Project Communications Plan

Critical Thinking – Module 2 Project Management November 11, 2012 Project Communications Plan The three websites that I researched for this critical thinking assignment were: 1) Colorado. gov; 2) Dot. ca. gov and 3) interop. mt. gov. The topic that was most similarly discussed was the importance of implementing a communication plan both internally and externally in any type of project management. Colorado. ov noted that â€Å"28% of projects fail due to poor communications, that’s 1 out of 4 projects fail due to poor communications† (Jones, 2007). This site went on to speak about the top reasons projects fail includes poor communication, insufficient resource planning, unrealistic schedules and poor project requirements. The California Department of Transportation website noted that project communication includes general communication between team members but is more encompassing. It utilizes a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) for a framework of communication that is customer and product focused with the end in mind, and it involves all levels of the organization† (Office of Project Management Process Improvement, 2007). This organization also believes that Project Communication is the responsibility of everyone on the project team. The Interoperability Governing Board for Montana’s communications planning first determines the information and communications needs of the stakeholders.This includes identifying who needs what information, when they should receive it, and how it will be provided. Identifying the information needs of the stakeholders and determining a suitable means of meeting those needs is an important factor for project success. â€Å"Actively managing stakeholders increases the likelihood that the project will not veer off track due to unresolved stakeholder issues, enhances the ability of persons to operate synergistically, and limits disruptions during the project† (Northrop Grumman Corporation, 2007).The main subject of all these sites I researched came down to the importance of effective communication, and stating that it is the most important ingredient for project success. Participation, understanding, and the ability to adapt the project – all of which require well? functioning communication ? are critical to the end result of the project. Build a Management-driven Communication Culture Internal communication planning is one of the most neglected areas of strategic planning.Most companies spend a great deal of money and effort on their external communication plan but fail to expend any energy toward creating an organized plan for internal communication (Roehler, 2007). Determining what should be communicated to staff, when it should be communicated, and how it should be communicated is often left up to the decision of individuals made when there seems to be a need. In other words internal communication strategies are developed, reactively, when there is a crisis or major event that clearly requires addressing communication issues.Where communication is planned out, it is often around upheavals like major corporate or organization change, layoffs and downsizing, and technological change. However, once the initiating focus has been eliminated communication tends to go back to an unorganized jumbled process (Bacal, 2008). It is a bit of a mystery why this occurs, but there is no question that strategic internal communication planning can be a proactive approach to building a better, more directed and efficient workforce.Communication is a key component in coordinating and tracking project schedules, issues, and action items. The plan maps out the flow of information to different stakeholders and becomes an integral part of the overall project plan (Gray & Larson, 2011). Implementing a well thought out communications plan will help manage expectations regarding the project, ensure methods used for communication will be most effective, and assure approp riate levels of communication with internal and external project stakeholders.In addition, well laid out communication plans provide relevant, accurate, consistent information at all times, and most importantly, generate and sustain enthusiasm and support for the project. References Bacal, R. (2008). Internal communication strategies. Performance Management and Appraisal Help Center. Retrieved from http://www. prpundit. com/knowledge/employee%20communications/Internal%20Communications. pdf Gray, C. F. , & Larson, E. W. (2011). Project management: The managerial process (5th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. ISBN-13:

Functional Areas of Business Essay

The functional areas of business are areas that allow the organization to operate, develop, and progress abiding by laws and regulations when implementing policies and procedures in the organization to all employees and management. There are 10 functional areas of business: Management, law, human resources management, leadership, accounting, finance, economics, research and statistics, operations management, marketing, and strategic planning. The two functional areas that will be covered are human resources management and strategic planning because these are the two related to the human resources manager and developing the organization into a successful one. Human Resources Management Employees and applicants may think of human resources management as a department that hires and terminates employees and nothing more, but this is not the case. Human Resources Management is a vital department of any organization because with this the organization is built and develops. The department is responsible recruiting, interviewing, hiring, consulting, strategic planning, and many others tasks that involve operating the organization. It must confirm the personal information, knowledge, skills, experiences, and creativity of all applicants before making them employees while abiding by all laws set forth by the specific state. Organizations must follow these laws to avoid facing fines or facing other implications that could be set forth by the state. Once the applicants become employees, the organization will strengthen the employees’ knowledge, skills, experiences, and creativity by further training and development systems offered. Human Resources Management uses two strategies: buy-bureaucratic strategy that emphasizes outside recruiting, limited training, exact job definitions, and seniority as the criteria; and make-organic strategy that emphasizes internal promotions, extensive training, comprehensive job definitions, and the employees’ abilities or performance as the criteria (Keh-Luh, Chi, & Chiu-Mei, 2012). These strategies are used to gain knowledgeable employees who will benefit the organization. Strategic Planning Strategic planning in any organization is essential to being successful, changing, and growing in the future. â€Å"Strategic planning is a formal, administrative process that calls for an explicit procedure to determine specific, long-range objectives and generate alternative strategies, requires both strict implementation and a system to monitor results† (Song, Im, Bij, & Song, 2011, p 505, para 4). This can be determined by performing a SWOT analysis, which states an organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The SWTO will help to determine what needs looked at, what needs improved, and how the organization will improve it. The strategic plan will improve these details and enhance the organization when implemented. Developing a strategic plan involves several steps: developing a clear understanding of opportunities and challenges, assessment of the organization’s strengths and limitations, an inclusive approach, a planning committee, involvement, sharing responsibility, learning from the best practices, clear priorities and plan, patience, and a commitment to change (Mittenthal, 2002). These steps will need broken down and followed closely to develop a plan that will benefit the employees and management it is affecting. The organization will be able to implement the changes and record the results to see if the strategic plan was successful. If the results were negative, the organization will have to look at the information again and try different changes in the organization that will benefit more than the previous changes that were made. Mostly following these steps will provide the organization with the success and progress it is looking to gain moving into the future of its operation. Role in Functional Areas In the Human Resources Management and Strategic Planning areas, the specific role of the human resources manager would be greatly involved. First, because the role is acting as a Human Resources Manager, the role in the Human Resources Management area would be recruiting, interviewing, hiring, consulting, strategic planning, and any other tasks that may be presented. The human resources manager is one, if not the only, key person in the organization. This person staffs the organization while following all laws and regulations associated with the specific state it represents. Along with staffing the organization, this person is also responsible for creating and implementing all policies and procedures for employees to follow. This allows the organization to run smoothly and efficiently to complete the tasks it has to get done. Strategic Planning is also part of a human resources manager role because the human resources manager is involved in the strategic plan process of the organization. The human resources manager is involved in assessing the organization to see where it stands, where it needs to be, and how to get there. This is completed only after following specific steps, performing a SWOT analysis, and implementing what is necessary to change. Once the strategic plan is created, it must be presented and explained to the employees involved. The change must be adhered to by everyone to be successful, if not it will not work, and the organization will be where it started. If the organization needs to relook at the strategic plan, it will need to start at the beginning and follow the steps once again. This will help the organization to determine what needs changed and how to implement to see if this change will make a difference. Conclusion The functional areas of a business are important to develop and build the organization further than it is currently. Human Resources Management and Strategic Planning are two of the key areas that help an organization operate and progress further than what it is currently. These two areas complement each other with Human Resources operating the organization and also working with others to establish the strategic plan. Human Resources are responsible for employing qualified candidates for positions and abiding by all laws and regulations when implementing policies and procedures in the organization. Strategic planning is worked on my upper management, including human resources, to identify problem areas of the organization, what to fix, how to fix it, and where to go once the problem areas are fixed. The key to any organization is everyone working together to complete all tasks assigned and making changes as required to progress even further.

Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) for Antibiotics

Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) for Antibiotics Dhayalini Yoginthran Antibiotic resistance is something that has been growing in the world, some might even say that we are entering or have already entered a post antibiotic world. It is currently one of the superior concerns in the 21 st century, especially in regards to pathogenic microorganisms. Throughout the years, research had allowed for the development of first line antibiotics that were efficacious against infections plaguing the population. Due to resistance build up towards first line agents, second line agents were then used to treat infections, which usually have a broad spectrum in treatment. In some cases pathogens have also acquired resistance towards multiple drugs, one such example would be Staphylococcus aureus (Zainnudin and Dale, 1990) . Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are substances produced by animals, bacteria and plants. They are also known as host defence peptides and are a part of the non-specific immune system. Differences between eukaryotes and pro karyotes show the potential of targeted therapy with the use of AMPs . They are dynamic and are of broad spectrum and have shown plausible evidence that they may be used as a new therapeutic agent. AMPs are quite small, have various sequences and lengths. They are also known to be cationic and amphipathic (Hultmark, 2003). They have shown considerable bactericidal activity against both Gram positive and Gram negative strains of bacteria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis , malignant cells as well as viruses that are enveloped (Reddy et al., 2004). AMPs work by the interaction with the membrane of the potential pathogen thus leads to the perturbation of said membrane. The peptide is then inserted into the bilayer of the membrane that causes the displacement of the lipids. The perturbation and the displacement actions render it easy for the peptide to be translocation into the intracellular target of the pathogen. AMPs are usually derived from coding sequences in a gene, databases of known AMPs have been curated to hold information of AMPs as well as to provide tools to predict possible AMPs that are found in genomes (Fjell et al., 2007). The Antimicrobial Peptide database (APD) is one of the major resource for antimicrobial peptide sequences that have been curated. AMPs from various phylogenetic kingdoms are available, making the prediction of models based on qualitative and quantitative activity easier. In order to bring the development of AMPs into light, certain objectives are to be met. An AMP must be active against the pathogen in which it is targeted against and must have a high therapeutic index. In order to look for a suitable AMP that can act as a broad spectrum antibiotic. A method will be explained to show the screening process to look for one such AMP. The method would be to employ template based studies. A template AMP will be used to look for peptides that have better antimicrobial activity and also is reduced in toxicity by altering amino acid sequence s. In order to elucidate positions of amino acids that are important in antimicrobial activity, a single amino acid in the peptide will be changed, and hence the changes will be studied. Template AMPs that could be used for this would be lactoferrin or magainin. The variety of peptides are designed based on the amphiphilicity and charge of the AMPs and their role in antimicrobial activity. It will be possible to synthesis peptides using a high throughput approach of arrays that is done together with a speedy luminescence assay to portray bactericidal activity. This would lead to us being able to perform a complete substitution method to study the amino acid changes in the desired peptide. Several substitution studies that have been performed have shown that the activity shown by the substituted amino acids differ with regards to the template AMP utilised (Schneider et al., 1995). A linguistic model shall be used to pinpoint patterns in natural peptides (Loose et al., 2006). It is po ssible that the novel peptide that is constructed based on this will show superiority against models that are generated based on the random shuffling of amino acid sequences. Functionally important patterns of amino acids will be found using this linguistic model. In a previous study conducted by Loose et al (2006), 4 out of 40 designed peptides showcased activity against E. coli and B. cereus at an acceptable concentration.

