Stereotypes essays

Stereotypes essays Stereotypes are the organizational factors that virtually shape the way we think in 20th century America. They somehow manage to categorize some of lifes most complex matters into nice distinct sections. Classifications and organization, at first glance seem to be useful in distinguishing various aspects of modern life. However, these grouping methods can be very inaccurate, leaving erroneous ideas in the minds of citizens on a global level. Stereotypes, though originating as convenient sorting mechanisms, instead, influence our thinking process. By instituting broad categories, establishing virtually immovable terms, and, often, being mistakenly identified as facts, stereotypes affect the mental process of humans. Originally used as an organizational tool, stereotypes were simply broad generalizations about subject matters. These ideas werent necessarily meant to cause the feelings of anger that they do today, but to classify ideas. However, possibly the most apparent problem with stereotypes is that the sort very intricate subject matter into large, broad categories. For example, human beings are too complex to use generalizations like, all blondes are dumb or all smart people are nerds. Stereotypes use wide terms, to simplify subject matter, but this attempt often ends in an inaccurate result. Despite their wide generalizations, stereotypes establish virtually immovable terms. For example, Third World countries were hastily grouped together not because of social or economic similarities, but out of convenience. Since that time, the industrialized nations have harbored this stereotype that the third world is land of starving children and savage tribes. Despite decades of vast improvement, this stereotype remains unchanged. This rigid stereotype has caused many citizens to embrace a false view of the Third World nations and its citizens. Stereotypes, clearly, should not be mi...

Why Animal Rights Activist Are Against the AKC

Why Animal Rights Activist Are Against the AKC The Purina Dog Food Company lists two major dog shows on their website: The Westminster Dog Show and The National Dog Show. In addition to these shows, The American Kennel Club, the AKC, also lists conformation events under their supervision. These shows are about finding a member of each pure breed who conforms to the AKC standard of what they consider the perfect specimen of a breed. Animal rights activists don’t discriminate against the animals they seek to protect.  Their clarion call has always been that they don’t only fight for the rights of the cute and fluffy, but any animal of any species because they believe all animals have a right to exist unimpaired and unencumbered by humans. So why then, would animal rights activists target the AKC? This organization appears to care deeply for the welfare of dogs. For one, the AKC issues â€Å"papers† on any purebred dog, which is a big problem for animal rights activists seeking to stop the sale of puppies from puppy mills. When the retailer shrieks about how their puppies are all â€Å"AKC Purebreds† it makes it difficult to convince consumers that any puppy, no matter where s/he was born, will get an AKC pedigree. That doesnt make the puppy any healthier or more desirable, especially if the puppy is purchased at a pet store. What is a Dog Show? Dog shows are organized around the world by various clubs. In the United States, the most prestigious dog shows are organized by the American Kennel Club. At an AKC dog show, dogs are judged by a set of criteria called  a standard  that is unique to each recognized breed. A dog can be disqualified completely for certain deviations from the standard. For example, the standard for an Afghan Hound includes a height requirement of â€Å"27 inches, plus or minus one inch; bitches, 25 inches, plus or minus one inch, and a weight requirement of â€Å"About 60 pounds; bitches, about 50 pounds. There are also precise requirements for their gait, coat, and the size and shape of the head, tail, and body. As for temperament, an Afghan Hound found with â€Å"sharpness or shyness† is faulted and loses points because they should be â€Å"aloof and dignified, yet gay.† The dog does not even have the liberty to choose his own personality. Some standards even require certain breeds to be mutilated in order to compete. Their tails must be docked and their ear carriage surgically reconstructed. Ribbons, trophies, and points are awarded to the dogs who most closely match the standard for their breed. As dogs  accumulate  points, they can attain champion status and qualify for higher level shows, culminating in the annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Only purebred, intact (not spayed or neutered) dogs are allowed to compete. The purpose of these points and shows is to ensure that only the finest specimens of the breeds be allowed to procreate, thereby bettering the breed with each new generation.   The Breeding Problem The most obvious problem with dog shows is that they encourage breeding, both directly and indirectly. As explained on the American Kennel Clubs  website, Spayed or neutered dogs are not eligible to compete in conformation classes at a dog show, because the purpose of a dog show is to evaluate breeding stock. The shows create a culture based on breeding, showing and selling dogs, in the pursuit of a champion. With  three to four million  cats and dogs killed in shelters every year, the last thing we need is more breeding. The more reputable or responsible breeders will take back any dog the purchaser does not want, at any time during the dogs life, and some argue that they do not contribute to overpopulation because all of their dogs are wanted. To animal rights activists, a responsible breeder is a contradiction because anyone breeding is not responsible enough to help keep the population in check and is, in fact, responsible for the births and deaths of unwanted dogs. If  fewer people bred their dogs, there would be fewer dogs for sale and more people would adopt from shelters. Breeders also create a demand for the dogs and their breed through advertising and by simply by putting them on the market. Furthermore, not everyone who wants to surrender a purebred dog will return to the breeder. Approximately  25 percent of shelter dogs are purebred. The AKC website listing breed rescue groups  is not about adopting or rescuing a dog, but about information about the purebred rescue. Nothing on the page promotes adopting or rescuing dogs. Instead of encouraging adoption and rescue, their page on rescue groups tries to redirect the public to their breeder search page, breeder referral page, and online breeder classifieds. Every dog purchased from a breeder or pet store is a vote for more breeding and a death sentence for a dog in a shelter. While dog show participants care about the welfare of their dogs, they seem to care little about the millions of dogs who are not theirs. As one AKC judge stated, â€Å"If it’s not a purebred dog, it’s a mutt, and mutts are worthless.† Purebred Dogs Animal rights activists object to promoting purebred dogs, not only  because it encourages breeding and inbreeding, but also because it implies these dogs are more desirable than others. Without dog shows, there would be less of a demand for dogs who have a certain pedigree or conform to an artificial set of physical specifications that are considered ideal for each breed. As breeders strive to meet the standard for their breed, inbreeding is common and expected. Breeders know that if a certain desirable trait runs through a bloodline, breeding two blood relatives who have that trait will bring out that trait. However, inbreeding also amplifies other traits, including health problems. One study suggests that mutts are considered the healthiest of all. Purebreds, however,  are known to have  health issues, either due to inbreeding or due to the very standards of the breed. Brachycephalic breeds such as bulldogs cannot mate or give birth naturally because of breathing issues. Female bulldogs must be artificially inseminated and give birth via C-section. Flat-Coated Retrievers are prone to cancer, and half of all Cavalier King Charles Spaniels suffer from mitral valve disease. Because of their breed standards and the need to categorize dogs into different breeds and groups, dog shows give the impression that purebred dogs are more desirable than mixed-breed dogs. Even the word pure in purebred implies something disturbing, and some activists have equated breed standards with racism and  eugenics  in humans. Animal rights activists believe that every dog, no matter their breed or health issues, should be valued and cared for. No animal is worthless. All animals have worth. This article was updated and re-written in part by Animal Rights Expert, Michelle A. Rivera.

