Ap World History Chapter 26 Notes

Chapter 26 Notes: Ottomans and Arabs Ottomans: Factors of Decline * Competition between elite * Weak rulers * Increasingly powerful Janissary corps * Increased competition from European merchants * Military challenges from the West * Ottomans vs. Russia (result: loss of Serbia, Greece, and most of Balkans) Survival * Played European rivals against each other * Selim III: reformed bureaucracy, new army and navy.Killed by janissaries in 1807 * Mahmud II: slaughtered Janissaries, families and religious allies, reforms based on Western influence (angered conservative religious leaders) * Tanzimat Reforms (1939-1876): series of Western influenced reforms in education, government, newspapers, and constitution. Introduction of railroad and telegraph systems (effect: communication increased, minority groups increased power) * Consequences: artisans negatively effected (thank you, Britain), women ‘s status remained stagnant Backlash to Reforms Conflict between old and new orders * Abdul Hamid: attempted to return to despotic governing.. nullified constitution, removed Westerners in power, continued SOME Western policies * Coup 1908: Ottoman Society for Union and Progress (Young Turks) fought for return to 1976 constitution, Sultan remained as figurehead. * War in North Africa: Ottomans lost Libya * Young Turks vs. Arabs * World War I: Turkey sided with Germany†¦. Arab Heartlands Fertile Crescent, Egypt, North AfricaIdentified with Ottoman rulers as Muslims, disliked Ottoman rule * Fear of Western rule Muhammad Ali, Westernizing Europe * Napoleon invades Egypt (1798): example of Western military power, eventually defeated by the British * Western reforms introduced (military, agriculture) little accomplished in the long-term * Khedives: Muhammad’s descendants, ruled Egypt until 1952 Issues and European Help * Cotton: solely dependent on export * Misuse of money by the elite Indebted to European powers * Suez Canal: introduces power struggle b/w European powers and Egypt (France and Britain) * Conservative Muslims resented Western presence * Liberal Muslims borrowed from West * Skirmish between Britain and Khedival army results in British domination (Egypt is NOT colonized) Egypt in Sudan * Sudan exploited, forced to reform slave trade * Jihad called against Egyptian rulers and Britain * Sudan successful in maintaining independence until 1896 * Western technology vs. Eastern technology

Managerial Leadership role for Nurses’ Use of Research Evidence Essay

The rapid noticeable change in healthcare delivery coupled with professional responsibilities of nurses to incorporate research evidence into their decision making underscores the need to understand the factors involved in implementing evidence-based practice. Linking current research findings with patients’ conditions, values, and circumstances is the defining feature of evidence-based practice. Significant and rational for using evidence in practice in nursing care Evidence-based practice (EBP) is an approach to health care where the best evidence possible is used in health professionals to make clinical decisions for individual. It involves complex and conscientious decision-making based on the available evidence, patient characteristics, situations, and preferences( McKibbon, 1998). Evidence-based practice in nursing is defined as â€Å"integration of the best evidence available, nursing expertise, and the values and preferences of the individuals, families and communities who are served† (â€Å"Sigma Theta Tau International position statement on evidence-based practice February 2007 summary,† 2008). The gist of evidence based health care is the integration of individual clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence and the values and expectations of the patient. There are different recourses of evidence which includes the following: †¢Research Evidence: which refers to methodologically sound, clinically relevant research about the effectiveness and safety of interventions, the accuracy of assessment measures, the strength of causal relationships and the cost-effectiveness of nursing interventions. †¢Patients Experiences and Preferences: identification and consideration of patient’s experiences and preferences are central to evidence-based decision making. Patients may have varying views about their health care options, depending on factors such as their condition personal values and experiences, degree of aversion to risk, resources, availability of information, cultural beliefs, and family influences. †¢ Clinical Expertise. AS the mixing of these different types of evidence may be influenced by factors in the practice context such as available resources, practice cultures and norms leadership styles, and data management, we must consider the level of evidence while using the research evidence to take the proper decision, look to appendix A which is represent the level of evidence. (Haynes, Devereaux, & Guyatt, 2002; Sigma Theta Tau International position statement on evidence-based practice February 2007 summary,† 2008). Evidence-based practice is a prominent issue in international health care which is intended to develop and promote