Characteristics of Ancient Monumental Architecture

The term monumental architecture refers to large human-made structures of stone or earth which are used as public buildings or communal spaces, as opposed to everyday private residences. Examples include pyramids, large tombs, and burial mounds, plazas, platform mounds, temples and churches, palaces and elite residences, astronomical observatories, and erected groups of standing stones. The defining characteristics of monumental architecture are their relatively large size and their public nature—the fact that the structure or space was built by lots of people for lots of people to look at or share in the use of, whether the labor was coerced or consensual, and whether the interiors of the structures were open to the public or reserved for an elite few.   Who Built the First Monuments? Until the late 20th century, scholars believed that monumental architecture could only be constructed by complex societies with rulers who could conscript or otherwise convince the residents into working on large, non-functional structures. However, modern archaeological technology has given us access to the earliest levels of some of the most ancient tells in northern Mesopotamia and Anatolia, and there, scholars discovered something amazing: monumentally-sized cult buildings were constructed at least 12,000 years ago, by what started out as egalitarian hunters and gatherers. Before the discoveries in the northern Fertile Crescent, monumentality was considered costly signaling, a term that means something like elites using conspicuous consumption to demonstrate their power. Political or religious leaders had public buildings built to indicate that they had the power to do so: they certainly did that. But if hunter-gatherers, who ostensibly didnt have full-time leaders, built monumental structures, why did they that do that? Why Did They Do That? One possible driver for why people first started building special structures is climate change. Early Holocene hunter-gatherers living during the cool, arid period known as the Younger Dryas were susceptible to resource fluctuations. People rely on cooperative networks to get them through times of social or environmental stress. The most basic of these cooperative networks is food sharing. Early evidence for feasting—ritual food sharing—is at Hilazon Tachtit, about 12,000 years ago. As part of a highly organized food-sharing project, a large-scale feast can be a competitive event to advertise community power and prestige. That may have led to the construction of larger structures to accommodate larger numbers of people, and so forth. It is possible that the sharing simply stepped up when the climate deteriorated. Evidence for the use of monumental architecture as evidence for religion usually involves the presence of sacred objects or images on the wall. However, a  recent study by behavioral psychologistsYannick Joye and Siegfried Dewitte (listed in the sources below) has found that tall, large-scale buildings produce measurable feelings of awe in their viewers. When awe-struck, viewers typically experience momentary freezing or stillness. Freezing is one of the main stages of the defense cascade in humans and other animals, giving the awe-struck person a moment of hyper-vigilance toward the perceived threat. The Earliest Monumental Architecture The earliest known monumental architecture is dated to the periods in western Asia known as pre-pottery Neolithic A (abbreviated PPNA, dated between 10,000–8,500 calendar years BCE [cal BCE]) and PPNB ( 8,500–7,000 cal BCE). Hunter-gatherers living in communities such as Nevali Çori, Hallan Çemi, Jerf el-Ahmar, D’jade el-Mughara, Çayà ¶nà ¼ Tepesi, and Tel Abr all built communal structures (or public cult buildings) within their settlements. At Gà ¶bekli Tepe, in contrast, is the earliest monumental architecture located outside of a settlement—where it is hypothesized that several hunter-gatherer communities gathered regularly. Because of the pronounced ritual / symbolic elements at Gà ¶bekli Tepe, scholars such as Brian Hayden have suggested that the site contains evidence of emergent religious leadership. Tracing the Development of Monumental Architecture How cult structures might have evolved into monumental architecture has been documented at Hallan Çemi. Located in southeastern Turkey, Hallan Cemi is one of the oldest