The Cenozoic Era Continues Today

The Cenozoic Era Continues Today Following the Precambrian Time, Paleozoic Era, and Mesozoic Era on the geologic time scale is the Cenozoic Era, which began 65 million years ago and continues to the present. After the Cretaceous-Tertiary, or,  K-T, Extinction at the end of the Cretaceous Period of the Mesozoic Era, which eliminated 80 percent of all  species  of  animals, the Earth found itself needing to rebuild. Now that all dinosaurs besides birds were extinct, mammals had the opportunity to flourish. Without competition for resources from dinosaurs, mammals had the opportunity to grow. The Cenozoic was the first era that saw humans evolve. Much of what is commonly thought of as evolution has happened in the Cenozoic Era. The Cenozoic Era Begins The first period of the Cenozoic Era called the Tertiary Period has been divided into the Paleogene and Neogene periods. Most of the Paleogene Period saw birds and small mammals become more diverse and grow greatly in numbers. Primates started to live in trees, and some mammals adapted to live part-time in the water. Marine animals didnt have such luck during this period when massive global changes resulted in many deep-sea animals going extinct. The climate had cooled significantly from tropical and humid during the Mesozoic Era, which changed the types of plants that did well on land. Lush, tropical plants were replaced by deciduous plants, including the first grass. The Neogene Period saw continuing cooling trends. The climate resembled what it is today and would be considered seasonal. Toward the end of the period, however, the Earth was plunged into an ice age. Sea levels fell, and the continents came to roughly the positions they hold today. Many ancient forests were replaced with expansive grasslands as the climate continued to dry out, leading to the rise of grazing animals such as horses, antelope, and bison. Mammals and birds continued to diversify and dominate. The Neogene Period is also considered the start of human evolution. During this time the first human-like ancestors, the hominids, appeared in Africa and moved into Europe and Asia. Humans Start to Dominate The final period in the Cenozoic Era, the current period, is the Quaternary Period. It began in an ice age where glaciers advanced and retreated over parts of the Earth that are now considered temperate climates, such as North America, Europe, Australia, and the southern part of South America. The Quaternary Period is marked by the rise of human dominance. Neanderthals came into existence and then went extinct. The modern human evolved and became the dominant species on Earth. Other mammals continued to diversify and branch off into various species. The same happened with marine species. There were a few extinctions over this period due to the changing climate, but plants adapted to the various climates that emerged after the glaciers retreated. Tropical areas never had glaciers, so lush, warm-weather plants thrived all during the Quaternary Period. Areas that became temperate had many grasses and deciduous plants, while slightly colder climates saw the re-emergence of conifers and small shrubs. No End in Sight for the Cenozoic Era The Quaternary Period and Cenozoic Era continue today and likely will remain until the next mass extinction event. Humans remain dominant, and new species are discovered daily. While in the early 21st-century climate is changing once again and some species are going extinct, no one knows when the Cenozoic Era will end.

