progress or check teacher and school effectiveness to streamline their processes. To achieve this, school districts should include educators in the evaluation of testing systems to establish their usefulness in improving teaching, and in so doing, abolish any assessments that are not meaningful. In the effort to promote student knowledge acquisition, it may also be advisable to either reduce or abolish interim testing since they have no useful impact in promoting the teaching process. Nelson claims that these tests are exceedingly complicated, confusing, and do not reflect the state standards, but instead lead to an increase in â€Å"bubble students† and mediocrity. While in this process, it may also be advisable to do away with redundant, obsolete state tests and establish Common Core assessments designed by PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) or SBAC (Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium) as the only state-mandated assessments. In conclusion, teachers should embark on processes that allow them to drastically reduce the time spent on assessment preparation and benchmark testing. This can be achieved by shifting their focus from administering old tests to gaining new skills and knowledge that is vital for executing the Common Core standards in a setting that does not motivate learning throu gh the promise of reward and punishment. Another way to save on time and costs is to embed assessments in instructional materials. This can be achieved through challenging tasks and projects that require students to engage at their own pace, and use brief tests to check their comprehension in the course of the training schedule. Lunenburg, Fred C. America’s Obsession with Student Testing: Costs in Money and Lost Instructional Time. International Journal f Scholarly Academic Intellectual Diversity 15.1 (2013): 1-4. Print. Nelson, Howard. Testing More, Teaching Less What America’s Obsession with Student Testing Costs in Money and Lost Instructional Time. Washington, D.C: American Federation of Teachers, 2013. Print. Popham, James. Classroom evidence of successful teaching, mastering assessment. Boston, MA: Allyn Bacon, 2011. Print.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Definition and Examples of Cacophemisms in English

Definition and Examples of Cacophemisms in English Cacophemism is a  word or expression thats  generally perceived as harsh, impolite, or offensive, although it may be used in a humorous context. It is similar to dysphemism, and a contrast with euphemism. Etymology is from the Greek, bad plus speech. Cacophemism, says Brian Mott, is a deliberate reaction against euphemism and involves intentional use of strong words, very often with the aim of shocking the audience or the person to whom they are addressed (Semantics and Translation for Spanish Learners of English, 2011). Examples and Observations A cruel or offensive dysphemism is a cacophemism (from Greek kakos bad), such as using it for a person: Is it coming again tonight?(Tom McArthur, The Oxford Companion to the English Language. Oxford University Press, 1992) How Neutral Terms Become CacophemismsWhen we use cacophemisms,....we do not necessarily speak ill of anything. Cacophemistic language is a rough and raw, blunt and vulgar way of saying anything - good, evil, or neutral - of a thing. Not all of it is obscene by any means; witness grub and duds for example. Some are extremely vulgar, but not quite obscene (that is, not quite categorically tabooed in polite society), likely to offend but not to shock, like puke, guts, fart, stink, belly, croak, and burp. A genuinely obscene word, in virtue of the taboo its utterance violates, is as cacophemistic as a word can be. . . .People naturally find some perfectly accurate descriptive terms unflattering and displeasing. It is therefore considered good manners for others to avoid these terms as much as possible, and when one cannot avoid speaking the unpleasant truth, to find descriptive synonyms that strike the ear as less blunt, though they say the same thing as the unflattering term. In this way, we generate a stream of euphemisms, in comparison to which the original descriptive term seems ever more coarse, until that term, originally neutral, becomes a cacophemism. The words fat and old are good examples of this process. It is now considered to be blunt almost to the point of uncouthness to refer to a fat person as fat. And while there are a few dysphemistic ways of saying the same thing (potbellied, fat-assed, lard-assed, gross), there are few other terms that are as cacophemistic now as the straightforward unadorned fat.(Joel Feinberg, Offense to Others. Oxford University Press, 1988) Rationalizing With Euphemisms and CacophemismEuphemism and cacophemism play a central role in rationalization. When we call someone a terrorist, we may be using a cacophemism - making an activity seem worse than it actually is. When we call the same person a freedom fighter, we may be using a euphemism - making the activity sound better than it really is. Either way, by using these words, we set ourselves up for rationalizing the harming of others.(Ronald A. Howard and Clinton D. Korver, Ethics for the Real World. Harvard Business Press, 2008) Cacophemisms and HumorA euphemism is generally no more than the triumph of squeamishness over reality: little person for dwarf, senior citizen for old man, disturbed for crazy, etc. Cacophemisms, on the other hand, tend to reflect an attitude of rough-and-ready good humor toward the person or object in question: egghead, grease monkey, quack, etc. A further difference between the two isms is that cacophemisms are more readily recognized for what they are; euphemisms tend to have acquired a wider  currency in normal parlance and hence to be accepted more unthinkingly by the listener.(Peter Bowler,  The Superior Persons Book of Words. David R. Godine, 1985)

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Statement - Essay Example rition with focus on behavioral and social determinants of food choices, diet quality and health, human nutrition, and relationships between autism and diet. This identifies diversified topics for my dissertation and my focus in the dissertation will be household poverty and wellbeing with focus on the factors’ covariance and their individual and interaction effects on education. The dissertation may also consider demographic factors and their effects on households’ economic and social status as well as effects on academic achievements. My interest for the dissertation further extends to health conditions among poor population segments, especially obesity and diabetes. Within this scope, I may focus on the relationship between poverty levels and incidence rates of obesity as well as relationship between incidences of obesity and diabetes and food security among the population segment. The research interest identifies diversified target population segments. Of prime target are adolescent girls because of their presumed vulnerability to their environment. Other population segments for consideration in my research are parents of the adolescents, the elderly, and adults with disabilities. I have not developed a work schedule for my Qualitative II project but shall likely precede with my project on Nutrition Advertisements Influence the Perception of Adolescent Girls on their Eating Habits and Nutritional

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Mergers & Acquisitions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Mergers & Acquisitions - Essay Example The activity of merger & acquisition is predominantly undertaken by the acquired firms to improve the financial performance. The following factors are considered to improve the financial status of the organisation: The combined company oftenly reduces its fixed costs by extracting extra departments, lowering the costs of the company and to increase the revenue of the organisation, thus increasing the profit margins. A profitable company can buy a company who are at loss so as to make use of the targets loss as their merit by decreasing the tax liability. In the United States and other countries, rules are that of profitable companies buys those companies who suffer from loss, which limits the tax motive of acquiring a company. Geographical diversification is for earning easily from a company, which in the long term helps in the trends of the stock market of a company to rise, giving investors’ confidence while investing in the company. Vertical integration occurs when the upstream and downstream companies are combined. There are various reasons for vertical integration to occur. One reason is a relationship of internal with an external problem. A common example one of an external problem is that of double margins. Double margins occur when the upstream and downstream companies are the monopolies in power, every company decreases output from the competition to the monopoly level, which results to two losses. By merging the firm can burden one loss by putting the downstream company’s output in the competition. This result to increase in the profit. A merger that introduces a vertically integrated firm can be profitable. The Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), owned by the Saudi Arabian Government, is a collective, global petroleum initiative, and a world leader in discovering and producing, refining, distribution, and etc. The company operates and reserves of 260 billion bpd oil , the largest than any other company in the world, and is the fourth

