Homestead Act Essay example -- essays research papers fc

I THESIS STATEMENT   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Homestead Act of 1862 made surveyed lands obtainable to homesteaders. The act stated that men and women over the age of 21, unmarried women who were head of households and married men under the age of 21, who did not own over 160 acres of land anywhere, were citizens or intended on becoming citizens of the United States, were eligible to homestead. This paper will show how the Homestead Act came to be enacted, who the homesteaders were and the effects of the Homestead Act on the pioneers. II WHAT EVENTS LEAD TO THE HOMESTEAD ACT? The distribution of Government lands had been an issue since the Revolutionary War. Early methods for allocating unsettled land outside the original 13 colonies were chaotic. Boundaries were established by stepping off plots from geographical landmarks. As a result, overlapping claims and border disputes were common. The Land Ordinance of 1785 finally implemented a standardized system of Federal land surveys that eased boundary conflicts. Territories were divided into a 6-mile square called a township prior to settlement. The township was divided into 36 sections, each measuring 1 square mile or 640 acres each. Sale of public land was viewed as a means to generate revenue for the Government rather than as a way to encourage settlement. Initially, an individual was required to purchase a full section of land at the cost of $1 per acre for 640 acres. The investment needed to purchase these large plots and the massive amount of physical labor required to clear the land for agriculture w ere often insurmountable obstacles. According to all available indexes of growth, the United States grew enormously between 1840 and 1860. The continental limits of the nation were reached, with the exception of Alaska, by 1854 through the acquisition of the Mexican Cession territory and the Gadsden Purchase. The population continued its upward spiral, moving from slightly over seventeen million in 1840 to over thirty-eight million in 1860. New canals, steamboats, turnpikes, and railroads knit the nation together into an integrated economic unit. Hundred of thousands of people crossed the Atlantic to take up residence in the dynamic nation, while other hundreds of thousands moved into the Western regions of the country.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Legislative efforts to improve homest... ..., September 8). New Homestead Act would help rural America. Grand Forks Herald. Potter, L. A. (1999). The Homestead Act of 1862. Cobblestone, 20(2), 4. Red River Valley Genealogical Society (n.d.). Time passages, genealogy of the Dakotas. Retrieved from, Web site: http://www.fargodigital.com Schaetzl, R. J. (n.d.). Settlement of the new frontier: The Homestead Act of 1862. Retrieved from Michigan State University, GEO333: Geography of Michigan and the Great Lakes Region Web site: http://www.geo.msu.edu/geo333/ South Dakota Department of Tourism and State Development (n.d.). Prairie Pioneers. Retrieved from South Dakota Department of Tourism Media, Web site: http://www.mediasd.com/ facts/pioneers.asp US Department of Education ERIC (2003, January 14). The Homestead Act of 1862. Retrieved from US National Archives & Records Administration Web site: http://www.archives.gov/ digital_classroom/lessons/homestead_act_1862/homestead_act.html U.S. National Archives & Records Administration (1995, 1998). Homestead Act (1862). Retrieved from Teaching with Documents: Using Primary Sources From the National Archives Web site: http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=31

A Person Who Made an Impact on My Life

Dominique Eley 11/1/12 Ms. Conway It was late July, the summer of 2006 to be exact. I was in Chicago spending the summer with my father at his new house. My mother called my dad and me and said I was going to be a big sister. I was only in the 6th grade, but I knew I was going to have to be more responsible and mature. I did not know whether I was going to have a little sister or brother. I was so excited I couldn’t wait to get back home to see my new sibling. I was finally older than someone in my family and could actually be the boss of them.When I found out it was a boy I was so excited, I had so many dreams and a planned out future for him as soon as I laid my eyes on him. He was so tiny with dark brown skin, silky black hair, brown eyes, and dimples. His name was DeBron Samuel Eley. As he grew older I noticed that he had an old man personality and was very wise. He was becoming a mini me, he did everything I did and followed me everywhere I went. I realized that I needed to change my behavior and the things I did because I knew that he wanted to be just like me, and I did not want him to grow up and make bad decisions like I did.I treated my little brother like my son; anytime I bought myself something I would buy him something as well. This little boy really made me turn all my negatives into positives and get more active into school and be a better person. I was on the basketball team in the fall and during the spring I was on the baseball team. DeBron had become my pride; I was more motivated in school and made the honor roll all four quarters in middle school, because I knew that my hard work would inspire him. Fall 2012 he started Kindergarten.The first thing he said when he walked into his class was â€Å"I’m going to be the star student like my big sister. † I knew he would make me proud due to all the dedication and hard work I put into him and myself just for him to grow to be a better person than I am. Every day he would come home with stars and 100’s on his homework and classwork, right along with a good phone call home and a story about how he helped someone in class today. He had a high self-esteem level and didn’t let his pride get in the way of anything.His first year of kindergarten was my senior year of high school, so we both were graduating in June 2012. This little boy made an impact on my life because I would hate to lose another one of my brothers to the streets. He made me look at life from a different perspective and I got to see the brighter side of more things. When I moved away to start my college life he automatically wanted to come to college and that’s what my future goals are for him. Not a lot of people plan to go to college in first grade Someday when I have a son; I’m going to raise him the same way I did my little brother.

