Does the new 21st century transformational form of super leader simply Essay

Does the new 21st century transformational form of super leader simply represent the reemergence of traitbased theories of leadership - Essay Example Eventually concentrating on the three main ideas of leadership: Trait theory, Situational or behavioral theory, and Transformational theory, this essay will compare and contrast these ideas in order to discover whether modern ideas of super-leadership is really a 21st century innovation. The first part of this essay will look at the history of leadership, and consider how these theories changed over time, and how they were affected by the politics of the day - whether Weber's hero-based theories fall out of favor because of "charismatic" leaders such as Hitler and Stalin, for example. The essay will then consider the two prime theories of leadership prior to the 1970's; trait theory, and situational theory. Through analysis of all of these historical theories, it is hoped that common perspectives and behaviors might be more clearly seen. Having noted similar themes or behaviors within the historical theories, the next part of the essay will consider transformational leadership, and its development in the twentieth century. Notions of the Super-leader will also be examined. Leadership theories do not just describe leaders of countries, or empires; indeed, leadership theory in the 20th century has also focused upon business leaders; modern theorists consider teachers, football coaches, and even parents, as leaders. There are a great many books written about it also: so anyone who can buy a book from a store can learn the tricks and secrets to being a great leader. Therefore, in order to understand what theorists mean when they are discussing leadership, a definition seems necessary. For the purposes of this essay, leadership is "The effort to influence the behavior of individuals or members of a group in order to accomplish organizational, individual, or personal goals" (National Resources Management, 1997). The main focus of most pre-twentieth century theories of leadership was the monarch, or rulers of countries. Sun-Tzu's theories have already been described: clearly they relate to the idea of a war-lord, or leader with military capability, not the average equipment of the business leader. Rulers were also clearly the object of Machiavelli's work "The Prince"; in his theory, rulers are made great or weak through the popular perception of them: "Whenever men are discussed.they are noted for various qualities which earn them either praise or condemnation" (Machiavelli). In general, he believed

U08a1 Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

U08a1 Project - Essay Example However, there is a major concern regarding the performance of Tufts Medical Center in the matters relating to comprehensive record keeping for employee injuries while on duty. Also, there have been allegations from nursing bodies that this hospital lacks concern for health and safety of its employees. These are indeed serious charges since employees bulwark services and for most part form the backbone of this institution and perceived detriment to their health and safety. This could have a negative impact on the quality of the medical service which they provide to care-needy patients. In a recent case, it is believed that â€Å"Following complaints filed to OSHA by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, Tufts Medical Center has agreed to pay $5,000 to settle issues in record-keeping. OSHA cited the hospital for failing to properly record employee injuries that occurred on the job, including back strains, broken thumbs, needle-stick injuries, and cuts from sharp objects.† (Altman, 2010, para.1). Perhaps, it is necessary to take a good look at the present system of archiving and recording proceedings relating to injuries of employees while on duty at the Tufts Medical Center. It is necessary to isolate those interventions or health care activities that could jeopardize the health of caregivers like lifting crippled heavy patients on to wheel chairs , exposure to chemicals, fear of contracting serious infections and the emotional stress involved in dealing with patients having psychological and mental illnesses. In this context, it is also necessary to understand and appreciate that the entire skyline of modern medical services has undergone severe paradigm shifts. There has been increased need for state-of-the art specialized novel, expensive medical possibilities and a whole new array of medical interventions that need to be put to effective and productive use by health care professionals and care takers. With

A Health Promotion Program Proposal Health And Social Care Essay