settlements in northern Mesopotamia. Cult structures significantly different from regular houses were constructed at Hallan Cemi about 12,000 years ago, and over time became larger and more elaborate in decoration and furniture. All of the cult buildings described below were located at the center of the settlement and arranged around a central open area about 15 m (50 ft) in diameter. That area contained dense animal bone and fire-cracked rock from hearths, plaster features (probably storage silos), and stone bowls and pestles. A row of three horned sheep skulls was also found, and this evidence together, say the excavators, indicates that the plaza itself was used for feasts, and perhaps rituals associated with them. Building Level 3 (the oldest): three C-shaped buildings made of river pebbles about 2 m (6.5 ft) in diameter and mortared with white plasterBuilding Level 2: three circular river-pebble buildings with paved floors, two 2 m in diameter and one 4 m (13 ft). The largest had a small plastered basin in the center.Building Level 1: four structures, all constructed of sandstone slabs rather than river pebbles. Two are relatively small (2.5 m, 8 ft in diameter), the other two are between 5-6 m (16-20 ft). Both of the larger structures are fully circular and semi-subterranean (excavated partly into the ground), each with a distinctive semicircular stone bench set against the wall. One had a complete auroch skull which apparently hung on the north wall facing the entrance. The floors had been resurfaced multiple times with a distinctive thin yellow sand and plaster mixture over a relatively sterile fine dirt fill. Few domestic materials were found inside the structures, but there were exotics, including copper ore and obsidian. Examples Not all monumental architecture was (or is for that matter) built for religious purposes. Some are gathering places: archaeologists consider plazas a form of monumental architecture since they are large open spaces built in the middle of town to be used by everyone. Some are purposeful—water control structures like dams, reservoirs, canal systems, and aqueducts. Sports arenas, government buildings, palaces, and churches: of course, many different large communal projects still exist in modern society, sometimes paid for by taxes. Some examples from across time and space include Stonehenge in the UK, the Egyptian Giza Pyramids, the Byzantine Hagia Sophia, the Qin Emperors Tomb, the American Archaic Poverty Point earthworks, Indias Taj Mahal, Maya water control systems, and the Chavin culture Chankillo observatory. Sources Atakuman, Çigdem. Architectural Discourse and Social Transformation During the Early Neolithic of Southeast Anatolia. Journal of World Prehistory 27.1 (2014): 1-42. Print. Bradley, Richard. Houses of Commons, Houses of Lords: Domestic Dwellings and Monumental Architecture in Prehistoric Europe. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 79 (2013): 1-17. Print. Finn, Jennifer. Gods, Kings, Men: Trilingual Inscriptions and Symbolic Visualizations in the Achaemenid Empire. Ars Orientalis 41 (2011): 219-75. Print. Freeland, Travis, et al. Automated Feature Extraction for Prospection and Analysis of Monumental Earthworks from Aerial Lidar in the Kingdom of Tonga. Journal of Archaeological Science 69 (2016): 64-74. Print. Joye, Yannick, and Siegfried Dewitte. Up Speeds You Down. Awe-Evoking Monumental Buildings Trigger Behavioral and Perceived Freezing. Journal of Environmental Psychology 47.Supplement C (2016): 112-25. Print. Joye, Yannick, and Jan Verpooten. An Exploration of the Functions of Religious Monumental Architecture from a Darwinian Perspective. Review of General Psychology 17.1 (2013): 53-68. Print. McMahon, Augusta. Space, Sound, and Light: Toward a Sensory Experience of Ancient Monumental Architecture. American Journal of Archaeology 117.2 (2013): 163-79. Print. Stek, Tesse D. Monumental Architecture of Non-Urban Cult Places in Roman Italy. A Companion to Roman Architecture. Eds. Ulrich, Roger B. and Caroline K. Quenemoen. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley, 2014. 228-47. Print. Swenson, Edward. Moche Ceremonial Architecture as Thirdspace: The Politics of Place-Making in the Ancient Andes. Journal of Social Archaeology 12.1 (2012): 3-28. Print. Watkins, Trevor. New Light on Neolithic Revolution in South-West Asia. Antiquity 84.325 (2010): 621–34. Print.