History Since 1500 Essay

Modern history began in the end of the 15th century, which witnessed the beginning of Reformation and the discovery of the new continent. In the following five centuries, many historic events (such as the two world wars and the cold war) have fundamentally changed our world in the fields of politics, economics, and culture. Political Systems in Europe after the Thirty Years’ War The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) refers to a series of wars intermittently fought chiefly between the Roman Empire and the Protestant principalities with which French allied. Theses wars were fought for religious, territorial, dynastic, and commercial reasons (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2009). After the Thirty Years War ended with the Peace of Westphalia, European states were divided into different political regimes. For the five most important ones, Spain, Portugal and France remained absolute monarchies, while Holland and England became a republic and a constitutional monarchy respectively. The political differences significantly affected these countries’ performance. While being the first European counties to start colonial enterprises, Spain and Portugal’ rejection of new ideologies and new political thinking rendered them weaker day by day. There is no doubt that ideological change plays an important role in political change. That is to say, the Reformation made those Protestant states much easier to adopt more democratic political forms: a republic or a constitutional monarchy. It is worth noting that the defeat of the Spanish Armada happened in 1588, almost three decades before the start of the Thirty Years’ War. It is safe to say that Protestantism was one factor that brought Capitalism, which requires a more democratic political system. Among the five nations, only the Dutch Republic was as enlightened and democratic as England, and even more so at times. For instance, the Pilgrim Fathers took refugee in Holland before settling in the Plymouth colony. For another, the constitutional monarchy in England was made possible by the Dutch invasion during the Glorious Revolution. However, the Dutch Republic was too small to be a colonial superpower for a long time. The lack of manpower and resources led to Dutch defeats in the four Anglo-Dutch wars, and â€Å"when the last war ended in May 1784, the Dutch were at the nadir of their power and prestige† (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2009, par. 4). In sharp contrast with the Dutch Republic, the French Bourbon Monarchy was then a much larger country than England and the most powerful European state in the early 18th century. However, its backward political system made it unfit for the global competition with Britain. After defeating France in the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763), England became both the dominant power in North America and the global superpower in addition to the naval supremacy it had maintained since 1590s. The Causes of World War One Before the First World War, a great many wars had been fought in Europe for various reasons: such as the thirty years’ war, the Anglo-Dutch wars, the Anglo-French wars, and the Napoleonic wars. Of the wars mentioned above, some were fought on a big scale. For instance, the Seven Years’ War between Britain and France were fought both in Europe and in American colonies, bearing some resemblance to the First World War. However, we can not deny that World War One was far more catastrophic than any previous war. Thus, what was it about the modern world that caused such a catastrophe, and let people doubt the virtues of progress in its aftermath? The immediate cause of the Great War was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria on 28 June 1914 by a Serbian nationalist. However, the incident itself was not worth a total war; there were other deep-rooted reasons. Undoubtedly, national state (nationalism) was one of the main causes. Since 1850s, a number of national states, such as Germany, Italy, and Japan, arose from across the globe, trying to unify and centralize their nations. There were also some failed attempts, such as the Hungarian Revolution (1848) and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1851-1864) in China, both struggling for national independence from their foreign rulers. However, these nationalist movements were quite problematic and troublesome themselves. First, these nations intended to build up unified and centralized states for themselves, but denied