Friday, May 22, 2020

The Strange Fate of Indias Peacock Throne

The Peacock Throne was a wonder to behold — a gilded platform, canopied in silk and encrusted in precious jewels. Built in the 17th century for the  Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, who also commissioned the Taj Mahal, the throne served as yet another reminder of the extravagance of this mid-century ruler of India. Although the piece only lasted for a short while, its legacy lives on as one of the most ornate and highly sought after pieces of royal property in the regions history. A relic of the Mughal Golden Age, the piece was originally lost and recommissioned before being destroyed forever by rival dynasties and empires. Like Solomon When Shah Jahan ruled the Mughal Empire, it was at the height of its Golden Age, a period of great prosperity and civil accord amongst the Empires people — covering most of India. Recently, the capital had been re-established in Shahjahanabad in the ornately decorated Red Fort, where Jahan held many decadent feasts and religious festivals. However, the young emperor  knew that in order to be, as Solomon had been, the Shadow of God — or the arbiter of Gods will on earth — he needed to have a throne like his. A Jewel-Encrusted Gold Throne Shah Jahan commissioned a jewel-encrusted  gold throne to be built on a pedestal in the courtroom, where he could then be seated above the crowd, closer to God. Among the hundreds of rubies, emeralds, pearls, and other jewels embedded in the Peacock Throne was the famed 186-carat Koh-i-Noor diamond, which was later taken by the British. Shah Jahan, his son Aurangzeb, and later Mughal rulers of India sat on the glorious seat until 1739, when Nader Shah of Persia sacked Delhi and stole the Peacock Throne. Destruction In 1747, Nader Shahs bodyguards assassinated him, and Persia descended into chaos. The Peacock Throne ended up being chopped to pieces for its gold and jewels. Although the original was lost to history, some antiquities experts believe that the legs of the 1836 Qajar Throne, which was also called the Peacock Throne, might have been taken from the Mughal original. The 20th century Pahlavi dynasty in Iran also called their ceremonial seat the Peacock Throne, continuing this pillaged tradition. Several other ornate thrones may have also been inspired by this extravagant  piece, most notably the overexaggerated version King Ludwig II of Bavaria had made some time before 1870 for his Moorish Kiosk in Linderhof Palace.   The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is said to also have potentially discovered a marble leg from the pedestal of the original throne. Similarly, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London said to have discovered the same years later.   However, neither of these have been confirmed. Indeed, the glorious Peacock Throne may have been lost to all of history forever — all for the want of power and control of India at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Saturday, May 9, 2020

Shojo and Adult Women a Linguistic Analysis of Gender...

Shojo and Adult Women: A Linguistic Analysis of Gender Identity in Manga (Japanese Comics) Junko Ueno Abstract: This study analyzes the linguistic behavior of female characters in shoJo (girls) and ladies (women) manga (Japanese comics) and discusses the portrayal of female gender identities in the context of popular print media. Considering the great impact that Japanese print media has had over Japanese womens speech patterns throughout history, a linguistic analysis of female characters speech patterns in shojo and ladies manga may reveal the kinds of representations of language and gender in manga and how these representations may affect Japanese womens gender identity today. Based on data collected through quantitative and†¦show more content†¦As Ito (2000) argues, It is very influential for children and adults alike because it teaches the readers the roles, expectations, rights, duties, taboos, and folkways of Japanese society whether the reader is aware of it or not (pl4). Ogi (2003) also states that one of the roles ladies manga performs is to offer alternate role mo dels to adult women. Therefore, in addition to studying peoples actual linguistic behavior, it is important to examine the kinds of representations of language and gender in manga and how these representations may affect Japanese womens gender identity. This study analyzes the linguistic behavior of female characters in shojo and ladies manga and discusses the portrayal of their gender identities in the context of popular print media. Research Questions This study poses the following two questions to explore gender identity expressed through language use in manga. 1. How and to what extent do the female characters speech pattems, the use of gendered forms in particular, in shojo and ladies manga magazines differ according to the characters ages? 2. Under what circumstances or settings are traditional and unconventional womens language used in manga magazines? Literature Review Conventional characteristics of Japanese womens speech Japanese male and female speech differences have bee n extensively examined in

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Will We Save the Earth in Time Free Essays

