The 15th Century Chinese Explorer Cheng Ho

The 15th Century Chinese Explorer Cheng Ho Decades before Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in search of a water route to Asia, the Chinese were exploring the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific with seven voyages of the Treasure Fleet that solidified Chinese control over much of Asia in the 15th century. The Treasure Fleets were commanded by a powerful eunuch admiral named Cheng Ho. Cheng Ho was born around 1371 in Chinas southwestern Yunan Province (just north of Laos) with the name Ma Ho. Ma Hos father was a Muslim hajji (who had made a pilgrimage to Mecca) and the family name of Ma was used by Muslims in representations of the word Mohammed. When Ma Ho was ten years old (around 1381), he was captured along with other children when the Chinese army invaded Yunan to take control over the region. At the age of 13 he was castrated, as were other young prisoners, and he was placed as a servant in the household of the Chinese Emperors fourth son (out of twenty-six total sons), Prince Zhu Di. Ma Ho proved himself to be an exceptional servant to Prince Zhu Di. He became skilled in the arts of war and diplomacy and served as an officer of the prince. Zhu Di renamed Ma Ho as Cheng Ho because the eunuchs horse was killed in battle outside of a place called Zhenglunba. (Cheng Ho is also Zheng He in the newer Pinyin transliteration of Chinese but hes still most commonly called Cheng Ho). Cheng Ho was also known as San Bao which means three jewels. Cheng Ho, who was said to have been seven feet tall, was given greater power when Zhu Di became emperor in 1402. One year later, Zhu Di appointed Cheng Ho admiral and ordered him to oversee the construction of a Treasure Fleet to explore the seas surrounding China. Admiral Cheng Ho was the first eunuch appointed to such a high military position in China. First Voyage (1405-1407) The first Treasure Fleet consisted of 62 ships; four were huge wood boats, some of the largest ever built in history. They were approximately 400 feet (122 meters) long and 160 feet (50 meters) wide. The four were the flagships of the fleet of 62 ships assembled at Nanjing along the Yangtze (Chang) River. Included in the fleet were 339-foot (103-meter) long horse ships that carried nothing but horses, water ships that carried fresh water for the crew, troop transports, supply ships, and warships for offensive and defensive needs. The ships were filled with thousands of tons of Chinese goods to trade with others during the voyage. In the fall of 1405, the fleet was ready to embark with 27,800 men. The fleet utilized the compass, invented in China in the 11th century, for navigation. Graduated sticks of incense were burned to measure time. One day was equal to 10 watches of 2.4 hours each. Chinese navigators determine latitude through monitoring the North Star (Polaris) in the Northern Hemisphere or the Southern Cross in the Southern Hemisphere. The ships of the Treasure Fleet communicated with one another through the use of flags, lanterns, bells, carrier pigeons, gongs, and banners. The destination of the first voyage of the Treasure Fleet was Calicut, known as a major trading center on the southwestern coast of India. India was initially discovered by Chinese overland explorer Hsuan-Tsang in the seventh century. The fleet stopped in Vietnam, Java, and Malacca, and then headed west across the Indian Ocean to Sri Lanka and Calicut and Cochin (cities on the southwest coast of India). They remained in India to barter and trade from late 1406 to the spring of 1407 when they utilized the monsoon shift to sail toward home. On the return voyage, the Treasure Fleet was forced to battle pirates near Sumatra for several months. Eventually, Cheng Hos men managed to capture the pirate leader and take him to the Chinese capital Nanjing, arriving in 1407. Second Voyage (1407-1409) A second voyage