What Are The Motivations Of Dark Tourists?

What Are The Motivations Of Dark Tourists? On the 27th of April 2008, Josef Fritzl was arrested in Amstetten, a small town in Austria. It has shown that Fritzl sexually abused his daughter, Elisabeth, since she was eleven years old. When she was eighteen years old he locked her up in the basement underneath his house. Fritzl forced his daughter Elisabeth to write a letter to her mother where she stated that she had run away from home and joined a sect. The sexual abuse led to the birth of seven children. Three of these children were raised by Elisabeth in the basement and the other three were raised by Fritzl and his wife. One of the children died a few days after it was born. Furthermore, Fritzl convinced his wife that the three children they raised were exposed by Elisabeth. When one of the children that lived in the basement, the at that time nineteen-year-old Kersten, got ill Elisabeth convinced her father that she needed to be hospitalized. Because Kersten was not registered anywhere, one of the doctors informed the auth orities. After this, Elisabeth saw a program on the television in her basement that made a call up for the mother of Kersten. Then she convinced her father to bring her to the hospital, which led to the hearings of Fritzl and Elisabeth and the confessions of the cruelties that took place. After twenty-four years Elisabeth was freed from the basement and reunited with all her children (Wikipedia, 2010). This affair has received tremendous attention in the media and therefore the case is known all over the world. The affaire encompasses a painful and shameful episode on a national and local basis. Furthermore, the house of Fritzl has become a touristic attraction. Amstetten is dealing with an increasing amount of tourists that come to visit the house. When tourists visit the house, they often take photos of the house and of themselves in front of it. The articles on the internet show that the local authorities find this shocking (HLN, 2010). The phenomenon that people visit places that are associated with death, suffering and violence can be described as dark tourism. Thanatourism is a similar concept and also involves the visiting of locations associated with death and suffering, but an emphasis is placed upon symbolically experiencing a painful death. Another related concept is black spots, which can be described as commercial cemeteries of famous people or locations where death an d suffering took place. The house of Fritzl belongs to such places and visiting this location fits the description of dark tourism and thanatourism. The house of Fritzl, where the abuse and cruelties took place, can be seen as a symbolic reflection of this affaire and its tragic events. Furthermore, the house serves as a tangible object that invokes the memory of the Fritzl-affaire (Yull, 2003: 10-13; Logan en Reeves, 2009: 1-3; Rojek, 1993: 136). The phenomenon that people visit the house of Fritzl inspired me to formulate the following research question: What are the motivations of dark tourists? The case of the house of J. Fritzl in Amstetten. It is interesting to find out why tourists visit the house, if the media attention has played a role in the decision of people to visit the house and if certain characteristics, such as age and gender, affect the motivation of these visitors. The case of Fritzl offers a fascinating and recent case to go more in-depth into the motivations of dark tourists. Scientific and Social Relevance The scientific relevance of this research question lies in the fact that the subject of dark tourism is relatively new within the academic field. Several articles have been published on this topic, but as Stone (2006) argues: despite this increasing attention the dark tourism literature remains both eclectic and theoretical fragile (Stone, 2006: 145). Some researchers have already focused on visitor motivations of dark tourist sites. For example, Yull (2003) investigated why people visit the Holocaust Museum in Houston. However, according to Stone (2006) and Sharpley (2009) research first and foremost has focused on describing the different dark tourist sites, rather than on the consumption and experiences of visitors. This research will contribute to the understanding of visitor participation in dark tourism by taking the visitors of the house of Fritzl as the focal point of this research. Furthermore, the existing research has not focused on the motivations of visitors to dark tour ist sites, comparable to the house of Fritzl and therefore this research will add to and fill the gap in the existing literature. The social relevance of this research is harder to determine. However, finding out what the motivations of visitors are, might provide useful and relevant information for directly involved parties, other than the scientific community. For example, this information could offer the local community of Amstetten and (in)direct victims of this case a better understanding of what is going on and with what reasons people visit this site of horror. For example visitors might be motivated to visit this place to pay respect to the victims or remember the cruelties that took place, instead of entertainment purposes. Furthermore, the results of this research could even be relevant to society as a whole, since dark sites similar to the house of Fritzl seem to increasingly pop up and attract visitors world-wide. This research seeks to provide insights into why people a re motivated to visit these morbid locations. Theoretical Concepts and Hypothesized Relations As mentioned previously, several theoretical concepts are related to the phenomenon where people visit places associated with pain, death and suffering. Academic attention to this phenomenon increased in the twentieth century and several theoretical concepts were introduced. These concepts are black spots (Rojek, 1993), dark tourism (Lennon and Foley, 1996: in Yull, 2003) and thanatourism (Seaton, 1996: in Sharpley, 2009). These dark concepts will be briefly discussed in a more or less chronicle order, based on introduction in the literature. Another concept of importance for this research is visitor motivations (Sharpley, 2009: 12-15). Dark Concepts Black Spots Rojek (1993) coined the term black spots and argues that these locations involve commercial cemeteries of famous people or sites where death and suffering took place. In his research, Rojek (1993) also mentions that people increasingly visit these dark sites and that entrepreneurs initiate tours around these black spots. Examples of black spots are the concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau in Oswiecim-Brzezinka, Ground Zero in New York and the location where Princess Diana got killed in a car crash (Rojek, 1993: 136-145). Dark Tourism and Thanatourism Visiting places associated with death, pain and suffering is becoming increasingly popular. However, Sharpley (2009) argues that this is not a new phenomenon. In the Roman Empire, it was a common form of entertainment to attend a gladiators match. Another example are the public executions in the Middle Ages. Traveling to places where death and suffering are central elements can be defined as dark tourism. Furthermore, it involves consuming real or simulated places of death and horror. Visiting these places where actual cruelties took place by relatives or friends of the victims cannot be seen as a form of dark tourism. Thanatourism is a concept which strongly relates to dark tourism and was introduced in the literature in the same year as dark tourism. Thanatourism entails the visiting of locations associated with death and suffering, where visitors want to symbolically experience a painful death. This description points more to the motivations of visitors of dark sites. However, the term dark tourism is usually used in the academic field and no distinction is made between the concepts dark tourism and thanatourism. Therefore, I will use the term dark