Business Plan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Business Plan - Research Paper Example It is one of the beautiful shopping malls in gulf region. Dalal Complex is a seventeen floored building consisting of several retail shops, brands, cinema complex and restaurants. Skinfood will be situated in the first floor of the building. The entire shopping mall has abundant places for parking with a capacity of about 500 vehicles and has also astounding view. Furthermore, the shopping complex is also equipped with modern technologies, music systems and strong security facilities (Dalal Complex, â€Å"About Dalal Complex†). Products. The business will provide several skincare and cosmetic products such as makeup, cleanser, mask and healthcare products among others. These products are made from natural food ingredients and developed in its real form as product elements which comprise fruits, vegetables and other food components (Skinfood, â€Å"Products†). MARKET PROSPECT The international skincare industry has increased considerably in recent years, recording about 4% growth in the year 2009. In United Arab Emirates (UAE), the market of skincare and cosmetics products has continued to demonstrate strong dynamism, having robust growth in sales. The most important product categories in the skincare and cosmetics market are colour products, hair care products, fragrances and skincare products (AME Info, â€Å"UAE Market For Skincare Products Expected To Be Worth Dhs540.3m In 2015†). Globally, customers had spent about US$2 billion in a week on skincare products in 2011. This market is characterised by invention, personalisation and segmentation. From 2005 to 2010, the market value of skincare industry in Middle East and Africa increased from US$1.4 billion to US$2.4 billion, indicating a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of about 12% (AME Info, â€Å"UAE Market For Skincare Products Expected To Be Worth Dhs540.3m In 2015†). In Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), skincare industry had been demarcated to become doubled from 2005 to 2010 . According to the research of Euromonitor, the market of skincare products will demonstrate steady growth, where facial care products will hold the biggest market segment. The findings suggest that skincare market is expected to increase at CAGR of 5%. This growth is determined by sustained progress of UAE in monetary front. Besides, a growing number of populations are also found to pay more concentration on taking care of health. The UAE market of skincare is based on retail setting. Combined with considerable product innovation with respect to discerning customer base, the prospect of skincare products in near future continues to be positive (AME Info, â€Å"UAE Market For Skincare Products Expected To Be Worth Dhs540.3m In 2015†). Accordingly, global skincare organisations are progressively targeting the growth oriented market of Middle East and Asian region. People nowadays are providing considerable emphasis on taking care of skin and it has become one of the regular ro utine activities. Furthermore, the global skincare manufacturers are increasingly targeting customers with new product lines which can serve the requirements of this particular market segment. In the UAE, facial care products are the fastest growing market segment in the skincare industry. Facial care products are estimated to grow at CAGR 6% (AME Info, â€Å"UAE Market For Skincare Products Expected To Be Worth Dhs540.3m In 2015†). The other important market segment in skincare and cosm

Counseling Psychology - Proxemics and Haptics and the Impact of Essay

Counseling Psychology - Proxemics and Haptics and the Impact of Culture and Ethnicity - Essay Example Smiling, and, rocking and nodding heads are the two common aspects of interpersonal communication prevalent in this culture. Both these gestures help to create a friendly, warm atmosphere, formal enough to be suitable for any common interpersonal communication situation. Also, there are certain proxemic and haptic rules embedded in the unconscious mind of an Indian, which differ, based on gender as well as age. Respecting the elderly is a part of Indian culture. Keeping a ‘decent’ physical distance from women is also part of this culture. Hargie (p.344) has observed that â€Å"Indian culture places a very high value on acceptance, self-suppression and concern for the feelings of others.† In India, touch between a man and a woman who are not married is most often highly improper. Same sex touching is common among Muslims whereas this is not so common among Hindus (Krueger, 2008, p.6). But in this culture, even a mother will not usually embrace her adult son. And pu blic display of affection (PDA) is very minimal.

Whats wrong with the American School system Essay

Whats wrong with the American School system - Essay Example The paper will highlight those elements and related factors that are the ultimate cause of substandard teaching and flaws in American school system. In America, the school system is unable to meet the learning needs of students and the approach is outdated that is not helpful for them in this digital age. It is due to the fact that America in the past focused on schools systems to be producing a workforce that was limited in number. Therefore, it was not a big deal if not all children were getting their way into classrooms. It ultimately resulted in making half population going to school with the other half remaining idle thus participating in criminal activities and becoming drug addicts. It is unfortunate but true that only one-third of American population got a change to finish their high schools with a rise in dropout rates at the same time (Gates, 2005). These are the students that gets their way into college and are ready for work while other students are taught things that they cannot make use of anywhere. Gates (2005) argues that class difference is also there in American school systems where not all children are getting equal chance to surpass due to economic conditions. In an attempt to highlight the nature of problems that American schools face, Steffin (2011) discusses the key aspects that are important in terms of drawbacks of majority of American schools. These drawbacks include the inadequacy of learning that does not contribute to creating certain skills in students that they could use in future. Moreover, the learning materials are not up to the mental level of some of students. An ambiguity also prevails in students mind as to what they are learning and what is their aim in reading the subjects they do. It is also disturbing for the teachers as they themselves do not think they are being successful in teaching students

Observe behavior - you as a researcher (Psychology) Essay

Observe behavior - you as a researcher (Psychology) - Essay Example A study of college students stress found that stress is self-imposed surprisingly often (Weiten & Lloyd 65). Further enhancing available research that links college activities to self-imposed stress, this researcher noted a particular instance in which a student manifested not only outward indications of self-imposed stress, rather the student began to exhibit behavior toward self-fulfilling prophecy in which the students unrealistic expectations about academic performance caused her negative assertions to become reality. In an attempt to justify a hypothetical linkage between self-imposed stress and self-fulfilling prophecy, this researcher engaged the student to become an It became a crucial determining factor to this case study to witness how the participant functioned in an academic environment and for this researcher to observe behaviors which could be linked to self-imposed stress and self-fulfilling prophecy. The subject was observed frantically reinforcing her impending failure to an upcoming class examination, exclaiming on several occasions that she was "stupid" and could not manage to secure an acceptable understanding of her curriculums material. This researcher allowed the subject to openly express her misgivings with her academic performance and twice witnessed the subject toss her study materials in frustration. Further forward in the subjects study session, the student publicly refused to continue studying because she perceived the activity as a "useless effort" and that she was "doomed to work at a car wash for the rest of her life" and would never attain her degree. As part of our association, it was commonplace for this researcher to offer study assistance by quizzing the subject on her study material. After reviewing the information, this researcher was able to conclude that the subject comprehended

Final Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 5

Final - Essay Example He was also among the first philosophers to believe that kings did not have any rights over commoners. Hobbes had a strong conviction that no man has a natural right to dominate another man (Hobbes, 2013:21). He was also among the first people to express – in writing – that he trusted that all men were created equal. This seems to have been the genesis of the two ideologies of liberalism and conservatism. Hobbes represented the latter (Lieberman, 2013:54). At face value, Hobbes’ views appear to lean towards liberalism, but a closer look reveals a deeply entrenched conservative mindset that does not waver in the face of the strongest winds of liberalism. The fact that Hobbes often features – constantly – on the conservative side in liberalism versus conservatism debates shows that he was a conservative thinker (Mannheim, 2013:14). He is the epitome, the embodiment, the perfect example of what a conservative should be. Hobbes, while employed as an instructor to a young King Charles II, exerted so much influence on England’s throne that the king had to agree to be the first monarch to divide his ordained power over Britons with the British Parliament. In spite of this, there was a malicious angle to Hobbes’ views (Gert, 2013:34). For example, his theory of human n ature was that the inherent state of man was to be in conflict. In fact, Hobbes held this view so strongly that he termed the theory of peaceful times as nothing more than the absence conflict. In other words, his opinion was that the perpetual clashes between men, households and governments was as inherent and natural as sunset (Gert, 2013:14). Hobbes’ opinion was that mankind, by his true nature, is evil, conceited and ready kill another man because that is what mankind does. This notion resulted in what ultimately became the foundation of today’s contemporary conservative philosophy (Bunce, 2013:16). With this in mind, how can

