Spirit On Two Strings free essay sample

Looking to add some exotic flavor to your CD collection? Search no more. â€Å"Spirit on Two Strings† is a beautiful, meditative collection of traditional erh-hu music, masterfully executed by Jie-Bing Chen and accompanied by Yang-Qin Zhao. Chen, considered the greatest virtuoso of the erh-hu in the world, delivers a performance filled with passion and vigor on the vertical two-stringed instrument often dubbed the â€Å"violin of the East,† invoking images of cherry blossoms blowing in a soft breeze, or gentle brooks babbling in the countryside. The music is distinctly Chinese, which makes it interesting, and also has a great calming effect when you’re stressed or worried. The CD opens with â€Å"Moon Reflects on the Erh-Chuan Spring,† a piece that begins simply and quietly, then becomes dramatic and urgent. This track is probably the strongest on the album, though there is not a single weak song. In â€Å"Birds Singing in a Deserted Mountain,† Chen gives the erh-hu a birdlike quality that makes the piece stand out; the final track, the march â€Å"Bright Prospects,† stands alone too, departing from the traditional feel of the album. We will write a custom essay sample on Spirit On Two Strings or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page If you’re in the mood for something different, don’t hesitate to try â€Å"Spirit on Two Strings.† I’m very selective about what I buy, but this CD suckered me in right away. Perhaps the greatest thing about it is that it gets better with every listen.

Czarist Russia essays

Czarist Russia essays In the early czarist age/ pre-Revolutionary era Russia was a feudal land system and there was a growing gap between agricultural Russia and industrial Europe. Russia under the czars was growing out of the feudal system, but it was a slow process because the czars were afraid of losing power and control. The czars were just large landowners themselves, so they tried to resist turning Russia into an industrial capitalist state. However the czars did many things to start the process, they initiated all kinds of land reforms, such as the Stolypin reforms which weakened the communal agricultural land and allowed peasants to own small pieces of land. Allowing the private ownership of land allowed for some peasant families to become wealthy, and allowed them to use land as a commodity. Peasants could now buy and sell land to settle debts, and those that had to sell their land moved into the cities and started to create a labor force. Under the czars Russia was able extensively expand their railroad system. IN 1861 they had about 2000 kilometers of rail ,by 1913 they had increased the rail line to 70,000 kilometers. The expansion of the rail allowed for the Russians to transport their military more easily, and it opened up the coal and iron resources in the Ukraine. The rail also helped in the transporting of grain and other agricultural outputs. The czarist government also created a conservative monetary policy that allowed Russia, in 1897, to join the international gold standard. Industry took advantage of their countries backwardness by adopting already existing technology instead of trying to create their own. Industrial outputs at this time increase, grain out put triples, labor force grows and the GDP increases. However even with the major increase Russia is still well behind the other European countries. The czars helped to increase the foreign involvement in Russia through trade and through increase in foreign capi ...

1984 Novel Essay

1984 Novel Essay I think that today’s society is a â€Å"half version† of George Owell’s novel, 1984, in some ways it is similar and in others, uniquely different. The closest we come today to a â€Å"Big Brother† is the mob. The people are also controlled by watchful security cameras and subliminal messages. However, something in life today is very different from that of 1984, it is the people. In the words of the famous lyricist, â€Å"Power to the People. † In analyzing â€Å"Big Brother,† there are similarities between it and the mob. The Mafia is a crime amily that can see everything, there is no going against the mob or else someone is going to die. The Mafia is so widespread that it has operatives all over keeping an eye out for cops or law enforcement, this is the Mafia’s â€Å"telescreens† (Orwell 6). Another startling similarity between the mob and â€Å"Big Brother† is the Mafia’s strange way of making someone disappear or â€Å"vaporize† (Orwell ). Almost unknowingly a person’s identity can be changed, altered, or deleted. Authorities use security and surveillance cameras to observe criminal activities or possibly every day activities. Too much surveillance liberties are given to police or FBI. By using hi-tech cameras which can actually document a person’s life. Unknowingly, there may be a cute little camera installed in the bedroom. Another way that today’s society controls the masses is subliminal messages. Illegal now, subliminal messages were widely used in the entertainment business, especially during the fifties. An example is that movie makers would add a split-second commercial add for popcorn and soda during a movie. Customers would actually be manipulated into buying these products. Even though, this kind of rainwashing is illegal, it is still very hard to detect, who’s to say that we are not bombarded by subliminal messages just by watching commercials on television. This is too risky, to think that a person’s actions and emotions can be swayed by someone else’s perversion’s. Again, this is very similar to 1984. Of all the things there are today that would make it impossible for there to be an inner or outer party, as in 1984, is that there is each other. No matter how hard our government tries, they cannot reach everyone. Contrary to 1984, where they do get everyone, I feel that was extreme and unlikely. I find it highly unlikely that a form of government can find a way to get the whole world to follow them. 1984 is not a reality, strength lies in numbers. In conclusion, life in the nineties, is a very resilient time. In this time, there is a substantial amount of restriction of the public, much of which is for law and order. A lot of this day and age may resemble George Orwell’s 1984. It is nothing but a facade of government mixing with technology at a dangerous level. There’s nothing to fear because 1984 is far-fetched and an anti-socialists nightmare.