tourism in this research and make no difference between dark tourism and thanatourism (Lennon en Foley, 2000: 3-5; Yull, 2003: 10, 11; Sharpley, 2009: 3-19). Dark tourism involves the actual visiting of black spots. There are different black spots which are visited daily by tourists and therefore belong to sites of dark tourism. Furthermore, several tours are initiated around dark sites. Commercial motives, in terms of entrance fees, are often involved. Examples are the Jack the Ripper tour in London or the tour in Charleroi which shows you, among other dark sites, the house of the famous kidnapper and child molester Marc Dutroux. Visiting morbid museums, old prisons or battle field fall also under the category dark tourism. As discussed previously, the house of Fritzl fits the description of a black spots and inc reasingly attracts visitors. This research seeks to understand the motivations of these visitors (Stone, 2006: 145, 146, 152; HLN, 2010). Visitor Motivations For this research it is necessary to include visitor motivations as a theoretical concept. Motivations of individuals to visit regular tourist places include getting acquainted with other cultures and increase ones knowledge about these locations. Furthermore, motivations often involve entertainment purposes, such as having fun or seeking adventure. Relaxation, revitalization, being active and get close to nature are also common incentives to visit a certain location (Kozak, 2002: 225). However, these motivations of regular touristic locations might differ from motivations of tourists that visit black spots. Unfortunately, few literature is available that focus on visitor motivations of dark tourists. The literature that is accessible, uses similar research questions to the one is used in this research. Yull (2003) studied the motivations of dark tourists and focused more specifically on the motivations of visitors of the Holocaust Museum in Houston. Niemelà ¤ (2010) focused on visi tor motivations of the House of Terror museum in Budapest. This museum is built to remember the tortured and killed people during World War II. In addition, Poria, Reichel and Biran (2006) chose to investigate the motivations of the visitors of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. Although the dark tourist locations used in these researches are museums associated with death and suffering and therefore differ from the dark site that is used in this research, similar motivations may be found. If different motivations are found, it could be argued that this difference is dependent on the specific dark tourist site. According to Yull (2003), motivations of dark tourist could involve entertainment purposes, such as providing a thrill, a novel experience or adventure. Furthermore, remembering the victims and the cruelties that took place or curiosity can also be motivations of tourist that visit the house of Fritzl. Although education might be more suitable as a motivation to visit a museum associated with death and suffering, individuals can also visit the house of Fritzl to learn something. For example, visitors might want to enrich their knowledge about the Fritzl-affaire. In addition, Niemelà ¤ (2010) argues that emotional involvement might also play a role in the motivations of dark tourists. Visitors might identify or have a personal connection with the cruelties that took place. Moreover, Poria, Reichel and Biran (2006) include two more motivations; tourists might visit a dark site, because it is famous or because they feel that the site is historically important (Yull, 2003: 146-159, 191-199; Niemelà ¤, 2010: 37; Poria, Reichel and Biran, 2006: 322). The media play an important role within the field of dark tourism. The media can report tragic events that take place all over the world. The attention that the media pay to tragic and horrible events serve as a stimulation for flows of tourism. Furthermore, media has the capacity to bring dark tourism sites to public consciousness (Yull, 2003: 125). Additionally, Lennon and Foley (2000) argue that the attention of the media to specific dark sites, might motivate individuals to visit the location in order to experience the reality behind the media representations. Since, the Fritzl-affaire received tremendous attention in the media, it will be likely that this attention has an influence on the motivation of visitors (Stone, 2009: 57; Seaton, 2009: 90; 95, 106; Lennon and Foley, 2000: 152). Operationalization of Theoretical Concepts In this section, the operationalization of the theoretical concepts will be discussed. To answer the question What are the motivations of dark tourists? The case of the house of J. Fritzl in Amstetten, I will conduct qualitative semi-structured interviews  [1]  with visitors of the house of Fritzl in Amstetten. This implies that a topic list will be made, consisting of topics that will be addressed in the interview. However, the order in which the topics will be discussed is not fixed and if necessary, the interviewer will probe for more information and adapt to new themes that are brought up by the interviewees. Furthermore, the interviewer can adapt to the level of comprehension of the respondents. The questions will be open, which means that no answer categories will be made (t Hart, Boeije and Hox, 2007: 274, 275; Gilbert, 2001: 123, 124). Several topics that will be addressed in the interview are outlined. First of all, it is important to include demographic factors of the v isitors, such as age, the country the interviewee lives in and the highest obtained level of education (primary school or less, secondary school, intermediate vocational training, higher vocational training, college or post graduate). Furthermore, the gender of the respondent will be noted during the interview. These demographic factors are included, because they are important background variables and might affect the motivations people have to visit the house of Fritzl. Other topics that will be included will focus upon the motivations of visitors of the house of Fritzl in Amstetten. It will be asked what attracted the visitors to visit Amstetten and what their primary reason is for visiting this town. I will seek to explore whether visitors come specifically for the house or if they have other motives or more than one reason to visit this town. Then, I will focus on the topic of why people visit the house of Fritzl. Although, similar answers to the research on dark tourist motivations described above maybe found, such as entertainment, curiosity, remembrance of the victims and cruelties that took place, emotional involvement, historical importance of the site or its fame, unexpected answers also need to be taken into account. Furthermore, it is essential to go in-depth into the answers and ask for further elaboration if necessary. Additionally, it needs to be explored whether visitors have multiple motivations to visit the house of Fritzl. Seeking to understand motivations of visitors of the house of Fritzl, demands for adapting to possible unexpected answers and the skills to react to this situation adequately. Furthermore, the role of the media will be addressed. Central themes will be, whether visitors are familiar with and interested in the Fritzl-affaire, if they have followed the case in the news, documentaries or on the internet. This will seek to explore whether media attention to the Fritzl-affaire affects the tourists in their motivation to visit the house. Next, I will focus upon if the visitors have previously visited other dark locations, where cruelties have taken place. It will be interesting to find out if there is a relationship between visiting the house of Fritzl and other dark locations and if we are dealing with tourists that have an interest in visiting dark sites in general. Plan for Data Collection For this research, the visitors of the house of Fritzl in Amstetten are the objects of study. Hence, it is necessary to come into contact with these visitors. For this