Globalization in the Context of Ghana Development Prospects Essay

Globalization in the Context of Ghana Development Prospects - Essay Example Ghana’s story, like many African and South American countries, is a story characterized by a mixed fortune of charismatic leadership with a determination to bring economic prosperity within their soil. With a dream of development prospects to the western standards, the original desire of Ghana’s leadership after independence was a state of parity in a record time of ten years under ideological stewardship of Kwame Nkrumah. Even though development was never fully achieved within the period, international political influences remained fully ingrained in the country’s undertakings. From independence upfront, Ghana adopted foreign policy principles and ideals of nonalignment and Pan-Africanism enunciated by Kwame Nkrumah’s tenure. Accordingly, the adoption of nonalignment stand was a counter-strategy measure against the infiltration of antagonistic policies perpetuated by alliances of both the East and West power blocs. On the other end, Pan-Africanism was a c ooperative visionary policy aimed at liberating the continent from Western colonialism and uniting it for a more consolidated economic and political independence (Ofusu par 33). The country’s active participation in the various organizations such as the United Nations, African Union, and ECOWAS is a clear indication of its commitment to the maintenance of friendly relations and cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and noninterference from other countries irrespective of ideological differences.Taking colonialism off their shoulders, the post-independence national reconstruction placed Ghana as a middle-income country by the 1960s, with its citizenry enjoying relatively stable socio-economic standards of living. As fate would have it, political instability coupled with economic mismanagement by the military juntas in the 1970s eroded the positive economic gains at independence, eventually plunging the country into severe socio-economic crisis. As the wee hours of the 197 0s approached, the country’s gross domestic product’s declining rate was alarming, pushing every sector

Plz make my college app perfect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Plz make my college app perfect - Essay Example I find this combination moving due to the depth of inspiration that I can derive from them. My faith and belief ultimately leads me to create how things I wanted to me, and religion which is a repository of countless arts forms of masters, both old and new, where man’s genius in art was and still is best illustrated is an excellent source of inspiration to draw upon. From these two potent forces, I then create my own art form through my paint that breathe life on my subjects be it on my canvass or other mediums that inspiration may find suitable. My artworks are mostly made of patterns which I use to expand my old way of doing a mystery piece by mixing my pattern design with a portrait. This method brings out a very powerful impression on my portraits that impresses a strong emotion. So far, it is also the best method that I have tried that could show more of my idea about ideal beauty. I also do it against the backdrop of many different cultures where I borrow what I feel to be best suited for my portrait to come up with unimaginable great result. I think many artists experience that feeling of being deeply immersed in their paintings that they lose track of time whenever they are engage with their work. Such is my case. I am very meticulous to details and spend a great deal time to be able to portray what I have in mind and I do not stop until I feel it is right. Being faithful to that idea of the ideal of giving truth to beauty is what animates me in my studio for hours as I explore the province of dreams through my artworks. I feel like that if I stop short of what I feel and believe is right, I am betraying my art. Such, I pursue it until I found the truth and had them manifested in my artwork. I do not mine the countless hours, days, even weeks that I will spend to achieve the ideal in my artworks. I am willing to do it again and again knowing that the opportunity to touch the human

