The Mixtec An Ancient Culture of Southern Mexico

The Mixtecs are a modern indigenous group in Mexico, with a rich ancient history. In pre-Hispanic times, they lived in the western region of the state of Oaxaca and part of the states of Puebla and Guerrero and they were one of the most important groups of Mesoamerica. During the Postclassic period (AD 800-1521), they were famous for their mastery of artworks such as metalworking, jewelry, and decorated vessels. Information about Mixtec history comes from archaeology, Spanish accounts during the Conquest period, and Pre-Columbian codices, screen-folded books with heroic narratives about Mixtec kings and nobles. The Mixtec Region The region where this culture first developed is called the Mixteca. It is characterized by high mountains and narrow valleys with small streams. Three zones form the Mixtec region: Mixteca Alta (High Mixteca) with an elevation ranging between 2500 and 2000 meters (8200-6500 feet).Mixteca Baja (Low Mixteca), between 1700 and 1500 m (5600-5000 ft).Mixteca de la Costa (Mixtec Coast) along the Pacific coast. This rugged geography didnt allow for easy communication across the culture, and probably explains the great differentiation of dialects within the modern Mixtec language today. It has been estimated that at least a dozen different Mixtec languages exist. Agriculture, which was practiced by the Mixtec peoples at least as early as 1500 BC, was also affected by this difficult topography. The best lands were limited to the narrow valleys in the highlands and few areas on the coast. Archaeological sites like Etlatongo and Jucuita, in the Mixteca Alta, are some examples of early settled life in the region. In later periods, the three sub-regions (Mixteca Alta, Mixteca Baja, and Mixteca de la Costa) were producing and exchanging different products. Cocoa, cotton, salt, and other imported items including exotic animals came from the coast, while maize, beans, and  chiles, as well as metals and precious stones, came from the mountainous regions. Mixtec Society In pre-Columbian times, the Mixtec region was densely populated. It has been estimated that in 1522 when the Spanish conquistador, Pedro de Alvarado—a soldier in Hernan Cortà ©ss army—traveled among the Mixteca, the population was over a million. This highly populated area was politically organized into independent polities or kingdoms, each ruled by a powerful king. The king was the supreme governor and leader of the army, assisted by a group of noble officials and counselors. The majority of the population, however, was made up of farmers, artisans, merchants, serfs, and slaves. Mixtec artisans are famous for their mastery as smiths, potters, gold-workers, and carvers of precious stones. A codex (plural codices) is a pre-Columbian screen-fold book usually written on bark paper or deerskin. The majority of the few Pre-Columbian codices that survived the Spanish conquest come from the Mixtec region. Some famous codices from this region are  the Codex Bodley, the Zouche-Nuttall, and the Codex Vindobonensis (Codex Vienna). The first two are historical in content, whereas the last one records Mixtec beliefs about the origin of the universe, their gods, and their mythology. Mixtec Political Organization Mixtec society was organized in kingdoms or city-states ruled by the king who collected tribute and services from the people with the help of his administrators who were part of the nobility. This political system reached its height during the Early Postclassic period (AD 800-1200). These kingdoms were interconnected with each other through alliances and marriages, but they were also involved in wars against each other as well as against common enemies. Two of the most powerful kingdoms of this period were Tututepec on the coast and Tilantongo in the Mixteca Alta. The most famous Mixtec king was Lord Eight Deer Jaguar Claw, ruler of Tilantongo, whose heroic actions are part history, part legend. According to Mixtec history, in the 11th century, he managed to bring together the kingdoms of Tilantongo and Tututepec under his power. The events that led to the unification of the Mixteca region under Lord Eight Deer Jaguar Claw are recorded in two of the most famous Mixtec codices: the Codex Bodley, and the Codex Zouche-Nuttall. Mixtec Sites and Capitals Early Mixtec centers were small villages located close to productive agricultural lands. The construction during the Classic Period (300-600 CE) of sites like Yucuà ±udahui, Cerro de Las Minas, and Monte Negro on defensible positions within the high hills has been explained by some archaeologists as a period of conflict among these centers. About a century after Lord Eight Deer Jaguar Claw united Tilantongo and Tututepec, the Mixtec expanded their power to the Valley of Oaxaca, a region historically occupied by Zapotec people. In 1932, the Mexican archaeologist Alfonso Caso discovered in the site of Monte Albà ¡n—the ancient capital of the Zapotecs—a tomb of Mixtec nobles dating to the 14th-15th century. This famous tomb (Tomb 7) contained an amazing offering of gold and silver jewelry, elaborately decorated vessels, corals, skulls with turquoise decorations, and carved jaguar bones. This offering is an example of the skill of Mixtec artisans. At the end of the pre-Hispanic period, the Mixtec region was conquered by the Aztecs. The region became part of the Aztec empire and the Mixtecs had to pay tribute to the Aztec emperor with gold and metal works, precious stones, and the turquoise decorations for which they were so famous. Centuries later, some of these artworks were found by archaeologists digging in the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztecs. Sources Joyce, AA 2010, Mixtecs, Zapotecs, and Chatinos: Ancient peoples of Southern Mexico. Wiley Blackwell.Manzanilla, Linda and L Lopez Lujan, eds. 2000, Histà ³ria Antigua de Mà ©xico. Porrua, Mexico City.

