The Deerslayer Essays - The Deerslayer, Cinema Of The United States

The Deerslayer Judith vs. Hetty Sisters throughout history have been to eachother: friends, playmates, adversaries, confidantes, soul mates and ?significant others?, but the most important bond they share is their sisterly love. This bond stands out and sets it apart from all others. The sisterly love that Judith and Hetty Hutter possessed never seemed to reach its full potential. This may be due to the fact that they were sisters who were different in every way possible. This sisterly conflict creates great diversity and themes for the book ?The DeerSlayer? by James Fenimore Cooper. Due to the fact that their mother died when they were young, Judith being the older one, naturally took the leadership and mothering responsibilities over the two. They had been raised by their father Tom Hetter on Lake Glimmerglass, New York. Each sister, in her own aspect was a leader and a follower. Though Hetty in her own aspect took on the missionary duties of converting the Mingos. Physically and personality wise the two were as opposite as north and south. Judith was tall, dark, and beautiful, always attracting the military men nearby. Hetty on the contrary was short, pale, and rather plain looking. Despite the judgements on their appearances, their personalities proved to be very contrasting and conflicting. Preferences of lifestyle created much conflict and unspoken bitterness between the two girls. Hetty preferred to life a simple and moral life, while sharing her Christian faith with the Mingos, in hopes to convert them. Judith on the other hand wanted to go to bigger and better places, to new settlements being formed, vying away from simpleness and heading into booming towns. She wanted to leave the simple life and good morality that she had been raised on. Judith had a lust for life while Hetty humbly took it step by step. Personality and character-wise Hetty and Judith were exact opposites. Judith bore not only good looks but also intelligence to compliment her physical beauty. Hetty was once described as having ?less intellect than ordinary falls to the share of human beings.? It was known amongst the lake that Hetty infact was slow and retarded, with a simple yet humble mind. Judith did recognize this weakness and took advantage of it. She had grown up thinking herself not as an equal to Hetty, but as a better person. This is evident through out the story. At one point Judith and the Deerslayer are searching for the wealth hidden in the treasure chest. They search high and low throughout the barge, including through Judith's luxurious possessions when the happen upon Hetty's simple ones. Judith states in a tone of betterment, ?'These are only the clothes of poor Hetty, dear simple girl!' she said; ?nothing we seek would be likely to be there.'? Judith has become a self-seeking, self-righteous woman, only seeking out things in life that benefited her. The favoritism of Judith over Hetty by their father is constantly seen in the story. Hetty had belongings said to be ?plain and simple, and of not much value,? while Judith possessed ?items of great worth and pride, belonging only to a woman of such exquisite beauty.? Ironically it was Hetty who adored and loved the father who favored her sister over her. At Tom's death, he confessed that he was not their real father. With this news Hetty responded with much grief, for she loved this man who had so lovingly protected them and raised them all these years. Judith responded to the news with a pleasing attitude, for her and Tom never shared the love that him and Hetty did, in fact ?there had never been sufficient intimacy between Tom and his daughter (Judith),? which possibly gave her a reason and a defense for her emotions. Hetty did not contain her own identity apart from her sister. Constantly Hetty was masked in the shadows of her older and more beautiful counterpart. One may think that Hetty subliminally recognized her status, and instead of fighting it, she just dealt with it. Hetty once described herself to others as ?Judith Hutter's sister, and Thomas Hutter's younger daughter.? Instead of relating herself to her father, the name bearer, protector and honor of the family, she related herself to