Biography of Artist Henry Ossawa Tanner

Biography of Artist Henry Ossawa Tanner Born June 21, 1859, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Henry Ossawa Tanner is Americas best known and most popular  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹Ã¢â‚¬â€¹African American artist born in the nineteenth century. His painting The Banjo Lesson (1893, Hampton University Museum, Hampton, Virginia), hangs in many classrooms and doctors offices across the nation, familiar and yet not fully understood. Few Americans know the artists name, and fewer still learn about his outstanding accomplishments that often broke through racist barriers. Early Life Tanner was born into a religious and well-educated household. His father, Benjamin Tucker Tanner, graduated from college and became a minister (and later bishop) in the African Methodist Episcopalian Church. His mother, Sarah Miller Tanner, was sent north by her mother through the Underground Railroad to escape the slavery she was born into. (The name Ossawa is based on the abolitionist John Browns nickname Osawatomie Brown, in honor of the Battle of Osawatomie, Kansas in 1856. John Brown was convicted of treason and hanged on December 2, 1859.) The Tanner family moved frequently until they settled in Philadelphia in 1864. Benjamin Tanner hoped his son would follow him into the ministry, but Henry had other ideas by the time he was thirteen. Smitten with art, the young Tanner drew, painted and visited Philadelphia exhibitions as often as possible. A short apprenticeship in a flour mill, which compromised Henry Tanners already frail health, convinced Reverend Tanner that his son should choose his own vocation. Training In 1880, Henry Ossawa Tanner enrolled in the  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, becoming Thomas Eakins (1844-1916) first African American student. Eakins 1900 portrait of Tanner may reflect the close relationship they developed. Certainly, Eakins Realist training, which demanded meticulous analysis of human anatomy, can be detected in Tanners early works such as The Banjo Lesson and The Thankful Poor (1894, William H. and Camille O. Cosby Collection). In 1888, Tanner moved to Atlanta, Georgia and set up a studio to sell his paintings, photographs and art lessons. Bishop Joseph Crane Hartzell and his wife became Tanners principal patrons and ended up purchasing all his paintings in an 1891 studio exhibition. The income allowed Tanner to head for Europe to further his art education. He traveled to London and Rome and then settled in Paris to study with Jean-Paul Laurens (1838-1921) and Jean Joseph Benjamin Constant (1845-1902) at the Acadà ©mie Julien. Tanner returned to Philadelphia in 1893 and encountered racial prejudice that sent him back to Paris by 1894. The Banjo Lesson, completed during that short period in America, drew from the poem The Banjo Song, published in Paul Lawrence Dunbars (1872-1906) collection Oak and Ivy around 1892-93. Career Back in Paris, Tanner began to exhibit at the annual Salon, winning an honorable mention for Daniel in the Lions Den in 1896 and The Raising of Lazarus in 1897. These two works reflect the predominance of biblical themes in Tanners later work and his stylistic shift to a dreamy, iridescent glow throughout his images. In Birthplace of Joan of Arc at Domrà ©my-la-Pucelle (1918), we can see his impressionistic handling of the sunlight on the facade. Tanner married the American opera singer Jessie Olsson in 1899, and their son Jesse Ossawa Tanner was born in 1903. In 1908, Tanner exhibited his religious paintings in a solo show at the American Art Galleries in New York. In 1923, he became an honorary chevalier of the Order of the Legion of Honor, Frances highest award of recognition. In 1927, he became the first African American full academician elected into the National Academy of Design in New York. Tanner died at home on May 25, 1937, most likely in Paris, though some sources claim that he died in his country home in Etaples, Normandy. In 1995, Tanners early landscape Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City, ca. 1885, became the first work by an African American artist acquired by the White House. This was during the Clinton Administration.   Important Works Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City, ca. 1885, White House, Washington, D.C.The Banjo Lesson, 1893, Hampton University Museum, Hampton, VirginiaThe Thankful Poor, 1894, William H. and Camille O. Cosby CollectionDaniel in the Lions Den, 1896, Los Angeles County Museum of ArtThe Raising of Lazarus, 1897, Musà ©e dOrsay, Paris Sources: Tanner, Henry Ossawa. The Story of An Artists Life, pp. 11770-11775.Page, Walter Hines and Arthur Wilson Page (eds.). The Worlds work, Volume 18.New York: Doubleday, Page Co., 1909 Driskell, David C. Two Hundred Years of African American Art.Los Angeles and New York: Los Angeles County Museum and Alfred A. Knopf, 1976 Mathews, Marcia M. Henry Ossawa Tanner: American Artist.Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1969 and 1995 Bruce, Marcus. Henry Ossawa Tanner: A Spiritual Biography.New York: Crossroad Publishing, 2002 Sims, Lowery Stokes. African American Art: 200 Years.New York: Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, 2008