Friedrich Nietzsche Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Friedrich Nietzsche Philosophy Essay Friedrich Willhelm Nietzsche, a German Philosopher of the mid 1800`s was Born 1844 and died after a long medical condition that was thoroughly investigated but with no found result in 1900. Nietzsche is most renowned for challenging the moral integrity of Christianity in the late 1800’s despite having grown up with a background and family history of Lutheran ministers; where his Father, Uncles and Grandfathers were all Ministers. This philosopher was the most outspoken on topics such as power, pain, culture and moral acts, and from that has influenced some of the most commonly known philosophers we know of today; such as Sigmund Freud. Nietzsche viewed evil or immoral acts as â€Å"self-consciousness, free will and either/or bipolar thinking† (Curry, B. (2008). The Perspectives of Nietzsche. Retrieved from http://www.pitt.edu/-wbcurry/nietzsche.html). Nietzsche believed that Evil is within and dependant upon the determinants that affect ones moral perception. Nietzsche view on evil came from a very passionate outlook on his world, on culture and of rights and freedoms. Nietzsche put it quite plainly when he said†¦ â€Å"Some moralities are more suitable for subordinate roles; some are more appropriate for dominating and leading social roles. What counts as a preferable and legitimate action depends upon the kind of person one is. The deciding factor is whether one is weaker, sicker and on the decline, or whether one is healthier, more powerful and overflowing with life† (Brandhorst, M. (2010). Naturalism and the Genealogy of Moral Institutions: Journal of Nietzsche Studies. Issue 40, p 5-28, 16p). Nietzsche particularly critiqued Christian and Kantian morality, related to these 2 moral components of which express cultural out casting of freedom of speech and natural free will. i. Presupposes three particular descriptive claims about the nature of human agents; pertaining (connecting) to free will, the transparency of the self, and the essential similarity of all people (â€Å"the Descriptive Component†); and/or ii. Embraces norms that harm the â€Å"highest men† while benefitting the â€Å"lowest† (â€Å"the Normative Component†) In this Nietzsche is explaining that (1†²) Hold agents responsible for their actions (2†²) Evaluate and â€Å"rank† the motives for which agents act (Brandhorst, M. (2010). Naturalism and the Genealogy of Moral Institutions: Journal of Nietzsche Studies. Issue 40, p 5-28, 16p). These views help support and defend Nietzsche’s logics on moral and psychological action: these precise opinions and views influenced one of the most famous Psychologists, Sigmund Freud. In Nietzsche’s first historical writings during the early 1870’s he was merely a student studying and exploring philosophical logic and legislations of his time. With an opinionated and different perspective of immoral acts than the culture surrounding him he took initiative in making his own decisions of what was right and what was wrong. In his first published writings The Birth of Tragedy (1872) it showed his advocating view for cultural adversity; though it was deeply put down by other scholars renowned for sharing Christian based opinions of that era, Nietzsche continued to express his abrasive view against unethical stringent laws (Robertson, S. (2009). Nietzsches Ethical Revaluation: Journal of Nietzsche Studies; Issue 37, pp 66-90). This philosopher indulged himself in cultural adversity, interacting with music, nature, sciences and exploration of other cultures and religions. Nietzsche counter acted with the book Human, All-Too-Human (1878) (Robertson, S. (2009). Nietzsches Ethical Revaluation: Journal of Nietzsche Studies; Issue 37, pp 66-90) that gave him a name and furthered his career, this book touched on health and the idea of hedonistic ideas in regards to pleasure and pain relevance amongst cultural and physiological phenomena. Nietzsche is a naturalist expanding on views related to animals, earth, air, wind, fire, body touching on illogical ideas of, especially, the Christian based religion. Nietzsche was very passionate and outspoken towards Christianity however that was not his only passionate topic. The power behind Germany in the late 1860’s due to wars prior and present were a huge influence for him as the shift of legislations due to new authority was erratically changing Germany, most notably, Politically, Economically and Culturally (Osborn, R. E. (2010). Nihilisms Conscience: On Nietzsches Politics of Aristocratic Radicalism. Modern age; Vol. 52 Issue 4, p 293-308). Therefore the idea that Germany could be altered so quickly not only enraged Friedrich Nietzsche but empowered him in his righteousness as an open minded scholar and as the next generation of Germany. This shift in Germany’s political system greatly affected Nietzsche’s era, and as a passionate advocate for freedom in culture Nietzsche felt compelled to speak out against the evil of which was the becoming of Germany. In conclusion Nietzsche’ views on evil were that to have bad moral or to act in an evil way, it is an act of conscious natural behavior. He believed that Evil is within and dependant upon the determinants that affect ones moral perception. Friedrich Nietzsche was in his prime during the change of an era in Germany’s political, societal and religious systems and was compelled to stand for what he believed in. It is extremely interesting that during the early 1870’s the new King Otto von Bismarck introduced healthcare, social security and a rise in socialism to promote the economic deficit and reduce potential hierarchy, however advocated anti-socialist laws (Palante, G. (2009, June 1st). Historical Philosophical Forum. Vol. 40 Issue 2 p265-273, 8p). The anti socialist laws were created to shift the power of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) which stood for Civil and Political rights in an open society. Bismarck also reduced the affiliations and influence of the political system on Catholics; making Catholicism a growing religion that was before the early 1870’s mostly Christian based. This seems to have been a huge influence on Nietzsche as his first book, The Birth of Tragedy (1872) was based upon open society and cultural adversity. This history of Germany is so significant due to the shift in power of the church, beginning at the attempt to stop the SDP after they had just begun in 1875 in the German Parliament as a Christian based society; immediately shifting the change from Christian to Catholicism (Palante, G. (2009, June 1st). Historical Philosophical Forum. Vol. 40 Issue 2 p265-273, 8p) this provoked outrage as this meant less freedom of choice for citizens. Although Friedrich Nietzsche far from advocated Christianity, the shift of religion affected him as this meant a cultural change amongst his peers. It greatly fuelled further writings based upon honest questions surrounding concepts that drain life’s energies. These strong views are now known as ‘Nietzschean affirmation’ expanding on Nietzsche profound writing based around existentialism; Friedrich Nietzsche along with Sà ¸ren Kierkegaard (1813–1855) were the two philosophers renowned for doing so in the late 1800’s (Palante, G. (2009, June 1st). Historical Philosophical Forum. Vol. 40 Issue 2 p265-273, 8p). Existentialism is a term used by philosophical thinkers expressing that one’s life affirmation, one’s existence is determined by ones self. Despite life’s distractions and obstacles it is ones choice to live passionately, with sincere moral integrity as best as possible. This further supports how Nietzsche’s opposing thoughts towards empiricism of which means ones moral integrity is derived from senses and experience, however socially prevalent those views might have been by Germany, Nietzsche still profoundly opposed them. In books such as Daybreak: Reflections on Moral Prejudices, 1881 (Morgenrà ¶te. Gedanken à ¼ber die moralischen Vorurteile) (Osborn, R. E. (2010). Nihilisms Conscience: On Nietzsches Politics of Aristocratic Radicalism. Modern age; Vol. 52 Issue 4, p 293-308), Nietzsche’s most memorable, clearest, and intimate volumes, expressing many social-psychological insights and cultural relativity using Christian Based moral evaluations as reflections on good and evil. There were several books to follow Daybreak in the late 1880’s, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (1883–85) and Ecce Homo (1888); this volume expressed the deepest of understanding power, humans and moral behaviors. Friedrich Nietzsche’s crusade against morality had begun and he followed up with The Gay Science (Die frà ¶hliche Wissenschaft, 1882) (Osborn, R. E. (2010). Nihilisms Conscience: On Nietzsches Politics of Aristocratic Radicalism. Modern age; Vol. 52 Issue 4, p 293-308) a book in which Nietzsche becomes famous for his existential ideas pertaining the existence of life. In this book I believe Nietzsche was encouraging the citizens of Germany to speak out against the injustice towards freedom and lack of moral integrity that the German political system was advocating. As Nietzsche’s world changed around him he felt more and more compelled to change it, standing by his own philosophical views and taking his life into his hands; becoming a martyr for the freedom of speech and cultural adversity that he so dearly believed in. Nietzsche felt very patiently towards open culture as well as freedom and this era of Germany was a huge influence on his work as it was a significant shift in decisions set by the new acclaimed authority. The Battle of good and evil is a constant in a world with no balance and a constant struggle of power. Friedrich Nietzsche so profoundly advocated freedom and cultural adversity, in which has inspired leading figures in all walks of cultural life, including dancers, poets, novelists, painters, psychologists, philosophers, sociologists and social revolutionaries; however there is always a power working against that and thus the problems that were his era are still amongst us. Until people accept others and are willing to live with respect to cultural adversity then there will always be evil immoral versus good moral. Throughout the history of any sovereignty there is a constant battle for power, beliefs and cultural relativity. Friedrich Nietzsche stood for freedom of choice and through his passionate writings did so very well; however as Nietzsche has expressed so dearly it is within ones choice to act with moral integrity based upon there perception of good and evil. These are the choices that affect us daily and round us as individuals; personally I have faced immoral decisions and it is in those moments, that you do not always realize at once, the affect that decision can have on another. In agreement with Friedrich Nietzsche, to recognize and feel remorse in your conscious or subconscious decision is what differentiates good and evil. For instance, contemporarily when you are in a delicate discussion of religion amongst peers of various cultural background I have to think open-mindedly with conscious acceptance to the reasoning behind cultural and religious background before making a judgmental statement. As well as Politics in Canada is directed for different groups of people, as politics usually is, so immediately there is a divide in Canada’s cultural, ethnic, and working class; because it is in the current political power to protect Canada’s Economic, Environmental or Social well-being. There is no balance and I believe without balance in a person, country or cultural group there cannot be a sustainable approach to good and evil; there is always a stretch for that much more power on any side, affecting moral. References Brandhorst, M. (2010). Naturalism and the Genealogy of Moral Institutions: Journal of Nietzsche Studies. Issue 40, p 5-28, 16p. Curry, B. (2008). The Perspectives of Nietzsche. Retrieved from http://www.pitt.edu/-wbcurry/nietzsche.html. Osborn, R. E. (2010). Nihilisms Conscience: On Nietzsches Politics of Aristocratic Radicalism. Modern age; Vol. 52 Issue 4, p 293-308. Palante, G. (2009, June 1st). Historical Philosophical Forum. Vol. 40 Issue 2 p265-273, 8p. Robertson, S. (2009). Nietzsches Ethical Revaluation: Journal of Nietzsche Studies; Issue 37, pp 66-90.