City and the Soul Plato Essays

City and the Soul Plato Essays City and the Soul Plato Essay City and the Soul Plato Essay How compelling is the city-soul analogy and to what extent does the picture of â€Å"Platonic justice† that emerges from it differ from conventional justice? Much has been written about the inadequacy of the city-soul analogy in establishing what justice is, and further about how Plato fails to adequately connect his vision of justice to the conventional one and so is unable to address the original challenge. I mean to show that the city-soul analogy is in fact compelling, or at least that is it sufficiently adequate to allow us to move on to a discussion of how Platonic justice compares to conventional justice. At that point I will attempt to show that Platonic justice is relevant to the challenge posed to Socrates, and that despite objections to the contrary the Platonic and conventional views are sufficiently aligned to allow Socrates to conclude that he has shown that it is better to be just than unjust. Vlastos, and others, argue that describing the city as just is simply a generalization about its members, and so the city is not just in the same way that a person is just. I wish to argue, as Wilson does, that there are other grounds for Plato to attribute justice to the city. As Wilson puts it, â€Å"[Plato’s] central question is not the analytical philosopher’s question ‘What does ‘justice’ mean? ’, but the substantial question ‘What is justice? ’†. Thus, it is wrong to criticize the Republic as one would criticize a formal argument towards a definition, as Plato is actually searching for what justice actually is. Wilson’s doctor metaphor is helpful: Plato is investigating the nature of justice just like doctors inquire into the nature of a disease. Doctors notice a variety of systems and become convinced they are caused by a single underlying condition, to which they attribute a name. Eventually someone discovers this underlying condition and the initial assumption is justified. In this way, something like polio can be understood, not by investigating the meaning of the word polio but by looking at possible examples of it and by studying its nature. Plato, Wilson argues, is doing something similar with justice. What is it that makes the connection between justice in a city and justice in an individual plausible? To avoid the objections to the city-soul analogy, it is important that justice and other virtues not be found in the city only in a derivative way, that is, only as a generalization about the city’s members. Luckily, Plato is able to avoid this method. Wilson proposes that Plato does so by equating the structural features of the soul and of the city. Then, when some virtue V is indicated by certain characteristics C of a city, and by those same characteristics C of a soul, and that after inquiry we find that the structural feature of both the city and the soul that gives rise to C is the same structural feature S, then like the doctor we can conclude with certainty that V is S. Whether or not Plato successfully equates the structural features of the soul and the city is a large question, but he certainly thinks that he does. I do not mean to go into a discussion of this separate question here, but just wish to have shown that the use of the city-soul analogy is perfectly reasonable, since it provides an adequate method for investigating the nature of justice. Another potential problem Plato faces is the connection of Platonic justice to conventional views of justice. The original challenge is to show that it is better for a man to be just than unjust, regardless of anything else. This question would certainly not be sufficiently answered by inventing a new definition of justice that was unconnected from conventional views of justice, for example if the new definition permitted acts that commonly would be considered unjust; it is necessary for Plato to demonstrate a connection between Platonic and conventional justice. This issue comes most pointedly from Sachs, who asserts that Plato has to prove two different things: ) A Platonically just person will always act in conventionally just ways b) Someone who is conventionally just will necessarily also be Platonically just In other words, Sachs is of the opinion that Plato must equate Platonic justice to conventional justice in both directions, so that anyone who is one will necessarily be the other. Sachs claims Plato is aware of the need to prove a), though does not do a great job of doing so, but never mentions any need to show that b) is also true. I would argue that proving b) is unnecessary to establish Plato’s argument. Plato wishes to show that it is always better to behave justly, and Sach’s point is that Plato needs to show that someone who is conventionally just will always be better off than someone who is conventionally unjust, and so that person who is conventionally just must be Platonically just. However, I think that this is not actually required of Plato, as it is possible to think of cases where someone who meets the definition of conventionally just is not actually a just person in the way Socrates and the group are considering. As Sachs describes, the vulgar or conventional conception of justice is the idea of not doing certain acts. According to this definition, it would be possible to act in a conventionally just way- not simply seem just, but actually act in a way that makes one just- while in fact being unjust so that even those who hold the conventional view of justice would agree that such a person was unjust. As an example consider an â€Å"incompetent evildoer†. Such a person might have horrible intentions, but every single time he does a bad thing he not only fails to complete the action but fails to do so at all. Every action he does is a just action, and he never does any actions that are considered unjust, yet he has terrible intentions and constantly desires to harm others. He not only seems conventionally just to everyone around him, he actually is conventionally just because this vulgar, conventional view of justice is simply concerned with how