research I choose to use qualitative semi-standardized interviews to answer the research question. Qualitative methods are used when a certain research topic is relatively new and unexplored. Furthermore, qualitative methods offer the possibility to go more in-depth into specific aspects of a certain phenomenon. Baarda, de Goede and van der Meer-Middelburg (1996) argue that qualitative interviews are a suitable method when ideas, motivations, opinions and experiences need to be investigated. Since this research seeks to explore the motivations of visitors of the house of Fritzl in Amstetten, it fits this description (t Hart et al. 2007: 253; Baarda et al. 1996: 18-20). I choose to use semi-structured, one-to-one interviews. This implies that topics will be formulated and addressed in the interview. Besides demographic questions, specific questions, answer categories or the order of the questions will not be fixed in advance. This gives the interviewer the opportunity to probe for more information if necessary or reflexively respond to new themes that might be brought up. This reflexive approach is essential, since motivations of dark tourists is relatively unexplored, especially in regard to locations comparable to the house of Fritzl. This may result in unexpected answers to be brought up. When standardized methods are used, this will not be possible. One-to-one interviews are used, because the interviewees will not be influenced by the opinions of others and may give them the feeling to speak more openly about their motivation(s). Furthermore, confidentiality and anonymity of the data will be guaranteed (Baarda et al., 1996: 18-24, 26-28; t Hart et al. 2007: 254, 261, 262, 267; Gilbert, 2001: 123-129). To interview the research participants of this research it is necessary to go to Amstetten, w hich is roughly a nine hour drive from Rotterdam. I will spend three days around the house of Fritzl and I will approach the visitors that come by. I will ask them if they are willing to participate in this research. This research requires purposive sampling, because I assume that only a small group of visitors of the house of Fritzl is accessible in these three days and this group will be likely to represent the visitors as a whole. Furthermore, using a probability sample is often unrealistic for small-scale or qualitative research (Gilbert, 2001: 62). The duration of the interview will be approximately twenty minutes and the amount of interviewees will depend on the willingness to participate. The aim will be to conduct ten to twenty interviews. Furthermore, the interviews will be recorded. Gilbert (2001) argues that recording is recommendable, especially when conducting non-standardized or semi-structured interviews. This, because this type of carrying out interviews requires an active participation of the interviewer within the conversation. By recording the interview, the data wont be lost and in contrast to making notes it wont obstruct or slow down the dialogue. It also signals that the responses of the respondents are taking seriously. Of course, the use of recording will be explained to the interviewees and their approval will be asked. Directly after the interview, notes will be made about the setting, the interview and the interviewee which can be used to recall the context of the particular interview (t Hart et al. 2007: 268-270; Gilbert, 2001: 61-63, 135-137). Plan for Data Analysis When the data is collected, the analysis of the data will begin. First of all, the recorded interviews will be verbatim transcribed. I choose to write down everything that is said, because then data wont get lost that might be of significance when the research progresses. Although, transcribing everything is time-consuming and labor-intensive, the low quantity of interviews makes it possible to do so. Furthermore, transcribing the data allows you to get familiar with the data and it helps facilitating thoughts and ideas about possible connections and underlying themes. Before analyzing, the transcripts will be checked by listening to the recordings once more and by carefully reading the written text. The demographic characteristics of the respondents will be shown on the first page of the transcripts. After this, I will offer the transcript to the respondents, so that accuracy can be checked and comments can be made. This improves reliability and validity of the answers (Gilbert, 200 1: 134-137). The transcripts will be read repeatedly with the aim to identify underlying themes and connections. By comparing and contrasting fragments within interviews and between interviews, fragments with an underlying connection will be categorized and labeled. Furthermore, it will show whether the earlier described motivations are found in the transcripts, or if new themes will be discovered. Similarities and dissimilarities between different respondents may emerge and might relate to their demographic characteristics. Eventually, the codified themes will be linked and compared to draw a full picture of the motivations of visitors of the house of Fritzl in Amstetten and answer the research question (Gilbert, 2001: 137, 138; t Hart et al. 2007: 176, 277). Discussion Gilbert (2008) describes six properties that a research question should have. The research question should be interesting, relevant, concise, answerable, feasible and ethical. For this research it is necessary to address two of these properties more in-depth, which are the feasibility of this research and its ethical dimensions. The research question, What are the motivations of dark tourists? The case of the house of J. Fritzl in Amstetten, is feasible to the extent that it can be answered within a relatively short period of time and with relatively low costs. Furthermore, the research participants are accessible. However, the search for visitors of the house of Fritzl might show difficulties. For this research I will spend three days around the house of Fritzl and approach the tourists that will visit the house. However, it is possible that on these particular days there will be no visitors at all. Consequently, finding research participants might be time-consuming and unpleasant ( Gilbert, 2008: 48). According to Gilbert (2008), it is of importance to take into account the ethical dimensions of a research question. While no specific approval is needed from institutions to conduct this research, this research involves a certain sensitivity. The reason for this, is that this study focuses upon an affair where people suffered and were mistreated. Therefore, this affair is sensitive to victims or relatives of these victims. Furthermore, this case might be sensitive to the neighboring residents or the whole community of Amstetten. Spending three days in front of the house of Fritzl to gather the research participants might be offensive to the residents. For example, they might be upset or feel that their privacy is violated. Consequently, it is necessary to work with discretion. Eventual publication of this research also involves ethical implications. Publication might cause harm to the different parties involved (Gilbert, 2008: 48, 49; Gilbert, 2001: 49-53). A la st brief comment I would like to make is about the weaknesses of Literature Baarda, D.B., de Goede, M.P.M. van der Meer-Middelburg, A.G.E. 1996. Basisboek Open Interviewen. Groningen: Stenfert Kroese. Gilbert, N. 2001. Researching Social Life (2nd edition). London: Sage Publications. Gilbert, N. 2008. Researching Social Life (3d edition). London: Sage Publications. t Hart, H., Boeije, H. Hox, J. 2007. Onderzoeksmethoden. Amsterdam: Boom onderwijs. Kozak, M. 2003. Comparative analysis of tourist motivations by nationality and destinations. Tourism Management 23, 221-232. Lennon, J.J. Foley, M. 2000. Dark Tourism: The Attraction of Death and Disaster. Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning. Logan, W. Reeves, K. 2009. Places of Pain and Shame: Dealing with Difficult Heritage. USA/Canada: Routledge. Niemelà ¤, T. 2010. Motivation Factors in Dark Tourism: Case: House of Terror. https://publications.