In Organic We Trust by Kip Pastor Essay -- Organic Foods vs. Non-organi

Check your supermarket, there could be lies on your food, telling you that what you are eating is organic and cared for but most of it is not. The documentary In Organic We Trust by Kip Pastor focuses on organic foods, what they are, how they are grown, and what makes them â€Å"organic†. What he finds is shocking and relevant to society today in every way possible. Pastor proves this to the audience by using a strong form of logos throughout the documentary. He conveys it to those watching by using pathos to play on their heart strings, but lacks via ethos to win over the rest of the audience. A great job is done in this film of convincing the audience that Pastor is on their side and fighting for the health of America, even questioning what â€Å"organic† actually is. The first example is ethos, meant to describe ones character through morals, ethics and ideals. Pastor questions the ethics of the corporations and the government for its involvement in the ordeal but never answers the question to show ethos. These large corporations are questioned as to what their involvement in the â€Å"organic† industry is and the extant but never having got an answer, all Pastor is left with is to question their motives. Pastor had the same problem when it came to the government, he could only speculate as to why they were even involved with the â€Å"organic† industry if they were subcontracting everything out. He never got a straight answer, so it would be hard to determine whether the government was sincere in wanting to regulate â€Å"organic† food or just wanting a piece of the money pie â€Å"organic† is made up of. Pastor did attempt to track down both of these giants which show his credibility in wanting to get both sides of the story, but he was shu... ...g statistics about the public’s health and make the future seem bleak, â€Å"the lifespan is shortening for new American children† (Pastor) and â€Å" one in three children born after the year 2010 will develop type II diabetes† (Pastor). Pastor says that he is shocked by the impact and wants to break away from the cycle created. In his closing statements he convinces the audience to break away from the cycle away as well, by drawing on the seeds he planted with pathos, ethos, and logos. The film was well made and addressed all the issues of â€Å"organic† food and well informed the audience of what is occurring. Next time, an audience member goes to the supermarket to buy food they will probably remember what their children will look like in twenty years if they don’t take a more â€Å"organic† approach to their lives. Works Cited In Organic We Trust. Kip Pastor. 2012. DVD.