of the Treasure Fleet departed on a return trip to India in 1407 but Cheng Ho did not command this voyage. He remained in China to oversee the repair of a temple at the birthplace of a favorite goddess. The Chinese envoys on board helped to ensure the power of a king of Calicut. The fleet returned in 1409. Third Voyage (1409-1411) The fleets third voyage (Cheng Hos second) from 1409 to 1411 consisted of 48 ships and 30,000 men. It followed closely the route of the first voyage but the Treasure Fleet established entrepots (warehouses) and stockades along their route to facilitate trade and storage of goods. On the second voyage, the King of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was aggressive; Cheng Ho defeated the kings forces and captured the king to take him to Nanjing. Fourth Voyage (1413-1415) In late 1412, Cheng Ho was ordered by Zhu Di to make  a fourth  expedition. It wasnt until late 1413 or early 1414 that Cheng Ho embarked on his expedition with 63 ships and 28,560 men. The goal of this trip was to reach the Persian Gulf at Hormuz, known to be a city of amazing wealth and goods, including pearls and precious stones much coveted by the Chinese emperor. In the summer of 1415, the Treasure Fleet returned with a bounty of trade goods from the Persian Gulf. Detachments of this expedition sailed south along the eastern coast of Africa almost as far south as Mozambique. During each of Cheng Hos voyages, he brought back diplomats from other countries or encouraged ambassadors to go to the capital Nanjing on their own. Fifth Voyage (1417-1419) The fifth voyage was ordered in 1416 to return the ambassadors who had arrived from other countries. The Treasure Fleet departed in 1417 and visited the Persian Gulf and the east coast of Africa, returning envoys along the way. They returned in 1419. Sixth Voyage (1421-22) A sixth voyage was launched in the spring of 1421 and visited Southeast Asia, India, the Persian Gulf, and Africa. By this time, Africa was considered Chinas El Dorado, a source of riches. Cheng Ho returned in late 1421 but the remainder of the fleet didnt arrive in China until 1422. Emperor Zhu Di died in 1424 and his son Zhu Gaozhi became emperor. He canceled the voyages of the Treasure Fleets and ordered shipbuilders and sailors to stop their work and return home. Cheng Ho was appointed military commander of Nanjing. Seventh Voyage (1431-1433) The leadership of Zhu Gaozhi did not last long. He died in 1426 at the age of 26. His son and Zhu Dis grandson Zhu Zhanji took Zhu Gaozhis place. Zhu Zhanji was much more like his grandfather than his father was and in 1430 he resumed the Treasure Fleet voyages by ordering Cheng Ho to resume his duties as admiral and make  a seventh  voyage in an attempt to restore peaceful relations with the kingdoms of Malacca and Siam. It took a year to gear up for the voyage which departed as a large expedition with 100 ships and 27,500 men. On the return trip in  1433,  Cheng Ho is believed to have died; others state that he died in 1435 after the return to China. Nonetheless, the era of exploration for China was soon over as the following  emperors  prohibited trade and even the construction of ocean-going vessels. Its likely that a detachment of one of Cheng Hos fleets sailed to northern Australia during one of the seven voyages based  upon  the Chinese artifacts found as well as the oral history of the Aborigine. After the seven voyages of Cheng Ho and the Treasure Fleets, Europeans began to make headway toward China. In 1488 Bartolomeu Dias rounded Africas Cape of Good Hope, in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached Chinas favorite trading city of Calicut, and in 1521 Ferdinand Magellan finally reached Asia by sailing west. Chinas superiority in the Indian Ocean was unrivaled until the 16th century when the Portuguese arrived and established their colonies along the rim of the Indian Ocean.