equal rights to ethnic minorities within their boundaries. For example, while unifying German states in central Europe, Prussia never considered the self-determination of the Polish population. Second, during the unification, these national states failed to solve territorial disputes with their neighbors peacefully. For instance, territorial disputes over Alsace and Lorraine were one of the main causes of the Prussian French war, which started the lasting hostility between Germany and France until the end of the World War Two. Moreover, because modern national states were more centralized and got more so during the war period, World War One became both the first â€Å"total war† and the first â€Å"war of attrition†. In addition to national states (nationalism), interdependence and modernization also played a role in causing this catastrophe. Machine gun and trench were two embodiments of the First World War. Machine gun and heavy artillery made the army a much more efficient killing machine; the well fortified trenches let the massacre on the western front continue for over four years. New technologies can also shorten the war and thus reduce the casualties, such as the German blitzkrieg on the western front in World War Two. But in World War One, they only greatly prolonged the stalemate. European industrialization and commercialization in the 19th century made them more dependent on each other and on oversea colonies: they needed raw material, market, and capital from outside their own territories. Therefore, each country paid more attention to alliance and navy to protect their market, resources, and trade routes. The diplomatic maneuverings and the naval competitions obviously heightened the tensions between individual states and between deferent blocs. The Cold War After World War One, the Soviet Union and the United States were two superpowers along with Britain, France, Germany, and Japan. However, the Soviet Union and the U. S. had larger territories and populations than other nations. After the Second World War, the defeated Germany and Japan lost all their colonies, so did Britain and France in a much longer period. As a result, Russia and America became the only two post-war superpowers—Japan and Germany were no longer military powers while Britain and France were too small to qualify. It was this bipolar state made the cold war possible: the two superpowers could incorporate smaller nations into their camps to fight a long lasting war of ideology, politics, and economics. The cold war era refers to an unpleasant yet less painful and bloody period compared to the two world wars. Yet, this definition was from the two opposing military groups’ (NATO and WARSO pact countries) standpoint; for those former colonies (quasi-colonies), this view can not be farther from the truth. During the cold war, NATO and the WAWSOW did not confront each other in order to avoid a nuclear war, which could annihilate both the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. Yet, the collapse of the colonial system offered them a distant and relatively safe battlefield—the newly independent former colonies (quasi-colonies). Conflicts there had made the cold war nastier, bloodier, and more suffering. For many third world countries, the cold war era is the most painful period in modern history as they served as pawns in the ideological war between Russia and US. In the cold war era, the two biggest wars were fought in Korea and Vietnam; Cambodia saw the biggest massacre after World War Two; China experienced the greatest famine (1959-1961) in human history and the Cultural Revolution almost wiped out this 5,000 years old civilization. However, these events themselves did not decide the course of the cold war. The communists fought to stalemate in Korea, won the Vietnam War. However, several months after Chinese communists crushed peaceful protesting students and civilians with tanks and armed vehicles and firmly controlled the situation, communist regimes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe quickly collapsed. Since 1500, human being has made breath-taking progress in government, technology, business, education, health care, etc; it has also suffered a great deal from wars, national rivalries, epidemics, environmental damages, natural disasters, and all kinds of discriminations while living standards have been steadily improving. Since technology and productivity can be double-edged swords, it is urgent for the current generation to learn the lessons from the past five centuries.