Gender Discrimination A Woman s Opinion And Voice

In a male dominated society, it is challenging for a woman’s opinion and voice to be heard, and easy for gender inequality to thrive. Women have succeeded a great amount when it comes to comparison of how they were treated in the past, both in society and under the law, but the discrimination is still significant globally, even in areas such as Canada. Under the law, all individuals are the equivalent, regardless of one’s gender, race, or background, but in society women are still not treated with the same respect as males. Regardless, of what the law or the Supreme Court of Canada states, women are still accustomed to gender discrimination in the places they work and must deal with it against their coworkers. Unfortunately, it doesn’t†¦show more content†¦In 2012, an employee experienced extreme discrimination due to her gender while working under International Clothiers. Ms. Kohli had been working for International Clothiers and had â€Å"twice been passed over for promotion to Assistant Manager position because she was a woman† (Laird, HRLSC Cases). Ms. Kohli questioned her manager as to why men are considered as more fit for the job rather than women, but this only resulted in Mr.Bajwa reducing her work hours drastically and treating her unfairly. The victim chose to take further action and report it to the district manager in hopes of seeking help, but was left disappointed when he did not look into this matter further, but rather dismissed it. The fact that the managers at this store did not give Ms. Kohli the opportunity to become a manager simply based on her gender, is not only discriminating to her as a woman, but also devaluing her capability and worth. Stating that a woman is not fit for a job of a higher ranking, compared to men before even giving her the opportunity -simply because of her gender- is a clear violation of the law. Another way that women face discrimination in Canada is the significant wage gap b etween men and women. A 2-year long study that was conducted by the students of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario proved that â€Å"the average annual salary difference is

Biography Of William Edward Burghart Dubois Essay

Intro/Education/Work: William Edward Burghart DuBois, more commonly known as W.E.B. DuBois, was born February 23, 1868. Raised in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, he grew up in what was considered to be a moderately well integrated and tolerant community. His mother’s family was included in the miniscule population of free black people— because of this, he was certainly considered privileged as opposed to people of color who were much less fortunate or who lived in highly segregated communities. DuBois attended the town’s local public school, both elementary and high school levels, and excelled. His teachers recognized his abilities and often encouraged him in his academic pursuits. DuBois graduated at the top of his class in 1884, and he was determined to attend college as well. DuBois was set on attending Harvard, however, he didn’t have the funds available to do so. With receiving donations of twenty five dollars a year from from four different congrega tional churches in his hometown of Great Barrington, DuBois was able to attend Fisk University instead. Fisk University is a historically black college, located in Nashville, Tennessee. DuBois attended Fisk from 1885 to 1888. Having traveled south to attend Fisk, DuBois had his first experience with southern racism, which, at that time, included lynchings and intense bigotry, and many states in the south were governed by Jim Crow laws. During the summer, he taught in community schools and learned more

The Vampire Diaries Dark Reunion Chapter Two Free Essays

â€Å"And that’s all I remember,† Bonnie concluded as she and Meredith walked down Sunflower Street between the rows of tall Victorian houses. â€Å"But it was definitely Elena?† â€Å"Yes, and she was trying to tell me something at the end. But that’s the part that wasn’t clear, except that it was important, terribly important. We will write a custom essay sample on The Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion Chapter Two or any similar topic only for you Order Now What do you think?† â€Å"Mouse sandwiches and open graves?† Meredith arched an elegant eyebrow. â€Å"I think you’re getting Stephen King mixed up with Lewis Carroll.† Bonnie thought she was probably right. But the dream still bothered her; it had bothered her all day, enough to put her earlier worries out of her mind. Now, as she and Meredith approached Caroline’s house, the old worries returned with a vengeance. She really should have told Meredith about this, she thought, casting an uneasy sideways glance at the taller girl. She shouldn’t let Meredith just walk in there unprepared†¦ Meredith looked up at the lighted windows of the Queen Anne House with a sigh. â€Å"Do you really need those earrings tonight?† â€Å"Yes, I do; yes, absolutely.† Too late now. Might as well make the best of it. â€Å"You’ll love them when you see them,† she added, hearing the note of hopeful desperation in her own voice. Meredith paused and her keen dark eyes searched Bonnie’s face curiously. Then she knocked on the door. â€Å"I just hope Caroline’s not staying home tonight. We could end up stuck with her.† â€Å"Caroline staying home on a Saturday night? Don’t be ridiculous.† Bonnie had been holding her breath too long; she was starting to feel lightheaded. Her tinkling laughter came out brittle and false. â€Å"What a concept,† she continued somewhat hysterically as Meredith said, â€Å"I don’t think anybody’s home,† and tried the knob. Possessed by some crazy impulse Bonnie added, â€Å"Fiddle-dee-dee.† Hand on doorknob, Meredith stopped dead and turned to look at her. â€Å"Bonnie,† she said quietly, â€Å"have you gone completely through the ozone?† â€Å"No.† Deflated, Bonnie grabbed Meredith’s arm and sought her eyes urgently. The door was opening on its own. â€Å"Oh, God, Meredith, please don’t kill me†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Surprise!† shouted three voices. â€Å"Smile,† Bonnie hissed, shoving the suddenly resistant body of her friend through the door and into the bright room full of noise and showers of foil confetti. She beamed wildly herself and spoke through clenched teeth. â€Å"Kill me later-I deserve it -but for now just smile.† There were balloons, the expensive Mylar kind, and a cluster of presents on the coffee table. There was even a flower arrangement, although Bonnie noticed the orchids in it matched Caroline’s pale green scarf exactly. It was a Hermes silk with a design of vines and leaves. She’ll end up wearing one of those orchids in her hair, I’ll bet, Bonnie thought. There were balloons, the expensive Mylar kind, and a cluster of presents on the coffee table. There was even a flower arrangement, although Bonnie noticed the orchids in it matched Caroline’s pale green scarf exactly. It was a Hermes silk with a design of vines and leaves. She’ll end up wearing one of those orchids in her hair, I’ll bet, Bonnie thought. â€Å"Nothing I can’t break with an iron crowbar,† Meredith replied. But she smiled back with wry warmth and Bonnie relaxed. Sue had been a Homecoming Princess on Elena’s court, along with Bonnie, Meredith, and Caroline. She was the only girl at school besides Bonnie and Meredith who’d stood by Elena when everyone else had turned against her. At Elena’s funeral she’d said that Elena would always be the real queen of Robert E. Lee, and she’d given up her own nomination for Snow Queen in Elena’s memory. Nobody could hate Sue. The worst was over now, Bonnie thought. â€Å"I want to get a picture of us all on the couch,† Caroline said, positioning them behind the flower arrangement. â€Å"Vickie, take it, will you?