an explicit and rational process for clinical decision making that emphasizing the importance of incorporating the best research findings into clinical care to ensure the best possible treatment and care derived from the best available evidence (E. Fineout-Overholt, Levin, & Melnyk, 2004) Once a new research is completed new evidence comes into play every day, technology advances, and patients present with unique challenges and personal experiences(Krainovich-Miller, Haber, Yost, & Jacobs, 2009). The nurse who bases practice on what was learned in basic nursing education soon becomes outdated, then becomes dangerous. Patients are not safe if they do not receive care that is based on the best evidence available to assist them at the time their needs arise, so all aspects of nursing, from education to management to direct patient care, should be based on the best evidence available at the time (Reavy & Tavernier, 2008). Through reviewing the literature there is a dramatically changing and advancing in the technology, available body information and quality of care provided, the rapid pace of change in healthcare delivery coupled with professional responsibilities of nurses to incorporate research evidence into their provided care and decision making underscores the need to understand the factors involved in implementing evidence-based practice (Bostrà ¶m, Ehrenberg, Gustavsson, & Wallin, 2009; Ellen Fineout-Overholt, Williamson, Kent, & Hutchinson, 2010; Gerrish, et al., 2011; Gifford, Davies, Edwards, Griffin, & Lybanon, 2007). Before that nurses must first believe that basing their practice on the best evidence will lead to the highest quality of care and outcomes for patients and their families(Ellen Fineout-Overholt, et al., 2010; Melnyk, et al., 2004). To let change occuring, â€Å"there must be a clear vision, written goals, and a well-developed strategic plan, including strategies for overcoming anticipated barriers along the course of the change†(Melnyk, et al., 2004). Emerging evidence indicates that the  leadership behaviors’ of nurse managers and administrators play an important role in successfully utlizing research evidence into clinical nursing(Amabile, Schatzel, Moneta, & Kramer, 2004; Antrobus & Kitson, 1999; Gifford, et al., 2007). There is a consistency between many researches that clamethe importance role of the leadership and leadership factors such as support and commitment of managers on the staff at the implication of EBP(Aitken, et al., 2011; Antrobus & Kitson, 1999; Melnyk, et al., 2004; Winch, Creedy, & Chaboyer, 2002). Nurse managers and administrators are responsible for the professional practice environments where nurses provide care, and are strategically positioned to enable nurses to use research. As being a role model, administrators must be committed to provide the necessary resources such as EBP mentors, computers, and EBP education. Some administrators have tried to encourage a change to EBP by integrating EBP competencies into clinical promotions. However, Miller (2010) argue that this extrinsic motivational strategy is unlikely to be as effective as when people are intrinsically motivated to change. Also there is a claimed that if people are involved in the strategic planning process, they are more likely to change to EBP. Intervention protocol for promoting nurses compliance to EBP As the Decision making in health care has changed dramatically, with nurses expected to make choices which based on the best available evidence and continually review them as new evidence comes to light (Pearson et al, 2007). Evidence-based practice involves the use of reliable, explicit and judicious evidence to make decisions about the care of individual patients. As an important role in providing safe and high quality care the nurses must take into account the quality of evidence, assessing the degree to which it meets the four principles of feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness and (Doody & Doody, 2011; Johnson, Gardner, Kelly, Maas, & McCloskey, 1991). What nurses need to operate in an evidence-based manner, is to be aware of how to introduce, develop and evaluate evidence-based practice. There more than one model for introducing the EBP in health care one of them that I chose is the Iowa model. The Iowa model focuses on organization and collaboration incorporating conduct use of research, along with other types of evidence(Doody & Doody, 2011; Johnson, et al., 1991). Since its origin in 1994, it has been continually referenced in nursing journal articles and extensively used in clinical research programmes. This model uses key triggers that can be either problem focused or knowledge focused, leading staff to question current nursing practices and whether care can be improved through the use of current research findings(Bauer, 2010; Doody & Doody, 2011; Johnson, et al., 1991; Titler, et al., 2001). By using Iowa Model; a question is generated either from a problem or as a result of becoming aware of new knowledge. Then a determination is made about the question relevance to organizational priorities. If the question posed is relevant, then the next step is to determine if there is any