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/14984/Niemela_Titta.pdf?sequence=3 6 October 2010 Poria, Y., Reichel, A. Biran, A. 2006. Heritage Site Perceptions and Motivations to Visit. Journal of Travel Research 44, 318-326. Rojek, C. 1993. Ways of Escape: Modern Transformations in Leisure and Travel. London: The MacMillian Press. Sharpley, R. 2009. Shedding Light on Dark Tourism: An Introduction. In: R. Sharpley P.R. Stone. The Darker Side of Travel: The Theory and Practice of Dark Tourism. Bristol: Channel View Publications, 3-22. Stone, P.R. 2006. A dark tourism spectrum: Towards a typology of death and macabre related tourist sites, attractions and exhibitions. Tourism 54 (2), 145-160. Stone, P.R. 2009. Dark Tourism: Morality and New Moral Spaces. In: R. Sharpley P.R. Stone. The Darker Side of Travel: The Theory and Practice of Dark Tourism. Bristol: Channel View Publications, 56-74. Yull, S.M. 2003. Dark Tourism: Understanding Visitor Motivation at Sites of Death and Disaster. http://etd.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/89/YUILL-THESIS.pdf?sequence=1. 7 October 2010 Websites HLN, 2010 http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/960/Buitenland/article/detail/314386/2008/06/16/Toeristen-op-de-foto-voor-horrorkelder.dhtml 6 October 2010 HLN, 2010 http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/1901/reisnieuws/article/detail/269697/2008/05/08/Ramptoerisme-bij-Oostenrijks-gruwelhuis.dhtml 6 October 2010 Wikipedia, 2010 http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritzl-incestzaak 6 October 2010

Love :: essays research papers

Love   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is love? It seems to be a pretty simple word, but there is so much meaning behind it. Love is difficult to define, difficult to measure, and frequently difficult to understand. Love is what great writers write about; great philosophers wonder about; singers sing about. Love is a very powerful emotion. Love saves; love conquers; love creates. Love is passion that cannot be controlled. Both poems we have read, Waiting for Icarus and One Art, tell us how love alters human minds and hearts, making people in love struggle with the desire to remain in control of themselves and with the scary feeling of â€Å"losing themselves†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first poem, Waiting for Icarus, reveals the story of Icarus’ girlfriend waiting for her lover to come back after his dangerous flight. She is terribly worried about Icarus, and it is easy to see how much she misses her lover: â€Å"I have been waiting all day, or perhaps longer.† (20) As a true lover, Icarus’ girlfriend does not even notice time. She reminds me of the line from the poem â€Å"In Retrospect†, by Maya Angelou: â€Å"We, loving, above the whim of time, did not notice.† But when Icarus’ girlfriend is left alone, she starts remembering things other people have told her before:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å" I remember they said he only wanted to get away from me I remember mother saying: Inventors are like poets, a trashy lot I remember she told me those who try out inventors are worse I remember she added: Women who love such are the worst of all† (15-20) It is easy to see that despite her truthful love towards Icarus, she starts to struggle with the desire to remain in control of herself. She is afraid that life will become meaningless without Icarus. After spending a day without her lover, she only lives with the memory of her Icarus, his words, and his promises:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"He said that everything would be better than before   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He said we were on the edge of a new relation†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (2-3) But she has found the way to stay in control of herself by deciding to â€Å"fly away† too. If he wants freedom, she will not spend her life in pain of knowing she cannot relive her memories or to replace her lover. Icarus’ girlfriend overcomes the scary feeling of loosing herself that love often generates by choosing freedom, by remaining in control of herself. She is no longer waiting for Icarus; she is a free woman: â€Å" I would have liked to try those wings myself.

Anabolic Steroids Essay -- Drugs Veterinarian Biochemistry Essays

Anabolic Steroids Of the diagnostic methods available to veterinarians, the clinical chemistry test has developed into a valuable aid for localizing pathologic conditions. This test is actually a collection of specially selected individual tests. With just a small amount of whole blood or serum, many body systems can be analyzed. Some of the more common screenings give information about the function of the kidneys, liver, and pancreas and about muscle and bone disease. There are many blood chemistry tests available to doctors. This paper covers the some of the more common tests. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) is an end-product of protein metabolism. Like most of the other molecules in the body, amino acids are constantly renewed. In the course of this turnover, they may undergo deamination, the removal of the amino group. Deamination, which takes place principally in the liver, results in the formation of ammonia. In the liver, the ammonia is quickly converted to urea, which is relatively nontoxic, and is then released into the bloodstream. In the blood, it is readily removed through the kidneys and excreted in the urine. Any disease or condition that reduces glomerular filtration or increases protein catabolism results in elevated BUN levels. Creatinine is another indicator of kidney function. Creatinine is a waste product derived from creatine. It is freely filtered by the glomerulus and blood levels are useful for estimating glomerular filtration rate. Muscle tissue contains phosphocreatinine which is converted to creatinine by a nonenzymatic process. This spontaneous degradation occurs at a rather consistent rate (Merck, 1991). Causes of increases of both BUN and creatinine can be divided into three major categoriesprerenal, renal, and postrenal. Prerenal causes include heart disease, hypoadrenocorticism and shock. Postrenal causes include urethral obstruction or lacerations of the ureter, bladder, or urethra. True renal disease from glomerular, tubular, or interstitial dysfunction raises BUN and creatinine levels when over 70% of the nephrons become nonfunctional (Sodikoff, 1995). Glucose is a primary energy source for living organisms. The glucose level in blood is normally controlled to within narrow limits. Inadequate or excessive amounts of glucose or the inability to metabolize glucose can affect nearly every system in the body. Low blood gl... ...ecomes less invasive to the patient. The more information that is made available to the doctor allows a faster diagnosis and recovery for the patient. Bibliography Barrie, Joan and Timothy D. G. Watson. â€Å"Hyperlipidemia.† Current Veterinary Therapy XII. Ed. John Bonagura. PhiladelphiaW. B. Saunders, 1995. Bistner, Stephen l. Kirk and Bistner’s Handbook of Veterinary Procedures and Emergency Treatment. PhiladelphiaW. B. Saunders, 1995. de Morais, HSA and William W. Muir. â€Å"Strong Ions and Acid-Base Disorders.† Current Veterinary Therapy XII. Ed. John Bonagura. PhiladelphiaW. B. Saunders, 1995. Fraser, Clarence M., ed. The Merck Veterinary Manual, Seventh Edition. Rahway, N. J.Merck & Co., 1991. Garrett, Reginald H. and Charles Grisham. Biochemistry. Fort WorthSaunders College Publishing, 1995. Lehninger, Albert, David Nelson and Michael Cox. Principles of Biochemistry. New YorkWorth Publishers, 1993. Schmidt-Nielsen, Knut. Animal PhysiologyAdaptation and environment. New YorkCambridge University Press, 1995. Sodikoff, Charles. Labratory Profiles of Small Animal Diseases. Santa BarbaraAmerican Veterinary Publications, 1995.