Mathematics in Cryptology

Cryptology is the procedure of writing by means of a variety of methods to keep messages secret and includes communications security and communications intelligence. The cryptologic (code making and code breaking) and intelligence services provide information to both tactical forces and Navy commanders. Shore-based intellect and cryptologic operations engage the compilation, handing out, analysis, and reporting of information from a lot of sources, from communications intelligence to human intelligence. This information is used to assess threats to the Navy and to the protection of the United States. Tactical intelligence, more often than not provided by ships, submarines, and aircraft, gives combat commanders indications and warning of impending opponent activity and assessments of ongoing hostile activity and capabilities.The start of the 21st century is a golden age for applications of mathematics in cryptology.   The early stages of this age can be traced to the work of Rejewsk i, Rozycki, and Zygalski on breaking mystery. Their employment was a breach in more than a few ways.   It made a marvelous realistic input to the conduct of Word War II.   At the same time, it represented a major increase in the sophistication of the mathematical tools that were used.   Ever since, mathematics has been playing a progressively more important role in cryptology.This has been the result of the dense relationships of mathematics, cryptology, and technology, relationships that have been developing for a long time. At the same time as codes and ciphers go back thousands of years, systematic study of them dates back only to the Renaissance.   Such study was stimulated by the rapid growth of written communications and the associated postal systems, as well as by the political fragmentation in Europe. In the 19th century, the electric telegraph provided an additional spur to the development of cryptology.The major impetus, despite the fact that, appears to have come with the appearance of radio communication at the beginning of the 20th century. This technical development led to growth of military, diplomatic, and commercial traffic that was open to non-intrusive interception by friend or foe alike.   The need to protect such traffic, from interception was obvious, and led to the search for improved codes and ciphers.   These, in turn, stimulated the development of cryptanalytic methods, which then led to development of better cryptosystems, in an endless cycle.   What systems were built has always depended on what was known about their security, and also on the technology that was available.Amid the two world wars, the need for encrypting and decrypting ever-greater volumes of information dependably and steadily, combined with the accessible electromechanical technology, led many cryptosystem designers towards rotor system.   Yet, as Rejewski, Rozycki, and Zygalski showed, the operations of rotor machines created enough regularities to enable effective cryptanalysis through mathematical techniques.   This was yet another instance of what Eugene Wigner has called the â€Å"unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics,† in which techniques developed for abstract purposes turn out to be surprisingly well-suited for real applications.The sophistication of mathematical techniques in cryptography continued increasing after World War II, when attention shifted to cryptosystems based on shift register sequences.   A quantum jump occurred in the 1970s, with the invention of public key cryptography. This invention was itself stimulated by technological developments, primarily the growth in information processing and transmission.   This growth was leading to explosive increases in the volume of electronic transactions, increases that show no signs of tapering off even today, a quarter century later.The large and assorted populations of users that were foreseen in developing civilian settings were leading to probl ems, such as key management and digital signatures that previously had not been as severe in smaller and more tightly controlled military and political communications.   At the same time, developments in technology were offering unprecedented possibilities for implementing complicated algorithms.   Mathematics again turned out to provide the tools that were used to meet the challenge.The public key schemes that were invented in the 1970s used primarily tools from classical number theory.   Yet as time went on, the range of applicable mathematics grew.   Technology continued improving, but in uneven ways.   For example, while general computing power of a personal computer grew explosively, there was also a proliferation of small, especially wireless devices, which continued to have stringent power and bandwidth limitations.   This put renewed emphasis on finding cryptosystems that were thrifty with both computation and transmission.At the same time, there was growth in th eoretical knowledge, which led to breaking of numerous systems, and required increases in key sizes of even well trusted schemes such as RSA. The outcome of the developments in technology and science is that today we are witnessing explosive growth in applications of sophisticated mathematics in cryptology.   This volume is a collection of both surveys and original research papers that illustrate well the interactions of public key cryptography and computational number theory.Some of the systems discussed here are based on algebra, others on lattices, yet others on combinatorial concepts.   There are also some number theoretic results that have not been applied to cryptography yet, but may be in the future.   The diversity of techniques and results in this volume does show that mathematics, even mathematics that was developed for its own sake, is helping solve important problems of our modern society.   At the same time, mathematics is drawing valuable inspiration from the p ractical problems that cryptology poses.The recent breakthrough discovery of public key cryptography has been one (but not the only) contributor to a dramatic increase in the sophistication and elegance of the mathematics used in cryptology. Coding theory enables the reliable transmission and storage of data. Thanks to coding theory, despite dramatic increases in the rates and volumes of bits transmitted and the number of bits stored in computers or household appliances, we are able to operate confidently under the assumption that every one of these bits is exactly what it is supposed to be. Often they are not, of course, and the errors would be catastrophic were it not for the superbly efficient detection and correction algorithms clever coding theorists have created.Although a number of incessant mathematics has been employed (notably, probability theory), the bulk of the mathematics involved is discrete mathematics. Nevertheless, in spite of the strong demonstration that cryptolo gy and coding theory provide, there is little understanding or recognition in the mainstream mathematics community of the importance of discrete mathematics to the information society. The core problems in applied mathematics after World War II (e.g., understanding shock waves) involved continuous mathematics, and the composition of most applied mathematics departments today reflects that legacy.The increasing role of discrete mathematics has affected even the bastions of the â€Å"old† applied mathematics, such as the aircraft manufacturers, where information systems that allow design engineers to work on a common electronic blueprint have had a dramatic effect on design cycles. In the meantime, mathematics departments seem insulated from the need to evolve their research program as they carry on providing service teaching of calculus to captive populations of engineering students.However, the needs of these students are changing. As mathematicians continue to work in narrow areas of specialization, they may be unaware of these trends and the appealing mathematical research topics that are most strongly connected to current needs arising from the explosion in information technology. Indeed, a great deal of important and interesting mathematics research is being done outside of mathematics departments. (This applies even to traditional applied mathematics, PDE's and the like, where, as just one example, modeling has been neglected.)In the history of cryptology and coding theory, mathematicians as well as mathematics have played an important role. Sometimes they have employed their considerable problem-solving skills in direct assaults on the problems, working so closely with engineers and computer scientists that it would be difficult to tell the subject matter origins apart. Sometimes mathematicians have formalized parts of the problem being worked, introducing new or classical mathematical frameworks to help understand and solve the problem.Sophistica ted theoretical treatments of these subjects (e.g., complexity theory in cryptology) have been very helpful in solving concrete problems. The probable for theory to have bottom-line impact seems even greater today. One panelist opined, â€Å"This is a time that cries out for top academicians to join us in developing the theoretical foundations of the subject. We have lots of little results that seem to be part of a bigger pattern, and we need to understand the bigger picture in order to move forward.† However, unfortunately, the present period is not one in which research mathematicians are breaking down doors to work on these problems.Mathematicians are without a doubt needed to generate mathematics. It is less clear that they are indispensable to its application. One panelist pointed out that there are many brilliant engineers and computer scientists who understand thoroughly not only the problems but also the mathematics and the mathematical analysis needed to solve them. â€Å"It's up to the mathematics community,† he continued, â€Å"to choose whether it is going to try to play or whether it is going to exist on the scientific margins.The situation is similar to the boundary where physics and mathematics meet and mathematicians are scrambling to follow where Witten and Seiberg have led.† Another panelist disagreed, believing it highly desirable, if not necessary, to interest research mathematicians in application problems. â€Å"When we bring in (academic research) mathematicians as consultants to work on our problems, we don't expect them to have the same bottom-line impact as our permanent staff, because they will not have adequate knowledge of system issues.However, in their effort to understand our problems and apply to them the mathematics with which they are familiar, they often make some unusual attack on the problem or propose some use of a mathematical construct we had never considered. After several years and lots of honing of the mathematical construct by our ‘applied mathematicians,' we find ourselves in possession of a powerful and effective mathematical tool.†During the late 1970s, a small group of bright educational cryptographers proposed a series of elegant schemes through which secret messages could be sent without relying on secret variables (key) shared by the encipherer and the decipherer, secrets the maintenance of which depended upon physical security, which in the past has been often compromised. Instead, in these â€Å"public key† schemes, the message recipient published for all to see a set of (public) variables to be used by the message sender in such a way that messages sent could be read only by the intended recipient. (At least, the public key cryptographers hoped that was the case!)It is no exaggeration to say that public key cryptography was a breakthrough â€Å"of monumental proportions,† as big a surprise to those who had relied on conventional cryptog raphy in the sixties as television was to the public in the fifties. Breaking these â€Å"public key† ciphers requires, or seems to require, solutions to well-formulated mathematical problems believed to be difficult to solve. One of the earliest popular schemes depended on the solution of a certain â€Å"knapsack† problem (given a set of integers and a value, find a subset whose constituents sum to that value).This general problem was thought to be hard (known to be NP- complete), but a flurry of cryptanalytic activity discovered a way to bypass the NP-complete problem, take advantage of the special conditions of the cryptographic implementation and break the scheme, first by using H. Lenstra's integer programming algorithm, next using continued fractions, later and more effectively by utilizing a lattice basis reduction algorithm due to Lenstra, Lenstra and Lovasz.Although many instantiations of public key cryptographies have been proposed since their original discov ery, current cryptographic implementers seem to be placing many of their eggs in two baskets: one scheme (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman, RSA), whose solution is related to the conjectured difficulty of factoring integers, the second, (Diffie-Hellman, DH), which is related to the conjectured difficulty of solving the discrete logarithm problem (DLP) in a group. The discrete logarithm problem in a group G, analogous to the calculation of real logarithms, requires determination of n, given g and h in G , so that gn = h.Each of the past three decades has seen momentous improvements in attacking these schemes, although there has not yet been the massive breakthrough (as predicted in the movie â€Å"Sneakers†) that would send cryptographers back to the drawing boards. The nature of these attacks leads some to suspect that we may have most of our eggs in one basket, as most improvements against RSA seems to correspond to an analogous idea that works against the most common instantiations of DH (when the group is the multiplicative group of a finite field or a large subgroup of prime order of the multiplicative group) and vice versa.Asymptotic costs to attack each scheme, although each has declined as a consequence of new algorithms, continue to be comparable. These innovative algorithms, along with improvements in computational power, have forced the use of larger and larger key sizes (with the credit for the increase split about equally linking mathematics and technology). As a result, the computations to implement RSA or DH securely have been steadily increasing.Recently, there has been interest in utilizing the elliptic curve group in schemes based on DLP, with the hope that the (index calculus) weaknesses that have been uncovered in the use of more traditional groups will not be found.It is believed, and widely marketed, that DLP in the group of points of non-super singular elliptic curves of genus one over finite fields does not allow a sub-exponential time solut ion. If this is true, DH in the elliptic curve group would provide security comparable to other schemes at a lower computational and communication overhead. It may be true, but it certainly has not yet been proven. There are connections between elliptic curve groups and class groups with consequences for the higher genus case and extension fields. In particular, Menezes, Okamoto and Vanstone showed how the Weil pairing gave a better method for solving DLP for a particular class of elliptic curves, the supersingular ones.These are curves of order p+1, and DLP is reduced to a similar problem in GF(p2), where it can be more effectively solved. Work continues in an effort to extend these results to the general curve group. A related problem in elliptic curve cryptography focuses attention on another possible exciting interplay between theoretical mathematics, computer science (algorithms) and practical implementation. Calculation of the order of the elliptic curve group is not straightf orward. Knowing the order of their group is very important to DH cryptographers, since short cut attacks exist if the order of the group factors into small primes.Current elliptic curve cryptosystem proposals often employ a small class of curves to circumvent the counting problem. Even less progress has been made on the more general problem of whether there exist any groups whose DLP is exponential and, if so, characterizing such groups. Another interesting problem is whether solving DLP is necessary as well as sufficient for breaking DH. There are some groups for which this is known to be true, but determining whether this is true for all groups, or characterizing those groups for which it is true, remains to be done. A third interesting general DH problem is â€Å"diagnosis† of the DH group (when one has intercepted both ends of DH exchanges and does not know the group employed).For this reason, cryptology is a traditional subject that conventionally guaranteed (or sought t o undo the guarantee of) confidentiality and integrity of messages, but the information era has expanded the range of applications to consist of authentication, integrity and protocols for providing other information attributes, including timeliness, ease of use of service and protection of intellectual property. Cryptology has at all times been a charming and an exciting study, enjoyed by mathematicians and non-mathematicians the same.

