Resistors in series and parallel Essay Example for Free

Resistors in series and parallel Essay Resistors are used in various real life applications to perform tasks that involve: limiting the current that goes through a section of a circuit, introducing a voltage drop in a circuit, generating heat and the protection of components of a circuit. It is important to calculate the resistance of resistors so that the electrical circuits produced using them will perform in the manner that their manufacturer wanted them to. If the wrong resistance/resistor is used then delicate components that need only a relatively small amount of current may be destroyed. All resistors have a level of tolerance. This is to allow for imperfections in the manufactured object. It was determined through experimentation that all of the resistors that were used in this experiment were within their tolerance range with the exception of R4 (See Table 1). This resistor had a nominal value of 1600 ohms and a tolerance of +/-5%. This means that this resistor should have had a value within the range of 1520-1680 ohms, however  the actual resistance was found to be 1798 ohms. It is possible that this may have been due to a manufacturing fault or a labelling error. The total predicted resistance was determined by using the series and parallel resistor laws and the resistance values of the various components of the circuit. The tolerance range for the circuit was predicted to be between 1847.3-2319.2 ohms. Through experimentation the actual total resistance for the circuit was 2216.62 ohms, this value was within the predicted range. The actual resistance value of component 1 was 263.26 ohms; this was within the predicted range (271.36-245.51 ohms). The actual resistance value of component 2 was 1764.26 ohms; this was within the predicted range (1664.24-1846.36 ohms). The actual resistance value of component 3 was 2216.62 ohms; this was within the predicted range (2319.20 and 1847.3 ohms). The actual resistance of the resistors was found by using a multimeter. Some systematic error may have occurred in this experiment if the multimeter was not calibrated correctly during testing. Temperature fluctuations may have caused inconsistencies in this experiment. The reason why resistance occurs is that a metal consists of lattice of atoms that each has a shell of electrons. The metal is a conductor because the electrons are free to dissociate from their parent atoms and travel through the lattice. When a voltage is applied the electrons drift from one side of the metal to the other. In real material imperfections scatter the electrons resulting in resistance. Temperature is able to affect resistance because temperature causes the atoms to vibrate more strongly creating even more collisions and further increasing the resistance. Conclusion: The aim of the experiment was to compare the predicted and actual resistance in the circuit of resistor combinations in series and parallel. The results of this experiment found that the series and parallel resistor laws were reasonably good indicators of the real world values of resistance for circuits that contained resistors in series and parallel. One example of this was that the total resistance of the circuit made was found to be 2216.62 ohms which was within the predicted range (this predicted range was calculated by using the upper and lower tolerance values for the resistors used in the circuit. From the data obtained it can therefore be seen that all three resistor laws stated in the Background section of this report are quite useful in calculating theoretical values for the resistance of circuits in series and parallel that are close to the real world values. Bibliography: resistor. Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 2005. Available: http://www.answers.com/topic/resistor-1 24 Jul. 2005. resistor. WordNet 1.7.1. Princeton University, 2001. Available: http://www.answers.com/topic/resistor-1 24 Jul. 2005. resistor. Electronics. Twysted Pair, 2001. Available: http://www.answers.com/topic/resistor-1. 24 Jul. 2005. Storen, A and Martine, R. (2000) Nelson Physics VCE Units 3 and 4. Nelson Publishing: Sydney. (pp 221-226)

Humor in Mathematics Classroom Essay Example for Free

Humor in Mathematics Classroom Essay INTRODUCTION To make the learning in classroom more fun, teachers do make a different strategies or techniques. Game and laughter is very important in learning, that’s why teachers that do have humor make their class more enjoyable and interesting. Anyone who has paid attention to great speakers would know that humor is an excellent method for eliciting sympathy from the audience and opening them up to your message. Every teacher also knows that a sense of humor is necessary to winning the hearts of students. How should this inform teaching? Should the teachers focus on creating an entertaining show for their students? Or would the teachers change their lessons into therapy sessions? This study presents a teaching approach that is built around math problems that are for the student at the same time Cheerful (entertaining, funny, cool) and Challenging (difficult). We call this CheCha mathematics. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The technique of using humor to enliven lectures is as ancient as the Babylonian Talmud. Rabbah (Babylonian Talmud, Shabbos 30b), a Talmudic sage who lived 1700 years ago, would say something humorous before starting to lecture to the scholars, and they would laugh; after that, he would begin his lecture. Rabbi Meir (Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 38b), another Talmudic sage, was an expert in fox fables and would devote one-third of his lecture to parables. These sages recognized the value of humor in education, even in ethical and religious instruction. Most statistics textbooks do not use a humorous approach, with exceptions such as Runyon (1977) and Pyrczak (1998). Blumenfeld and Alpern (1985) discuss ten reasons to use humor in the classroom. These include such factors as opening communication and the humanizing effect of humor on image. Berk (1996, 1998) claims that humor has the ability to decrease students’ anxiety, improve the ability to learn, and boost self-esteem. This, in turn, can encourage a more receptive learning atmosphere. One researcher found that having students watch an episode of Seinfeld helped calm them and reduced their heartbeats when they were later forced to do something stressful, give an impromptu speech about Bosnia, a subject they knew very little about, in front of a camera. The heart rates of students who had watched the humorous Seinfeld episode rose from an average of 70 to averages of 80 to 85 beats per minute while speaking; the heart rates of students who had not been inoculated with humor rose to a mean of 100 (Burkhart 1998). Lundberg and Thurston (1992) discuss various ways humor can be used in the classroom. