Trojan War :: essays research papers

The Trojan War took place more than a few thousand years ago in ancient Greece. It was a war waged by the Greeks on the city of Troy. This war was said to have lasted ten years. It was caused by the abduction of Helen by Paris. Helen at the time was married to King Menalaus of Sparta. To avenge the kidnapping King Agamemnon of Mycenae and the warriors of Odysseus and Archilles followed Helen and Paris back to Troy and waged war upon the city for ten years. One day, the warriors thought of an idea. They built a giant hallow wooden horse witch everyone piled into. Then they set it outside the gates of Troy. When Paris saw this horse he thought it was a gift and he had won the war he brought into the middle of the city. When night fell the belligerent men inside crawled out and conquered the city of Troy, then was the ten year war finally over. Although the Trojan war was not real, it was based on a another war at Troy, it has taught us some lessons in the field of strategy and war fighting. In the following passage you will read more about what the Trojan War and Horse has taught us. The Trojan War mostly taught us about strategies of winning wars. The basic lesson was that of, the more keen and cunning the ideas the better the chance you can have of winning. We have taken the lesson an applied it to each year and century. Starting with things like simple bow and arrows, we have took that and made snipers. Then came things like guns although at first they were hard to use now we have guns that could kill from yards upon yards away. Even more recent we have infer red, "smart" bombs, tanks, bombers, helicopters, and also computers can be

Article Critique on “Black Hair” Essay

This story discussed the life of a sixteen year old man who wanted to become independent in his life but does not know how to start. The protagonist of the story was the narrator. He showed his life in a blurred path where he could not able how to distinguish the facts and fictions of life. It means that he is still incapable of being a productive individual in his society because he himself could not understand how his life works in the general perspective of human nature. Though he knows how things work, he could not manage these things in normal and proper way. Because of this, the protagonist still need to learn from what is true, right, and wrong from everything that is beyond his reach so that there would be greater knowledge and self-esteem that would grow in his identity. Based on my reading in the whole story, I can say that the whole setup of the story tackles the issues and personal identity of the persona. He pitied himself because he did not know what he is doing in his surroundings. He does not know how to look for a right job, right home, and right place to go in his everyday living. This became the conflict of the story. Everything was focused in his ways and perspectives as neophyte in his journey of life. At the end of the story, he remained clueless with those things that he encountered even the coke machine where he could not find one when he is thirsty. The implication of the story is that the author showed the angst of a young man who seeks independence in the world of real life. When we are with our family, we could not feel the pressure of having a life. We always think of the better things that we could manage but through this story, we tend to realize how things work when we are already alone. It shows that life is always a cycle and a chosen ground. When we choose to ignore the things that we encounter during our early days, it would not give us the privilege to know what true life is because we are incapable of living – to understand and to learn things around us. Reference Soto, G. Black Hair pp. 296-302

