Class Relationships in US Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Class Relationships in US - Essay Example This war turned out to be the biggest war in the history of the world, named as Civil War (Tripp). Civil war was the longest war to be fought; it took five years for American authorities to overcome this war. The central point of this war was the slavery system of black people, and the domination of white people. Civil war pushed America to reconstruct the whole nation of America by bringing them together. The nation’s unity and the new laws regarding the system of replacing slavery and the status of slaves took into consideration. The slavery system was abolished and the black people were given the freedom to utterly claim their-selves as the citizens of America, likewise the whites. The African American identity was allotted to the black nation of US. The blacks were given equal rights to contribute in the elections by voting for their preferred leader, by the US government. The statuses of the slaves were taken care of by giving four million of them the identification of being called as American citizens. Civil war stood out the nation power more superior to the state g overnment. After the Civil War, US nation endured unity and the US quickly became the primary economic power in the world. When we see the US today, it gives us the clear picture of a complete new reformed America. Zero class discrimination is being seen. There is seen to be a strong & equal bounding between blacks and whites. After the coming of Barack Obama the place of class has been changed. The coming of African American President is the proof of present class status of America. Laws are developed in the favor of blacks, for the protection of their rights. With time white has started to equalize themselves with Blacks, but on the basis of religion the issue is still in light. Slavery of Black people has overcome finely. We can see blacks in every industry. Blacks are much motivated to join US army, Hollywood & politics. Blacks are treated equally as

Ranking method Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ranking method - Research Paper Example The users don’t have to scan through every webpage to find the relevant ones or those with relevant tweets or news. Many ranking functions have been developed for the purpose of evaluating the websites and the web contents. Each of these functions is based on a different algorithm which uses a certain criteria to evaluate the relevance of web content and the data. This paper will consider three separate papers that make an illustration of the use different criteria to apply the ranking algorithm to solve ranking problems based on different aspects. We will seek to find out the themes that are common in these papers, the non-overlapping concepts and any disagreements. We will also determine the various ranking algorithms and their use by researchers to improve ranking. The various aspects of the ranking algorithms will also be looked at to determine their importance to internet users. In the world today, there is an exponential increase in the demand for information which has been highly facilitated by the advancement of informational technology. This has resulted in the development of billions of online items and websites that try to satisfy the users’ needs. Most of these items and websites do not serve the interest of the users fully. Therefore there is the need to optimize these items by ranking them according to their usefulness and also gather information on the usefulness of various websites to users [2]. In this paper, we analyze three research papers which mainly revolve around improving the user experience in the online industry. The articles are Dupret etal [1], Feng etal [2] and Kumar etal [3]. Each one of them compliments the other in that they all propose how to optimize ranking of items in a website and how to evaluate the success by deriving the user engagement using a proposed metric. A summary of how to optimize the informational items found online will be provided which largely try to address the problems