The White Slave Trade By Emma Goldman - 1021 Words

One of Comstock’s targets was Emma Goldman, whom he unsuccessfully tried to have imprisoned for her unconventional writings about â€Å"the white slave trade.† Indeed, Goldman was one of the few public figures who challenged the assertions in the newspapers at that time surrounding the white slave panic. She was truly prophetic when she described that movement as a â€Å"toy† that â€Å"serves to amuse the people for a little while, and it will help to create a few more fat political jobs--parasites who stalk about the world as inspectors, investigators, detectives, and so forth.† Goldman rejected the ideals of Progressive Era abolitionists. She insisted, â€Å"To the moralist prostitution does not consist so much in the fact that the woman sells her body, but rather that she sells it out of wedlock.† Contrarily, Maude Miner Hadden, wished for prostitutes to be sent to reform schools or institutions for the feebleminded during the Progressive Era. Hadden said, â€Å"These girls have not been, except in rare instances, physically enslaved; but through the loss of freedom and of action, they have been bound to prostitution. Their demoralization of character has constituted moral enslavement.† Goldman was, instead, more concerned about society’s indifference to the main cause of prostitution -- economic and social conditions. As a side note, Goldman tried to once work as a prostitute to help raise money for her fellow anarchist and partner, Alexander Berkman. He was well-known for shooting one of

Methodology Serves in Project Management-Free-Samples for Students

Questions: 1.Define what a Methodology is and the role it serves in Project Management. 2.Familiarise yourselves with the various Methodologies. Choose two Methodologies from this list to compare and contrast, analysing the similarities and differences between them both. 3.Finally, identify how your chosen Methodologies and processes relate to the Project Life Cycle. Answers: 1.Methodology- definition A methodology can be defined by a system based on varied practices, tools, process as well as rules that are used by those rules who likes to work in a discipline. Waterfall and Agile are some of the good examples of methodologies that will be discussed in detail in the report below. Role methodology serves in project management The company set some goals and plan outcomes within a definite plan as well as a budget with a manager that utilizes a project. Instead of field or any kind of trade, there must be some kind of assortments of different methods in order to assist the manager at every phase of a project from the starting to execute to the present closure (Hill, 2013). 2.Agile methodology The base of the Agile based methodology was introduced by seventeen people in the year 2001 in writing. This methodology also put forth an important mindset by providing values and associating with consumers (Crawford, 2014). The four main values are discussed below: - People and conversation over process and techniques Work in software over proper and discussed documentation Customer association over negotiation of a contract Response to transform over making and follow a plan In the present time, Agile can be defined as such values along with framework for executing them which also include extreme program and other framework like adaptive project (Batselier Vanhoucke, 2017). The team that is working on the project work in iterative way of cycle that always tests the final outcomes. Depend on the final outcome of the tests; the deliverable should be transformed to get better solutions for the need of consumers. Constant association is actually a key where both the project members of the team as well as with stakeholders. Waterfall This technique is about sequencing the work that leads to final offer and work on them in proper function. This methodology is called as waterfall methodology which can be called as traditional way for management of projects and the one that is simple and easy to understand. One work that should be finished before the next starts that too in a related pattern of present items that actually add to the complete deliverables (Tourond et al, 2017). It can be called as an ideal way for the projects that actually come out as physical objects and with project plans that can be simply duplicated for the future. 3.Association of Agile and SDLC with PLC Agile methodologies are for projecting that require extreme level of agility in needs. The key characteristics of agile methods are in short term cycles for delivery with need of agile, with dynamic culture of the team with less limited control on project and attention on communication in the real time (Turner, 2016). This model is taken as a legacy based model in order to have a software development projects. The methodology should be done in practice for almost ten years right before the new method were introduced at later stage. The current model is based on development related lifecycle has also fixed some stages and with liner level of timelines as well References Batselier, J., Vanhoucke, M. (2017). In this paper, the earned value management (EVM) project control methodology is integrated with the exponential smoothing forecasting approach. This results in an extension of the known EVM and earned schedule (ES) cost and time forecasting formulas. A clear correspondence between the established approaches and the newly introduced methodcalled the XSMis identified, which could facilitate future...International Journal of Project Management,35(1), 28-43. Crawford, J. K. (2014).Project management maturity model. CRC Press. Hill, G. M. (2013).The complete project management office handbook. CRC Press. Tourond, D., Moore, H., Kotani, N. (2017, March). Critical Success Factors and Engagement Methodology for Successful Project Delivery. InITCH(pp. 336-339). Turner, R. (2016).Gower handbook of project management. Routledge.