Blunders and Thanks

I have always been fascinated by the rich and famous. They looked so much in control of every situation they were in. They exude a certain aura of power and many people just simply adore them. I will not try to pretend that I knew a lot of this people but in the community where I was living, a youngish couple who owned the largest construction supply business happened to live there, in a three-storey building and I often watched them with awed interest. I have bought a few things in their store and their office paneled in glass looked so grand.The second floor of the building is a showcase for home furnishings and looking at the prices of their goods only the rich could afford them, I’d mused. I learned from people talking that the third floor is their residence and as people talk, they said that it was a state of the art home, deserving for the very rich. The husband drove the grandest car in this part of our town and every morning I watch him drove to some place, attache cas e in hand, looking impressive and successful. The young wife stayed and manned the office and she too took the kind of self-assured look her husband radiates. The young couple was my inspiration.I would like to own a business one day and like them, I would be powerful too. From their looks, I believed that money brings satisfaction and contentment, happiness too. A lot of times when I daydream, I would picture myself in the fashion of the young couple’s situation, very much contented and in control over my business, employees and in every deal I have for my business. Judging from the meager income I earned from my job, the prospect looked bleak and oftentimes, I would feel frustrated. I was taking the ferry to the city and while waiting for the boat to leave, I was engaged with those day dreams again.I was deep into it when I noticed that familiar car getting at the 2 gangplank and the driver hurrying to open the passenger seat. Out came the young wife of the businessman carr ying a small bag. She is taking the boat and she is alone. She looked so chic with that small black dress and oversized Jackie O sunglasses. I lost her when she gets into the ferry. I was about to continue with my fantasy when a familiar voice roused me. â€Å"Is this seat taken? † It was her, looking a bit lost. â€Å"No,† I told her as she sat beside me. I am taking this trip alone. My husband arranged a car to fetch me at the pier. You go to our store sometimes didn’tyou? † I am surprised she noticed. â€Å"Yes,† I told her. I would have added, â€Å"I am your fan† least I would look stupid. â€Å"I am going to my husband’s youngest brother’s funeral. † â€Å"He will be buried today. † â€Å"Yes, she continued without waiting for me to ask, he is very young† â€Å"He is a special child you know and his family committed him into an institution. † There is a peculiar way about the way she talked to m e. We were not talking really. She expected me to listen and be attentive to her chat away. She did not even look at me. She talked about being bored to death at the store. She complained about the monotonous chores she have todo every day of her life including Sunday lunches at her husband’s family country house. She confessed about being jealous at people who have time to spend weekends at bars and cafes having good times with friends and meeting strangers. In-between confessions and complains she would get a call from somebody and they would talk for a minute or two. Some of those calls were from their office and others from the party of the funeral judging from her conversations on her phone. I was surprised with my reaction with her. The very first time I am nearest the person I so admired and she talked to me of things I considered so personal andbetween close friends only yet I do not feel the inspiration I expected to feel. I felt so drained. I 3 felt that this woman seeped my strength like a vampire sucking blood from her victims. The boats horn sounded signaling we have reached our destination. â€Å"You are going to the city aren’t you? † she asked, â€Å"You can share a ride with me, I’d be bored alone in that car,† she added. Instinct told me to say no and I did. â€Å"I am meeting someone in the pier,† I lied. â€Å"I would take the bus but thanks anyway and leave hurriedly away. â€Å"So much for the rich and famous,† I thought so amused.

Thuy-Khue Tran Ms. Takao Essays

Thuy-Khue Tran Ms. Takao Essays Thuy-Khue Tran Ms. Takao Paper Thuy-Khue Tran Ms. Takao Paper They have covered most memorable and important stories but they do it with a media bias. Behind their words lies a tone of persuasion; they hope to influence us in one direction or another. Since the early days of the newspaper, there have been racial, political, and class bias. Hitler bombarded his public with news of immoral Jews during World War II (Weikart 158). The constant persuasion in the newspaper led the people to believe his words as truth. The media brainwashed them into believing the fictional stories. Although this is an extreme example in history, journalism bias still exists in our current news. As a result we can see things not as they are, but we can see things how others view them. Other people can influence our thoughts and beliefs with their opinions. Like World War II, politicians today use propaganda to persuade and sway the public. People rely on the news as a source of information, but some do not realize that through the communication of facts and data, there also is also a transfer of bias. In the 17th century, Europeans believed that mice originated from clothes under a warm hearth because scientists and researchers at the time supported abiogenesis, spontaneous life. The image of mice running to and emerging from the hearth fell on blind eyes. The society of the 17th century in Europe followed the views of others and ignored their own sense of sight and logic because the information originated from professionals in the field of biology. However, it is possible to adopt other peoples views as your own; therefore, it becomes a part of who we are. If we embed someone elses original belief in our list of certainties, then it also becomes one of our beliefs. However, the world is not an utopia where every ones thoughts, ideals, and opinions are identical. We have a predisposition for language to communicate their ideas; therefore, they have a predisposition for bias. Our biases may originate from our innate emotions. If we feel pride, disgust, anger, and happiness then we convey these emotions through our actions. Feelings may be temporary or long lasting but they are still powerful influences on our understanding of knowledge. Emotions can cloud or clarify our understanding depending on our biases. As in the case of the music industry in South Korea, a popular singer was recently exiled from his company and country because he wrote I hate Korea four years ago on a social networking website. Citizens in South Korea were upbraided and demanded that he be reprimanded by sending him back to America. Four years ago as an American immigrant, he was separated from his family, friends, and the culture that he was accustomed to; thus he wrote the words I hate Korea. Although the word hate is exchanged casually in America, it is a great insult in South Korea. The citizens of South Korea have a overwhelming sense of pride for their country and are very nationalistic. As a result, they became angry at a remark made four years ago. Emotions took hold of the media and people of a whole country; their feelings of anger and resentment skewed their understanding of what seems like a small issue. However, this may be a case of lost in translation and cultural differences. The things that we see such as beliefs, information, people and problems can be viewed objectively. As a counter claim, we can assume that some people do not have to sift through their prejudices simply because they do not have any. The counterclaim considers if it is possible to think independently of our inclinations. Do we behave according to nature or nurture? Humans are programmed by nature to be influenced by experiences, emotions, culture, and creed so they need to sort out the filters that create uncertainties and distortions in our minds, therefore refuting the counterclaim. In the case of the observer effect, the presence of an observer may make people nervous or embarrassed by his or her attention and this may lead them to change their behavior (Lagemaat 261). The purpose of human sciences is to dissect why and how humans think and feel. Humans are born unbiased and blank as a slate a shell without beliefs or opinions. As humans age and grow, they become biased with the accumulation of knowledge. However, human sciences do not have a method in predicting the trends in human behavior because each individual has different experiences, backgrounds and religions. The languages that we speak, the senses we have, the culture we belong to, and the emotions that we rely upon play essential roles in peoples understanding of how things really are. An individual must recognize the existence of these filters in order to identify reality which leads to the removal or altercation of the filter. Reflection, analysis, education play important roles in the process of the way we analyze and react to external and internal conflicts. People need to break apart the mechanics of perception and interpretation so they can see past the factors that block them from the pursuit of knowledge. Goode , Erica, and Olivier Messiaen. When People See a Sound and Hear a Color. The New York Times. 23 February 1999 late ed. : 3F. Van de Lagemaat, Richard. Theory of Knowledge: for the IB Diploma. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2005.