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Belonging Essay Example for Free

Belonging Essay Belonging is a natural reaction, intrinsic. We search in order to find a community, a group of friends, a country in which we belong. America is a place whereWhen we feel uncomfortable, we say â€Å"I don’t belong here† and when you find a situation in which you are happy, you can be yourself, natural and free you feel as if it was created only for you. It can also be the most wonderfully liberating experience when you find yourself in a culture in which you do not belong. In not belonging, you become someone free of restrictions, free of the expectations, free to creatively exre your imagination without the guilt that often latently lies behind the veiled threat of failure and disappointment. The apparent fact of not belonging is open for everyone, but ittms the course of action taken in light of this cultural segregation which should be the goal of the traveler today. I had, I realized become strangely accustomed to living in Korea, even though a part of me desired to be back on the beach in Thailand. Rules, or lack of, which shaped me more as an individual than any thing else I had experienced in my life. We are expected to increase our spending power as we age, not our understanding of other cultures, not our compassion for each other or for those living on the other side of the economic spectrum. The traveler, if open to the possibility, is in a perfect position to experience this transcendence. America is the ultimate machine, the ultimate company, and the by-product of its hyper capitalist model is the increasingly glaring loss of personal creativity and individualism within its borders. We are consumers and we are resources to be used and abused in a cycle of production of consumption. I didntmt belong, but I could never belong and it was a liberating experience, one which taught me in a way the rules for living on the fringe of a society. I was an outsider, I obviously did not belong into this society, one which is very homogeneous, one in which a foreigner learns to live with the constant attention of being gawked and stared at, around each corner, in each subway car, in every restaurant, everywhere. In our own cultures, where in a sense, at least culturally, linguistically and historically we do belong, life often becomes a stifling world in which our lives are predestined, packaged products.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Review Of Shakespears The Tempest :: essays research papers

Why is it that people fawn Shakespeare and have unreasonably high reguard for his works, including The Tempest, and label them as â€Å"immortal classics†? Indeed Shakespeare’s works had great significance in the evolution of English literature, but these works, including The Tempest are mostly devoid of significance and literary value in the present day. One can expect to gain little educational benefit of the english language or hightened apreciation for fine literature from the reading of Shakespeare’s titles for reasons enumerate. First of all, the colorful and sophisticated metephoric vernacular style of the language utilized is archaic; even the speech of intellectually refined individuals and other respected literary works do not imploy of this rich style of speech. The poemic composition of The Tempest does not increase one’s ability to apreciate distinguished literature because the refined and respected works of most other classical writers are in novel form and thus differ highly from Shakesperian works in the literary devices and mannerisms from which they are comprised. The Tempest was written in early seventeeth century England. At this period of history and country the English language was quite different from what it is today in many ways. First, standard, formal vocabulary was different at this time. An great expample is found in the line â€Å"...you bawling, blasphemous, incharitable dog!† (act 1 sc. 1, p. 9). In this line, the word incharitable is the modern equivalent of the word uncharitable. The standard dictionary word has changed prefixes somewhere througout the centuries. Another thing that would have made a further gap between the vernacular in the play and modern English is Shakespeare’s deployment of common language, or slang (although I have no proof because I don’t speak sixteenth century slang). â€Å"A pox o’ your throught...† (act 1 sc.1, p. 9) and â€Å"...give o’er...† (act 1 sc. 1, p. 9). These phrases seem to be slang therms because they are so deviant from there modern english equvalents, â€Å"curses on† and â€Å"give up†, respectiveley. What value does learning the archaic vernacular give to the reader. Surely it does not increase thier word power or sophisticate thier vocabulary, for nowhere, not even in among people of high intellecutal refinement such as venerable college professers, is this dead language used. Another distinctive trait of the vernacular used in The Tempest is the heavy use of metaphor. This use of metaphor is so heavy and outlandish that it becomes extrodinarily difficult to interpret and causes the words to fall into chaotic ambiguity. In fact, it is not unreasonable to define the language of the text as sophistry. A great example of heavy metaphor in The Review Of Shakespears "The Tempest" :: essays research papers Why is it that people fawn Shakespeare and have unreasonably high reguard for his works, including The Tempest, and label them as â€Å"immortal classics†? Indeed Shakespeare’s works had great significance in the evolution of English literature, but these works, including The Tempest are mostly devoid of significance and literary value in the present day. One can expect to gain little educational benefit of the english language or hightened apreciation for fine literature from the reading of Shakespeare’s titles for reasons enumerate. First of all, the colorful and sophisticated metephoric vernacular style of the language utilized is archaic; even the speech of intellectually refined individuals and other respected literary works do not imploy of this rich style of speech. The poemic composition of The Tempest does not increase one’s ability to apreciate distinguished literature because the refined and respected works of most other classical writers are in novel form and thus differ highly from Shakesperian works in the literary devices and mannerisms from which they are comprised. The Tempest was written in early seventeeth century England. At this period of history and country the English language was quite different from what it is today in many ways. First, standard, formal vocabulary was different at this time. An great expample is found in the line â€Å"...you bawling, blasphemous, incharitable dog!† (act 1 sc. 1, p. 9). In this line, the word incharitable is the modern equivalent of the word uncharitable. The standard dictionary word has changed prefixes somewhere througout the centuries. Another thing that would have made a further gap between the vernacular in the play and modern English is Shakespeare’s deployment of common language, or slang (although I have no proof because I don’t speak sixteenth century slang). â€Å"A pox o’ your throught...† (act 1 sc.1, p. 9) and â€Å"...give o’er...† (act 1 sc. 1, p. 9). These phrases seem to be slang therms because they are so deviant from there modern english equvalents, â€Å"curses on† and â€Å"give up†, respectiveley. What value does learning the archaic vernacular give to the reader. Surely it does not increase thier word power or sophisticate thier vocabulary, for nowhere, not even in among people of high intellecutal refinement such as venerable college professers, is this dead language used. Another distinctive trait of the vernacular used in The Tempest is the heavy use of metaphor. This use of metaphor is so heavy and outlandish that it becomes extrodinarily difficult to interpret and causes the words to fall into chaotic ambiguity. In fact, it is not unreasonable to define the language of the text as sophistry. A great example of heavy metaphor in The

Monday, November 11, 2019

Demand Elasticity of Luxury Automobiles Essay

