A Review of Stolen Continents by Ronald Wright Essay Example

A Review of Stolen Continents by Ronald Wright Essay In Stolen Continents: The Americas Through Indian Eyes, 1992.(Boston: Houghton Mifflin, A Peter Davison Book) Ronald Wright explores the history of five different Native American groups, the Aztec, the Maya, the Inca, the Cherokee, and the Iroquois, from the time of the landing of Columbus in 1492 until the time the book was published in 1992. This book was written to correspond with the five hundredth anniversary of the arrival of Columbus in the New World.Ronald Wright is a trained historian and experienced travel writer who taught history in Britain and became bored with the European emphasis the curriculum required. He began to explore other areas of history and ultimately concentrated his work on the Native North, South, and Central Americans. In addition to Stolen Continents, Wright has written Cut Stones and Crosswords: A Journey in Peru, On Fiji Islands, Quechua Phrasebook (a phrasebook of the language used by the Incas), and Time Among the Mayas.The book is organized into th ree sections: Part One: Invasion, Part Two: Resistance, and Part Three: Rebirth. Within each section Wright includes one chapter for each of the five tribal groups. Maps of the Americas are included for each of the five areas Wright discusses. In addition, he provides extensive endnotes, an ample bibliography and a most useful guide to pronunciation that helps the reader attempt to pronounce names that are likely to be unfamiliar. Due to the limited space for this book review, the writer will focus solely on the chapters dealing with the Aztecs, but the chapters about the other tribal communities are equally interesting and important.Wrights main thesis is that the arrival of Columbus in the Americas is not a discovery as much as an invasion. Wright quotes Dehatkadons, a traditional chief of the Onondaga Iriquois, You cannot discover an inhabited land. Otherwise I could cross the Atlantic and discover America(Wright, 15). According to Wright, at the time the Europeans became aware o f the land they would call the Americas there were approximately 100 million Native Americans living throughout the Americas. To put this in perspective one must recognize that this number represents about 20 percent of the worlds population at that time. The British Isles had only 5 million people and Spain had about 8 million inhabitants. This number is equivalent to 1,310,770,385 compared to the world population today. By 1600 less than one tenth of the original population (10 million) existed. In todays terms 1,048,616,308 would be killed in a little more than one hundred years. (Wright, 4, 11, 14).In the first section Wright discusses the arrival of Europeans among the Aztecs. He first writes about the Aztecs and their ultimate defeat by Cortà ©s. The city now known as Mexico City was the heart of the Aztec Empire. According to Wright the city was far more advanced than Spain. It contained buildings painted with bright colorful murals. There were schools and shops. The city wa s clean. Wastes were removed and composted to be used as fertilizer. The streets were swept and washed each day. The people bathed daily, unlike the Europeans who made a point of being filthy   (Wright, 21). Despite this more advanced civilization and superior numbers the Spanish were able to conquer the Aztecs in 1521 just 29 years after the initial arrival of Columbus.In Part Two: Resistance, Wright explains the occupation of the Aztec lands for 300 years until Mexico achieved independence in 1810. Shortly after conquering the Aztec people Cortà ©s invited Franciscan missionaries to come to New Spain and conquer the people religiously. Until that time, the Aztecs practiced their native religion openly but without the human sacrifice. Their religion was not absolutist like Christianity. The Aztec gods did not claim to be the only gods. It is likely the Aztecs would have added the Christian gods to their belief system, but they were not willing to give up their old gods. This pos ition was unsatisfactory to the Franciscans who sought to destroy the culture and rebuild it more in line with European culture. Oddly enough the Aztec priests challenged the Franciscans to a debate. The event was recorded in the Aztec language and was sent to the Vatican where it lay in storage for four hundred years. Wright provides a translation of some of the debate. In the translation, the Aztec priests are remarkably scholarly, polite and eloquent speakers (Wright, 145-148). Unable to convince the Aztecs by debating the Franciscans turned to violence. They drove the Aztec priests from their temples and they converted thousands with mass baptisms. Consequently, the Aztec people were divided into two groups: those who genuinely converted to Christianity and those who worshipped their traditional gods secretly. A number of those who were discovered participating in the old religion were burned alive. In 1550 King Charles V ordered that all Indians in Mexico learn to speak Castili an. In the 1570s all work in the native language Nahuatl was forbidden. Ove rtime each culture influenced the other. Ultimately the growing together of old and new beliefs would provide a synthesis that allowed the Franciscans to believe that had won and still allowed the Aztecs to believe their culture would survive. (Wright, 148-150).In part three, Wright discusses the rebirth of the Native American cultures. For the Aztecs their syncretic resistance that allowed them to survive did away with much of their original culture. It is difficult to determine if there are any pure Aztecs today. The definition of what constitutes a real Aztec is often one of semantics. Gaining independence in 1812 did not bring about a return to the tribal communities of the Native Americans. During the next one hundred years Mexico would suffer under the rule of dictators, become a part of France under the Austrian Duke Maximilian who had been appointed by Napoleon, fight a war with the United States onl y to see a good portion of their northern land taken from them and annexed by the United States, and numerous rebel attempts to assume control of the government. Throughout the twentieth century there was a great influx of aggressive European migrants fleeing Franco, Hitler and Stalin (Wright, 241-252). This led to intermarriages and a further dilution of the Aztec blood. Appearing to reduce the possibility of the Aztecs reestablishing themselves as a tribal community. There are positive signs however. Archeological discoveries are revealing much of their previously lost history. It appears unlikely that a pure Aztec tribe will ever reestablish itself. The Aztecs have compromised and adjusted to change for more than 500 years. They will continue to survive but into a metamorphosed people.In conclusion, Wrights book was an interesting treatment of the Native Americans. It is disturbing to anyone living in the Americas who has been taught history from the Euro-American victors viewpoi nt. Wright points out that unlike the colonies in Africa and Asia, but like Australia, the colonizers left the colony and returned to the motherland. Although this writer knew that the settlers killed many Indians, he had no idea that so many Native Americans were killed. The writer had no idea how sophisticated the Native Americans lives were prior to the arrival of the Europeans. Assuming Wrights numbers are correct, the genocide committed in the European settlement of the Americas totals 90 million people. These are staggering numbers equaling more than eight times the number of Jews tragically killed by Nazis in World War II. Although the information Wright reveals is often tragic, he does not appear to have an axe to grind. He is not embittered. His point of view is surprisingly neutral considering he was writing about the Native Americans when he is British. This book is highly recommended and is an important book that should be read.