Common Stereotypes About Africa

Common Stereotypes About Africa In the 21st century, there’s never been more focus on Africa than now. Thanks to the revolutions sweeping through North Africa and the Middle East, Africa has the world’s attention. But just because all eyes happen to be on Africa at the moment doesn’t mean myths about this part of the world have been dispelled. Despite the intense interest in Africa today, racial stereotypes about it persist. Do you have any misperceptions about Africa? This list of common myths about Africa aims to clear them up. Africa Is a Country What’s the No. 1 stereotype about Africa? Arguably, the biggest stereotype is that Africa’s not a continent, but a country. Ever hear someone refer to African food or African art or even the African language? Such individuals have no idea that Africa’s the second largest continent in the world. Instead, they view it as a tiny country with no distinct traditions, cultures or ethnic groups. They fail to realize that referring to, say, African food sounds just as odd as referring to North American food or the North American language or the North American people. Africa’s home to 53 countries, including island nations along the continent’s coast. These countries contain diverse groups of people who speak a variety of languages and practice a wide range of customs. Take Nigeria- Africa’s most populous country. Among the nation’s population of 152 million, more than 250 distinct ethnic groups live. While English is the former British colonys official language, the dialects of ethnic groups indigenous to the West African nation, such as Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo, are commonly spoken as well. To boot, Nigerians practice Christianity, Islam and indigenous religions. So much for the myth that all Africans are alike. The most populated nation on the continent certainly proves otherwise. All Africans Look the Same If you turn to popular culture for images of people on the African continent, you’re likely to notice a pattern. Time and time again, Africans are depicted as if they’re one and the same. You’ll see Africans portrayed wearing face paint and animal print and all with nearly pitch black skin. The controversy surrounding singer Beyonce Knowles’ decision to don black face for French magazine L’Officiel is a case in point. In a photo shoot for the magazine described as â€Å"a return to her African roots,† Knowles darkened her skin to a deep brown, wore splotches of blue and beige paint on her cheekbones and leopard print clothing, not to mention a necklace made out of bone-like material. The fashion spread sparked public outcry for a number of reasons. For one, Knowles portrays no particular African ethnic group in the spread, so which roots did she pay tribute to during the shoot? The generic African heritage L’Officiel claims Knowles honors in the spread really just amounts to racial stereotyping. Do some groups in Africa wear face paint? Sure, but not all do. And the leopard print clothing? That’s not a look favored by indigenous African groups. It simply highlights that the Western world commonly views Africans as tribal and untamed. As for the skin-darkening- Africans, even sub-Saharan ones, have a range of skin tones, hair textures, and other physical traits. This is why some people pegged L’Officiel’s decision to darken Knowles’ skin for the shoot unnecessary. After all, not every African is black-skinned. As Dodai Stewart of Jezebel.com put it: â€Å"When you paint your face darker in order to look more ‘African,’ aren’t you reducing an entire continent, full of different nations, tribes, cultures, and histories, into one brown color?† Egypt Isn’t Part of Africa Geographically, there’s no question: Egypt sits squarely in Northeast Africa. Specifically, it borders Libya to the West, Sudan to the South, the Mediterranean Sea to the North, the Red Sea to the East and Israel and the Gaza Strip to the Northeast. Despite its location, Egypt is often not described as an African nation, but as Middle Eastern- the region where Europe, Africa, and Asia meet. This omission stems mostly from the fact that Egypt’s population of more than 80 million is heavily Arab- with up to 100,000 Nubians in the South- a drastic difference from the population of sub-Saharan Africa. Complicating matters is that Arabs tend to be classified as Caucasian. According to scientific research, the ancient Egyptians- known for their pyramids and sophisticated civilization- were neither European nor sub-Saharan African biologically, but a genetically distinct group. In one study cited by John