Definition of Barnburners and Hunkers

Definition of Barnburners and Hunkers The Barnburners and Hunkers were two factions that battled for dominance of the Democratic Party in New York State in the 1840s. The two groups might have been obscure footnotes to history  remembered mostly for their colorful nicknames, but dissension between the two groups played a major role in the presidential election of 1848. The issue underlying all the fracturing of the party was rooted, as were many political disputes of the day, in the growing national debate over slavery. In the early 1800s the issue of slavery was mainly kept submerged in the national political debate. For one eight-year stretch, southern legislators had even managed to suppress any talk of slavery in the U.S. House of Representatives by invoking the infamous gag rule. But as territory acquired as a result of the Mexican War came into the Union, heated debates over which states and territories might allow slavery became a major issue. The disputes playing out in the halls of Congress also traveled into states where slavery had been outlawed for decades, including New York. Background of the Barnburners The Barnburners were New York State Democrats who were opposed to slavery. They were considered the more progressive and radical wing of the party in the 1840s. The group had splintered off from the Democratic Party following the election of 1844, when its preferred candidate, Martin Van Buren, lost the nomination. The Democrats candidate in 1844 who offended the Barnburner faction was James K. Polk,  a dark horse candidate from Tennessee who owned slaves and advocated for territorial expansion. The Barnburners were anti-slavery and viewed territorial expansion as an opportunity for pro-slavery politicians to add more slave states to the Union. The nickname Barnburners was derived from an old story. According to a dictionary of slang terms published in 1859, the nickname came from a story about an old farmer who had a barn infested with rats. He was determined to burn down the entire barn to get rid of the rats. The implication was that the political Barnburners were obsessed with one issue (in this case slavery) to such an extent that theyd burn down a political party to get their way. The name apparently originated as an insult, but members of the faction seemed to take pride in it. Background of the Hunkers The Hunkers were the more traditional wing of the Democratic Party, which, in New York State, dated back to the political machine set up by Martin Van Buren in the 1820s. The nickname Hunkers, according to Bartletts Dictionary of Americanisms, indicated those who cling to the homestead, or old principles. According to some accounts, the word hunker was a combination of hunger and hanker, and indicated that the Hunkers were always set on attaining political office no matter the cost. That also aligns to some extent with the common belief that the Hunkers were the traditional Democrats who had supported the Spoils System of Andrew Jackson. Barnburners and Hunkers in the Election of 1848 The division over slavery in America had been largely settled by the Missouri Compromise in 1820. But when the United States acquired new territory following the Mexican War, the issue of whether new territories and states would allow slavery brought the controversy back to the forefront. At the time, abolitionists were still on the fringe of society. It wouldnt be until the early 1850s, when opposition to the Fugitive Slave Act and the publication of Uncle Toms Cabin made the abolitionist movement more acceptable. Yet some political figures were already firmly opposed to the spread of slavery, and were actively seeking to keep a balance between free and slave states. In New York States powerful Democratic Party, there was a division between those who wanted to stop the spread of slavery and those who were less concerned, regarding it as a distant issue. The anti-slavery faction, the Barnburners, broke from the party regulars, the Hunkers, before the election of 1848. And the Barnburners proposed their candidate, Martin Van Buren, a former president, run on the Free Soil Party ticket. In the election, the Democrats nominated Lewis Cass, a politically powerful figure from Michigan. He ran against the Whig candidate, Zachary Taylor, a hero of the recently concluded Mexican War. Van Buren, supported by the Barnburners, did not have much chance of regaining the presidency. But he took away enough votes from the Hunker candidate, Cass, to swing the election to the Whig, Taylor.

Neuroimaging of the Acute Stroke Patient Case Study

Neuroimaging of the Acute Stroke Patient - Case Study Example This research tells that Alice is a 72-year-old woman who lives with her husband in an apartment. At 11:30 pm on a Thursday night, her husband called the ambulance because his wife was exhibiting some unusual symptoms. The first symptom was that his wife was sitting in front of the gas oven, continuously turning it on and off and saying that she needed to be there in order to keep warm. It was a humid night, so Alice’s husband was surprised that she appeared to feel cold. The second symptom was that Alice did not appear to recognize her husband, and kept mumbling to the oven rather than engaging in conversation with her husband. When the ambulance arrived, it was observed that Alice was pale and still dressed in her nightgown. Although she tried to get to her feet, she was unable to pull herself up. As such, being pale was a third symptom, while lacking motor control was a fourth. Alice’s medical history was mostly straightforward and there was little indication of any major aspects that would have an influence on the symptoms that she was showing. Alice is retired but remains active in the community by being involved in volunteer groups and acting as a teacher for children within the area. She has not had any significant health complications, aside from breaking her leg several years ago in a car accident. She has no history of falls and her husband considers her to be in good health. She is not currently on any medication.