How to Prepare for the CCNA Exam

How to Prepare for the CCNA Exam Cited consistently by recruiters and hiring managers as one of the most sought-after certifications in the IT industry, the CCNA is one of the most valuable certifications you can have on your resume. Moreover, it’s required for most higher-level Cisco certifications like the CCNP and CCDP (and, by extension, the CCIE). Earning the CCNA demonstrates that you have the ability to configure and support a range of Cisco network devices, along with a strong general knowledge of networking, network security, and wireless networking- all of which are required to support the modern enterprise network. But before you can become a CCNA, you need to pass Cisco exam 640-802 (or, alternately, exams 640-822 and 640-816 together), which is required in order to earn the certification. The CCNA exam is challenging, and passing it definitely requires a lot of work and effort. But with the right focus and preparation, passing the CCNA exam is an achievable goal. To get you started, here are some tips to use in preparing for your CCNA examination. Set a Course of Study The first order of business should be to set the direction for your individual study. Cisco offers a syllabus for the CCNA certification, with a list of topics that are covered. Review this list, print it out and post it, and use it as your guide in crafting your personal course of study. Remember- if its not on the syllabus, its not on the exam, so limit your studies to the topics that Cisco highlights. Identify Your Weaknesses A good next step is to identify those areas where you’re weakest (hint: try a practice exam to help identify those areas)  and make them the focus of your study and practice. Highlight those areas, and set a specific goal towards gaining a good understanding of each. Don’t necessarily neglect your areas of strength completely (you don’t want to forget what you’ve already learned!), but by turning your weaknesses into strengths you can dramatically increase your chances of passing the CCNA exam. Make Time for Study The CCNA isn’t an easy exam to pass, and it covers a lot of ground. And, like any technical discipline, if you don’t work at it on a consistent basis, your knowledge and skills will fade. Set aside a consistent, regular time for study, and make sure that you keep to it. Granted, it can be hard to keep this time blocked out, especially with all of the daily responsibilities and distractions that we all deal with. But the key to passing the CCNA is frequent and consistent study and practice, so it’s critical that you set this time aside, limit your distractions, and stick to the task at hand. Focus on the Details It’s not enough to know the theory behind the concepts presented in the CCNA curriculum. To successfully pass the CCNA exam, you need to how to complete tasks and understand how things get done in the world of Cisco. That’s an important point  because general networking concepts and the way Cisco does things are not always the same- so it’s important to understand the details and specific methods and procedures for implementing different networking technologies, within the Cisco environment. Get Access to Gear This point cant be stressed enough. A big portion of the CCNA exam consists of completing tasks on simulated routers and switches, just as you’ll do them in real life. That’s why it’s critical that you get practice time (preferably a lot of it) on Cisco equipment  so that you can implement what you study within the actual Cisco IOS environment. You can buy or rent pre-configured sets of actual Cisco routers and switches that contain all of the equipment you’ll need to practice for the exam, and these sets are not as expensive as you might think. Also, there are also some excellent simulators out there, that let you configure virtual routers and switches from your personal computer. Take a look at Packet Tracer, which is an excellent tool available from the Cisco Academy, and Graphical Network Simulator 3 (GNS3), which is a free open-source tool that provides a simulated Cisco IOS environment (you can also use it to simulate the Juniper JunOS platform as well). Practice All of the Topics on the Exam, Firsthand Once your practice environment is up and running, make sure you take full advantage of it and practice implementing every protocol and configuration possible, so that you can see how everything works on the actual gear. Remember, things in real life don’t always work the same as they do on paper, and just because a book or guide tells you that a given configuration will produce a given result, nothing beats seeing it for yourself, especially on those (hopefully rare) occasions when the books get it wrong. The key to passing the CCNA exam is preparation  and lots of it. To pass the test, you’ll need to understand networking theory, facts, and practice, and be able to readily utilize the Cisco IOS interface, including specific commands and syntax. But, if you take the time to truly learn the material and get to know your way around Cisco routers and switches beforehand, you should find the test relatively easy to pass.