American Latinos: Cubans, Mexicans and Puerto Ricans

Three of the most dominant Latinos present in the American society today are the Mexican (66. 9%), Puerto Ricans (8. 6%) and Cubans (3. 7%) (Ramirez & Cruz, 2003, 20). Aside from the fact that all three groups speak Spanish, all share common cultural backgrounds that differ from the US mainstream society. For one, the Latinos are very family oriented and keep extended families at home (Driscoll et al, 2001, 255; Andersen & Collins). In most Latino families, grandparents live with one of their married children or married children live with their parents. Sometimes relatives also live with the nuclear family.Grandmothers played a significant role in the lives of Latino families, they help in raising their grandchildren and act as advisers. Latino parents also want their children to live with them until they get married. Such culture conflicts with the US mainstream society where independence and self-reliance is largely emphasized (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 263-265). Keeping an extende d family in the home is not popular in US culture; in fact, children are expected to leave their homes when they reach eighteen. Children who still live with their parents at that age are looked upon as dependent.Unlike Latino grandparents, older women in mainstream society exercised less power over their married children and more often than not suffer from depression due to an empty nest syndrome. Moreover, the prevalent individualistic culture of mainstream society in the US do not allow for too much dependence with other people even with their own family. The Americans worked hard in their entire life to support their old age. Unlike the old Latinos that were taken cared of in the home when they are sick, aged Americans are usually cared for in foster homes or hospices.Americans viewed too much dependence on others as a sign of laziness and irresponsibility (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 265). Latinos hold double standard for men and women. The honor of Latino family rest on the sexu al behavior of their women. Women must keep their virginity at all cost until marriage and be differential to men in their sexuality. Although Hispanics in the twentieth century may not hold the same strict sexual values, the tradition of maintaining virginity until marriage continues to be a cultural imperative.However, married women are supposed to accept a double standard for sexual behavior by which their husbands may have sexual affairs with other women. This double standard supports the Latino stereotype of machismo. Many males celebrated their adolescence by visiting prostitutes and their father, uncles or older brothers pays for sexual initiation. Adolescent females on the other hand hold debuts that emphasize their virginity (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 264-266).Unlike in US mainstream society, there is an equal standard on male and female sexual behavior, males and females are expected to give up their virginity at a young age around 15 or 16. Their peers ridiculed them if t hey are still virgins at 18. This difference in sexual behavior had caused tensions especially among American adolescents and female Latinas who were taught to keep their virginity at all cost. At present however, due to American cultural influence, younger Latinas now find themselves challenging traditional sexual mores (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 256).In Latin society, female concept of goodness is connected by their being a martyr or submissive to their husbands and to their family. Male superiority had its roots also in machismo. Adult males, however, gave a higher respect and reverence for their mothers. Moreover, in Latino families, women are traditionally regarded as homemakers, as much as possible they stay in the home to care for the family while the men provide for them. American cultural influence however changed the Latino culture especially as the Latinos become exposed to the independent and liberated behaviors of the Americans (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 265-266).II. Me xicans and Mexican Americans Due to American conquest of Mexico and the granting of US citizenship in 1848 through the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexicans became a part American society. In the years 1880’s and 1940’s, many of them migrated to America as laborers. Due to the proximity of America to Mexico, many entered the country as illegal immigrants (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 249). Like most Latino cultures, Mexican families are patriarchal in nature. Patriarchal families are important instruments of community life and nuclear family units are linked together through an elaborate system of kinship and god parenting.Women are regarded as subordinates to men and are expected to take care of the family while the men work to provide for them. Machismo is also a part of their culture, with men celebrating manhood through the conquest of many women and acting as superior. Mexican families also recognize extended family network, particularly the system of compadrezo or g odparenting. In Mexican society, godparents are an important factor that links family and community. Compadrezos are expected to act as guardians, provide financial assistance in times of need and to substitute in case of death.Because of their devotion to catholic faith and machismo, Chicanos do not approve of homosexuality (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 254; Driscoll et al, 2001, 256) In spite of the influence of American culture, racism, segregation and proximity to Mexico help the Chicanos (Mexican-American) to maintain some traditional family practices although the imposition of American law and custom ignored and ultimately undermined some aspects of the extended family. Wives are now exercising power over their husbands as they entered the workforce.Unfortunately, even though both work, most men do not help in household chores so that chicanas are prone to stress. . New generation Chicanos, on the other hand, demands independence like their US counterparts and most likely engaged in intercourse at a lower age (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 230; Spence, 2003). Since many of the Mexicans entered illegally in the US, many of them were not able o move freely in American mainstream society causing so much stress on their part. Like the rest of the Latinos, Chicanos are at risk for developing asthma, diabetes, and AIDS (Center for Disease Control, 2008).Illegal immigrants however, refuse to see a doctor when they got sick as they are afraid to be deported (Figueroa & Griffin, 2006, 2). II. Puerto Ricans Puerto Ricans are the poorest group of all the Latinos and generally are the most dark-skinned. Puerto Ricans first entered the country in 1898 when the United States take possession of Puerto Rico during the Spanish- American War (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 229). The family is patriarchal in nature, with men acting as providers and protectors and women as homemakers.Men do not take part actively in domestic chores and caring for their children although they are expect ed to be affectionate to them. Machismo is also a part of thier culture, subordinating women to men and men perceived as having a higher sexual drive. Men enjoy more freedom in public than women do and it is expected that they have many female conquest. Male dominance is met with a woman’s submissiveness and in the belief that a woman’s virtue is further enhanced by being patient and forbearing toward their men although generally women mistrust their men.Puerto Rican women however, in spite of the demands of being patient and forbearing, do not see themselves as resigned females but as dynamic homemakers. Although conscious of their subordinate status to their husbands, wives are also aware of their power and the demands they can make. They can choose to live with the man or leave him when he turns out to be abusive. Furthermore, Puerto Rican women regarded motherhood as a woman’s greatest satisfaction in life based on their concept of marianismo. Virgin Mary is seen as a woman’s role model (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 255-260).Ideal family relations are based on two interrelated themes, family unity and family interdependence. Family unity refers to the desirability of close and intimate kin ties, with members getting along well and keeping in frequent contact despite dispersal and getting together during holidays or celebrations. Family unity is viewed as contributing to the strengthening of family interdependence. They believe that the greater the unity in the family, the greater the emphasis family members will place on interdependence and familial obligation.Despite the adaptation to American life, Puerto Rican families are still defined by reciprocity among family members, especially those in the immediate family kinship group. Individuals in Puerto Rican families will expect and ask for assistance from certain people in their social networks without any derogatory implications of self-esteem. The older women expect to be taken cared of during old age by their adult children (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 255-260). Although emotional and physical closeness among women is encouraged by the culture, over acknowledgment of lesbianism is even more restricted than in mainstream American society.In fact, rejection of homosexuals appears to be the dominant attitude in the Puerto Rican community forcing homosexuals to lead a double life although the American concept of equality and individual rights threatens this belief (Andersen & Collins, 1995, 260). Concerning their health, Puerto Ricans have higher risk for AIDS since they least likely get married. They also have the highest rate of developing diabetes among the Latinos (Center for Disease Control, 2008). In recent times, the culture of male dominance is being challenged in Puerto Rican families especially that women also now work.Daughters however are expected to care for the home while their brothers work. New generation Puerto Ricans also engages in sex at an earlier age as compared to their island counterparts. Children also demands more independence from parental control (Shaefer, 2006, 239; Andersen & Collins, 1995, 255). IV. Cubans The Cubans first entered America as political refugees during the Cuban revolution in 1959. They are the most successful of all the Latinos since most of them are professionals and the US government assisted them (Schaefer, 2006, 247; Andersen & Collins, 1995, 229).The Cuban family is also patriarchal in nature and the concept of machismo is very much entrenched in their nature perhaps largely because they had been the last Latin nation to be liberated from Spanish control and their lives had been dominated by military struggles. The ingrained machismo concept had caused much regression and assimilation conflict in Cuban males in America. Cubans in America are permitted to have sexual relations with American women as long as they do not forget to marry a Cuban girl.Men do not do household chores because it decreases their machismo. Women are regarded as subordinates although women are now asserting more authority in the Cuban American home as they entered the workforce. However, women still respect male superiority and ask for their approval when joining clubs or engaging in social activities. The importance of extended families also diminished; god parenting-role is lessened. Cuban Americans do not accept homosexuality and were repulsed by the fact that some men chose to discard their male power to act as women.However, unlike the Americans who regarded both persons of the same sex who engages in intercourse as homosexuals, the Cubans only regarded homosexual the person who assumes the position of a woman in intercourse (Schaefer, 2006, 250; Andersen & Collins, 1995, 229). Many Cubans however publicly proclaimed that they would like to return to Cuba someday when Castro’s government is overturned and so they desired not to be all too adaptive to American culture (Schaefer, 20 06, 250). V. ConclusionThe Latino culture of family dependence through extended families, male superiority, women chastity and homosexual repugnance is being challenged in the American mainstream society. As they live in America, Latino family structure suffer changes in gender roles wherein women now asserts some form of authority , independence and sexual freedom. Parents and extended families also exert lesser power over the new generation. With regard to health issues, the Mexican illegal immigrants are at a disadvantage in accessing health care while the Puerto Ricans are at a higher risk for contracting AIDS and diabetes.References Andersen, Margaret and Patricia Collins. (1995). Race, Class and Gender, 2nd ed. Belmont: Wadsworh Publishing Company. Center for Disease Control. (2008). Health Disparities Affecting Minorities. Retrieved March 14, 2008 from http://www. nlm. nih. gov/medlineplus/hispanicamericanhealth. html Driscoll, Anne K. , M. Antonia Biggs, Claire D. Brindis, a nd Ekua Yankah. 2001. â€Å"Adolescent Latino Reproductive Health: A Review of the Literature. † Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 23 (5): 255-326. Figueroa, Evelyn and Griffin Deborah.Understanding Cultural Influence On Health Behaviors of Latino Adolescent Parents. UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center, 12(2006):pp. 1-4. Ramirez, Roberto O. and G. Patricia de la Cruz. (2003). â€Å"The Hispanic Population in the United States: March 2002. † Population Characteristics. US Census Bureau. P20-545. Schaefer, Richard T. (2006). Racial and Ethnic Groups, tenth ed. New York: Prentice-Hall. Spence, Naomi J. 2003. â€Å"Transition to First Sexual Intercourse: The Interaction between Immigrant Generational Status and Race/Ethnicity. † Paper presented at the Southern Sociological Society.