The Parthenon Essays - Acropolis Of Athens, Parthenon, Free Essays

The Parthenon Essays - Acropolis Of Athens, Parthenon, Free Essays The Parthenon The Parthenon Greek culture blossomed after the Persian Wars. General Pericles around the 450s BC led the reconstruction of Athens; which became the most beautiful city in all of Greece. Pericles greatest structure built under his command was the Parthenon. The Parthenon was a temple built for the patron goddess Athena (goddess of wisdom and art). Construction started 447 BC and continued until 432 BC. The structure is located in Athens Greece, on the acropolis. The architects Ictinus and Callicrates designed the building. The Athenians wanted to achieve the appearance of perfection on the Parthenon. They did this by widening the columns at the center, making them appear strait when viewed from a distance; the steps leading to the Parthenon were lowered in the center giving the impression that they were strait from either side(Farah,116). Phidias was the artist that sculpted the art for the Parthenon. He himself did not sculpt everything but advised the other sculptors. The temple was 102 by 226 feet, rising 60 feet of the ground. It included two rooms, the naos the larger of the two is where a 42 foot tall sculpture of Athenia was located. The smaller room opisthodomos was used as a treasury(Web). Pattern of 8 by 17 Doric fluted columns surround the structure. (Parthenon floor plan) The Parthenon is a Doric peripteral temple, which means that it consists of a rectangular floor plan with a series of low steps on all sides. Pentelic marble was used as the building material, which came from Mount Pentelicus 11 miles from Athens. The pentelic marble had shots of iron. This gave it a luminescent look when viewed on sunny a day. Lintels, horizontal supporting beams that span between columns were tied by bow-tie shaped iron clamps to secure them. Sculptures once decorated the pediments of the building. The eastern pediment depicted the birth of Athena and western pediment showed the battle between Athena and the sea god Poseidon for the control of Athens(Scully,65/Web). In 1687 the pediment sculptures were smashed. This was done by Venetian Admiral Morosini. Morosini was trying to lower the pediment sculptures(Scully,90). . The metopes of the Parthenon all represent the struggle between order and chaos. The east metope depicts battle between the gods and giants(Wed). The west metope reveals the mystical battle against the Amazons(Web). The south metope, the battle between the lapiths and the centaurs(Web). Last on the north metope, Greeks versus Trojans(Wed). In addition there was a decorated band called a frieze that went all the way around the cella (central enclosed space). The frieze showed people of Athens: officials, priests, maidens, and young men on horse back celebrating Athenas birthday(Web). The statue of Athena in the naos was 42 feet tall and was constructed of gold and ivory. The flesh was ivory and the drapery gold (the drapery was made removable incase of emergencies). (model) The Parthenon was used as a Christian church at about 500 AD. The Parthenon was also used as a mosque when Turkish Muslim forces captured the city in the mid-1400s. The battered structure and columns of the Parthenon are from the explosion of gunpowder. The Turks stored the gunpowder there, and in 1687 a Venetian cannon shattered the building. The Parthenon was a beautiful structure when completed. It is probably one of the best examples of classical architecture. Most of the remaining art was removed and placed in the Acropolis Museum in Athens and the British Museum in London(Web). Now, what is left of the Parthenon sits in ruins for the tourist and citizens to be admired; the great accomplishments and sorrows of mans past.

What you can learn from Mark Cuban’s routine

What you can learn from Mark Cuban’s routine Mark Cuban is a pretty well-known guy. Maybe you know him from his social media feuds with certain presidents, or his courtside theatrics at Dallas Mavericks games, or his TV appearances as an investor on Shark Tank. The billionaire is a busy man- but also a successful one, so what can we learn from his daily routine? Start early.Just thinking about one is painful to many of the night owls out there, but Cuban credits his early work as one of the key elements of his success. Getting up and starting to work (like checking emails or messages) may seem like a drastic start, but surveys have shown that many people are sharpest when they first wake up.Come up with a mantra.Positive thinking can be very effective, so come up with some personal mantras that work with your goals. According to Cuban, â€Å"Work like there is someone working 24 hours a day to take it all away from you† keeps him going. What motivates you? How can you turn that into a one-liner?Keep up the pace throughou t the day.Even when there’s downtime, Cuban keeps checking emails to stay informed. Some downtime is usually key to decompressing, but if you find yourself with periods that aren’t so busy during the work day, doing quick checks of email can help you stay focused.Don’t get stuck in meetings.Cuban feels like most meetings are a â€Å"waste of time.† For the rest of us, meetings are often a necessary evil if we want to get our work done, but you can apply Cuban’s philosophy to your own career by evaluating whether sit-down meetings are truly necessary, or if you can get the work done another way (like brief face-to-face chats, or a phone call/email).Make time for personal priorities.As a parent, Cuban finds himself with a dilemma familiar to many: having professional obligations pull one way, family obligations another. It’s a matter of scheduling the highest-priority family moments into the day. It is also a matter of balance: â€Å"I canâ⠂¬â„¢t make all their games, but I make most,† he says.Take time for self care.Cuban’s not only basketball team owner, but also an unofficial player, making time for basketball games and other workouts as part of the daily fitness routine. Whatever your fitness or self care routine is (yoga, meditation, gym time, walking the dog, etc.), make sure you carve out some time in your day for it. Pushing too hard at work and not having an outlet can lead to major work stress.Get enough sleep.Speaking of work stress, not getting enough sleep can be a major contributor. Cuban gets six to seven hours a night. The ideal can vary by person, but whatever your magic number is for peak productivity and performance during the day, make sure you’re getting that sleep as much as you can.We may not all be billionaire investors, but Mark Cuban’s daily routines show us that with a little extra focus, scheduling, and consistency, we can try living like one.