Are cloud storage solutions irrelevant for a large organisation of Essay

Are cloud storage solutions irrelevant for a large organisation of 1,500 staff - Essay Example Among these technology products and services, Information Technology (IT) forms a key part, with organisations, irrespective of the sector they are operating, have been incorporating IT in a strong manner, by having a separate IT infrastructure inside the organisation. Although, in-house IT infrastructure is the norm in many large organisations, due to advent of advancing technology services like Cloud Computing and their resultant benefits, virtual IT infrastructure are being considered and also favoured. That is, to complement the in-house infrastructure and even also to maximally replace it, Cloud Computing is being utilized. As this service appears to be a cost-effective, secure, quality enriched, operational effective, etc., it is being used by varied organisations from large ones to the small ones. Thus, the discussion will be on how these Cloud computing solutions can be relevant to a large organisation of 1500 staffs. Cloud computing is the term given to the web-based virtual computer structure, which can host data, softwares as well as other applications, with the organisational employees accessing and utilizing it without the need for the organisation to have an in-house IT structure. â€Å"Cloud computing encompasses any subscription-based or pay-per-use service that, in real time over the Internet, extends ITs existing capabilities by increasing capacity or by adding capabilities on the fly without investing in new infrastructure, training new personnel, or licensing new software.† (Knorr and Gruman 2010).The Cloud architecture that is needed for delivering Cloud Computing to an organisation consist of various hardwares as well as softwares, and these cloud components are categorized as front end and back end. The front end will be set up in the organisation, and includes employees’ computer, servers and the other applications that run in the computer particularly web browser.

W8 Exemption PT2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

W8 Exemption PT2 - Essay Example As such, it is crucial for one to understand the exact job that they would like to pursue and that is in line with their interests. Any person who wishes to pursue a lucrative career in this field has no alternative other than majoring in business management. It is both profitable and rewarding in so far as career fulfillment is concerned (Cronje & Du Toit, 2004). As a person with an undergraduate degree in business management, I am firmly convinced that the groundwork for my career in business management has been done. Consequently, it all falls back to me to pursue additional strategies that will guide my career paths within companies so that I can advance and move further upwards on the corporate ladder. In addition, this degree has offered me substantial knowledge and skills on starting, operating and running my own business portfolio. Essentially, there are several other dimensions I can choose to utilize the skills so far acquired in my undergraduate studies. This factor is rei nforced by the fact that management skills are needed virtually in all professions. For instance, engineering or healthcare sectors require a manager to run the day-to-day activities of their organizations. In general, professional engagement in business management equips one with skills of marketing and sales, interpersonal skills, co-ordination, personal relations, budget and finance, and security. In this vein, a student in this career must learn or enhance their qualities in aspects such as planning, organizing, leadership, communication, policy making and formulation, and staffing (Needle, 2010). Based on my experience in undergraduate studies, it is undeniable that a career in business calls for diligence and sufficient period of preparation. It demands specialized training for effective mastery of the various conditions that characterize the world of business. This training is offered in various universities through regular degree programs. In addition to the undergraduate de gree, a significant proportion of the graduates opt for an associate degree that takes a maximum of two years. This extra degree enhances their chances of joining the field of business management easily. However, there are other critical training programs offered by private organizations in this particular field. This is to simply imply that training grounds or avenues for business management are readily available. Whereas such training programs provide a quicker means for someone to venture into professional management fields, it is those who have gone through universities that are regarded as having an upper hand in terms of credibility (Magdaline, Place, & Baratz, 1998). My experience in the business management course has taught me a number of lessons, some of which are far-fetched from professional engagement. For instance, I have realized that any person who wishes to succeed in any profession must be willing to spend considerable time learning. In addition, just the same way b usiness studies have a branch referred to as business ethics, work life equally demands for solid work ethics. Several businesses are rolled out every year with the hope of clinching the most coveted top market positions. Unfortunately, not all of these entities manage to attain their goals. The big question that then begs for answers is what differentiates successful and unsuccessful businesses. According to findings

