The global revolution in mobile as well as Internet technology has drastically changed the way we live and operate. Many people in the world today use a mobile phone for different communication purposes. Usually, the mobile phones use one of the many mobile data networks available.
Drawing from a study by Gregory (1), most mobile phone applications make use of bandwidth. This has prompted telecommunication companies throughout the world to think about upgrading to the most modern generation of mobile data network.
While some people are comfortable with 4G services, 5G technology is slowly taking shape and will soon replace 4G networks. According to Jain, Agrawal, and Awasthi (569), 5G technology is bound to make a significant contribution to the world of communication and greatly improve communication.
This paper provides an overview of 5G technology and the major improvements that could be made to it.
Description of 3G Wireless Technology
Generally, 5G is a term that is used to refer to the fifth generation of mobile networks and is not associated with any particular standard. Apparently, the discussion surrounding 5G technology can be placed in tow broad categories.
In one category 5G wireless technology is regard as a service-led technology that consolidates 2G, 3G, and 4G Wi-Fi services designed to offer greater coverage and access to mobile services.
The second view is driven by a step-by-step change in data speed as well as order of magnitude reduction in end-to-end latency. Based on a study by Kaplan (1), 5G is described as the very first network designed to enable versatility and scalability.
As explained by Kaplan (1), 5G wireless networks are considered to be very powerful and able to provide high quality data services to clients. Considering that a 5G wireless network integrates communication and computing technologies, it has the capability to handle huge amounts of data quite efficiently.
Features of 5G Wireless Technology
As pointed out by Jain, Agrawal, and Awasthi (570), the 5G wireless technology has quite a number of advanced technological features that make it very powerful as far as communication is concerned.
It is alleged that 5G technology will be so advanced that it will be possible to link the whole world through a wireless worldwide web (Jain, Agrawal & Awasthi 570).
The technology will make it possible for people all over the world to experience a very high bandwidth and a level of call data transmission never witnessed in the past. It will also offer high quality services in the area of production and offering support to different forms of electronic transactions.
With 5G wireless technology, users are presently able to use mobile phones equipped with a huge amount of memory for storage as well as a camera.
The technology also makes it possible to connect mobile phones to laptops in order to access broadband Internet.
Because of the 5G wireless technology, present day mobile phones closely resemble handheld computers more than phones do as they are equipped with cameras, video players and MP3 players among others.
How 5G Compares with 4G/LTE
With 5G, clients may be allowed to juggle between two different activities at the same time. This makes it possible for individuals who are interested in more than one activity to comfortably switch from one activity to another. On the contrary, 4G/LTE networks do not have such a capability.
According to the research findings 5G networks are capable of offering bandwidth capacities that are far much higher than those offered by 4G/LTE networks. In addition, 5G networks are able to effectively manage connections for numerous mobile phone devices.
Whereas 4G/LTE networks make it possible for customers to access data while on the move, 5G networks delight users with fast speed connections that can be relied upon (Mundy 1). Despite the fact that 4G/LTE offers good speeds, they are not in any way comparable to the speeds offered by the 5G networks.
Ostensibly, 5G networks are also associated with the reduced latency, a feature that is not available in 4G/LTE networks. Further, it is alleged that 5G networks will be able to reach places that are completely hidden and out of communication.
Jain, Agrawal, and Awasthi (573) also talk about a number of differences between 5G and 4G wireless technologies. In their study, they established that unlike 4G/LTE, 5G provides dynamic information access as well as wearable devices that have artificial intelligence capabilities.
While 4G/LTE has the capability to support data bandwidth in megabytes only, 5G wireless technology offers support for data bandwidth in gigabytes.
While speeds provided by 4G/LTE are increased to keep up with data access demands used by various services, 5G technology provides a very high speed technology as well as efficient use of available bandwidth.
In addition, 5G wireless technology includes large phone storage capacity and dialing speed. Our phones can also be connected to laptops in order to access efficient data services.
With 5G wireless technology, bandwidth provided per frequency channel goes up to 28 gigahertz while this is only 100 megahertz for 4G/LTE networks. While concatenated codes are used to detect errors in 4G/LTE networks, the high quality service offered by 5G wireless networks is based on a policy designed to avoid error.
Prospect Analysis of 5G Wireless Technology
According to Kaplan (1), it is presumed that as 5G technologies continue to develop, mature users will be able to enjoy faster speeds and access to required services. Superior mobile devices with greater processing capability will, thus, be able to take advantage of the improved technology.
Despite the fact that more bandwidth will be available for the use by everybody, it is only the smart mobile phones that will be able to take advantage of the benefits associated with the 5G technology.
In the future, it is likely that a very powerful communications network will be built around the 5G network. In order to ensure that devices are always online, it presumed that the design of the mobile devices will incorporate a charging system.
While a shift to 5G wireless technology is helpful, it is imperative for users to be aware of the fact that a number of hurdles will have to be overcome if the benefits are to be fully realized.
Despite the fact that there are a number of spectrum bands that can potentially be used to meet the requirements of 5G wireless networks, there are efforts being made to provide higher frequency spectrums.
In order to make use of a bandwidth that is higher than 6 gigahertz, operators will be expected to invest in new technologies to avoid disappointments.
Conclusion
In this paper, various issues about 5G wireless networks have been discussed. As pointed out in this paper, 5G wireless networks provide highly advanced features that make it possible for users to enjoy excellent call and data services.
In spite of the fact that several developments with regards to the advancement of 5G technology have been made over the years, a number of challenges have also been encountered along the way.
One of the challenges has to do with the fact that investors are compelled to provide powerful infrastructure in order to meet the heavy demands of 5G technology.
Regardless of the difficulties and high demands that are associated with the implementation and subsequent use of 5G wireless networks, the benefits that come accompany the investment service as a motivation for investors to go to any length to implement the technology and enjoy improved services.
In the future, it is presumed that 5G wireless networks, will create a global wireless web that will be used to carry out all the kinds of transactions and improve the performance of e-commerce and other related services.
As this trend continues, it is very likely that 5G wireless technology will dominate the call and data services throughout the world.
As earlier pointed out, users are currently able to use mobile phones with cameras and a huge amount of memory, and it is possible owing to the existence of 5G technology. Among other issues, the technology facilitates the connection of mobile phones to laptops for improved data access services.
Today, we have mobile phones that resemble handheld devices as a result of 5G technology. Mobile phones are now able to offer numerous features and services to users that makes it possible to accomplish much more work than earlier.
Jain, S., Agrawal, N. & Awasthi, M. “5G – The Future of Mobile Wireless Communication Networks.” Advance in Electronic and Electric Engineering, 3.5 (2013): 569 – 574. Print.
Kaplan, K. Will 5G Bring New Dimensions to Our Wireless World? 2015. Web.
Ireland is a country among European countries that have been sexually repressed from the 1900s to late 1990s. Ireland was found to be more liberal when it came to issues of sex and cohabitation before marriage. Sexual revolution in Ireland was a social movement that posed a great challenge to the traditional ethics related to sexuality and associations between people in the entire continent. This happened back in the 1950s to 1980s. Most of the sexual practices that did not portray any ethical standards in Ireland were liberalized.
These practices reduced ethical standards because they almost drained the Irish culture leaving the state under the western culture. Some of these legalized practices include abortion practices, contraception and pills, sex outside marriage, homosexuality, high sexual acceptance outside traditional heterosexual, nakedness in public without no fear, and monogamous relationships (Wilson and Donnan, p. 43).
Although the sexual revolution gained its stability after 1950s, its roots in Ireland can be traced back as far as 1866. This was as a result of the age of reasoning due to enlightening of most people. This was meant for intellectuals and mobilized the power of reason in order to reform the society within Ireland.