The Museum of Fine Arts

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is an expansive collection of art and artifacts that span multiple cultures and historical periods, as well as art movements, from classical to modern. Since the focus of this class is Ancient Egypt through to the European Middle Ages these were the exhibits in which I was mostly interested during my visit. The museum itself has a much more broad focus, but there is a great deal of pieces that fit into the time periods of our course and it was fascinating to really see the cultural remnants of the people and historical periods which we are studying. My visit was really interesting because of how incredible the collections of the museum were. There was interesting artwork from different cultures, like their Asian collection, and of course the more modern pieces that really brought to light the changes in movements in art throughout time. There was not a guided tour that I was able to participate in during my visit, but I was able to do a self-guided tour throughout most of the museum and found the entire building to be easy to navigate and beautiful to the eye. The ancient art was the first stop on my tour of the museum because it is the first time period that we have studied. There was a lot of beautiful pieces found here, including pottery and other cultural items, but some of the artifacts were much more beautiful and elaborate. There was a beautiful coffin of Osiris, that really had a lot of elaborate detail that made it come alive as an artifact. For me, the other artifacts that emphasized the gods, including a of sculpture of the god Thoth as a baboon and other Greek and Roman artifacts that all deal with deities, were an important lesson in how important it was to these groups of people. For them, the stories of their gods and goddesses were as connected with them and their world as they were. They saw their deities in nature around them and in their own homes. That is why the gods are felt everywhere in their artwork and why their stories are so well depicted. This, like this course, has given me a greater understanding of how the beliefs of ancient peoples is connected to their culture in a way that cannot be ignored, it was such a great force in their lives. The European exhibit was in two parts. There was the exhibit that dealt with Early Christian artwork, which transitioned from early to Renaissance and Baroque artwork. There is also another permanent exhibit called the Sarah Campbell Blaffer Collection. In these collections I was able to get another strong vision of what was important to the people who lived in the Middle Ages of Europe. The Early Christian artwork was very interesting as it, like the ancient work before it, shows the importance of faith to artists during the time in which it was created. One of the prize works of these collections is an ivory statue of God the Father that was awe-inspiring in its simplicity and it’s beauty. There was also a gothic Virgin and Child sculpture that was created by Niclaus Weckman the Elder. Both of these items were beautiful and showed me how important the things we’re learning in this course are to our understanding of the past. It was fascinating to see what we have learned come to life in the sculpture, artifacts, and paintings found at this museum.

Siddhartha

Many novels and other pieces of literature, contain a main character that has difficulty finding happiness and solutions to their problems. In Siddhartha, the main character Siddhartha, is born into his fathers social class but finds himself not pleased with his religion nor happiness, so he goes on a journey hoping to find comfort within himself. Like Siddhartha the main character in the Razors Edge, Larry Darnell questions his religion, and everyday decisions. Both Larry Darnell and Siddhartha break off from their original society to go on expeditions in hope to find answers to their unanswered concerns, and to find enlightenment. Both characters willingly give up things in order to reach their goal. Siddhartha leaves his father and his father’s power in their community.†¯ Siddhartha’s father, a Brahmin leader, has much power which makes him able to provide for Siddhartha well.†¯ Siddhartha does not like the ways his father is living and is dissatisfied with his father’s religious beliefs because he sees that his father and his followers are not reaching enlightenment so he feels that it would not make sense to follow a method that obviously is not working.†¯ He and his best friend, Govinda, decide to commence on a journey to find a way of life that is satisfying to them. Making the decision to leave his family and home must have been a very hard choice to make for such a young man to make. Later on in the book, Siddhartha leaves even more of his loved ones behind in his exploration for enlightenment.   He departs from his friend Govinda when Govinda feels that he is content with the samanas and their teachings and Siddhartha feels that he must experience life for his own in order to find inner happiness.   Govinda is Siddhartha’s best friend and was with him through the toughest of times. Siddhartha loves Govinda, but knows that it was in the best interest of both of them to part ways. Additionally, Siddhartha feels the need to let his only child, whom he loves dearly, to go off on his own and experience life’s qualities for himself just like how Siddhartha did during his own childhood. Although he knows it is the right thing to do, Siddhartha feels a natural love towards his newly discovered son and is dreadfully heartbroken by his absence.   Likewise, Larry Darrell willingly gives up a lot of things for his hunt towards world knowledge and inner happiness. Larry gives up Isabel, the woman he’s known and loved since he was a child with no parents, because she wanted a life of luxury and wealth.   Larry did not want that because he wanted to live a modest life where he lives off of the rush that comes with learning and living freely and not trapped in a life full of materialism and capital gain.   He believes that money is not necessary and even goes to the extent of declining a lavish job offer from his best friend’s father. He would have been one of Mr. Maturin’s stock brokers and he would have been practically guaranteed huge sums of money and would have been able to support Isabel to the standard of living that she is used to.   Also, Larry gives up his friend Yosti to focus on his goal.   He and Yosti become great friends when they room together at the mines and go looking for farm work together.   Larry feels that it is his time to move on and abandons Yosti at a farm.   Though in the end it paid off, both characters willingly gave up things in order to reach enlightenment. Both characters gain knowledge while on their quest.   Siddhartha learns a lot from his young son. His son taught him about the true meaning of love. Siddhartha started out on his journey with the thought that you do not need to love everything because some things just are not lovable. His son taught him that you must love everything and yourself to respect the world and everything inside of it.   Siddhartha feels a natural love toward his son and was utterly heartbroken when the time came when he had to let his son go. His son is not the only person that affected him, for the river also had quite an impact on Siddhartha.   The river showed him that time does not really exist and that everything always comes back around. Siddhartha is relieved by this idea because the stresses that time brings are now suddenly lifted off from him.   The idea that everything comes back around is paralleled to Siddhartha’s life because he left his father to go and explore life on his own and now his own son does the same. Siddhartha also learns the difference between knowledge and wisdom and the difference between seeking and finding.   He comes to the conclusion at the end of the novel that â€Å"Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom† (Hesse 142) and that â€Å"Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal† (Hesse 140).   Correspondingly, Larry is affected by people as well. He meets a yogi and brings him questions about god and evil. The yogi teaches him about the Hindu religion and explains to Larry that â€Å"evil is as a direct a manifestation of the divine as the good† (Maugham 114).   Larry is greatly affected by the yogi and takes the information that the yogi shared with him for the rest of his journey. He is also influenced by reading books. He gains worldly knowledge from reading and uses it to his advantage.   He reads about all kinds of philosophies and ideas that bring him to question religion and God.   Larry also learns from experiences.   He decides to leave his friends in Chicago and live in Paris to simply clear his mind and get his thoughts straight.   