The Life and Works of S.E. Hinton Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Life and Works of S.E. Hinton - Essay Example S.E. Hinton boasts of seven bestselling novels (The Outsiders (1967), That Was Then, This Is Now (1971), Rumble Fish (1975), Tex (1979), Taming the Star Runner (1988), Puppy Sister (1995) and Hawkes Harbor (2004)), three classified as omnibus of novels (Outsiders / Rumble Fish / That Was Then, This Is Now (1995), An S.E. Hinton Collection (2001), and Some of Tim's Stories (2007)), one picture book (Big David, Little David (1995)), and one upcoming omnibus of a novel Some of Tim’s Stories in paperback which consists of â€Å"fourteen original stories depicting adults trapped in lives of missed connections and opportunities†. From among her seven novels, four were made into movies depicting the appeal of their themes to the masses. Most of her themes center on loyalty, transformation accorded through age, identity search, and abandonment. She was able to depict real-life situations written in the point of view of the audience in context. Peck averred in his book review wr itten in New York Times, â€Å"The Outsiders† shocked readers with its frank depictions of adolescent smoking, drinking and â€Å"rumbling†. Although other pop culture offerings had dealt with themes – most notably â€Å"Rebel Without a Cause† and â€Å"West Side Story† – their intended audience was an adult. By contrast, â€Å"The Outsiders† was a story â€Å"for teenagers, about teenagers, written by a teenager†. (Peck par. 1). However, the success of The Outsiders was measured by Hinton in terms of its ability to bring back the joys of reading to children.