he acts. It seems, however, that he is not a just person. Plato does not need to show that this man is someone who is Platonically just, and he very clearly is not. Thus, Plato is not required to demonstrate b), because there are some people who meet the definition of conventionally just but are not just in the sense that Socrates and company are discussing- they want to establish that it is better to be just, and would all agree that the incompetent evildoer is not just although he technically meets the conventional definition. On the other hand, it is important that Plato prove a). At first glance, it seems entirely plausible that someone with inner psychic harmony may be capable of stealing, murdering, or committing other unjust actions. This would totally invalidate Plato’s argument, as it would do nothing to show that everyone should act in what Glaucon and Adeimantus think of as a right way. So it is necessary to demonstrate that someone who is Platonically just will also be conventionally just, that is, everyone who has a well-ordered soul must always act in ways that we think of as just. I argue that an adequate proof of a) does exist for Plato, even if he himself does not include it. As Demos says, â€Å"mathematicians often skip steps in an inference, thinking them obvious†, and even though Plato may fail to provide the proof of a) himself, he is still justified in believing it. Demos gives a good way of approaching the defense of this point. Basically, the soul of the Platonically just person is ruled by reason, which is both a desire and an appreciation of the truth and of the good. This good which reason aims at involves justice, and aiming at the good means also aiming at the production of good things. So, an individual aiming at justice cares not only for justice abstractly, but is concerned with justice being embodied in humans in general. For the soul to be healthy requires its reason to be fulfilled, and reason’s concern is that the good should be exemplified everywhere. Being inwardly just means wanting everyone to have his due, and that means not committing the types of actions that are thought of as conventionally unjust. While this does not thoroughly prove a), it seems to show that the aims of an inwardly, Platonically just person will require them to be externally, and thus conventionally, just as well. Annas follows Sachs in insisting that Plato fails to prove a), and further thinks that there is no possible link between Platonic and conventional justice. One particular criticism is Plato’s view of truth-telling, which she sees as devastatingly inconsistent. As she points out, Plato would allow for the Guardians to occasionally tell lies, but the working class may not. She sees a big issue with the fact that the Guardians â€Å"cannot bear to be deceived, but they sometimes deceive others†. This criticism, however, seems to rest on an apparently quite stringent deontological view. I believe that Plato’s idea of the occasional rightness of lying fits perfectly well with conventional morality. Consider: i) Truth-telling in general is good ii) Lying is occasionally acceptable I would argue that conventional morality would accept both i) and ii), or at the very least, since some people might not accept ii), that it is at least an open question of conventional morality of whether ii) is acceptable. Certain times, it seems, lying is an obviously right act, such as the case of the murderer at the door inquiring about the whereabouts of his victim. Plato, I take it, takes a more consequentialist view of morality and would agree with both i) and ii). Because of the difficulty of saying when it is acceptable to lie and when it is not (both ethically, as it is hard to define exactly in which cases it is acceptable, and logically, as if everyone knows lying is allowed in certain cases the lie won’t be believed anyway), it is better to encourage a general culture of truth-telling but to permit some exceptions, and for Plato the way that makes most sense to balance on that fine line is to state that people shouldn’t lie, but in some instances the Guardians may. Thus, it is not the case that it is an inconsistency, but in fact Plato’s idea of truth-telling fits in well with conventional views of morality. Platonic justice aligns with conventional justice. Another objection, raised by Annas and others, is to ask why the Platonically just philosophers Plato imagines might not steal in order to fund their intellectual pursuits. If these pursuits are so important to their lives, wouldn’t they feel it right to take money through any means necessary to allow themselves to continue with their life goals? One possible response, following from Demos’ argument, is that being Platonically just involves not being selfish. Someone with a well-ordered, just soul would put the general good above their own personal good, since the form of reason mentioned above would guide their actions. Selfishly stealing from others to pursue their own goals would contradict those very goals. Similarly, another objection is that philosophers would avoid ruling in favor of intellectual pursuits if society needed them and asked them to rule, but the same reasoning applies. The goal of pursuing intellectual reasoning would in fact be contradicted by so selfishly avoiding this duty. The very reason they would want to develop and explore would require them to do the (conventionally) just thing and take on the responsibility of ruling. In this way again, Platonic justice coheres with the more conventional form. I hope to shown that the city-soul analogy is at least adequate as a tool for exploring justice and discovering its nature. While it may not be very useful in giving a technical definition, it does its job as far as it needs to in understanding what justice is. Accepting this allows us to move on to discuss Platonic justice, which I hope I have demonstrated to entail conventional justice. Despite the irrelevance objections of Sachs, Annas, and others, I have argued that Plato’s account of justice is sufficient to respond to the challenge set out at the beginning of the Republic.