The power of an advertisement

The power of an advertisement lies on its ability to provoke interest from its audience. The moment the audience sees the ad, it should have the capability to lure its audience into becoming its willing consumers and this charm must be strong enough to create a loyal market. Nowadays, however, this has become increasingly difficult to do. With the consumers getting wiser and more critical of what they perceive in society and the environment, advertisers must create more innovative ways to reach them.Advertisements today need a more global reach in such a way that they have to touch every aspect of daily life making new forms of address more essential. The ad by the clothing company Diesel cleverly attains this. At first glance, it immediately demands the attention of the consumer. The mere idea of a young man kneeling to pray evokes a sense of conscious reflection. In a world where everything seems to point to materiality and gratification of worldly desires, it is an ingenious idea to use faith to capture attention.The young man, in casual Italian Diesel jeans and shirt having that look on his face indicating that of an intent plea, creatively portrays a notion of spirituality or probably the ironic lack of it. It appeals to its audience and highlights the role that faith play in society; its importance and meaning. At closer look, the man is apparently praying while on the treadmill. This adds to the intrigue because it symbolizes the culture of the youth and society in general. The words â€Å"live fast† on the bottom, with text effects and all, enhances the appeal of a fast paced world.The fact that the man wears a watch also assumes the idea of a society where time is important and critical use of it must be employed. The identity that the ad has established is easily assumed and related. Combined together, the ad exploits the irony between the fast moving lifestyle of people and the slow realm of reflection and prayer. It is rather difficult to rec oncile engaged prayer into a world that essentially inhibits it. With a lifestyle that seems to promote only stop and go, as to be seen carefully from the â€Å"pray runner† treadmill, the option of pausing for a moment in prayer and faith is unlikely.This striking image attempts to stand out among all the confusion that advertisements bring, and it succeeds. Jacobson et al discusses that most often, â€Å"ads speak directly to our innermost, unarticulated needs, proffering ineffective palliatives for real social and personal problems† (Jacobson et al, 1995). Ads may turn out to be ineffective solutions for real problems but the idea behind it is to create an avenue for deep thought and contemplation, a mode to capture the consumers’ inner reflections and influence and direct them towards the brand. In this the Diesel ad does well.The idea implied in the ad may be seen as to provide a social criticism while introducing a lifestyle geared towards consumerism. The idea commercial appeal and introduction of conflict creates a space for difference and being able to make the two meet means being able to conquer more diverse markets. As Giroux points out, those that shock people have become the most effective means of getting to the consumers. (Giroux, 1994) Moreover, as the ad is intended to promote to consumers its online stores; it effectively relays that fast lifestyles need fast ways of consuming.Thus, through the internet, Diesel provides the conveniences of â€Å"high speed shopping†. It works effectively as a target specific ad but it may be seen as an ad aimed for the general public as well. The impact that it implies and associates with the brand will linger on in the minds of its consumers, and it would not matter whether they purchase online or at the stores. The ad inculcates the idea of living fast on its audiences and thus the modern lifestyle of people today is held in close association to the brand.The ad strives to creat e a sense of relation, a connection to the modern consumers and it reinforces the idea that advertising ingratiates itself to the daily functions of modern life. (Vanderbilt, 1997) In all, the Diesel ad employs an ingenious way to address the consumers’ search for the meaning of public truths. It effectively captures the attention of its audience by creating an image directly intended to evoke human feelings of morals and principles.The ad uses irony to question society and the lifestyle that people currently have. It reminds people of their faith, values and inclinations but does so in a way that is not negative and condemning. At the same time it suggests a solution geared towards complimenting the fast paced world of society, successfully creating an impact for the Diesel brand. The ad becomes a powerful tool for Diesel to connect to its consumers and instill on them an enduring influence that would last even if the ad’s idea of prayer and faith had not.

How to Reduce Cars Number On Campus Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

How to Reduce Cars Number On Campus - Case Study Example Transportation emissions accounts for about 10% of the total emissions generated on campus and this emission have contributed to environmental problems. The significant aspect for campus is to reduce its own impact on the environment; thus the most fundamental contribution of campus is to contribute to the wellbeing of the society. The aim of this recommendation is to provide sustainable ways of reducing transportation emissions through reducing car numbers on campus in order to achieve sustainability in campus. Q. 1 The low parking fees at campus have been one of the primary issues for increased cars at campus. The current parking fee, which is too low almost offer many people the incentives to drive their cars to campus. The low parking fees has become one of the causes for increased cars on campus and this is one of the main causes for increased greenhouse gas emissions resulting from single occupant vehicles (Martin and Samels, 2012). Another issue is poor bus services, which is complicated; thereby contributing to increased cars on campus. The process of obtaining carpool passes has conventionally been complicated and this allows single car users to continue using single occupant vehicles on campus. ... However, this requires better planning and community design in a manner that can enable people to make effective transportation choices since poor choices have profound effects on sustainability. Martin and Samuels (2012) argue that each travel option is associated with environmental impacts; thus making effective travel choices can contribute to sustainable transportation. Employing sustainable transportation means is vital because sustainability is associated with meeting the present needs of people without compromising with their future needs (Makower and Pike, 2009).The efficient transportation modes can be described using transportation hierarchy and this hierarchy attempts to illustrate that sustainable transportation is the one that have a low impact on environment such as walking and cycling. This transportation mode requires little equipment; thus they have a less impact on environment. Q.3 Wilkin can strategically adjustment parking prices such as raising the parking fee in order to discourage single car users to campus; thereby reducing cars on campus. Successful management programs of incorporating incentives for commuters to switch from the use of single occupant vehicles require effective and strict formulation of policies at campus. For instance, organizing staff meeting and bringing the issue of raising parking fee with an aim of reducing single occupant vehicles in campus is vital. Although achieve this strategy is not an easy task, there is a need to offer car park permits, which can either be paid through lump sum payment or salary sacrifice scheme through monthly salary deduction. There is scientific consensus that human caused carbon dioxide emissions are