† Vickie Bennett had been standing by quietly, unnoticed. Now she said, â€Å"Oh, sure,† and nervously flicked long, light brown hair out of her eyes as she picked up the camera. Just like she’s some kind of servant, Bonnie thought, and then the flashbulb blinded her. As the Polaroid developed and Sue and Caroline laughed and talked around Meredith’s dry politeness, Bonnie noticed something else. It was a good picture; Caroline looked stunning as ever with her auburn hair gleaming and the pale green orchids in front of her. And there was Meredith, looking resigned and ironic and darkly beautiful without even trying, and there she was herself, a head shorter than the others, with her red curls tousled and a sheepish expression on her face. But the strange thing was the figure beside her on the couch. It was Sue, of course it was Sue, but for a moment the blond hair and blue eyes seemed to belong to someone else. Someone looking at her urgently, on the verge of saying something important. Bonnie frowned at the photo, blinking rapidly. The image swam in front of her, and a chilling uneasiness ran up her spine. No, it was just Sue in the picture. She must’ve gone crazy for a minute, or else she was letting Caroline’s desire for them â€Å"all to be together again† affect her. â€Å"I’ll take the next one,† she said, springing up. â€Å"Sit down, Vickie, and lean in. No, farther, farther-there!† All of Vickie’s movements were quick and light and nervous. When the flashbulb went off, she started like a scared animal ready to bolt. Caroline scarcely glanced at this picture, getting up and heading for the kitchen instead. â€Å"Guess what we’re having instead of cake?† she said. â€Å"I’m making my own version of Death by Chocolate. Come on, you’ve got to help me melt the fudge.† Sue followed her, and after an uncertain pause, so did Vickie. The last traces of Meredith’s pleasant expression evaporated and she turned to Bonnie. â€Å"You should have told me.† â€Å"And that makes it all worthwhile?† â€Å"Well, it helps,† Bonnie said, with an air of being reasonable. â€Å"And really, it probably won’t be so bad. Caroline’s actually trying to be nice, and it’s good for Vickie to get out of the house for once†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It doesn’t look like it’s good for her,† Meredith said bluntly. â€Å"It looks like she’s going to have a heart attack.† â€Å"Well, she’s probably just nervous.† In Bonnie’s opinion, Vickie had good reason to be nervous. She’d spent most of the previous fall in a trance, being slowly driven out of her mind by a power she didn’t understand. Nobody had expected her to come out of it as well as she had. Meredith was still looking bleak. â€Å"At least,† Bonnie said consolingly, â€Å"it isn’t your real birthday.† Meredith picked up the camera and turned it over and over. Still looking down at her hands, she said, â€Å"But it is.† â€Å"What?† Bonnie stared and then said louder, â€Å"What did you say?† â€Å"I said, it is my real birthday. Caroline’s mom must have told her; she and my mom used to be friends a long time ago.† â€Å"Meredith, what are you talking about? Your birthday was last week, May 30.† â€Å"No, it wasn’t. It’s today, June 6. It’s true; it’s on my driver’s license and everything. My parents started celebrating it a week early because June 6 was too upsetting for them. It was the day my grandfather was attacked and went crazy.† As Bonnie gasped, unable to speak, she added calmly, â€Å"He tried to kill my grandmother, you know. He tried to kill me, too.† Meredith put the camera down carefully in the exact center of the coffee table. â€Å"We really should go in the kitchen,† she said quietly. â€Å"I smell chocolate.† Bonnie was still paralyzed, but her mind was beginning to work again. Vaguely, she remembered Meredith speaking about this before, but she hadn’t told her the full truth then. And she hadn’t said when it had happened. â€Å"Attacked-you mean like Vickie was attacked,† Bonnie got out. She couldn’t say the word vampire, but she knew Meredith understood. â€Å"Like Vickie was attacked,† Meredith confirmed. â€Å"Come on,† she added, even more quietly. â€Å"They’re waiting for us. I didn’t mean to upset you.† Meredith doesn’t want me to be upset, so I won’t be upset, Bonnie thought, pouring hot fudge over the chocolate cake and chocolate ice cream. Even though we’ve been friends since first grade and she never told me this secret before. pouring hot fudge over the chocolate cake and chocolate ice cream. Even though we’ve been friends since first grade and she never told me this secret before. Then Bonnie shook her head determinedly. She couldn’t think about this right now; she had a party to think about. And I’ll make sure it’s a good party and we all get along somehow, she thought. Strangely, it wasn’t even that hard. Meredith and Vickie didn’t talk much at first, but Bonnie went out of her way to be nice to Vickie, and even Meredith couldn’t resist the pile of brightly wrapped presents on the coffee table. By the time she’d opened the last one they were all talking and laughing. The mood of truce and toleration continued as they moved up into Caroline’s bedroom to examine her clothes and CDs and photo albums. As it got near midnight they flopped on sleeping bags, still talking. â€Å"What’s going on with Alaric these days?† Sue asked Meredith. Alaric Saltzman was Meredith’s boyfriend-sort of. He was a graduate student from Duke University who’d majored in parapsychology and had been called to Fell’s Church last year when the vampire attacks began. Though he’d started out an enemy, he’d ended up an ally-and a friend. â€Å"He’s in Russia,† Meredith said. â€Å"Perestroika, you know? He’s over there finding out what they were doing with psychics during the Cold War.† â€Å"What are you going to tell him when he gets back?† asked Caroline. It was a question Bonnie would have liked to ask Meredith herself. Because Alaric was almost four years older, Meredith had told him to wait until after she graduated to talk about their future. But now Meredith was eighteen-today, Bonnie reminded herself-and graduation was in two weeks. What was going to happen after that? â€Å"I haven’t decided,† Meredith said. â€Å"Alaric wants me to go to Duke, and I’ve been accepted there, but I’m not sure. I have to think.† Bonnie was just as glad. She wanted Meredith to go to Boone Junior College with her, not go off and get married, or even engaged. It was stupid to decide on one guy so young. Bonnie herself was notorious for playing the field, going from boy to boy as she pleased. She got crushes easily, and got over them just as easily. â€Å"I haven’t seen the guy so far worth remaining faithful to,† she said now. Everyone looked at her quickly. Sue’s chin was resting on her fists as she asked, â€Å"Not even Stefan?