Business and cultural differences Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Business and cultural differences - Essay Example But this expansion also needs to recognize the culture of the people. The way the people dress, different ways for analyzing problems and how they interact are very important to understand in order to find the communication gap between the nations. Without proper communication several problems may arise due to difference in the cultural practices. In this study we will find the differences between the cultural backgrounds of UK and that of the acquisition company at China. Several issues which could arise within the organization due to cross cultural activities have been discussed in this study in order to successfully deal with any potential issues (Burton, 2009, p.8). 2 Cultural differences between United Kingdom and China The culture of the nation is often defined from the collective programming of the different minded people. The cultural differences are basically formed from four dimensions of the culture of a nation. These are basically power distance, individualism, masculinit y and uncertainty avoidance. Based on these factors the culture of the nation varies to a great extent from country to country. 2.1 Power Distance Index The power distance index is the indicative of the distance between the top management and the subordinates. In high power distance culture they have inequality of power and wealth in the society. This is not forced on the population but comes from the cultural heritage of the country. China has a highly power distance culture which is ranked 80 compared to the world average of 55, while in UK it’s around 30. Therefore in China the people maintain a great distance in different levels of the organization which sometimes leads to an unfriendly workspace with professional relation being the priority in business. Every employee is not free to express their feelings and they are not allowed to take any business decision. The top management are only responsible to take critical decisions in the business. In UK business strategy, the supervisors are well mixed with the subordinates thus creating a very friendly and healthy workspace since the power is well distributed and dew to very small distance between the levels everyone is invited to share their own thoughts on the business plans. The business plans are taken after discussion with all the levels of the organization. Every individual are encouraged to share their ideas and before taking final decision by top management the suggestions from subordinates are kept in mind. 2.2 Individualism Individualism is working with single responsibility and without interacting with peers in the organization. On the other hand collectivism is working in groups and taking decision collectively without questioning loyalty. Individualist business organisation has very little ties between individual employees. Due to the ancient cultural heritage of China the family or relation are between peoples in the society are very strong and the people are very loyal towards each other . Collectivism is the practice in China society who have a close and committed members in the group be it a family or a business. Everyone takes

Global Business - Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Global Business - - Assignment Example At the same time, a SWOT analysis and a PEST analysis have been employed for revealing the potentials of the organization to improve its performance through internationalization. Three different methods for entering the market chosen are presented. It is concluded that the expansion of the firm in a foreign market could highly support the increase of its profitability but only if certain terms are met, as indicatively highlighted in the sections that follow. In any case, it seems that the continuous monitoring of the relevant process is necessary for avoiding unexpected failures. One of the most important characteristics of the global market is its high competitiveness, a fact that has been related to the expansion of globalization (Griffin 2008). At this point, the following issue appears: how the potential of a firm to face the challenges of the global environment can be measured? The use of strategic tools, as those presented above, could possibly help towards this direction. Still, it is necessary to refer also to the global market trends in regard to the industrial sector involved (Nummela 2010). In the case under examination, emphasis should be given on the electronics industry. The global electronic industry is characterized by trends for growth. In fact for 2013 the growth of the industry has been estimated to 5.4% (QFinance 2012) with trends for further growth in the years that follow. Of course, the influence of the recent recession on the particular industry has been severe, as also in all industries worldwide. Still, it seems that the potentials of the particular industry to face market pressures are important, even if not all parts of this industry has presented signs of growth (QFinance 2012). The above facts are critical when having to evaluate the potential prospects of Elecdyne’s internationalization process. In case that the firm had tried to expand but in different environmental conditions, meaning the trends in the