Spanish Civil WAR, critical commentary on 4 primary and secondary Essay

Spanish Civil WAR, critical commentary on 4 primary and secondary source materials including literary or film sources - Essay Example The following discussion will examine the question whether or not the defeat of the Republic was inevitable. The sources for the analysis will include a variety of primary sources including a painting, a novel, a journal, and a newspaper article. Secondary sources will be employed to add context to these primary sources. Together this historical evidence will be mined for the causes of the Republican defeat in the spring of 1939. The conclusion will then return to the inevitability of the Nationalist victory. Comparing the aerial bombing of Guernica to the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki or the Allied firebombing that engulfed Dresden, Oxford Professor Raymond Carr describes it as merely a minor act of vandalism. However,viewed in the context of 1936 it was a terrifying, revolutionary and effective operation. According to Preston, â€Å"Guernica was the first total destruction of an undefended civilian target by aerial bombardment.† (Preston, 2006, 5) Precise casualty figures remain a subject of debate amongst historians but on the seventieth anniversary of the attack the BBC summarized historical opinion, â€Å"The figures for the number of casualties in the bombing are still disputed, but most historians think between 200 and 250 people were killed and many hundreds wounded. â€Å" (BBC, 2007) Also, Guernica was the historic capital of the Basque nation and as such its destruction was designed to terrorize the Basque and undermining their resistance to the Nationalist forces. A second element of Prestons description of the event is also significant. Guernica was attacked by the Condor Legion, German aircraft and aircrew seconded to the Nationalist forces to aid in their victory and gain experience in aerial bombardment. Simply put, they were military professionals. Technologically, the Republicans could not match them. Guernica had no anti-aircraft defenses and the

The economic consequences for Ukraine in joining the Thesis

The economic consequences for Ukraine in joining the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan customs union - Thesis Example 1 Overview Statistics of Ukraine Economic Status p. 19 Fig. 2 Real Sector Performance of Ukraine p. 20 Fig. 3 State Budget Execution p. 21 Fig. 4 main State Budget Indicators for 2012-2013 p. 21 Fig. 5 Map of the Commonwealth of Independent States p. 22 Fig. 6 A Look at the Economic Picture for the CU in 2010-2011 p. 25 Fig. 7 EEU Timeline Implementation Infrastructure p. 29 Fig. 8 Nominal GDP of BRK Countries and Ukraine, 2000-2011 p. 32 Fig. 9 Structure of Gross Value Added in BRK and Ukraine, 2005 and 2010 p. 33 Fig 10 Structure of Industry by Branch in BRK and Ukraine, 2005 and 2010 p. 34 Fig. 11 Belarus Foreign Trade by Country Groupings p. 35 Fig. 12 Russia Foreign Trade by Country Groupings p.37 Fig. 13 Kazakhstan Foreign Trade by Country Groupings p. 39 Fig. 14 Ukraine Foreign Trade by Country Groupings p. 40 Fig. 15 Kazakhstan Foreign Trade Developments p.41 Fig. 16 Russia Foreign Trade Developments p.42 Fig. 17 Belarus Foreign Trade Developments p.43 Fig. 18 Ukraine Foreign Trade Developments p.44 Fig. 19 Service Imports p. 45 Fig. 20 Service Exports p. 46 Fig. 21 Belarus Export/Import Charts p. 47 Fig. 22 Kazakhstan Export/Import Charts p. 47 Fig. 23 Russia Export/Import Charts p. 48 Fig. 24 Common External Tariff of the BRK Customs Union p.50 Fig. 25 Gas Production Forecast Table 2005-2016 p. 52 Fig. 26 Gas Production Forecast Table 2014-2021 p. 53 Fig. 27 Major LNG Fields and Pipeline Network p. 54 Fig. 28 Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) Rankings p.55 Fig. 29 Mutualism in Europe: The Diverse Realities of the EU p. 57 Fig. 30 Common Principles of European Mutual Societies p.58 Fig. 31 Import Tariffs Before and After the Customs Union Creation p. 51 Fig.32.Global Financial... The purpose for this paper is to look at the surrounding circumstances of the Ukraine, what state the economy is in, what Ukraine’s main resources are, and how export and import situations would benefit if Ukraine were to join the Customs Union. In one section, three examples of Ukraine’s position in the marketplace will be examined with a projected analysis gleaned from literature review research as to whether joining the Union on a limited basis would be better or whether joining as a full member would be best, and finally, how Ukraine would manage by not joining at all. Consequently, this analysis would present a picture in time, based on certain circumstances only. War and natural disasters can strongly disrupt any strategic plans, no matter how carefully set up. Notwithstanding unexpected occurrences, perhaps other Unions may decide to relax some of their rules in order to bring Ukraine in to membership. For now, the European Union, while once a possibility, seems to be sidelined by Ukraine’s current political environment. The research motivation is to compare the various literature reviews by expert economists and scholars of scenarios and resulting factors of Ukraine joining the CU under various structures of membership. In that capacity, literature review is necessary for finding the picture currently available for the Ukraine and for the Customs Union through economic trends over the last few years and to bring that forward into the comparative analysis. The question in this thesis is to ‘determine how the Ukraine will fare economically if it does join the Common Union currently consisting of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus.’