Mental Health Nurses are the Best People to Aid Recovery of Depressed Assignment

Mental Health Nurses are the Best People to Aid Recovery of Depressed and Cardiac Patients - Assignment Example Over the recent decade, several studies have linked anxiety and depression with cardiovascular problems, as well as fatal heart attacks (Bogner, Ford & Gallo 2006). A wide-ranging analysis of empirical studies about cardiac patients’ psychosocial medications indicates that a vast sum of resources have been employed in this attempt (Pignay-Demaria, Lesperance, Demaria, Frassure-Smith & Perrault 2003). Hence, it is vital for mental health nurses to be knowledgeable of the important developments that have taken place. A vast number of studies and reviews over the recent decade have analysed the impacts of depression on cardiovascular problem. They propose a relationship between cardiovascular problems and depression, but not a decisive causality trend (Ai et al. 2010). The findings can be classified into three groups (Ai et al. 2010). Primarily, depression portends the start of and weak diagnosis for cardiovascular illness (p. 27). Second, the connection between heart disease and depression is due partly to the connection between cardiac patterns and risk factors and depression like refusal to take medication, poor compliance to minor precautionary treatment, social exclusion, and withdrawal from rehabilitation courses (Ai et al. 2010). Third, some studies indicate that coronary heart disease may reinforce depressive symptoms, particularly among women. Certainly, a significant number of Myocardial Infarction (MI) survivors are experiencing depression (p. 27). Duits and colleagues (1997), in an analysis of 17 potential investigations of psychosocial results after cardiac surgery, discovered that preoperative depression and anxiety portended postoperative mental instability.... The explanations why depression is usually insufficiently addressed and treated in cardiac patients have yet to be completely explained. Depression normally is expressed by grief but can be determined without this particular aspect. Since elders with persistent clinical illnesses such as heart diseases may not show grief or sorrow and because other indications like weakness or weariness are pervasive to cardiovascular problems and depression, overlap in symptoms may reinforce the failure to recognise depression by physicians. On the other hand, patients and physicians might think that depression is a natural response to heart problems. Previous researchers of depression in the perspective of clinical comorbidity evaluated the presence of depression to be a mental outcome of experiencing a disease. Furthermore, a number of physicians may be hesitant to interview their patients regarding their symptoms of depression and patients may be unwilling to reveal these specific symptoms. Moreover, successful treatment of comorbid cardiovascular disease and depression necessitates knowledge of the interaction between these health disorders.

Role Of Muse In Haute Couture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Role Of Muse In Haute Couture - Essay Example A model haute couture garment is hand crafted to specific body measurements and fitted to perfection for each client. It is for this reason added to the hours of toil and the highly exclusive materials that haute couture garments are extremely expensive. Not only is the dress custom-made, the fabrics and embellishments are of the highest quality, and the tailors, seamstresses, embroiderers, lace makers and other craftspeople who spend hundreds of hours assembling these pieces are the most skilled in the world (Sherman, 2006). In Greek mythology, the muses were the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the goddesses who presided over literature and the arts and sciences. A muse is not simply an icon but a constant source of inspiration by her presence or the input she gives a designer. In Greek mythology, muses served as inspiration to artists of various disciplines, be it photography, paintings or even fashion. Like the daughters of Mnemosyne, whose name translates as 'memory', they held in their power the ability to make an artist remember or tap into an ocean of creativity held internally or collectively. The muses did not create new inspiration in non-creative people, but instead helped their creative admirers to reconnect with lost or forgotten creativity and inspiration. The muses were noble and strong beings that were held in the highest regard. Muses were valued participants in the creative world and have been given that magnitude in the artistic world throughout history. The relationship shared by a muse and her admirer is not typically a sexual one, even though the inspiration most often comes from the sexual charge between them. This sexual tension lays the foundation for the admirer's interest to impress the muse and stays as the only link that ties them together. A muse doesn't necessarily define perfection; she should be one who is able to project a global vision and self-awareness that inspires her admirer. The idea of a muse has existed for millennia. Artists still believe that creativity is a phenomenon that exists outside of them, rather than inside a skilled mind that creates art. So when an artist sees someone, who provides as a source of inspiration that sparks interest and enjoyment, and also challenges their skills as a creator, a muse or an idea of a muse is created. Even today, male fashion designers have their muse, who is usually a beautiful, high-society female. They move from one muse to another, constantly in search of an expression of the ideas that define fashion for each of them. Yet, in classical tradition, muses were independent figures, 'active, willful and manipulative practitioners of their art'; creators and artists in their own right (Gerrard, n.d.) A muse creates an inspiration by making a fashion statement. The famous Isabella Blow, a fashion personality who dressed to express her love of innovation and daring and not merely to look pretty or conventional. For her, fashion was not about wearability or lifestyle; it was about art (Flanagan, canada.com). Emmanuel Ungaro, a master of texture and prints, trained under Balenciaga and Courreges, always looked for something different for the women whom he dressed. He wanted his women to be sexy and seductive, in short, women with a lot of sex appeal. When a man sees a woman who inspires him by some quality within her, she is simply projecting an idea or belief that the man carries within himself that he holds with high regard. It could be some aspect of her personality, her beauty or as most often is the case, the sexual charge that exists between them that creates this mysterious bond of muse and admirer

Different Methods of Cooking Essay Example for Free

Different Methods of Cooking Essay Introduction In cooking, there are Some basic methods of cooking That Are Used. Used commonly These basic cooking methods are Divided into two general groups. The groups are: Dry heat methods and Cookery Cookery Moist heat methods. The methods of cooking are Divided into two groups thes Because of the way food is cooked and the type of Heat That Is Used. Let us have a look at the Dry Heat Cookery Methods. Dry Heat Cookery Methods In dry heat cooking methods, the food cooked Being does not use water to cook the food. The food is left is dry and Applied heat to cook the food. Such methods of cooking are: baking, steaming, grilling, and roasting. When Heat Is Applied to the food, the food Cooks Its Own Juice in the water or added to food during the ITS Preparation evaporat during the Heating Process and the Cooks this food. Heat is Applied directly to the food by convection Thusis way of making the food to get cooked. The action or movement of air around the food, cook it. Let us now have to look at each of thes cooking methods Baking [pic] [pic] In baking method of cooking, the food is cooked Heating Using convection. The food is put into an Enclosed Area Where Is Then Applied heat and the movement of heat Within the confined space, the Act on food thata make it get cooked. Steaming To steam food, water is added to the pot and Then stand is placed inside the pot. Should the water level be under the stand and not abov it. There is in contact Between the food and the water That is added to the pot. Then food is placed on the stand and Heat Is Applied. The hot steam rising from the boiling water on the Food Act and the food gets cooked. It is the hot steam That Cooks the food, as there is in contact Between the food and the water inside the pot. This method of cooking for Vegetables is very good as the food does not Lose Its Flavour and much of the Nutrients are not lost during the cooking. Grilling There are two methods of grilling That are Used These Days. One type of grilling is The One That Is Used commonly by the people in the village. This is When food is cooked over hot Charcoal on an open fire. The food is placed on top of the Charcoal Burning. Sometimes people improvisations by Using wire mesh and place it over the open fire to grill fish or Vegetables. The Other Method That Is Using grills are inbuilt in Stove. In this method, the grill, whichis you have the tray, is heated up and the food is placed on the grill tray to cook. The Heat Can Be Gas-Electric-generated or generated depending on the type of Stove Used. The food is again left to cook on the grill with the grill of the doors open. People Who Can Afford to Buy a Stove would use the grilling part theire food to grill. What Happens in this type of cooking is the heat Seals Outside the part of the food and the juice inside the food Cooks it. The Flavour of the food is not lost and much of the Nutrients are not lost eith. Frequently food is pre Turned over to it from burning and to ensure thata Equal Heating and Cooking Time Is Applied to Both Sides of the food. By doing this, the food is cooked evenly and thoroughly. Roasting [pic] [pic] With roasting, direct heat is Applied to the food. The Heat Seals Outside the part of the food and the juice inside the food Cooks the food. Roasting is mainly fleshy Used When cooking food like fish, Meat or Chicken. When Heat Is Applied to the Outer Covering of the food, it thereby Seals Trapping it up all the juice inside the food. The direct action of Heating, heat up the juice inside the food, whichis Cooks Then the food. Again there is very little nutrient lost and the Flavour is not spoilt. Frequently food is Rotated so over the Spit That There Is Even Heating Applied to All Parts of the food. That this is so heat is evenly Applied to the food to make it get cooked properly. Moist Heat Methods Cookery Cookery In Moist heat methods, the liquid is Used to medium to cook the food. Such medium could be water, Coconut cream or oil. These liquid are added to the food befor Heat is Applied to it or Sometimes heat is Applied to the Liquid befor the food is added into the cooking utensils to be cooked. The Cookery Moist heat methods include: boiling, stewing, Shallow Frying, Deep Frying, barbequing and basting. All thes Moist heat cooking methods use liquid to cook the food in. Boiling This Is The Most Common Method of cooking and is the simplest Also. With this method of cooking, enough water is added to food and Then it is cooked over the fire. The action of the heated water Makes the food to get cooked. The liquid is usually thrown away after the food is cooked. In the Case of cooking rice, all the water is absorbed by the Grain Rice to make it get cooked. Heating During the process, the dog Nutrients get lost or Destroyed and the Flavour Can Be Reduced with this method of cooking. If you over cooked cabbage, all the Nutrients dog get lost. Stewing In the Process of Using the stewing cooking method, food is cooked Using a lot of liquid. Different Kinds Of Vegetables are chopped, diced or cubed and added to the pot. Sometimes pieces of Selected Meat, fish or chicken is chopped and Also added to the Stew. The liquid is thickened and Slightly stewed food is served in That Manner. This method is Also Used When Preparing Fruits That are going to be served as Desserts. Cooking With this method, Every food is cooked together at the same time in one pot. The Flavour, Colours, shapes and textures of the Different Vegetables That Are Used, stewing Makes a handy method of cooking. The only disadvantage is That Some of the Vegetables Might be overcooked and the nutrient content Thusis Becomes much less. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT Therefor the Vegetables That Longest to take the cook to be put into the pot and the First Ones That Need To Be Cooking least put in last. In this way much of the nutrient contents of the food does not get lost. Frying When food is fried Using oil or solid fat IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU Some observe rules in handling oil or fat. Simple rules to follow When Frying: 1. Make Sure there is enough oil or fat in the PUT or the Frying Pan Deep Frying Pan . 2. The food to be cooked must not have Dripping water from it. This is becaus When water comes into contact with hot oil or fat, You Will Have the oil sizzling and spitting out of the bread, whichis could burn your skin if you are Careful not. 3. Put the food into the hot oil carefully. Try not to make a big splash as the oil could burn your skin. 4. The oil of fat Should be heated to the temperature right befor putting food into the pan to be fried. If the food is put in When The oil or fat is not heated to the right temperature, the food Will Soak Up The Oil And You Will Have That food is all Oily or greasy. If the fat or oil is over heated, you WILL end up with Food That Is Burnt. Sometimes the food dough nuts Especially Will turn brown on the inside But the inside is uncooked dough. To cook food Frying Using the method, there are two Ways of doing it. There is the Shallow and the Deep Frying Frying Methods. Shallow Frying In Shallow Frying, food is cooked in a Frying pan with a little Amount of oil or fat. The oil or fat is heated to the correct Amount and the food is put into the heated oil. The food is Turned Over A Few minutes or is stirred around a couple of times befor it is cooked and Dished October If Patti, Coated or potato chips are fried foods, it is best to put a piece of brown paper napkin or paper inside the tray to Soak Up Any oil from the food befor serving it. Deep Frying When this is a lot of oil or fat is Used in cooking the food. The oil or fat is usually put into a deep pan and is heated to boiling point. Then food is put into the boiling hot oil and is cooked in That Way. Such food as fish fingers, potato chips, Meat balls, dough and nuts to name a Few, are cooked Using the Deep Frying Method. Barbequing [pic] [pic] The method of cooking food by barbequing is usually Associated with Fund Raising activities, parties or picnics. It is to suitabl Most cooking Meat cutlets, fish or chicken pieces. The food is usually marinated with Spices and tenderizers (for Meat Cuts) for sometime befor it is cooked. With this method of cooking, the sheet of metal is heated with stands up and oil is used to cook the food. The Amount of sufficient oil is heated up and food is added. Then the food is Turned Over a couple of times befor it is Dished October Basting This method of cooking is usually Associated with roasting. The Juice or Liquid That Comes Out of the Meat is cooked Being spooned over the roast while it is Frequently Being roasted. The outer part of the Meat is moistened Frequently during the cooking with the juice Process That Is Being spooned over. Usually, the extra juice from the cooked Meat is added to the mixture to make the Meat Sauce.