How Starbucks Can Reduce Risks Marketing Essay

How Starbucks Can Reduce Risks Marketing Essay Multi National Companies go through severe research process before enlarging their business activities to other countries. By opting the appropriate mode of entry to international market companies can capture the market easily and reduce the risk associated with it. Starbucks, being one of the largest coffee shop in the world has opted Joint ventures, licensing and wholly owned subsidiaries to expand their business globally. They started expanding their activities in 1996 by entering through Joint ventures in Japan and through wholly owned subsidiary in Canada followed by Southeast Asia, Europe and Middle east. These strategies along with product innovations are the main reason for the success of Starbucks coffee globally. They have modified their product line up and offer 30 blends of coffee, bottled Starbucks Frappuccino, Green Tea Frappuccino, curry puffs, meat buns, sandwiches and salads to meet the needs and requirements of the consumers in particular market. Starbucks have opted a better and efficient way to expand their international activities. They expanded their business activities through Joint ventures in huge market of Japan, Greece and other big countries where as they have owned subsidiaries in some of the low risk countries like Canada and Ireland. They have also expanded their activities through licensing in countries like Malaysia and New Zealand. Starbucks studies the market first and then open few stores at trendy places. After successful marketing test and training of brew masters, it also ensures that similar coffee beverages and No Smoking rules are applied all over. They have been growing rapidly from 17 stores in Seattle to 19,972 stores worldwide mainly attracting youngsters. Their expenses on marketing is very less as they mainly rely on word of mouth advertising. They have come up with different kind of services like Starbucks Express, Automated espresso machines, and self service for their customers, which are also the reason for their huge success worldwide. Sources: International Management, Managing Across Borders and Cultures, Sixth Edition, Helen Deresky, ISBN: 0-13-614326 Careful analysis and management of risks not only mitigate losses but also provide superior returns. In the light of this statement do you think Starbucks did not analyze and manage the risks involved in the different markets it entered? Yes, I believe that Starbucks did not analyze and manage the risk involved while operating in different markets. They have mainly focused on increasing the number of stores worldwide to achieve market dominance but ignored the fact that most of their stores are running in losses. They are facing many challenges in US and overseas market by their competitors like Nestle, Tim Hortons and Dunkin Donuts. Starbucks is facing many internal and external issues like change in economic conditions, change in taste and preferences of customers, huge competition, high business development costs, etc. They also have been facing several problems due to economic crisis in several countries and had serious political problems in Middle East, which led in closure of their several stores in Iraq and Israel. Starbucks mainly focused on its expansion and ignored the competitors around them. They are facing stiff competition in Germany and France from local coffee shops. Their prices were high as compared to the local shops offering the same taste of coffee. It is right that they have come up with different range of products for different markets but failed to come up with appropriate strategies for same market. They were not able to analyze properly the opportunities and threats available in a particular market and failed to relate them with their strengths and weaknesses. They lacked product differentiation from competitors thus were not able to capture the target market. Political, Environmental, Social and Technological factors had also its impact on Starbucks internal business activities. Thus I feel, Starbucks could have done better with their expansion strategy If they would have focused on SWOT analysis and PEST factors influencing their business activities. They have to do immense research on market growth and market share of their future projects and opt for the beast available option. Sources: International Management, Managing Across Borders and Cultures, Sixth Edition, Helen Deresky, ISBN: 0-13-614326 Question 3 A company faces diverse set of risks in international markets. What were the risks faced by Starbucks in its international operations? Explain how Starbucks can reduce risks in its international business. Companies operating on international level faces several risks while doing business. Starbucks, being one of the largest chain of coffee shop is also facing several problems in home as well as in abroad. Although Starbucks has expanded enormously during its earlier stage is facing now stiff competition from its competitors. They also have employees disappointment and are not able to provide satisfaction to them. Payments made to the employees does not match with the work load they have to suffer at work. Due to their aggressive marketing strategies they have grown their rivalry and lost potential customers. Japan, which was the largest overseas market for Starbucks followed by United Kingdom started facing decline in their profit rates. The main reason for the declining profit rate for Starbucks is due to mismatch of their policies with customers expectations. Starbucks thinks that they can increase their profit by increasing their stores day by day but they fail to provide customers satisfaction. Their prices are still high than of the competitors and they failed to satisfy the newer generation. According to me Starbucks have to adjust its policies and reposition its product line up according to the market in which they are dealing. They also have to come up with new and better line up for customers as their taste and preferences keeps on changing. Starbucks have to try to increase the level of employees satisfaction by increasing their salaries, providing initiatives, bonus and other allowances. They have to study the controllable and uncontrollable factors that they face while entering global market. Innovations and Investment are the key factors for them in the long run. Through study of PEST and SWOT analysis can be very effective in maintaining their leadership worldwide. Sources: International Management, Managing Across Borders and Cultures, Sixth Edition, Helen Deresky, ISBN: 0-13-614326

Genitourinary Disorder Alteration in Fluid Elimination UTI Essay

Genitourinary Disorder Alteration in Fluid Elimination UTI Introduction Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is a bacterial infection that affects the various parts of the urinary system such as the urethra, bladder, ureters, and kidneys. In young children, this disease is common and potentially serious. Statistics show that approximately 1% of boys and 3-5% of girls are affected by UTI. While most cases of UTI in boys usually occur within the first year, the age at which the first case of UTI is diagnosed in girls varies greatly. There are many factors that predispose young children to UTI including vesicoureteral reflux (VUR), incomplete emptying of the bladder, sexual abuse, pinworms, and fecal incompetence (Berreman, 2002). Correct diagnosis of UTI is paramount in order to avoid prescribing the wrong medication. In addition, correct diagnosis is critical in developing effective management and care plans for the patient which would go a long way in improving patient outcomes. During diagnosis, various diagnostic methods are used and the patient’s medical history as well as signs and symptoms ought to be a central focus by the clinician. This is important because as opposed to the more clear symptoms in older children and adults, UTI symptoms tend to be less specific and thus hard to detect in young children and infants. In fact, fever may turn out to be the only sign pointing to the possible presence of UTI in infants. In this case study, a case of UTI in a four month old female is examined with a special focus on the medical history, signs and symptoms, diagnosis, etiology, treatment, and management and care of the patient. Medical history and physical assessment of the patient A female infant aged 4 months presents with chi... ...t should be taken. If they appear nontoxic, oral antibiotics and fluids can be used for treatment. However, for patients who appear toxic, parenteral antibiotics and intravenous fluids should be aggressively administered. Most patients with uncomplicated UTI respond well antibiotic treatments in outpatient care without further problems. However, patients with severe or chronic infections require close follow-up, imaging, and appropriate treatment to prevent further sequelae in the long term. If a patient’s condition responds well to therapy, repeated urinalysis and urine cultures are not necessary. Before choosing a particular empiric therapy, clinicians should be aware of antibiotic resistance due to previous exposure of some uropathogens to antibiotics such as in cases of otitis media (Fisher, Pediatric Urinary Tract Infection Treatment & Management, 2011).