Latin America Essay Example for Free

Latin America Essay 1. Within Middle America, geographers recognize the contrast (cultural, economic, and historical) between the isthmus and the Caribbean islands. Describe the diagnostic characteristics of the Mainland and Rimland regions of Middle America. Middle America includes approximately 7,000 Caribbean islands with hot, humid, and tropical climates; and is an isthmus (land bridge) between the north and South America. The four larger islands are called the Greater Antilles and the smaller islands are the Lesser Antilles (Archipelago). Sometimes middle and South America is referred to as â€Å"Latin America. † The realm is physically and politically fragmented. It began with the lowland Mayans and the highland Aztecs until the cultures collided. The Aztecs developed irrigation systems and were great pioneers of agricultural sweet potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and tobacco. When the Spanish first arrived in Middle America they joined forces with the Amerindians and attacked the Aztecs. This attack affected Middle America badly. The Spanish brought diseases with them, such as measles, smallpox, mumps, and many more causing their population to decline drastically. They also experienced things like changes in religion and deforestation, as well as other significant long lasting effects. Middle America is culturally diverse. The â€Å"euro-Amerindian† mainland is composed of Amerindians, mestizos (Indian and European), and Europeans. The â€Å"euro-African Caribbean† Rimland is compiled with Hispanics, blacks, mulattos (African), British, Dutch, and French. Some geographers may argue that the environment of ‘Middle America is among the world’s most hazardous environments’ and natural hazards such as volcanoes, earthquakes, and hurricanes. The characteristics for the mainland and Rimland are very specific. The mainland is highly isolated while the Rimland is highly accessible. The mainland climate is considered altitudinal zonation and the Rimland is tropical. The Rimland consists of islands, but mountains are found on the mainland. Mestizo is the race of the mainland and mulatto is of the Rimland. The landholding platform of the mainland is haciendas prevailed, whereas on the Rimland a plantation economy (an export crop for sugar cane and bananas). The hacienda provided year round jobs, domestic markets, diversified crops, and was self-sufficient. The plantation economy provided single cash crop, production for export, seasonal employment, and â€Å"banana† republics. These are all diagnostic characteristics of the Mainland and Rimland regions of Middle America. 2. What are the pros and cons of tourism in the Caribbean Islands? Tourism by definition is â€Å"the processes, activities and outcomes arising from the relationships and the interactions among tourists, tourism suppliers, host government, host communities and surrounding environments that are involved in the attracting and hosting of visitors. † The Caribbean is the most densely populated region of Middle America. Although agriculture was an important part of the region’s economic expansion, today tourism, industrialization, and banking are the major sources of development. An economic con of tourism in the Caribbean is that the islands are becoming more and more dependent of tourism. Most of their monies collected from tourism will eventually go to a foreign investor that involves tourism, such as a hotel owner, transportation companies, etc. , because the economy is based on exports, offshore banking, and manufacturing. Foreigners are large consumers of luxury goods on the Caribbean islands. Locals may find that as a con, because beaches and such are being destroyed to make room for tourist structures such as shopping centers and/or hotels. Therefore, causing a great divide in wages of a management worker compared to a minimum basic worker. Due to tourists consumption of seafood, water, electricity, and supplies this could cause a price increase for the locals and/or shortage of these things as well. On a social stand point, a con would be the criminal sector of tourism. Drugs, sex trafficking, and prostitution are all unregulated criminal acts that take place while touring. Locals may also feel â€Å"invaded† by the high amount of tourist that explore their communities, making them angry or resentful of the tourist. More cons of tourism include: free spending, no chances for local entrepreneurs, bad manners, rich mingling with the poor, and debase of local culture to tourist culture. A few pros to consider of tourism are, the more tourist structures they may build are the potential opportunities to create more service and management related jobs for the locals. This also allows them to earn foreign exchange. On a social stand point, Caribbean culture may be more appreciated and understood once a foreigner visits the islands. Typically foreigners like to explore and take excursions on the mainland once arriving on the islands, therefore this gives local citizens reason to keep their island and historical sites renovated and maintained, whereas they may have not, had they not had visitors tour those sites often. Cultural events/festivals are developed because a large number of foreigners participate. More pros of tourism include: creating more service jobs, promotion of urban development, becoming major dollar revenue, and it promotes handicraft business. Tourism in general is complex, and perhaps many would argue that tourism is a â€Å"good thing†, I would say that it is on the verge of being a â€Å"bad thing† for the Caribbean islands. In my opinion, for the locals, the cons heavily outweigh the pros on an economic and social level. 3. In the Amazonia, Brazil what is being forecast as a pending environmental and cultural disaster. How is this occurring and what would be the consequence? Brazil is on the rise to an economic and cultural decline and is no longer considered the ‘country of the future. ’ Brazil is the fifth largest country and Portuguese is the language spoken there. Its culture is very diverse and consists of Native Americans, Portuguese, and Africans. In 2010, Brazil had a 7. 5% country economy growth, but dropped drastically to only 2. 7% this past year. For the past ten years Brazil had seemed to be â€Å"on a roll† as an agricultural superpower when in the Atlantic Ocean, they discovered massive oil reserves. Brazil’s diplomacy became more aggressive, and they even paid off all debts to the International Monetary Fund. With their government changes and economic success they had helped millions of citizens come out of poverty. The saying â€Å"what goes up, must come down† has became true for the economy of Brazil. With the countries improvements, they are now facing ‘real world realities’ such as illegal immigration because of people coming into their country wanting jobs. Some critics argue that â€Å"Brazil is lucky to have China waiting in the wings, hungry for its commodities and natural resources. † In the Amazonia, Brazil had 6-9 million indigenous people before 1500; today they have less than 200,000 remaining. With environmental and cultural decline, come many consequences. Culturally, Brazil has the world’s largest Catholic population, but since the recent census, that is also in decline. Economically, the reduced flow of money into the country and the demanded exports of Brazil weakened which is very logical and doesn’t need much explanation. If their exports are no longer in demand, then the obvious consequence is a reduced inflow of consumer monies. This in my opinion would be the biggest hit for Brazil and the leading consequence of their â€Å"disaster. † I personally could not find many scholarly articles discussing Brazil’s decline economically or culturally. Surprisingly, I found more articles talking about the rise and growth of the two. It is also my opinion that in order to â€Å"fix† these problems, tourism is a key factor for Brazil right now. I know in lecture we discussed within the Amazon the importance of rubber, gold, oil, and deforestation to Brazil, and I am certain all of those things would be affected, but I couldn’t find many articles with facts to back that up. With that being said, I think many countries all have and/or will experience â€Å"waves† of decline. Most every country experiences these â€Å"disasters† it is what makes the world go round.