† Bonnie should have known. With the only light the dim bedside lamp and the only sound the rustle of new leaves on the weeping willows outside, it was inevitable that the conversation would turn to Stefan-and to Elena. Stefan Salvatore and Elena Gilbert were already a sort of legend in the town, like Romeo and Juliet. When Stefan had first come to Fell’s Church, every girl had wanted him. And Elena, the most beautiful, most popular, most unapproachable girl at school, had wanted him too. It was only after she’d gotten him that she realized the danger. Stefan wasn’t what he seemed-he had a secret far darker than anyone could have guessed. And he had a brother, Damon, even more mysterious and dangerous than himself. Elena had been caught between the two brothers, loving Stefan but drawn irresistibly to Damon’s wildness. In the end she had died to save them both, and to redeem their love. Stefan Salvatore and Elena Gilbert were already a sort of legend in the town, like Romeo and Juliet. When Stefan had first come to Fell’s Church, every girl had wanted him. And Elena, the most beautiful, most popular, most unapproachable girl at school, had wanted him too. It was only after she’d gotten him that she realized the danger. Stefan wasn’t what he seemed-he had a secret far darker than anyone could have guessed. And he had a brother, Damon, even more mysterious and dangerous than himself. Elena had been caught between the two brothers, loving Stefan but drawn irresistibly to Damon’s wildness. In the end she had died to save them both, and to redeem their love. â€Å"I still can’t believe she’s gone,† Sue said quietly, shaking her head and shutting her eyes. â€Å"She was so much more alive than other people.† â€Å"Her flame burned brighter,† said Meredith, gazing at the patterns the rose-and-gold lamp made on the ceiling. Her voice was soft but intense, and it seemed to Bonnie that those words described Elena better than anything she’d ever heard. â€Å"There were times when I hated her, but I could never ignore her,† Caroline admitted, her green eyes narrowed in memory. â€Å"She wasn’t a person you could ignore.† â€Å"One thing I learned from her death,† Sue said, â€Å"is that it could happen to any of us. You can’t waste any of life because you never know how long you’ve got.† â€Å"It could be sixty years or sixty minutes,† Vickie agreed in a low voice. â€Å"Any of us could die tonight.† Bonnie wriggled, disturbed. But before she could say anything, Sue repeated, â€Å"I still can’t believe she’s really gone. Sometimes I feel as if she’s somewhere near.† â€Å"Oh, so do I,† said Bonnie, distracted. An image of Warm Springs flashed through her mind, and for a moment it seemed more vivid than Caroline’s dim room. â€Å"Last night I dreamed about her, and I had the feeling it really was her and that she was trying to tell me something. I still have that feeling,† she said to Meredith. The others gazed at her silently. Once, they would all have laughed if Bonnie hinted at any-thing supernatural, but not now. Her psychic powers were undisputed, awesome, and a little scary. â€Å"Do you really?† breathed Vickie. â€Å"What do you think she was trying to say?† asked Sue. â€Å"I don’t know. At the end she was trying so hard to stay in contact with me, but she couldn’t.† There was another silence. At last Sue said hesitantly, with the faintest catch in her voice, â€Å"Do you think†¦ do you think you could contact her?† It was what they’d all been wondering. Bonnie looked toward Meredith. Earlier, Meredith had dismissed the dream, but now she met Bonnie’s eyes seriously. â€Å"Is that the only way to communicate with dead people? What about a Ouija board or something?† Sue asked. â€Å"My parents have a Ouija board,† Caroline said a little too loudly. Suddenly the hushed, low-key mood was broken and an indefinable tension filled the air. Everyone sat up straighter and looked at each other with speculation. Even Vickie looked intrigued on top of her scaredness. â€Å"Would it work?† Meredith said to Bonnie. â€Å"Should we?† Sue wondered aloud. â€Å"Do we dare? That’s really the question,† Meredith said. Once again Bonnie found everyone looking at her. She hesitated a final instant, and then shrugged. Excitement was stirring in her stomach. â€Å"Why not?† she said. â€Å"What have we got to lose?† Caroline turned to Vickie. â€Å"Vickie, there’s a closet at the bottom of the stairs. The Ouija board should be inside, on the top shelf with a bunch of other games.† She didn’t even say, â€Å"Please, will you get it?† Bonnie frowned and opened her mouth, but Vickie was already out the door. â€Å"You could be a little more gracious,† Bonnie told Caroline. â€Å"What is this, your impression of Cinderella’s evil stepmother?† â€Å"Oh, come on, Bonnie,† Caroline said impatiently. â€Å"She’s lucky just to be invited. She knows that.† â€Å"And here I thought she was just overcome by our collective splendor,† Meredith said dryly. â€Å"And besides-† Bonnie started when she was interrupted. The noise was thin and shrill and it fell off weakly at the end, but there was no mistaking it. It was a scream. It was followed by dead silence and then suddenly peal after peal of piercing shrieks. For an instant the girls in the bedroom stood transfixed. Then they were all running out into the hallway and down the stairs. â€Å"Vickie!† Meredith, with her long legs, reached the bottom first. Vickie was standing in front of the closet, arms outstretched as if to protect her face. She clutched at Meredith, still screaming. â€Å"Vickie, what is it?† Caroline demanded, sounding more angry than afraid. There were game boxes scattered across the floor and Monopoly markers and Trivial Pursuit cards strewn everywhere. â€Å"What are you yelling about?† â€Å"It grabbed me! I was reaching up to the top shelf and something grabbed me around the waist!† â€Å"No! From inside the closet.† Startled, Bonnie looked inside the open closet. Winter coats hung in an impenetrable layer, some of them reaching the floor. Gently disengaging herself from Vickie, Meredith picked up an umbrella and began poking the coats. â€Å"Oh, don’t-† Bonnie began involuntarily, but the umbrella encountered only the resistance of cloth. Meredith used it to push the coats aside and reveal the bare cedarwood of the closet wall. â€Å"You see? Nobody there,† she said lightly. â€Å"But you know what is there are these coat sleeves. If you leaned in far enough between them, I’ll bet it could feel like somebody’s arms closing around you.† Vickie stepped forward, touched a dangling sleeve, then looked up at the shelf. She put her face in her hands, long silky hair falling forward to screen it. For an awful moment Bonnie thought she was crying, then she heard the giggles. â€Å"Oh, God! I really thought-oh, I’m so stupid! I’ll clean it up,† Vickie said. â€Å"Later,† said Meredith firmly. â€Å"Let’s go in the living room.† Bonnie threw one last look at the closet as they went. When they were all gathered around the coffee table, with several lights turned off for effect, Bonnie put her fingers lightly on the small plastic planchette. She’d never actually used a Ouija board, but she knew how it was done. The planchette moved to point at letters and spell out a message-if the spirits were willing to talk, that is. â€Å"We all have to be touching it,† she said, and then watched as the others obeyed. Meredith’s fingers were long and slender, Sue’s slim and tapering with oval nails. Caroline’s nails were painted burnished copper. Vickie’s were bitten. â€Å"Now we close our eyes and concentrate,† Bonnie said softly. There were little hisses of anticipation as the girls obeyed; the atmosphere was getting to all of them. â€Å"Think of Elena. Picture her. If she’s out there, we want to draw her here.† The big room was silent. In the dark behind her closed lids Bonnie saw pale gold hair and eyes like lapis lazuli. â€Å"Come on, Elena,† she whispered. â€Å"Talk to me.