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK CheCha math method is based on three educational approaches: acknowledging the role of affect in math learning (Hannula, 2006), using humor in teaching (Grecu, 2008) and use of open-ended problems in math teaching (Pehkonen, 2004). Affect in mathematical thinking and learning In order to study affect in math education in contexts of actual classrooms there are three main elements to pay attention to: cognition, emotion, and motivation. Achievement without motivation is not sustainable, and neither is motivation without enjoyment. All three domains have a more rapidly changing state-aspect and more stable trait-aspect. (Hannula, 2006). One fundamental principle of human behavior is that emotions energize and organize perception, thinking and action (Izard, 1991). Research has confirmed a positive relationship between positive affect and achievement. It seems that the affective outcomes are most important during the first school years, as they are less likely to be altered later on. Two key elements of a desired affective disposition are self-confidence and motivation to learn (Hannula, 2006). Advances in our understanding of the neuropsychological basis of affect (e.g. Damasio 1995, LeDoux, 1998) have radically changed the old view of the relationship between emotion and cognition. Emotions are no longer seen as peripheral to cognitive processes or as noise to impede rationality. Emotions have been accepted as necessary for rational behavior. Moreover, research has also shown although not yet fully understood that certain emotions facilitate certain type of cognitive processing (Linnenbrink Pintrich, 2004). Focusing on motivation we may find ways to influence what the subjects want to do, not only how they try to achieve it. In the existing literature, psychological needs that are often emphasized in educational settings are autonomy, competence and social belonging (e.g. Boekaerts, 1999). These all can be met in a classroom that emphasizes exploration, understanding and communication instead of rules, routines and rote learning. However, this requires that all feel safe and perceive that they can contribute to the process. A possible approach to meet all these conditions would be the open approach, and more generally focusing on mathematical processes rather than products (Hannula, 2006). Humor Already Kant (1952) considered the nature of humor. He stated Laughter is the result of expectation which suddenly ends in nothing (p. 199). His classical statement has started considering humor as a mental mechanism resulting in laughter. As another early scientific approach to humor, Freud (1991) divided comic into wit, humor and actually comic. Many kinds of activity, including wit, are directed on reception of pleasure from intellectual processes. A person feels pleasure from suddenly released energy, which is splashed out in the form of laughter. From this perspective already, we can perceive how a good joke can generate a joyful atmosphere and create a positive emotional background of activity. The comic, humorous contents can be reached in various ways and techniques. For example, Veatch (1998) suggests a list of types that are funny: finishing to the point of irrationality, satire, literal understanding of metaphors, irony, ambiguity, word-play, contradiction, discrepancy, excessive rationality and a deviation from the usual. Each of these types of the comic can be expressed as a joke or a problem in math context. As an example of a math contradiction we take a joke, here framed within the world of Winnie the Pooh: Pooh and Piglet sit on a small bench and talk. Eeyore has sent them a box. In the box there are ten sweets and a note. In the note Eeyore tells them to divide them: seven for Pooh and seven for Piglet. Piglet: How is that? I do not understand. What do you think of it?† Pooh: I do not even want to think. But I have already eaten my seven sweets. Humor can also act as means of a psychological discharge, and promote efficiency of pedagogical activity. Suhomlinsky (1975) wrote: I would name laughter as a back side of thinking. To develop ability to laugh in the child, to enhance his sense of humor means to strengthen his intellectual forces, abilities, to teach him to think and to see the world wisely. Grecu (2008) has considered use of humor in teaching. She highlights seven basic functions of humor in pedagogical activity: 1) informatively-cognitive (Opens essential features and properties of subjects and the phenomena. Rejecting standard approaches, the humor bears in itself any discovery), 2) Emotional (the Humor can act as means of creation of creative state of health and as means of emotional support) 3) Motivational (The humor can serve as a stimulator of volitional processes) 4) Communicative (the Person with humor is attractive for people) 5) Developing (Humor promotes development of critical thinking, a sharpness of vision of the world, observation and consequently intellect) 6) Diagnostic (by the laughter maintenance at what the person laughs, it is possible to judge about his merits and demerits) and 7) Regulative (the humor gives the chance to look at oneself from an unexpected angle, allowing self-evaluation). In CheCha method most of these are relevant, the most important functions being on top of the list. Grecu suggest the following techniques for designing of humor for educational tasks. These pedagogical techniques are paradox, finishing to the point of irrationality, comparison by the remote or casual attribute, return comparison, wit of absurd, pseudo-contrast or false opposition, a hint, a self-exposure of own faults, intentional ignoring of things that might cause laughter, and exaggeration of the certain features of behavior. Grecu has offered also classification of means of the comic: 1) word-play based on violation of language norm (carrying of terminology over to a context unusual to it). Consider the following riddle: I am it while I do not know that I am. But I am not it when I know that I am. What am I?† 2) Comparison, authors original neologisms, based on artistic expressive means (double entendre, an ambiguity). Examples are easy for finding in Carrolls books (2006, s. 50): â€Å"Explain yourself!† â€Å"I can’t explain myself.† 3) Paradox, an example being the claim â€Å"I am lying now†. Also Dzemidok (1993) distinguishes several humoristic methods: modification and deformation of the phenomena, unexpected effects and amazing comparisons, disproportion in attitudes and communications between the phenomena, imaginary association of absolutely diverse phenomena, creation of the phenomena which deviate from logic. As an example of the latter method consider the following: There were only 3 students attending a professors lecture in University. Suddenly 5 persons left the room. The professor said: If 2 students enter this room, there is nobody attending. Most types of humor and their techniques could be used at mathematics lessons. Thanks to entertaining tasks and comical contents of the problems the classroom climate promotes a positive interaction between the teacher and students. However, one must be aware that opportunities of humor as pedagogical means have their limits. Grecu (2008) gives several suggestions regarding these limits. She suggests that one should use humor gently and support humor of students. She also warns not to ridicule student’s person, laugh at what the student is not able to correct or change or laugh at an involuntary mistake of the student. Rough joking would indicate lack of customs and disrespect of the student and hence is absolutely unacceptable for the teacher. Moreover, the teacher should avoid being the first to laugh at ones own joke, as it can cause the reaction opposite to expected. Problem solving and open-ended problems Problems are said to be open, if their starting or goal situation is not exactly given and they usually have several correct answers (cf. Pehkonen 2008). Open-ended problems emphasize understanding and creativity (e.g. Nohda, 2000, Stacey 1995). This would not mean lowering the expectations, quite the contrary. If an open task allows the solver to gain deeper and deeper insights (a chain of discovery; Liljedahl, 2005) it can facilitate a state of sustained engagement. This would also lead to more intensive working. Research has shown that problem solving can be engaging and enjoyable for many students, but it does not attract everyone. Schoenfeld (1985) defined an individuals beliefs or mathematical world view as shaping how one engages in problem solving. For example, those who believe that math is no more than repetition of learned routines would be more likely to give up on a novel task than those who believe that inventing is an essential aspect of mathematics. Unfortunately, there are students who do not see the potential for engagement and enjoyment in a math problem. We see humor as a means to engage also those students who do not perceive math problems enjoyable to begin with. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM The purpose of this study is to answer the following questions: 1. What mathematical problems are entertaining from the students point of view? 2. How CheCha method influences the atmosphere in mathematics lessons?