evidence to answer the question. Once the evidence has been examined, if there is sufficient evidence, then a pilot of the practice change is performed. If there is insufficient evidence, then the model supports that new evidence should be generated through research (Bauer, 2010). Step one of the Iowa model is to formulate a question. The question if asked in a PICO format is easier to use to search the literature. A PICO format uses the following method to frame the question: Frame question in PICO format †¢ P= Population of interest †¢ I= Intervention †¢ C= Comparison of what you will do †¢ O= Outcome(Hoogendam, de Vries Robbà ©, & Overbeke, 2012). The final step to the process is to share the outcomes of the practice change with other in the form of an article or poster. In using the Iowa model, there are seven steps to follow in detail as it is outlined in the figure shown in appendix B. Step 1: Selection of a topic In selecting a topic for evidence-based practice, several factors need to be considered. These include the priority and magnitude of the problem, its application to all areas of practice, its contribution to improving care, the availability of data and evidence in the problem area, the multidisciplinary nature of the problem, and the commitment of staff. Step 2: Forming a team The team is responsible for development, implementation, and evaluation. The composition of the team should be directed by the chosen topic and include all interested stakeholders. The process of changing a specific area of practice will be assisted by specialist staff team members, who can provide input and support, and discuss the practicality of guideline. A bottom-up approach to implementing evidence-based practice is essential as change is more successful when initiated by frontline practitioners, rather than imposed by management. Staff support is also important. Without the necessary resources and managerial involvement, the team will not feel they have the authority to change care or the support from their organization to implement the change in practice. To develop evidence-based practice at unit level, the team should draw up written policies, procedures and guidelines that are evidence based. Interaction should take place between the organization’s direct care providers and management such as nurse managers, to support these changes(Antrobus & Kitson, 1999; Cookson, 2005; Doody & Doody, 2011; Hughes, Duke, Bamford, & Moss, 2006). Step 3: Evidence retrieval Evidence should be retrieved through electronic databases such as Cinahl, Medline, Cochrane and up-to-date web site. Step 4: Grading the evidence To grade the evidence, the team will address quality areas of the individual research and the strength of the body of evidence overall (see appendix A for level of evidence). Step 5: Developing an Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) standard After a critique of the literature, team members come together to set recommendations for practice. The type and strength of evidence used in practice needs to be and based in the consistency of replicated studies. The design of the studies and recommendations made should be based on identifiable benefits and risks to the patient. This sets the standard of practice guidelines, assessments, actions, and treatment as required. These will be based on the group decision, considering the relevance for practice, its feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness, and effectiveness for practice. To support evidence-based practice, guidelines should be devised for the patient group, health screening issues addressed, and policy and procedural guidelines devised highlighting frequency and areas of screening. Evidence-based practice is ideally a patient centered approach, which when implemented is highly individualized. Step 6: Implementing EPB For implementation to occur, aspects such as written policy, procedures and guidelines that are evidence based need to be considered. There needs to be a direct interaction between the direct care providers, the organization, and its leadership roles (e.g. nurse managers) to support these changes. The evidence also needs to be diffused and should focus on its strengths and perceived benefits, including the manner in which it is communicated. This can be achieved through in-service education, audit and feedback provided by team members. Social and organizational factors can affect implementation and there needs to be support and value placed on the integration of evidence into practice and the application of research findings(Aitken, et al., 2011; Doody & Doody, 2011; Gerrish, et al., 2011; Reavy & Tavernier, 2008) Step 7: Evaluation Evaluation is essential to seeing the value and contribution of the evidence into practice. A baseline of the data before implementation would benefit, as it would show how the evidence has contributed to patient care. Audit and feedback through the process of implementation should be conducted and support from leaders and the organization is needed for success. Evaluation will highlight the programme’s impact. Barriers also need to be identified. Information and skill deficit are common barriers to evidence-based