Organizational culture Essay Example for Free

Organizational culture Essay 1. Discuss several areas in which HR can affect organizational culture positively or negatively. A human resources department plays a significant role in determining the culture of an organization. Human resources cultivate and execute policies and procedures in key areas such as hiring practices, compensation, management relations and employee conduct and behavior. The decisions made by the human resources department can have significant positive and negative implications for the overall cultural quality of the organization. Some of the affected areas include creating awareness, compensation plans, hiring practices and behavior. Company executives may not always have a true understanding of their corporate culture, as they are often far removed from the front lines of the operation. Human resources personnel can provide the benefit of instructing top management as to what the culture is really like. This may lead to positive changes in the corporate culture, it could also lead to changes that meet with resistance from employees, such as when management decides it needs to change or eliminate popular employee programs that it deems wasteful or unproductive. When it comes to compensation, the human resources department typically accepts the responsibility of designing compensation programs for the organization. Depending on how they achieve this, it could have a positive as well as negative impact on organizational culture. For example, an incentive program for salespeople may provide the opportunity for these employees to increase their compensation through greater productivity. Nevertheless, it could also cr eate an environment where the salespeople are competing against each other, leading to the deterioration of teamwork and morale. Human resources also determine the hiring and recruiting practices used by the organization, which has a great impact on the organizational culture. A strong attention to characteristics of job candidates such as education and experience can certify that the company hires employees who are capable of performing the job. In contrast, if there is a lack of focus on characteristics like personality and people skills, the company may end up hiring candidates who will have difficulty being a sole member of the corporate culture. Another key area subsiding under human resources is the conduct of the organizations members. In many organizations, particular larger ones, this involves the development of a code of conduct or ethics that specifics how employees should treat each other and conduct their daily activities. An operative code of conduct that denotes the core values of the organization and is strictly enforced can promote a culture characterized by high levels of ethical behavior. On another note, a weak code or one that is only given lip service by human resources could lead to a culture of dishonesty and distrust. 2. For many individuals, the nature of work and jobs is changing. Describe these changes, some reasons for them, and how they are affecting both HR management and individuals. In reference to our textbook, our world is ever changing when it comes to the workplace. Some of the issues that affect the organization include technology, changing demographics, education and cultural issues. According to the article, â€Å"The Changing Nature of Organizations, Work and Workplace,† In todays world, the structure, content, and process of work have changed. Work is now: * more cognitively complex * more team-based and collaborative * more dependent on social skills * more dependent on technological competence * more time pressured * more mobile and less dependent on geography. In todays world, you will also be working for an organization that is likely to be very different due to competitive pressures and technological breakthroughs. Organizations today are: * leaner and more agile * more focused on identifying value from the customer perspective * more tuned to dynamic competitive requirements and strategy * less hierarchical in structure and decision authority * less likely to provide lifelong careers and job security * continually reorganizing to maintain or gain competitive advantage. 3. Why is it important for HR management to transform from being primarily administrative and operational to becoming a more strategic contributor? According to the PowerPoint, â€Å"Changing Nature of Human Resource Management,† Dr. Zaw states that the typical roles are still apart of human resources managers job descriptions, but the magnitude and percentage of each within the job description has altered. Human resources roles typically include; * Processing and recording keeping * Operational and employee advocate role Human resources strategic roles typically include: * â€Å"having a seat at the table† by contributing to organization results and success * Human resources becomes a strategic partner * When it focuses on creating program that will enrich the organization performance * Engage human resources in strategic planning at the onset * Contribute in the decision making in reference to mergers acquisitions and downsizing * Recreating of organizations and work processes * Accounting and documentation the financial means of human resource activities He then explains the nature of strategic Human Resource Management. 