Deconstructing the Third Front

Deconstructing the Third Front Daniel Steven Bressner After decades spent cultivating economic growth along its eastern seaboard, the PRC’s western interior is rapidly developing. In Sichuan province, Chengdu alone is now home to over 1,000 U.S. companies including General Electric and Mazda.[1] However, one of the most ambitious efforts to industrialize western China actually took place decades earlier. In a sweeping project known as the Third Front, central government planners reconfigured the economy of western provinces, with a special emphasis on defense industrialization. This paper provides an overview of the international factors that led to the creation of the Third Front and its key projects. Furthermore, it analyzes the economic strategies used by the Chinese government during this period to complete these projects. Background The Third Front, or da sanxian, derives its name from a development concept put forward Mao confidant Lin Biao, who became Minister of Defense in 1959. In a speech in 1962 known as the â€Å"7,000 Cadres Conference†, Lin pushed for the military fortification of Anhui Province as a safety measure in case the government needed to retreat from its eastern seaboard.[2] While China faced a myriad of international crises during the 1960s, Lin’s speech was most concerned with a possible attack on mainland Chinese cities by Kuomintang (KMT) forces in the aftermath of the Great Leap Forward. In 1964, Mao himself played in active role in revising the 3rd Five Year Plan so that it would emphasize national defense.[3] The final version highlighted the threat of looming war and called for increased development in transport infrastructure, science and technology, and national defense.[4] While Lin was focused on the KMT, Mao’s preoccupation was the growing American military presence in Southeast Asia. China scholar Barry Naughton is one of the leading researchers on the political economy of the Third Front. He identifies the Gulf of Tonkin incident, and subsequent start of the Vietnam War, as the primary catalyst for the acceleration of the Third Front development strategy.[5] From 1964 to 1971, the combination of defense concerns over the KMT, United States, and Soviet Union all created an environment politically conducive to intensive defense development. Structure Key Projects The primary objective of the Third Front was establish an entirely self-sufficient industrial base that China could rely on in the event of war. If eastern coastal cities like Shanghai were attacked, the area surrounding Suzhou could work as a â€Å"Second Front.† A massive stretch of mountainous terrain that included parts of Guizhou, Qinghai, Gansu, Yunnan and Sichuan provinces would serve as the â€Å"Third Front.†[6] China’s nascent nuclear weapons program, including the Lanzhou Gaseous Diffusion Plant, also fell under the territory designated as the Third Front.[7] Figure 1 illustrates the geographic regions of the project. Fig. 1: The regions of the Third Front grouped by phase. Source: Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 354. While there were several high-profile projects in the first phase of the Third Front, which lasted until 1969, this paper emphasizes the creation of transportation networks in the region that revolutionized how resources were moved across western China. Naughton claims that the Panzhihua iron and steel complex was the â€Å"keystone† of the Third Front.[8] Mao’s own statements during the 1960’s support this view. In 1964, Mao told a meeting of the Communist Party’s Central Committee: â€Å"Unless Panzhihua Steel Plant is fully developed, I cannot go to sleep at night. If there is no Panzhihua Steel Plant, I will have to ride a donkey to my meetings.†[9] However, this project could not exist without the development of rail infrastructure. Development was accelerated on rail lines in the southwest, with the Chongqing-Guiyang and Chengdu-Kunming lines, completed in 1965 and 1970 respectively, being the most important in linking the region together. The Chengdu-Kunming line alone cost 3.3 billion yuan, or nearly 21% of the national budget for capital construction in 1965.[10] The first phase of the Panzhihua complex cost an estimated 3.74 billion yuan.[11] The factories and labor serviced by this new rail network were brought into the region using a strategy known as yi fen wei er, or â€Å"one divided into two†, which Naughton likens to an economic â€Å"mitosis.†[12] Tsinghua University students Bin Xu and Linxing Xiao use the Panzhihua complex as an example to demonstrate how this concept worked. â€Å"If there were two sets of equipment, move one to Panzhihua. If there was only one set, move it to Panzhihua.†[13] This idea was replicated for manpower, technical know-how, and financial investment from across China. Factories on China’s eastern seaboard would send a significant portion of their resources to the southwest and be left responsible for making up the difference in capability, whereas the newly transplanted western workforce received additional state investment to accelerate development. Figure 2 shows the massive spike of state investment in Sichuan province following the prioritization of Panz hihua after 1964. Fig 2: State investment into Sichuan province from 1964 to 1972. Source: China Geo-Explorer, All China Data Center, http://chinadataonline.org/cgepublic/cityclient33/#. The second phase of the Third Front, lasting from 1969 to 1972, occurred under the shadow of continually deteriorating relations with the USSR. The focus of the second phase was on machine building, with its centerpiece project being the No. 2 Automobile Plant in Shiyang, in Hubei province’s northwest region.[14] Reflecting the security concerns of the central government, additional plants in the area were hidden deep in mountain valleys and even caves to minimize potential damage from airstrikes. Three critical rail lines were constructed during this period in order to facilitate the transit of labor and material resources; the Luoyang-Yangtze, Hunan-Guizhou, and Chongqing to Wuhan (via Ankang) connections.[15] The Third Front’s national significance, and level of national investment, was as high as 45% in 1966, but dropped again as the decade came to a close.[16] The total proportion of national investment into the Third Front during the Fourth Five-Year Plan, from 19 71-75, was 41.1%.[17] From 1971 onwards, changes in the larger political environment lead to a dismantling of many of the Third Front’s ongoing construction operations. Domestically, the fall of program architect Lin Biao played a role. However, more important was the softening and eventual normalization of diplomatic relations with the United States, whose previous perception as a strategic threat was a major justification for the entire Third Front. Impact and Legacy Economic data on the total government investment during the Third Front is difficult to calculate, in part because projects that fell under the military’s jurisdiction, like development of the Chinese nuclear program, were not included alongside regular construction data. C.Z. Lin, drawing from anonymous Chinese sources, estimates that total investment was 200 billion yuan.[18] The two largest companies to have developed out of the Third Front era are Panzhihua Steel and Dongfeng Motor Corporation, the latter of which stems from Shiyang’s Automobile Plant No 2. Dongfeng, China’s second largest automobile producer, posted a 2012 net income of $1.3 billion USD. Swedish automobile firm Volvo bought a 45% stake in the company the following year.[19] One of the lasting positive legacies of the Third Front era is the existence of rail infrastructure across China’s western provinces, which were an inevitable step forward in linking the region’s economy with the rest of the country. Despite this, the way in which these projects were undertaken dramatically inflated their costs and misallocated resources. Historian Robert Cliver notes that the decision to make Third Front rail lines a priority above all others diverted progress from the rest of the country’s national rail network. The result was that cost per kilometer of rail infrastructure on Third Front projects was five to six times the national average.[20] The largest source of developmental issues within the Third Front likely came not from the sheer cost of the project, or even from its remote location. While these were serious issues, the construction principle of sanbian, or what Naughton identifies as â€Å"three simultaneous†, was the most dama ging.[21] This concept of simultaneously designing a site, constructing it, and producing from it ensured that proper site planning was often not conducted. More importantly, it led to additional costs from avoidable errors that slowed down overall production. An additional 40 million yuan was pumped into the Chengdu-Kunming rail line from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s to provide the manpower necessary to fix track deficiencies.[22] If the Third Front era is judged purely on whether it made China more prepared for war with the U.S. or the Soviet Union, it can be regarded as successfully accomplishing its key objectives. It spurred investment into China’s mountainous west, led to the fortification of industrial sites, and generally created an economic base designed to support an extended war on the mainland. It fulfilled the purposefully vague objective set out in the State Planning Commission’s Third Five Year Plan, which sought to â€Å"strengthen national defense and make breakthroughs in technology.