practice. A lack of knowledge regarding the indications and contraindications, current recommendations, and guidelines or results of research, has the potential to cause nurses to feel they do not have sufficient training, skill or expertise to implement the change. Awareness of evidence must be increased to promote the translation of evidence into practice . A useful method for identifying perceived barriers is the use of a force field analysis conducted by the team leader. Impact evaluation, which relates to the immediate effect of the intervention, should be carried out. However, some benefits may only become apparent after a considerable period of time. This is known as the sleep effect. On the contrary, the back-sliding effect could also occur where the intervention has a more or less immediate effect, which decreases over time. We must not to evaluate  too late, to avoid missing the measures of the immediate impact. Even if we do observe the early effect, we cannot assume it will last. Therefore, evaluation should be carried out at different periods during and following the intervention (Doody & Doody, 2011). Nursing leadership is an essential role for promoting evidence-based practice while the nurse managers and administrators are responsible for the professional practice environments where nurses provide care, are strategically positioned to enable nurses to use research. AS the leadership is essential for creating change for effective patient care the leadership behaviors are critical in successfully influencing the stimulation, acceptance, and utilization of innovations in organizations (Antrobus & Kitson, 1999; Gifford, et al., 2007). From my perspective I consider that the leaders and managers are the corner stone for utilizing researches and make practices based on evidence. By playing a role model for staff and handling the authority they have a magic force to urges the staff to use evidence based in there practice. Leaders can encourage the staff to use EBP in their practice in several ways such as increase the staff awareness, stimulating the intrinsic motivation of people, implying an effort to increase the will and internal desire to change through support encouragement, education, and appealing to a common purpose, monitoring performance, strengthen the body of knowledge that the staff have by forcing them to attend and participate in conferences, workshops & Journal clups, giving rewards to staff who collaborate in finding, utilizing and applying the EBP and make promotion and appraisal according to adherence to application of EBP. Implication of EBP For implementation to occur, aspects such as written policy, procedures and guidelines that are evidence based need to be considered. There needs to be a direct interaction between the direct care providers, the organization, and its leadership roles (e.g. nurse managers) to support these changes. The evidence also needs to be diffused and should focus on its strengths and perceived benefits, including the manner in which it is communicated. This can be achieved through in-service education, audit and feedback provided by team members. Social and organizational factors can affect implementation and there needs to be support and value placed on the integration of evidence into practice and the application of research findings. There are many ways that can be used to create an environment to implement and sustain an area of EBP such as : -Development of EBP champions; – Use of EBP mentors; – Provision of resources such as time and money; – Creation of a culture and expectation related to EBP; – Use of practical strategies including EBP workgroups, journal club and nursing rounds (Aitken, et al., 2011). EBP is being used in every aspect of the life, especially in the health care. The most common application of EBP is not only in intervention or treatment plane, but also the EBP process has been applied to making choices about diagnostic tests and protocols to insure thorough and accurate diagnosis, selecting preventive or harm-reduction interventions or programs, determining the etiology of a disorder or illness, determining the course or progression of a disorder or illness, determining the prevalence of symptoms as part of establishing or refining diagnostic criteria, completing economic decision-making about medical and social service programs. Nursing research proves pivotal to achieving Magnet recognition, yet the term research often evokes an hunch of mystery. Most of the policy, guidelines. And protocols that guide the work in the organization are based on evidance (Weeks & Satusky, 2005). Also, it is also useful to think of EBP as a much larger social movement. Drisko and Grady (2012) argue that at a macro-level, EBP is actively used by policy makers to shape service delivery and funding. EBP is impacting the kinds of interventions that agencies offer, and even shaping how supervision is done. EBP is establishing a hierarchy of research evidence that is privileging experimental research over other ways of knowing. There are other aspects of EBP beyond the core practice decision-making process that are re-shaping social work practice, social work