A Health Promotion Program Proposal Health And Social Care Essay There are many substance abuse and mental health organizations throughout the country but minimal effort has been expended in targeting Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevention programs toward people with mental illness and chemical dependency. The severely mentally disabled population are at a higher risk for HIV infection than the general population (Perehenets, Mamary, Rose, 2006). HIV prevention programs are at a commodity and rarely within this vulnerable population recognized as a sexually active population let alone at risk of HIV infection. In the health promotion program the proposed program will be a prevention case management approach to reducing the incidence of HIV in people with mental illness or dual diagnosis. The program will include a variety of professional health services, psychiatric care, and individually tailored education on HIV, other sexually transmitted diseases, and safer sex, as well as drug/alcohol treatment as needed. Health promotion being the obj ective of this program there will be active progress to reduce HIV infection among mentally ill and substance abusing population. The process will include working individually with each client to facilitate the identification and modifying risky behaviors, while also treating mental illness and substance abuse issues in an active effort to improve wellness (Aids Alert, 2008). In Cleveland, Ohio, there is a limited effort directed toward addressing the issue of HIV/AIDS among people with mental illness and chemical dependency. At the same time, there is a growing phenomenon of HIV transmission through sexual activity among the severely mentally disabled individuals. Mental illness does not increase risk in and of itself, a person with mental illness can, of course, engage in high risk behaviors for HIV infection. Studies of people with Severe Mental Disabilities show that between 4% and 19.4% are HIV positive. In all cases, the seroprevalence rates among people with mental illness are higher than that of the United States population in general (Courns et. al., 1991; Sucks et.al.,1992; Susser, Valencia, and Conover, 1993). It is critical for the severely mentally disabled clients to be provided with adequate education about HIV/AIDS and prevention strategies. The typical severely mentally disabled client suffers from a severe thought disorder exhibiting periods of active mental illness and remission. Active periods may include symptoms such as hallucinations or paranoia. Negative symptoms, which appear during remission, may include anxiety, depression, or impairment in thought (DSM IV). During periods of active illness, a client is less likely to engage in unsafe sex or other high-risk behaviors. During periods of remission, however, a client may resort to sex and/or drug using behaviors in an attempt to self-medicate (Aids Alert, 2007). Ironically, one of the periods of greatest risk is when a client receives effective case management, including medication and counseling. Researching agencies across the United States it was found that rarely did individuals with severe mental illness have any knowledge of the HIV infection or ways to prevent the spread(Aids Alert 2007). Thus it is critical that severely mentally disabled clients be provided adequate education about HIV/AIDS and preventive strategies. The health promotion project will specifically address three priorities: (1) Promoting Healthy Behaviors and Life Styles, (2) Increasing and improving healthcare, (3) Increasing knowledge. Literature Review A total of six articles reviewed for this project all where consistent in the recommendation to reduce HIV among the severely mentally disabled population. To reduce the transmission of HIV among clients in this population, risk prevention and education are essential (Aids Alert, 2008). A challenge among this population is the continuous need for intensive case management because studies showed following education and risk reduction activities are taught after 6 months at risk behaviors returned (Berkman, Pilowsky, Zybert, Herman, Conover, Lemmelli, Cournos, Koepner, Susser. 2007). In review of the literature one of the weakness is that the reality of sustain prevention behaviors where not demonstrated nor did the articles at hand speak about the need for intensive case management once a person with persistent mental illness present being HIV positive or living with AIDS. Clearly the project being proposed would offer continuous individualized, comprehensive, prevention case management approach, coupled with risk-reduction counseling as well as pre and post counseling for testing for HIV. Prevention Case Management ensures that clients have the necessary infrastructure established in their lives to allow them to focus on treatment and healthy living. The case manager links the client to essential services such as healthcare, housing, entitlements, and training. Assisting in daily living skills, such as budgeting and medication compliance, and acts as a liason between medical doctors and psychiatrists working with the client. Once the client has been linked to resources to meet his or her needs and receives psychiatric care to minimize or control symptoms, then the focus on reducing risky behaviors associated with increased risk of HIV infection. There are many substance abuse and mental health organizations throughout the country but minimal effort has been expended in targeting Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevention programs toward people with mental illness and chemical dependency. Conceptual Model The High Risk Prevention Program is based in behavioral science theory. The education and prevention group sessions and prevention case management both use a combination of the AIDS Risk Reduction Model (ARRM) and Harm Reduction theory as a framework to guide interventions. For example, the education portion of the group sessions teaches people what behaviors put them at risk for HIV or other sexually transmitted infection. The participants