It also led to enhanced and advanced technological and social knowledge. This age of enlightening among people enhanced promotion of science and intellectual interchange and opposition of traditional practices like superstition, intolerance and abuses in church and the entire state. The liberation of sexual practices was also a result of the era of Queen Victoria. This was a period of peace, prosperity, and self confidence nationally (Wilson and Donnan, p. 45).
Evolution and development of sexual liberation in Ireland
Sexual revolution in Ireland came as a development of the modern world but led to a great loss power of virtues and moral values especially in the Christian religion. Modernity in Ireland came as a result of the western culture that was introduced after nullifying the tradition and culture in Ireland.
This was due the advanced technology from the education and familiarization of manufacture of products that were used to enhance the sexual revolution. This led to rise of permissive societies in Ireland that accepted sexual freedom and experimenting of the sexual practices.
This made sexual acts be liberalized and become rampant in the whole world. This was well portrayed in matters that were meant to separate the state from sexual matters and cause rejection to such practices like marriage, control of birth practices, as well as adultery (Wilson and Donnan, p. 21).
Most of sexual practices spread due to the increased technology in the media services like the discovery of television in the 1950s which promoted means of communication in the entire state. Therefore, it was easy to pass information and convey new ideas to many people within a short period. This was also enhanced by the development of other mass media devices like newspapers, radios and other media services.
This also assisted in conveying of messages and new information to people in the entire state. All this promoted the growth and expansion of the sexual revolution in Ireland. One of the sexual liberation practices that came to being as a result of media was the pill which was used by women as a means of birth control. This enabled women to have access to easy and reliable means of preventing fusion of gametes during and after performing a sexual activity.
This promoted the sexual revolution because most women and girls in the teenage stage engaged in sexual activity. This is because they were sure of failing to get pregnant after any sexual activity. This increased immoral practices both with married and unmarried people in Ireland. Another practice that evolved was obstetrics which was a medical specialty meant to care for women during the prenatal period, bearing of the child and also during the postnatal period.
This led to a reduction in death and an increment in life expectancy for women in Ireland. In turn, this increased the rate at which women could perform sexual activities hence promoting the sexual revolution period. All this caused the evolution and spread of the sexual revolution in Ireland (Godbeer, p. 45).
Causes of rapid spread of the sexual revolution
Sexual revolution emerged due to a number of factors which were contributed by the people who lived in Ireland. First, the advancement of science and technology was one of the major causes of the spread of the sexual revolution as it led to manufacturing of better methods of birth control pills.
This led to increased knowledge of design and production of condoms that were used by young teenagers to control premarital pregnancies. In turn, this encouraged sexual activities in the entire state. Secondly, improved medication, healthcare, expansion of the pharmaceutical industry was also a major contribution as it led to discovery and perfection of the pill as a birth control method. This increased the sexual activities among the teens since taking pills enabled them avoid pregnancy.
Thirdly, increased sexual revolution was caused by increased literacy in the world. World wide literacy made people in Ireland discover new ideas pertaining sexual activity. This led to increased spread of sexual practices in the state. Fourth, failure to observe religious norms and rules was a major cause of the spread of the sexual revolution in Ireland. People neglected biblical teachings and abandoned all the biblical laws and notions.
This made them embark on utilizing the modernized western culture which in turn led to the rapid spread of the sexual liberation. The emerging of the free love culture where people were taught on the power of love and the beauty of sexual acts as part of the student life in school caused continued spread of sexuality in Ireland (Godbeer, p.160)
Overall Impact of the sexual revolution in Ireland
The evolution and spread of sexual liberation in Ireland is said to have changed the lives of men and women than any other revolution that ever existed in the state. It has had a great impact both to the married people and young girls and boys in the adolescence stage. People ended up engaging in risky sexual practices especially for young girls and boys.
It led to changing of behaviors and ethics leading to low ethical standards in Ireland. There were noted shifts in social attitudes and behaviors within the state. Sexual liberation resulted to premarital pregnancies that affected the girls who never had knowledge of use of contraceptives. Sexually transmitted diseases accompanied by depression and emotional consequences were also consequences which arose from this sexual liberation.
Emotional consequences were as a result of heart break pains from long term relationships which created a sense of betrayal and low self esteem. Most people thought that contraceptives were helpful; however, they could only act as birth control methods but could not reduce the risk of diseases. The spread of sexual liberation led to increased use of anal and oral sex among adolescents in Ireland which in turn resulted to increased spread of sexual infections (Godbeer, p.171).
The spread of the Human Immune Deficiency virus was rapid due to increased sexual practices among adolescents and married couples. It also led to the spread of cervical cancer where about 11000 women were diagnosed with cervical cancer. Among those diagnosed, about 3700 of them died out of it. It has been noticed that most of the people affected by the liberation of sexual practices in Ireland are the Irish women. This has also affected young girls who are still in the teenage stage (Bradley, p. 96).
This has in turn led to most recorded death rates in the entire state. Rapid spread of sexual liberation also led to most of the unmarried men and women between the ages of 20 to 25 years having many sexual partners. This was common in Ireland until late 1990s. Most of the people in Ireland lived unmarried lives as a result of this so that they could have many sexual partners. The increased freedom of the use of pill as a contraceptive was dangerous because it led to increased “sexualization” among the young girls.
Again, the increased freedom of choice on sexual matters destroyed families in the state hence most of the children could not be brought up in the right manner. In addition, there were a lot of divorce cases noticed during the sexual revolution even up to 2000s where most of the married people divorced and children ended up being brought up by single parents and others by unmarried couples.
This made most children lose one side of the parental love. Sexual revolution also led to shifting of most people from religion and encouraging secularization. In a general sense, sexual revolution has affected millions of people in Ireland causing a notable disturbance in the community and influencing the future society at large. This is because Ireland had already become a site of immoral behavior (Bradley, p. 98-103).
Effects of the sexual revolution to women lives in Ireland
As it has been discussed in literature, women in Ireland have been found to be most affected by the evolution and spread of sexual liberation. A significant number of women have been affected by the infections that occur as a result of sexual activities with infected men. Some of these are the sexually transmitted diseases like cervical cancer and AIDS. This is because most of the men could have several partners that were unmarried and could end up being unmarried.
Although sexual revolution has been seen to have great negative impact to women’s lives, the evolution of pills has helped to empower women in the state which has in turn caused a change in the entire world. Sexual liberation has led to most of early marriages among the ladies in Ireland. This has in turn caused most women not to go through the education system in Ireland leading to high levels of illiteracy.
Sexual liberation has also led to unmarried mothers becoming desperate. This is as a result of increased premarital pregnancies which were common among the teens. Again, it also led to increased immoral behaviors amongst young ladies. In addition, the freedom in sexual matters helped women in the places of work. The evolution of the pill gave married women the freedom to choose the number of children they could wish to bear (Bradley, p.122).
End of the sexual liberation in Ireland
The spread of sexual practices in Ireland increased at a high rate between early 1980s to1990s. Records show that most of the affected groups during this period were still women and unmarried girls. This was indicated by the high rate of teen pregnancies recorded during this period.
This went on at this high rate until 1991 when the rate of premarital pregnancies started to decline up to date. However, records of birth rates in Ireland and most parts of Europe show that teenage birth rate is still the leading as compared to the women birth rates (Wilson and Donnan, p. 134).
Conclusion
From the discussion on sexual revolution in Ireland, it has been found that women were highly affected by this period. This has been indicated by the high rate of deaths recorded in the state which was a result of the sexually transmitted diseases like AIDS, gonorrhea and syphilis among others.