Zero Based Budgets Essay Example

Zero Based Budgets Essay Zero-based budgeting starts from a zero base and every function within an organization is analyzed for its needs and costs. Budgets are then built around what is needed for the upcoming period, regardless of whether the budget is higher or lower than the previous one. Because of its detail-oriented nature, zero-based budgeting may be a rolling process done over several years, with only a few functional areas reviewed at a time by managers or group leadership. Zero-based budgeting can lower costs by avoiding blanket increases or decreases to a prior periods budget. It is, however, a time-consuming process that takes much longer than traditional, cost-based budgeting. The practice also favors areas that achieve direct revenues or production; their contributions are more easily justified than in departments such as client service and research and development. The name zero base budgeting derives from the idea that such budgets are developed from a zero base: that is, at the beginning of the budget development process, all budget headings have a value of ZERO. This is in sharp contrast to the incremental budgeting system in which in general a new budget tends to start with a balance at least equal to last years total balance, or an estimate of it. What zero base budgeting tries to achieve is an optimal allocation of resources that incremental and other budgeting systems probably cannot achieve. ZBB starts by asking managers to identify and justify their area(s) of work in terms of decision packages (qv). Zero-based budgeting is an approach to planning and decision-making which reverses the working process of traditional budgeting. We will write a custom essay sample on Zero Based Budgets specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Zero Based Budgets specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Zero Based Budgets specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In traditional incremental budgeting, departmental managers justify only variances versus past years, based on the assumption that the baseline is automatically approved. By contrast, in zero-based budgeting, every line item of the budget must be approved, rather than only changes. [1] During the review process, no reference is made to the previous level of expenditure. Zero-based budgeting requires the budget request be re-evaluated thoroughly, starting from the zero-base. This process is independent on whether the total budget or specific line items are increasing or decreasing. Advantages 1. Efficient allocation of resources, as it is based on needs and benefits rather than history. 2. Drives managers to find cost effective ways to improve operations. 3. Detects inflated budgets. 4. Increases staff motivation by providing greater initiative and responsibility in decision-making. 5. Increases communication and coordination within the organization. 6. Identifies and eliminates wasteful and obsolete operations. 7. Identifies opportunities for outsourcing. 8. Forces cost centers to identify their mission and their relationship to overall goals. . It helps in identifying areas of wasteful expenditure and, if desired, it can also be used for suggesting alternative courses of action. One drawback to zero-based budgeting is cost in terms of managerial time; it takes a considerable amount of time to go through the process of reviewing operations in enough detail to justify costs each budget cycle without relying on past expenditures. One solution to this problem is to create a rolling budget every year and perform a zero-based budget every three to five years, or when a major change occurs within the operation. This allows an organization to benefit from the advantages of zero-based budgeting without an excessive amount of work. Likewise, traditional rolling budgets should never strictly rely on a prior-year budget plus a percentage; consideration should always be given to past numbers. In some cases, a zero-based budget may rely on some prior numbers where it is overwhelming to create a budget from scratch. Ultimately, the process gives top management the opportunity to judge the performance of managers in terms of allocating resources efficiently and effectively, and gives managers more responsibility in developing their budgets. An organization should not feel that all budgets must be developed in entirely the same manner. Some departments can utilize an in-depth study of a zero-based budget while others can use a rolling budget. This is a way to spread the extensive work over a number of years instead of concentrating on one certain year. Many organizations have implemented the system in some form or another and found that it did not work. If properly implemented, however, the process could have a considerable improvement over traditional rolling budgets. The number and nature of decision packages varies from organization to organization; it is not uncommon for large organizations to identify several thousand packages. Furthermore, it is often hard or even impossible for top executives to have the necessary knowledge or time to develop and rank priorities for thousands of packages. To alleviate this problem, managers, after ranking their own packages, can have their top executives rank the packages of all the managers that report to them. This approach is used by one of zero-based budgetings pioneers, Texas Instruments. Another solution is for each level of management to rank a certain percentage of packages within its own area of responsibility. In this solution, the first level of management may rank 40 percent of the proposed packages; the next level may rank the next 40 percent of packages, while top management may concentrate on the remainder of the budget Read more: Zero-Based Budgeting strategy, organization, levels, system, style, examples, advantages, manager, company http://www. referenceforbusiness. com/management/Tr-Z/Zero-Based-Budgeting. html#ixzz1TgZFF400 [edit] Disadvantages . More time-consuming than incremental budgeting. 2. Justifying every line item can be problematic for departments with intangible outputs. 3. Requires specific training, due to increased complexity vs. incremental budgeting. 