Clever inventions. The possibilities of the mind

Clever inventions. The possibilities of the mind Useful inventions of all time If asked about the biggest invention of our time, people would probably name the Internet. It allows us to connect with friends around the world and establish connections we never knew existed. You want to talk to your favorite celebrity or find out what has been going on in Eastern Asia? - Google will help you! A hundred years ago, we could not imagine the luxury of interacting with people miles away from us. The credit goes to Lawrence Roberts, the inventor of the first Internet prototype. However, apart from the global communication system, what can we name as the greatest invention? You may argue about the usefulness of this or that device, but we can assure you they have all made a fair contribution to our routine. Where would the mankind be, if it was not for the phone or text messages we are used to exchanging whenever we want to share information? On top of that, we should include some of the things that were necessary for the development of the human race: The wheel. The wheel is truly one of the inventions of the humankind, the value of which cannot be overlooked today. The concept of the first wheel was developed in 3500 B.C., and it was a blessing for everyone. People had massive problems with transporting goods and moving them from one town to another, so we guess this discovery was by far one of the most expected in the history of human civilization. These days, wheels are used everywhere, and the history we know was shaped with the help of this tool. The compass. Do you remember Captain Jack’s compass that showed the thing you wanted most? Well, magic aside, sailors used to navigate by the stars. Suffice to say, it was not a very safe methodic, as it forced them to skip their craft on cloudy evenings or in the daytime. Before the invention of the first compass, captains were bound to obey the mere changes of the weather, and had to wait until the sky was clear again. The situation changed, however, when the compass we know today was invented. The secret to successful navigating is the magnetized needle, which points north. The printing press. As we know, very few people had access to books back in the Middle Ages. The printing press appeared as a revolutionary device and changed the way we perceive printing today. Johannes Gutenberg decided to alter the course of history by inventing a special machine, which pressed ink to the paper so that the paint remained on the surface for long. This is another invention that led to the development of the human race, the importance of which cannot be overstated. The printing devices we have today allow us to immerse in the world of literature and become educated individuals through reading. The telephone. The invention of this device presents a series of experiments, which all led to failure. Many scientists struggled to build an electronic device, which would allow people to communicate via wires. However, electronic transmission did not seem possible until Alexander Graham Bell took the initiative in his hands. He invented the phone in 1876, and was awarded a patent for his discovery that led to revolutionizing the world of communication. He had a lot of successors, who tried to improve the said gadget, and fortunately, phones as we know them today allow to transmit electronic signals at long distances. The light bulb. It is hard to imagine our daily lives without this device. Electricity was in poor state when Thomas Edison decided he would change the face of the world we know. Of course, we cannot attribute this success to his personality alone, as many people played a significant role in inventing the light bulb, but generally, the credit belongs to Edison. Prior to this, we depended on natural lightning and the light of the candles. That was romantic, in some ways, and uncomfortable as well, as people had to work during the day and finish their chores before the sun went down. Now, we can sit up all night and be sure the lightning is bright and comfortable, thanks to the invention that Thomas Edison proudly patented. Penicillin. The story behind the invention of Penicillin is awesome. In 1928 there was a Scottish scientist named Alexander Fleming, who conducted a series of experiments in his private laboratory. During one of the experiments, he left a lid on a dish with bacteria opened. Later, he discovered that bacteria were dead as the dish became contaminated with mold. Later, Fleming found out that the mold was called fungus Penicillium, and it was cleared and purified by scientists to turn it into a strong medication, which changed the course of science and was a big history turn in the first half of the 20th century.