Total cost minimization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Total cost minimization - Essay Example The new communication and information technologies today have made it possible to attain sophisticated and continuous process manufacturing. The automotive industry, for instance, has seen dramatic breakthroughs in technology displacement and reengineering. They now make over fifty million new automotives every year and are responsible for the creation of one out of every twelve jobs in the North American manufacturing industry. Experts predict that Japanese owned factories, by the end of this decade, would have the ability to make an automobile in eight hours or less (Dikbas and Scherer 297). This shorter time of production will result in fewer workers being needed for the production line. Japan’s nine automakers make over twelve million vehicles each year using less than six hundred thousand workers. Automakers in Detroit employ over two and a half million workers in the production of the same number of cars. US automakers, following Japan’s lead, have started to reen gineer their operations in the hope that they can increase their productivity, improve product share, reduce labor rolls, and increase their profit margin. GM, in 1993, announced plans for the implementation of changes in practices of production that aimed to eliminate as many as ninety thousand jobs by the late 90s (Dikbas and Scherer 298). These came on top of the quarter million jobs that they had already done away with in 1978. Other global automotive makers have also reengineered operations to eliminate thousands of employees with German automakers eliminating one in every seven jobs by 1995. The new â€Å"smart robot† generation that is armed with increased flexibility and intelligence has become a mainstay in the market, as factory owner are less likely to substitute them for laborers since they are cost-effective. Each robot replaces four jobs in the global economy and pays itself off in one year if used twenty-four hours every day. The world’s robot population was estimated at about 630,000 in 1991, and the number had grown by 3.5 times in 2008 as the machines have become more flexible, versatile, and intelligent (Meiksins et al 202). The steel industry has also had fortunes that closely mirror those of the automotive industry and have led to sweeping changes in production and organization, in the industry. The US was the world leader in production of steel in the 80s. However, this competitive edge has undergone serious erosion because of failure by companies in the US to keep in step with steel manufacturers in Japan that have made the production of steel a highly continuous and automated operation. This has led to Nippon Steel reducing its production hours to one hour from twelve days (Meiksins et al 203). Increased steel production automation has reduced the amount of labor required in North America. US Steel, the largest steel company in the US, in 1980, employed over 120,000 workers, which decreased to 20,000 in 1990 and 14,000, in 2005, even though it was producing the same output (National Academy of Engineering 10). These numbers are predicted to drop even further in the coming ten to twenty years as more advanced operations become available in the process of manufacturing in these factories. The highly automated methods of manufacturing have been used in combination with radical management hierarchy

Workplace Issues or Disaster Management (PLEASE CHOOSE ONE TOPIC) Essay

Workplace Issues or Disaster Management (PLEASE CHOOSE ONE TOPIC) - Essay Example Direct cost includes the amount of money a health care facility spends to conduct the process of hiring, recruiting and orientation. Indirect costs that a health care facility pays due to nurse turnover are the costs of decreased productivity, training, retraining and terminating nursing officials. In their research they even figure out that nurse turnover even impacts professionals of the nursing in a negative manner. One of the issues that nurses experience due to turnover of nurses is the increased amount of burden on nurses which results in negatively impacting the wellbeing of the nurses. In this research the researchers figured out those nurse turnover even impacts patients in a negative manner. Their studies showed that the quality of care decreases and risk of safety of patients increases as nurse turnover rate increases. This is because nurse turnover results in increased amount of burden on limited number of nurses, due to increased burden, nurse ends up making mistake and pose a risk to the health of the patients. This study further figured out that there was a direct link between nursing staffing levels and the time period for which patients stay in the health care setting, the rate of complications experienced by patients and probability of rescuing patients. They figured out that health care settings where the number of nurses employed are and the mix of skills are high results in positively impacting patients. Several legal issues have been stated within the research that might arise due to increase in nurse turnover. One of these legal issues may be increased number of lawsuits filed by the patient’s family if lower staff levels threaten the security and the wellbeing of the patients. If health care facilities fail to provide adequate amount of care due to shortage of nursing staff, they might be charged under both criminal and civil suit and any one of the suits. The reputation of the nursing facility