Despite the negative impacts of the sexual revolution to women, there are also positive effects arising from the use of some sexual practices introduced during this period. Some of these were use of contraceptives which were found to be helpful to women as it helped reduce the pregnancies and birth rates.
It also helped young girls to reduce premarital pregnancies. On the other hand, men were also affected by the sexual revolution because having sex with those who were infected still transmitted the diseases. Again, the sexual revolution posed a great danger to the community and society at large. This is because of the increased freedom of sexual activities that led to destruction of norms and ethical standards in the state.
Works Cited
Bradley, Anthony. Gender and Sexuality in Modern Ireland. Amherst: Univ. of Massachusetts Press, 1997. Print.
Godbeer, Richard. Sexual Revolution in Early America. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004. Print.
Wilson, Thomas M. and Hastings Donnan. The Anthropology of Ireland. Oxford: Berg, 2006. Print.
The 21st century is the age of information and mass media. With the government and corporate control over the internet vanning, an individual’s actions today can achieve that which 50 years ago was considered impossible. Access to information provided new tools to reach out to millions of people worldwide in order to fight discrimination, violence, and racism. The newly discovered freedom of speech caused a major shift in public opinion, supplanting the power of dominant population in America to suppress, exploit, and belittle the country’s minorities. The result of such shifts was the protest of Colin Kaepernick, who opposed the flag of a nation that allowed for innocent people of color to be gunned down by police with impunity.
Socio-Cultural Causes Behind Kaepernick’s Protest
In order to understand the magnitude and bravery behind Kaepernick’s protest, it is important to realize the pressure placed on every single media representative in the entertainment industry. Sports athletes, musicians, and actors provide entertainment for large groups of people. It also makes them slaves to public opinion, since they must speak what the public wants them to hear, lest they lose popularity and employment. By putting himself on the line, Kaepernick risked his career and employment in the forty-niners’ sports club. There are several reasons as to why he did it.
The first reason is the violence against black people that had been escalating in the past 5 years. According to the FBI bulletin, black victims of police violence constitute 25% of the entire group, despite comprising roughly 13% of the entire population (Payne). One of the most famous examples of institutionalized police brutality included the apprehension of Ferguson riots in 2014, which resulted in 1 death, 10 injuries, and over 300 arrests (Payne). The awareness of multiple acts of police brutality across the US was made possible because of social media and the Internet, which helped collect proof and share information between many people.
The second factor that contributed to Kaepernick’s impact was the existence of various social movements promoting racial and gender equality. One of these major groups is Black Lives Matter, which helps shape the public opinion by exposing various injustices and violations against the black community by the government, the educational system, the businesses, and the law enforcement. The organization exists since 2013, and during the four years before Kaepernick’s incident, it managed to gain significant exposure and promote the rights of black people across the US (Virk).
The last factor revolves around sustainability. Fifty years ago, any activist challenging the status quo could be effectively suppressed by being fired and shunned by the predominantly white community. Black rights leaders did not see any government support and had to rely on their own supporters to promote the cause. Because of this factor, it required figures like Martin Luther King Jr. as well as massive boycotts and demonstration to make a dent in the public opinion.
Although Kaepernick was expelled from the forty-niners for his action, he received support and endorsements from numerous companies, one of the being Nike (Virk). His image was used to facilitate a social awareness campaign, which was in line with the company’s views on social responsibility (Draper and Belson).
Effects of Kaepernick’s Protest
Two years from now, the effects of Kaepernick’s protest can finally be evaluated with a degree of certainty. The player suffered, as ever since being fired from the club, he did not find a different sporting team. Aside from participation in Nike’s social awareness advertisement, he did not have any major contracts (Payne). For an athlete, 2 years off the field is akin to a death sentence. It shows that going up against the established “status quo” still has a price. However, his sacrifice was not in vain, as it sent ripples across American society. Many other athletes have joined Kaepernick in the act of protest, refusing to salute the American flag, which, in their view, stands for discrimination, slavery, and violence against black people.
President Trump’s spiteful reaction to Kaepernick’s protest, as seen on twitter, could also be seen as an achievement, as it helped expose the man’s true opinions about police violence, riots, and gender inequality in general. Even though 2 years have passed, Kaepernick’s actions are still mentioned during mid-term elections by politicians and pundits on both sides of the spectrum (Payne). The change that Kaepernick and other athletes risked their careers for will not happen overnight, but it is happening. The public has not forgotten, and there is a debate going on, meaning that the conditions and the treatment of black people in the US are going to change for the better.
Conclusions
Kaepernick’s protest was the result of a variety of causes that happened beforehand. Although the continuous violence against black communities by the police was the triggering event, the groundwork was laid by the invention and use of social media, the creation of dedicated organizations to protect black rights, and the continuous fight for liberty and equality that has been going on in the US since 1954. Although the impact of his actions was not as apparent as Martin Luther King’s, the ocean is made out of droplets. The more people like him speak up, the more likely it is for change to happen.
Ever since the agrarian, industrial and scientific revolution, the world has been experiencing a lot of changes that have affected the lifestyles, cultures and beliefs of every society in the world. It is due to these changes that people started to fight for human rights, democracy, equality and so on.
Ever since its early days of establishment, USA has been known to be a nation that contains intellectual and rational individuals. These individuals conatin the knowledge and skills required to make a great nation. As a result, the nation has been renowned for its excellence. The main basis of this excellence has been the sustainable education system of the country coupled with favourable social structures that aimed at developing the cognitive capacity of individuals to a great level.
However, with the rapid advancement in technology that has been experienced in the last few decades, the level of rationalism and intellectuality of the people of the United States has become questionable. Is the country losing its intellectual and rational ways? This is the question that many people keep on asking themselves.
Some believe that the citizens of the country have become ignorant while others believe that the country is in the middle of a literacy revolution. These claims have come about due to the changes that are being experienced in the print and visual media. Initially, people used to utilize a lot of print materials. Students used to read poems, books, novels, journals and so on within and outside the class.
This trend has however changed and now individuals are doing more of watching than reading. At the same time, the internet, especially the social media has changed the manner in which individuals interact, think and write. Due to this fact, a study should be conducted to determine the effects of this advancement of the intellectual capacity of the nation. This essay therefore explores the effects of these developments on the intellectual and rationality capacity of individuals of the United States.
Ignorance or New Literacy
Severalarguments have been raised pertaining to whether Americans are becoming ignorant to literacy or they are undergoing a great revolution. Several scholars have come up with their theories and opinions pertaining the issue. In her book, The Age of American Unreason, Susan Jocoby states that Americans have changed the manner in which they think and perceive things (Jacoby 1).
According to her, much of the problems that the nation is facing have been due to the ignorance that has risen from the public. This ignorance has come about due to the changes in that the society is experiencing. There has been a rapid decline in the use of print media by the public for the last three or so decades (Jacoby 5).
People are not reading as much as they used to back in the day. Instead, the spend much of their time watching television, playing video games and surfing the internet. The number of 17 year olds who read nothing other than their course material has doubled between 1984 and 2004 (Jacoby 6). Due to this fact therefore, these individuals do not have the relevant knowledge and skills that are required to build and sustain a great nation. Susan therefore blames technology for the problems that the nation is currently facing.
On the other hand, Thompson and McKean believe that the nation is undergoing an intellectual revolution. According to them, the intensity of this change is so great that it will result to the creation of more rational and intellectual individuals that the nation had never had before. All this can be attributed to the introduction of new technology. Through the use of the internet and social media, individuals have had the chance to read and write about a lot of issues (Thompson 3).