1. The relationship of the organizational and HR strategic strategies a. Cost Leadership includes i. Competition on the basis of low price and high quality of product or service ii. Relies on building employees fit specialized needs iii. Requires a longer human resources planning horizon approach b. Differentiation iv. Competition on the basis of either offering distinctively different products or services v. Relies on hiring needed skills vi. Needs a shorter planning time frame in order to be responsive to dynamic environments 2. Organizational Productivity and Efforts c. Human Resources Productivity vii. Unit labor costs computed by dividing the average cost of workers by their levels of output viii. Low unit labor costs can be a basis for strategy focusing on human resources ix. Productivity and unit labor cost can be determined at the global, country, organizational or individual level. d. Organizational Effectiveness and Financial Contributions of Human Resource x. Linking with financial executive to certify human resources financial contribution to organization’s performance e. Customer Service and Quality Products Linked to Human Resources Strategies xi. High quality productions and services are the outcome of human resources enrichment to the organizational performance f. Organizational Culture and Organizational Effectiveness xii. Organization culture is the values and beliefs shared amongst the organization. 4. What steps can HR professionals take to ensure that mergers and acquisitions are successful? How can HR help during the integration process? In reference to the article, â€Å"What is the Role of Human Resource During a Merger?† , Diane Chinn covers five distinct areas that human resources must focus on during a merger which includes executive coaching, employee communication, culture integration, employee retention and human resources integration. Executive Coaching: Even though human resources have been considered a major staff function, it is shifting more to an essential strategy function. In the process of a merger, human resources should function as executive coaches assisting leaders in understanding the relationship with effective human resources management and merger success. It also gives management insight to the different assumption of issues that may hinder the merger and find different solution for dealing with the issues. Employee Communication: There should be ongoing communication with the employees in reference to the success of the merger. Even though employees do not understand the reason for the merger, they may presume to be against the decision without effective communication. It’s the responsibility of the human resources department to create a communication strategy in reference to each step of the merger process. Cultural Integration: It is the responsibility of human resources to examine and compare the cultures of the two organizations and develop and execute a plan to address cultural issues that could affect the merger such as shared or conflicting values, beliefs and assumptions. Employee Retention: Human resources must ensure that employees have the necessary skills and knowledge needed for the organization remain a part of the merged organization. Human Resources Integration: When the companies merge, there are duplicate systems that must be consolidated or merged. This is especially true in HR where employee management, compensation and benefits, employee training, development and HR information systems must continue to function throughout the merger process. 5. Many companies in the United States have recently put an end to the practice of giving an annual employee Christmas party due to complaints by employees with non-Christian religious backgrounds or spiritual values who claimed the Christmas party was discriminatory employment practice. These dissident employees argued that the employer who celebrated by paying for an employee Christmas party favored Christianity over other religions and belief systems. Do you think non-Christian employees are treated illegally or unethically when the employer decides to give a Christmas party for all the employees? What is the basis of your decision? What would be a reasonable accommodation that an employer could make to satisfy both the Christian and non-Christian employees? Yes, I do feel that non- Christian employees are treated unfairly because employers should be delicate to the religious beliefs of their employees. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. I feel that no one should be forcing to do something that’s not a part of their beliefs or character. My recommendation would be to have an end of the year celebration where all are able to attend and possible share their cultural experience with everyone through foods, decorations and performances.