The Earth’s atmosphere has changed from the beginning of time. Just over the most recent 650,000 years there have been seven cycles of chilly development and withdraw, with the sudden end of the last ice age around 7,000 years back denoting the start of the advanced atmosphere period — and of human progress. While different planets in Earth’s close planetary system are either searing hot or intensely frigid, Earth’s surface has generally placid, stable temperatures. We will write a custom essay sample on Will We Save the Earth in Time? or any similar topic only for you Order Now Earth values these temperatures on account of its environment, or, in other words layer of gases that shroud and ensure the planet. The atmosphere has changed when the planet got too much daylight because of unobtrusive moves in its circle, as the climate or surface changed, or when the sun’s vitality shifted. However, in the previous century, another power has begun to impact Earth’s atmosphere: mankind. The vast majority of these atmosphere changes are ascribed to little varieties in Earth’s circle that change the measure of sun-based vitality our planet gets. The present warming pattern is of specific caliber in light of the fact that the vast majority of it is to a great degree likely to be the after effect of human action since the mid-twentieth century and continuing at a rate that is extraordinary over decades to centuries. â€Å"Earth-orbiting satellites and other technological advances have enabled scientists to see the big picture, collecting many different types of information about our planet and its climate on a global scale. This body of data, collected over many years, reveals the signals of a changing climate† (Callery). Raw data collected over the years and we can tangibly see. One is the data in which the NASA representative, Sellers, shows Leonardo DiCaprio at one hour and eighteen minutes. He’s shows DiCaprio a model simulation of the earth via satellites that have taken renders of the Earth over the years in different aspects. Clouds, sea surface temperature, carbon dioxide. All of these plugged into seeing the change in climate of the Earth as a whole. The warmth catching nature of carbon dioxide and different gases was shown in the mid-nineteenth century. Their capacity to influence the exchange of infrared vitality through the environment is the logical premise of numerous instruments flown by NASA. There is no doubt that expanded levels of ozone depleting substances must be the reason for the Earth’s warming. The trading of approaching and active radiation that warms the Earth is frequently alluded to as the greenhouse effect in light of the fact that a greenhouse works similarly. The documentary talks about the rain forests and the way they are being burned and destroyed, causing harm to our climate and our planet. Lindsey Allen, at forty-six minutes, explains what happens to trees when they are burned. The carbon that they gather from other creatures such as humans is stored within the tree and when those trees burn, all of the carbon is released into the atmosphere, setting off a chain reaction of greenhouse gases. At forty-six minutes and twenty seconds she states, â€Å"It acts like a carbon bomb and releases massive carbon emission back into the atmosphere† (Monroe). The greenhouse effect, joined with expanding levels of ozone harming substances and the subsequent an unnatural weather change, is relied upon to have significant ramifications, as indicated by the close general agreement of researchers. â€Å"Currently, some scientists are investigating how to re-engineer the atmosphere to reverse global warming. For example, theories published in the journal Science in July 2017 by lrike Lohmann and BlaÃ… ¾ Gasparini, researchers at the Institute of Atmospheric and Climate Science at ETH Zurich in Switzerland, proposed reducing cirrus clouds that trap heat.† (Lallalina) During the conversation that DiCaprio had with President Barack Obama he states at one hour and twelve minutes that the Paris treaty is creating the architecture that allows us to finally start dealing with this problem in a serious way. However, it does not matter if every country does not actually do it and within the slim time limit that the earth has. Numerous researchers concur that the harm to the Earth’s air and atmosphere is past the final turning point or that the harm is close to the final turning point. â€Å"I agree that we have passed the point of climate change,† Josef Werne, a partner teaching at the division of geography and planetary science at the University of Pittsburgh disclosed to Live Science. The impact of accrued surface temperatures is critical in itself. However, heating can have further, comprehensive effects on the earth. Warming modifies downfall patterns, amplifies coastal erosion, lengthens the season in some areas, melts ice caps and glaciers, and alters the ranges of some contagious diseases. A number of these changes are already happening though. that of Greenland’s top layer melting away completely. The guide and representative that showed DiCaprio around the surface of Greenland states at eighteen minutes, â€Å"This was a hose that went down thirty feet, and now it’s melted out† (Monroe). All within five years an entire thirty-foot layer melted away from Greenland as a whole. The climate isn’t the sole factor global warming will impact: rising ocean levels will erode coasts and cause a lot of frequent coastal flooding. Some island nations will vanish. The matter is severe since up to ten percent of the world’s population lives in defenseless areas less than ten meters higher than sea level. â€Å"Between 1870 and 2000, the sea level increased by 1.7 millimeters per year on average, for a total sea level rise of 8.7 inches. And the rate of sea level rise is accelerating. Since 1993, NASA satellites have shown that sea levels are rising more quickly, about 3 millimeters per year, for a total sea level rise of 1.89 inches between 1993 and 2009.† (Levy) As temperatures rise, ice will soften all the more rapidly. Satellite estimations uncover that the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets are shedding around 125 billion tons of ice for every year—enough to raise ocean levels by 0.01 inches every year. In the event that the liquefying quickens, the expansion in ocean level could be altogether higher. How to cite Will We Save the Earth in Time?, Papers