Maya Blue Distinctive Color Used by Maya Artists

Maya Blue is the name of a hybrid organic and inorganic pigment, used by the Maya civilization to decorate pots, sculptures, codices, and panels. While its date of invention is somewhat controversial, the pigment was predominantly used within the Classic period beginning about AD 500. The distinctive blue color, as seen in the murals at Bonampak in the photo, was created using a combination of materials, including indigo and palygorskite (called sak luum or white earth in the Yucatec Maya language). Maya blue was used primarily in ritual contexts, pottery, offerings, copal incense balls, and murals. By itself, palygorskite was used for medicinal properties and as an additive for ceramic tempers, in addition to its use in the creation of Maya blue. Making Maya Blue The striking turquoise color of Maya Blue is quite tenacious as such things go, with visible colors left on stone stele after hundreds of years in the subtropical climate at sites such as Chichà ©n Itzà ¡ and Cacaxtla. Mines for the palygorskite component of Maya Blue are known at Ticul, YoSah Bab, Sacalum, and Chapab, all in the Yucatà ¡n peninsula of Mexico. Maya Blue requires the combination of ingredients (the indigo plant and palygorskite ore) at temperatures between 150 C and 200 C. Such heat is necessary to get molecules of indigo incorporated into the white palygorskite clay. The process of embedding (intercalating) indigo into the clay makes the color stable, even under exposure to harsh climate, alkali, nitric acid and organic solvents. The application of heat to the mixture may have been completed in a kiln built for that purpose--kilns are mentioned in early Spanish chronicles of the Maya. Arnold et al. (in Antiquity below) suggest that Maya Blue may also have been made as a by-product of burning copal incense at ritual ceremonies. Dating Maya Blue Using a series of analytical techniques, scholars have identified the content of various Maya samples. Maya Blue is generally believed to have been used first during the Classic period. Recent research at Calakmul supports suggestions that Maya Blue began to be used when the Maya began painting internal murals on temples during the late pre-classic period, ~300 BC-AD 300. Murals at Acanceh, Tikal, Uaxactun, Nakbe, Calakmul and other pre-classic sites dont seem to have included Maya Blue in their palettes. A recent study of the interior polychrome murals at Calakmul (Và ¡zquez de à gredos Pascual 2011) conclusively identified a blue painted and modeled substructure dated to ~150 AD; this is the earliest example of Maya Blue to date. Scholarly Studies of Maya Blue Maya blue was first identified by Harvard archaeologist R. E. Merwin at Chichà ©n Itzà ¡ in the 1930s. Much work on Maya Blue has been completed by Dean Arnold, who over his 40 year investigation has combined ethnography, archaeology, and materials science in his studies. A number of non-archaeological material studies of the mixture and chemical makeup of Maya blue have been published over the past decade. A preliminary study on sourcing palygorskite using trace element analysis has been undertaken. A few mines have been identified in the Yucatà ¡n and elsewhere, and tiny samples have been taken from the mines as well as paint samples from ceramics and murals of known provenience. Neutron activation analysis (INAA) and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy (LA-ICP-MS) have both been used in an attempt to identify the trace minerals within the samples, reported in a 2007 article in Latin American Antiquity listed below. Although there were some problems with correlating the two methodologies, the pilot study identified trace amounts of rubidium, manganese, and nickel in the various sources which may prove useful in identifying the sources of the pigment. Additional research by the team reported in 2012 (Arnold et al. 2012) hinged on the presence of palygorskite, and that mineral was identified in several ancient samples as having the same chemical make up modern mines at Sacalum and possibly Yo Sak Kab. Chromatographic analysis of the indigo dye was securely identified within a Maya blue mixture from a pottery censer excavated from Tlatelolco in Mexico and reported in 2012. Sanz and colleagues found that blue coloration used on a 16th-century codex attributed to Bernardino Sahagà ºn was also identified as following a classic Maya recipe. Recent investigations have also centered on the composition of Maya Blue, indicating that perhaps making Maya Blue was a ritual part of sacrifice at  Chichà ©n Itzà ¡. Sources Anonymous. 1998.  Ceramic Ethnoarchaeology at Ticul, Yucatà ¡n, Mexico.  Society for Archaeological Sciences Bulletin  21(12).Arnold DE. 2005. Maya blue and palygorskite: A second possible pre-Columbian source.  Ancient Mesoamerica  16(1):51-62.Arnold DE, Bohor BF, Neff H, Feinman GM, Williams PR, Dussubieux L, and Bishop R. 2012.  The first direct evidence of pre-columbian sources of palygorskite for Maya Blue.  Journal of Archaeological Science  39(7):2252-2260.Arnold DE, Branden JR, Williams PR, Feinman G, and Brown JP. 2008.  The first direct evidence for the production of Maya Blue: rediscovery of a technology.  Antiquity  82(315):151-164.Arnold DE, Neff H, Glascock MD, and Speakman RJ. 2007. Sourcing the Palygorskite Used in Maya Blue: A Pilot Study Comparing the Results of INAA and LA-ICP-MS.  Latin American Antiquity  18(1):44–58.Berke H. 2007.  The invention of blue and purple pigments in ancient times.  Chemical Society Reviews  36:15 –30.Chiari G, Giustetto R, Druzik J, Doehne E, and Ricchiardi G. 2008.  Pre-columbian nanotechnology: reconciling the mysteries of the maya blue pigment.  Applied Physics A  90(1):3-7.Sanz E, Arteaga A, Garcà ­a MA, Cà ¡mara C, and Dietz C. 2012.  Chromatographic analysis of indigo from Maya Blue by LC–DAD–QTOF.  Journal of Archaeological Science  39(12):3516-3523.Và ¡zquez de à gredos Pascual, Domà ©nech Carbà ³ MT, and Domà ©nech Carbà ³ A. 2011.  Characterization of Maya Blue pigment in pre-classic and classic monumental architecture of the ancient pre-Columbian city of Calakmul (Campeche, Mexico).  Journal of Cultural Heritage  12(2):140-148.