4. In a large organization, the amount of information backing up the budgeting process may be overwhelming. The zero-based budgeting system puts the burden of proof on the manager, and dema nds that each manager justify the entire budget in detail and prove why he or she should spend the organizations money in the manner proposed. A decision package must be developed by each manager for every project or activity, which includes an analysis of cost, purpose, alternative courses of action, measures of performance, consequences of not performing the activity, and the benefits. This approach is different than traditional budgeting techniques due to the analysis of alternatives. Managers must identify alternative methods of performing each activity first, such as evaluating the costs and benefits of making a project or outsourcing it, or centralizing versus decentralizing operations. In addition, managers must identify different levels for performing each alternative method of the proposed activity. This means establishing a minimum level of spending, often 75 percent of the current operating level, and then developing separate decision packages that include the costs and benefits of additional levels of spending for that particular activity. The different levels allow managers to consider and evaluate a level of spending lower than the current operating level, giving decision-makers the choice of liminating an activity or the ability to choose from a selection of levels of effort including tradeoffs and shifts in expenditure levels among organizational units. The decision packages must be ranked in order of importance once they have been created. This allows each manager to identify priorities, combine decision packages for old and new projects into one ranking, and allows top management to evaluate and compare the needs of individual units or divisions to make funding allocations. In this respect, zero-based budgeting is quite different than traditional rolling budgets. Rolling budgets often appeal to people who prepare budgets because they make budget development much easier. Managers can add an inflation factor to the previous years budget and then include any adjustments for major changes. Rolling budgets also give management a concrete number to help make comparisons from year to year. However, traditional rolling budgets have a tendency to create conflict; they can create an incentive to spend money carelessly in order to justify the next years budget. They can also create inefficient operations due to the fact that individual departments or units do not have to justify expenditures based on operations, but only on the prior years expenditures. Zero-based budgeting addresses such problems that can occur with traditional rolling budgets. In zero-based budgeting, each dollar spent by management must be justified with a detailed account of what will be purchased, how many labor hours are needed, what problems will be faced, and so forth. This allows management an opportunity to review operations in depth and make recommendations for changes to if necessary. The zero-based budgeting process helps managers identify redundancies and duplications among different departments, concentrating on the dollars needed for proposed programs as opposed to percentage increases or decreases form the previous year. Specific priorities of departments and divisions are identified more easily in zero-based budgeting. The process also allows for the comparability of different departments as to the respective priorities funded. Zero-base budgeting enables a performance audit to determine whether each project or activity has been performed as efficiently as planned. Zero-based budgeting may require an extensive amount of time, money, and paper work; but it does provide a systematic method of addressing an organizations financial concerns, in turn enabling an organization to better allocate its resources. A combination of zero-based budgets with rolling budgets or some other form of budgeting that spreads the work of justifying new budgets each cycle is one way to incorporate zero-based budgeting without undo stress at the same time for all managers with budgetary responsibility. www. eferenceforbusiness. com/ /Zero-Based-Budgeting. html http The zero-based budgeting system puts the burden of proof on the manager, and demands that each manager justify the entire budget in detail and prove why he or she should spend the organizations money in the manner proposed. A decision package must be developed by each manager for every project or activity, which includes an analysis of cost, purpose, alternative courses of action, measures of performance, co nsequences of not performing the activity, and the benefits. This approach is different than traditional budgeting techniques due to the analysis of alternatives. Managers must identify alternative methods of performing each activity first, such as evaluating the costs and benefits of making a project or outsourcing it, or centralizing versus decentralizing operations. In addition, managers must identify different levels for performing each alternative method of the proposed activity. This means establishing a minimum level of spending, often 75 percent of the current operating level, and then developing separate decision packages that include the costs and benefits of additional levels of spending for that particular activity. The different levels allow managers to consider and evaluate a level of spending lower than the current operating level, giving decision-makers the choice of eliminating an activity or the ability to choose from a selection of levels of effort including tradeoffs and shifts in expenditure levels among organizational units. The decision packages must be ranked in order of importance once they have been created. This allows each manager to identify priorities, combine decision packages for old and new projects into one ranking, and allows top management to evaluate and compare the needs of individual units or divisions to make funding allocations. In this respect, zero-based budgeting is quite different than traditional rolling budgets. Rolling budgets often appeal to people who prepare budgets because they make budget development much easier. Managers can add an inflation factor to the previous years budget and then include any adjustments for major changes. Rolling budgets also give management a concrete number to help make comparisons from year to year. However, traditional rolling budgets have a tendency to create conflict; they can create an incentive to spend money carelessly in order to justify the next years budget. They can also create inefficient operations due to the fact that individual departments or units do not have to justify expenditures based on operations, but only on the prior years expenditures. Zero-based budgeting addresses such problems that can occur with traditional rolling budgets. In zero-based budgeting, each dollar spent by management must be justified with a detailed account of what will be purchased, how many labor hours are needed, what problems will be faced, and so forth. This allows management an opportunity to review operations in depth and make recommendations for changes to if necessary. The zero-based budgeting process helps managers identify redundancies and duplications among different departments, concentrating on the dollars needed for proposed programs as opposed to percentage increases or decreases form the previous year. Specific priorities of departments and divisions are identified more easily in zero-based budgeting. The process also allows for the comparability of different departments as to the respective priorities funded. Zero-base budgeting enables a performance audit to determine whether each project or activity has been performed as efficiently as planned. ://www. referenceforbusiness. com/index. html.