American culture Essay Example for Free

American culture Essay The arts, more than other features of culture, provide avenues for the expression of imagination and personal vision. They offer a range of emotional and intellectual pleasures to consumers of art and are an important way in which a culture represents itself. There has long been a Western tradition distinguishing those arts that appeal to the multitude, such as popular music, from those—such as classical orchestral music—normally available to the elite of learning and taste. Popular art forms are usually seen as more representative American products. In the United States in the recent past, there has been a blending of popular and elite art forms, as all the arts experienced a period of remarkable cross-fertilization. Because popular art forms are so widely distributed, arts of all kinds have prospered. The arts in the United States express the many faces and the enormous creative range of the American people. Especially since World War II, American innovations and the immense energy displayed in literature, dance, and music have made American cultural works world famous. Arts in the United States have become internationally prominent in ways that are unparalleled in history. American art forms during the second half of the 20th century often defined the styles and qualities that the rest of the world emulated. At the end of the 20th century, American art was considered equal in quality and vitality to art produced in the rest of the world. Throughout the 20th century, American arts have grown to incorporate new visions and voices. Much of this new artistic energy came in the wake of America’s emergence as a superpower after World War II. But it was also due to the growth of New York City as an important center for publishing and the arts, and the immigration of artists and intellectuals fleeing fascism in Europe before and during the war. An outpouring of talent also followed the civil rights and protest movements of the 1960s, as cultural discrimination against blacks, women, and other groups diminished. American arts flourish in many places and receive support from private foundations, large corporations, local governments, federal agencies, museums, galleries, and individuals. What is considered worthy of support often depends on definitions of quality and of what constitutes art. This is a tricky subject when the popular arts are increasingly incorporated into the domain of the fine arts and new forms such as performance art and conceptual art appear. As a result, defining what is art affects what students are taught about past traditions (for example, Native American tent paintings, oral traditions, and slave narratives) and what is produced in the future. While some practitioners, such as studio artists, are more vulnerable to these definitions because they depend on financial support to exercise their talents, others, such as poets and photographers, are less immediately constrained. Artists operate in a world where those who theorize and critique their work have taken on an increasingly important role. Audiences are influenced by a variety of intermediaries—critics, the schools, foundations that offer grants, the National Endowment for the Arts, gallery owners, publishers, and theater producers. In some areas, such as the performing arts, popular audiences may ultimately define success. In other arts, such as painting and sculpture, success is far more dependent on critics and a few, often wealthy, art collectors. Writers depend on publishers and on the public for their success. Unlike their predecessors, who relied on formal criteria and appealed to aesthetic judgments, critics at the end of the 20th century leaned more toward popular tastes, taking into account groups previously ignored and valuing the merger of popular and elite forms. These critics often relied less on aesthetic judgments than on social measures and were eager to place artistic productions in the context of the time and social conditions in which they were created. Whereas earlier critics attempted to create an American tradition of high art, later critics used art as a means to give power and approval to nonelite groups who were previously not considered worthy of including in the nation’s artistic heritage. Not so long ago, culture and the arts were assumed to be an unalterable inheritance—the accumulated wisdom and highest forms of achievement that were established in the past. In the 20th century generally, and certainly since World War II, artists have been boldly destroying older traditions in sculpture, painting, dance, music, and literature. The arts have changed rapidly, with one movement replacing another in quick succession. a) Visual arts. The visual arts have traditionally included forms of expression that appeal to the eyes through painted surfaces, and to the sense of space through carved or molded materials. In the 19th century, photographs were added to the paintings, drawings, and sculpture that make up the visual arts. The visual arts were further augmented in the 20th century by the addition of other materials, such as found objects. These changes were accompanied by a profound alteration in tastes, as earlier emphasis on realistic representation of people, objects, and landscapes made way for a greater range of imaginative forms. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American art was considered inferior to European art. Despite noted American painters such as Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Mary Cassatt, and John Marin, American visual arts barely had an international presence. American art began to flourish during the Great Depression of the 1930s as New Deal government programs provided support to artists along with other sectors of the population. Artists connected with each other and developed a sense of common purpose through programs of the Public Works Administration, such as the Federal Art Project, as well as programs sponsored by the Treasury Department. Most of the art of the period, including painting, photography, and mural work, focused on the plight of the American people during the depression, and most artists painted real people in difficult circumstances. Artists such as Thomas Hart Benton and Ben Shahn expressed the suffering of ordinary people through their representations of struggling farmers and workers. While artists such as Benton and Grant Wood focused on rural life, many painters of the 1930s and 1940s depicted the multicultural life of the American city. Jacob Lawrence, for example, re-created the history and lives of African Americans. Other artists, such as Andrew Wyeth and Edward Hopper, tried to use human figures to describe emotional states such as loneliness and despair. Abstract Expressionism. Shortly after World War II, American art began to garner worldwide attention and admiration. This change was due to the innovative fervor of abstract expressionism in the 1950s and to subsequent modern art movements and artists. The abstract expressionists of the mid-20th century broke from the realist and figurative tradition set in the 1930s. They emphasized their connection to international artistic visions rather than the particularities of people and place, and most abstract expressionists did not paint human figures (although artist Willem de Kooning did portrayals of women). Color, shape, and movement dominated the canvases of abstract expressionists. Some artists broke with the Western art tradition by adopting innovative painting styles—during the 1950s Jackson Pollock painted by dripping paint on canvases without the use of brushes, while the paintings of Mark Rothko often consisted of large patches of color that seem to vibrate. Abstract expressionists felt alienated from their surrounding culture and used art to challenge society’s conventions. The work of each artist was quite individual and distinctive, but all the artists identified with the radicalism of artistic creativity. The artists were eager to challenge conventions and limits on expression in order to redefine the nature of art. Their radicalism came from liberating themselves from the confining artistic traditions of the past. The most notable activity took place in New York City, which became one of the world’s most important art centers during the second half of the 20th century. The radical fervor and inventiveness of the abstract expressionists, their frequent association with each other in New York City’s Greenwich Village, and the support of a group of gallery owners and dealers turned them into an artistic movement. Also known as the New York School, the participants included Barnett Newman, Robert Motherwell, Franz Kline, and Arshile Gorky, in addition to Rothko and Pollock. The members of the New York School came from diverse backgrounds such as the American Midwest and Northwest, Armenia, and Russia, bringing an international flavor to the group and its artistic visions. They hoped to appeal to art audiences everywhere, regardless of culture, and they felt connected to the radical innovations introduced earlier in the 20th century by European artists such as Pablo Picasso and Marcel Duchamp. Some of the artists—Hans Hofmann, Gorky, Rothko, and de Kooning—were not born in the United States, but all the artists saw themselves as part of an international creative movement and an aesthetic rebellion. As artists felt released from the boundaries and conventions of the past and free to emphasize expressiveness and innovation, the abstract expressionists gave way to other innovative styles in American art. Beginning in the 1930s Joseph Cornell created hundreds of boxed assemblages, usually from found objects, with each based on a single theme to create a mood of contemplation and sometimes of reverence. Cornells boxes exemplify the modern fascination with individual vision, art that breaks down boundaries between forms such as painting and sculpture, and the use of everyday objects toward a new end. Other artists, such as Robert Rauschenberg, combined disparate objects to create large, collage-like sculptures known as combines in the 1950s. Jasper Johns, a painter, sculptor, and printmaker, recreated countless familiar objects, most memorably the American flag. The most prominent American artistic style to follow abstract expressionism was the pop art movement that began in the 1950s. Pop art attempted to connect traditional art and popular culture by using images from mass culture. To shake viewers out of their preconceived notions about art, sculptor Claes Oldenburg used everyday objects such as pillows and beds to create witty, soft sculptures. Roy Lichtenstein took this a step further by elevating the techniques of commercial art, notably cartooning, into fine art worthy of galleries and museums. Lichtensteins large, blown-up cartoons fill the surface of his canvases with grainy black dots and question the existence of a distinct realm of high art. These artists tried to make their audiences see ordinary objects in a refreshing new way, thereby breaking down the conventions that formerly defined what was worthy of artistic representation. Probably the best-known pop artist, and a leader in the movement, was Andy Warhol, whose images of a Campbell’s soup can and of the actress Marilyn Monroe explicitly eroded the boundaries between the art world and mass culture. Warhol also cultivated his status as a celebrity. He worked in film as a director and producer to break down the boundaries between traditional and popular art. Unlike the abstract expressionists, whose conceptual works were often difficult to understand, Andy Warhols pictures, and his own face, were instantly recognizable. Conceptual art, as it came to be known in the 1960s, like its predecessors, sought to break free of traditional artistic associations. In conceptual art, as practiced by Sol LeWitt and Joseph Kosuth, concept takes precedent over actual object, by stimulating thought rather than following an art tradition based on conventional standards of beauty and artisanship. Modern artists changed the meaning of traditional visual arts and brought a new imaginative dimension to ordinary experience. Art was no longer viewed as separate and distinct, housed in museums as part of a historical inheritance, but as a continuous creative process. This emphasis on constant change, as well as on the ordinary and mundane, reflected a distinctly American democratizing perspective. Viewing art in this way removed the emphasis from technique and polished performance, and many modern artworks and experiences became more about expressing ideas than about perfecting finished products. Photography. Photography is probably the most democratic modern art form because it can be, and is, practiced by most Americans. Since 1888, when George Eastman developed the Kodak camera that allowed anyone to take pictures, photography has struggled to be recognized as a fine art form. In the early part of the 20th century, photographer, editor, and artistic impresario Alfred Stieglitz established 291, a gallery in New York City, with fellow photographer Edward Steichen, to showcase the works of photographers and painters. They also published a magazine called Camera Work to increase awareness about photographic art. In the United States, photographic art had to compete with the widely available commercial photography in news and fashion magazines. By the 1950s the tradition of photojournalism, which presented news stories primarily with photographs, had produced many outstanding works. In 1955 Steichen, who was director of photography at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, called attention to this work in an exhibition called The Family of Man. Throughout the 20th century, most professional photographers earned their living as portraitists or photojournalists, not as artists. One of the most important exceptions was Ansel Adams, who took majestic photographs of the Western American landscape. Adams used his art to stimulate social awareness and to support the conservation cause of the Sierra Club. He helped found the photography department at the Museum of Modern Art in 1940, and six years later helped establish the photography department at the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco (now the San Francisco Art Institute). He also held annual photography workshops at Yosemite National Park from 1955 to 1981 and wrote a series of influential books on photographic technique. Adamss elegant landscape photography was only one small stream in a growing current of interest in photography as an art form. Early in the 20th century, teacher-turned-photographer Lewis Hine established a documentary tradition in photography by capturing actual people, places, and events. Hine photographed urban conditions and workers, including child laborers. Along with their artistic value, the photographs often implicitly called for social reform. In the 1930s and 1940s, photographers joined with other depression-era artists supported by the federal government to create a hotographic record of rural America. Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, and Arthur Rothstein, among others, produced memorable and widely reproduced portraits of rural poverty and American distress during the Great Depression and during the dust storms of the period. In 1959, after touring the United States for two years, Swiss-born photographer Robert Frank published The Americans, one of the landmarks of document ary photography. His photographs of everyday life in America introduced viewers to a depressing, and often depressed, America that existed in the midst of prosperity and world power. Photographers continued to search for new photographic viewpoints. This search was perhaps most disturbingly embodied in the work of Diane Arbus. Her photos of mental patients and her surreal depictions of Americans altered the viewer’s relationship to the photograph. Arbus emphasized artistic alienation and forced viewers to stare at images that often made them uncomfortable, thus changing the meaning of the ordinary reality that photographs are meant to capture. American photography continues to flourish. The many variants of art photography and socially conscious documentary photography are widely available in galleries, books, and magazines. A host of other visual arts thrive, although they are far less connected to traditional fine arts than photography. Decorative arts include, but are not limited to, art glass, furniture, jewelry, pottery, metalwork, and quilts. Often exhibited in craft galleries and studios, these decorative arts rely on ideals of beauty in shape and color as well as an appreciation of well-executed crafts. Some of these forms are also developed commercially. The decorative arts provide a wide range of opportunity for creative expression and have become a means for Americans to actively participate in art and to purchase art for their homes that is more affordable than works produced by many contemporary fine artists. 4. Performing arts As in other cultural spheres, the performing arts in the United States in the 20th century increasingly blended traditional and popular art forms. The classical performing arts—music, opera, dance, and theater—were not a widespread feature of American culture in the first half of the 20th century. These arts were generally imported from or strongly influenced by Europe and were mainly appreciated by the wealthy and well educated. Traditional art usually referred to classical forms in ballet and opera, orchestral or chamber music, and serious drama. The distinctions between traditional music and popular music were firmly drawn in most areas. During the 20th century, the American performing arts began to incorporate wider groups of people. The African American community produced great musicians who became widely known around the country. Jazz and blues singers such as Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Billie Holiday spread their sounds to black and white audiences. In the 1930s and 1940s, the swing music of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, and Glenn Miller adapted jazz to make a unique American music that was popular around the country. The American performing arts also blended Latin American influences beginning in the 20th century. Between 1900 and 1940, Latin American dances, such as the tango from Argentina and the rumba from Cuba, were introduced into the United States. In the 1940s a fusion of Latin and jazz elements was stimulated first by the Afro-Cuban mambo and later on by the Brazilian bossa nova. Throughout the 20th century, dynamic classical institutions in the United States attracted international talent. Noted Russian-born choreographer George Balanchine established the short-lived American Ballet Company in the 1930s; later he founded the company that in the 1940s would become the New York City Ballet. The American Ballet Theatre, also established during the 1940s, brought in non-American dancers as well. By the 1970s this company had attracted Soviet defector Mikhail Baryshnikov, an internationally acclaimed dancer who served as the company’s artistic director during the 1980s. In classical music, influential Russian composer Igor Stravinsky, who composed symphonies using innovative musical styles, moved to the United States in 1939. German-born pianist, composer, and conductor Andre Previn, who started out as a jazz pianist in the 1940s, went on to conduct a number of distinguished American symphony orchestras. Another Soviet, cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, became conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D. C. , in 1977. Some of the most innovative artists in the first half of the 20th century successfully incorporated new forms into classical traditions. Composers George Gershwin and Aaron Copland, and dancer Isadora Duncan were notable examples. Gershwin combined jazz and spiritual music with classical in popular works such as Rhapsody in Blue (1924) and the opera Porgy and Bess (1935). Copland developed a unique style that was influenced by jazz and American folk music. Early in the century, Duncan redefined dance along more expressive and free-form lines. Some artists in music and dance, such as composer John Cage and dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham, were even more experimental. During the 1930s Cage worked with electronically produced sounds and sounds made with everyday objects such as pots and pans. He even invented a new kind of piano. During the late 1930s, avant-garde choreographer Cunningham began to collaborate with Cage on a number of projects. Perhaps the greatest, and certainly the most popular, American innovation was the Broadway musical, which also became a movie staple. Beginning in the 1920s, the Broadway musical combined music, dance, and dramatic performance in ways that surpassed the older vaudeville shows and musical revues but without being as complex as European grand opera. By the 1960s, this American musical tradition was well established and had produced extraordinary works by important musicians and lyricists such as George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, Jerome Kern, and Oscar Hammerstein II. These productions required an immense effort to coordinate music, drama, and dance. Because of this, the musical became the incubator of an American modern dance tradition that produced some of Americas greatest choreographers, among them Jerome Robbins, Gene Kelly, and Bob Fosse. In the 1940s and 1950s the American musical tradition was so dynamic that it attracted outstanding classically trained musicians such as Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein composed the music for West Side Story, an updated version of Romeo and Juliet set in New York that became an instant classic in 1957. The following year, Bernstein became the first American-born conductor to lead a major American orchestra, the New York Philharmonic. He was an international sensation who traveled the world as an ambassador of the American style of conducting. He brought the art of classical music to the public, especially through his Young Peoples Concerts, television shows that were seen around the world. Bernstein used the many facets of the musical tradition as a force for change in the music world and as a way of bringing attention to American innovation. In many ways, Bernstein embodied a transformation of American music that began in the 1960s. The changes that took place during the 1960s and 1970s resulted from a significant increase in funding for the arts and their increased availability to larger audiences. New York City, the American center for art performances, experienced an artistic explosion in the 1960s and 1970s. Experimental off-Broadway theaters opened, new ballet companies were established that often emphasized modern forms or blended modern with classical (Martha Graham was an especially important influence), and an experimental music scene developed that included composers such as Philip Glass and performance groups such as the Guarneri String Quartet. Dramatic innovation also continued to expand with the works of playwrights such as Edward Albee, Tony Kushner, and David Mamet. As the variety of performances expanded, so did the serious crossover between traditional and popular music forms. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, an expanded repertoire of traditional arts was being conveyed to new audiences. Popular music and jazz could be heard in formal settings such as Carnegie Hall, which had once been restricted to classical music, while the Brooklyn Academy of Music became a venue for experimental music, exotic and ethnic dance presentations, and traditional productions of grand opera. Innovative producer Joseph Papp had been staging Shakespeare in Central Park since the 1950s. Boston conductor Arthur Fiedler was playing a mixed repertoire of classical and popular favorites to large audiences, often outdoors, with the Boston Pops Orchestra. By the mid-1970s the United States had several world-class symphony orchestras, including those in Chicago; New York; Cleveland, Ohio; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Even grand opera was affected. Once a specialized taste that often required extensive knowledge, opera in the United States increased in popularity as the roster of respected institutions grew to include companies in Seattle, Washington; Houston, Texas; and Santa Fe, New Mexico. American composers such as John Adams and Philip Glass began composing modern operas in a new minimalist style during the 1970s and 1980s. The crossover in tastes also influenced the Broadway musical, probably Americas most durable music form. Starting in the 1960s, rock music became an ingredient in musical productions such as Hair (1967). By the 1990s, it had become an even stronger presence in musicals such as Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk (1996), which used African American music and dance traditions, and Rent (1996) a modern, rock version of the classic opera La Boheme. This updating of the musical opened the theater to new ethnic audiences who had not previously attended Broadway shows, as well as to young audiences who had been raised on rock music. Performances of all kinds have become more available across the country. This is due to both the sheer increase in the number of performance groups as well as to advances in transportation. In the last quarter of the 20th century, the number of major American symphonies doubled, the number of resident theaters increased fourfold, and the number of dance companies increased tenfold. At the same time, planes made it easier for artists to travel. Artists and companies regularly tour, and they expand the audiences for individual artists such as performance artist Laurie Anderson and opera singer Jessye Norman, for musical groups such as the Juilliard Quartet, and for dance troupes such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Full-scale theater productions and musicals first presented on Broadway now reach cities across the country. The United States, once a provincial outpost with a limited European tradition in performance, has become a flourishing center for