Movie Review The Intouchables - 1122 Words

The movie film, â€Å"The Intouchables† follows the friendship of a wealthy upper class quadriplegic Phillipe, and a wise talking man Driss, from the slums of Paris. Recently released from jail, Driss finds himself without a job and a place to stay. After interviewing for a position as Phillipe’s caregiver, Driss is given the opportunity to make a difference in Phillipe’s life. Phillipe is bound to a wheelchair after a paragliding accident destroyed his third and fourth vertebrae. His wealth gives him the opportunity to get the best medications, therapists, and accommodations money can buy, but he has yet to find a caregiver who is willing to stick around. Taking a chance on Driss, leads Phillipe to become more outgoing and take risks he would usually not take. Smoking marijuana, speeding down the freeway, and taking a chance on love are only a few situations Phillipe finds himself in while in the care of Driss. The two develop a lifelong friendship, through laug hter and humor. Phillipe vaguely speaks about his accident that caused him to become a quadriplegic. During a paragliding accident Phillipe, fell out of the sky and suffered a traumatic spinal cord injury to his third and fourth vertebrae. According to Phillipe’s character, â€Å"he is unable to feel anything from the neck down†. Throughout the movie Phillipe suffers from phantom pains that make him feel as if he is on fire. He counts on those around him to help him with all his daily living skills including showering,Show MoreRelatedThe Intouchables878 Words   |  4 PagesThe Intouchables The movie â€Å"The Intouchables† (first released on November 2, 2011 in Belgium and directed by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano) is the factual story of an unconventional relationship between a millionaire quadriplegic from the ritziest neighborhood in Paris and his Senegalese caregiver from the ghetto—a bond that begins as a working one but builds, through trust and care and shared experiences, into a lasting friendship that changes two unhappy lives forever. In Paris, the upper-classRead MoreFilm Review Of The Intouchables Directed By Oliver Nakache And Eric Toledano1206 Words   |  5 PagesFilm Review- Statement of intention: My intention for this film review is to convince the reader to watch the film â€Å"The Intouchables†. As I believe this film is well worth watching as it portrays very good themes and has important life lessons incorporated throughout the movie. The Intouchables Are Really An Untouchable Pair The Intouchables Directed and written by: Oliver Nakache and Eric Toledano Rating: R (for language and some drug use) Genre: drama, art house, international, comedy