activiely show the knowledge they are gaining through the High risk, Low risk, No risk game, where a behavior is written on a card and given to each person. Participants are then asked to stand under the sign that shows the level of risk the behavior carries. This is based on the ARRM principle that in order to change behavior, one must first label it as risky. The prevention portion of the group teaches participants how to reduce likelihood of infection through safer sex practices. This is based on both the ARRM principle that a person must make a commitment to change (e.g., use condoms for every sexual encounter) as well as the Harm Reduction principle that people are going to do risky things, so they should be given ways to at least reduce the risk. The ARRM states that the last step to changing behavior is to take action to perform the desired changed (Lanier,M. Gates,S., 1999). The High Risk Prevention Program witnesses this principle in prevention case management clients, since they are seen and intervened upon over a long period of time (sometimes years), whereas group session clients are seen only once. It is essential to provide education about the risk of HIV transmission to practitioner, community members, and clients. All of these groups need to understand what HIV is, how it is transmitted, and how to change risky behaviors in order to prevent infection. Without this knowledge, the disease will continue to be misunderstood and it will continue to spread through people with mental illness and/or substance dependence. Group sessions will be provided at local community organizations that provide mental health and substance abuse treatment, thus reaching a larger community. Experience shows that many people with mental illness are reluctant to go to an unfamiliar place and/or are likely to isolate themselves at home. Staff will provide outreach to homeless drop in centers and group homes to assist in reaching marginalized populations. Providing prevention education materials and the tools necessary for clients to practice prevention and risk reduction techniques nurses and other supportive staff will offer clients a variety of safer-sex products, including condoms, female condoms, dental dams, lubricants, and pamphlets about specific sexually transmitted disease or HIV. Free anonymous or confidential OraSure testing will be provided to participants following each session. In addition to education and prevention seminars, it is important to assist clients through learning, understanding, and implementing a risk-reduction life style. Prevention case management is critical in ensuring that clients have the necessary infrastructure established in their lives to allow them to focus on treatment and healthy living. The case manager will link the client to essential services such as healthcare, housing, entitlements and/or job training. The case manager will assist with daily living skills, such as budgeting and medication compliance, and act as the constant between medical do ctors and psychiatrists working with client. Project Goals and Objectives The first goal will be to increase knowledge and awareness around HIV and other sexually transmitted disease and prevention models, such as safer sex practices to clinical staff. The objective will be to provide education session about HIV and other sexually transmitted disease to employees and interns to ensure internal agency staff members are informed with accurate knowledge about high-risk behaviors associated with HIV and STDs. A secondary objective for this goal will be for staff members comfort and capability to talk with clients about sexual behaviors and HIV/STD prevention. The second goal will be to decrease behaviors that put people with mental illness and substance abuse problems at risk for HIV infection through comprehensive case management while supporting clients physical, emotional, social and mental health. The first objective will be to provide prevention case management services to 45 unduplicated clients. The intervention will be providing case management services to 30 clients each month, with overlap from month to month ( the average number of case management encounters will be two per client, per month). The second objective for the goal number two is to provide prevention and education sessions to One hundred and Eighty clients. With mental illness and/or substance use to increase knowledge about high risk behaviors associated with HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted disease, and safer sex. The intervention will be for multidisciplinary staff to provide prevention education sessions. Seminars will rotate through the community and will be held throughout the year, with an average of one seminar per month. Free, anonymous HIV testing will be provided through collaboration with an established testing provider. The outcome will be that clients achieve an increase in knowledge and awareness of issues around HIV, other sexually transmitted disease and safer sex, as evidenced in pre post test result analysis. Evaluation Component Evaluation of the projects success has two components. The first component is a pre/post test to assess clients knowledge of HIV, safer sex, and sexually transmitted disease. This evaluates the Education and Prevention component of the Project. Post-test scores that are higher than pre-test scores will show that the Education and