1. Introduction â€Å"As long as there is a society, there will always be fashion†. It was not surprised a fashion brands, especially a luxury fashion brands became a national treasure which effect the issues in business, political and social area in European countries. Since the Hermas established in 1837, a special development strategy model has formed and matured in European luxury group. Daniele de winter, the CEO of Daniele de Winter Cosmetics state that â€Å"the secret of successful fashion management is a complete blend of creative genius and business management acumen, skill and resourcefulness†. The develop strategy is the key issue for a successful luxury fashion company. With the development of economy and the increase of income, more and more luxury fashion companies expand their business into Asia- Pacific region, especially the Hong Kong and mainland China market. According to the annual report of Richemont, The Pinault-Printemps-Redoute (PPR), Hemes, Bulberry and other luxury fashion companies, the sale revenue of Asia- Pacific region accounts for more than 30% of the Group total revenue. The Change of Global Luxury Fashion Market The word â€Å"luxury† origin from Latin word â€Å"luxuria†, which means an item that â€Å"is expensive and enjoyable but no essential (Waite, 2012)†. In 186 BCE, the victory of army of Gnaeus Manlius Vulso brought such overseas luxury as bronze couches, and costly cloth spreads into Rome. For some Roman historians, the triumph of Vulso marked as the beginning of luxury industry in Europe. With the development of centres, modern luxury fashion industry has become a cross-sectors industry which offers high price goods and service for target consumers. However, in the space of two decades, the modern luxury market has changed beyond recognition. The narrow range of need and demand of target consumers and the exclusive- distribution channels, represented by French Fashion, have been replaced by a mass industry, accompanied by expansion brands with an affordable price by a wider range of consumers. Since the beginning of 1990s, the luxury industry has been recognised and restructured by designers and the fashion designers become the creator of art. According to the statistics from France Economic and Social Council in 2008 (France Economic and Social Council, 2008), with the strategy of â€Å"physical shop/ store† and expansion brands benefit seven million euros. Depending on the diversion and internationalisation, the luxury industry becomes an industry with wider consumers. For example, Hemes, managed by Jean-Louis Dumas, diversities their goods and creates new products. The French luxury manufacture gets a successful on brand art by purchasing crystal brand Saint Louis and Silversmith Puiforcat. Similarly, Richemont Family, the main competitor of French brand, also control numbers of brands, such as Carites, Baume & Mercier and Van Cleef & Arpells. The second change of luxury industry is the transformation from the handmade custom to industrial standardisation. Taking LVMH as example, there are three cores of product, as wines and spirit, luggage and leather, and fashion and perfume industry. The famous brands in luxury world, like as Moet & Chandon, Loewe, Vuitton, Givenchy, Kenzo, Dior and Guerlain, standardise the products like other heavy industries. Along with the profit-seeking financial logic, the marketing and the product standardisation become the major notion with the concept of large-scale product. In the new centre, the concept of luxury industry and the demand of consumers are changing all the time. â€Å"Heritage and Prestige† is the landmark of lots of luxury brands and the enduring value of numbers of particular brands. Comparing with the old style luxury brand â€Å"which used to be a heritage brand† (Coste-Maniere, et al. , 2012), the new concept of luxury, developed by Louis Vuitton and Burberry, means accepted by more consumers. For the occasional customers, they just enjoy the â€Å"right of luxury† in physical store against with the traditional customer-exclusive. In the new era, increasing the number of customers buy the fashion product they could afford, rather than become the royal consumer due to the high price. Consequently, emphasis of consumer need and the competitive advantage means centralising the core value and expending brand boundary simultaneously. 2. 2 The Development Strategy Model of Luxury Fashion Brand The luxury fashion brand originate in European countries which have plentiful historical and cultural background. With the development of servial centres, the luxury fashion industry in European, American and Japanese have become mature and standarlisation. Under this circumstance, the strategy of luxury development in western countries centralize on the brand expansion, striving for the core products and development of brand reputation. 2. 2. 1 Brand Expansion: the Foundational Strategy Under the press of financial-seeking strategy and the changeable of luxury market, the old style luxury fashion brand faces the challenge of development in the mature market in traditional European, American and Japanese region. Under this circumstance, the expansion of brands has become the foundational strategy for a large number of luxury fashion corporates, which offer a new opportunity to stress the brand image, the most significant assets for a luxury fashion company. (Albrecht, et al. , 2013; Uggla & Lashgari, 2012; Hoffmann & Coste-Maniere, 2012)Many luxury companies breakthrough the traditional product boundary and expensed their business into new market segmentations. For instance, Louis Vuitton, beginning with luggage, invested in other creative spheres: ready-to-wear industry as well as jewellery market (LVMH, 2012), and Gucci, beginning with leather goods, developed all sets of fashion products including leather goods, shoes, ready-to-wear, watches, jewellery and other products. (PPR, 2012). Meanwhile, there are some companies expensed segments into non-traditional area. For example, the luxury jewellery manufacture Bulgari and Italian brand Versace started to offer hotel under their brand (LVMH, 2012) and Armani provide different products from books, furniture and chocolates to restaurants, bars and spas. The another Italian luxury brand, Roberro Cavalli, famous for its fashion apparel for young generation, offer wine and vodka as well as run coffee bar (The Cavalli Caffe) and club (The Cavalli Club). 2. 2. 2 Striving for the Core: The Product Strategy For a global corporate, it is common rules of development depend on the core production or service and then diversification. However, even as diversification, the excellence core production and the strongest sectors within the luxury brands continued to earn the majority of its profits from the traditional products. (Ahrendts, 2013; Beverland, 2005; Miller & Mills, 2012). For luxury consumer, they expect to acquire a honorable brands and product so that they emphase on the value of core heritage. The leather goods, the core of Gucci Group, earn 59% of its revenue in 2012 (PPR, 2012). The iconic luggage is the tradition from the time corporate was founded and become the brand image of the LVMH Group. (LVMH, 2011) The turning of Burberry from a ageing British brand to a global luxury brand is a successful product strategy transition. Before 2006, through in a burgeoning global market. Burberry faced a low growth at a rate of 2 percentage every year and two competitors – LVMH and PPR had more than 12 times and 16 times Burberry’s sale revenue. By surving the sectors among Burberry products all over the world, the results indicate the outerwear, as the core, only accourted of 20% of Burberry’s global brand business. Figure 1: the Facts and Financial Statistics of Burberry (Resource from: Burberry, Yahoo Finance) [pic] After brainstorming and formalizing from the administrative board, the New Jersey factore which is making polo shirts was closed and invested in the Casteford factory in Yorkshire which make the heritage trech coat included traditional rainwear and exclusive waterproof gabardine. Burberry also hire Christopher Bailey as the global designer for innovation of core products. The facts and financial statistic of Burberry from 2006 to 2012 in Figure 1 showed that the decision to focus on the heritage opened up a wealth of creativity. By the end of 2012, the sale revenues and operating income had doubled than previous 5 years, achieving $3 billion and $600 billion respectively. (Burberry, 2007; Burberry, 2012) 2. 2. 3 The Brand Reputation: The Brand Strategy The brand is the most valuable part of luxury goods and the motivity of luxury consumption. Once separating from the luxury brand, the goods is the ordinary one. Every successful company sees the brand as the most valuable fortune. they use the advanced marketing logic and marketing operation to motivate the development, explore approaches to express the value and connotation of brands to luxury consumers and attract the royality of customers. As a tool of art, a carrier of history, and a spirit of classic, building-up a high quiality reputation is brand strategy for luxury companies. Since founded in 1847, Cartier, as one of the most established name in the jewellay market, is the reference of ture and timeless luxury. Designing by Cartier, the product distinguishes itself by the unique skills and excellence in design and execution. Nearly in 30 years, the extensive art activities are not competitive without the support by the Foundation Crtier pour l’Art Contemporain (Richemont, 2013). With the development of brand reputation, Cartier is the synonym of modern art and a pioneering approach. Meanwhile, most of luxury brands come from the centre of Renaissance 2. 