Report on a project that has occurred or is occurring in the public or Research Paper

Report on a project that has occurred or is occurring in the public or community or corporate sector - Research Paper Example Producing and processing gas in sea where it is extracted is a major contributing factor towards innovation and reducing cost. It will also make new energy sources accessible. The major characteristics of a project are that it is temporary in nature (Pinto, 2010). This means that it has a starting date and an ending date. Besides this the outcome of the project must be unique in nature. It must be either in the form of a product, service or result. This project initiated by shell has several societal benefits and it has the potential to bring revolution in the ways natural gas is produced. BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT This section of the report will discuss about the project and discuss measures which initiate the project. The expected deliverables and the outcomes of the project will be discussed along with the organizational details. Overcoming certain barriers like cost, time, quality, scope and risk are the main objectives of the project (Atkinson, 1999). This is because all these f actors contribute directly to its success. The main objective of the project is to save cost and utilize the time that is allotted to the project in the most efficient manner (Harrison, and Lock, 2004). Timely completion of the project and proper management of the resources will improve the quality delivered. New projects or expansion strategies of the business involve risk associated to it. The efficiencies of implementation of the process can reduce the risk (Hamilton, 2004). The project of Shell prelude (FLNG) is owned by Shell. It is located on the Western shore of Australia. The project was started in 2011 and is expected to be completed in 2015 (Shell, 2013a). Shell is planning to develop large gas resources and explore more reserves across Australia. The company also has interest in acquiring new coal reserves and expanding its exploration boundaries. The development phase of Prelude FLNG project was constructed from the contribution of six hundred engineers from across the w orld. A model of the project was designed which was tested in artificial sea conditions. This was done to test the model against the pressure of winds and waves (Shell, 2013c). The FLNG project after construction is estimated as the largest floating offshore facility (Offshore Technology, 2012). It will be 488 meters long and it will weigh 600,000 tons if loaded to full capacity. The total weight of steel used for building the FLNG project would be 260,000 tons (Shell, 2013a). This project is innovative because it will accommodate all the functions which were performed on land earlier. The FLNG will allow ease of production, liquefaction of natural gas, storage of gas in liquid form to reduce the storage cost and allow transfer at sea. Initiation of developing projects like these will help open offshore natural gas fields (Shell, 2013b). These projects are costlier to operate and difficult to develop on land. Development of FLNG will resolve these issues. Shell has initiated this pr oject with the collaboration of contractor Technip Samsung Consortium (TSC). TSC has an agreement with Shell of providing multiple facilities like engineering, manage the procurement of goods required for production, provide construction facilities and ensure proper installation of the FLNG facility. The site selected for the project is of the prelude gas field located on Northwest coast of Australia. After completion of this project about 350 direct

Education and Fast Growing Society Essay Example for Free

Education and Fast Growing Society Essay The co-educational system has always been an issue of great controversy. Its supporters claim that separating boys from girls is completely unrealistic since schools are supposed to depict society and prepare children to become its active members. On the other hand, those not in favor of it claim argue that single-sex schools are more effective since they are adapted to each sex’s needs and features. There is little doubt that single-sex schools may be more targeted to each sex’s traits. For example, boys’ schools are stricter in order to achieve discipline while girls’ schools focus on teaching them major principals that will help them lead a successful life not only as professionals but also as family leaders later in life. In addition, boys and girls tend to distract each other during the lesson and therefore make it difficult to concentrate. I am of the opinion that co-education has more to offer to the modern society. First of all, single-sex schools are utterly out-of-date and belong to the past when boys and girls socializing was considered immoral. Nowadays, that both sexes are equal, the mentality of creating and maintaining separate educational facilities is unacceptable. Moreover, having girls and boys in the same environment promotes their competitiveness in a creative way which leads to a high quality learning process. In a final analysis, co-education has proved to be more suitable in answering the increasing demands of our fast growing society. Considering how hard women have fought over the years to gain their rights, wouldn’t it be unfair to have separate schools?