Prevention session improved the participants knowledge of HIV, and other sexually transmitted diseases and safer sex. The second evaluation component is a documented review of client goals. This evaluates the Prevention Case Management component of the project. After establishing rapport with the client, the Prevention Case Manager will collaborate with the client to formulate a personal goal about HIV or other sexually transmitted disease risk reduction or safer sex. Typically, the Prevention Case Manager checks in with the client about this goal at each session to evaluate one or more of the following: the clients knowledge about HIV and prevention, his or her attitudes about changing risky behaviors, and skills available to implement a change. There is a formal written review of the clients goals that takes place every ninety days and is kept in the clients record. Progress is determined by both the clients personal assessment of his or her achievements and the Prevention Case Managers clinical opinion. Optimal outcomes in Prevention Case Management evaluation will demonstrate increase in condom use, cessation of injection drug use, or decreased number of sexual partners. Barriers and Challenges The adoption of Evidence Based Interventions can be best implemented under real-world conditions. The agency implementing the change must also have the ability to offer capacity building activities for the adopters of the intervention. Just adding responsibility to staffs all ready full scheduled can be a barrier to the motivation and successful implementation of the interventions. The level of care also needs to be assessed when offering Prevention Case Management when in fact the client is aligned in needed intensive case management simply to manage basic needs and this intervention would not have any significant change in behavior. The severly mentally ill client will present with challenges of psychiatric stability and that does need prioritizing. Successful behavioral change is not a one-time event. Change occurs over time, and with small steps which accumulate to make large differences. Change must be maintained over time and interwined into the culture of the person and their support system. The clinicians must remain flexible and meet their clients where they are moving them to risk free behaviors in their time line, pulling on their strengths. Nurses must expand their efforts to design and implement interventions which support promotion of health and prevention of disease and disability. Preventing and staying healthy is complex, focus is not only on the client but their family, their support system and their beliefs. The nurses approach needs to be comprehensive looking at primary, secondary and teritarty levels of prevention and involve the client and community in the planning. The Aids Risk Reduction Model allows the nurse to understand and predict clients behavior including how they use and adhere to recommended therapy. Health promotion being the objective of this program there will be active progress to reduce HIV infection among mentally ill and substance abusing population. The process will include working individually with each client to facilitate the identification and modifying risky behaviors, while also treating mental illness and substance abuse issues in an active effort to improve wellness (Aids Alert, 2008). .

Democracy Essay -- miscellaneous

Democracy This essay will now discuss the different forms of government, which are monarchy and aristocracy. In this essay I will also answer the question â€Å"Is Democracy the Best Form of Government?† My basic answer to that question is yes, I do think it is the best form of governments. I will be giving reason to back up my answer to this question. This essay will now discuss the different forms of government and the answer to the question â€Å"is Democracy the Best Form of Government?† in more depth and detail. One of the forms of government that we would be discussing is monarchy. A monarchy is a form of government that has a monarch as Head of State, political power which belongs largely to one ruler, generally called a king or queen, who receives his or her position by claim of divine or inherited right. This basically means that there is one ruler for the common good. An example of this is Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Monaco. However, the prevision of a monarchy is a tyranny. This happens when the one man who is a dictator governs for his or her self and not for the interest of the common good. An example of tyranny is Greece where Hippias (last tyrant of Athens) ruled. Another form of government is aristocracy. An aristocracy is a form of government in which rulership is in the hands of an "upper class" known as aristocrats. The aristocrats are a few of people which are the most elite of men that are chosen to run the country. The word aristocracy implies the meaning of...

Diamond and Graphite