3 The Features of Chinese Luxury Market Chinese market places the second place in the world of luxury consumption, surpassing the United States since 2008. Along with Japan, China is the strongest market with the increasing demand of 20 percentages. The consulting report from Glob Advantage estimate there are 18 thousand billionaires, 440 thousand multimillionaires and increasing the number of middle class achieving 250 million in 2015 in today’s China (Degen, 2009), which have the strong purchase power and need of luxury fashion industry. Even with the influence of the financial crisis, the sale revenue of luxury fashion in the mainland China rose by 16 percent, reaching about 64 billion RMB. The market research about Chinese market laid a foundation for the development and expansion strategy of luxury brands. The shifting attitudes to luxury brands, the greater sophistication of Chinese consumers and the new geographic markets have become the main features of Chinese luxury market. The three characteristics drive the global strategy of development for luxury brands. Figure 2. According to the survey of McKinsey & Company (KPMG, 2013), with the rapidly increase of income, more and more Chinese consumers shifts the attitude to luxury and feel comfortable to purchasing luxury products. The rich consumers which income over 300,000 RMB continued occupy the majority of the luxury purchase. Meanwhile, the statistics show that, the upper middle class (between 100,000 RMB and 200,000 RMB), which account for 22% of luxury goods purchase by the end of 2015, as the Figure 2 suggested, offers the biggest new growth opportunity. 2. 3. 1 The increasing number of overseas travel. In the information era, Chinese consumers have become more sophisticated than before. With the surge in the number of luxury stores, fashion magazine, the Web official site and the use of social media, Chinese consumers familiar with the luxury brands with the help of Internet, overseas travel, and the first-hand experience. For example, the research result indicated that in the last 12 months, the Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macro and Europe become the main destinations of overseas luxury purchase. Figure 3: Where did you purchase your cosmetics in the last 12 months? (Resource from: Global Reach of China Luxury of KPMG) [pic] 2. 3. 2 The increase of new market segmentation The rapidly growth of urbanisation and individual wealth emerge large quantity of geographic markets with sizable pools of luxury-goods consumptions. The luxury purchase and sale revenue of some medium and small cities, such as Qingdao in Shandong province and Wuxi in Zhejiang province, tripled than the previous 5 years. In the following years, the luxury consumption in these medium and small cities will achieve the same level with Hangzhou and Nanjing, the most developed market in mainland China, the sale of which will arrive at RMB 500 million yuan and account for 76% of whole market. 2. 3. 3 The increasing of Counterfeit goods Love for luxury, preference for counterfeit is a unique phenomenon in luxury consumption in Chinese luxury market. According to a report entitled â€Å"Transnational Organized Crime in East Asia and the Pacific† from Office on Drugs and Crime, almost 70% of global counterfeits luxury goods come from China and the value of counterfeit luxury goods imported into traditional luxury market on the order of $25 billion annually. In a confusion society , the luxury consumption of Chinese consumers become more irrationally than western consumer, which depended on the extenral need rather internal need (Zhang & Kim, 2013). For Chinese consumers, luxury brands are somethings â€Å"must to have† for them to reinforce their social status. however, the wealth gap between the rich and the poor in China is the largest all over the world, which offer the passion for consumption of luxury counterfeits. The young generation, aged 25 to 34 with limited budget for genuine luxury fashion goods, racked up nearly a quarter fo fake fanciers. 2. 4 The Passion for Luxury Consumption of Chinese consumers China is the second largest luxury market all over the world and attracting the attention of consumption of Chinese consumers. Under the influence of unique economic situation, cultural background and social factor, the behaviour of Chinese consumers in luxury fashion market have the distinctive characteristics. The bling factor influenced by economic situation, the saving face affected by the Confucianism and group orientation as the social factor drive the luxury consumption in Chinese fashion market. 2. 4. 1 The â€Å"Bling† Factor With the emerging of Internet, fashion magazines and social media, more and more Chinese consumers know the brands of luxury brands. However, the cultural concept and history of the luxury fashion brands are far away from numbers of Chinese luxury consumers. For many luxury fashion firms, there is not one typical luxury customer in China due to the different habits, different tastes and different income levels. The â€Å"bling† factor or following the whole market trend remains an important factor for the Chinese consumer in luxury fashion market. For example, according to luxury consumer report of Chinese market, almost 60 percent of the respondents in Tier 1 cities including Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai and other Tier 2 cities, stated that the key drivers for luxury consumption is the willingness to pay a product that just is popular or fashionable goods. Exclusivity or unique is an important understanding of luxury brand for Chinese consumption. There are about one fifth of customers consider that they will pay the luxury goods that are known and appreciated by the minority rather than the famous one. In terms of China’s unique cultural background, the Chinese consumers consider luxury brand value influenced by Confucianism. In the concept of Confucian, the notion of â€Å"mianzi† is defined as a reputation â€Å"achieved through getting on in through success and ostentation†. (Hu, 1944; Dong & Lee, 2007) The traditional cultural understanding and effecting about the face saving becomes the strongest and most conspicuous passion for luxury consumption, which means concerning about the impress to other and the visual display than the level of income. The Chinese consumer in luxury world trend to pay a premium product on the luxury brand rather than essential goods in daily life, due to strong desire and pressure of maintaining face. Taking the finding of KPMG as the example, comparing with the apparel, the stronger growth of market for fashion accessories is considerable. Nearly 40% of luxury consumers enjoy the luxury experiences and â€Å"the right of luxury† in a physical store/shop over purchases of luxury items. Overall, the face saving (saving mianzi) relates to the individual image of worth and reputation within a collectivism society. As the result, Chinese consumers are often careful not to lose face by standing out from the crowed when consuming luxury goods. The general strategy Although the market has its particular features, the development of luxury fashion strategy in Chinese luxury market is followed the general rules of luxury firms in global market. As the foundation strategy, the brand extension and production diversification also provide the base of the development in Chinese luxury market. The apparel, handbag, jewellery, fashion accessories and luxury servicers are offered in mainland China, especially in Tier 1 cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Promoting the sale revenue of the core products in mainland China, as the product strategy, enhances the brand awareness in Chinese market. Expanding the influence, luxury fashion firms invest large amount of money to popularize the brand reputation as a simple of elegance and grandeur as well as the means of fashion and art. The marketing strategy: raising brand awareness. Due to the lower brand awareness and lack of knowledge of brand value, the royalty of brand in Chinese market is lower than its in traditional European market. The special situation provides a strong externally powerful tool, which means not only expand the value of the luxury brand into a regular group of consumers, but also sway them making a purchase. In recent year, luxury fashion firm invest increasing the number of budget into Chinese market not only promote the brand awareness, but also help the consumers inform a notion about †luxury goods and luxury lifestyle† and why they should purchase luxury goods and luxury services. The brand building-up develop based not only the advertising on hard paper and