H. Relethford in the Fundamentals of Biological Anthropology, ancient skulls belonging to populations from sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, the Far East and Australia were compared to determine the racial origin of ancient Egyptians. If Egyptians did indeed originate in Europe, their skull samples would closely match those of ancient Europeans. Researchers found, however, that this wasn’t the case. But the Egyptian skull samples weren’t similar to those of sub-Saharan Africans either. Rather, â€Å"the ancient Egyptians are Egyptian,† Relethford writes. In other words, Egyptians are an ethnically unique people. These people happen to be situated on the African continent, though. Their existence reveals Africa’s diversity. Africa Is All Jungle Never mind that the Sahara Desert makes up one-third of Africa. Thanks to Tarzan films and other cinematic portrayals of Africa, many mistakenly believe that jungle occupies most of the continent and that ferocious beasts roam its entire landscape. Black activist Malcolm X, who visited several African countries before his assassination in 1965, took issue with this depiction. He not only discussed Western stereotypes of Africa but also how such stereotypes resulted in black Americans distancing themselves from the continent. â€Å"They always project Africa in a negative light: jungle savages, cannibals, nothing civilized,† he  pointed out. In reality, Africa houses  a wide range of vegetation zones. Only a small portion of the continent includes jungle or rainforests. These tropical areas are located along the Guinea Coast and in the Zaire River Basin. Africa’s largest vegetation zone is actually savanna or tropical grassland. Moreover, Africa’s home to urban centers with populations in the multimillions, including Cairo, Egypt; Lagos, Nigeria; and Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. By 2025, more than half of the African population will reside in cities, according to  some estimates. Black American Slaves Came From All Over Africa Largely due to the misconception that Africa’s a country, it’s not uncommon for people to assume that black Americans have ancestors from all over the continent. In reality, the slaves traded throughout the Americas originated specifically along Africa’s western coast. For the first time, Portuguese sailors who’d previously traveled to Africa for gold returned to Europe with 10 African slaves in 1442, PBS  reports. Four decades later, the Portuguese built a trading post on the Guinean shore called Elmina, or â€Å"the mine† in Portuguese. There, gold, ivory, and other goods were traded along with African slaves- exported for weapons, mirrors, and cloth, to name a few. Before long, Dutch and English ships began arriving at Elmina for African slaves as well. By 1619, Europeans had forced a million slaves into the Americas. Altogether, 10 to 12 million Africans were forced into servitude in the New World. These Africans were â€Å"either captured in warring raids or kidnapped and taken to the port by African slave traders,† PBS notes. Yes, West Africans played a key role in the transatlantic slave trade. For these Africans, slavery was nothing new, but African slavery in no way resembled North and South American slavery. In his book, the  African Slave Trade, Basil Davidson likens slavery on the African continent to European serfdom. Take the Ashanti Kingdom of West Africa, where â€Å"slaves could marry, own property and even own slaves,† PBS explains. Slaves in the United States enjoyed no such privileges. Moreover, while slavery in the U.S. was linked to skin color- with blacks as servants and whites as masters- racism was not the impetus for slavery in Africa. Plus, like indentured servants, slaves in Africa were typically released from bondage after a set amount of time. Accordingly, slavery in Africa never lasted across generations. Wrapping Up Many myths  about Africa date back centuries. In the modern day, new stereotypes about the continent have emerged. Thanks to a sensationalistic news media, people worldwide associate Africa with famine, war, AIDS, poverty and political corruption. This isn’t to say that such problems don’t exist in Africa. Of course, they do. But even in a nation as wealthy as the United States, hunger, abuse of power and chronic illness factor into everyday life. While the continent of Africa faces enormous challenges, not every African is in need, nor is every African nation in crisis. Source Relethford, John. Fundamentals of Biological Anthropology. 2 edition, McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages, October 18, 1996.