† The planchette began to move. None of them could be guiding it; they were all applying pressure from different points. Nevertheless, the little triangle of plastic was sliding smoothly, confidently. Bonnie kept her eyes shut until it stopped and then looked. The planchette was pointing to the word Yes. Vickie gave something like a soft sob. Bonnie looked at the others. Caroline was breathing fast, green eyes narrowed. Sue, the only one of all of them, still had her eyes resolutely closed. Meredith looked pale. â€Å"Keep concentrating,† Bonnie told them. She felt unready and a little stupid addressing the empty air directly. But she was the expert; she had to do it. â€Å"Is that you, Elena?† she said. The planchette made a little circle and returned to Yes. Suddenly Bonnie’s heart was beating so hard she was afraid it would shake her fingers. The plastic underneath her fingertips felt different, electrified almost, as if some supernatural energy was flowing through it. She no longer felt stupid. Tears came to her eyes, and she could see that Meredith’s eyes were glistening too. Meredith nodded at her. â€Å"How can we be sure?† Caroline was saying, loudly, suspiciously. Caroline doesn’t feel it, Bonnie realized; she doesn’t sense anything I do. Psychically speaking, she’s a dud. The planchette was moving again, touching letters now, so quickly that Meredith barely had time to spell out the message. Even without punctuation it was clear. CAROLINE DONT BE A JERK, it said. YOURE LUCKY IM TALKING TO YOU AT ALL â€Å"That’s Elena, all right,† Meredith said dryly. â€Å"It sounds like her, but-† â€Å"Oh, shut up, Caroline,† Bonnie said. â€Å"Elena, I’m just so glad†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Her throat locked up and she tried again. BONNIE THERES NO TIME STOP SNIVELING AND GET DOWN TO BUSINESS And that was Elena too. Bonnie sniffed and went on. â€Å"I had a dream about you last night.† TEA â€Å"Yes.† Bonnie’s heart was thudding faster than ever. â€Å"I wanted to talk to you, but things got weird and then we kept losing contact-â€Å" BONNIE DONT TRANCE NO TRANCE NO TRANCE â€Å"All right.† That answered her question, and she was relieved to hear it. CORRUPTING INFLUENCES DISTORTING OUR COMMUNICATION THERE ARE BAD THINGS VERY BAD THINGS OUT HERE â€Å"Like what?† Bonnie leaned closer to the board. â€Å"Like what?† NO TIME! The planchette seemed to add the exclamation point. It was jerking violently from letter to letter as if Elena could barely contain her impatience. â€Å"Danger?† Vickie repeated, looking as if she might jump off the chair and run. WAIT LISTEN FIRST THE WHOLE TOWN IS IN DANGER â€Å"What do we do?† said Meredith instantly. YOU NEED HELP HES OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE UNBELIEVABLY STRONG NOW LISTEN AND FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS YOU HAVE TO DO A SUMMONING SPELL AND THE FIRST INGREDIENT IS H- Without warning, the planchette jerked away from the letters and flew around the board wildly. It pointed at the stylized picture of the moon, then at the sun, then at the words Parker Brothers, Inc. â€Å"Elena!† The planchette bobbed back to the letters. ANOTHER MOUSE ANOTHER MOUSE ANOTHER MOUSE â€Å"What’s happening?† Sue cried, eyes wide open now. Bonnie was frightened. The planchette was pulsing with energy, a dark and ugly energy like boiling black tar that stung her fingers. But she could also feel the quivering silver thread that was Elena’s presence fighting it. â€Å"Don’t let go!† she cried desperately. â€Å"Don’t take your hands off it!† MOUSMUDKILLYOU, the board reeled off. BLOODBLOODBLOOD. And then†¦ BONNIE GET OUT RUN HES HERE RUN RUN RU- The planchette jerked furiously, whipping out from under Bonnie’s fingers and beyond her reach, flying across the board and through the air as if someone had thrown it. Vickie screamed. Meredith started to her feet. And then all the lights went out, plunging the house into darkness. How to cite The Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion Chapter Two, Essay examples

History Of The Computer Industry In America (2573 words) Essay Example For Students

History Of The Computer Industry In America (2573 words) Essay History of the Computer Industry in AmericaOnly once in a lifetime will a new invention come about to touch every aspect of our lives. Such a device that changes the way we work, live, and play is a special one, indeed. A machine that has done all this and more now exists in nearly every business in the U.S. and one out of every two households (Hall, 156). This incredible invention is the computer. The electronic computer has been around for over a half-century, but its ancestors have been around for 2000 years. However, only in the last 40 years has it changed the American society. From the first wooden abacus to the latest high-speed microprocessor, the computer has changed nearly every aspect of peoples lives for the better.The very earliest existence of the modern day computers ancestor is the abacus. These date back to almost 2000 years ago. It is simply a wooden rack holding parallel wires on which beads are strung. When these beads are moved along the wire according to program ming rules that the user must me! morize, all ordinary arithmetic operations can be performed (Soma, 14). The next innovation in computers took place in 1694 when Blaise Pascal invented the first digital calculating machine. It could only add numbers and they had to be entered by turning dials. It was designed to help Pascals father who was a tax collector (Soma, 32). In the early 1800Os, a mathematics professor named Charles Babbage designed an automatic calculation machine. It was steam powered and could store up to 1000 50-digit numbers. Built in to his machine were operations that included everything a modern general-purpose computer would need. It was programmed byand stored data oncards with holes punched in them, appropriately called punch cards. His inventions were failures for the most part because of the lack of precision machining techniques used at the time and the lack of demand for such a device (Soma, 46).After Babbage, people began to lose interest in computers. However, between 1850 and 1900 there were great advances! in mathematics and physics that began to rekindle the interest (Osborne, 45). Many of these new advances involved complex calculations and formulas that were very time consuming for human calculation. The first major use for a computer in the U.S. was during the 1890 census. Two men, Herman Hollerith and James Powers , developed a new punched-card system that could automatically read information on cards without human intervention (Gulliver, 82). Since the population of the U.S. was increasing so fast, the computer was an essential tool in tabulating the totals.These advantages were noted by commercial industries and soon led to the development of improved punch-card business-machine systems by International Business Machines (IBM), Remington-Rand, Burroughs, and other corporations. By modern standards the punched-card machines were slow, typically processing from 50 to 250 cards per minute, with each card holding up to 80 digits. At the time, however, punched cards were an enormous step forward; they provided a means of input, output, and memory storage on a massive scale. For more than 50 years following their first use, punched-card machines did the bulk of the worlds business computing and a good portion of the computing work in science (Chposky, 73). By the late 1930s punched-card machine techniques had become so well established and reliable that Howard Hathaway Aiken, in collaboration with engineers at IBM, undertook construction of a large automatic digital computer based on standard IBM electromechanical parts. Aikens machine, called the Harvard Mark I, handled 23-digit numbers and could perform all four arithmetic