education, and our clients’ lives. As such, it may be viewed as a public idea or a social movement at a macro level (â€Å"Evidence-Based Practice: Why Does It Matter?,† 2012). Cost effectiveness of using EBP in health care  Beneficial outcomes of the implementation and use of evidence-based practice by staff nurses include increased ability to offer safe, cost-effective,  and patient-specific interventions. Critical thinking skills and leadership abilities can also grow because of the use of evidence based practice; it is a way for staff nurses to become involved in change and regain ownership of their practice (Reavy & Tavernier, 2008). EBP used in clinical practice lead to make improvement in quality of provided care, which lead to improve the patients outcome, patient satisfaction and employee satisfaction. All these aspect are directly and indirectly lead to increase the cost effectiveness of the organization. When the patient satisfaction increased the patient acceptance to the organization increased, the employee satisfaction also increases and turnover will decrease all these things will increase the financial revenue to the organization. Also when using EBP in health care this will lead to decrease errors, complications and losses (e.g. compliance of evidence based infection control guidelines will lead to decrease incidence of infection, decrease length of stay an d decrease the cost of patient treatment), another example is using EBP to treat diabetic foot will result in decreasing the loses and increases the satisfaction so adherence to EBP will be costly effective when it result in better outcome, quality of care and satisfaction. Sometimes using EBP in certain area is costly; in such cases we must weighing the benefits ( immediately and after considered period of time) and mak e our decision based on the collected data and information. References: Aitken, L. M., Hackwood, B., Crouch, S., Clayton, S., West, N., Carney, D., et al. (2011). Creating an environment to implement and sustain evidence based practice: A developmental process. Australian Critical Care, 24(4), 244-254. Amabile, T. M., Schatzel, E. A., Moneta, G. B., & Kramer, S. J. (2004). Leader behaviors and the work environment for creativity: Perceived leader support. The Leadership Quarterly, 15(1), 5-32. Antrobus, S., & Kitson, A. (1999). Nursing leadership: influencing and shaping health policy and nursing practice. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 29(3), 746-753. Bauer, C. (2010). Evidence Based Practice:Demystifying the Iowa Model Providing optimal care through promotion of professional standard, networking and development, 25(2). Bostrà ¶m, A.-M., Ehrenberg, A., Gustavsson, J. P., & Wallin, L. (2009). Registered nurses’ application of evidence-based practice: a national survey. Journal Of Evaluation In Clinical Practice, 15(6), 1159-1163. Cookson, R. (2005). Evidence-based policy making in health care: what it is and what it isn’t. Journal Of Health Services Research & Policy, 10(2), 118-121. Doody, C. M., & Doody, O. (2011). Introducing evidence into nursing practice: using the IOWA model. British Journal of Nursing, 20(11), 661-664. Evidence-Based Practice: Why Does It Matter? (2012). ISNA Bulletin, 39(1), 6-10. Fineout-Overholt, E., Levin, R. F., & Melnyk, B. M. (2004). Strategies for advancing evidence-based practice in clinical settings. Journal of the New York State Nurses Association, 35(2), 28-32. Fineout-Overholt, E., Williamson, K. M., Kent, B., & Hutchinson, A. M. (2010). Teaching EBP: strategies for achieving sustainable organizational change toward evidence-based practice. Worldviews On Evidence-Based Nursing / Sigma Theta Tau International, Honor Society Of Nursing, 7(1), 51-53. Gerrish, K., Guillaume, L., Kirshbaum, M., McDonnell, A., Tod, A., & Nolan, M. (2011). Factors influencing the contribution of advanced practice nurses to promoting evidence-based practice among front-line nurses: findings from a cross-sectional survey. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 67(5), 1079-1090. Gifford, W., Davies, B., Edwards, N., Griffin, P., & Lybanon, V. (2007). Managerial leadership for nurses’ use of research evidence: an integrative review of the literature. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 4(3), 126-145. Haynes, R. B., Devereaux, P. J., & Guyatt, G. H. (2002). Clinical expertise in the era of evidence-based medicine and patient choice. ACP Journal Club, 136(2), A11-A14. Hoogendam, A., de Vries Robbà ©, P. F., & Overbeke, A. J. P. M. (2012). Comparing patient characteristics, type of intervention, control, and outcome (PICO) queries with unguided searching: a randomized controlled crossover trial. Journal Of The Medical Library Association: JMLA, 100(2), 121-126. Hughes, F., Duke, J., Bamford, A., & Moss, C. (2006). Enhancing nursing leadership: Through policy, politics, and strategic alliances. Nurse Leader, 4(2), 24-27. Johnson, M., Gardner, D., Kelly, K., Maas, M., & McCloskey, J. C. (1991). The Iowa Model: a proposed model for nursing administration. Nursing Economic$, 9(4), 255-262. Krainovich-Miller, B., Haber, J., Yost, J., & Jacobs, S. K. (2009). Evidence-based practice challenge: teaching critical appraisal of systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines to graduate students. Journa l of Nursing Education, 48(4), 186-195. Melnyk, B. M., Fineout-Overholt, E., Feinstein, N. F., Li, H., Small, L., Wilcox, L., et al. (2004). Nurses’ perceived knowledge, beliefs, skills, and needs regarding evidence-based practice: implications for accelerating the paradigm shift. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 1(3), 185-193. Reavy, K., & Tavernier, S. (2008). Nurses reclaiming ownership of their practice: implementation of an evidence-based practice model and process. Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 39(4), 166-172. Sigma Theta Tau International position statement on evidence-based practice February 2007 summary. (2008). Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 5(2), 57-59. Titler, M. G., Kleiber, C., Steelman, V. J., Rakel, B. A., Budreau, G., Everett, C. L. Q., et al. (2001). The Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice to Promote Quality Care. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 13(4), 497-509. Weeks, S. K., & Satusky, M. J. (2005). Demystifying nursing research: to encourage compliance with Magnet accreditation standards, f urther your facility’s research initiatives. Nursing Management, 36(2), 42. Winch, S., Creedy, D., & Chaboyer, W. (2002). Governing nursing conduct: the rise of evidence-based practice. Nursing Inquiry, 9(3), 156-161.

Mariano Azuela’s novel “Los de Abajo” Essay

Mariano Azuela’s novel â€Å"Los de Abajo†, titled â€Å"The Underdogs† by Enrique Munguà ­a Jr., in his English translation, has been hailed as the novel of the Mexican revolution. In this novel Azuela creates characters representative of the two factions that are at variance, the revolutionaries and the federalists. The novel is divided into three parts and each part subdivided into chapters, the first part being the longest and the third being the shortest. Enrique Munguà ­a’s translation is about 140 pages in length and many have noted that this novel is one of Azuela’s shortest. The novel is, however, quite entertaining and it maintains the readers’ attention throughout. For anyone interested in a serious study of Mexican history, this is an essential novel to read as it gives a perspective into the social aspects of the revolution that few textbooks can capture. The book has historical significance because it gives a description of the Mexican revolution from the perspective of people who were directly affected by and involved in the revolutionary process. Literally the title of the novel in Spanish â€Å"Los de Abajo† translates to mean those from or at the bottom. This I believe is a very appropriate title and in itself captures Azuela’s primary argument that he maintains throughout the novel. The revolutionaries and the federalists are constantly juxtaposed against each other in the novel but Azuela, through the eyes of Luis Cervantes, allows the reader to see that the two groups are not that dissimilar. Both factions display distrust, treachery, moral decadence and kill so mercilessly that it is no wonder that the words of the title â€Å"Los de Abajo† is used in the novel to refer to both the rebels and the federalists. Early in Part I chapter three when Demetrio led his men into the first ambush of the government troops he instructs his men to â€Å"Get those coming up from under! Los de Abajo! Get the underdogs!† be screamed. Later on in chapter 6 the narrator reflects of Luis Cervantes, on the first night of his joining the revolutionaries, that â€Å"Did not the sufferings of the underdogs, of the disinherited masses, move him to the core?†¦ the subjugated, the beaten and baffled.† The events in the novel mirror the Mexican revolution of 1910. The main plot of the story is that of a peasant farmer, Demetrio Macias who, after having suffered at the hands of the federalists, decides to join Pancho Villa’s revolutionary army. A defector of the government army, Luis Cervantes – elite and educated, joins Demetrio’s troop because of his support of the ideals he believed the revolutionaries espoused. Azuela, however, uses this character as his mouthpiece and, in his disillusionment that the revolutionaries were not fighting based on ideologies; the reader gets an understanding of Azuela’s perspective. He, like Cervantes, abandoned the struggle and migrated to the United States after having worked along with Pancho Villa as a military doctor believing his ideals to have been betrayed. One of the main lessons that Azuela delivers here is relevant in so many areas of life. His major argument in presenting his novel is that without purpose, focus, planning and proper management, even the most worthwhile efforts will prove to be futile. The most positive aspect of Azuela’s novel is that it was written while the struggles in the revolution were still going on. Beginning in 1914 the novel began to be published as a series in a Texas newspaper in installments though it was not until 1925 that it began to gain worldwide attention. This novel details the battles in the Mexican revolution from the perspective of the author who himself was a witness of