This has in turn developed them into great writers. At the same time, social media and networks such as tweeter and facebook has given them a chance to easily associate and socialize with one another. This has made it easier for them to share information and ideas. These changes have thus made them understand life in a better perspective by being able to define the problem and come up with solutions (McKean 5).
Personally, I tend to believe that technology has increased the thinking capacity of individuals. It has enable people to view issues from a different perspective. At the same time, the flow of information and ideas is much easier. People are now exposed to a lot of things than before.
This has made them to be more intellectual and rational individuals. The state should therefore put much emphasis on the use of technology. A lot of studies and research should therefore be conducted to ensure that technology is used in a way that will bring about positive change to the people of the United States.
Conclusion
An intellectual revolution is going on in the United States. This change aims at producing rational individuals who are more learned and ready to face the challenges of life. This change has resulted to a decline in the utilization of print media and an increase in the use of visual media. The nation is therefore not suffering from any intellectual problem.
Revolutions often arise from growing discontent with poverty, inequality, and other similar phenomena. A revolution is a complex process that unexpectedly emerges from a social system that is declining in many areas at once. People maintain the same beliefs to fight those who disagree with them. In general, revolutions seem to be instruments of change and transformation achieved after the struggle against oppression. The main reasons for the emergence of revolutions are the lack of financial resources in households, authoritarian regimes, geographical location, and an absence of freedom when it comes to human rights. A striking example is a recent revolution in Kyrgyzstan when the people revolted because they were dissatisfied with the results of the elections. This country will be compared with its neighbors, while the other country with revolution to compare with neighbors will be Myanmar.
The hypothesis tested through data collection is:
“Neighboring with nondemocratic countries and low income, freedom, and democracy inside the country leads to revolutions”.
Dependent variable: Number of revolutions in the last 10 years.
Independent variable: Neighbor countries (geographical location).
The method used to research the hypothesis is the most similar system design for the examples to prove or disprove it. GDP per capita, political regimes, and human rights (based on the Freedom House rating) are used to describe the current situation in the considered country and its neighbors.
GDP per capita
Political Regime
Human Rights (0-100)
Number of revolutions in the last 10 years
Kyrgystan
1,173
Unofficially Autocratic
38
1
Kazakhstan
9,055
Unofficially Autocratic
23
0
Uzbekistan
1,685
Unofficially Autocratic
11
0
China
10,500
Autocratic
9
0
Tajikistan
859
Unofficially Autocratic
8
1
GDP per capita
Political Regime
Human Rights (0-100)
Number of revolutions in the last 10 years
Myanmar
1,400
Autocratic
28
1
India
1,900
Democratic
67
0
Bangladesh
1,968
Democratic
39
2
China
10,500
Autocratic
9
0
Thailand
7,189
Autocratic
30
1
Laos
2,603
Autocratic
13
0
According to the data received, indeed, the neighbors of Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar have also had revolutions over the past 10 years. Various reasons can lead to these revolutions, since there is no obvious correlation with the number of revolutions in the country (“Countries and Territories”) neither in the indicators of human rights, nor in GDP per capita, nor in the political regime. Nevertheless, it is the geographical position that becomes the determinant by which one can partly judge the possibility of a revolution in the country. This hypothesis is only partially confirmed: the proximity to countries where the revolution has been proven, while low incomes, political regimes or gross product per capita require additional research, an increase in the sample, so that correct conclusions can be drawn.
Patel et al., in the article ‘Ending Africa’s Hunger’, illustrate that about a billion of world population consumes less than 1,900 calories of food per day. This largely deplorable situation necessitates devising of strategies to increase agricultural production. Africa has large agricultural fields and hence, if agricultural productivity per acre of land can be increased, the registered deficits can be tackled.
One of the agricultural productivity improvement strategies introduced is the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation initiative called “Green Revolution”. Green Revolution is a multibillion-dollar initiative aimed at revamping the African agriculture sector. The Foundation has already spent more than $ 1.3 billion on agricultural developments and grants in Africa, all with the aim of solving the African hunger problem (Patel et al.).
Despite the millions of dollars being spent, it seems the Green Revolution strategy is not a viable solution. A person’s nutritional demands have expanded overtime due to changing lifestyles and plant genetics. Hunger in Africa results more from soil infertility and ineffective distribution strategies rather than individual farmer efforts.
Green Revolution was a strategy hatched in the United States. The idea was implemented after the USA noted that hunger likely pushed the urban and rural poor population to demand changes in global politics.
After its success in countries such as India, Philippines, Pakistan and Turkey; food production in those countries increased, it was hoped that the idea would yield similar success in Africa. Patel et al. argue that Green Revolution was practised on a large scale in China. However, when China withdrew from the initiative, South America was affected and hunger in South America increased by 20%.
The increase in food production as a result of Green revolution was not that simple, and it was linked to other social issues. For example, peasants were removed from their lands to pave the way for commercial farming. Therefore, green revolution strategies enhanced agricultural production while leading to creation of slums.
Other social and economic problems such as; persistent use of pesticides, reduction in water levels in rivers due to irrigation activities and other unregulated agricultural practices led to environmental degradation (Patel et al.). In India, where the Green Revolution was practised on a large scale, it caused environmental and economic issues prompting farmers to revert to old farming practices.
In Africa, the Green Revolution strategy has extensively embraced technologically driven farming methods approach in achieving its objectives. About $1.3 billion has been invested in technology with about 30% being directed towards developing seed technologies, training women and providing infrastructure to source food locally (Patel et al).
Criticism against Technology-Based Approaches
The article heavily criticizes technology-based approaches to agricultural productivity improvement. However, the kind of technologies employed and their application seems controversial. Lack of credible agricultural research institution and reduced government investment in the agricultural sector in African countries makes such an approach not very credible.
The hunger challenge is caused by lack of strong government instruments in addressing agricultural challenges in the sector. Lack of government commitment is evidenced in the relative government underinvestment in the sector. Lack of capacity by African governments to invest in technology makes the agricultural strategies employed in the green revolution not very sustainable.
Even before the Green Revolution initiative, Africa used to export about 1.3 million tons of foods in 1960’s. Such levels of food production were made possible by the World Bank because it had forced most African countries to accept International Development Loan, which is costly in repayment.
Technology Argument
Green Revolution technology presents a different viewpoint or a totally radical departure from traditional approach. It is argued that technology has enhanced more agricultural production through necessitating high yielding seeds and production of synthetic fertilizers to sustain agricultural production. Green Revolution has advanced cause for use of Genetically Modified Seed so as to increase production.
However, generally speaking, genetically modified foodstuffs have social and environmental problems or questions. Embracing technology means issues such as soil and water pollution, use of synthetic fertilizer in agriculture, greenhouse effects and unemployment are unavoidable.
Due to the mentioned issues, many African countries have adamantly held on to or embraced traditional farming methods, which are considered safe and eco-friendly. For example, in Kenya, farmers and researchers have developed a local solution to curb the risk of striga, a parasitic weed, which is a challenge to African farmers. The focus on local and traditional methods is a strategy aimed at enhanced food security in an eco-friendly manner
Bias
The green revolution was well-intended. However, the Green Revolution technology has brought about challenges in various aspects. Implementing the technology in an African context means more people will lose their lands and create a landless society. Employing the strategy leads to need for more land to support large scale commercial farming.
Consequently, the technology will promote or lead to social problems in society. A large percentage of the African population solely depends on agriculture as a source of employment. The Green Revolution technology will decrease direct employment avenues exploited by a majority of Africans.