television, also included the display on luxury goods exhibition and the customised publications. Nowadays, more and more luxury fashion goods exhibition held in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities, which offer a good opportunity for Chinese consumers to visit the luxury goods frequently displayed in store. Meanwhile, more and more consumers visiting the exhibition are not an onlooker. The localisation strategy The luxury fashion brand with high brand awareness contain the European and American culture and value which is living standard of high level, the product and design of high quality. Those values accepted by and attract young generation who trend to, however, it is not accepted by all Chinese consumers who have their own value. Respecting to Chinese traditional culture and integrated it into the product value is the essential of luxury fashion business in China. For example, Louis Vuitton setting Du Juan, the one of top Chinese model all over the world, and advertising as the Chinese image step one right place on direction and help western luxury fashion companies overcome the cultural barriers. This kind of strategy could build up strong attachments among Chinese consumers and help them accepted the unique characteristic of luxury fashion brands. The pricing strategy Price is one of the most significant signals in Chinese business world. For most Chinese consumers, price represented the value of luxury fashion goods. As a result, the luxury fashion products should not go on discount, no matter what the consumer is. The pricing strategy about goods, especially about core products, could bolster a brand’s prestige. For other items, companies could adjust the price according to the market condition and the inventory in order to long-term brand building. The retailing strategy A stupendous store belongs to the luxury fashion company located in the luxury area build up a sense of important and identified by the market. The luxury fashion positioning enhanced if the boutiques are visible to a lot of consumer in major fashion cities. The landmark stores opened in Chinese Tier 1 cities, such as Beijing, Hangzhou and Guangzhou, are the best locations to building the brand image and attracting the target customer groups. The commercial centres and shopping malls in luxury area are welcomed by most of fashion lovers, luxury followers and luxury intellectuals. Meanwhile, the investment on the landmark store is the best and effective way to generate profits and build-up brand royalty. In an Internet era, shopping online has become the major shopping way, especially for the young people. Although most luxury fashion companies have shied away from online channels due to the fearing that e-commerce might reduce the value of the luxury brand. However, for a long-term return and brand building, online platform provides not only a purchase channel, but also an information exchange channel between luxury fashion brand and Chinese consumers. With the developing of GDP and individual income of consumers, the global luxury fashion market and such the emerging market as China, have become the strategic focus of luxury market researcher and the consult company. This report attempts to identify development strategy of the luxury fashion brand, especially in mainland China market through the analysis of the change of global luxury fashion brand, overview of Chinese luxury market and the passion for luxury consumption. All those factors were identified depend on a comprehensive review of luxury fashion goods related researches and market consulting reports. The findings of this study provide a new insight of global and Chinese luxury fashion market for the consumers who interests the luxury fashion brand and a clear strategy guide for market managers of the luxury fashion firms, particular in the time of the company expand their business in mainland China. In addition, the study helps reduce the risks and costs of market research and helps the company overcome the huge gap in a multicultural business environment. First, the findings about the global luxury fashion market and the general development strategy in luxury fashion market all over the world indicated that the achieving the growth while remaining exclusive positioning, and attracting more consumers without losing cachet of brand value is the core strategy for every luxury corporates. The more loyal consumers may weaken due to the popular brands launched in the market because they choose pay a premium goods that majority and identified by small group. Consequently, the balance between growth and unique, the price and quality may be tougher in China than in any other market. However, customization develops quickly as the new trend of luxury fashion industry. The customizing activities have launched in different business sectors, but which is yet adopted by the luxury industry on a board. At presents, the customization just limited on the area of fashion accessories, apparel, handbags, and jewellery, and emphasising on customizing standard products, point of delivery customization and service and producing bespoke goods. Secondly, the increasing the number of consumers, overseas traveller, new market segments and the counterfeits goods have become the main features in the Chinese luxury fashion market in recent years. The features are important of stress the benefits of investment in mainland China. Based on the research findings, International marketers should setting extension strategy that is coherent with branding, merchandising and global image by serving China’s globetrotting shoppers, striking the balance between store numbers and quality and focusing anti-counterfeit goods. For Chinese globetrotting shoppers, the customer relationship management should emphasis global view rather than on mainland China. In the view of higher management board, the corporate organisational structure of the luxury fashion company should reflect the significant of Chinese market by sorting up the processes for generating direct communication between Chinese luxury consumers and the home headquarter. Based on the new market segmentation, the luxury company should upgrade current stores and outlets in order to keep consistent with the global image and emphasis on the business in Tier 1 cities. As the market statistics indicated that the luxury counterfeit goods have become the barriers for development in China, including seizing sale revenue and weakening brand value. Luxury fashion companies should co-operate with customs officials to seize fake goods at ports. Working with international national organisation or international associations should be the third path for anti-counterfeit activities. The co-operation should ranges from such international associations as World Intellectual Property to regional groups like US-focused International Anti-Counterfeits Coalition. Thirdly, the research findings about the passions for Chinese luxury fashion consumption indicated that the â€Å"bling† customers who lack of knowledge about luxury fashion goods or just following the trend account of a part of Chinese luxury consumers. Besides that, Chinese luxury consumption deeply influenced by saving faces and group orientation, which are the part of traditional Confusion value. Targeting different drivers of luxury consumption, managers should have different strategies. For the bling customers, the global luxury firms should invest in improving the brand awareness and expanding the brand value, which could offer a global opportunity to attracting potential customers and building loyalty and repeat customer groups. For the consumers who care about saving face, International luxury fashion markers should draw the outline of visual and outward appearance of rank and status when unfolding their marketing activities. Meanwhile, the companies should emphasise the brand’s country of origin, so the Chinese consumers have the confident to identified and distinguished with other mass products. In addition, the package of luxury goods also need to be recognisable in order to fit the moderate and lifestyle associated with Chinese consumers. Furthermore, in light of the results about group orientation, the management board company should stress the profit of luxury fashion goods as a symbol of social marker and the sale assistants inspire consumer purchases because of the goods could generate a sense of group belonging and conformity of the elite. Due to the group belonging, a special attention should be given to the layout of the physical store and the luxury service of sale staff. No matter who is the consumer, friends will be involved during the decision making process and become potential consumers in the future. Proving high-quality services and creating luxury experience for non-buyers also benefit for making sure that the brand accepted by group and that the consumer does not stand out from others. Finally, about the current expansion strategy in mainland China market, most of luxury fashion companies