these very events. Prior to moving to Texas, Azuela supported the revolutionary movement by offering his medical services to Pancho Villa’s army. In such a position he was exposed to the ills of the revolutionary battle, more so from the perspective of the revolutionaries. Azuela was therefore in a fitting position to discuss the Mexican revolution because he too had been very intimately involved in the process. However, while this novel bears relevance to the themes that were facing the Mexicans at the time when they were most involved in the revolution, it fails to give a complete picture of the revolutionary process. The problem with the novel is precisely because it was written so close to the actual events. This prevents the reader from having a total picture of the ‘before’, the ‘during’ and the ‘after’ of the revolution. In the same way that Demetrio’s eyes remain ‘leveled in an eternal glance’ at the end of the novel, so does the battle between the revolutionaries and the federalists give the impression that it will last eternally without resolution or victory for either side. The tone of Azuela’s novel therefore comes off as being very pessimistic. Failure and doom is the only outcome of the revolutionary struggle and no one seems to be winning. Azuela’s conclusion here seems to be rather generalized. Authors who have written about the revolution subsequent to Azuela have had the benefit of seeing the long-term results of the struggle which revealed much more positive effects than what were immediately obvious while the struggles were still going on. REFERENCES Azuela, Mariano (1963). The Underdogs (Enrique Munguà ­a Jr. Trans.). The U.S.A.: Penguin Group. (Original work published 1916).

High speed stereo imaging techniques for flame studies Research Proposal

High speed stereo imaging techniques for flame studies - Research Proposal Example Researchers have invented several laser sources currently in use for several purposes. According to Blaum (2003), these first laser sources are expensive though efficient; hence the need to improve them in terms of reducing the cost while maintaining efficiency. Caspani (2013) says examples of novel laser sources include optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) and diode-pumped Nd lasers. These laser sources have certain properties and behavior as explained in the following paragraphs. Optical parametric oscillators involve optical cavities that resonate at comb frequencies. They have ultra-small volume due to their optical cavities with dimensions in microns. The ultra-small volume results in increased sensitivity to heat induced by a pump laser; hence shifting the cavity resonance. Chang (2010) says this needs continuous manipulation of the pump wavelength in order to track the thermal drift. When pumped by an appropriate external laser, the micro cavities generate multiple, equally spaced new frequencies through nonlinear optical processes. Diode-pumped Nd lasers include Nd: YVO4, Nd: GdVO4, Nd: FAP, Nd: SFAP, and Nd: SVAP and are all crystals in nature. According to Liu (2014), the crystals belong to two different types of structures. Both Nd: YVO4 and Nd: GdVO4 have the zircon (vanadate) structure which is tetragonal with a space group of141/amd while Nd: FAP, Nd: SFAP and Nd: SVAP have the apatite structure which is hexagonal with space group of P63/m. They all have high emission-section lifetime product, which means they should have a low threshold. According to Wirsig (2010), the temperature dependence (dn/dT) is positive for the vanadates while negative for the apatites meaning the vanadates have higher thermal sensing than the apatites. According to Patterson (1989), the thermal conductivity of the vanadates goes up to 2.5 times than the apatites;

ENG DB 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

ENG DB 5 - Essay Example In â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†, Hawthorne presents the idea that the Puritan religion, because of these beliefs, has lost all sense of meaning to the younger generations. In his journey through the dark woods and the events he witnesses there, Goodman Brown’s steps symbolize Hawthorne’s own doubts and observations about his religion based on his knowledge of what has gone before and the inevitable result of the Puritanical teachings he’s been part of. As Young Goodman Brown sets off on his dark journey, his young wife Faith implores him not to go, sensing some kind of immediate peril. The emphasis on young here indicates the journey Goodman Brown is proposing to undertake is a journey to find the necessary conversion experience deemed important in the Puritan religion of Hawthorne’s time. Without having gone through such a transformation, individual members were not considered to be full-fledged members of the congregation. As a newly married man, it would be among Goodman Brown’s chief concerns to establish himself as a member of the community and take his proper role as the head of a household. Yet, the fear expressed by Faith indicates there is a hidden peril in undertaking such a journey. Her warning, â€Å"may you find all well when you come back† (293), seems to indicate the peril does not apply strictly to Goodman Brown as he sets off on his journey, but for Faith as well in being left behind, alone in the darkness. The sense of foreboding in testing his own faith is further emphasized as Goodman Brown enters the forest â€Å"on his present evil purpose. He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest, which barely stood aside to let the narrow path creep through, and closed immediately behind† (294). In this solitary journey, Hawthorne indicates that the doctrine of purposefully seeking challenges to a faith already weakened by church dictates is a highly dangerous proposition with the