Works Cited
Patel Raj, Holt-Giménez, Eric and Shattuck, Annie. Ending Africa’s Hunger, 2009 15th July 2011. Web <https://foodfirst.org/>
The sexual revolution, sometimes referred to as the sexual liberation, was a social awareness movement that challenged traditional practices pertaining to sex, sexuality, and personal relationships between persons in a number of Western nations beginning from the 1960s all through to the 1980s. The period was marked by a radical deviation from social norms that were then accepted as standard in society (Smith, 1990, 5).
These included the increased acceptance of sex outside of the traditional heterosexual relationships (largely through marriage), contraception and birth control, public nudity, mainstream acceptance of homosexuality and other forms of same-sex relationships, increased acceptance of pornographic materials, and the legalization of abortion.
Attitudes to these facets of sex and sexuality evolved, sometimes radically, throughout the whole duration of the revolution. The revolution was facilitated by the urge to ‘find oneself’, the rights movements of the 1960s, and the quest for autonomy regarding sex and sexuality (Garton, 2006, 95).
Although the term ‘revolution’ means radical and extensive change, this was not generally the case. Even in the midst of the revolution, traditionally held opinions were widely observed, and many contemporary social scholars have recently begun to think that the use of the term ‘revolution’ is too much of an exaggeration. Most of the experimental data related to the movement only date back to the mid 1960s. Despite this, there were observable shifts in sexual attitudes and norms, especially among young adults.
Although it is often said to have began in the 1960s, signs of the revolution had began earlier on in the 1920s, the 1960s revolution extended the ideas by the activists to many Western nations and encompassed many pro-groups that were now associated with the era (McLaren, 1999, 12). The movement is thought to have begun with Freud’s ideas on sexual liberation and psychosexual topics. In the end, pro-gay rights groups, hippies, pro-abortion groups and many other political movements were all instrumental in the push for change.
The sexual revolution of the 1960s was manifested in a number of Western nations, for example, the Stonewall riots of 1969 in the US that pitted homophile groups against the police, in Sweden, sexually themed movies with explicit nudity such as Hon dansade en sommar (She Danced a Summer AKA One Summer of Happiness) and Sommaren med Monika (The Summer with Monika) were introduced, and in the UK, the government unsuccessfully attempted to try Penguin Books in court for publishing Lady Chatterley’s Lover, a book that contained explicit content. Other books with sexual themes and explicit content such as Joan Garrity’s The Way to Become the Sensuous Woman (1969), Alex Comfort’s The Joy of Sex: A Gourmet Guide to Love (1972) and so on, were published and imported in several Western nations, often at the resistance of the respective governments. Playboy, Penthouse, and Cosmopolitan magazines were also read widely in these countries.
The idea of “Free Love” as expressed by these groups did not just appear overnight. It is a viewpoint with roots deep in human consciousness that only needed a little support to come out. That support appeared from the 1960s onwards in the form of new knowledge regarding human sexuality, birth control and contraception, psychedelic drugs, and a counter-culture that discarded traditional ways and embraced individual freedom.
Theories on the Origin of the Sexual Revolution
The sexual revolution of the 1960s is viewed as a gradual process, and a product of a process that had began in the early 20th century. It was the developments in the modern world, the considerable loss of power by the values of morality entrenched in Christianity, and the surfacing of permissive societies that finally led to the revolution.
A widely held notion is that the changes in sexual behavior that appeared in the 1960s had much of their origin in the developments of the 1940s and 1950s. During this time, public perception of sexual conduct, sex roles, and psychological development was mainly based on Freudian writings.
Some of the early Freudian writings had focused on sexual repression, however, he also identified the consequences of sexual repression. Freud recognized that libidinal energies were powerful and disruptive and in his later works, he came to believe that sexual repression and sublimation were important to the survival of the contemporary human culture.
Wilhelm Reich and Alfred Kinsey’s writings were also influential in the sexual revolution. Wilhelm Reich was one of the Freud’s assistants. He wrote that sexual expression, mainly through orgasm, was natural and that social regulation of libidinal energies by the family, institutionalized sexual morality, and the state was damaging to society’s social well-being. Reich argued that sexual repression heavily deformed psychological development and resulted into dictatorial acts.
Reich’s outlook on the social implication of repression was strengthened by Alfred Kinsey’s experimental studies. His studies showed the extensive ignorance and shame relating to sex due to the conservative sexual and morality ideas. In the Kinsey Report of 1948, the author made unbeknown findings about American’s sexual behaviors. Among these findings was that homosexuality was more common in the United States than anyone had realized, this encouraged more and more homosexuals to come out of their closets and demand for their rights.
Kinsey also wrote that women were much more interested in sex that went beyond reproduction. His writing that “the only unnatural sexual act is that which you cannot perform” only seemed to encourage people to explore their sexuality (Kinsey, 1953, pp. 52).
The sexual revolution was also influenced by the widespread battles over obscenity and pornography, battles that were facilitated by the provisions of the First Amendment. Distribution and sales of pornographic and explicit material was a very lucrative business in many Western nations and in the US, it sometimes involved organized crime and violence.
These battles generated public interest in free sexual speech in a society that had disallowed not only the discussion of matters to do with sex in the pubic domain, but also the portrayal of blunt and actual sexuality in fiction, on the stage, and in videos.
The invention of the television and its widespread use in the 1950s and 1960s, along with other mass communication gadgets and radios and newspapers meant that meant that millions of people could be reached within a short span of time. These media items spread new ideas, including those related to sexuality, at a very speedy rate.
A number of books with erotic content were introduced in the US and UK in the early 1950s and this eventually led to court cases regarding their legality from 1959 through 1966. In the US, three of such books were banned from sale but later reinstated while in the UK, the Obscene Publications Act was enacted in 1959 resulting into court cases. It is thought that these technological changes also pushed the desire to have freedom to express oneself sexually that characterized the sexual revolution (Garton, 2006, 89).
Other proposed elicitors of the movement include the introduction of birth control pills in the 1960s that enabled women to regulate pregnancies, and the advancement of obstetrics, which significantly reduced the number of women who died during childbirth (Garton, 2006, pp. 74).
None of these factors can be single-handedly said to have led to led to the revolution, however, some factors played more significant role than others. It is only safe to say that cumulative contributions of these factors in the preceding years finally ushered the sexual revolution (Allyn, 2001, 24).
Positive Contributions of the Sexual Revolution
The contemporary consensus regarding the sexual revolution of the 1960s is that it was characterized by a radical shift in traditionally held values related to sex and sexuality, in other words, the revolution led into sex becoming more acceptable in the social circles and not only confined to the sharp boundaries of the heterosexual family setup. The revolution had a noticeable impact in a number of social institutions and other facets of the society of which courtship, marriage, parenting, cohabitation, and divorce were the areas most affected.
One of the greatest contributions of the sexual revolution was that it sensitized society on the need for planned contraception while still enjoying sex as had been put forward by Kinsey. Although the idea of birth control pill had surfaced in the 1940s and 1950s, it did not receive widespread attention.
However, with the onset of the revolution and introduction of Enovid, the first ever birth control, its advantages became apparent. Before its introduction, women did not take on long-term jobs since they would leave the job whenever they were pregnant and reenter it when the children were of school-going age. Pills enabled women to plan their future regarding education and careers. They could now pursue higher education and attain some level of equality with men with pregnancy not getting in their way.
Consequently, a higher number of women graduated from colleges and schools and took up professional jobs. Eventually, the pill became a symbol of the sexual revolution as it divorced contraception from sexual acts.