the performing arts. . Arts and letters The arts, more than other features of culture, provide avenues for the expression of imagination and personal vision. They offer a range of emotional and intellectual pleasures to consumers of art and are an important way in which a culture represents itself. There has long been a Western tradition distinguishing those arts that appeal to the multitude, such as popul ar music, from those—such as classical orchestral music—normally available to the elite of learning and taste. Popular art forms are usually seen as more representative American products. In the United States in the recent past, there has been a blending of popular and elite art forms, as all the arts experienced a period of remarkable cross-fertilization. Because popular art forms are so widely distributed, arts of all kinds have prospered. The arts in the United States express the many faces and the enormous creative range of the American people. Especially since World War II, American innovations and the immense energy displayed in literature, dance, and music have made American cultural works world famous. Arts in the United States have become internationally prominent in ways that are unparalleled in history. American art forms during the second half of the 20th century often defined the styles and qualities that the rest of the world emulated. At the end of the 20th century, American art was considered equal in quality and vitality to art produced in the rest of the world. Throughout the 20th century, American arts have grown to incorporate new visions and voices. Much of this new artistic energy came in the wake of America’s emergence as a superpower after World War II. But it was also due to the growth of New York City as an important center for publishing and the arts, and the immigration of artists and intellectuals fleeing fascism in Europe before and during the war. An outpouring of talent also followed the civil rights and protest movements of the 1960s, as cultural discrimination against blacks, women, and other groups diminished. American arts flourish in many places and receive support from private foundations, large corporations, local governments, federal agencies, museums, galleries, and individuals. What is considered worthy of support often depends on definitions of quality and of what constitutes art. This is a tricky subject when the popular arts are increasingly incorporated into the domain of the fine arts and new forms such as performance art and conceptual art appear. As a result, defining what is art affects what students are taught about past traditions (for example, Native American tent paintings, oral traditions, and slave narratives) and what is produced in the future. While some practitioners, such as studio artists, are more vulnerable to these definitions because they depend on financial support to exercise their talents, others, such as poets and photographers, are less immediately constrained. Artists operate in a world where those who theorize and critique their work have taken on an increasingly important role. Audiences are influenced by a variety of intermediaries—critics, the schools, foundations that offer grants, the National Endowment for the Arts, gallery owners, publishers, and theater producers. In some areas, such as the performing arts, popular audiences may ultimately define success. In other arts, such as painting and sculpture, success is far more dependent on critics and a few, often wealthy, art collectors. Writers depend on publishers and on the public for their success. Unlike their predecessors, who relied on formal criteria and appealed to aesthetic judgments, critics at the end of the 20th century leaned more toward popular tastes, taking into account groups previously ignored and valuing the merger of popular and elite forms. These critics ften relied less on aesthetic judgments than on social measures and were eager to place artistic productions in the context of the time and social conditions in which they were created. Whereas earlier critics attempted to create an American tradition of high art, later critics used art as a means to give power and approval to nonelite groups who were previously not considered worthy of including in the nation’s artisti c heritage. Not so long ago, culture and the arts were assumed to be an unalterable inheritance—the accumulated wisdom and highest forms of achievement that were established in the past. In the 20th century generally, and certainly since World War II, artists have been boldly destroying older traditions in sculpture, painting, dance, music, and literature. The arts have changed rapidly, with one movement replacing another in quick succession. a) Visual arts. The visual arts have traditionally included forms of expression that appeal to the eyes through painted surfaces, and to the sense of space through carved or molded materials. In the 19th century, photographs were added to the paintings, drawings, and sculpture that make up the visual arts. The visual arts were further augmented in the 20th century by the addition of other materials, such as found objects. These changes were accompanied by a profound alteration in tastes, as earlier emphasis on realistic representation of people, objects, and landscapes made way for a greater range of imaginative forms. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American art was considered inferior to European art. Despite noted American painters such as Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Mary Cassatt, and John Marin, American visual arts barely had an international presence. American art began to flourish during the Great Depression of the 1930s as New Deal government programs provided support to artists along with other sectors of the population. Artists connected with each other and developed a sense of common purpose through programs of the Public Works Administration, such as the Federal Art Project, as well as programs sponsored by the Treasury Department. Most of the art of the period, including painting, photography, and mural work, focused on the plight of the American people during the depression, and most artists painted real people in difficult circumstances. Artists such as Thomas Hart Benton and Ben Shahn expressed the suffering of ordinary people through their representations of struggling farmers and workers. While artists such as Benton and Grant Wood focused on rural life, many painters of the 1930s and 1940s depicted the multicultural life of the American city. Jacob Lawrence, for example, re-created the history and lives of African Americans. Other artists, such as Andrew Wyeth and Edward Hopper, tried to use human figures to describe emotional states such as loneliness and despair. Abstract Expressionism. Shortly after World War II, American art began to garner worldwide attention and admiration. This change was due to the innovative fervor of abstract expressionism in the 1950s and to subsequent modern art movements and artists. The abstract expressionists of the mid-20th century broke from the realist and figurative tradition set in the 1930s. They emphasized their connection to international artistic visions rather than the particularities of people and place, and most abstract expressionists did not paint human figures (although artist Willem de Kooning did portrayals of women). Color, shape, and movement dominated the canvases of abstract expressionists. Some artists broke with the Western art tradition by adopting innovative painting styles—during the 1950s Jackson Pollock painted by dripping paint on canvases without the use of brushes, while the paintings of Mark Rothko often consisted of large patches of color that seem to vibrate. Abstract expressionists felt alienated from their surrounding culture and used art to challenge society’s conventions. The work of each artist was quite individual and distinctive, but all the artists identified with the radicalism of artistic creativity. The artists were eager to challenge conventions and limits on expression in order to redefine the nature of art. Their radicalism came from liberating themselves from the confining artistic traditions of the past. The most notable activity took place in New York City, which became one of the world’s most important art centers during the second half of the 20th century. The radical fervor and inventiveness of the abstract expressionists, their frequent association with each other in New York City’s Greenwich Village, and the support of a group of gallery owners and dealers turned them into an artistic movement. Also known as the New York School, the participants included Barnett Newman, Robert Motherwell, Franz Kline, and Arshile Gorky, in addition to Rothko and Pollock. The members of the New York School came from diverse backgrounds such as the American Midwest and Northwest, Armenia, and Russia, bringing an international flavor to the group and its artistic visions. They hoped to appeal to art audiences everywhere, regardless of culture, and they felt connected to the radical innovations introduced earlier in the 20th century by European artists such as Pablo Picasso and Marcel Duchamp. Some of the artists—Hans Hofmann, Gorky, Rothko, and de Kooning—were not born in the United States, but all the artists saw themselves as part of an international creative movement and an aesthetic rebellion. As artists felt released from the boundaries and conventions of the past and free to emphasize expressiveness and innovation, the abstract expressionists gave way to other innovative styles in American art. Beginning in the 1930s Joseph Cornell created hundreds of boxed assemblages, usually from found objects, with each based on a single theme to create a mood of contemplation and sometimes of reverence. Cornells boxes exemplify the modern fascination with individual vision, art that breaks down boundaries between forms such as painting and sculpture, and the use of everyday objects toward a new end. Other artists, such as Robert Rauschenberg, combined disparate objects to create large, collage-like sculptures known as combines in the 1950s. Jasper Johns, a painter, sculptor, and printmaker, recreated countless familiar objects, most memorably the American flag. The most prominent American artistic style to follow abstract expressionism was the pop art movement that began in the 1950s. Pop art attempted to connect traditional art and popular culture by using images from mass culture. To shake viewers out of their preconceived notions about art, sculptor Claes Oldenburg used everyday objects such as pillows and beds to create witty, soft sculptures. Roy Lichtenstein took this a step further by elevating the techniques of commercial art, notably cartooning, into fine art worthy of galleries and museums. Lichtensteins large, blown-up cartoons fill the surface of his canvases with grainy black dots and question the existence of a distinct realm of high art. These artists tried to make their audiences see ordinary objects in a refreshing new way, thereby breaking down the conventions that formerly defined what was worthy of artistic representation. Probably the best-known pop artist, and a leader in the movement, was Andy Warhol, whose images of a Campbell’s soup can and of the actress Marilyn Monroe explicitly eroded the boundaries between the art world and mass culture. Warhol also cultivated his status as a celebrity. He worked in film as a director and producer to break down the boundaries between traditional and opular art. Unlike the abstract expressionists, whose conceptual works were often difficult to understand, Andy Warhols pictures, and his own face, were instantly recognizable. Conceptual art, as it came to be known in the 1960s, like its predecessors, sought to break free of traditional artistic associations. In conceptual art, as practiced by Sol LeWitt and Joseph Kosuth, concept takes precedent over actual object, by stimulating thought rather than following an art tradition based on conventional standards of beauty and artisanship. Modern artists changed the meaning of traditional visual arts and brought a new imaginative dimension to ordinary experience. Art was no longer viewed as separate and distinct, housed in museums as part of a historical inheritance, but as a continuous creative process. This emphasis on constant change, as well as on the ordinary and mundane, reflected a distinctly American democratizing perspective. Viewing art in this way removed the emphasis from technique and polished performance, and many modern artworks and experiences became more about expressing ideas than about perfecting finished products. Photography. Photography is probably the most democratic modern art form because it can be, and is, practiced by most Americans. Since 1888, when George Eastman developed the Kodak camera that allowed anyone to take pictures, photography has struggled to be recognized as a fine art form. In the early part of the 20th century, photographer, editor, and artistic impresario Alfred Stieglitz established 291, a gallery in New York City, with fellow photographer Edward Steichen, to showcase the works of photographers and painters. They also published a magazine called Camera Work to increase awareness about photographic art. In the United States, photographic art had to compete with the widely available commercial photography in news and fashion magazines. By the 1950s the tradition of photojournalism, which presented news stories primarily with photographs, had produced many outstanding works. In 1955 Steichen, who was director of photography at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, called attention to this work in an exhibition called The Family of Man. Throughout the 20th century, most professional photographers earned their living as portraitists or photojournalists, not as artists. One of the most important exceptions was Ansel Adams, who took majestic photographs of the Western American landscape. Adams used his art to stimulate social awareness and to support the conservation cause of the Sierra Club. He helped found the photography department at the Museum of Modern Art in 1940, and six years later helped establish the photography department at the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco (now the San Francisco Art Institute). He also held annual photography workshops at Yosemite National Park from 1955 to 1981 and wrote a series of influential books on photographic technique. Adamss elegant landscape photography was only one small stream in a growing current of interest in photography as an art form. Early in the 20th century, teacher-turned-photographer Lewis Hine established a documentary tradition in photography by capturing actual people, places, and events. Hine photographed urban conditions and workers, including child laborers. Along with their artistic value, the photographs often implicitly called for social reform. In the 1930s and 1940s, photographers joined with other depression-era artists supported by the federal government to create a photographic record of rural America. Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, and Arthur Rothstein, among others, produced memorable and widely reproduced portraits of rural poverty and American distress during the Great Depression and during the dust storms of the period. In 1959, after touring the United States for two years, Swiss-born photographer Robert Frank published The Americans, one of the landmarks of documentary photography. His photographs of everyday life in America introduced viewers to a depressing, and often depressed, America that existed in the midst of prosperity and world power. Photographers continued to search for new photographic viewpoints. This search was perhaps most disturbingly embodied in the work of Diane Arbus. Her photos of mental patients and her surreal depictions of Americans altered the viewer’s relationship to the photograph. Arbus emphasized artistic alienation and forced viewers to stare at images that often made them uncomfortable, thus changing the meaning of the ordinary reality that photographs are meant to capture. American photography continues to flourish. The many variants of art photography and socially conscious documentary photography are widely available in galleries, books, and magazines. A host of other visual arts thrive, although they are far less connected to traditional fine arts than photography. Decorative arts include, but are not limited to, art glass, furniture, jewelry, pottery, metalwork, and quilts. Often exhibited in craft galleries and studios, these decorative arts rely on ideals of beauty in shape and color as well as an appreciation of well-executed crafts. Some of these forms are also developed commercially. The decorative arts provide a wide range of opportunity for creative expression and have become a means for Americans to actively participate in art and to purchase art for their homes that is more affordable than works produced by many contemporary fine artists. . Performing arts As in other cultural spheres, the performing arts in the United States in the 20th century increasingly blended traditional and popular art forms. The classical performing arts—music, opera, dance, and theater—were not a widespread feature of American culture in the first half of the 20th century. These arts were generally imported from or strongly influenced by Europe and were mainly appreciated by the wealthy and well educated. Traditional art usually referred to classical forms in ballet and opera, orchestral or chamber music, and serious drama. The distinctions between traditional music and popular music were firmly drawn in most areas. During the 20th century, the American performing arts began to incorporate wider groups of people. The African American community produced great musicians who became widely known around the country. Jazz and blues singers such as Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Billie Holiday spread their sounds to black and white audiences. In the 1930s and 1940s, the swing music of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, and Glenn Miller adapted jazz to make a unique American music that was popular around the country. The American performing arts also blended Latin American influences beginning in the 20th century. Between 1900 and 1940, Latin American dances, such as the tango from Argentina and the rumba from Cuba, were introduced into the United States. In the 1940s a fusion of Latin and jazz elements was stimulated first by the Afro-Cuban mambo and later on by the Brazilian bossa nova. Throughout the 20th century, dynamic classical institutions in the United States attracted international talent. Noted Russian-born choreographer George Balanchine established the short-lived American Ballet Company in the 1930s; later he founded the company that in the 1940s would become the New York City Ballet. The American Ballet Theatre, also established during the 1940s, brought in non-American dancers as well. By the 1970s this company had attracted Soviet defector Mikhail Baryshnikov, an internationally acclaimed dancer who served as the company’s artistic director during the 1980s. In classical music, influential Russian composer Igor Stravinsky, who composed symphonies using innovative musical styles, moved to the United States in 1939. German-born pianist, composer, and conductor Andre Previn, who started out as a jazz pianist in the 1940s, went on to conduct a number of distinguished American symphony orchestras. Another Soviet, cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, became conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D. C. , in 1977. Some of the most innovative artists in the first half of the 20th century successfully incorporated new forms into classical traditions. Composers George Gershwin and Aaron Copland, and dancer Isadora Duncan were notable examples. Gershwin combined jazz and spiritual music with classical in popular works such as Rhapsody in Blue (1924) and the opera Porgy and Bess (1935). Copland developed a unique style that was influenced by jazz and American folk music. Early in the century, Duncan redefined dance along more expressive and free-form lines. Some artists in music and dance, such as composer John Cage and dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham, were even more experimental. During the 1930s Cage worked with electronically produced sounds and sounds made with everyday objects such as pots and pans. He even invented a new kind of piano. During the late 1930s, avant-garde choreographer Cunningham began to collaborate with Cage on a number of projects. Perhaps the greatest, and certainly the most popular, American innovation was the Broadway musical, which also became a movie staple. Beginning in the 1920s, the Broadway musical combined music, dance, and dramatic performance in ways that surpassed the older vaudeville shows and musical revues but without being as complex as European grand opera. By the 1960s, this American musical tradition was well established and had produced extraordinary works by important musicians and lyricists such as George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, Jerome Kern, and Oscar Hammerstein II. These productions required an immense effort to coordinate music, drama, and dance. Because of this, the musical became the incubator of an American modern dance tradition that produced some of Americas greatest choreographers, among them Jerome Robbins, Gene Kelly, and Bob Fosse. In the 1940s and 1950s the American musical tradition was so dynamic that it attracted outstanding classically trained musicians such as Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein composed the music for West Side Story, an updated version of Romeo and Juliet set in New York that became an instant classic in 1957. The following year, Bernstein became the first American-born conductor to lead a major American orchestra, the New York Philharmonic. He was an international sensation who traveled the world as an ambassador of the American style of conducting. He brought the art of classical music to the public, especially through his Young Peoples Concerts, television shows that were seen around the world. Bernstein used the many facets of the musical tradition as a force for change in the music world and as a way of bringing attention to American innovation. In many ways, Bernstein embodied a transformation of American music that began in the 1960s. The changes that took place during the 1960s and 1970s resulted from a significant increase in funding for the arts and their increased availability to larger audiences. New York City, the American center for art performances, experienced an artistic explosion in the 1960s and 1970s. Experimental off-Broadway theaters opened, new ballet companies were established that often emphasized modern forms or blended modern with classical (Martha Graham was an especially important influence), and an experimental music scene developed that included composers such as Philip Glass and performance groups such as the Guarneri String Quartet. Dramatic innovation also continued to expand with the works of playwrights such as Edward Albee, Tony Kushner, and David Mamet. As the variety of performances expanded, so did the serious crossover between traditional and popular music forms. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, an expanded repertoire of traditional arts was being conveyed to new audiences. Popular music and jazz could be heard in formal settings such as Carnegie Hall, which had once been restricted to classical music, while the Brooklyn Academy of Music became a venue for experimental music, exotic and ethnic dance presentations, and traditional productions of grand opera. Innovative producer Joseph Papp had been staging Shakespeare in Central Park since the 1950s. Boston conductor Arthur Fiedler was playing a mixed repertoire of classical and popular favorites to large audiences, often outdoors, with the Boston Pops Orchestra. By the mid-1970s the United States had several world-class symphony orchestras, including those in Chicago; New York; Cleveland, Ohio; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Even grand opera was affected. Once a specialized taste that often required extensive knowledge, opera in the United States increased in popularity as the roster of respected institutions grew to include companies in Seattle, Washington; Houston, Texas; and Santa Fe, New Mexico. American composers such as John Adams and Philip Glass began composing modern operas in a new minimalist style during the 1970s and 1980s. The crossover in tastes also influenced the Broadway musical, probably Americas most durable music form. Starting in the 1960s, rock music became an ingredient in musical productions such as Hair (1967). By the 1990s, it had become an even stronger presence in musicals such as Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk (1996), which used African American music and dance traditions, and Rent (1996) a modern, rock version of the classic opera La Boheme. This updating of the musical opened the theater to new ethnic audiences who had not previously attended Broadway shows, as well as to young audiences who had been raised on rock music. Performances of all kinds have become more available across the country. This is due to both the sheer increase in the number of performance groups as well as to advances in transportation. In the last quarter of the 20th century, the number of major American symphonies doubled, the number of resident theaters increased fourfold, and the number of dance companies increased tenfold. At the same time, planes made it easier for artists to travel. Artists and companies regularly tour, and they expand the audiences for individual artists such as performance artist Laurie Anderson and opera singer Jessye Norman, for musical groups such as the Juilliard Quartet, and for dance troupes such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Full-scale theater productions and musicals first presented on Broadway now reach cities across the country. The United States, once a provincial outpost with a limited European tradition in performance, has become a flourishing center for the performing arts.

