A History of the Horn, Better Known as the French Horn

A History of the Horn, Better Known as the French Horn Throughout the last six centuries, the evolution of horns has gone from the most basic of instruments used for hunting and announcements to more sophisticated musical versions designed to elicit the most melodious sounds. The First Horns The history of horns starts with the use of actual animal horns, hollowed out of the marrow, and blown into to create loud sounds announcing celebrations and the start of feasts, as well as for sharing warnings, such as the approach of enemies and threats. The Hebrew shofar is a classic example of an animal horn that was, and still is, widely used in celebrations. These culturally significant rams horns are used to announce major holidays and celebrations, such as Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. However, the basic animal horn does not allow for much manipulation of sound other than what the user can do with his mouth. Rafael Ben-Ari/Getty Images Transitioning From Communication Tool to Musical Instrument Making the transition from a method of communication to a way to create music, horns were first formally seen being used as musical instruments during 16th-century operas. They were made from brass and mimicked the structure of the animal horn. Unfortunately, they provided a challenge for adjusting notes and tones. As such, horns of different lengths were introduced, and players had to switch between them throughout a performance. While this did provide some added flexibility, it wasnt an ideal solution, and horns werent widely used. During the 17th century, additional modifications to the horn were seen, including the enhancement of the bell end (larger and flared bells) of the horn. After this alteration was made, the cor de chasse, or French horn as the English called it, was born. The first horns were monotone instruments. But in 1753, a German musician called Hampel invented the means of applying movable slides (crooks) of various length that changed the key of the horn. In 1760, it was discovered rather than invented that placing a hand over the bell of the French horn lowered the tone, called stopping. Devices for stopping were later invented, which further enhanced the sound that performers could create. In the early 19th century, pistons and valves, instead of crooks, were used, giving birth to the modern French horn and eventually the double French horn. This new design allowed for an easier transition from note to note, without having to switch instruments, which meant performers could keep a smooth and uninterrupted sound. It also allowed for players to have a wider range of tones, which created more complex and harmonic sound. Despite the fact that the term French horn has been widely accepted as the proper name of this instrument, its modern design was actually developed by German builders and is most frequently manufactured in Germany. As such, many experts assert that the proper name for this instrument should simply be a horn. Who Invented the French Horn? Tracing the invention of the French horn to one person is tricky. However, two inventors are named as the first to invent a valve for the horn. According to the Brass Society, Heinrich Stoelzel (1777–1844), a member of the band of the Prince of Pless, invented a valve that he applied to the horn by July 1814 (considered the first French horn) and Friedrich Blà ¼hmel (fl. 1808–before 1845), a miner who played trumpet and horn in a band in Waldenburg, is also associated with the invention of the valve. Edmund Gumpert and Fritz Kruspe are both credited with inventing double French horns in the late 1800s. German Fritz Kruspe, who has been noted most often as the inventor of the modern double French horn, combined the pitches of the horn in F with the horn in B-flat in 1900.

E-Commerce Insider Threats Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

E-Commerce Insider Threats - Research Paper Example In addition, a major element of the problem appears from poor systems engineering of networks and software. However, to effectively deal with these imprecision and ambiguities in the business information system there is need to minimize the system loop holes and problems regarding the effective management and operational handling. Furthermore, the management of the business information security and operations has turned out to be a main task in business. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the current state of insider threats to computer systems and infrastructure in terms of numbers, costs and potential problems. The main intention of this research is offer a comprehensive overview of the different insider threats to computer systems for E-Commerce. Shaw, Ruby, & M. (1998) outlined that the ideal business information systems protection besides all outer and inner threats is not possible. The main difficulty of monitoring against the business information security threats has been an important aspect of the literature, and business information system development (Shaw, Ruby, & M., 1998). However, the main problem is the inherent complexity of the business systems. Thus, here are problems in terms of some recognized techniques offering business impressions that are not practical solutions. In this case more and more challenges are coming out in form of virus and worms (Graham, 2005). Cho, Chang, Kim, & Choi (2003) stated that in this new age of information corporations are completely dependent upon the complex information systems. In addition, these systems are in a greater danger in terms of vulnerability of systems to computer information security and crime attacks. Thus, the high-tech environment and technological experts are n eeded to develop, manage, and maintain these business information systems (Cho, Chang, Kim, & Choi, 2003). According to (Shaw,

International Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

International Management - Assignment Example The market was one of rising costs, reduced prices, high competition, and low-cost models. The average selling prices were down by a whopping 35% and there was a clamor for cheaper models in emerging economies and developing markets. The basic phones were available for $ 50, with low end models being available for as low as $ 25 and even $ 10. Multinational set up operations and set new standards for wages, training and technology transfer. An environment of meritocracy was being created and which hard work, ethical behavior and a desire to learn were the watchwords. The fall of the iron curtain in Europe and the transition of State Societies, opened up new markets for Western Europe. Eastern Europe was expected to move towards 100% penetration levels in 2011, from the current 85%. The manufacturing process was being off shored to low cost countries, lately Eastern Europe. Labor costs much lower in Central European Countries than in other Western European Nations. Additionally, they also offered huge advantages in terms of high productivity and simple taxes. However, of late, wage costs were on the rise and labor force was beginning to shrink with people migrating to richer European nations like Britain and Germany. There are three levels of strategy – Corporate Strategy, Business Strategy and Functional Strategy. The corporate strategy deals with the vision and mission of an organization. The Mission of Nokia is â€Å"Connecting people†. Its strategic intention is to â€Å"Build great mobile products†. The word â€Å"Nokia† is named after the Nokia river in Southern Finland. Beginning as early as in 1865 and with a rich history of a century and half of innovation, Nokia transformed itself from a riverside paper mill in Southern Finland to a global telecommunications leader. A conglomerate of paper, rubber, cable and electrical companies, it was only in 1996 that Nokia turned its focus on the telecommunications business. This was an important strategic shift and by 1998, Nokia was the world leader in mobile industry. Its new strategy drive includes changes in leadership and manufacturing specialized products. Its recent strategic direction has taken multi-faceted dimensions : Broad strategic partnership with Microsoft Renew group to capture volumes and value growth Forward investments in next generation technologies Focus on specialized products. The business strategy talks about the strategies related to a specific business of an organization. More specifically, they deal with its products, markets and competitive advantages. Nokia had always prided itself on innovation, differentiation and in building great products through continuous investments in research and development. It does not shy away from investments as well as divestments and focuses on shareholder value by concentrating on core competencies. It always had the larger picture in mind and its decisions were based on global operations and internatio nal strategy and not country-focused. Adapting itself beautifully to global trends, Nokia increased its market presence in China, India, Germany, Indonesia and Russia. It slowly extricated itself form markets like Brazil, Spain and Italy. In 2008, Nokia was the

Finance Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Finance - Term Paper Example This would be addressed as workers retire and personal investment accounts replace Social Security. The best solution to this is a substantial personal account option and not only Social Security. 2. Formulate a risk management proposal for a fictitious potential client. Using that same proposal, augment your offering to this client. Elaborate about a proposed health insurance plan, pension plan alternatives etc. If appropriate for your fictitious client, include a section regarding alternative risk transfer techniques and bond offerings. An important trend in recent years has been the increased used of derivatives. A derivative is any of your financial assets whose value is derived from the value of some other â€Å"underlying† asset. These derivatives can be used either to reduce risks or as a speculative investment also. In theory, the use of these derivatives should allow one to manage risk better. There are also premiums that can be added to lessen one’s burden of risks. This includes the inflation premium to compensate for the expected loss of purchasing power, the default risk premium just in case there will be default in the borrower and the maturity risk premium compensate for the interest rate risk. Judgment Rating is used when potential losses are difficult to quantify. In this case, statistics is not a reliable source to determine possible losses. In judgment rating, the underwriter must use his experience and intuition to individually evaluate each potential client. A good example of this includes ocean marine insurance. Class Rating is used when losses are quantifiable or statistics are reliable. Here, there is a manual rating where it is classified into brackets which makes it easy to determine pricing in insurance proposals that are offered to customers. It is the established people of parallel situations and the great number of available statistics which permits for the