Contraception became easier to manage with the pill as opposed to methods that had been adopted earlier, such as rhythm and safe-days methods. Although many organizations, the church and governments had opposed useof the pill around the time it was introduced, the sexual revolution gave women rights movements more voice to champion for its usage, the endorsement of the pill by Lyndon Johnson, US president during the 1960s due to this social pressure was further testament of the power of the revolution.
The sexual revolution led to the societal acceptance of homosexuality as a legitimate form of sexual orientation. Even at a time of unprecedented changes in society and growing liberal opinions and policies, homosexuality was still publicly censured, condemned and seen as a form of melancholy of mental illness. In fact, throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the prevailingnotion in medical circles was that homosexuality was a poor adjustment to development.
Even though doctors were supposed to give objective advice to their clients, their conclusions were in most cases subjective, which led to biases against the homosexual population (Petigny, 2004, 2). Biased views gained ground as they stemmed from medical professionals. Basically, referring to homosexuality as a psychological condition prevented this community from validly being able to push for their social and legal rights. Homosexuals were viewed as abnormal and risky to the rest of the public.
For instance, between 1956 and 1956, Florida banned homosexuals from public systems, especially in the teaching field. This ban stemmed from the popular belief that these so called ‘deviants’ did a lot of damage when around susceptible and naïve young persons.
With the onset of the sexual revolution, homosexual groups became more vocal and found creative ways of countering societal stereotypes of them. The Mattachine Society, founded in 1950 to fight for gay rights, openly championed for gay rights by confronting a number of federal agencies in the early 1960s. The number of gay lesbian rights groups rose rapidly and by 1966, the number had swelled to 15 with more groups being formed (Smith, 1990, 45).
An example of gay activism was observed in San Francisco on New Year’s Eve 1964, a 4-day seminar between pro-gay groups and Protestant priests that led to the formation of the Council on Religion and the Homosexual. The Stonewall Riots of 1969 also signified not only a rise in both public consciousness of gay rights campaigners, but also in the readiness of gays to fight for the rights they knew they deserved.
The sexual revolution contributed immensely to developments in the medical regulation of sexuality. Apart from the pill, sexual autonomy resulted in adoption of safer sex methods.During the sexual revolution, homosexuality became an accepted sexual orientation, consequently, the number of gays engaging in sex rose (Pizulo, 2008, 121). This soon led to the spread or sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among this community.
This caused a major concern to come up with safer sax methods, especially after the discovery of STDs such as gonorrhea, syphilis, and Hepatitis B. The discovery of AIDS among homosexuals resulted in the mainstream adoption of the condom as a method of halting the spread of these diseases without necessarily excluding sexual activity. When pro-gay groups adopted the condom, the concept was soon adopted by public health educators and AIDS activists as the foundation for preventing the spread of AIDS and other STDs.
Negative Consequences of the Sexual Revolution
The changes in sexual that were heralded by the sexual revolution had several negative effects on societal morality, behaviors and social attitudes surrounding sexuality. First, it led to increased commercialization of sexuality through pornographic videos and mass media.
Pornographic portrayal of sexuality ranged intense presentations of desire to highly stereotyped combinations of sexual positions. Materials ranged from soft core pictures and writings, such as Dr. David Reuben’s Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask) or magazines portraying attractive pictures of beautiful models, to gritty illustrations of kinky sex acts in a typical bedroom or chair. Unfortunately, this autonomy to access pornographic material had profound effects on society.
Pornographic material strengthened the most offensive labels of sex roles, beauty and caused lust. Feminists such as Andrea Dworkin condemned pornography, arguing that it depicted women as sexual objects. There was an increase in sexual activity among teenagers and unmarried youths.
Teenage engagement in sexual acts (determined by age at first intercourse and present active status) increased by large margins during this period, particularly among girls. Consequently, teen pregnancy increased by the same margins. Apparently, normalization of the pill, a consequence of the sexual revolution, also contributed to this increase of sexual activity (Jeffreys, 1990, 26).
A combination of the pill and sexual freedom resulted in a considerable increase in sexual activity, abortions, children born out of marriage, STDs, and divorce. Since the 1960s, the number of marriages has dropped by a third while divorce rates have doubled. During the 1960s, there were only 4 known STDs, so far, the number has risen to 24.
The revolution led to family breakups as women felt more autonomous (regarding their contraception choices and sexual expression) and authoritative and this was strengthened by society’s changing perception of the importance of marriage due to the increasing infiltration of pornographic materials (Allyn, 2001, 73). The movement instigated numerous hitherto unheard sexual experiments in daily living such as open relationships, partner swapping, and ménage à trois.
Communal living environments encouraged short-term relationships. Groups such as the Sexual Freedom League publicized their continuing orgiastic events. Even the unmentionable act of sexual intercourse in the public was discarded. Parks, festivals and hippie meetings were an occasion for ‘couples’ to have sex, even in the full public view. Obviously, these acts deviated from the socially acceptable morals back then, just as it is today. Other unconventional sexual practices such as sadomachism (S&D), BDSM and D&S.
A quite alarming result of the sexual revolution is that it led to an increased support for pedophilic activities. The pro-pedophilia movement begun with Kinsey’s 1953 book, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, in which he mentioned that children as young as 2 months “derive definite sexual pleasure” from sexual stimulation and that sex was important to children just as it was among adults (Kinsey, 1953, 70).
Several events during the revolution aimed at legalizing pedophilia failed to get through, including the call for the “repeal of all laws governing the age of sexual consent” by several gay rights groups, one of which was backed by liberal Democratic presidential candidate George McGovern (Kinsey, 1953, 65). Although these calls never saw the light of day, acts of pedophilia continued to soar but were overlooked due to the newly found “free love” concept.
Conclusion
The sexual revolution of the 1960s was marked by the urge to find oneself and the quest for autonomy and these led to alterations in sexual attitudes and behavior, the movement also challenged traditional social norms related to sex and sexuality. This movement had several impacts on society, both positive and negative.
On the positive side, it sensitized society on the need for planned contraception while still enjoying sex, led to the societal acceptance of homosexuality as a legitimate form of sexual orientation, and contributed immensely to developments in the medical regulation of sexuality.
However, the movement had positive aspects including increased commercialization of sexuality through pornographic videos and mass media, increase in sexual activity among teenagers and unmarried youths leading to an increase in teenage pregnancies and abortions, STDs, divorce and an increase in singe parent families. The revolution also saw an increase in pedophilic acts, unnatural sexual acts, and sexual experiments.
References
Allyn, D. (2001) Make Love, Not War: An Unfettered History. Routledge, NY
Bailey, B. (1997). Prescribing the Pill: Politics, Culture, and the Sexual Revolution in America’s Heartland. Journal of Social History, 1997, 30(4):828, 845
Garton, S. (2006). Histories of Sexuality. Equinox: London
Jeffreys, S. (1990). Anti-climax: a feminist perspective on the sexual revolution. The Women’s Press: London
Kinsey, F. (1953). Sexual Behavior in the Human Male. Indiana: Indiana University
McLaren,A. (1999). Twentieth Century Sexuality. Oxford: Blackwell
Petigny, A. (2004). Illegitimacy, Postwar Psychology, and the Reperiodisation of the Sexual Revolution. Journal of Social History, Volume 38(1), pp. 63-79
Pizulo, C. (2008). The Battle in Every Man’s Bed: Playboy and the Fiery Feminists. Journal of the History of Sexuality, Volume 17, Number 2, May 2008, pp. 259-289
Smith, T. W. (1990). Report: The Sexual Revolution? The Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 54, No. 3.