Childrens Learning And Development Unit Children And Young People Essay

Childrens Learning And Development Unit Children And Young People Essay There are three prime areas of Learning and development, these prime areas begin to develop from a base of secure, loving relationships and children learn and develop well in enabling environments, in which their experiences respond to their individual needs. Children have a different way of learning and develop their learning at different rates. The three prime areas of learning and development are as follows: Communication and language development- this involves giving children opportunities to experience a rich language environment, and to develop their confidence in speaking and listening. Physical development-involves encouraging children to be active in their play and learning. Children should be given the opportunity to move around and develop their motor skills. Personal, social and emotional development- this area of development helps children to develop an awareness of themselves, to form positive relationships, develop respect for others. It supports children in managing their feelings, and behaviour and to develop a sense of their self-esteem. The specific areas of learning develop out of the prime areas of development and identify specific skills to be developed. The four specific areas of learning and development are as follows: Literacy development-children must be given access to a wide range of reading materials to develop an interest in books and understanding of written print. This encourages children to begin to link sounds and letters and they begin to read and write. Mathematics- is all about providing opportunities for children to develop and improve their skills in counting, understanding and using numbers through early rhymes and songs, calculating, simple addition and subtraction, and developing an understanding of shapes, spaces, through exploring and categorising objects. Understanding the world-involve guiding children to make sense of their different communities; children will also be given the opportunity to learn about the world around them. Expressions, arts and design- involves enabling children to explore and investigate a wide range of and media and materials and discover how they work, as well as providing opportunities and encouragement for sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of activities in art, music, role play and design and technology. ((Open Study College Early Years Level 3 pgs. 75,76) Planning to meet childrens development needs is important when planning activities, because all children develop at their own rate in their own time. According to (The Department for Education March 2012) Practitioners must consider the individual needs, interests, and stage of development of each child in their care, and must use this information to plan a challenging and enjoyable experience for each child in all of the areas of learning and development. Each child is view as a unique person with their individual needs: a unique child will have their own personality, characteristics and interest. When a child is born they can sense love from their parent, and carers, this will make them feel safe and secure in their environment. when planning for an activity in your setting, practitioners should consider the age group that the activity is for an if it is suitable for all the children involved, you also need to take in consideration other needs such as disability or special needs, for example, if the setting that has a child with hearing problems, then the practitioner should consider planning visual activities for that child to be involved and take part. Practitioners should look at what skills and knowledge the children are demonstrating and build upon this. This will ensure that the individual needs of the child are being met. Practitioners must respond to each childs emerging needs and interests, guiding their development through warm, and giving them a positive interaction. Within the early years settings practitioners working with the youngest children especially need to focus on the three prime areas of development, which are the basis for successful learning in the other four specific areas. For children whose home language is not English, practitioners need to take reasonable steps to provide opportunities for children to develop and use their home language in play and learning; they must work in partnership with their parents in order to support their language development at home too. Each area of learning and development must be achieved through planned, purposeful play and through a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activity. Play is vital for childrens development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, to think about problems, and relate to others. It is important that practitioners plan effectively because every child is unique and has different abilities, learning skills, attention and education backgrounds, each child needs individual support and planning. It is recommended that the practitioners follow a cycle of planning, observation and assessment of each of their key children. Through observing, practitioners can gather a lot of information about a childs knowledge, skills and abilities, through assessment a practitioner will look at findings from their observations and use them to plan further activities for that child. In my previous nursery (x) where I worked we had to plan daily activities, I had to support childrens learning experiences through play, we had to plan activities to suit the individual needs of the children, the indoor and outdoor environment was used as part of play, observation, discussions with parents on the interests of the child, we also carried out a one to one talk with children for their own id eas to help us with further planning. Practitioners need to form a base of secure, loving relationship and a positive environment with young babies and children in order to support the learning and development of the seven areas of learning. Communication and language development is divided into three aspects: Listening and attention- Practitioners can build positive relationships thorough being physically close, maintaining eye contact, sing songs and rhymes during every day routines, practitioners can support childrens learning by listening to children and taking account of what they say in your responses to them, share rhymes, books and stories for many cultures. Play games which involve listening for a signal such as Simon say and use ready steady go. Understanding- Practitioners should look at the baby and say their name and wait for their response. Prompt childrens thinking and discussion through involvement in their play. Show children a photograph of an activity such as hand washing helps to reinforce understanding. Speaking -Practitioners should model language to babies, speaking clearly to them and using appropriate body language and gestures. When babies try to say a word, repeat it back so they can hear the name of the object clearly. When children begin to talk, practitioners should be partners in conversation, modelling the correct use of language. Personal, Social and Emotional Development is also divided into three aspects: Making relationships- Practitioners can support children in making relationships by encouraging children to play with a variety of friends from all backgrounds so that everybody is being involved. Self-confidence and self-awareness- Practitioners should organise the environment for children to access different resources and materials to promote their independent choice making. Managing feelings and behaviour- Practitioners need to find out from the parents as much as they can about the individual children before they start the setting so that the routines they follow are familiar and comforting. Practitioners need to set clear rules and boundaries for children to follow in managing appropriate behaviour. Physical development is divided into two aspects: Moving and handling- practitioners should help babies to become aware of their own babies through touch and movement. Treat mealtimes as an opportunity