Follow the evolution of the road from path to pavement

Follow the evolution of the road from path to pavement The first indications of constructed roads date from about 4000 BC and consist of stone-paved streets at Ur in modern-day Iraq and timber roads preserved in a swamp in Glastonbury, England. Late 1800s Road Builders The road builders of the late 1800s depended solely on stone, gravel, and sand for construction. Water would be used as a binder to give some unity to the road surface. John Metcalfe, a Scot born in 1717, built about 180 miles of roads in Yorkshire, England (even though he was blind). His well-drained roads were built with three layers: large stones; excavated road material; and a layer of gravel. Modern tarred roads were the result of the work of two Scottish engineers, Thomas Telford and John Loudon McAdam. Telford designed the system of raising the foundation of the road in the center to act as a drain for water. Thomas Telford (born 1757) improved the method of building roads with broken stones by analyzing stone thickness, road traffic, road alignment, and gradient slopes. Eventually, his design became the norm for all roads everywhere. John Loudon McAdam (born 1756) designed roads using broken stones laid in symmetrical, tight patterns and covered with small stones to create a hard surface. McAdams design, called macadam roads, provided the greatest advancement in road construction. Asphalt Roads Today, 96% of all paved roads and streets in the U.S. - almost two million miles - are surfaced with asphalt. Almost all paving asphalt used today is obtained by processing crude oils. After everything of value is removed, the leftovers are made into asphalt cement for pavement. Man-made asphalt consists of compounds of hydrogen and carbon with minor proportions of nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen. Natural forming asphalt, or brea, also contains mineral deposits. The first road use of asphalt occurred in 1824 when asphalt blocks were placed on the Champs-Élysà ©es in Paris. Modern road asphalt was the work of Belgian immigrant Edward de Smedt at Columbia University in New York City. By 1872, De Smedt had engineered a modern, well-graded, maximum-density asphalt. The first uses of this road asphalt were in Battery Park and on Fifth Avenue in New York City in 1872 and on Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington D.C., in 1877. History of Parking Meters Carlton Cole Magee invented the first parking meter in 1932 in response to the growing problem of parking congestion. He patented it in 1935 (US patent #2,118,318) and started the Magee-Hale Park-O-Meter Company to manufacturer his parking meters. These early parking meters were produced at factories in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma. The first was installed in 1935 in Oklahoma City. The meters were sometimes met with resistance from citizen groups; vigilantes from Alabama and Texas attempted to destroy the meters en masse. The name Magee-Hale Park-O-Meter Company was later changed to the P.O.M. company, a trademarked name made from the initials of Park-O-Meter. In 1992, POM began marketing and selling the first fully electronic parking meter, the patented APM Advanced Parking Meter, with features such as a free-fall coin chute and a choice of solar or battery power. By definition, traffic control is the supervision of the movement of people, goods, or vehicles to ensure efficiency and safety. For example, in 1935, England established the first 30 MPH speed limit for town and village roads. Rules are one method of controlling traffic, however, many inventions are used to support traffic control. For example, in 1994, William Hartman received a patent for a method and apparatus for painting highway markings or lines. Perhaps the best known of all inventions related to traffic control is traffic lights. Traffic Lights The worlds first traffic lights were installed near Londons House of Commons (intersection of George and Bridge Streets) in 1868. They were invented by J.P. Knight. Among the many early traffic signals or lights created the following are noted: Earnest Sirrine of Chicago, Illinois patented (976,939) perhaps the first automatic street traffic system in 1910. Sirrines system used the nonilluminated words stop and proceed.Lester Wire of Salt Lake City, Utah invented (unpatented) electric traffic lights in 1912 that used red and green lights.James Hoge patented (1,251,666) manually controlled traffic lights in 1913, which were installed in Cleveland, Ohio a year later by the American Traffic Signal Company. Hoges electric-powered lights used the illuminated words stop and move.William Ghiglieri of San Francisco, California patented (1,224,632) perhaps the first automatic traffic signal using colored lights (red and green) in 1917. Ghiglieris traffic signal had the option of being either manual or automatic.Around 1920, William Potts a Detroit policeman invented (unpatented) several automatic electric traffic light systems including an overhanging four-way, red, green, and yellow light system. The first to use a yellow light. Garrett Morgan received a patent for an inexpensive to produce manual traffic signal in 1923. Dont Walk Signs On February 5, 1952, the first Dont Walk automatic signs were installed in New York City.