Galileo who was a teacher in astronomy, geometry and mechanics, made so many discoveries in many scientific fields. He was able to prove that the Sun does not move around the Earth but instead, it was the Earth that moved around the Sun defending the Copernican theory. He developed the theory of the tides to prove that the Earth moved around the Sun. According to him, the tides resulted from the sloshing back and forward of water in the oceans and seas at a point on the Earth’s surface where it is accelerated and slowed down as the Earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the sun (Drake(a) 23). He observed that the depth and shapes of ocean basins as well as their sizes accounted for the differences in tides.
Contributions of the discovery of Phases of Venus
Galileo’s later discoveries of the Venus gave more proof to the Copernicus theory that it is the Sun at the centre of the universe and not the Earth. According to him all the phases of Venus would be visible as Venus moved around the Sun in its own orbit (Drake(b) 11). The Sun caused the illuminated hemisphere of Venus to face the Earth whenever it was on the opposite side of the sun. It would face away from the Earth when it was on the Earth’s side of the Sun. Galileo’s observations disapproved Ptolemy’s geocentric model which indicated that it was not possible for the orbits of the planets to cross the spherical shell that carries the sun. This proved that just like the Earth, there are other planets rotating and revolving around the sun in their axes implying that the Sun is stationery while the planets are in motion.
Mathematics as key to understanding nature
Galileo had believed that Mathematics was the key to understanding nature since he was an empiricist as he based his conclusions on the evidences that he studied. He rejected the way other philosophers had made their conclusions. He disagreed with Aristotelian assumption which had specified that each material body has a position which is in the order of things therefore the motion of objects should be explained in terms of natural tendency of every body to try to find its own place.
He proved his hypotheses by observing, measuring, weighing and finally calculating to achieve mathematical proof. He believed that application of mathematics revealed the structure as well as the laws of the universe (Eistein 51). His investigations of nature with presumption that understanding of mathematics made it possible to understand nature had made him be regarded as a scientist and not a philosopher. His thinking and ideas therefore became the base of scientific revolution in the 17th Century (Lattis 104).
Contributions of Mathematics to Copernican theory
Galileo used his telescope to observe the shapes of planets, comets and the moon and using mathematics, he was able to prove that Aristotle’s perfect spheres did not exists (Lattis 108). This implied that the Earth being one of the planets; was also not a perfect a sphere. He used mathematics to prove the laws of the universe that supported his view that the earth was not perfectly spherical and also that the Earth rotated and revolved around the sun. Galileo had relied on Mathematics for analysis and proofs of his theories such as Eudoxian Theory of Proportion. He used Mathematics in his in his experimental physics. He also used to Mathematics to determine the length of a solar year (Otto 72).
The relationship between Science and Religion
Galileo had maintained that issues of science could not be addressed using the Bible. He maintained that the scripture could not teach natural philosophy as that was not its purpose therefore issues of faith and science ought to be kept separately. His view was that faith and science should be addressed on different grounds. To assert his views, he quoted the words of Cardinal Cesare Baronius who said that the Bible only informs us of how to go to heaven but it does not tell us how the heavens go (Fantoli 62). He also quoted the words of Tertullian who stated that we usually conclude that we first know God through nature followed by the doctrines and then by the nature of his works (Fantoli 62). In his letter to Grand Duchess of Tuscany, he says that whoever opposes science should know that he or she is opposing the truth and not the meaning of the Bible as what is in science is beyond his understanding therefore interprets the meaning according to what he imagines should be the truth.
He acknowledged that the truth from the Bible and the truth from science should not be contradicted. Therefore the Bible should be interpreted in a way that makes it coherent with the truth. The function of expositors is to search for the true wisdom of the scriptural texts. Science on the other hand gives the physical conclusions that manifest sense as well as the necessary demonstrations which had been previously made certain. He argued that the Bible is a historical document and therefore should be written in a language that made sense to the people (Fantoli 64). In his book the Assayer, he argued that the comets were sublunary. He discussed some of his most reknowned methodological pronouncements and claimed that it is only possible to understand nature by first understanding Mathematics.
Science as part of Theology
Galileo’s support for the Copernican theory which strongly argued that it was the Sun at the centre of the universe and not the Earth thereby agreeing with the heliocentric view as opposed to the geocentric view that the Catholic Church had been preaching made his ideas to be rejected (Fantoli 61). However, he argued that science should not be taken as contradictory to the Bible as both the teachings from the Bible and the discoveries from science are searching for the truth.
Both should be made to compliment and not to compete against each other since they offer completely different as well as separate bodies of knowledge. Galileo encouraged his Christian critics not to take what they read from the scriptures literally (Fantoli 61). According to him, science should provide the physical explanation of the universe. The Bible provides the basis for understanding of the universe while science provides an account for what is in the universe. Therefore theology should be made compatible to science to gain more understanding of the universe as science offers a refinement which enhances proper understanding.
Letter to Grand Duchess Christina
Heliocentric view which was strongly supported by Galileo argued that the Sun was at the centre of the universe and not the Earth; did not prove some physical aspects of the theory. For example, if the view was to be true then there should be observable parallax shifts as regards to the position of the stars since the earth moves in its own orbit around the sun. He did not provide methods for computing the observational consequences of his proposed heliocentric ideas. Therefore his argument that the all the planets revolve around the Sun could not be true since it was not possible for orbits of the planets to cross that the shell carries the sun.
Reflection
Heliocentric view grew as a result of the people who were opposed to Catholic doctrines and were not keen on following the teachings of the Bible. They had believed that Galileo had empirical proved his views and therefore blindly followed in his footsteps. The geocentric view remains the only theory to have been proved and the only one that is in line with the teachings of the Bible which states that the Earth is stationery.
Works Cited
Drake, Stillman (a). Essays on Galileo and the History and Philosophy of Science. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. 1999. Print.
Drake, Stillman (a). Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo. New York: Doubleday & Company. 1957 Print.
Einstein, Albert. Ideas and Opinions. translated by Sonja Bargmann. London: Crown Publishers. 1954 Print.
Fantoli, Annibale. Galileo: For Copernicanism and the Church, 3rd English ed.. Vatican: Vatican Observatory Publications. 2003 Print.
Lattis, James. Between Copernicus and Galileo: Christopher Clavius and the Collapse of Ptolemaic Cosmology. Chicago: the University of Chicago Press, 1994. Print.
Otto, Neugebauer. A history of ancient mathematical astronomy, Birkhäuser, New York: Springer. 1975 Print.
There have been many radical changes in concepts of science of the 17th century where new scientific concepts and laws replaced old ones most notably chemical revolution. One of the revolutionary conceptual changes occurred when phlogiston theory of Stahl was replaced by the oxygen theory of Lavoisier.
According to the phlogiston theory popular in the 17th century, when substances undergo combustion, they absorb or release a substance called phlogiston. However, the development of Lavoisier’s oxygen theory in the late 18th century marked a chemical revolution for it introduced new and different concepts.
This paper will describe a theory of conceptual change in scientific history with regard to Stahl’s phlogiston theory and Lavoisier’s oxygen theory.
The phlogiston theory was based on medieval conceptual structure which held that all matter on Earth is composed of three principles viz. mercury which represents the liquid part of the earth, sulfur which represents inflammability, and salt representing inertness. The theory held that during combustion, “a metal releases a sulfurous substance known as phlogiston that has a negative weight leaving behind a heavier residue called calx” (Thagard 184).
However, Lavoisier’s oxygen theory caused a revolution to these concepts by establishing that release of oxygen gas occurs when a metal undergoes combustion and absorption occurs in calcinations; the reverse process of combustion. In addition, the theory established that calx residue is the metal that combined with oxygen hence accounting for the increase in weight in the calcinations process.