to help children to use fingers, spoon and cup to feed themselves. Practitioners should plan activities where children can practise moving in different ways and at different speeds, balancing, target throwing, rolling, kicking and catching Health and self-care- practitioners should Plan to take account of the individual cultural and feeding needs of young babies in your group. Respond to how child communicates need for food, drinks, toileting and when uncomfortable. Encourage children to be active and energetic by organising lively games, since physical activity is important in maintaining good health and in guarding Against children becoming overweight or obese in later life. Literacy- Practitioners should provide a variety of books for all children according to their age and stage of development, it is also important to sit down with the child and spend time in reading stories aloud to them in circle time. Practitioners should support early writing skills. Also support children in recognising and writing their own name. Mathematics- practitioners can sing number rhymes s they dress or change babies e.g. one, two buckle my show. Sing counting songs and rhymes which help to develop understanding of number, such as two little dickey birds Children count reliably with numbers from one to 20, place them in order and say which number is one more or one less than a given number. Practitioners can provide shape sorters and jigsaws puzzles for older babies and toddlers to enable them to fit the correct shapes into the hole. Understanding the world- is divided into three aspects: People and communities: Practitioners need to celebrate and value cultural, religious and community events and experiences. Encourage children to talk about their own home and community life, and to find out about other childrens experiences. The world: Practitioners need to help children to find out about the environment by talking to people, examining photographs and simple maps and visiting local places. Technology: babies and young children use technology from a young age with action toys. They will learn how to operate the toys. A children grow older they should be given more complex toys such as wind ups or mechanical toys. Children are curious about the technology around them such as computers, televisions, cd players; practitioners should provide them with the opportunity to use this technology. Expressive Arts and Design-is divided into two aspects: Exploring and using media and materials -practitioners should sing songs and nursery rhymes with babies and can provide different musical instruments. Older children enjoy dancing to music; practitioners should encourage movement to the music. Being imaginative- Practitioners should provide a variety of role play materials and support childrens imaginative ideas. Help children communicate through their bodies by encouraging expressive movement linked to their imaginative ideas. This source of information has been taken from (Open Study College-Early Year Level 3 Pgs 81-90). (Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). There are 3 characteristics of effective learning which help us to focus on and understand how children learn. The characteristics of effective learning are as follows: Playing and exploring this characteristics observes how children engage with their learning. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Finding out and exploring- through play children will find out about and explore the objects around them. Play is a key role for children to develop the understanding of different objects in the world around them, also the understanding of different cultures, and religions of others can be developed through play. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Using what they know in their play- play is a key role to promoting childrens learning and development. Free play is important for children as it gives children the opportunity to explore their own feelings, views and ideas. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Being willing to have a go- children will develop their self- confidence and will enjoy challenge and risk. Active learning this characteristic observes how children are motivated to learn. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Being involved and concentrating- will develop childrens ability to hold concentration in activities for longer periods and will help children maintain focus and attention on their activities. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Keeping trying-through trying out new experiences and activities, children will experience failure and disappointment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Enjoying and achieving what they set out to do- succeeding and achieving new skills will build childrens self-confidence and pride in their own abilities. Creating and thinking critically this characteristics observes how children are thinking. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Having their own ideas- within play children will act out as role models and explore their own ideas. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ making links- once a child has discovered their own ideas and methods, they will be expected to try them out again. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Choosing ways to do things and finding new ways- children will develop strategy in their own learning. Children will think about what went well and how to change the activity when they approach it again. Practitioners can support childrens thinking by asking them open ended questions. According to (Tunja  on September 9, 2012) Playing and Exploring is when Children can represent their experiences through play and rehearse what they will be able to do without adult help later on. Play brings together ideas, feelings, relationships and the physical life of a child. Children who are encouraged to express themselves freely through play are likely to be more able to adapt and learn new skills in a school environment. Active Learning often occurs naturally during exploratory play. For example, where children are concentrating on something and keep trying until they succeed in their attempts. This might be something as simple as threading beads on a string or more complex such as assembling a construction toy with bolts and a spanner. Creativity and Critical Thinking is linked to active learning and can occur where children are able and have time to develop their own ideas. This helps them be able to make links between their different ideas. For example, this is often observed in schemas. Such as when children experiment with a theme like rotation. They might rotate themselves, whisk their milk with a straw and spin wheels linking how things move in circles or spirals. According to (Abbot and Moylett, 1999, Early Education Transformed )Educationalist Susan Isaacs states Children in their play can escape into real experiences or out of it and through doing this they learn about reflecting on life, getting a sense of control over their lives, developing self-esteem and feeling abhorred. Piaget  was a French speaking Swiss theorist who posited that children learn through actively constructing knowledge through  hands-on experience. He suggested that the adults role in helping the child learn was to provide appropriate materials for the child to interact and construct Jean piaget believed Children were often viewed simply as small versions of adults and little attention was  paid to  the many advances in intellectual abilities, language development, and physical growth. Conclusion Supporting childrens learning and development is implemented through the seven areas of learning they have been split in to the prime areas and specific areas. The characteristics of learning identify how children learn; the ways in which a child engages with other people and their environments is through playing and exploring, active learning and creating and thinking carefully. It is important that practitioners plan effectively because every child is unique and has different abilities, learning skills, attention and education backgrounds, each child needs individual support and planning.