The Causes Of Urban Pollution Environmental Sciences Essay

The Causes Of Urban Pollution Environmental Sciences Essay Human activity is one of the main causes of environmental issues today. The two main causes of pollutants in urban areas are transportation technologies such as the automobiles and power production technologies such as industrial heating and cooling and coal-burning power plants. Automobiles produce a large amount of carbon monoxides to the air we breathe in. There are also more problems such as waste these problems can be fixed through a social aspect, where rules and regulations are changed to decrease environmental problems, and also by societys lifestyle, examples of lifesyle changes could be when individuals recycle; this preserves energy and decreases production, by which causes pollution. Also to drive hybrid cars which are lower in emission and are environment friendly instead of the gasoline-using counterpart. On the other hand, these problems can also be fixed through a technological aspect, where companies like coal companies use strategies to control air pollution by redu cing emission through burning cleaner fuel such as natural gas instead of coal. To socially fix the environment, society will have to change their individual lifestyles, as well as rules and regulations being changed. After more than a century of heavy industrialization and consumption, people of earth are now feeling the effects of over-crowded garbage dumps, contaminated sites, acid rain and polluted air and water. But commerce cannot only be blamed; it is also each individual lifestyle that can be blamed, such as driving cars that rely mainly on gasoline. Each year in the united states, three-hundred tons of carbon is released into the air, by which causes smog and damage to the ecosystem and is one of the countless causes of global warming today. This problem can be decreased if more individuals invest in hybrid cars, which are powered by a combination of the traditional gasoline power and the addition of some other power source such as an electric motor or hydrogen fuel cell. Another lifestyle change each individual should consider is buying compact fluores cent light bulbs instead of incandescent ones. advances in technology have directed us to a light bulb thats designed to last up to 15 times the life of a standard bulb. They are expensive, but they last much longer, which makes them cheaper in the long run. Also, these bulbs will use less than a third of the power of incandescent, which will reduce electricity costs. They also generate less heat, so less air-conditioning is needed in the summer. Another simple lifestyle change individuals should take into consideration is to reuse shopping bags; this means one less bag to be manufactured and less pollution. A smart technique that most grocery stores use is to charge a small credit on plastic bags, which forces people to reuse bags. Turning off the air-conditioning and/or heat when leaving the house. A great deal of electricity is wasted cooling or heating an empty home, which leads to bigger bills. Even setting the temperature one or two degrees different, keeping the system from a ctivating as often, can save significant amounts of money each year. In the United States, the government continuously uses federal regulatory powers to control greenhouse gas emmissions, and focuses more on power plants and oil refineries. These two industries produce approximatly fourty percent of emmissions in the united states. To solve this issue, the unitedstatesenvironmental protection act (EPA) is considering using different tools under the federal clean air act to reduce emmissions from factories. This includes new permit requirements for all heavily polluting industry, followed by specific greenhouse gas standards for power plants and oil refineries. This may cause problems for the companies and may cause job loss by which some members of congress are challenging. In December 23rd 2010, the environmental protection act (EPA) , announced it will propose greenhouse gas pollution limits for power plants in July 2011 and for oil refineries in December 2011. Ultimate rules will be questioned the following year. The principles will set levels of p ollutant that these companies may produce under the clean air act, which is the federal law that grants the EPA the authority to shield U.S air quality. China owns cities that have the highest concentrations of air pollution in the world. This is because they have a high increase of industrial development, which leads to a rapid use of natural recourses, as well as high amounts of pollution. The main issue chinas government is dealing with is air pollution and water pollution. Air pollution in china is responsible for 750,000 deaths. To solve this issue, china upgraded their state environmental protection administration to a higher level, which shows concern for fixing the pollution problem, which focuses more on air pollution. The Chinese government is extremely concerned with reducing the pollution throughout China, and has been since the beginning of the 21st Century. Air pollution in china are one of the causes of respiratory disease and even heart disease. Due to the high numbers of affected persons, china has strict environmental laws, by which they find difficult to enforce them. When the government announces a no automobile d ay on main roads, the declaration is ignored by most people. Up to today, china is still trying to help prevent and reduce air pollution throughout the country. India is one of the most polluted countries in South East Asia. There are severe problems with both indoor and outdoor air pollution in India. The indoor air pollution is caused by many factors, but mostly the burning of toxic fuels to prepare meals. Indian people, burn coal, wood, and even animal dung to cook their meals, which releases toxins into the air they breathe. Breathing in this terrible quality air is responsible for nearly 500,000 deaths there each year. This high number is mostly women and children and it is a serious problem. This number, according to the World Health Organization, is 80% of the nearly 600,000 deaths related to indoor air pollution in all of SE Asia. A shocking 70 percent of rural households in India do not have any ventilation at all. Air pollution in India caused by these problems could be cut in half by taking a few measures. These measures include promoting smokeless cooking methods, and the use of proper ventilation. If these methods of helping wer e put into action then the deaths caused by indoor air pollution in India could be reduced by half. Although the methods for helping with air pollution in India sound great it will be a long and hard road to success. These methods for cooking have been in place for so many years people do not want to change. It is mostly women who are mainly exposed to the highest concentration while cooking meals, by which result to death. Unfortunately, it may take time and convincing, but the Indian government is committed to making changes by 2015. According to Peter Tans, a physicist with national oceanic atmosphere administrations, (NOAA), he claims that naturally, if there are more greenhouse gases, this greenhouse affect will be more significant and raise the temperature of earth more than if humans didnt emit as much greenhouse gases. The technological fix to environmental problems, will consist on improving ways in decreasing pollution. For example, In research conducted at the University of Calgary, climate change scientist David Keith and a team of researchers showed it is possible to reduce carbon dioxide , which is the main greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming using a relatively simple machine that can capture the trace of carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere at any place on the planet.