How to Search for Files and Folders With Delphi

How to Search for Files and Folders With Delphi When looking for files, it is often useful and necessary to search through subfolders. Here, see how to use Delphis strength to create a simple, but powerful, find-all-matching-files project. File/Folder Mask SearchProject The following project not only lets you search for files through subfolders, but it also lets you easily determine file attributes, such as Name, Size, Modification Date, etc. so  you can see when to invoke the File Properties Dialog from the Windows Explorer. In particular, it demonstrates how to recursively search through subfolders and assemble a list of files that match a certain file mask. The technique of recursion is defined as a routine that calls itself in the middle of its code. In order to understand the code in the project, we have to familiarize ourselves with the next three methods defined in the SysUtils unit: FindFirst, FindNext, and FindClose. FindFirst function FindFirst(const Path: string; Attr: Integer; var Rec: TSearchRec): Integer; FindFirst is the initialization call to start a detailed file search procedure using Windows API calls. The search looks for files that match the Path specifier. The Path usually includes wildcard characters (* and ?). Attr parameter contains combinations of file attributes to control the search. The file attribute constants recognized in Attr are: faAnyFile (any file), faDirectory (directories), faReadOnly (read only files), faHidden (hidden files), faArchive (archive files), faSysFile (system files) and faVolumeID (volume ID files). If FindFirst finds one or more matching files it returns 0 (or an error code for failure, usually 18) and fills in the Rec with information about the first matching file. In order to continue the search, we have to use the same TSearcRec record and pass it to the FindNext function. When the search is completed the FindClose procedure must be called to free internal Windows resources. The TSearchRec is a record defined as: typeTSearchRec record Time: Integer; Size: Integer; Attr: Integer; Name: TFileName; ExcludeAttr: Integer; FindHandle: THandle; FindData: TWin32FindData; end; When the first file is found the Rec parameter is filled, and the following fields (values) can be used by your project.. Attr, the files attributes as described above.. Name holds a string that represents a file name, without path information. Size in bytes of the file found.. Time stores the files modification date and time as a file date.. FindData contains additional information such as the file creation time, last access time, and both the long and short file names. FindNext function FindNext(var Rec: TSearchRec): Integer; The FindNext function is the second step in the detailed file search procedure. You have to pass the same search record (Rec) that has been created by the call to FindFirst. The return value from FindNext is zero for success or an error code for any error. FindClose procedure FindClose(var Rec: TSearchRec) ; This procedure is the required termination call for a FindFirst/FindNext. Recursive File Mask Matching Searching in Delphi This is the Searching for files project as it appears at run time. The most important components on the form are two edit boxes, one list box, a checkbox and a button. Edit boxes are used to specify the path you want to search in and a file mask. Found files are displayed in the List box and if the checkbox is checked then all subfolders are scanned for matching files. Below is the small code snippet from the project, just to show that searching for files with Delphi is as easy as can be: procedure FileSearch(const PathName, FileName : string) ;var Rec : TSearchRec;Path : string;begin Path : IncludeTrailingPathDelimiter(PathName) ; if FindFirst (Path FileName, faAnyFile - faDirectory, Rec) 0 thentryrepeat ListBox1.Items.Add(Path Rec.Name) ; until FindNext(Rec) 0;finally FindClose(Rec) ; end;...{all the code, particularly recursivefunction call can be found (downloaded) inthe project source code}...end;

James Joyces Portrayal of Dublin as a Paralyzed Country Term Paper

James Joyces Portrayal of Dublin as a Paralyzed Country - Term Paper Example As Parrinder also states, â€Å"Dubliners betrays fewer illusions about Ireland and Joyce’s manner is rigorously detached and impartial. He is a naturalist to the extent that he allows the paralysis of the Dublin society to betray itself rather than analyzing it or denouncing it openly† (43-44). Moreover Joyce himself claims that, â€Å"My intention was to write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because that city seemed to me the centre of paralysis† (Leonard 320). Such a projection of paralysis is also observed in the stories, The Sisters, Eveline and The Dead. 1.1. The Sisters The story is depicted in first person narration illustrating a tale of a Priest’s death named Father Flynn. The narrator was a friend of the priest who depicts the tale of the incidents that take place after his death and struggles to collect clues about the sins of the Father for which the Father had wanted forgiveness. 1.2. Eveline Evel ine reiterates a story of a young woman. Since she was born she had lived an unhappy and a tough life. She had always desired for an escape from her life in Dublin although when fate presents her with that golden chance she does not have the courage to avail it because she is unable to ignore her other responsibilities and leave her past for a new future. 1.3. The Dead The Dead is one of the master pieces of James Joyce because in this story the author has incorporated the concentrate of all the themes that Joyce is observed to be developing in his other short stories. It has a variety of characters from various age groups who have gathered for a musicale. However the basic focus of the story is on Gabriel and the manner in which he deals with the people around him. 2. Projection of Paralysis In the story The Sisters it is stated, â€Å"I softly said the word paralysis†¦it sounded to me like the name of some maleficent and sinful being† (2) this comment can be interprete d as Joyce’s style of establishing his dislike for the condition of his countrymen in the first short story of his collection. The major thematic concerns that reflect this paralysis include religion and criticism of the Church, isolation, decay and escapism. C. A. Malcolm and D. Malcolm state that, â€Å"through his representative characters and carefully crafted environment, Joyce illuminates the forces that determine, but in such a way that we can see those forces as imprisoning, binding, paralyzing† (166). 2.1. Religion Religion is a recurring theme in most of Joyce’s short stories as he condemns the stifling strictures of catholic believes and hence he is observed to be criticizing and questioning the holy sacrament of the Catholic Church. However the characters symbolize the paralytic state of his countrymen who never questioned the actions of Church and wasted away their lives according to the stifling and confining bounds set by the Catholic Church. The manner in which the character of the priest is depicted in the story and the hint of his sins reiterates that although church is holy institution yet even the pious people commit sins although no one would ever voice out such an opinion. As the narrator says that he saw the priest in his dream as mentioned in the tex