Life, Liberty, And The Pursuit To Change Something Essay -- essays res

Americans are well renown for their utter dissatisfaction for the current social, political, and economic status of their nation. Of course, it comes as now surprise that Americans are so driven to produce changes. The feisty, perseverance has been with the American people since the Revolutionary War, even before then. However, no matter how much a certain aspect of life is altered, not everyone will be pleased. Even though reform was a trend all throughout America's history, the 1830's and 1840's seem to be a time where reform was a popular fad. The women's right movement was a very predominant reform during this time. After years of servitude, many women were not longer going to be idle and quiet as their rights continually were denied to them. Many women felt as if they were being held captive or held prisoner by invisible bonds. For those women who did work out of the home, they finally were struck with a hard blow. Pay for a woman was the half the pay of a man. The Seneca Falls Manifesto was a revolutionary document for the women's document. Modeled after the Declaration of Independence, the authors proclaimed the atrocities committed by the men around them. "He has withheld from her rights which are given to the most ignorant and degraded men-both natives and foreigners....He has taken from her all right in property, even to the wages she earns." Despite their intelligence, perseverance, and peaceful way by which women conducted their movement, they still endured much criticism and mockery, but not only the press, but by Congress also. Feminists made an appearance around this time, the most famous being Lucy Stone. Stone and other feminists were particularly against the "traditional marriage." Some feminists were lucky to attain support from men in their crusade for rights. However, the majority of the male population felt women were to be docile, that "Her proper sphere is home, and her proper function is the care of the household, to manage a family, to take care of children, and attend to their early training." Religion, always a popular item chosen to be changed. People can never make up their minds. They choose one faith, and realize it is not for them, so they switch to another. Attitudes similar to these were the cause of the Second Great Awakening. One major religion, the Mormon belief, made a spectacular debut... ...n with rods, and lashed into obedience!" The Humanitarian Reform was begun by Dorthea Dix, however, many people, often relating religion to their actions, keep this movement going. For once in their lifetimes, the Indians were finally being seen as human beings, not barbarous creatures. Alexis de Tocqueville was a major campaigner in the better treatment of Indians. Tocqueville and another reformer, George Caitlin felt some land should be given back to the Native Americans, so their customs and ways of life might not fade away. "These are great evils, and it must be added that they appear to me to be irremediable. I believe that the Indian nations of North America are doomed to perish.....The Indians had only the alternative of war or civilization...the must either destroy the Europeans or become their equals..." A pattern seemed to have formed within the reforming of the 1830's and 1840's. All of a sudden, Americans wanted better treatment for everyone, well almost all Americans. Finally injustices were being recognized. They oppressed would endure bondage no longer. Revolutions started all over America, revolutions which paved the way for the present day America.