Postion Paper: Who Was More Carzed Stalin Or Hitler -- essays research

Who was more Crazed: Stalin or Hitler? The obviously more crazed man was Joseph Stalin. Stalin was more crazed because over his time and rule, he killed millions upon millions more people that Hitler. Joseph Stalin is also more crazed because he did not kill other people he was racist against, but simply because he wanted to kill. The book Hitler and Stalin: Parallel Lives, states " Adolf Hitler's actions can not even be compared to the monstrous actions of Joseph Stalin". The author of this book points out another interesting fact. Alan Bullock states "If Hitler would have ruled in power as long as Stalin, there may have been somewhat of a kill ratio comparison between the two". Hitler's first and foremost task as dictator of Germany was cleanse Germany of all other inferior races. This was a very bad move on Hitler's part, and that he should have never gone through with it. The author rightfully states that Hitler had many physiological problems, and hated the Jews for one reason, and you will find that in the following quote by an anonymous author "When I now broached the question of what the source of his so strongly felt hatred for the Jews was, and why he wanted to destroy this so undeniably intelligent race - a race to which the Germans and all other Aryan's, if not the entire world, owed an incalculable debt in virtually all field of art and knowledge, research and economics†. Unlike Stalin, Hitler actually helped the economy. Hitler did good with the Volkswagen. Hitler was a power hungry man. Hitler was a more peaceful man compared to Stalin. He didn’t kill his own, family, and until the end, kept the economy strong. What Hitler wanted to accomplish was virtually impossible. His goal of making an entire race extinct was obsolete, but he did not seem to think that. Hitler tried to carry out his goal, and in a way succeeded in the almost impossible. In a quote from an article it states that â€Å"Hitler overcame the near impossible, through propaganda†. This quote also brings up another point, and that was that Hitler was an expert at propaganda. Hitler and Stalin both used propaganda to its fullest, through billboards, and on radio broadcasts. The obvious better of the two was Hitler. &... ...worthiness adds up to make him the more terrible. The main reason Stalin was chosen was because of the outrageous amount of killings. Hitler's killings were minor compared to the twenty to sixty two million people Stalin killed in his lifetime. Stalin cannot be compared to any other political figure. Joseph Stalin was a one of a kind, and it was the one of a kind you did not want. No other political figure in history has killed this many people in his political reign, or for that matter, used fear to win his elections. As ruler of the Red Army, he did not feed his soldiers, and sis not take care of them. People in Stalin's country had to fend for themselves. If asked the question, who was worse: Stalin or Hitler to any average person of average knowledge, one would assume Hitler was worse. This situation was common because Joseph Stalin burned most of the history on his life, and his plans. In the beginning, to me, Hitler was worse too, but after reading what I have read about this monstrous man, I know for a fact Stalin was worse, and he will always be in my eyes. I hope my paper has well informed the reader of who was obviously the more crazed man.