†[23] However, the Third Front development strategy was based on short-term strategic concerns at the cost of long-term economic growth. Projects with flawed designs and the drawing away of wealth from China’s eastern seaboard made the Third Front an undeniable economic failure. Naughton draws on statistical analysis conducted by Chinese economist Chen Dongsheng to illustrate the misallocation of resources that drew growth away from the east coast. Using Chen’s data, Naughton estimates that â€Å"China’s industrial output is 10-15% below what it would have been if the Third Front had never been undertaken.†[24] Thus, while the Third Front was an economically unviable project that placed a heavy burden on the Chinese economy, it demonstrates how seriously Mao took the perceived strategic encirclement the country was facing from the United States, Republic of China forces, and the Soviet Union. Further analysis of the Third Front is a valuable endeavor for those s tudying both China’s economy and the history of its international relations. Works Cited Bramall, Chris. Chinese Economic Development. London: Routledge, 2008. China Internet Information Center. â€Å"The Third Five-year Plan (1966-1970).† China.org.cn. Last modified May 21st 2007, http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/157608.htm. Cliver, Robert. â€Å"Third Front Policy.† In the Berkshire Encyclopedia of China, edited by Linsun Cheng, Kerry Brown, Winberg Chai, Xiejun Chen, and Karen Christensen, 2244-2247. Great Barrington: Berkshire Publishing Group, 2009. Dickie, Lance. â€Å"Sichuan: A Land of Abundance and Opportunities.† The Seattle Times, January 21st 2014. http://blogs.seattletimes.com/opinionnw/2014/01/21/sichuan-a-land-of-abundance-and-opportunities/ Lin, C.Z. â€Å"Employment implications of defence cutbacks in China.† In Defense Expenditure, Industrial Conversion, and Local Employment, edited by Liba Paukert, 189-204. Geneva: International Labor Office, 1991. Mohanty, Deba R. â€Å"The Chinese Security Dilemma in the 1950s and 1960s: Story of the Third Front.† Institute for Defense Studies and Analysis, January 17th 2011. http://www.idsa-india.org/an-jan-4.html. Naughton, Barry. â€Å"The Third Front: Defense Industrialization in the Chinese Interior.† The China Quarterly 115, September (1988): 351-386. Pike, John. â€Å"Lanzhou – Chinese Nuclear Forces.† Federation of American Scientists. Last modified May 12th 2000, http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/china/facility/lanzhou.htm. Tejada, Carlos. â€Å"Truck Maker Volvo Sets Alliance to Enter China.† The Wall Street Journal, January 27th 2013. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324039504578264611071184722. Xu, Bin and Linxing Xiao. â€Å"Planning and Construction History of Panzhihua during the Three-Front Strategy Period: Backgrounds, Process, and Mechanism.† (paper presented at the 15th International Historical Planning Society, Sao Paolo, Brazil, July 15th-18th, 2009). Page | 1 [1]  Lance Dickie, â€Å"Sichuan: A Land of Abundance and Opportunities,† The Seattle Times, last modified January 21st 2014, http://blogs.seattletimes.com/opinionnw/2014/01/21/sichuan-a-land-of-abundance-and-opportunities/ [2] Deba R. Mohanty, â€Å"The Chinese Security Dilemma in the 1950s and 1960s: Story of the Third Front,† Institute for Defense Studies and Analysis, January 17th 2011. [3] Barry Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front: Defense Industrialization in the Chinese Interior,† The China Quarterly 115, September (1988): 353. [4] â€Å"The Third Five-year Plan (1966-1970),† China Internet Information Center ­ – China.org.cn, last modified May 21st 2007, http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/157608.htm. [5] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 369. [6] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 354. [7] John Pike, â€Å"Lanzhou – Chinese Nuclear Forces,† Federation of American Scientists, last modified May 12th 2000, http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/china/facility/lanzhou.htm. [8] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 357. [9] Chris Bramall, Chinese Economic Development (London: Routledge, 2008), 268. [10] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 358. [11] Ibid. [12] Ibid., 356. [13] Bin Xu and Linxing Xiao, â€Å"Planning and Construction History of Panzhihua During the Three-Front Strategy Period: Backgrounds, Process, and Mechanism† (paper presented at the 15th International Historical Planning Society, Sao Paolo, Brazil, July 15th-18th, 2009). [14] Robert Cliver, â€Å"Third Front Policy,† in the Berkshire Encyclopedia of China, ed. by Linsun Cheng et al. (Great Barrington: Berkshire Publishing Group, 2009): 2246. [15] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 359. [16] C.Z Lin, â€Å"Employment implications of defence cutbacks in China,† in Defense Expenditure, Industrial Conversion, and Local Employment, ed. by Liba Paukert (Geneva: International Labor Office, 1991): 202. [17] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 365. [18] Lin, â€Å"Employment implications of defence cutbacks in China,† 201. [19] Carlos Tejada, â€Å"Truck Maker Volvo Sets Alliance to Enter China,† The Wall Street Journal, January 27th 2013, http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324039504578264611071184722. [20] Cliver, â€Å"Third Front Policy,† 2247. [21] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 376. [22] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 376. [23] â€Å"The Third Five-year Plan (1966-1970),† China Internet Information Center ­ – China.org.cn, last modified May 21st 2007, http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/157608.htm. [24] Naughton, â€Å"The Third Front,† 379.

Don Quixote Essay about created reality -- essays research papers

Othello Essay The novel Don Quixote, by Miguel Cervantes, is an exploration into the idea of created reality. Cervantes, through the character of Don Quixote, illustrates to readers how we as human beings often make reality to be whatever we want it to be.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Don Quixote is a perfect example of â€Å"created reality.† The character Don Quixote is real, and he lives in a real world, but everything that he sees is exaggerated in his mind. It all begins with his name. Don Quixote was not actually a Don. He was a wealthy, intelligent farmer who read too many books about knighthood and went crazy. He convinced a simple-minded peasant named Sancho to become his squire, promising him wealth and a high spot in society. This book consists of many adventures these two had, both were convinced that they were doing brave and honorable acts of chivalry, when they were only two fools running around the countryside.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Don Quixote sees what his mind and imagination create, not that which is actually perceived through his eyes. He retreats to a world that holds meaning for him. When he first departs, he stops at an inn and his eyes make it a beautiful castle with blushing maids and noble sirs. Another example of Don Quixote’s rampant imagination is the famous windmill incident. Quixote believes the windmills he sees in the distance to be thirty monstrous giants. In this scene, Cervantes lets the reader know that Quixote has little grasp of ...

The Physics of Cross-Country Skiing :: physics sport sports cross country ski

Missing Figures Cross-country skiing is as much of a competitive sport, as it is a back country one. Cross-country skiing is enjoyed by people of all ages, and can be relatively inexpensive. There is no need for lift tickets and with a little maintenance equipment can last for decades. As a result of its broad audience, many people don't realize that physics plays a large role in cross-country skiing. This web page was designed to briefly describe some of the concepts behind the physics of skiing, and give a basic understanding of both the sport and the science. Friction is obviously an important factor of cross country skiing. On one hand, friction is necessary because without it a skier wouldn't be able to ski up hill or even move on flat surfaces. However, when racing, skiers prefer to have the smallest friction force working on them possible. In order to reduce the frictional forces which would slow them down, skiers wax the bottom of their skis. The types of wax which they apply to their skis have different functions. The hot wax which is applied to the entire ski reduces the friction between the ski and the snow. This allows the ski to glide on the snow and gives the skier more distance for each stride. Another type of wax is applied to the "kicker". The kicker is the area under the bindings. In other words the kicker is the area where most of the gravitational force of the skier is applied. Skiers apply a type of wax to the kicker that will cause the friction coefficient to increase. This allows skiers to be able to push off and ski uphill. In order to begin their outdoor adventure, a skier must first face the forces of static friction. Static friction is the force that keeps the skier at rest. As the skier overcomes the static friction there is a point where the coefficient of friction is greater than that of the kinetic friction that resists the skiers motion. It is clear to see this concept in the figure below. From the figure above, it is also easy to see that the kinetic friction remains almost constant for a range of speeds. This kinetic friction is the force which slows the skiers down after they start moving.