Network Security and Different Ways to Secure Networks Essay

Network Security and Different Ways to Secure Networks - Essay Example The researcher states that assigning a password and an ID to a network is often called one-factor authentication while the two-factor authentication has often been identified when the account or network is secured by a security-token for e.g. an ATM Card or a mobile phone; and the three-factor authentication is distinguished by the use of the security measures such as a fingerprint or a retinal scan (de Jong et al, nd). It can be further secured by a firewall so that it could only be available to specific users of that network. Most of these utilities are being used by banks, armed forces, and, intelligence agencies etc. The Need for Network Security In practice, network security is an important part of many networks at homes, at public places, at colleges and universities and at various offices such as banks, stock exchanges, all kinds of multinational firms and other businesses, law enforcement agencies and even the Government offices and departments where important information is stored. The level of security needed and indeed, in use, varies from network to network and it depends on things such as the sensitivity of the data, the structure of the network, the size of the network and the threats to the network. A home user, for example, may not need to employ the same in-depth means of securing the network as, for example, a large multinational bank would. The reason for that is that there’s less sensitive data on a home network, there are fewer threats and there is not much at risk compared to the network of a bank. Now let’s take a look at the history of network security. The need for network security has been around since the time computers have existed, although this need was further emphasized after one of the most famous computer hackers of the world, Kevin Mitnick was arrested and convicted in 1995. Even before that, there were reported crimes related to computers and networks. The requirement for networks and networked computers to be s ecured was further enhanced after the Internet was made publically available in the 1990s. And gradually, in order to protect against loss of intellectual property, monetary loss, loss of sensitive customer data, invasions into personal privacy, disruptions to the working networks of large multinational firms and banks etc, further ways to secure the networks are being implemented. There are various ways in which the security of a network can be breached. In broader terms, the attacks can be categorized in two forms first one is a passive attack in which the hacker disturbs the travelling of data using the same network and in active attack the hacker uses different commands to change the network’s normal working. Both these attacks can have various forms. Some examples are Wiretapping, Idle scan, Port scanning, a Denial of Service attack, spoofing, ARP poisoning, smurf attack, heap overflow and SQL injection. Further to that, other forms of attacks such as Trojan Horses, Viru ses, Worms or Logic Bombs are also sometimes used. Ways to Secure Networks Securing a network depends on the type of network structure in place and the level of security which needs to be implemented.

Marketing 3000 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Marketing 3000 - Essay Example I have observed that generally, consumers are very price sensitive, especially during times of financial and economic crises. The most effective strategy that works to generate sales, repeated product purchase, and gain consistent patronage is if organizations implement a low price, yet high quality strategy. For basic necessities of homogeneous products (like soap, detergents, bread, coffee, milk, eggs), consumers with low purchasing power would opt to select those with the lowest costs. In supermarkets, therefore, organizations that aim to generate more volume in terms of revenues apply the least cost strategy. For example, the single-served coffee is gaining popularity in contemporary times. This market has been dominated by Nescafe where a 12-pack Taster’s Choice House Blend Instant Coffee costs $12.16. To enable to enter this market, Starbucks, which is known for its specialty coffee, previously served only in its respective coffee stores, have launched their single served Via in 12-pack pouches runs $9.95. When I learned of this move, of course, as a customer who perceived Starbucks as a projecting an image of high-priced, high quality coffee, definitely purchased Via, which as even lower in price than Nescafe’s Taster’s Choice. In another experience, the Cola wars between Coke and Pepsi had also undergone some price wars in the past. I remember being a Coke enthusiast ever since I can remember being allowed to drink carbonated drinks. Pegged almost at the same price, Coke and Pepsi have decided not to implement any price war because the strategy would be detrimental to both. However, there was a time when Pepsi came up with a new promotional strategy that enticed consumers to win cash prices by collecting specially printed Pepsi crowns. This promotion led to shifts in consumers’ purchases from Coke to Pepsi, despite the same price due to the offer of hopes to possibly win something big. When things like