He also goes to work in a coal mine, a job of which many people would despise having, just to see what it’s like to have some manual labor under his belt.   Most â€Å"people would think [he is] crazy† (Maugham 46) for doing unnecessary hard labor like Larry does, but that doesn’t seem to bother him.   He later went on a 5 year expedition starting in a monastery in Germany and ending with a Hindu yogi in India where he lived â€Å"with calmness, forbearance, compassion, selflessness, and continence† (Maugham 279). This makes him decide to ditch Christianity and makes him very open to Hindu beliefs.   Larry also learns a lot from his time served in World War I.   He was a pilot and him and his best friend, Patsy, got into a dogfight in the air and Patsy literally took a bullet for Larry and died. This event is truly when Larry begins to question religion and God.   Overall, Larry and Siddhartha are greatly influenced by others while going through his journey and learn a lot along the way. Siddhartha and Larry have great effects on other people on their path to enlightenment.   They never seem to shy away from sharing their knowledge with those who will listen. Siddhartha influences his longtime friend Govinda by explaining to him all that he has learned on his voyage. He tells Govinda the meaning and importance of love, seeking and wisdom. When Siddhartha goes in depth about love he describes how a person must love themselves in order to be grateful for anything else that exists in the world. Siddhartha picks up a rock acknowledging how he loves this rock: â€Å"it is a stone, because today and now it appears to me a stone. I see value and meaning in each of its fine mark ings and cavities in the yellow in the gray in the hardness and the sound of it† (Hesse 145).   This lesson has a huge impact for Govinda, and he â€Å"bow[es] low. Incontrollable tears trickl[e] down his old face† (Hesse 151).   Govinda is truly inspired by the teachings and his knowledge about the world. Govinda is just one of the people that he influenced. Siddhartha has an effect on his friend Kamala. Kamala is a very materialistic person and Siddhartha opens her eyes to the idea that material goods are not the most important things in life. She is inspired by this thought and takes a page from his book to further her learning.   She then becomes pregnant with Siddhartha’s son and raises him under Buddhist beliefs and eventually dies in an attempt to travel to meet Buddha himself.   In general, Siddhartha has a positive effect on people that he has encountered with along his journey. Equally, Larry has positive effects on several people along his journey. Larry affects Isabel when she sabotages her own plan to make Larry think that she was pregnant. She thinks of him as being too innocent and sweet to do anything menacing to him. He also makes her question her marriage with Gray because she still loves Larry.   Furthermore, Larry makes a strong attempt to change Sophie.   After her husband and child’s sudden death, Sophie turns to drugs and alcohol to ease her pain. Larry puts Sophie’s problems on his back and helps rehabilitate her and even asked for her hand in marriage.   She accepts his proposal but then relapses and goes back to her bad habits. Although he ultimately failed, Larry still put in a great effort in helping Sophie.   Larry also affects Suzanne by taking her off of the streets and taking care of her when she needed it the most.   Larry finds her and feels that he is obligated to help her so he briefly gives her and her young daughter a home to live in, money and accompanies them through all of this to ensure that they are all right. Larry gives Suzanne hope and the two of them become very close, close enough that Larry tells her about his scarring experiences in World War I. Towards the end of their relationship they have sex and then the next morning Larry decides that Suzanne is ready to get back on her feet and leaves her with money and good people to surround herself with. He leaves her with a pleasing life which she greatly appreciates. As a whole, Larry and Siddhartha are influential in many people’s lives and truly become teachers. People reach enlightenment in different ways.   Siddhartha reaches enlightenment by experiencing all aspects of life and being very open minded so he is not a seeker and is a finder.   Larry Darrell reaches enlightenment by reading, loafing, helping others, questioning religion, and keeping his personal space.   Both characters learn, teach, and sacrifice during their journey towards happiness and both characters evidently reach their goal in the end.

Kapshi Model Village Essay

About this document: It is about a remote village named Kapshi in Maharashtra. A group of us from IIT Bombay visited the village to learn about the progress that was achieved there. This document is hosted on my website: http://www.it.iitb.ac.in/~gumma I can be reached at gumma@it.iitb.ac.in Backdrop: Until about three years back, the village was experiencing severe drought conditions with no water availability during the dry periods. It was inspirational to witness the way villagers transformed their conditions with self-belief and a camaraderie that is worth emulating. 1 Efforts towards water conservation Kapshi experiences about 250-300 mm of rainfall every year, which occur in bursts of six to ten spells of rains from June to September. The water table of the region had dropped so low that the village reeled under severe drought conditions for three years an had to depend on the tanker water supply for their survival. Egged on by the volunteers of ‘Art of Living’ foundation, the villagers made collective efforts to raise the groundwater level and store the surface water for lean periods. ‘Bandharas’ or small check dams of about three feet high were constructed along a long undulating terrain stretching about 20 km, which was identified as the route of water run-off during monsoon by the Civil Engineers of the Government. Shrubs and trees along its path were cleared. About 20 such dams have been built entirely by weekly ‘Shram-daan’ by the villagers. There are two types of Bandharas :- ‘Kaccha-bandhara’- made up of layers of stones bounded by steel wire meshes to prevent their dislocation when faced with running water. Their primary purpose is to prevent hasty run-off of water thereby allowing it enough time for it to seep into the soil beneath. These measures have been helpful in raising the water table over a period of 2 years. 2)‘Pakka-bandhara’-constructed out of concrete and cement, they are about 3 feet high on the water facing side and 5 feet on the leeward side. The trenches between two such 5 feet walls are cement lined at the bottom to prevent seepage of water to the underground. The primary aim here is to store the rainwater for gradual subsequent use for farm purposes. It was built by government grant. However, by efficient measures employed by the villagers the job was done by spending just 2 out of 3 lacs sanctioned initially. The balance money is to be used for constructing two parallel dams adjacent to the main one to collect the subsequent overflows of water. 1 Wells and methods to augment underground storage The villagers have carefully dug wells of about 35 feet depth that capture water during the rainy season as well as underground seepage. Each well is equipped with a small pump used to water the adjoining fields. Some wells are also used to supply drinking water round the year. The water in these wells is first treated with Potassium Permanganate (lal goli) etc. before being used. Incidentally, this was the first year when Kapshi had to not take recourse to Municipal tanker supply of water. Apart from the wells a unique way of storing water was the ‘Underground Bandhara’. Using the knowledge of the terrain, and with the help of engineers from the Agricultural Department, a region of about 1 sq. km area under the surface was carved out for storing water that seeped underneath during the rainy season. To prevent run-off to lower lying areas and still deeper areas an L-shaped polythene sheet was layered along the storage area. The accumulated water could find its way to the nearby wells thereby providing replenishment to the wells from time to time. Apart from the Government grants some money was also provided by the ‘Art of Living’ foundation for these construction activities.