emphasis the strategy on marking, localization, pricing and retailing coherent with the global business aims. Raising brand awareness and expressing the luxury lifestyle lay the foundation of marketing strategy. In order to respect to Chinese traditional culture, luxury brands should integrate Chinese culture and art into design, package, and store layout of products, which accepted easily by Chinese consumers in different social class. Meanwhile, the research findings indicated that the price is the most important factor which influenced Chinese luxury consumption. Luxury marketers should balance the price between Chinese market and overseas. As for the retailing strategy, the luxury brand stresses the developing of boutiques store and the setting up online distribution channels. However, there are several special attention should be given to price gap between China and overseas, and the online distribution channels. On one hand, comparing with that rarely go on discount in mainland China, the luxury fashion goods is often at a discount at overseas, especially for the non-core products and in the time of Christmas or Summer Sale. On the other hand, the high rate of tax and fees raise up the price of luxury fashion goods in mainland China. According to the law and regulations in China, a luxury fashion goods, such as the eye cream of Estee Lauder native to the UK, is imported into Chinese market with 10% import tariff, 30% consumption tax, 5% sales tax and 17% value-add tax. Including the managing fees, advertising costs and other issues, the price of the eye cream is double in the UK. In the respect of the luxury company, the appreciate discount in Chinese market could promote the desire of consumption and boost the sale revenue; in the respect of tax policy makers in mainland China, reducing the rate of import tariff and consumption tax of international luxury fashion goods could Finally, luxury fashion goods, as a subject of nature, play different or scenarios, different income level, education background, and social – economic factors, as well as exam the type of relationship that seek from luxury fashion brands. On the view of passions for luxury consumption, there are many other drivers, such as collection, appreciation, should take the consideration into further research.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Traditional Sports in Assam

Traditional sports in N-E Games soon| A STAFF REPORTER| | A traditional sport in progress during the recent Bihu festivities. A Telegraph picture | Guwahati, May 22: The newly-formed Assam Traditional Sports and Dragon Boat Association claimed that efforts were being made to include some traditional sports of Assam in the North-East Games in near future.Addressing the media, regarding the proposed traditional sports carnival — Amar Khel, Amar Utsav — on Saturday, one of the founder office- bearers of the association, Subhash Basumatary, said he was making efforts to get a few disciplines included in the North-East Games, organised annually by SAI. Basumatary is also the director-in-charge of the SAI regional sub-centre, Guwahati. Boat racing, one of the most popular traditional sports, is all set to be the first from among a dozen traditional deciplines which could make it to the North-East Games.The Dragon Boat carnival, to be held here on Saturday, will include 10 oth er disciplines apart from boat racing at Dighalipukhuri. The field events at the carnival at Latasil ground include dhop khel, koni juj, ghila khel, malla juddha, rashi tana, tel khuta, tangon tona, kelah loi dour, tekeli bhonga and dighal thengia dour. â€Å"The idea is to conserve the traditional sports and bring them out of the remote villages to the urban areas. We hope to get co-operation from the government too in organising the event.So far, the tourism department, the State Sports Council of Assam, the Kamrup (Metro) district administration and few others have already come forward to help us in the noble venture,† the association’s president Taher Ahmed said. | Dhopkhel The most popular indigenous game in the state of Assam is Dhopkhel. An ancient game, it is closely related with the development of the state as such. The game requires absolute physical fitness – speed, stamina and acrobatic skills. Dhop is a seasonal game, played during the state's Sprin g Festival, known as Rangoli Bihu.The game really flowered under the royal patronage of the Ahoms. There are two types of Dhop, one played by men and the other by women. The game, which uses a rubber ball, is played by two teams comprising 11 players each, in an open field, 125 m in length and 80 m in breadth, with a central point in the right middle of the arena. Two lines called kai are drawn at a distance of 12 ft on each side of the point at the centre. At the four points where the kai meets the 125 m lines, four flags are planted. Similarly, four flags are planted in the four corners, known as chukor nishan.Parallel to the central point in each half of the field, is one point each, at a distance of 13'6†³ from the centre, and circles surrounding them known as gher. The game begins with the dhop i. e the ball being thrown in the air, by a player. If the ball does not fall in the opponent's court, it is to be thrown again. The dhop has to be caught by the opposing team, and if they fail, then the other team takes the throw. If caught, the player who takes the catch proceeds to the gher of the court, and throws it to the katoni, who stands on the other gher.If the thrower fails on either count, his team forfeits the chance of a throw at the katoni, and the guilty player is requested to deliver a high lob to the opposing team, like the lob which started the game. The opposing team thus gets a chance once more for a catch and throw, at the opponents' katoni. If the katoni is hit below the waist, it is considered a kota, and the katoni becomes a hoia or a bondha, and automatically loses his status of a ghai – a name initially used for all the players. The bondha goes over to the opposing side and tries to prevent the players of the team from catching the dhop. This move is known as aulia.If a bondha succeeds in catching the dhop in the opponents' court and can recross over to his original side without being touched by any of the opponents, he become s a ghai, and this move is known as hora. However, he has to cross both kais and he cannot leave the court in the process of crossing over, or catching the dhop in the zone between two kais. If a team loses ten ghais as hoia or bondha, then the last ghai will be named ghai katoni, and if a kota can be done to him, then it is known as piriutha, which signifies victory for the side. If at the end of the game, there are equal number of ghais, the game is pronounced a draw. Rang GharLocation: Joysagar, 4 km to the west of Sibsagar town Built By: Ahom King Pramutta Singha Built In: 1746 AD Highlights: Oldest amphitheatre in Asia Rang Ghar is one of the major attractions of the state of Assam. It is said to be the oldest amphitheatre in the whole of Asia and has often been referred to as the ‘Colosseum of the East'. Situated to the northeast of the Tolatol Ghar, in the Joysagar area of the Sibsagar district; is the two storied Rang Ghar, which was the royal venue for witnessing a nu mber of games, like buffalo fight, bull fight etc. This ancient amphitheatre was constructed by the Ahom ruler Swargadeo Pramutta Singha.Rang Ghar dates back to 1746 AD, when it was basically built for the purpose of amusement and fun. The theatre is a double storied building and on the roof, there is a design of an Ahom royal long boat. It is overall oval in shape, unlike the multi-storied Tolatol Ghar situated just adjacent to it. Every year, during the occasion of Rongali Bihu, Rang Ghar used to be the royal sports pavilion, from which the Ahom kings and nobles witnessed games in the Rupahi Pathar below. The Rupahi Pathar is a vast field, where various activities like bull fighting and other such traditional games used to be organized for the entertainment of the royalty.The Rang Ghar was even the symbol of the recently concluded 33rd National Games, which was held in February (9th to 18th) 2007, in Guwahati, Assam. In case you are planning to visit Sibsagar district of Assam in the near future, do make sure to pay a visit to the Rang Ghar as well. Rang Ghar (Assamese: , rong ghor) (meaning â€Å"Amusement House†) is a two-storied building, which was the royal sports-pavilion from which the Ahom kings and nobles witnessed games like buffalo fights and other sports at the Rupahi Pathar (pathar meaning field in Assamese) specially during Rangali Bihu festival in the Ahom capital, Rangpur.On the roof of the Rang Ghar is a design of an Ahom royal long boat. The building was constructed during the reign of Swargadeo Pramatta Singha in 1746. It is located north east to the Talatal Ghar a multi-storied royal complex in Joysagar west of Sivasagar town, on the other side of the Assam Trunk (AT) Road in Sibsagar district in Assam, India . The Rang Ghar is said to be the oldest amphitheater in Asia[citation needed]. The base of the monument has a series of arched entrances and atop the roof is a decorative pair of carved stone crocodiles.In many of these, only the brick framework exists with vestiges of sculptural adornments here and there. The Ahoms, who used special thin baked bricks, did not have the use of cement and, therefore, used a paste of rice and eggs as mortar for their construction. They also made use of powdered mixed lime and bricks to cover the surface of the inner walls. It is said that this layer of powder used to keep the inside of Ranghar cool. The entrance to Sankardev Kalakshetra at Guwahati is made in the style of the Rang Ghar.The Rang Ghar was the logo of the recently concluded 33rd National Games that was held from 9 to 18 February, 2007 in Guwahati, Assam. About a kilometer towards the north east of Rangh Ghar is the Jaysagar Pukhuri. It is a manmade tank, encompassing an area of about 120 Bighas of land. It was dug in memory of Rani Joymati, the mother of Rudra Singha, the most illustrious of the Ahom kings. Guwahati, Apr 6 (PTI) Seisimic survey work by the ONGC is posing a threat to Assam's 18th century amphi theatre, ‘Rang Ghar† at Gargaon in Sibsagar district, perhaps the largest stadium in Asia, which has proudly stood the ravages of time.Lesser known than the internationally famous `Colosseum' in Italy, the ‘Rang Ghar' bears mute testimony to the state's chequered history. The most potent symbol of the glorious 600 year rule of the Tai-Ahom kings hailing from Thailand, the monument constructed in 1746 AD, has been in the news after a report carried by PTI on cracks appearing on its facade. The report prompted the Assam government to constitute a seven-member expert committee to examine the damages on the walls of the heritage site.The damages to the protected monument have prompted the Archaelogical Survey of India (ASI) which maintains it, to threaten legal action against the public sector Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) The ASI move comes after eight 10 metre cracks have appeared on the Rang Ghar walls following blastings in the seismic survey work at nearby Rupohipathar, an open oil field. The ONGC officials when contacted refused to comment on the matter and only maintained â€Å"that precaution had been taken not to harm the heritage sites and historic monuments during survey works†.The damages have created a public outcry with a local students body, All Assam Tai Ahom Students Union (AATASU), calling an ‘indefinited ONGC bandh' from March 5 and the proscribed ULFA issuing a warning to the ONGC to stop all seismic work or face dire consequences. The Rang Ghar, stated to be the oldest outdoor stadium in Asia, bears mute testimony to Assam's history. The medieval Tai-Ahom kingdom (1228-1826) was founded by Sukapha in the 13th century establishing its suzerainity over the Brahmaputra valley and putting paid to Mughal expansionism in the North-East seventeen times sucessfully.The monument also saw the annexation of Assam by the British Empire through the historic Treaty of Yandaboo in 1826 paving the way for the advent of t he Britishers into the state and the end of the 600 year old Ahom rule. The monument at Gargaon was the crucible of the proscribed ULFA movement with its leaders congregating under Rang Ghar's portals on April 7 nearly 30 years ago to script one of the most violent chapters in the annals of the state in its fight for an independent homeland.The original ampitheatre was constructed with wood and bamboo by King Rudrasingha, also known as Siukapha who ruled between 1696-1714, but was rebuilt into a permanent structure by King Pramatasinha (1744-1751). With no knowledge of modern day cement, the Ahoms used a paste of rice and eggs as mortar and special thin bricks for construction of the Rang Ghar, that has withstood decades of neglect till Independence. As its name suggests, ‘Rang Ghar' was a `merriment house or a place of joy'. It was in this sports pavilion that elephant, buffalo, bullock and hawk fights, wrestling, besides Bihu (Assamese cultural festival), etc. were held. The Mongolian style oval-shaped two-storyed pavilion is 10 metres high, 11 metres across and 27 metres long with a steep flight of steps leading to the higher elevation from where the royal patrons and nobles are presumed to have watched the contests on the Rupohi Pathar (field) below surrounded by a huge meadow meant for the royal subjects. The monument's base has a series of archways with vestiges of sculptural adornments, and its roof is designed like a royal long boat with a pair of carved stone crocodiles on either ends.The ampitheatre is located north east to the royal palace `Kareng Ghar' in modern day Sibsagar town in Upper Assam. The Ahom kingdom with a successful multi-ethnic polity made major advances under king Susengpha Pratap Singha who revamped the administration and established the first military and diplomatic contact with the Mughals. Under King Gadadhar Singha, Mughal influence was, however, completely removed from the Brahmaputra valley and the Ahom Kingdom achieved its golden period under his son Rudra Singha.The Ahom rule declined with the rise of the Moamoria rebellion and subsequently fell to a succession of Burmese invasions. The defeat of the Burmese after the Anglo-Burmese War and the treaty of Yandaboo on Fewbruary 24, 1826, control of the once glorious Ahom kingdom passed into the British hands. Though during the colonial and subsequent times the Tai- Ahom rule was called the `Ahom Kingdom', the Ahoms called their kingdom `Mong Dun Shun Kham (casket of gold), while others called it Assam. The Rang Ghar was the logo of the 33rd National Games held in Guwahati from February 9 to 18 last year.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

The Meaning and Origin of the Surname Rodriguez

The Meaning and Origin of the Surname Rodriguez The name Rodriguez is of Spanish origin. It patronymic in nature (taken from the paternal line) and means son of Rodrigo. The ez or es added to the root signifies descendant of. The given name Rodrigo is the Spanish form of Roderick, meaning famous power or powerful ruler, which comes from the Germanic elements hrod, meaning fame and ric, meaning power. Where Do People With the Rodriguez Surname Live? Overall, Rodriguez is the 60th most common surname in the world. According to WorldNames PublicProfiler, the Rodriguez surname is extremely popular in Spain. Its most commonly found in the region of Islas Canarias, followed by Galicia, Asturias,  Castilla y Leà ³n, and Extremadura. The name is also popular in Argentina and is distributed fairly evenly throughout the country. The genealogy site Forebears ranks Rodriguez as the number one surname in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, and Uraguay. It ranks second in Argentina, Puerto Rico, and Panama and third in Spain, Peru, and Honduras. Fast Facts About the Name Rodriguez Ninth Most Common Name in America: According to the 2000 census, Rodriguez ranked the ninth most common surname in the United States, likely the first time a non-Anglo name ranked among the top 10 (at #8 the Hispanic surname Garcia also cracked the top 10).Famous People Named Rodriguez: Luis Rodriguez, contemporary poet; Michelle Rodriguez, American actress; Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees third basemanAlternate Surname Spellings:  Rodrigue, Rodriques, Roderick, Rodiger, Rhodriquez, Rhodriguez, Rodrigues (Portuguese) Genealogy Resources for the Surname Rodriguez Contrary to what you may have heard, theres no such thing as a Rodriguez family crest or coat of arms.  Coats of arms are granted to individuals- not families- and may rightfully be used only by the uninterrupted male-line descendants of the person to whom the coat of arms was originally granted.   To learn more about the origins of common Hispanic surnames and their meanings, a good place to start is with the information taken from the 2000 U.S. census about the 100 most common U.S. surnames and their meanings. The following is a list of other helpful resources for learning more about the Rodriguez surname: The Rodriguez DNA Project: This Y-DNA project is open to all males with the Rodriguez surname (or its variations) interested in working together to use DNA testing and traditional family history research to identify common Rodriguez ancestors.Rodriguez Family Genealogy Forum: Search this popular genealogy forum to find others who may also be researching your ancestors, or post your own Rodriguez query.FamilySearch- Rodriguez Genealogy: Access over 12 million free historical records and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Rodriguez surname and its variations on this free genealogy website hosted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Rodriquez Surname Family Mailing Lists: RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers. You can also search or browse the list archives to view Rodriquez surname queries and posts going back for over a decade.DistantCousin.com- Rodriquez Genealogy Family History: Explore free databases and genealogy links for the last name Rodriguez. The Rodriguez Genealogy and Family Tree Page: Browse genealogy records and links to genealogical and historical records for individuals with the Rodriguez surname from the website of Genealogy Today. Sources Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1967.Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Bergenfield, NJ: Avotaynu, 2005.Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia.  Bergenfield, NJ:  Avotaynu, 2004.Hanks, Patrick, and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.Hoffman, William F. Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings.  Chicago:  Polish Genealogical Society, 1993.Rymut, Kazimierz. Nazwiska Polakow.  Wroclaw: Zaklad Narodowy im. Ossolinskich - Wydawnictwo, 1991.Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood

John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood John Lloyd Stephens and his traveling companion Frederick Catherwood are probably the most famous couple of Mayan explorers. Their popularity is linked to their best-selling book Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatn, first published in 1841. Incidents of Travel is a series of anecdotal tales about their travel in Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras visiting the ruins of many ancient Maya sites. The combination of vivid descriptions by Stephens and the â€Å"romanticized† drawings of Catherwood made the ancient Maya known to a wide audience. Stephens and Catherwood: First Meetings John Lloyd Stephens was an American writer, diplomat, and explorer. Trained in law, in 1834 he went to Europe and visited Egypt and the Near East. At his return, he wrote a series of books about his travels in the Levant. In 1836 Stephens was in London and here he met his future traveling companion Frederick Catherwood, an English artist and architect. Together they planned to travel in Central America and visit the ancient ruins of this region. Stephens was an expert entrepreneur, not a risky adventurer, and he carefully planned the trip following the then-available reports of ruined cities of Mesoamerica written by Alexander von Humbolt, by the Spanish officer Juan Galindo about the cities of Copan and Palenque, and by Captain Antonio del Rio’s report published in London in 1822 with the illustrations by Frederick Waldeck. In 1839 Stephens was appointed by the U.S. president, Martin Van Buren, as ambassador to Central America. He and Catherwood reached Belize (then British Honduras) in October of the same year and for almost a year they traveled across the country, alternating the diplomatic mission of Stephens with their exploring interest. Stephens and Catherwood at Copn Once landed in British Honduras, they visited Copn and spent there few weeks mapping the site, and making drawings. There is a long-standing myth that the ruins of Copn were purchased by the two travelers for 50 dollars. However, they actually only bought the right to draw and map its buildings and carved stones. Catherwoods illustrations of Copan’s site core and carved stones are impressive, even if â€Å"embellished† by a romantic taste. These drawings were made with the aid of a camera lucida, an instrument that reproduced the image of the object on a sheet of paper so that an outline could then be traced. At Palenque Stephens and Catherwood moved then to Mexico, anxious to reach Palenque. While in Guatemala they visited the site of Quirigu, and before wending their way towards Palenque, they passed by Tonin in the Chiapas highlands. They arrived at Palenque in May of 1840. At Palenque the two explorers stayed for almost a month, choosing the Palace as their camp base. They measured, mapped and drew many buildings of the ancient city; one especially accurate drawing was their recording of the Temple of the Inscriptions and the Cross Group. While there, Catherwood contracted malaria and in June they left for the Yucatan peninsula. See the Walking Tour of Palenque Stephens and Catherwood in Yucatan While in New York, Stephens made the acquaintance of a rich Mexican landowner, Simon Peon, who had extensive holdings in Yucatan. Among these was the Hacienda Uxmal, a huge farm, on whose lands laid the ruins of the Maya city of Uxmal. The first day, Stephens went to visit the ruins by himself, because Catherwood was still sick, but the following days the artist accompanied the explorer and made some wonderful illustrations of the site buildings and of its elegant Puuc architecture, especially the House of the Nuns, (also called the Nunnery Quadrangle), the House of the Dwarf (or Pyramid of the Magician), and the House of the Governor. Last Travels in Yucatan Because of Catherwood’s health problems, the team decided to return from Central America and arrived in New York on July 31st, 1840, almost ten months after their departure. At home, they had been preceded by their popularity, since most of Stephens travel notes and letters had been published in a magazine. Stephens had also tried to purchase the monuments of many Maya sites with the dream of having them dismantled and shipped to New York where he was planning on opening a Museum of Central America. In 1841, they organized a second expedition to Yucatan, which took place between 1841 and 1842. This last expedition led to the publication of a further book in 1843, Incidents of Travel in Yucatan. They are reported to have visited a total of more than 40 Maya ruins. Stephens died of Malaria in 1852, while he was working on the Panama railroad, whereas Catherwood died in 1855 ​when the steamship he was riding in sank. Legacy of Stephens and Catherwood Stephens and Catherwood introduced the ancient Maya to the Western popular imagination, as other explorers and archaeologists had done for the Greeks, Romans and ancient Egypt. Their books and illustrations provide accurate depictions of many Maya sites and a lot of information about the contemporary situation in Central America. They were also among the first to discredit the idea that these ancient cities were built by the Egyptians, the people of Atlantis or the lost Tribe of Israel. However, they didn’t believe that the ancestors of the native Mayans could have built these cities, but that they must have been built by some ancient population now disappeared. Sources Harris, Peter, 2006, Cities of Stone: Stephens and Catherwood in Yucatan, 1839-1842, in Co-Incidents of Travels in Yucatan. Photoarts Journal ( photoarts.com/harris/z.html) accessed online (July-07-2011) Palmquist, Peter E., and Thomas R. Kailbourn, 2000, John Lloyd Stephens (entry), in Pioneer Photographers of the Far West: a Biographical Dictionary, 1840-1865. Stanford University Press, pp. 523-527 Stephens, John Lloyd, and Frederick Catherwood, 1854, Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan, Arthur Hall, Virtue and Co., London (digitized by Google).

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Baby talk Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Baby talk - Research Paper Example This paper presents an analysis of Baby talk. In particular, it presents 15 baby talk words from a chosen child named Firas who is aged 2 years and 5 months. Additionally, this paper presents a morphological, phonological and syntactic analysis of the baby talk words in the data list. This section of the research paper is structured with reference to Jones (1986), pages 178 to 180 in the East Cree Baby talk file. Finally, this paper presents a conclusion of the findings with reference to the chapter 11, First language acquisition, of the text book. Firas is Arabic, and is brought up with Arabian parents and caretaker in the Middle East. This baby talk represents the Arabic language which has been applied from the 19th century. The Arabic language is characterised with numerous examples of baby talk items that display pharyngeal spirants. However, these are commonly seen as elements that are acquired late in Arabic. For example, labial categorical are present in Arabic baby talk and could be the primary categorical to be acquired by the Arabic young children. This is regardless of the fact that they are insignificant at the adult stage. Phonology - entails the study of speech construction in a language, which includes the trend of fundamental speech elements and the established rules of how to pronounce words identified as phonology. The least element of sounds that compose a language is referred to phonemes. In particular, the word â€Å"Mbuwa† which is Firas’s Arabic baby talk word that stands for drink, consists of five phonemes, the â€Å"mb† stands for one phoneme /mb/, the â€Å"u† maps to the short sound/Ã… ­/, the â€Å"w† stands for /w/ and finally, â€Å"a† to its fundamental sound /ÄÆ'/. Morphology - is the advanced stage of language that entails the study of tiny elements of meaning –morphemes. Morphemes entail foundational words, such as, â€Å"Food†, â€Å"dog†