Bloody System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bloody System - Essay Example As for the collection of the samples themselves, according to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, "starting in 1985, the American Red Cross and Food and Drug Administration policies prohibit accepting blood donations from gay/bisexual men, specifically from any "male who has had sex with another male since 1977, even once,"[5] or from IV drug users or recent immigrants from certain nations with high rates of HIV infection," ("Donation" p.1). This type of screening was found to be imperative in the quest of ensuring that the samples which were collected were not at any risk of contamination. Other disease typically checked for in the US screenings would be Hepatitis B, the antibody to Hepatitis C "anti-HCV" as well as the Nucleic Acid testing for HCV "anti-HCV" ("Donation p.1). The most notable difference when it comes to US and UK donation policy would be the manner in which how often individuals are allowed to donate their blood.

Steel building design Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Steel building design - Coursework Example At the same time, the design should also ensure and provide the necessary comfort, energy-efficiency and safety to the inhabitants. To attain the fundamental building requirements, it is then necessary to integrate adequate structural resistance to building designs. The primary purpose of this is to sustain the actions (i.e. loads, imposed displacements, thermal strains) and influences resistance so that the building will remain serviceable and durable (Brettle, 2009). Meanwhile, in order to secure the structural safety of the building during its intended life, it should be designed and executed with appropriate degrees of reliability. Further, it should also be built in an economic sustainable approach in order to meet its required serviceability structure or structural element standard. Meaning it should fit for the use or function it is required whilst providing comfort and physical aesthetic. Moreover, building designs also incorporated robustness to ensure that the built environ ment is resistant to damages cause by events such as explosion, impact and consequences of human errors (Brettle, 2009). Likewise, it is also important to consider the snow loads, wind actions, thermal actions, and other accidental actions in the building designs in order to integrate appropriate building resistant techniques and strategies. The snow load capacity of the built environment is very important to determine in order to integrate in the design the characteristic values applicable for ground snow load for the site and the imposed roof snow load and shape coefficient. The EN 1991-1-3 (Annex C) of the UK Eurocode provides the snow load map which would be used to deter snow loads for building construction. Meanwhile, the Annex B of the same Eurocode also provide the benchmarks applicable for present roof shape coefficients including other information for exceptional snow drifts, multi-span pitched roofs, roofs abutting and close to taller structures, roofs with projections, o bstructions and parapets. It is also important to note the applicable wind actions in building designs. The EN 1991-1-4 of the UK Eurocode served as guideline in order to determine the natural wind actions during the construction phase of the building. The code also included other information such values of wind actions, value of the basic wind velocity, wind speed, peak velocity pressure, and wind pressures and forces. Likewise, thermal actions should also be considered in the design in order to address the seasonal climatic changes. The characteristic values of thermal action are enclosed in the EN 1991-1-5 of the UK Eurocode. The code is also served as temperature reference especially when steel sub-grade materials are utilized in the building construction. However, it is recommended to further refer to the EN 1993-1-10 of the Eurocode to meet the required standard. Moreover, the UK Eurocode also provided general principles and rules especially during construction and execution o f the building works in order to avoid and prevent accidents in the work site. These guidelines are enclosed in the EN 1991-1-6 of the UK code which included temporary works i.e. cofferdams, falsework, scaffolding and propping system. It also noticeable that new building designs utilized structural materials that are fire resistant. Aside from this, building designers also integrated adequate built-in fire safety measures such as