3 Reasons Why I Think I Will Be a Successful Leader free essay sample

Three reasons why I think that I will be a successful leader are that I have: motivation, time management skills, and people skills. The first reason, motivation, is one of the best traits that you could have. Motivation is used when your employees or workers aren’t having a good day or are down in the dumps. You use motivation to brighten up their days, whether it’s something that you would say to them or if it’s something you give them to build their confidence and will to work on what they are working on. The second trait and arguably the most important trait are time management skills. You have to schedule whatever you need to schedule in order for everything to get done. You could also schedule events or meetings with enough time to take a 30 minute break or schedule time for them to reflect on themselves. That’s not a necessity to have, but sometimes that will invoke motivation into a person and get them on the right track. We will write a custom essay sample on 3 Reasons Why I Think I Will Be a Successful Leader or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Usually, if we are done with everything on Thursday, we would have a civilian clothes day on Friday, in the military. My third and final trait is people skills. That is also a really good trait to have. When I walk down the street, I would say â€Å"Hi† to them and maybe even start talking to them. Who knows, maybe that would be something that the person needed to have a better day. Just a little â€Å"Hi† could be the thing that people would use to stop them from committing suicide. Also, if you start talking to someone and you get into a real deep discussion, they might tell you something that you didn’t know or something that really helps you out.

Tim Burton Style Analysis Essay Example

Tim Burton Style Analysis Essay Tim Burton Style Analysis Tim Burton has achieved much fame for his imaginative movies and his quirky remakes of old classics such as Alice, Batman, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It is in Edward Scissorhands though, a heartfelt story about an outsider looking in, that Burton shows off his true skills as a director. Using point of view, setting, and motifs his film becomes not just a good movie, but an amazing classic. Burton uses point of view to show the characters perspective and to fill in the missing gaps in the characters history in the form of flashbacks. For example, one of the beginning scenes in the movie show that the devout woman looks out the window and sees the other woman of the neighborhood flocking together, yet not inviting her to join them. It shows that the woman is an outcast, and is not included in things. Another scene shows Edward’s dejected face and then flashes over to a scene of Kim goofing off with her boyfriend. It lets the viewer understand that Edward is interested romantically in Kim, and thus upset that she is involved with someone else. This is a more subtle technique, and makes the scene more memorable to the viewer because they didn’t come right out and say it. We will write a custom essay sample on Tim Burton Style Analysis specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Tim Burton Style Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Tim Burton Style Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer As opposed to telling the audience about something, Burton prefers to let them see for themselves. To show Edwards origins, Burton has Edward looking out the window and has a flashback about how he was created. Burton also uses setting to a magical extent. Burton is an admirer of over-exaggeration, and this is evident in his distinction of the neighborhood and Edwards’s castle. Whereas the community is bright a cheery, with houses of alternating color and rather small proportions, the castle is dark and opposing. All the houses in the community don’t have more than four feet between them, and even the backyards are visible from the street. Burton also exaggerates the looming castle’s isolation by putting it on a mountain. Burton purposefully designs the community to be the homey, picturesque American dream while Edward’s castle is the definition of gloom and doom. Yet when Peg first comes to the entrance of the castle, she encounters an amazing garden, much more beautiful than anything thing the people in the community could make, showing us that our perceptions aren’t always right. Burton often uses motifs in his movies and Edward Scissorhands is no different. Among many, one of the motifs Burton uses is conformity vs. ndividuality. Burton’s movies all carry common threads, and like all of Burton’s previous main characters, Edward is an outcast. He is a spark of creativity in an otherwise dull society. The citizens of the community choose to conform and the all have flat personalities. One is either a maneater or a motherly type or some other cliche, and that part seems to encompass the rest of their personality. While Edward, who is so different from the way he looks to the way he acts, seems to be the only human character. His personality possesses many layers. The citizens also dress bright and cheery is a retro-style, while Edward with his uncontrollable hair and pale skin looks like a gritty Goth. In conclusion, Burton’s skill shines throughout the entire movie. Using point of view, setting, motifs, and other style techniques, Burton makes Edward Scissorhands a true hit. Tim Burton’s unorthodox style gives new standards to the movie business, and delivers heartwarming stories about misconceptions and finding yourself. With Tim Burton’s masterful skill and playful humor, it becomes obvious why Edward Scissorhands is such a hit. Gigi Orphali 12-8-11 p. 5-6