The Consequences Of Being A Passive Listener English Language Essay

The Consequences Of Being A Passive Listener English Language Essay Listening is an essential part of communication and is different from hearing. Listening means paying constant attention and making sense of what is being said. Hearing on the other hand is merely acknowledging that someone is speaking. Hearing is passive while listening is active. Listening is a non verbal skill. It is the act of interpreting, remembering and understanding what has been said. A listener is of two types; a good listener and a bad listener. A good listener is one who is patient and calm. He is a critical thinker who listens to each word said carefully and without judgment or interruption. He is active, persistent and shows carefully consideration when listening to what is being said. A good listener can place himself in the shoes of others, see how what is being said impacts him and see their point of view. He can tune out distractions and focus on what the speaker is saying. He also makes notes and jots down the important points. He is attentive, does not interrupt and picks out verbal and non verbal cues from the speaker. He knows that listening is the primary source of knowledge. On the other hand a bad listener is the exact opposite of a good listener. He pretends to be listening to what is being said while he lets his mind wander to irrelevant issues. He does not pick out the main idea of what is being said and often finds what the speaker says to be boring. He listens to sounds rather than the words of what is being said. He gives in freely to distractions and is often a noisemaker who distracts the attention of others in the process. He is the person who is mostly to relaxed in class and sits in informal positions. Listening is also of two types; active listening and passive listening. Active listening is the act of hearing the words and identifying the feelings associated with the words. An active listener concentrates on what is being said and is able to tune out unnecessary distractions. To be an active listener one must show empathy, acceptance and willingness to take responsibility for completeness. An active listener shows reactions to prove that he is listening and has understood what has been said, this could be; nodding, making eye contact, facial expressions, asking questions, paraphrasing, not talking too much and so forth. Furthermore he reflects on the main point and summarizes what has been said. He is also able to pick out the verbal and non verbal cues from the speaker. Passive listening according to Baker(1971)is the listening done whereby there is little self perception or personal involvement on the part of the listener. A passive listener is one who is inattentive and uninvolved l does not identify the meaningful signals and cannot interpret what is being said. He listens without reaction and doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t show signs that he understands what is being said.. He is the type who interrupts the speaker before he or she finishes speaking. This is not the best listening habit. A passive listener can be illustrated as a rock, he can be seen but he does not absorb any information. It goes in through one ear and comes out the other. He is the type that easily forgets and stores irrelevant information in his memory. He often misses out on the verbal and non verbal cues given by the speaker during a conversation. He lets his mind wander far and near during a conversation and appears to be listening but is really somewhere else. He does not contr ibute to the subject and doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t give back feedbacks. A passive reader has a short concentration span. Attention is a requirement of learning. We cannot understand, learn or remember something unless we pay attention. Passive attention is uncontrolled and dependant on external factors. There are various consequences of being a passive listener. Some of which are discussed below; Passive listeners practice hearing i.e. they hear only the sounds coming out of the speakers mouth. They do do not cultivate good listening skills i.e. they are not effective listeners. They do not make a habit out of listening attentively and understanding what is being said. They pretend to listen while letting their minds wander supreme, giving in to distractions and so on. Passive listeners have a short concentration span; this means that they only concentrate for short periods of time. Due to distractions which they may give out or receive, they allow their mind to wander to irrelevant issues which do not concern what they are listening to. When they find a topic boring or difficult their state of mind changes towards that topic .i.e. they are instantly put off by it and are not encouraged to learn more, they pretend to listen and understand and do not concentrate on what is being said. Also, passive listeners miss out the key points and the main idea of what is being said. They only surface listen which is pretending to listen. Even though they are physically present there mind is not. They do not watch out for the importance of the lesson. Again due to distractions or voluminous jottings they miss out the verbal and non verbal cues the speaker gives out. In addition to, passive listeners do not focus completely on what the speaker is saying. They often misinterpret his points which could lead to disagreements, talking out of turn and debates between the passive listener and the speaker. Furthermore, passive listeners normally possess bad sitting postures. One should be comfortable while listening but not to relaxed. They are often to relaxed while listening which may give rise to sleep and missing the aim of the lesson. Also passive listeners do not give out positive gestures to show that they are listening and comprehending what is being said. Like nodding of the had in agreement, paraphrasing what is being said, positive or negative facial expressions, asking relevant questions within and outside the topic, clapping, shaking of the head in disagreement and so on. In addition to, passive listeners are the type that makes irrelevant copious notes which distracts them from the importance of the lesson while pretending to be listening. They write down almost everything the speaker says thinking that that is what is important. They do not jot down and summarize the key points of the topic . They do not possess an undivided attention thereby giving in to distraction which are; noise making, using of phones or other gadgets at the wrong time, constantly looking at ones watch, listening to music while listening, etc. Passive listeners do not reflect and put into use what is being said, bring up meaningless points and are mostly the people who come in late and leave early, sit at the back and never in the front rows unless they are told to do so. They are not critical thinkers, they do not think deep about what they are listening to. Passive listeners do not keep an open mind when they are listening; they are not matured listeners and are the type that are easily put off by irrelevant things. They look for the faults in the speaker or in what he is saying rather than grasping the importance of his topic. There are various guidelines or rules one must follow to be a good listener. This includes; stopping anything one is doing when a discussion is going on, ensuring that there are no barriers or distractions around, making observations not copious notes one will not understand in the future but summarizing the key points i.e. year in which events occurred, peopleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s names, names of cities or countries, occupation of people etc. Sitting at ease but not being too relaxed which may give way to sleep, not allowing oneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s mind wander away, putting into practice the habit of paying attention to someone and not being discouraged by earlier failures, keeping an eye out for the main points of the lecture, not sitting with people who could be a distraction and not being a distraction our self, getting the information first and not looking out for irrelevant flaws with the speaker. In conclusion, we have learnt what listening is, the difference between listening and hearing, the differences between a good and bad listener, types of listening, guidelines to being a good listener, what one should do when one is speaking, what distractions are, the differences between an active and a passive listener and the consequences of being a passive listener. Therefore one must strive to be an effective and active listener so as to be a better learner.