â€Å"In mineralogy, diamond (from the ancient Greek – adamas â€Å"unbreakable†) is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is renowned as a material with superlative physical qualities, most of which originate from the strong covalent bonding between its atoms. In particular, diamond has the highest hardness and thermal conductivity of any bulk material. ELECTRICAL CONDUCTANCE: – Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions. Other specialized applications also exist or are being developed, including use as semiconductors: some blue diamonds are natural semiconductors, in contrast to most diamonds, which are excellent electrical insulators. The conductivity and blue color originate from boron impurity. Boron substitutes for carbon atoms in the diamond lattice, donating a hole into the valence band.Substantial conductivity is commonly observed in nominally undoped diamond grown by chemical vapor deposition. This conductivity is associated with hydrogen-related species adsorbed at the surface, and it can be removed by annealing or other surface treatment HARDNESS: – Diamond is the hardest natural material known, where hardness is defined as resistance to scratching and is graded between 1 (softest) and 10 (hardest) using the Mohs scale of mineral hardness. Diamond has a hardness of 10 (hardest) on this scale.Diamond's hardness has been known since antiquity, and is the source of its name. Diamond hardness depends on its purity, crystalline perfection and orientation: hardness is higher for flawless, pure crystals oriented to the direction (along the longest diagonal of the cubic diamond lattice). Therefore, whereas it might be possible to scratch some diamonds with other materials, such as boron nitride, the hardest diamonds can only be scratch ed by other diamonds and nanocrystalline diamond aggregates. The hardness of diamond contributes to its suitability as a gemstone.Because it can only be scratched by other diamonds, it maintains its polish extremely well. Unlike many other gems, it is well-suited to daily wear because of its resistance to scratching—the hardest natural diamonds mostly originate from the Copeton and Bingara fields located in the New England area in New South Wales, Australia. These diamonds are generally small, perfect to semiperfect octahedra, and are used to polish other diamonds. Their hardness is associated with the crystal growth form, which is single-stage crystal growth.Most other diamonds show more evidence of multiple growth stages, which produce inclusions, flaws, and defect planes in the crystal lattice, all of which affect their hardness. It is possible to treat regular diamonds under a combination of high pressure and high temperature to produce diamonds that are harder than the d iamonds used in hardness gauges. Somewhat related to hardness is another mechanical property toughness, which is a material's ability to resist breakage from forceful impact. The toughness of natural diamond has been measured as 2.   MPa ·m1/2, and the critical stress intensity factor is 3. 4  MN ·m? 3/2. Those values are good compared to other gemstones, but poor compared to most engineering materials. As with any material, the macroscopic geometry of a diamond contributes to its resistance to breakage. Diamond has a cleavage plane and is therefore more fragile in some orientations than others. Diamond cutters use this attribute to cleave some stones, prior to faceting. USES: – The market for industrial-grade diamonds operates much differently from its gem-grade counterpart.Industrial diamonds are valued mostly for their hardness and heat conductivity, making many of the gemological characteristics of diamonds, such as clarity and color, irrelevant for most applicati ons. This helps explain why 80% of mined diamonds (equal to about 135,000,000  carats (27,000 kg) annually), unsuitable for use as gemstones, are destined for industrial use. In addition to mined diamonds, synthetic diamonds found industrial applications almost immediately after their invention in the 1950s; another 570,000,000  carats (110,000 kg) of synthetic diamond is produced annually for industrial use.Approximately 90% of diamond grinding grit is currently of synthetic origin. The boundary between gem-quality diamonds and industrial diamonds is poorly defined and partly depends on market conditions (for example, if demand for polished diamonds is high, some suitable stones will be polished into low-quality or small gemstones rather than being sold for industrial use). Within the category of industrial diamonds, there is a sub-category comprising the lowest-quality, mostly opaque stones, which are known as bort. Graphite is a black opaque solid with metallic shine.It is ve ry soft and feels greasy. Greasy feeling of graphite is due to ease with which layers can slide one over the other in graphite. The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Greek (graphein): â€Å"to draw/write†, for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead (not to be confused with the metallic element lead). Unlike diamond (another carbon allotrope), graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal. Graphite is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions.Therefore, it is used in thermo chemistry as the standard state for defining the heat of formation of carbon compounds. Graphite may be considered the highest grade of coal, just above anthracite and alternatively called meta-anthracite, although it is not normally used as fuel because it is hard to ignite. There are three principal types of natural graphite, each occurring in different types of ore deposit: 1. Crystalline flake gra phite (or flake graphite for short) occurs as isolated, flat, plate-like particles with hexagonal edges if unbroken and when broken the edges can be irregular or angular; 2.Amorphous graphite occurs as fine particles and