(?) Continuous Contour Trenches (CCT) An example of first level water management, a wasteland of about ? acres was kept aside for contour irrigation. Concentric trenches were dug with intermittent planar land being cultivated with animal fodder. During the rainy season water flows into these contours and gets successively collected into the concentric trenches over a gradually sloping topography. It helps in gradually raising the water table of the area as well as preventing top soil erosion by hasty run-off of water. The planar surface between the two trenches is utilised ti grow fodder for the animals. This elaborate work was brought about under the Food-for-work programme run by the Government during the consecutive droughts the village faced. Each villager who contributed ‘shram-daan’ of 8 hrs. a day per year (6 months + 6 months over two years of dry spells) was given 25 kg of grains per ?. Waste Disposal One of the interesting features of Kapshi was that each house there was equipped with a toilet with an adjoining soak pit. The excreta from the toilets is collected into an underground and fully covered soak pit gradually over a period of 15 years. The soak pit has two chambers, which could be alternatively made use at the time of collection which is supposed to take 15 days. The collected excreta is anaerobically digested by microorganisms over a long period to convert it into a fine powdered manure that sells in adjoining markets of Pune at Rs 200 per kg. This arrangement provokes questions as to whether a similar arrangement could be worked out even in cities, given that Waste Disposal is a much more serious issue here, for eg., the waste generation far exceeds the average centralized treatment facility available in Mumbai and so most of the waste is dumped straight into the sea. This is just postponing the problem, as the waste is rich in organics and nitrates that cause severe water pollution. As Prof. Shankar puts it, a similar effort of treating waste at source in cities requires a change in mind-set that considers using excessive water to just push the waste into the sea as the ‘best’ option. Organic Manure and Biogas Cow dung collected from a few houses is put into a cylindrical steel tank put underground and mixed with water to make slurry. This slurry is kept under air-tight conditions. The anaerobic digestion process, called biomethanation, generates gobar gas over a period of ? days that is collected and used as fuel by the households. Typically, dung from 4 cows is sufficient to support 1 families fuel needs for ? days. Further, the left over byproduct of the above process is dried and put in farms as manure. This practice raises pertinent questions: – Is the left over cow dung byproduct better manure than the raw cow dung itself? Can vegetable and other straw waste be used as feed to these biogas plants or added to byproduct before putting into the field? Consultations with some of the professors in the Chemical Engg Dept seem to point at some answers: – Use of cow dung as feed for biogas plants seems to a necessary evil with the growing cheaper fuel demands of the villages. Actually, its usage in this form is wasteful as then valuable cellulose degrading bacteria, which fix Nitrogen required for plant growth, get killed. Further, the process generates NH3 and H2S in dissolved form which stay as unfixed and accumulate in the soil. Instead, employing cow dung directly to the farms (in solid form or pumping with water) is considered the best as it preserves the ruminant ecology (chains of interdependent microorganisms), so crucial for making nutrients of the soil available to the plants. This is why cow dung is referred to as just not a fertilizer but as a ‘bio-culture’. Mixing of vegetable and corn waste to the biogas by product and using it as a fertilizer is not a good idea because the left over is already rich in organics and addition of straw waste would only add more organics. Instead, powdered basaltic rock (found in plenty in that region) could be added to it, which would provide minerals to be used by the soil. A still better approach seems to use cow dung as such in the soil and add the powdered basaltic rock to it. Minerals that are otherwise in deficit in organic farming methods are provided by the powdered rock. The productivity in this manner seems to increase as per experience of farming in north Bihar and other river basins. Furthermore, straw and other vegetable waste could be used for biogas generation. However, this may require employing use of lignin (difficult to break) degrading enzymes, whose feasibility requires further investigation. 1 Burning of fodder grass and weeds A practice widely used across North India, was also seen here. Operational convenience and high costs of deweeding and degrassing seems to be one of the strong motivations behind this practice. It can, however, be argued that this is a wasteful process as the energy present in the weeds is simply wasted in the form of CO2 and released into the atmosphere. Instead, if these straws and grasses could be used in a biogas plant to generate biogas, it would serve twin benefits of fuel energy as well as obviating the use of cow dung for biogas purposes. Again, the feasibility of this process needs further investigation. There is also the other side to the practice of burning grasses. They generate, among other things, carcinogens like dioxins into the atmosphere. 1 Burning of polythene Plastics are accumulated over a period of time and burnt. This is dangerous as burning causes generation of toxic byproducts which are believed to be carcinogens and are much more difficult to biodegrade than the parent compounds. With the given limitations in technology it would be better to recycle them. For this a regularized dumping and collection system needs to be put in place along with the Municipality. Given the limitations of this option, it would be best to cut their use at source. 2 Organic Farming Being witness to the large sized onions that villagers in kapshi grow and having eaten the delicious food there, it can be said that organic agriculture has been one of their success stories. Use of natural fertilizers and insecticides primarily using cow dung and urine has made them successfully swith over to chemical free agriculture. The villagers, seem to be fully convinced that use of synthetic fertilizers and DDT etc. was a source of slow poisoning. Thier eagerness to get rid of this enabled them to willingly accept marginally low farm yields in the first year of switch over to new farming. Not only is the organic product bigger, it lasts longer and does not need elaborate storage facilities. Organic Farming, is in some way, like going back to the old ways of farming practiced since times immemorial up until 40 to 50 years back. People still recollect their grandmothers speaking about the quality. Taste, etc. of the vegetables and the grains used during their times. If this was so, then why was it that use of chemical fertilizers was resorted to in the first place. As Prof. Venkatesh puts it, Organic Farming is prone to contamination and spoilage by unknown pests or new strains of microorganisms which is why people tend to grow organic foods in protected environments or use insecticides to keep off all organisms. The demands of a rapidly growing population needed food grain production at a much faster pace than what was being achieved in the sixties. Led by the Western experience in this regard, the use of hybrid seeds with extensive fertilizer and pesticide use could achieve a marked rise in production, initially. Agriculture became water intensive that had its effect over the years in the form of receding water table. Further, synthetic fertilizers provide H+ions to the soil to solubilize the minerals present that could then be harvested by the plants. However, their use over a period destroyed the natural ecology that existed in the soil. In this manner useful microorganisms present in the roots of the plant were destroyed preventing natural nitrogen fixation and denitrification. With repeated use, it resulted in an ever-increasing dosage of the fertilizers. The increased usage ultimately resulted in the high acidity levels that are witnessed today in the soil, rendering the latter infertile. Having said this, resorting to farming is a risky proposition initially, but if persisted it seems to be a sure way of moving towards increased productivity over a longer period. In the present case, villagers learnt the techniques of organic farming from Mr. (Ramesh ?) Palekar of Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh. This included the right kind of dosage and timing of the manures to be administered to the land. Interestingly, snakes and farm cats are used as natural pesticides that eat away the rats that attack the standing crops and grains. It was heartening to see that the villagers seem satisfied with both the quality and quantity of their produce after the first year when the production was lower than what was obtained using inorganic fertilizer use. 3 Innovative Coconut scheme With financial aid from the Panchayat, each household planted a coconut tree by itself investing about Rs. 5-10 for the sapling. The balance money is to be gradually paid as taxes to the Panchayats beginning with the second year of plantation, with those owning a pukka house shelling out more tax than those with kuccha house (Progressive Taxation). As the tree grows, it was estimated to that the products of the coconut tree would fetch about Rs. 1000-2000 p.a. to each family. The choice of the coconut tree is interesting. Each part of the tree lends itself of use-stem, fruit, bark, etc, for various purposes. Moreover, coconut tree is relatively fast growing; its roots are small enough not to damage the foundations of the house. The water requirements for its growth can be met by channeling the water used for domestic washing purposes. 