W.E.B. Du Boisâ€His Greatest Contributions to Sociology

W.E.B. Du Bois- His Greatest Contributions to Sociology Renowned sociologist, race scholar, and activist William Edward Burghardt du Bois was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts on February 23, 1868. He lived to be 95 years old, and during the course of his long life authored multiple books that are still deeply important to the study of sociology- in particular, how sociologists study  race and racism. Du Bois is regarded as one of the founders of the discipline, along with Karl Marx, Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Harriet Martineau. Du Bois was the first Black man to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University. He was also one of the founders of the NAACP, and a leader at the forefront of the movement for Black civil rights in the U.S. Later in his life he was an activist for peace and opposed nuclear weapons, which made him a target of FBI harassment. Also a leader of the Pan-African movement, he moved to Ghana and renounced his U.S. citizenship in 1961. His body of work  inspired the creation of a critical journal of black politics, culture, and society called  Souls. His legacy is honored annually by  the American Sociological Association  with an award for a career of distinguished scholarship given in his name. Illustrating Structural Racism and Its Effects The Philadelphia Negro, published in  1896, is Du Boiss first major work. The study, considered one of the first examples of scientifically framed and conducted sociology, was based on over 2,500 in-person interviews systematically conducted with African American households in the seventh ward of Philadelphia from August 1896 through December 1897. In a first for sociology, Du Bois combined his research with census data to create visual illustrations of his findings in bar graphs. Through this combination of methods, he clearly illustrated the realities of racism and how it impacted the lives and opportunities of this community, providing much-needed evidence in the fight to disprove the supposed cultural and intellectual inferiority of black people. "Double-Consciousness" and "The Veil" The  Souls of Black Folk, published in  1903, is a widely-taught collection of essays that draws on Du Boiss own experience of growing up Black in a white nation to poignantly illustrate the psycho-socio affects of racism. In chapter 1 of this book, Du Bois put forth two concepts that have become staples of sociology and race theory: double-consciousness and the veil. Du Bois used the metaphor of the veil to describe how Black people see the world differently from whites, given how race and racism shape their experiences and interactions with others. Physically speaking, the veil can be understood as dark skin, which, in our society marks Black people as different from whites. Du Bois recounts first realizing the veils existence when a young white girl refused his greeting card in elementary school:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"It dawned upon me with certain suddenness that I was different from the others†¦ shut out from their world by a vast veil.† Du Bois asserted that the veil prevents Black people from having true self-consciousness, and instead forces them to have double-consciousness, wherein they have an understanding of themselves within their families and community, but also must view themselves through the eyes of others who see them as different and inferior. He wrote: It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at ones self through the eyes of others, of measuring ones soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity. One ever feels his twoness,an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder.   The full book, which addresses the need for reforms against racism and suggests how they might be achieved, is a short and readable 171 pages, and well worth a close read.   How Racism Prevents Critical Class Consciousness Among Workers Published in 1935,  Black Reconstruction in America, 1860-1880  uses historical evidence to illustrate how race and racism served the economic interests of capitalists in the Reconstruction-era southern U.S. By dividing workers by race  and fueling racism, the economic and political elite ensured that a unified class of laborers would not develop, which allowed for extreme economic exploitation of both Black and white workers. Importantly, this work is also an illustration of the economic struggle of newly freed slaves, and the roles they played in reconstructing the post-war south.