is the result of thermal metamorphism of coal, the last stage of coalification, and is sometimes called meta-anthracite. Very fine flake graphite is sometimes called amorphous in the trade; 3. Lump graphite (also called vein graphite) occurs in fissure veins or fractures and appears as massive platy intergrowths of fibrous or acicular crystalline aggregates, and is probably hydrothermal in origin. ELECTRICAL CONDUCTANCE: – Somewhat of a surprise is that at surface temperatures and pressures, Graphite is the stable form of carbon.In fact, all diamonds at or near the surface of the Earth are currently undergoing a transformation into Graphite. This reaction, fortunately, is extremely slow. Graphite intercalation compounds (GICs) are complex materials having for mula XC y †¦ the in-plane electrical conductivity generally increases. HARDNESS: – These are the most common types of pencils, and are encased in wood. They are made of a mixture of clay and graphite and their darkness varies from light grey to black. Their composition allows for the smoothest strokes.As the name implies, these are solid sticks of graphite, USES: – Natural graphite is mostly consumed for refractories, steelmaking, expanded graphite, brake linings, foundry facings and lubricant. Graphene, which occurs naturally in graphite, has unique physical properties and might be one of the strongest substances known; however, the process of separating it from graphite will require some technological development before it is economically feasible to use it in industrial processes.Graphite (carbon) fiber and carbon nanotubes are also used in carbon fiber reinforced plastics, and in heat-resistant composites such as reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC). Products made f rom carbon fiber graphite composites include fishing rods, golf clubs, bicycle frames, and pool cue sticks and have been successfully employed in reinforced concrete. The mechanical properties of carbon fiber graphite-reinforced plastic composites and grey cast iron are strongly influenced by the role of graphite in these materials.In this context, the term â€Å"(100%) graphite† is often loosely used to refer to a pure mixture of carbon reinforcement and resin, while the term â€Å"composite† is used for composite materials with additional ingredients. [21] Graphite has been used in at least three radar absorbent materials. It was mixed with rubber in Sumpf and Schornsteinfeger, which were used on U-boat snorkels to reduce their radar cross section. It was also used in tiles on early F-117 Nighthawks. Modern smokeless powder is coated in graphite to prevent the buildup of static charge.

Peking Opera

Modern observers in the West may not understand why, but they can certainly recognize when males are used to portray female roles in the Chinese theater. A quote from Act 2 Scene 7 of David Henry Hwang's opera, â€Å"Madam Butterfly,† provides a useful example of how and why males are used to play female roles. There, a male singer who plays female roles in Beijing Opera deceives a French diplomat into thinking he actually is a woman. He explains that males take the female roles â€Å"because only a man knows how a woman is supposed to act† This explanation resonates on multiple levels with varying degrees of irony, suggesting that gender is as performative in life as it is in theater. To this end, this paper examines how men playing the tan role in the Beijing Opera define and enforce the idea of femininity by performing the female role to determine how men perform femininity on stage in the Beijing Opera. A summary of the research is provided in the conclusion. Review and Discussion Background and Overview. The importance of actors and acting has long been celebrated in China; in fact, the first document concerning â€Å"actors† can be found in the Records of the Great Historian, written by Sima Qian (145-90 BCE), who was appointed to the court of Emperor Wu (reigned 141-87 BCE) of the Western Han dynasty (cited in Thorpe 269). Likewise, the use of male actors to portray female characters also has a long history in China, although many contemporary researchers consider its origins to be primarily in the last century and a half. According to Tian (2000), â€Å"The art of male dan –specialists in female roles — is one of the most important issues in traditional Chinese theatre, especially in jingju (Beijing or Peking opera)† (78). Beijing opera, or literally â€Å"opera of the capital,† emerged in the mid-19th century in China by incorporating components of huidiao from Anhui, dandiao from Hubei, and kunqu, the traditional opera that had predominated the country since the 14th century; performed in Mandarin, the dialect of Beijing and of the traditional elite, the jingxi musical verse plays came to be performed throughout China, although most provinces and many major cities developed their own operatic variants using local dialects (Brandon 2). As Beijing opera spread out from its original roots in Beijing to become an actual national theatre in China, there were some issues that arose concerning tradition and innovation. For instance, in his book, Diasporas and Interculturalism in Asian Performing Arts: Translating Traditions, Um (2004) reports that, â€Å"The art as performed in Beijing was considered the ‘pure' form, referred to as ‘jingpai' ([Bei]jing style). But somewhat paradoxically, innovation was only regarded as truly