operations. Also, it had special built-in programs to handled logarithms and trigonometric functions. The Mark I was controlled from prepunched paper tape. Output was by card punch and electric typewriter. It was slow, requiring 3 to 5 seconds for a multiplication, but it was fully automatic and could complete long computations without human intervention (Chposky, 103). The outbreak of World War II produced a desperate need for computing capability, especially for the military. New weapons systems were produced which needed trajectory tables and other essential data. In 1942, John P. Eckert, John W. Mauchley, and their associates at the University of Pennsylvania decided to build a high-speed electronic computer to do the job. This machine became known as ENIAC, for Electrical Numerical Integrator And Calculator. It could multiply two numbers at the rate of 300 products per second, by finding the value of each product from a multiplication table stored in its memory. ENIAC was thus about 1,000 times faster than the previous generation of computers (Dolotta, 47).ENIAC used 18,000 standard vacuum tubes, occupied 1800 square feet of floor space, and used about 180,000 watts of electricity. It used punched-card input and output. The ENIAC was very difficult to program because one had to essentially re-wire it to perform whatever task he wanted the compu ter to do. It was, however, efficient in handling the particular programs for which it had been designed. ENIAC is generally accepted as the first successful high-speed electronic digital computer and was used in many applications from 1946 to 1955 (Dolotta, 50). Mathematician John von Neumann was very interested in the ENIAC. In 1945 he undertook a theoretical study of computation that demonstrated that a computer could have a very simple and yet be able to execute any kind of computation effectively by means of proper programmed control without the need for any changes in hardware. Von Neumann came up with incredible ideas for methods of building and organizing practical, fast computers. These ideas, which came to be referred to as the stored-program technique, became fundamental for future generations of high-speed digital computers and were universally adopted (Hall, 73).The first wave of modern programmed electronic computers to take advantage of these improvements appeared in 1947. This group included computers using random access memory (RAM), which is a memory designed to give almost constant access to any particular piece of information (Hall, 75). These machines had punched-card or punched-tape input and output devices and RAMs of 1000-word capacity. Physically, they were much more compact than ENIAC: some were about the size of a grand piano and required 2500 small electron tubes. Loyalty definition paper EssayA new revolution in computer hardware was now well under way, involving miniaturization of computer-logic circuitry and of component manufacture by what are called large-scale integration techniques. In the 1950s it was realized that scaling down the size of electronic digital computer circuits and parts would increase speed and efficiency and improve performance. However, at that time the manufacturing methods were not good enough to accomplish such a task. About 1960 photoprinting of conductive circuit boards to eliminate wiring became highly developed. Then it became possible to build resistors and capacitors into the circuitry by photographic means (Rogers, 142). In the 1970s entire assemblies, such as adders, shifting registers, and counters, became available on tiny chips of silicon. In the 1980s very large scale integration (VLSI), in which hundreds of thousands of transistors are placed on a single chip, became increasingly common. Many compani es, some new to the computer field, introduced in the 1970s programmable minicomputers supplied with software packages. The size-reduction trend continued with the introduction of personal computers, which are programmable machines small enough and inexpensive enough to be purchased and used by individuals (Rogers, 153). One of the first of such machines was introduced in January 1975. Popular Electronics magazine provided plans that would allow any electronics wizard to build his own small, programmable computer for about $380 (Rose, 32). The computer was called the Altair 8800O. Its programming involved pushing buttons and flipping switches on the front of the box. It didnt include a monitor or keyboard, and its applications were very limited (Jacobs, 53). Even though, many orders came in for it and several famous owners of computer and software manufacturing companies got their start in computing through the Altair. For example, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, founders of Apple Computer, built a much cheaper, yet more productive version of the Altair and turned their hobby into a business (Fluegelman, 16).After the introduction of the Altair 8800, the personal computer industry became a fierce battleground of competition. IBM had been the computer industry standard for well over a half-century. They held their position as the standard when they introduced their first personal computer, the IBM Model 60 in 1975 (Chposky, 156). However, the newly formed Apple Computer company was releasing its own personal computer, the Apple II (The Apple I was the first computer designed by Jobs and Wozniak in Wozniaks garage, which was not produced on a wide scale). Software was needed to run the computers as well. Microsoft developed a Disk Operating System (MS-DOS) for the IBM computer while Apple developed its own software system (Rose, 37). Because Microsoft had now set the software standard for IBMs, every software manufacturer had to make their software compatible with Microsofts. This would lead to huge profits for Microsoft (Cringley, 163). The main goal of the computer manufacturers was to make the computer as affordable as possible while increasing speed, reliability, and capacity. Nearly every computer manufacturer accomplished this and computers popped up everywhere. Computers were in businesses keeping track of inventories. Computers were in colleges aiding students in research. Computers were in laboratories making complex calculations at high speeds for scientists and physicists. The computer had made its mark everywhere in society and built up a huge industry (Cringley, 174). The future is promising for the computer industry and its technology. The speed of processors is expected to double every year and a half in the coming years. As manufacturing techniques are further perfected the prices of computer systems are expected to steadily fall. However, since the microprocessor technology will be increasing, its higher costs will offset the drop in price of older processors. In other words, the price of a new computer will stay about the same from year to year, but technology will steadily increase (Zachary, 42). Since the end of World War II, the computer industry has grown from a standing start into one of the biggest and most profitable industries in the United States. It now comprises thousands of companies, making everything from multi-million dollar high-speed supercomputers to printout paper and floppy disks. It employs millions of people and generates tens of billions of dollars in sales each year (Malone, 192). Surely, the computer has impacted every aspect of peoples lives. It has affected the way people work and play. It has made everyones life easier by doing difficult work for people. The computer truly is one of the most incredible inventions in history.