The Life of Vincent Van Gogh Essay -- Biography Biographies Essays

The Life of Vincent Van Gogh Vincent Van Gogh is one of the most famous artists of all time. He is known for his paintings and is hailed as the quintessential expressionist painter in history. Yet, Van Gogh lived one of the most troubling lives one could ever imagine. Almost every painting can be viewed as a look into his troubled soul. Van Gogh’s Paintings today can be sold for millions of dollars, but during his life time he sold a single painting for a measly 40 francs. Van Gogh’s legacy has left behind stories of greatness and sadness having to do with both his personal life and his career as an artist. Vincent Van Gogh was born near Brabant, Belgium, the son of a minister. In 1869, he got a position at the art dealers, Goupil and Co. in The Hague, through his uncle, and worked with them until he was dismissed from the London office in 1873. He worked as a schoolmaster in England (1876), before training for the ministry at Amsterdam University (1877). After he failed to get a post in the Church, he went to live as an independent missionary among t...

Data Communications Essay

Differentiate between an analog and a digital electromagnetic signal. What are three important characteristics of a periodic signal. What is the relationship between the wavelength and frequency of a sine wave. Define fundamental frequency. What is the relationship between a signal’s spectrum and its bandwidth. What is attenuation? Define channel capacity. What key factors affect channel capacity? Problems: Figure 1 shows the frequency domain function for a single square pulse. The signal pulse could represent a digital 1 in a communications system. Note that an infinite number of higher frequencies of decreasing magnitudes is needed to represent the single pulse. What implication does that have for a real digital transmission system? Suppose that a digitised TV picture is to be transmitted from a source that uses a matrix of 480 x 500 picture elements (pixels), where each pixel can take on one of 32 intensity values. Assume that 30 pictures are sent per second. (This digital source is is roughly equivalent to broadcast TV standards that have been adopted.) Find the source rate R (bps) Assume that the TV picture is to be transmitted over a channel with 4.5Mhz bandwidth and a 35dB signal-to -noise ratio. Find the capacity of the channel (bps). Discuss how the parameters given in part (a.) could be modified to allow transmission of colour TV signals without increasing the required value for R. What is the channel capacity for a teleprinter channel with a 300Hz bandwidth and a signal-to-noise ratio of 3dB, where the noise is white thermal noise? A digital signalling system is required to operate at 9600bps. If a signal element encodes a 4-bit word, what is the minimum required bandwidth of the channel? Repeat part (a .) for the case of 8-bit words. Given the narrow (usable) audio bandwidth of a telephone transmission facility, a nominal SNR of 56dB (400,000), and a certain level of distortion, What is the theoretical maximum channel capacity (kbps) of traditional telephone lines? What can we say about the actual maximum channel capacity? Given a channel with an intended capacity of 20Mpbs, the bandwidth of the channel is 3MHz. Assuming white thermal noise, what signal-to-noise ratio is required to achieve this capacity? If an amplifier has a 30dB voltage gain, what voltage ratio does the gain represent? An amplifier has an output of 20W. What is the output in dBW? Answers: Short Questions With guided media, the electromagnetic waves are guided along an enclosed physical path whereas unguided media provide a means for transmitting electromagnetic waves but do not guide them. A continuous or analog signal is one in which the signal intensity varies in a smooth fashion over time while a discrete or digital signal is one in which the signal intensity maintains one of a finite number of constant levels for some period of time and then changes to another constant level. Amplitude, frequency, and phase are three important characteristics of a periodic signal. The relationship is ÃŽ »f = v, where ÃŽ » is the wavelength, f is the frequency, and v is the speed at which the signal is traveling. The fundamental frequency is the lowest frequency component in the Fourier representation of a periodic quantity. The spectrum of a signal is the frequencies it contains while the bandwidth of a signal is the width of the spectrum. Attenuation is the gradual weakening of a signal over dis tance. The rate at which data can be transmitted over a given communication path, or channel, under given conditions, is referred to as the channel capacity. Bandwidth, noise, and error rate.