successful if it was recognized in Beijing. For instance, liupai, the schools or styles of acting representative of the creative work of individual actors, could only be established through the validation of Beijing audiences and critics† (161). Before the mid-20th century, Beijing opera was considered to be actor-centered, both in terms of performance as well as the creative process; this mindset meant that all major creative work was either accomplished by or supervised by the actors but even this creative work had be approved by Beijing (Um 161). In fact, â€Å"An actor's original composition, scripting, staging and performance achieved the power of long-term influence and continuity only when Beijing conferred liupai status† (Um 161). According to Brandon (2006), Beijing operas are highly conventionalized in terms of movements, costumes and makeup; the respective attitudes of the individual characters in Beijing opera products are communicated through traditional postures, steps, and arm movements. In addition, both actors and actresses wear carefully applied face paint to indicate which characters they portray and various acrobatic movements are often employed to suggest violence (Brandon 2-3). Other devices are also used in Beijing opera to communicate what may not be readily discernible to uninitiated Western observers, but which are immediately recognized by Chinese audiences. For example, musical accompaniment for Beijing opera is provided by a small orchestra of stringed and wind instruments, wooden clappers, and a small drum; brief interludes of spoken narration allow singers to rest periodically during the characteristically lengthy performances; these devices also carry with them understood conventions that convey important points to be made (Brandon 3). As noted above, the Beijing opera has traditionally employed an all-male cast, including males portraying the female parts; however, during the late 20th century, Beijing opera expanded its scope to admit female actors as well (Brandon, 2006). The most popular male performer in the Beijing Opera was Mei Lanfang, who played mostly female roles; he introduced the art form to an international audience by touring in Japan, the United States, and the Soviet Union (Brandon 3). In her chapter, â€Å"Traditional theater in contemporary China,† Elizabeth Wichmann (1988) reports that, â€Å"Beijing opera has been the nationally dominant form of theater in China for at least one hundred years. However, it is only one among more than 360 indigenous, or traditional, forms of Chinese theater currently being staged† (184). The salient features of Beijing opera today can be traced to the Yuan dynasty, when the particular styles of costume and makeup were indicative of the nature of the character wearing them (Wichmann 184). According to this author, â€Å"At least in terms of refinement and elaboration, the Beijing opera (jingju) and other allied styles of Qing dynasty regional theater probably represent the high point of Chinese stage costume, and their styles of ‘painted face’ makeup are more numerous and complex than the stage makeups of any other culture or period† (Wichmann 2). Likewise, the distinctive Beijing opera walking styles of the dan (female roles) and sheng are clearly recognizable in other traditional forms, just as are the stylized hand and eye movements of the huadan (Wichmann 2). Although some localized forms of theater have not include certain role types (the jing being the role type most frequently excluded), the walk, posture, and gestures techniques used for every other role type traditionally included in each form and can be recognized by modern Chinese audiences without fail as belonging to that role type throughout the various forms of traditional Chinese theater (Brandon 3). Vocal stylizations, though, in many cases are significantly different from one theater form to the next, being reflective of a specific role type and of the specific form of theater (Brandon 3). In Beijing opera, actors portraying female roles typically use distinctly different vocal ranges and tonal qualities, including extremely high natural register production, midrange chest-supported nasal production, and a type of vocal production that is similar to the yodel, in which the performer must have a very wide vocal range (Wichmann 187). According to Wichmann (1988), â€Å"Through their combined imagery, the vocal and physical stylizations of each role type convey the primarily Confucian values and resulting behavior patterns traditionally deemed appropriate by society for each type of role thus portrayed† (187). Historic Influences on the Use of Male Actors for Female Roles in Beijing Opera. Fortunately for contemporary historians, there is a good account of how male actors came to portray female roles in the Beijing opera in the historical records. According to Guy (2001), Beijing opera is just one of more than 360 different regional forms of Chinese opera that differ primarily according to the regional dialect used in song and speech as well as in their musical materials. â€Å"In comparison with many of the world's other great musical theater traditions such as Japanese Noh, Italian opera, or Javanese wayang, Peking opera is a relatively new form. Its birth is popularly traced to 1790† (Guy 377). In reality, though, the origins of the male dan role can be traced back much further in Chinese history. For example, in