4 Desire for alternate energy sources The villagers were very keen on finding substitutes for their power needs. They do get about 6-10 hrs of electricity everyday but find the bills pretty hefty. Most of them were keen to know if they could instead use Solar Energy for street and other lighting purposes. With the discussions that followed thereafter with Prof Date and others, the use of Photo-voltaic cells as source of power seems to very costly and cannot be used. 5 Art of Living and its role Prime initiative: Dr. Paul, based in Phalton but makes weekly trips to the village to administer medical treatment to the villagers. Realised that the villagers needed to be brought together to solve their own problems. Himself. a beneficiary of the Art of Living courses, he convinced the foundation to start short Navchetana shivirs for people in the villages teaching some elementary pranayamas and doing satsang (devotional chanting in congregation). 6 villagers attended the first such camp and thereafter the chain began to grow. In his own words, Dr. Paul found that the villagers were very keen to take up responsibility and were mature enough to make sacrifices for the larger cause. Gradually, some villagers gave up intoxicating liquor and tobacco etc. and other malpractices. As one of the village eleders put it, the one-hr weekly congregational satsang was their way to realise themselves and forget petty issues. Moreover, the concept of ‘expanding your responsibilities’ imparted in these camps seems to have worked wonders in bridging the cast divide. However, in all fairness it must be mentioned that because of the progressive movements by Jyotiba Phule, MG Ranade etc. in parts of West Maharashtra over the past 100-150 years the general populace here is very mature and the caste rigidities are not as strong as in some other parts of the country. Distinctions do exist but they are only at the level of occupation. This aspect seemed to have helped Dr. Paul. The sarpanch of this village seems to be a man among the masses. He leads from the front and does shram-daan himself along with others in all the activities taken by villages. No wonder he was awarded the ‘Best Sarpanch of Maharashtra’ award last year. This tale from the village holds important pointers to people living in cities as well. Most problems could be dealt with at the micro level if conscious efforts are made towards them. Things like pranayama, faith, satsang spur discipline and send messages to place one’s action in a perspective. Such measures are long lasting, as they strike deep into the human psyche. With increased violence, insecurity and intolerance that is witnessed in the society today such measures suggest a way out. No wonder, increasingly people are resorting to them in the cities and in the West as well.

Aristotle Biography Essay Example for Free (#2)

Aristotle Biography Essay Aristotle Aristotle was a prominent figure in history that created many philosophies during his time. He is ranked among the greatest philosophers to ever live. He moved around to many different interesting places during much of his lifetime and loved to teach. In my opinion, the most well-known philosophy is his concept of logic. Because Aristotle’s philosophies and concepts of logic and reasoning have affected much of the past, his legacy will endure for many years to come. Aristotle was born in 384 B. C in Stagira, the small city in the Macedonian region of northeastern Greece. At the age of 17, he moved to Athens to attend Plato’s Academy where he remained there for almost 40 years. He journeyed around the world then for a little while continuing his philosophical activities. When in Lesbos, he married his first wife, Pythias, with whom they had a child also named Pythias. In 343, Aristotle was appointed to be the tutor of King Philip of Macedon’s son, Alexander. This thirteen year old boy eager to learn later became known as Alexander the Great. After two years of teaching, Aristotle’s works were no longer needed because Alexander was already serving as a military commander for his father. After teaching, Aristotle returned to Athens where he built his own school that taught botany, biology, logic, music, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, cosmology, physics, the history of philosophy, metaphysics, psychology, ethics, theology, rhetoric, political history, government and political theory, rhetoric, and the arts. While teaching at his school, Aristotle’s wife had died and they say he had married another woman, Heroyllis with whom they had children. In the year 323, Aristotle had retired his works in Athens and moved to Chalcis, where he died the following year of natural causes. Philosophy was in fact very important to Aristotle and he studied it for many years. Among the great achievements, the concept of logic was in my opinion the most important and well known. Aristotle’s objective of â€Å"the first logic† was to come up with a process of reasoning that would allow man to learn every conceivable thing about reality. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy clarifies this by using the example of As, Bs and Cs. They explain that first, all As are Bs. Secondly, they claim that all Bs are Cs. Therefore, all As are Cs. They also say that anything else taken from this form will be a deduction in Aristotle’s sense. A deduction is â€Å"an argument in which certain things are laid down something else follows of necessity in virtue of their being so†. But it has been proven that some of his concepts of logic are deductions and some are not. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy used the example of university students and the As, Bs and Cs to explain this. They say that all As are Bs; some Bs are Cs; so, all As are Cs. â€Å"They use the university students example by explaining that all university students are literate; some literate people read poetry; so, all university students read poetry†. This is not true so it clarifies the fact that some of his concepts are deductions while others are not. In his philosophical articles, Aristotle also discussed how man might obtain information about objects through deduction and inference. As you can see, Aristotle’s philosophy provided us with a system of logic that to this day is still used by philosophers. Aristotle’s legacy will live on for years to follow because of everything he had accomplished throughout his lifetime. After his death in 322 B. C, his works and philosophies were forgotten and revived about a century after. His works had influenced over seven centuries of philosophy. As it says on the biography. com website, â€Å"Aristotle’s work influenced ideas from late antiquity all the way through the Renaissance. Aristotle’s influence on Western thought in the humanities and social sciences is largely considered unparalleled, with the exception of his teacher Plato’s contributions, and Plato’s teacher, Socrates before him. The two-millennia-strong academic practice of interpreting and debating Aristotle’s philosophical works continues to endure. † Even today, philosophers still look to Aristotle’s work for guidance and inspiration when creating their own philosophies and simply studying philosophers of the past. As you can see, Aristotle’s legacy is still apart of us and will remain influencing others for many years to come. In conclusion, you can see that Aristotle did affect many lives through his philosophies and teachings. Many have studied his works, and added on from the philosophies and concepts he had developed. His legacy will endure on because of all he did and he will be remembered. I had great time learning about Aristotle and his philosophies for this research project. Works Cited: http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/aristotle/ Shields, Christopher. â€Å"Aristotle. † Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 25 Sept. 2008. http://www. biography. com/people/aristotle-9188415? page=1 â€Å"Aristotle Biography. † Bio. com. A&E Networks Television, n. d http://www. ucmp. berkeley. edu/history/aristotle. html Waggoner, Ben M. â€Å"Aristotle (384-322 B. C. E.). † Aristotle. UCMP, 9 June 1996. Aristotle Biography. (2016, Oct 28).