Richard Ii - Silence Is The Plot :: essays research papers

In this play of challenge and debate, could it be possibly suggested that King Richard had a part to play in the murder of his uncle the Duke of Gloucester? Could the reader possibly pick up this assumption having known nothing about the play? These are all factors that one must find by reading in between the lines, noticing and understanding the silence that is exchanged. For the silence is just as important as the speech.Why is it assumed that King Richard II has anything to do with the murder? Let us review a scene from the play were Gaunt accuses Richard of being accountable for Gloucester's death. "Gaunt: O, spare me not, my [brother] Edward's son, For that I was his father Edward's son, That blood already, like the pelican, Hast thou tapp'd out and drunkenly carous'd. My brother Gloucester, plain well-meaning soul, Whom fair befall in heaven 'mongst happy souls, May be a president and witness good That thou respect'st not spilling Edwards blood." (II.i) That passage simply states: You may be a king, but you could have respected my brother enough not to kill him. There is also another quote were Mowbray indirectly suggests that the King is also at fault. "Mow: O, let my sovereign turn away his face, And bid his ears a little while be deaf, Till I have told this slander of his blood, How God and good men hate so foul a liar." (I.i) Yet with saying this remark about the King, he also begs for his innocence. "Mine honor is my life, both grow in one, Take honor from me, and my life is done. Then, dear my liege, mine honor let me try; In that I live, and for that I will die." (I.i) These passages indirectly state that King Richard II is at fault for the death of his uncle. But for the reader to see this they must break down the play and search for those "hidden meanings".For the ordinary reader, who does not search, the text clearly states that the fight for innocence is distinctly between Bullingbrook and Mowbray. Such an example can be found in Act I: "Bull: That he [Mowbray] did plot the Duke of Gloucester's death,Suggest his soon-believing adversaries,And consequently, like a traitor coward,Sluic'd his innocent soul through streams of blood." The rest of the dialogue converses back and forth between Bullingbrook and Mowbray, each fighting for their own innocence.

Notes on American Literature Essay

Important figures:  ·Sir Walter Raleigh ? traveler, Elizabeth’s I lover, poet, soldier, died in Tower of London. A famous English writer, poet, courtier and explorer. He was responsible for establishing the second English colony in the New World (after Newfoundland was established by Sir Humphrey Gilbert nearly one year previously, August 5 1583) on June 4, 1584, at Roanoke Island in present-day North Carolina. When the third attempt at settlement failed, the ultimate fate of the colonists was never authoritatively ascertained.  ·John Winthrop ? governor of Massachusetts. led a group of English Puritans to the New World, joined the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629 and was elected their first governor on April 8, 1630. Between 1639 and 1648 he was voted out of governorship and re-elected a total of 12 times. Although Winthrop was a respected political figure, he was criticized for his obstinacy (stubborn) regarding the formation of a general assembly in 1634. Calvin’s influence:  ·theory of predestination, limited redemption  ·self trials to find destiny  ·the only hope was faith in God.  ·God’s goodwill ? irresistible grace  ·faith makes everyone good but good deeds without faith don’t work  ·one should follow their destiny, ex. become a farmer, following destiny will make you successful, (wealthy) but you shouldn’t don’t spend money, invest it!  ·the holy act of making money for God Puritans were waiting for signs, they read ? books to read’ (the Bible), interpreted it, interpreted history in their own, Puritan way. Anything could be a sign (weather conditions, Indian attacks, diseases, famine, etc. ). Puritan faith:  ·grim, no paintings, no music  ·sermons were extremely important as they interpreted the Bible Michael Wigglesworth: (1631-1705)  ·wrote The Day of Doom (1662) – his poem represents puritan thought of the time. Many of the puritans memorized it and used it to get people back into the church. They used it to teach children and lingering adults. This was the first â€Å"best seller†, even though this term wasn’t used yet. It describes the Day of Judgment and the sentencing to punishment in hell of sinners and of infants who died before baptism. Samuel Danforth: (1626-1674)  ·In 1670, he was invited to give the annual election sermon to the General Assembly, which was afterwards printed as A Brief Recognition of New-England’s Errand into the Wilderness (about turning nature into civilization) and is regarded as one of the finest examples of the â€Å"jeremiad† form  ·jeremiad sermons – explained things form the Bible, created context, it said that future is glorious because we can be better, improve ourselves History interpretations: Cotton Mather: (1663-1728).  ·Magnalia Christi Americana (about religious development of Massachusetts, and other nearby colonies in New England from 1620 to 1698); the English title was The Ecclesiastical History of New England (1702)  ·he also wrote descriptions of the Salem Witch Trials, in which he criticizes some of the methods of the court and attempts to distance himself from the event; account of the escape Hannah Dustan, one of the most famous to captivity narrative scholars; his complete â€Å"catalogus† of all the students that graduated from Harvard College, and story of the founding of Harvard College itself; and his assertions that Puritan slaveholders should do more to convert their slaves to Christianity  ·made a heritage, typological approach 08. 10. 2007 Religious texts: – sermons ? instruments of communication between the minister and the people – theological thesis – chronicles (historical) Mary Rowlandson (1635-7 ? 1678)  ·She was a colonial American woman, who wrote a vivid description of the seven weeks and five days she spent living with Native Americans. Her short book,  ·A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (1682), is considered a seminal work in the American literary genre of captivity narratives. The first phase of heroic period ? first 30 years, after that a serious problem occurred? experience of conversion, but not everyone did it so what to do with their children? 1662 ? Halfway Covenant (by Senate in Boston) ? salvation is heredity even if they didn’t experienced it. 17th century was more flexible what led to great religious revival in the US, literary phenomenon, outburst of religious emotions ?  thus texts. George Whitefield ? a rhetorician, preacher, appealed to American people, triggered religious revival. The Great Awakening: (1735 ? 1750)  ·paradoxical movement, they considered themselves as only true Puritans but they were considered almost heretical movement, their enthusiasm had negative connotations, people thought they should be more rational  ·leaders: Jonathan Edwards who wrote a fire-and-brimstone sermon entitled Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (1741), he believed in Protestant dogma, he wanted people to experience real conversion, was against formal  sermons, he had a hypnotic way of teaching, appealing to emotions, he was forced to move and live in wilderness, died of smallpox. He was an active philosopher, tried to combine old religion with Locke’s new approach to religion.  ·the movement (the Great Awakening) was the last significant moment to regain control by Puritans Edwards vs. Franklin ? they lived in the same time, enlightenment competing with the old heritage Franklin was born in Boston and he wanted to move to Philadelphia ? city of enlightenment, Quakers, city owned by William Penn. Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)  ·Autobiography (written in 1771 – 1790) -Learning model behavior, proposed model human being, he would respond to the beauty of the world, and nature as a living presence of God, story of narrator’s progress from Boston to Philadelphia, devoted himself to common good, he made success count most (financial in your own eyes and prestige in others’ eyes) -12 commandments, it’s good to imitate Jesus and Socrates (although Socrates was a pagan and a suicider)  ·Poor Richard’s Almanac -was a yearly almanack published by Benjamin Franklin, who adopted the pseudonym of â€Å"Poor Richard† or â€Å"Richard Saunders† for this purpose. The publication appeared continuously from 1732 to 1758. It was a best seller for a pamphlet published in the American colonies; print runs reached 10,000 per year. Franklin, the American inventor, statesman, and publisher, achieved success with Poor Richard’s Almanack. Almanacks were very popular books in colonial America, with people in the colonies using them for the mixture of seasonal weather forecasts, practical household hints, puzzles, and other amusements they offered. Poor Richard’s Almanack was popular for all of these reasons, and also for its extensive use of wordplay, with many examples derived from the work surviving in the contemporary American vernacular. Addressed to farmers (almanacs), useful information about farming, weather, astronomy, moral advice, many proverbs, (for example â€Å"God helps those who help themselves† what is opposite to Puritan philosophy), Do good papers, colonies literature. Franklin developed practical procedure of self improvement day by day and step by step to be thoroughly rational human being. political literature ? debate between Federalists and anti-Federalists Americans identified with Ancient Rome, that’s why the Declaration was born. The creators were educated, they read Greek, Roman works, developed sense of public virtue, conflict with the British Crown. Locke, Milton ? inspired colonies to develop ideology to sewer the ties with the Crown + â€Å"no taxation without representation† Thomas Paine (1737-1809)  ·in 1774 ? came to America as an old man, in 1776 he published Common sense, an anti-British book about Britain illegal financial abuse, appealed to Americans self-confidence, enough to be independent, to shape their destiny by determination, stamina, brains etc. The document denounced British rule and, through its immense popularity, contributed to stimulating the American Revolution. Hartford Wits (also called the Connecticut Wits) A group of American writers centered around Yale University and flourished in the 1780s and 1790s. Mostly graduates of Yale, they were conservative federalists who attacked their political opponents with satirical verse. Members included Joel Barlow, Timothy Dwight IV, David Humphreys, John Trumbull, Lemuel Hopkins, Richard Alsop, and Theodore Dwight. Works produced by the group include: The Anarchiad (published in the New Haven Gazette from 1786? 1787) The Political Greenhouse (Connecticut Courant, 1799) The Echo (American Mercury, 1791? 1805) John Trumbull (1756-1843)  ·believed in poetics, aesthetics, heroic couplet, satire. Member of a group of artists who painted important American historical events, Trumbull had an insider’s view of the War, serving as a colonel in the Continental Army and aide to Gen. Washington in the American Revolution  ·The Progress of Dullness (1772-1773) – n attack in three poems on educational methods of his time (three parts: 1. adventures of Tom Brainless, sent to college, he learns â€Å"the art of preaching,†; 2. Dick Hairbrain, a town fop, the son of a wealthy farmer, ridiculous in dress, empty of knowledge, but profound in swearing and cheap infidelity; 3. Miss Harriet Simper, slender female education, formerly in vogue, and the life of the coquette) Timothy Dwight (1752-1817)  ·continued Wigglesworth tradition  ·The Conquest of Canaan (pub. 1785) ? ambitious epic in eleven books, about George Washington & war of independence  ·Greenfield Hill (1794) – descriptive poem about small New England town, turned by Dwight into ideal place to live, with common wellbeing, where people take care of education, etc. It’s also a historical poem, about Peacock (Indian tribe) war and massacre of Indians  ·Travels in New England and New York (1820-1822) – huge publication, sort of a tourist guide, covers areas of Southern New England. He loved the place and wanted to commemorate it. Joel Barlow (1754-1812)  ·graduate of Yale, he died in Zarnowiec in Poland of pneumonia while he was on his journey to the Emperor in France  ·Poem, Spoken at the Public Commencement at Yale College (1781) ? becoming American diplomat Barlow witnessed French return to France after the war;  ·The Vision of Columbus (1787)? poem about future glory of America, Columbus visited by an Angel in prison (like in Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius where the author is visited by incarnation of philosophy; parallel of Columbus)  ·1807 ? Barlow changed his religious, political option, became enthusiast of the French Revolution;  ·1st American poem ? Barlow’s first attempt Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784)  ·black slave woman from Senegambia, purchased by Boston Whitley (sort of philanthropist). She managed to learn English, extremely gifted girl, learnt to read (Milton, Homer), write. She was allowed to study, learn Latin. She started to write good poetry, praised by George Washington, but Jefferson didn’t like her poetry ? point of controversy. She expressed sort of gratitude, makes references to Greek poetry, ancient Rome, neo-classical poetry, giving a testimony that she decided to adopt, make her way to elite, in England she was a well known poet. She died young. 15. 10. 2007 Michel Guillaume (also known as Hector Saint John de Crevecoeur) (1735? 1813)  ·French-American writer, fought on the French side in the French and Indian War, then moved to New York State, becoming a naturalized citizen. After travels through various colonies, he settled on a farm in Orange Co, New York.  ·wrote a number of essays and books which portrayed life in the New World  ·Letters from an American Farmer (1784) where he describes conditions on the frontier, says that in America men are free, it’s a beautiful, natural country of liberty. Sketches of the 18th century America ? slaves, animals, community, style of slavery practice in the South, American farmers are not happy because of the lies of Independence. Early American novels had to compete with a large amount of English novels. They were also fiction and lies. SENTIMENTAL NOVELS William Hill Brown (1765-1793)  ·The Power of Sympathy (1789) ? first American novel written by first American novelist. Controversial for its time, displays the themes of seduction, betrayal, and incest. It’s a moral novel written in letters. It’s against immoral behavior, sort of educational guide against seduction. Plot: written in correspondence: several letters between friends and lovers. two young people fall in love, but in fact they’re brother and sister. They woman kills herself because she had fallen in love with her own brother and then the man devastated commits suicide. Susanna Haswell Rowson (1762-1824)  ·Charlotte Temple (1791) – first American bestseller ? seduced young lady gives a birth to a child, Lucy, then dies. Successful novel but Susanna didn’t make money for it as the novel was published illegally. It is characterized by emphatic moralism and melodramatic language, the idea that women should take care of each other. Written to protect young women from the pain of social rejection, includes theme of seduction and betrayal. Samuel Richardson (1689-1761)  ·Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady (1748) – epistolary novel, tells the tragic story of a heroine whose quest for virtue is continually thwarted by her family. It is commonly cited as the longest novel in the English language. Clarissa is a beautiful and virtuous young lady whose family has become very wealthy only in recent years and is now eager to become part of the aristocracy. Her relatives attempt to force her to marry a rich but heartless man against her will and, more importantly, against her own sense of virtue. Desperate to remain free, she is tricked by a young gentleman of her acquaintance, Lovelace, into escaping with him. However, she refuses to marry him, longing ? unusual for a girl in her time ? to live by herself in peace. Lovelace, in the meantime, has been trying to arrange a fake marriage all along, and considers it a sport to add Clarissa to his long list of conquests. However, as he is more and more impressed by Clarissa, he finds it difficult to keep convincing himself that truly virtuous women do not exist. The continuous pressure he finds himself under, combined with his growing passion for Clarissa, drives him to extremes and eventually he rapes her. Clarissa manages to escape from him, but becomes dangerously ill. When she dies, however, it is in the full consciousness of her own virtue, and  trusting in a better life after death. Lovelace, tormented by what he has done but still unable to change, dies in a duel with Clarissa’s cousin. Clarissa’s relatives finally realise the misery they have caused, but discover that they are too late and Clarissa has already died.  ·Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded (1740) is an epistolary novel. It tells the story of a maid named Pamela whose master, Mr. B. , makes unwanted advances towards her. She rejects him continually, and her virtue is eventually rewarded when he shows his sincerity by proposing an equitable marriage to her. In the second part of the novel, Pamela attempts to accommodate herself to upper-class society and to build a successful relationship with him. The story was widely mocked at the time for its perceived licentiousness and it inspired Henry Fielding (among many others) to write two parodies: Shamela (1741), about Pamela’s true identity; and Joseph Andrews (1742), about Pamela’s brother. Hannah Webster Foster (1758-1840)  ·The Coquett,; or, The History of Eliza Wharton (1797) is an epistolary novel. Published anonymously until 1866, 26 years after Webster’s death. It was one of the best-selling novels of its time. The novel is a fictionalized account of the story of Elizabeth Wharton, the daughter of a clergyman who died after giving birth to a stillborn, illegitimate child at a roadside tavern. Writers and preachers of the day blamed her demise on the fact that she read romance novels, which gave her improper ideas and turned her into a coquette. Foster responded with The Coquette, which provided a more sympathetic portrayal of Wharton and described the difficulties faced by middle-class women. Tabitha Tenney (1762-1837)  ·Female Quixotism (1801) ? the heroine goes mad, she has a strange idea of love (all men are the heroes of romances). She had some candidates but she doesn’t like them. The book is rather a parody. The woman can’t get married, she makes wrong choices, rejects good man and accepts the dishonest ones. HORROR STORIES ? THE GOTHIC NOVEL Ann Radcliffe (1764 – 1823)  ·pioneer of the gothic novel. English writer.  ·The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) – follows the fortunes of Emily St. Aubert who suffers, among other misadventures, the death of her father, supernatural terrors in a gloomy castle, and the machinations of an Italian brigand. Often cited as the archetypal Gothic novel, Charles B. Brown (1771 – 1810).  ·he wanted to be professional writer but people didn’t want to read him. He quitted and became a political writer. He was the first American gothic writer.  ·Wieland, or, the Transformation (1798) ? Theodore Wieland is master of a landed estate, which he has inherited from his father, an immigrant from Germany. Wieland Senior was a man of strange inclinations who, having built a temple on a hillock in the grounds, devoted to his own idiosyncratic religion, later dies mysteriously of spontaneous combustion (samospalenie). Wieland inherits his father’s god-fearing disposition. However the rural idyll he shares with his wife, children, sister and best friend is shattered when he becomes prey to the trickery of Carwin: a mysterious ventriloquist (brzuchomowca) who has moved to the area after leading an undercover life of deception in Europe. Under the influence of religious mania and Carwin’s trickery Wieland kills his wife and children as a demonstration of his obedience to a ‘divine voice’. In court he expresses no remorse for his deeds and later escapes from prison to attempt the life of his sister, before being stopped in his tracks by the command of a final ‘divine voice’, which in reality emanates from Carwin. Wieland then commits suicide. The story is told as a first person narrative by Wieland’s sister Clara. As the story proceeds her initial calm and rational disposition is sorely tried by the uncanny and bloody events of the story, which reduces her, by the end, to a state of near mania. Her relations with the deceiver Carwin are ambiguous, veering between attraction and repulsion as the story unfolds. Apparently the novel was based on the true story of a multiple murder which took place at Tomhannock, New York in 1781.  ·Ormond; or, the Secret Witness (1799) ?  about lady who kills her seducer with a penknife. The novel engages with many of the period’s popular debates about women’s education, marriage, and the morality of violence, while the plot revolves around the Gothic themes of seduction, murder, incest, impersonation, romance and disease. Set in post-revolutionary Philadelphia, Ormond examines the prospects of the struggling nation by tracing the experiences of Constantia, a young virtuous republican who struggles to survive when her father’s business is ruined by a confidence man, and her friends and neighbors are killed by a yellow fever epidemic.  ·Arthur Mervyn (1799) – Arthur Mervyn suffers form yellow fever, discovered by Dr. Stevens who invites him home. Mr. Wortley comes over to Dr. Stevens, recognizes Arthur Mervyn, and reacts with extreme displeasure. Dr. Stevens demands an explanation. Mervyn begins to tell his story. This is the frame, nearly three quarters of the book bring Mervyn’s adventures up to this moment in time.  ·Edgar Huntly; or, Memoirs of a Sleep-Walker (1799) – The story of a young man who sleepwalks each night and is a threat to himself and others, unable to control his baser passions. Set outside Philadelphia in 1787, the book is a metaphor for the founding of a new nation, but can be read on a literal level as an American â€Å"Gothic† novel. Placed in the middle of wilderness. Young man wakes up in a dark hotel room, he doesn’t know how he got there, he has a tomahawk. Kills a panther and eats it raw. Eventually returns home. Isaac Mitchell (1835-1893)  ·Alonzo and Melissa (1804) ? gothic castle on Long Island. Explanation that the castle was built by Puritans. ADVENTURE NOVELS Royall Tyler (1757-1826)  ·The Algerine Captive (1797) – about a Harvard-educated American schoolteacher turned doctor, who was captured by Barbary (the Algerians) pirates in 1788 and sold into slavery in the City of Algiers. Description of conditions in which black slaves were kept on ships. At the end the character returns to USA.  ·The Contrast (1790) – is an American play in the tradition of the English Restoration comedies of the seventeenth century; it takes its cue from Sheridan’s The School for Scandal, a British comedy of manners that had revived that tradition a decade before. Royall uses the form to satirize Americans who follow British fashions and indulge in ‘British vices’. Hugh Henry Brackenridge (1748-1816)  ·Modern Chivalry: Containing the Adventures of Captain John Farrago and Teague O’Regan, His servant (1792) is a rambling, satirical American novel. The book is arguably the first important work of fiction about the American frontier and called â€Å"to the West what Don Quixote was to Europe†. â€Å"a more thoroughly American book than any written before 1833. † The model of modern chivalry was Don Quixote – they travel all over US. Cultural change was in Boston or around Boston in 18th century. New cultural force ? Unitarianism. Dutch Bishop, rejected the dogma of the predestination, unificated the Great Trinity to one God Father. Unitarians believed that people can improve themselves without grace of God. New, much more optimistic model of human being began. Sermons ? people should show likeness to God by practicing virtues, trying to be good. Henry Ware – educated at Harvard College, Professor at Harvard, precipitating a controversy between Unitarians and more conservative Calvinists. He took part in the formation of the Harvard Divinity School and the establishment of Unitarianism there in the following decades, publishing his debates with eminent Calvinists in the 1820s. William Emerson – In 1804, Emerson founded the Anthology Club, a Boston literary society, and wrote articles for the club’s The Monthly Anthology. This publication was the forerunner of the North American Review, America’s leading literary journal, and the Club’s reading room led to the founding in 1807 of the Boston Athenaeum. Joseph Stevens Buckminster – Upon his graduation, he became minister of the Brattle Street Church in Boston, and quickly launched an almost legendary career of eloquent preaching, biblical scholarship, and literary production which set the tone for the pattern of the minister as a man of letters. In 1801 he traveled to Europe and returned with books. He was the most brilliant member of the Anthology Club, an early editor of the Monthly Anthology, and in 1811 was appointed Dexter Lecturer at Harvard where he occupied the first Chair in Scripture. Buckminster’s influence on his contemporaries was striking. His mastery of the emerging New Criticism from German Biblical scholars led to his rational investigation of the Bible, subjecting its text to the same scrupulous scholarly investigation given other texts from antiquity. Founded in Boston in 1815, The North American Review (NAR) was the first literary magazine in the United States, and was published continually until 1940, when publication was suspended due to World War II. The Review’s first editor, William Tudor (1779-1830), and other founders had been members of Boston’s Anthology Club, and launched The North American Review to foster a genuine American culture. In its first few years it was published poetry, fiction, and miscellaneous essays on a bi-monthly schedule, but in 1818 it became a quarterly with more focused contents intent on improving society and on elevating culture. The Review promoted the improvement of public education and administration, with reforms in secondary schools, sound professional training of doctors and lawyers, rehabilitation of prisoners at the state penitentiary, and government by educated experts. Its editors and contributors included such literary and political New Englanders as John Adams, George Bancroft, Nathaniel Bowditch, William Cullen Bryant, Lewis Cass, Edward T. Channing, Caleb Cushing, Richard Henry Dana, Alexander Hill Everett, Edward Everett, Jared Sparks, George Ticknor, Gulian C. Verplanck, Daniel Webster. 