Business strategy of Waitrose Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business strategy of Waitrose - Essay Example This paper also identifies the primary activities of the company, and the prospects of the company’s suitability, feasibility, and acceptability. This is by the use of the Ansoff Matrix. Finally, this paper has an appraisal of the company’s capabilities and resources. The retailing industry in the United Kingdom plays a significant role in advancing and promoting the economy of the state. Studies reveal that the retailing sector in the United Kingdom contributes an annual GDP of 5%. Studies reveal that the retailing sector normally provides an annual tax of 17.5 billion pounds to the government (Spencer and Bourlakis, 2009). This consists of approximately 30% of the taxes that the government collects. The retail sector in the United Kingdom covers all business organizations that are responsible for selling goods and products to the general public (Towill, 2005). This retailing sector consists of large departmental stores, large chain of supermarkets, and virtual and ind ependent stores. It is important to understand that Waitrose is a chain of British supermarkets, operating in the retailing industry. The retailing industry in the United Kingdom is a very important source of employment, Taylor (2013) denotes that it employs 10%, of the overall workforce in the United Kingdom. It is important to understand that the retailing sector in the United Kingdom consists of five major super market chains, and thousands of minor retailing units, operating individual retailing stores.

Comparison of Quality Philosophies Research Paper - 1

Comparison of Quality Philosophies - Research Paper Example Quality involves meeting or exceeding customers’ expectations in products and provision of services. Generally, quality management is the process of directing the whole production process towards producing excellent and quality products and services that meet or exceed customers’ expectations. There are various quality philosophies that have been developed by various individuals and institutions (Hoyer and Hoyer, 2001). This focus paper will compare the quality philosophies of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Moses Juran, Philip Bayard Crosby, and the Project Management Institute. Edwards Deming Philosophy Edwards Deming philosophy on quality asserted that quality is a process that uses statistical control techniques and that managers should intervene in the production process towards achieving the desired quality. His philosophy holds that quality should go beyond statistical quality control and that building quality of a product should be done at all stages. Apart from the r ole of management in promoting quality, Deming emphasized on the role of workers in improving quality by stating that workers should be proud and satisfied in order to meet the desired quality. ... Joseph Juran, his is considered as a total departure from Deming’s; Deming’s approach emphasizes on adopting new philosophy and throwing out the old system, but Juran’s approach emphasizes on working to improve the current system. Juran’s quality philosophy expressed the need to concentrate more on the â€Å"vital few† problems’ sources rather than be distracted by problems that are less important (Ross and Perry, 1999). In regard to approach to quality, performance standard, and quality measurement, Juran developed a trilogy that involves: quality improvement through infrastructure development and implementation of projects; quality control through performance assessment; and quality planning through determination of customer needs. He believed that management had a bigger role in quality compared to workers and that technical and management methods were more important than worker satisfaction (Mouradian, 2002). Philip Crosby Philosophy Qual ity philosophy of Philip Crosby emphasized that quality that meets customer requirements focuses more on prevention rather than correction. He believed that poor quality costs nearly 20 percent of the revenue; a cost that could be avoided if good quality practices is used. Crosby established the Absolutes of Quality Management which includes the only performance standard which makes sense are Zero Defects (Rose, 2005). His approach to quality and quality measurement involved defining quality as conformance to requirements, not goodness. His philosophy also states that prevention rather than appraisal as a system to achieve quality. The measure of quality according to this philosophy is the price of non-conformance, and not indexes. He acknowledged that both the management and workers have a role to play in improving