Global Warming - We CAN Make a Difference Essay -- Greenhouse Gases Ef

Global Warming - We CAN Make a Difference What is global warming, and how is it affecting the Earth and its inhabitants? The greenhouse effect and global warming both correspond with each other. The green house effect is incoming solar radiation that passes through the Earth's atmosphere and heats the earths surface. It absorbed much of the outgoing infrared radiation re-radiated by the Earths surface. As they absorb the infrared the atmosphere becomes warmer. The gases key to this process are water vapor and carbon dioxide and methane. The natural greenhouse effect has kept the Earth's average surface temperature around 33 degrees Celsius, warmer than it would be if there were no atmosphere. The natural gases in the greenhouse effect are water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), ozone (O3), as well as other trace gases. Life could not exist if there was no natural greenhouse effect. The reason for the natural greenhouse effect is so that all the creatures living on Earth can live and breathe. The global warming refers to a long-term rise in the average temperature of the Earth. The greenhouse effect may be what is causing the temperature on the Earth to rise, and creating many problems that will begin to occur in the coming decades. What are potential consequences to high global air temperature? The warning will be the greatest at the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, with the largest temperature rises occurring in winter. Storms would become more severe all around the world. The Northern Hemisphere will dry out and a greater occurrence of lightning strikes will set massive forest fires. The burning of the Earth by natural and man-made forest fires will release large quantities of carbon dioxide into ... ...ler, Mercedes and Honda are working on hybrid cars that use two engines, one electric and the other gas-powered. They successfully combine the speed and range of a gas-fueled car with the eco-friendly benefits of an electric one. Plant materials and animal waste is being used to produce cleaner fuels such as ethanol and methanol. In addition to sugars and corn kernels new woods and grasses are being grown to produce alcohol fuels. Municipal solid waste is already being drilled to collect methane. The methane can then be gasified to produce clean-burning hydrogen, or fermented into ethanol. All of these things together can make a huge impact on our Earth and our atmosphere. I think that man is the primary cause of global warming and we can do something about it. But if we continue to live as we do now, there could be major consequences to suffer in the future.

Sor Juana Ines de La Cruz

Sor Juana Inà ©s de la Cruz was an exceptional seventeenth-century nun who set precedents for feminism long before the term or concept existed. Her â€Å"Respuesta† is a maverick work outlining the logical sense of women’s education more than 200 years before Woolf’s â€Å"A Room of One’s Own.† Her poetry, meanwhile, states in bold language the potency of the feminine in both love and religion. Juana Inà ©s Ramirez was born out of wedlock to Isabel Ramirez and Manuel de Asbaje in a small village in Mexico, New Spain. Manuel soon abandoned the family, so mother and child spent a great deal of time with Juana’s grandfather, Pedro Ramirez. It was in Pedro’s book-filled house that Juana learned to read. (Girls of her time were rarely, if ever, formally educated.) The door to learning then burst open — the young prodigy would embark upon a life shaped and shaken by intellectual inquiry. She quickly gained renown in society and became a lady-in-waiting in the court of the Spanish viceroy. Yet she soon left the court for the nunnery; practically speaking, this was the best way for an illegitimately born woman to secure the time and resources for scholarship. But Sor Juana did not shut herself away in an ascetic cell. She started out as a novice in the Carmelite order, but the order's predilection for little sleep and self-flagellation repelled her after a few months. Eventually she found a sect that was more her speed as a lady of letters and a former courtier: the order of San Jerà ³nimo gave her an entire suite of her own, complete with bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, library, and servant. Her library — which held Mexico’s largest book collection — developed into a meeting-place for the intellectual elite. Those who frequented the salon included future viceroy Marquis de La Laguna and the Countess de Pareda, known to her intimates as Maria Luisa.