Psycholinguistics Definition and Examples

Psycholinguistics Definition and Examples Psycholinguistics is the study of the mental aspects of language and speech. It is primarily concerned with the ways in which language is represented and processed in the brain. A branch of both linguistics and psychology, psycholinguistics is part of the field of cognitive science. Adjective: psycholinguistic. The term psycholinguistics was introduced by American psychologist Jacob Robert Kantor in his book An Objective Psychology of Grammar (1936). The term was popularized by one of Kantors students, Henry Pronko, in the article Language and Psycholinguistics: A Review (1946). The emergence of  psycholinguistics as an academic discipline is generally linked to an influential seminar at Cornell University in 1951. Pronunciation: si-ko-lin-GWIS-tiks Also Known As: psychology of language Etymology: From the Greek, mind the Latin, tongue On Psycholinguistics Psycholinguistics is  the study of the mental mechanisms that make it possible for people to use language. It is a scientific discipline whose goal is a coherent theory of the way in which language is produced and understood. (Alan Garnham,  Psycholinguistics: Central Topics. Psychology Press, 1985) Two Key Questions At its heart, psycholinguistic work consists of two questions. One is, What knowledge of language is needed for us to use language? In a sense, we must know a language to use it, but we are not always fully aware of this knowledge... The other primary psycholinguistic question is, What cognitive processes are involved in the ordinary use of language? By ordinary use of language I mean such things as understanding a lecture, reading a book, writing a letter, and holding a conversation. By cognitive processes, I mean processes such as perception, memory, and thinking. Although we do few things as often or as easily as speaking and listening, we will find that considerable cognitive processing is going on during those activities. (David Carroll,  Psychology of Language, 5th ed. Thomson, 2008)   How Language Is Done Psycholinguists study how word meaning, sentence meaning, and discourse meaning are computed and represented in the mind. They study how complex words and sentences are composed in speech and how they are broken down into their constituents in the acts of listening and reading. In short, psycholinguists seek to understand how language is done... In general, psycholinguistic studies have revealed that many of the concepts employed in the analysis of sound structure, word structure, and sentence structure also play a role in language processing. However, an account of language processing also requires that we understand how these linguistic concepts interact with other aspects of human processing to enable language production and comprehension. (William OGrady, et al., Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction. Bedford/St. Martins, 2001) An Interdisciplinary Field Psycholinguistics... draws on ideas and knowledge from a number of associated areas, such as phonetics, semantics and pure linguistics. There is a constant exchange of information between psycholinguists and those working in neurolinguistics, who study how language is represented in the brain. There are also close links with studies in artificial intelligence. Indeed, much of the early interest in language processing derived from the AI goals of designing computer programs that can turn speech into writing and programs that can recognize the human voice. (John Field, Psycholinguistics: A Resource Book for Students. Routledge, 2003) On Psycholinguistics and Neuroimaging Psycholinguistics has classically focused on button press tasks and reaction time experiments from which cognitive processes are being inferred. The advent of neuroimaging opened new research perspectives for the psycholinguist as it became possible to look at the neuronal mass activity that underlies language processing. Studies of brain correlates of psycholinguistic processes can complement behavioral results, and in some cases . . . can lead to direct information about the basis of psycholinguistic processes. (Friedmann Pulvermà ¼ller, Word Processing in the Brain as Revealed by Neurophysiological Imaging. The Oxford Handbook of Psycholinguistics, ed. by M. Gareth Gaskell. Oxford University Press, 2009)

Measures of Working Capital Management Efficiency and Their Essay

Measures of Working Capital Management Efficiency and Their Relationship to Corporate Profitability - Essay Example Smith (1980) first signaled the importance of the trade-offs between the dual goals of working capital management, i.e., liquidity and profitability. In other words, decisions that tend to maximize profitability tend not to maximize the chances of adequate liquidity. Conversely, focusing almost entirely on liquidity will tend to reduce the potential profitability of the company. The most conventional measures of corporate liquidity are the current ratio and the quick ratio. Because of the static nature, their adequacy in examining a firm's efficiency in managing its working capital has been questioned by many authors (see, for example, Emery, 1984; and Kamath, 1989). Liquidity for the on-going firm is not really dependent on the liquidation value of its assets but rather on the operating cash flow generated by those assets. Gitman (1974) introduced the cash cycle concept as a crucial element in working capital management. The total cash cycle is defined as the number of days from the time the firm pays for its purchases of the most basic form of inventory to the time the firm collects for the sale of its finished product. Richards and Laughlin (1980) operationalized the cash cycle concept by reflecting the net time interval between cash expenditures on purchases and the ultimate recovery of cash receipts from product sales. The Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) i s an additive measure of the number of days funds are committed to inventories and receivables less the number of days payments are deferred to suppliers. Gentry, Vaidyanathan, and Lee (1990) developed a modified version of the CCC called the Weighted Cash Conversion Cycle (WCCC), which scales the timing by the amount of funds in each step of the cycle. The weights are calculated by dividing the amount of cash tied up in each component by the final value of the component. Therefore, the WCCC includes both the number of days and the amount of funds that are tied up at each stage of the cash cycle. The Net Trade Cycle Although the WCCC provides a better appreciation of the complexities of the cash cycle, in this study, we use the Net Trade Cycle (NTC). First, the break-up of inventories into its three main components, i.e., raw materials, work-in-progress, and finished goods, is not readily available for the outside investigator; consequently we cannot calculate the WCCC. Second, the CCC is an additive concept, but unfortunately the denominators for the three components (i.e., number of days inventories, accounts receivable, and accounts payable) are all different, making addition not really useful. In contrast, the NTC is basically equal to the CCC whereby all three components are expressed as a percentage of sales. The NTC actually indicates the number of "days sales" the company has to finance its working capital under ceteris paribus conditions. This instrument provides an easy estimate for additional financing needs with regard to working capital expressed as a function of the projected sales growth. For example, assuming that Wal-Mart's sales would again grow with 13% during 1996 as they did over 1995, and assuming the same 40 days NTC, this would imply a $1.19 billion financing need just for