Why do we spend money to go to college Essay Example

Why do we spend money to go to college Essay Why do we spend money to go to college?   Every year, thousands of students spend millions of dollars in order to attend hundreds of state and private colleges and universities.   We are told that we â€Å"have to go in order to get a good job in the future†.   But this writer believes that it is more than that.   To go to college implies more than the preparation to get a good job in the future, it is to achieve a more well-rounded education than high school can provide, and to become a better rounded person than high school can create.   A well-rounded education is one where a person is educated in more than the basics.   In other words, they know more than how to read and write, they know how to think and how to apply learning to real life experiences.   Liberal education is a better educational choice for people because it creates citizens that are more critical thinkers and better rounded as a whole.   Liberal arts education stresses writing and speaking s kills as very important.   It also stresses inquiry, critical thinking and teamwork as important.   These five skills–writing, speaking, inquiry, critical thinking and teamwork, are all skills that are desirous to potential employers.   Liberal arts education, then, is the best overall education choice for students entering college.   The main sources for this idea come from a report that was conducted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities.  Ã‚   Their extensive survey of employers, students and professors contributed heavily to what is desirous in potential employees.   On the other side of the argument is the concept that a liberal arts education does not provide enough grounding in the practical aspects of a job, and that only a concentrated major like business can provide all of what is needed for a person to be successful in both life and in the world of work.The methodology behind this research is the fact that employers regularly seek out employees that can â€Å"think outside the box† and can apply what they know to different circumstances.   Those with a liberal education are better equipped to think outside the box and think critically in all situations.   Employees that are narrowly educated tend to think within the confines of their education.   By thinking critically, and with a liberal education, employees are better equipped to deal with the vagaries of a job that is dynamic and elastic.Before we discuss why a liberal arts education is better for a person than another type of education, we must first define what a liberal arts education is.   According to William Cronon, a liberal arts education does not mean that a person is indoctrinated with liberal beliefs.   The â€Å"liberal arts† have been around since the Renaissance, and consisted of seven subjects—grammar, logic, rhetoric arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and music (Cronon, 1998).   These subjects are what created wha t were known as â€Å"free men†.   Granted, the idea of a liberal arts education was reserved for the very wealthy, aristocratic men of a family, but it was the first step in the process of creating a society of well rounded men (Ibid).   The liberal arts education was also desired because it was designed to liberate men and be â€Å"an education that stands in the service of human freedom (Ibid).†Ã‚   While we have defined what a liberal education is and were, and what its goals were, we need to define what a liberal is and what its goals are today.   According to Cronon, he cites one institution which states as its â€Å"Objects of a Liberal Education† as having competencies in several areas including communication, nodes of thought, knowledge of basic cultural heritage and knowledge of at least one subject area (Ibid).   Business education, on the other hand, focuses a person’s intensity on simply working within the confines of business.   So me would say that this better trains people for the complexities of the business world.   A liberal education is a more generalized education, with no focus on the business world, instead the focus is on the arts and sciences.The next question we need to answer is how exactly can we identify a liberally educated person?   Cronon puts forward ten markers of how we can identify a liberally educated person.   They are â€Å"the listen and they hear, they read and they understand, they can talk with anyone, they can write clearly and persuasively and movingly, they can solve a wide variety of puzzles and problems, they respect rigor not so much for its own sake but as a way of seeking truth, they practice humility, tolerance, and self-criticism, they understand how to get things done in the world, they nurture and empower the people around them, and finally, they follow E.M. Forster’s injunction from Howard’s End:   ‘Only connect†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢(Ibid)†.    He believes schools should be measured on how well they train students to aspire to these ten qualities and â€Å"how well we succeed in fostering†¦these qualities. (Ibid).†What is it about a liberal arts education that makes it a more desirous choice for the college student?   We should first look at what faculties say about fostering the liberal education ideals.   According to the Association of American Colleges and Universities, Faculty places a large degree of importance (more than fifty percent) on the intellectual and practical skills of fostering written and oral communication, inquiry, critical, and creative thinking, information literacy, teamwork, and integration of learning (2005).   They also place a high degree (more than fifty percent) on the individual and social responsibility questions of civic responsibility and engagement, and ethical reasoning (Ibid).   They place a moderately high importance (between forty and fifty percent) on intercu ltural knowledge and actions (Ibid).   This researcher selected forty and fifty percent because it represents a halfway point as well as a point of high value.When we look at what students gain from a liberal arts education, we look at the same report from the Association of American Colleges and Universities and see that students perceived significant gains (higher than fifty percent) in acquiring a broad general education (Ibid).   They also perceived significant gains in the intellectual and practical skills of written and oral communication, inquiry, critical and creative thinking, quantitative literacy, information literacy, teamwork, and integration of learning (Ibid).   They also perceived significant gains in ethical reasoning, intercultural knowledge and actions, and propensity for lifelong learning.   They also perceived gains of between twenty and forty percent in civic responsibility and engagement.   Additionally, we see that these students are studying things like science, social science, mathematics, humanities and the arts.   Some would say that these are professions that do not lend themselves very easily to the vagaries of the rigid world of business, but instead to the flexible and nebulous world of academia.Liberal Arts education also has garnered support from outside the school and into the world of work.   Business and government leaders were quoted in the aforementioned report, saying that in terms of knowledge, â€Å"executives will need a broad understanding of other cultures, other languages, history, science, and the arts.   If they are to successfully navigate a rapidly changing future business environment (Ibid).†Ã‚   Business education as a direct major does not provide the all the necessary background that employers are looking for.   Business requires empowered employees, those with critical thinking and great communication skills, and a liberal arts education provides all of these.   While business ed ucation has a place in educating people for the business world, men and women with a liberal education generally have more â€Å"tools† with which to operate within the world of business.   Some other insights from the business and government community includes the fact that quantitative literacy is valued—â€Å"[b]usiness wants new employees from the educational system who can do mathematics accurately, within benchmark time periods, and frequently with the use of a calculator†¦.In the world of work it means dealing with real, unpredictable and unorganized situations where the first task is to organize the information and only then calculate to find and answer (Ibid).†Ã‚   In terms of information literacy, the business and government community wants workers that can â€Å"identify, assimilate, and integrate information from diverse sources (Ibid).