Everyone and No One: Jorge Luis Borges and Shakespeare Essay -- Literar

â€Å"I am not sure that I exist, actually. I am all the writers that I have read, all the people that I have met, all the women that I have loved; all the cities that I have visited, all my ancestors . . . Perhaps I would have liked to be my father, who wrote and had the decency of not publishing. Nothing, nothing, my friend; what I have told you: I am not sure of anything, I know nothing . . . Can you imagine that I do not even know the date of my death?† (â€Å"Borges-Quotations†) The work of Jorge Luis Borges has been the subject of much literary criticism and research. Scholars have spent entire lifetimes attempting to pinpoint the meaning of his works. The fact that many of them use the above quote to do so sums up the enigma of Borges; the quote most likely to be used to explain him cannot be authenticated. In seventy-four short stories, over one hundred sonnets and thousands of essays, reviews, lectures, literature introductions and notes, the quote found in many quote collections and in an abundance of papers on the author may not be his words at all. Far from this paradox disproving any theories on the themes and intentions of Borges, the very fact that writers continue quote to quote this passage illustrates his thoughts on memory, identity and authorship perfectly. Memory is malleable and transferrable. Memory is identity. Authorship is identity. Therefore, authorship is memory and is malleable and transferrable. There is no defining work from Borges defining these themes. Even to apply them to his fictions, one must absorb them all. The fictions of Borges are brief, many as short as three pages. One of these (at eight pages) was the last story he wrote, Shakespeare’s Memory. Published after his death in 1986, he touc... ...inberger. New York: Penguin Putnam, 1999. 463-472. Print. Paul M. Willenberg. â€Å"The Garden of Jorge Luis Borges.† Swarthmore University. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. â€Å"The Eccentric Borges: Two UCL Analyses.† University College London. Web. 21 Oct. 2011. Richard Burgin. Conversations with Jorge Luis Borges. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1969. 26-27. Print. .Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access. Lastname, First name. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection. Ed. Editor's Name(s). Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Page range of entry. Medium of Publication. Whitman, Walt. "I Sing the Body Electric." Selected Poems. New York: Dover, 1991. 12-19. Print.

Life Developed Only on Earth Essay

Life developed only on this one small planet in this one small galaxy. There are several reasons to explain this and some of these are the following: First of all, water is sufficient on Earth making it fit for life to exist (BBC, n. d. ). Second, oxygen is available on Earth for a life to carry on living (BBC, n. d. ). Third, neither earth is too close nor too far from the Sun, thus neither it is not too warm nor is it too cold to live in (BBC, n. d. ). Fourth, the chemicals necessitated to create a living cell are more than enough (BBC, n. d. ). Fifth, a considerable amount of plant and animal species have already developed and adjusted to the environment (BBC, n. d. ). Sixth, the surface of the Earth is perfectly designed since it amazingly protects it from the rays of the Sun (BBC, n. d. ). This is the same reason why the Earth gets the right temperature while other planets are either extremely hot or excessively cold (BBC, n. d. ). Consequently, this also made it possible for water to be available in its liquid state (BBC, n. d. ). Seventh, even if it has been said that life exists in Mars, there are no evidences that support such yet (Fisher, 2005). Furthermore, telescopes are not that good enough to provide details as to whether life really exists there or not (Fisher, 2005). Moreover, to declare such a statement would entail a closer scrutiny of the aforementioned (Fisher, 2005). Eighth, unfortunately, nobody from Earth can leave for Mars (Fisher, 2005). In fact, even NASA say â€Å"no such mission will be attempted for several years† (Fisher, 2005). Last but not least, the Earth is the only planet which has a magnetic field that â€Å"turns away dangerous particles of space radiation† (Fisher, 2005). This means that other planets have a much lesser air and have a much colder temperature, thus living will be quite impossible (Fisher, 2005). References BBC. (n. d. ). Why is There Life on Earth? Retrieved August 22, 2007 from http://www. open2. net/science/finalfrontier/life/why. htm Fisher, D. (2005). Is there Life on Mars. Retrieved August 22, 2007 from http://spaceplace. nasa. gov/en/kids/phonedrmarc/2002_june. shtml