The Importance of Learning Organization

L & D Assignment 2: The Importance of Learning Organization A learning organization works with ideas i. e. it comes up with new ideas on all levels, disseminates these new ideas across the organization and finally inculcates these new ideas into operations by embedding them in its policies processes and reviews. It has structured mechanisms and processes put in place to generate knowledge and it takes this new knowledge as a basis of responding to the change in its business environment. A learning organization as per its formal definition is skilled at two things which are as follows: a. Creating, acquiring, interpreting, transferring and retaining knowledge which is relevant to its business processes for enable it to achieve its business objective in an efficient manner. b. ) Acting or modifying its behaviour as an organization to respond to that new knowledge and insights. To be a successful organization one must monitor its processes and make sure that they are efficient. A learni ng organization observes its business processes and learns where it is efficient and where it is not.It encourages organizations to shift to a more interconnected way of thinking. A learning organization has five main features; systems thinking, personal mastery, mental models, shared vision and team learning. In the article â€Å"Is yours a learning organization† the authors David Garvin and Amy Edmondson described the three building blocks of learning which fosters the creation of a learning organization which are as follows: a. ) A supportive learning environment b. ) A concrete learning processes and practices c. Leadership that reinforces learning Importance of learning organization in current business context: Ray Stata, the confounder and chairman of the board of Analog Devices once quoted â€Å"The rate at which organizations learn may become the only sustainable source of competitive advantage. † In highly competitive current business scenario products and ser vices can easily be copied or emulated by the competitors. Even processes can be copied for example Six sigma is easily available and accessible to anyone for implementation.Thus the only source of sustainable competitive advantage for any organization is rapid pace of learning and the execution of this new knowledge in its internal processes. Furthermore, the current business environment is evolving at a very rapid pace due to globalization, deregulation and evolution of new business paradigms. As an organization the only way to survive and compete in this business environment is to have a rate of learning which is greater than this rate of change of the business environment. Barriers in being a learning organization: The idea of a learning organization is been around for quite some time.The discussion about the learning organization has been around for almost 4 decades but there were certain shortcomings and limitations of in these ideas of learning organizations. As a result of w hich these ideas have failed to bring about little concrete change as they should have. Firstly, the fundamental fallacies with these initial ideas were that they were abstract concepts without concrete prescriptions for actions for the organizations. For an organization to be able to change, it needs to know the steps necessary to solve the problems it faces.Secondly, these initial concepts of learning organization were aimed at the top managements of the organization without including the middle level managers. These managers heading divisions, departments and projects where the real critical work of the organization happens. Their inclusion was very necessary because these are the people who are primarily responsible for generation of business intelligence at the operational level. Thirdly, there was real lack or standards or tools through which the managers can assess how well they were doing on being a learning organization. An Ideal learning organization:The concept of perfect ion is in itself elusive as no individual or organization cannot ever claim to be perfect no matter how good they are. However, the one organization which comes very close to becoming a ideal learning organization is General Electric (GE). Infact, In his last letter to the shareholders Jack Welch wrote that I finally understand why we as an organization are so successful. The reason is that we are an learning organization. They have all three building blocks (processes, environment and leadership) which is prerequisite to become a successful learning organization. Role of management in building Learning Organization:Managers can help their teams have a supportive learning environment. In particular, the concept of psychological safety where the perceive that the workplace environment one that is comfortable for asking questions, making mistakes and floating of new ideas related their job role responsibilities. Basically, the managers facilitate the creation of a workplace environmen t which is conducive to taking personal risks by the employees that it is absolutely essential for learning. The managers should make conscious efforts to help people be comfortable with the risks which are present in the workplace today.So that the employees can engage in the learning processes without fear. Apart from a supportive learning environment the managers can also put in place concrete processes and procedures for experimentation, sharing knowledge and best practices across the organization and ways of reflecting on what we have learned from past expierence. Each of these are systematic processes where companies generate ideas, respond to new knowledge and reflect on what they have already learnt. In some organisations a lack of a learning culture can be a barrier to learning.An environment must be created where individuals can share learning without it being devalued and ignored, so more people can benefit from their knowledge and the individuals becomes empowered. A lea rning organization needs to fully accept the removal of traditional hierarchical structures. As a manager the most ideal way to start implementation of the concept of Learning organization in its organization is to start within his/her own department by modelling the behaviours of learning himself like showing curiosity, asking a questions and laying emphasis on disruptive innovation.This kind of leadership at department levels creates the environment where more structured kind of processes to build a learning organization can take form. References: 1. ) Garvin, David A. â€Å"Building a learning organization. † Harvard Business Review (1993). 2. ) Garvin, David A. , Amy C. Edmondson, and Francesca Gino. â€Å"Is yours a learning organization. † Harvard Business Review (2008). 3. ) Darling, Marilyn, Charles Parry, and Joseph Moore. â€Å"Learning in the thick of it. † Harvard Business Review (2005).