22. 10. 2007 Norton Anthology ? early times, complaining about American literature, being poor, inferior to British, what should be done to improve Madame de Stael (1766-1817)  ·quickly translated into English, pub. in New York; as a French-speaking Swiss author living in Paris and abroad. She influenced literary tastes in Europe at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries Walter Cherning ? in North American review, tried to apply Madame’s ideas to American context The Analectic ? literary magazine There was no a really popular, one author in American unknown for Europe (in literature) until Irving. Washington Irving (1783 – 1859)  ·One of the first noted American authors to be highly acclaimed in Europe during his life time, Irving was a prolific author of fiction and non-fiction. He wrote numerous short stories, biographies, histories, and tales of his travels. His characters Ichabod Crane and Rip van Winkle are now icons of popular American culture, and many of Irving’s works have inspired adaptations to the stage and film.  ·Washington, while born sickly, was a mischievous and adventuresome young man, sneaking out at night to attend plays and frustrating his pious parents, especially his father. He roamed the city and environs, dreaming of far-off places–dreams that were partly fueled by one of his favourite books, Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. Travelling would become a life-long passion. Although he was not an avid student, he studied law and became a clerk.  ·Suffering from ill-health off and on for many years, in 1804 Irving set sail from New York Harbour, the first of many trips abroad: he was going to a spa in Bordeaux, France to treat a lung ailment. He learned French, made many friends, travelled through Europe. In 1806 he returned to America.  ·with his brother William and James Kirke Paulding created a semi-monthly periodical World of New York to compete with the more sombre news publications of the day. While it was short-lived The Salmagundi Paper; or, the Whim-Whams and Opinions of Laucelot Langstaff, Esq. And Others. (1809) was met with great success. The Jonathan Swift-like satire and tongue-in-cheek pokes at politics, culture, and society was â€Å"to instruct the young, reform the old, correct the town, and castigate the age. †  ·The Salmagundi Papers (1809) – satirical work by Washington Irving (under the pen name Diedrich Kinckerbocker), with the title being derived from the dish. The work is nowadays remembered especially for first popularizing the sobriquet Gotham for New York City.  ·In a similar vein Irving composed his first novel, Knickerbocker’s History of New York (1809). A burlesque and comprehensive weaving of fact and fiction, his â€Å"History of New-York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty† is narrated by Diedrich Knickerbocker and won Irving much acclaim at home and abroad.  ·Irving’s short stories, first printed in America under his pseudonym Geoffrey Crayon between the years 1819-20 were collected in The Crayon Papers and The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon. They contain two of Irvings’ most famous tales: Rip van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. These stories were wildly popular in America and soon too in Europe.  ·His next novel was Bracebridge Hall, or, The Humorists, A Medley (1822). Published under the pseudonym Geoffrey Crayon, centers on an English manor, its inhabitants, and the tales they tell. Interspersed with witty, evocative sketches of country life among the English nobility is the well-known tale â€Å"The Stout Gentleman† and stories based on English, French, and Spanish folklore, vividly recounted with Irving’s inimitable blend of elegance and colloquial dash. They include Dolph Heyliger the story of a New Yorker who encounters a haunted house, ghosts, and a buried treasure.  ·It was followed by Tales of a Traveller (1824), which Irving considered one of his finer works. A last experiment with fiction before he turned to the writing of history, biography, and adaptation of folktales. Arranged in four sections, the miscellany of short fiction reveals elements of comedy and melodrama new to Irving’s work. The first three groups of stories have a European background, while the final five stories, supposedly â€Å"found among the papers of the late Diedrich Knickerbocker,† are set in New York and feature pirates and buried treasure.  ·In 1826 Irving moved to Madrid, Spain, where he set to writing his highly lauded The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus (1828), Chronicle of the Conquest of Granada (1829), and Tales of the Alhambra (1832) – rich compendium of tales, deftly interwoven with historical accounts and picturesque sketches, was assembled from Spanish and Moorish folklore, history, guidebooks, and anecdotes of Irving’s experiences among the local residents. The forty-nine pieces range from stories based on Granada’s colorful history to graceful vignettes of its contemporary scene, from romantic descriptions of the local architecture and terrain to medieval tales of the supernatural.  ·Astoria: Anecdotes of an enterprise beyond the Rocky Mountains (1836). â€Å"†¦. I have felt anxious to get at the details of their adventurous expeditions among the savage tribes that peopled the depths of the wilderness. † It explores Irving’s impressions from travels in Canada and America as guest of John Jacob Astor’s Northwest Fur Company. Irving expresses his sympathy to the displaced, and dispossessed ‘savage’ Native American Peoples in such stories as â€Å"Philip of Pokanoket†, â€Å"Traits of Indian Character†, and â€Å"Origin of the White, the Red, and the Black Men†. first American Literary Account of the Wild West, surprised that his view is different from Ch. Browning’s (who portrayed the Westerners as wild animals). Irving portrays them as human, describes buffalo hunting (exaggerated a bit as he describes himself hunting). Counts as the earliest literary description of the West.  ·The Adventures of Captain Bonneville (1837) – Drawing on Bonneville’s own journals, Washington Irving chronicles the exploits and adventures of Captain James Bonneville, one of the earliest explorers of the American West, detailing his various journeys with mountain man Joseph Rutherford Walker; their discovery of Yosemite, Walker Pass, and the Bonneville Salt Flats; and life among the Native Americans and trappers of the West.  ·Irving’s last finished work, something he had been working on for many years but kept putting aside for other more pressing projects is his Life of George Washington (1859).  ·The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820) – The story is set circa 1790 in the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town, New York, in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane, a lanky schoolmaster from Connecticut, who competes with Abraham â€Å"Brom Bones† Van Brunt, the town rowdy, for the hand of 18-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, only daughter of a wealthy farmer. As Crane leaves a party at the Van Tassel home on an autumn night, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman, supposedly the ghost of a Hessian trooper who lost his head to a cannonball during â€Å"some nameless battle† of the American Revolutionary War and who â€Å"rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head. † Crane disappears from town, leaving Katrina to marry Brom Bones, who was â€Å"to look exceedingly knowing whenever the story of Ichabod was related. †  ·Rip Van Winkle (1819) – The story of Rip Van Winkle is set in the years immediately before (the early to mid-1770s) and after the American Revolutionary War (the early to mid-1790s). Rip Van Winkle, a villager of Dutch descent, lives in a nice village at the foot of New York’s Catskill Mountains. An amiable man whose home and farm suffer from his lazy neglect, he is loved by all but his wife. One autumn day he escapes his naggi.