rights of a woman Essay -- essays research papers

In her article â€Å"Women’s History† Joan Scott states that it is important for historians to be attentive to both â€Å"the ways in which politics constructs gender and gender constructs politics†. First, definitions for politics and gender will be established in order to analyze Scott’s claim. Second, what Scott meant by the claim â€Å"politics constructs gender† will be illustrated. Third, the contradictory claim â€Å"gender constructs politics† by Joan Scott will be explained. Finally, this paper will evaluate why it is important for historians to be attentive to both the notion that politics constructs gender and gender constructs politics. The usefulness of Scott’s claim on our understanding of both politics and gender will also be examined. The point that Scott was trying to get across in stating that historians should be attentive to the circular claim that â€Å"politics constructs gender and gender constructs politicsâ⠂¬  is that an incomplete history will be recorded if both sides of the equation are not considered hand in hand. To portray why Joan Scott believes it is important for historians to be cognizant of both gender’s effect on politics and politics effect on gender we must first establish what Joan Scott’s definitions of gender and politics are. Gender has many definitions that have been developed through the numerous approaches to history and the many other social sciences. The basic debate in defining gender is at what point is the distinction made between the natural (sex) and the cultural (gender). Gayle Rubin’s definition in â€Å"The Traffic in Women: Notes on the ‘Political Economy’ of Sex† is that â€Å"sex† is the raw material on which culture uses to produce â€Å"gender† and that gender is the cultural expectations of the differences between men and women. The important aspect of the definition of gender is that it is culturally defined and does not remain static over time. As society adjusts, so do its definitions of gender. Politics is the other key word in Scott’s statement that must be defined. Politics, according to Scott in â€Å"Women’s History†, is not just formal government but all relationships involving unequal distributions of power. Scott uses this broad definition of politics in order to explain the â€Å"cultural determination of the terms of sexual difference†. In other words this definition allows for a more complete explanation of what has shaped society’s e... ...he role of historians should be to record history and its significance. The third reason historians should look at the relationship between politics and gender is that if historians only look at the way formal politics shapes gender then a black and white picture of gender is portrayed. If a broad definition of politics is used, such as the one used by Joan Scott, then â€Å"arguments about the separate and distinctive qualities of women’s character and experience† can be avoided. As a result a clearer picture of history will be drawn that does not rely on â€Å"fixed distinctions† that have been made between the genders over time and in the present. Finally, by paying attention to the idea that gender and politics have an effect on one another we can get a clearer picture of where women’s history fits into the history books. In conclusion, Scott’s claim that historians should be attentive to both the ways in which gender constructs politics and politics constructs gender is a thought provoking comment that must be considered if an accurate and unbiased history is to be produced. Politics and gender are both socially construed notions and by definition will have an influence on one another.

DRUNK DRIVING Essay

Drinking and driving is a very serious and dangerous problem. Many people every year are killed or injured because of drunk drivers, and almost all of the people who are killed are innocent. The more you drink the more likely you are to have an accident. Driving whilst under the influence of drink is a dangerous situation, and the consequences are appalling, because you can end up killing someone else, losing your own life or even sent to court. Why do people drink while driving? The answer is simply cause there drunk! They are too drunk to think properly, they might have done it before and they think it’s not bad, perhaps too lazy to get a taxi, they feel confident that they can drive extra carefully and avoid incident, Their ability to rationalize is suppressed, leading them to make rash decisions, They want to escape personal problems This is probably one of the most dangerous reasons why people drink and drive. A man / woman in the thick of problems, gets drunk and gets in the car. Caught in his / her emotions, the person doesn’t care what happens anymore. Sadly, among the reasons why people drink and drive, this is a common reason; they are ashamed or afraid to call someone to pick them up. People wake up in cells not realizing they killed a person with their car. Some people drink and drive because they don’t know any better. Some people are not even aware of the legal drinking limits.