her essay, â€Å"Male Dan: The Paradox of Sex, Acting, and Perception of Female Impersonation in Traditional Chinese Theatre,† Tian (2000) reports that, â€Å"The tradition of the male dan can be traced back to ancient music and dance. It probably dates back as early as the Han dynasty (206 B. C. -A. D. 219)† (78). A highly regarded scholar of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), Jiao Xun (1763-1820), cites a source suggesting that in the Han dynasty, there were also male actors that impersonated jinu (female singers and dancers), a tradition that served as the basis for the convention of female impersonation later called zhuang dan (Tian 78). By the end of the Wei dynasty (220-264), Emperor Cao Fang, who reigned from 240-254 CE, was reported to have enjoyed watching his young male jesters portray nubile young women whose excessive wantonness was an embarrassment to onlookers (Tian 78). Likewise, Emperor Xuan Di, who ruled from 578-579 CE of the North Zhou dynasty (557-581), issued a decree that required handsome young men of the city to dress as women and to sing and dance inside the imperial court for the emperor and his entourage (Historical records of the Beijing theatre cited in Tian at 78). During the reign of Emperor Yang Dig (605-616) of the Sui dynasty (589-617), from January 1 to January 15, a period in Chinese history when foreign princes and visitors were taxed by the Emperor in the form of tribute, thousands of singers and dancers gathered and performed in the country’s capital; the majority of these performers were dressed as females, and wore flowers and jewelry (Wang 190 cited in Tian at 78). By the mid-7th century, during the Tang dynasty (618-906), the Chinese empress requested that women be prohibited from taking part in any theatrical performance, a proclamation that resulted in the conventional segregation of male players and female singers and dancers employed at the court (Tian 78). Emperor Xuan Zong, who ruled from 712-756, was responsible for the development of the Liyuan (â€Å"Pear Garden†) and Yichunyuan (â€Å"Pleasure House†); the Liyuan used male performers exclusively while the Yichunyan used female singers and dancers (Tian 78). According to Tian (2000), â€Å"It is highly possible that the performances by the Liyuan actors might have involved female impersonation. It is clear that outside the court, jiafu xi (a performance featuring female impersonation) was part of various performances and entertainments in the Tang dynasty† (78). Historical accounts confirm that many male actors were proficient at playing female roles; furthermore, there is also historical evidence that confirms boys dressed as women performed for aristocratic families (Tian 78). During the Tang dynasty, a highly popular performance that involved female impersonation was the folk singing and dance performance known as â€Å"tayaoniang† (stamping and swaying wife). These performances were characterized by the wife being impersonated by a man, who complains about being beaten by her inebriated husband and sings to the rhythm of â€Å"her† dance while the audience responds in chorus (Cui 1959:18 cited in Tian at 78). Peking Opera Peking Opera Peking Opera is China’s national opera. Opera is so popular in China that they declared a â€Å"Peking Opera Month†. Peking Opera has been around for 200 years. â€Å"Its main melodies originated from Xipi and Erhuang in Anhui and Hubei respectively and, overtime, techniques from many other local operas were incorporated†. Peking Opera is said to have come to the front after 1790 when the famous four Anhui opera troupes came to Beijing. Peking Opera was developed quickly over the reign of Emperor Qianlong and the Empress Dowager Cixi under the imperial patron and became accessible to the common people.Peking Opera was originally performed on outside stages such as a teahouse or temple courtyards. The singers developed a piercing style of singing that could be heard over the loud orchestra. â€Å"The costumes were a garish collection of sharply contrasting colors to stand out on the dim stage illuminated by oil lamps†. Peking Opera incorporates parts from â€Å"The Grand Opera, ballet and acrobatics, consisting of dance, dialogue, monologues, martial arts and mime†. The â€Å"Nueva Cancion† Song Tradition Nueva Cancion† is Spanish for new song. Nueva Cancion â€Å"is a movement and genre within Latin American and Iberian music of folk music, folk-inspired music and socially committed music†. Nueva Cancion is seen as playing a powerful role in the social upheavals in Portugal, Spain, and Latin America during the 1970s and 1980s. Nueva Cancion started in Chile in the 1960s and was known as â€Å"The Chilean New Song†. Soon Nueva Cancion started to emerge in Spain and other areas of Latin America. Nueva Cancion renewed tradtitional Latin American folk music, and was soon associated with revolutionary movements, the Latin American New Left, Liberation Theology, hippie and human rights movements due to political lyrics†. Many Neuva Cancion musicians were often censored, exiled, forced to disappear and even tortured by â€Å"right-winged military dictatorships, as in Francoist Spain, Pinochet’s Chile and in Videla and Galtireri’s Argentina†. Neuva Cancion songs were so politically strong and because of this have been used in more recent â€Å"political campaigns, the Orange Revolution, which used Violeta Parra’s Gracias a la vida†.