This theory is different from Stahl’s theory which proposed that a negative weight substance (phlogiston) lost by the metal during combustion, was responsible for increase in weight. Consequently, Stahl’s conceptual structure involving phlogiston was replaced with Lavoisier’s new concepts.
In explaining conceptual change in science, a description of the development of new conceptual structures and their impact on the existing concepts that lead to the replacement of the old concepts is important. A description of the stages of Lavoisier’s new conceptual structures is important in understanding what constitutes theory of conceptual change.
Nersessian posits that, “a conceptual structure consists of many concepts and related ideas that can be described as a network of nodes (concepts) that are linked together” (14). A conceptual change introduces new concepts and ideas that replace or eliminate the existing nodes (concepts) leading to establishment of new rules.
Conceptual revolution caused by replacement of either partial or entire concepts of a theory leads to restructuring of the theory to fit into the new ideas. A change in concepts leads to theory change that influences the belief of people in particular disciplines.
Stahl proposed the phlogiston theory, which was a different concept from the then popular view proposed by Aristotle holding that matter is composed of four elements namely, earth, air, fire and water. Stahl (1723-1730) proposed that matter consisted of three principles namely; the inflammable principle, phlogiston, liquefiable principle, mercury, and salt. He explained that substances such as sulfur were inflammable because they contained the principle of inflammability.
He further explained the reverse process, calcinations (like rusting) as processes that occur due to a metal releasing phlogiston and respiration due to the body releasing a phlogiston into the atmosphere. In addition, Stahl’s concepts explained that the principles made up simple ‘mixts’ while many ‘mixts’ made up a compound.
Lavoisier began his experiments in 1772 culminating in the development of the oxygen theory in 1789. He observed that air is released (effervescence) when metals react with acids and that calcinations involved increases weight of the resultant oxides. At this point, Lavoisier concluded that calcinations and combustion were due to air present in metals.
In 1774, Lavoisier added new ideas to his earlier concepts when he discovered that sulfur and phosphorus increased in weight after combustion.
In 1777, Lavoisier described the active agent of combustion as pure air. He further suggested that a distinct active part of atmospheric air was responsible for the increase in weight during combustion and calcification. Lavoisier further identified four distinct components of atmospheric air.
At the same period, Scheele, Lavoisier and Priestley were able to isolate pure active ingredient of air responsible for calcinations and combustion. At this point, Lavoisier outlined the weakness of phlogiston theory for failure to isolate the phlogiston that according to Stahl, explained the increase in mass of substances after combustion.
In 1780s, Lavoisier was able to develop the oxygen theory completely overturning the concepts of phlogiston theory. He described the active pure component of air as the ‘principe oxygine’ or oxygen that was responsible for combustion. He also described the heat or fire produced during combustion as ‘caloric’ but noted that air was responsible for the heat produced during combustion rather than the combustible elements proposed by phlogiston theory.
He further noted that metals burnt in oxygen to produce oxides while nonmetals produced heat or light during combustion. Through the continuous and cumulative development of new ideas and concepts, Lavoisier was able to point out the limitations of Stahl’s phlogiston theory and developed the oxygen theory to replace it.
The theory of conceptual change involves a continuous and cumulative development of new concepts that builds on existing ideas and finally culminates into a new theory that replaces the existing one. Lavoisier, in 1772 had remote idea that air is involved during combustion; an idea he developed further with new evidence and innovations to finally give out the oxygen theory in 1783 that disputed the phlogiston theory.
The theory of conceptual change must not only explain the origin of conceptual structures in science, but also explain how they rival the existing concepts. In addition, this theory should also explain the acceptability of the new concepts by the larger scientific community.
Two theories can explain the revolutionary conceptual change in science; the accretion and gestalt theories even though the accretion theory is insufficient as it avoids the cumulative and continuous organization of ideas into a theory.
The accretion theory outlines the build up of new ideas into a new-conceptual organization that replaces the existing ones. The views held by Stahl are contrast those held by Lavoisier.
The phlogiston theory maintains that metals are composed of calxes and phlogistons are released during combustion. On the other hand, the new conceptual scheme by Lavoisier holds that the oxygen and metals make up the calxes (oxides). The conceptual change involved introduction of new concepts and replacement of the old conceptual scheme.
The Gestalt Switch theory proposed by Kuhn in 1970 contends that conceptual change is a paradigm shift from the existing concepts and does not involve the reorganization of ideas that goes into a scientific concept.
However, during the development of the oxygen theory, Lavoisier did not make a paradigm shift in ideas but rather built on his ideas eventually coming up with the oxygen theory, a major contribution to the chemical revolution. An ideal theory for conceptual change entails innovations, scientific discovery, and computational research.
Works Cited
Nersessian, Nancy. “Mental Modeling in Conceptual Change.” The Handbook of Conceptual Change 4.2 (2008): 12-19.
Thagard, Paul. “The Conceptual Structure of Chemical Revolution”. Philosophy of Science 57.2 (1990): 183-209.
The video is all about a captivating story of how the Green Revolution was started so that people in the developing world could be rescued from hunger. Norman Borlaug was the leading scientist in the initiative that began in the 1940s (The Green Revolution: Waging a War against Hunger). The scientist is credited with helping about one billion persons to avoid starvation. The Green Revolution was typified by many scientific activities that led to the development of high-producing types of grains, improvement of agricultural systems, and distribution of high quality seeds. Others were modernization of farm management methods, the introduction and expansion of irrigation infrastructure, assembly of farm machinery and the production of pesticides (The Green Revolution: Waging a War against Hunger).
Although Norman Borlaug maintains that the goal of the Green Revolution was to alleviate famine, which was frequently experienced in the developing world, Nick Cullather does not agree with his statement (Cullather 2). In his book, Cullather provides important information about how the politics were utilized in Asian’s Cold War to champion interests of the US. Thus, the author argues that the objective of the revolution was to control Asia after the Second World War.
The US government was committed to transmuting the politics of nations that were characterized by perpetual conflicts into a platform of complex politics that could achieve relatively high levels of agricultural production (Cullather 76). The fascinating story of Cullather highlights the political ideologies that were concealed in fighting against hunger in a post-war Asia. In fact, the author does not only show that the US government was keen on the economics of famine in the continent, but he also demonstrates that it focused on promoting American technology that could go a long way in winning Asian hearts and minds (Cullather 34).
It is important to note that Asia was largely using ideologies associated with communism, which were not supported by the US government. It was believed that if Asia continued with communism, then the American government could not control some valuable resources in the continent, such as crude oil. However, by encouraging people to adopt modern methods of agriculture, America could be viewed as a nation that was keen on saving many persons across the world from hunger. Although the proponents of the Green Revolution adopted a complex development policy, it is evident that mixed results of the American engagement with Asian politics were obtained (Cullather 98).
The story Cullather tells in his book is different from that in the video. The video concentrates on informing the audience about the positive impacts of modern approaches to farming. The narrator says that the Green Revolution initiative was successful as a result of many reasons, such as support from different bodies (The Green Revolution: Waging a War against Hunger). Some of the bodies mentioned are the Ford Foundation, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), among others.
On the other hand, Cullather contends that the revolution was a myth that aimed at replacing other societies’ agricultural systems with problematic farming approaches from America (Cullather 15). The professor of history believes that the revolution was the basis of the hearts and minds doctrine that exposed the specifics of war that could not easily be identified by many people across the world.
Works Cited
Cullather, Nick. The Hungry World: America’s Cold War Battle against Poverty in Asia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2010. Print.
The Green Revolution: Waging a War against Hunger. Ex Prod. Nick Cullather. New York, NY: NHD-Senior Group Documentary. 2010.