†Ã‚   They also value teamwork.   Finally, integration of learning is desired as individual skills c annot be boxed in separately.   In terms of individual and social responsibility, leaders say that the â€Å"study of liberal arts can lead to moral understandings that are invaluable to success in whatever one attempts in life (Ibid).†Ã‚   Intercultural knowledge and actions are valued as well as a propensity for lifelong learning (Ibid).   Employers desire employees that can see things from different points of view, and work collaboratively with employees from differing backgrounds in order to achieve common goals.   Additionally, employers want employees that keep pace with current developments in the field and have fundamental skills and â€Å"an ability to continue learning.†Ã‚   Employees are needed that can â€Å"keep pace with rapid developments (Ibid)†What do all of these statistics tell us?   They tell us that the liberal arts are the best choice for someone both entering college and entering the world of work.   Employers readily seek what l iberal arts majors have to offer.   One can see this by what employers have to say about liberal arts majors.  Ã‚   The qualities that a liberal arts major embodies are ones that any potential employer would seek.   The ideals of exceptional communication skills and the skills of teamwork and constant pursuit of knowledge are â€Å"sellers† to potential employers.   William Cronon agrees, as what he says a liberal education embodies is the well-roundedness of the person, and a well-rounded college student is a well-rounded employer.   A liberal education provides an employer with a person who is more intuitive and knowledgeable about a wide range of subjects.   In business especially, this is especially desirous.   Conducting business during these times of international business integration means that employers need employees that understand the subtleties of culture and society as it exists in the modern world.   Liberal arts majors are such that they have th e education and the wherewithal to understand these issues and use them to integrate with other cultures and societies.Business and technical education, some would say, lead to a more direct and usable skill set.   Liberal education is not that way.   It focuses on a broad array of skills that any employer should desire, but some may find impractical.   Some feel as though a liberal arts major brings deficiencies to the table that a business and technical educated person does not.   A liberal arts major, they say, needs to be trained to perform a job that a technical person can perform right out of school.   Business majors are also better equipped, some would say, to deal with the faster paced world of business than a liberal arts major.   All of these facts have to be taken into consideration when making the monumental decision as to what to pursue in college.   While many would argue that business and technical education is the way in which to best educate the futur e generations, it can also be argued that the best course of action is to create a well rounded citizen that can think critically and outside the proverbial box.   The best way to achieve this is with a balanced liberal education.College, and more specifically a liberal arts education provides the world with students who are not only ready to work, but are ready to work proficiently and exceptionally within the society in which we move.   Business and technical education does not give the world a well-rounded student, ready to function in society.   Yes, business and technical majors can provide their services within the society, but are extremely limited.   If you were to talk to one hundred college graduates, you would find that most had a liberal arts education.   While most may not be working within their majors, they are working in a field that utilizes their unique talents and abilities.   Most work as managers or teachers or government workers.   Some work in re tail or other service occupations.   An employer can find any liberal arts major to be a flexible addition to any team and a wonderful team player.Leo Strauss stated that â€Å"[l]iberal education is education in culture or toward culture (Strauss, 1959).†Ã‚   He defines culture as Strauss defines it is the cultivation of the mind, which is the goal of all education.   While we can see that by the very subject matter that is taught, this is so, liberal education is more than that.   It is a way of preparing young people for a changing future, one that will need them to have skills in written and oral communication, inquiry, critical, and creative thinking, quantitative literacy, information literacy, teamwork and integration of learning.   These concepts cannot be taught in an expressly business environment and neither can it be taught in a technical one.   The combination of subjects taught in the liberal arts arena is one that rounds out a person, shaving off the rough edges and creating diamonds out of rough.   In education, Strauss points out; it is difficult to find the true diamonds, the sages of our time.   Even Socrates, a man nearly everyone considers a genius thinker, read other people whom he thought were wiser than he (Ibid).   Liberal education, he says, is what will continue to preserve our democracy.   As long as people continue to pursue learning of letters, as he puts it, democracy can and will be preserved.  Ã‚   Since the liberal arts acculturate our people, our democracy can continue its mass culture, being ruled by the cultural elites (Ibid).   This is not necessarily a bad thing.   Leaders must rise to the top, and a solid liberal arts education does this.   It creates leaders from high school graduates.   It nurtures talent and secures it for the future.   Strauss is indeed correct, and we must continue to learn from his words.A liberal arts education is the best overall choice for someone entering co llege.   It provides a more well rounded education, a better value, and gives a student more flexibility than being tightly roped into a specific school of thought.   Many liberal arts majors do not work in their majors, but instead have pursued other choices that have made them happy.   By having the flexibility that a liberal arts education offers, a student can go much further than the average student.   They will achieve greater heights and have more marketable skills that a potential employer will seek.   Achieving a liberal arts education should be the priority of every student entering college today, given the presented evidence.   It should be required that a certain number of credits be from the liberal arts, as that helps the student become a more well-rounded individual.   Colleges should definitely help more students achieve a liberal arts education, as they will become better employees and better people.

Argument Essay Sample - A Guide For Writing Your Own Argument Essay

Argument Essay Sample - A Guide For Writing Your Own Argument EssayArgument essay sample is a very important part of writing and preparing an argument essay. It serves as the best guide of how you can write your own paper. There are a lot of free resources available that would help you prepare and write such essays. This article would help you in preparing your own essay based on the argument essay sample.The argument essay sample is a paper that is designed to get you to reflect on the reasons of your arguments. One of the things you should do is to refer to various sources for the facts or research. You can get help from the internet for this purpose.A good source would be internet and forums. You can read about different sources and research for them. You can also search for similar topics related to your topic. This would help you to be able to come up with your own topic and a good argument.To come up with your own topic, you can make use of some major points. You should make a summary of your main points or themes that you want to make use of in your argument. You can refer to various sources and build up your ideas in a single thesis.One important point that you should look into is your timing. You should make sure that you set the stage well for your arguments. Make it easy for you to come up with good ideas in your essay.Argument essay sample is not the only source of information you can get to use. You can also study other subjects too. This would help you to come up with an original idea. You can also use any of the many sample essays available online and find the ones that would serve as your resources for your essay. point One important point to consider is that you should not copy these samples and use them for your essay. If you do so, you may end up with bad ideas that are not worth the trouble.