Standardization of Science The Benchmark of An Educated Society

Question: Describe the Strengths and weakness of the standardization and of all the premises andThen the analysis of language and rhetoric used shall be evaluated? Answer: Strengths Weakness Analysis Premise 1: The study of sciences needs to be considered as an intellectual as well as a social endeavor in which the human intelligence is applied to discovering how the world works. Therefore, the study of science should be given a significant place in all the curriculums where scientific literacy is one of the aims. It needs to be considered in this regard that when the people are aware of the fact how do scientists arrived scientific conclusions, and are also aware of the limitations related with such conclusions, the people are more likely to react thoughtfully to the claims made by signs and at the same time, less likely to reject these claims or to accept these claims uncritically. An understanding of the way science operates, along with the basic inventory of major scientific concepts can allow the acquisition of more learning on the subject later on. Generally the image of science is distorted in the minds of the people. There are several stereo types and myths related with s cience in the minds of the people. These cannot be dispelled if the study of signs only focuses on the theories and concepts of science alone. Therefore the study of science should be made explicit part of the curriculum although science is only a small part of intellectual human enterprise. Premise 2: Science has revealed to us a lot about the world. As a result of science, we are able to understand, more or less, what reality is and what the forces that have an impact on the stuff of existence are. At the same time, possible and empirically sound basis had also been provided by the scientists regarding the life on our planet and also the history of the cosmos. However it is still all told to believe the claim made by the scientist that they have solved all the mysteries or will solve all the mysteries very soon. This amounts to a disservice to science as by doing so, they become similar to the religious fundamentalists, who are despised by them. Due to the due to the impact of research and technology on the changes taking place in the society and also on the way we live, it cannot be claimed by the scientists anymore that science is neutral and as a result, they are required to consider the ethical as well as the social aspects of science. Science cannot give advice regarding the values and the meaning of life. Premise 3: Science is very powerful and it has created the knowledge due to which we are able to call a person halfway around the world or to create skyscrapers. But besides these, science has also helped us in answering very important questions like how the hole in the ozone layer has been created, how the crops can be protected from pests, who were the evolutionary ancestors of humans and the areas that might be hit by a tsunami after an earthquake. As a result of the wide range of questions with which science deals, it appears that the reach of size is endless. However there are certain definite limits of science and it cannot contribute in metaphysics. Premise 4: Although, science plays a limited role, still it has a vital role in shaping the moral values and also helping us in framing wiser judgments. Evidence and reason allow us to examine ethical values naturally and openly. It is believed in this regard that the secular societies have already developed the responsible ethical norms and therefore science can help us in dealing with moral dilemmas. Significant power has been provided to the humans when dramatic breakthroughs were received on scientific frontiers. However this has also resulted in complex model quandaries. It cannot be said that science cannot reveal an understanding of the way in which knowledge can be used. Analysis of the Language Rhetoric In the opening paragraph of the letter, an editorial published in Sydney Morning Herald has been cited in which the Prime Minister, Treasure and the business leaders of Australia have been condemned as being uneducated. It has been claimed in the letter that the meaning of this statement is that science is the only benchmark of educated society and at the same time, the leaders of the country are scientifically ignorant. The letter points out that it has also been claimed an editorial that in case science is not treated with dignity, it would also have an adverse impact on our well-being as well as on the democracy. In this way, the letter points out that this particular editorial wants to establish that science is being intentionally devalued by our leaders in order to create a situation where people cannot think for themselves. In this way, it has been pointed out that there is no basis for the assumption that science can be considered as a benchmark of educated society. On the other hand, science plays an important role in developing situations or some of the most significant challenges faced by the society like climate change, shortage of food and water etc.. In this regard it needs to be noted that science is not merely a body of facts or theories. In the same way it does not only related with elements and formulas on the periodic table. As against the popular perception, a particular way of thinking is provided by scientific knowledge. In the same way, science also encourages skepticism and at the same time, it provides a guide with the help of which, false claims that are made by advertisers, businesses and politicians can be evaluated. Indeed there are certain limitations of science. For example, moral judgments are not made by science. Therefore the question if euthanasia can be considered as the right thing does not fall under the album of science. In the same way, the universal rights of the human beings as well as the rights of animals are very significant questions but these questions cannot be answered with the help of scientific knowledge and research. Although size can play an important role in learning about terminal illnesses and at the same time, science can also help us in knowing the history of human rights. In the same way, science does not make aesthetic judgments. Similarly, although the scientists are concerned how the scientific discoveries are used by the people, it cannot be indicated by science how the scientific knowledge should be used. In this regard, it also needs to be noted that in case of every significant scientific development, there are both positive as well as negative uses in which such scientific knowledge can be used. Therefore, while science describes a lot of things about the world, it is for the people to decide how such knowledge should be used. Recommendations: As the scientific ignorance related with a large number of great big and events is disturbing, a trend can be seen among the powerful politicians and the business leaders according to which, the scientific evidence is denied or ridiculed by them. On the other hand, due to the significance of science and technology in understanding as well as developing the solutions for the most serious challenges faced by the society like climate change, food and water scarcity, it is important to see what kind of message is sent by the leaders to their people. It also needs to be seen what kind of message is sent by the leaders to the impressionable young Australians who are being introduced to scientific reasoning in their classrooms. Even if these students decide later on that they will not continue with the study of science at the University, it can still be hoped that the students will have at least a basic understanding of the scientific concepts due to which they will be able to make informed decisions regarding significant issues in their life like their health, environment and economics during their entire life. It cannot be denied that scientific thinking is required in case of everything done by us but still there are many people who believe it to be exotic. Therefore in the end it can be said that science cannot be considered as the benchmark of society but at the same time in case of the present that it can be said that the letter is biased towards the negativity of science.

Where are the heros Essay Example For Students

Where are the heros Essay Where are the Heroes?As we read Homers epic tale of war, death, and enthralling characters, we find great warriors each on a different pathway. Looking closer at three of these characters, Akhilleus, Agamemnon, and Hektor, we find that each of these warriors displays many heroic qualities and deeds, yet none ever achieves becoming a true hero. What does it mean to achieve the status of a true hero? Many books and papers have been written on this subject but for the purpose of my argument let me condense it. For Akhilleus, Agamemnon, or Hektor to become a true hero they must have completed the Quest Cycle. The basic aspects of the Hero Quest Cycle are, first the separation or departure. In this part of the cycle the hero must leave the comforts of home or the known world and begin on their journey into the unknown world. Then comes the initiation phase where our hero must face trials and overcome great challenges. Finally the hero quest is completed in the return cycle. In this completion stage the hero has his ultimate boon and return, usually a triumphant return. We will write a custom essay on Where are the heros specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now In evaluating Agamemnon we find an impressive warlord, as Akhilleus states: †¦first in rank of all the Akhaians. (Pp. 27 ll. 105.) Agamemnon has left his known world on a quest of honor, to fight for his brother Menelaus, who has had his wife and treasures stolen by a guest. In coming to a place of trials Agamemnon hastily shows us that he is in serious lack of hero qualities. Agamemnon has taken a girl as a war prize, when her father, a priest of the God Apollo, comes humbly seeking to pay a fair ransom for her return Agamemnon is harsh and unyielding. Even after his fellow comrades try compelling him to take the father’s fair offer Agamemnon refuses, showing his vain selfish non-hero traits. In doing so Agamemnon angers the God Apollo and causes great death and destruction to his army as stated in the Iliad: So he made a burning wind of plague rise in the army: rank and file sickened and died for the ill their chief had done. (Pp. 25 ll. 12-13) When Agamemnon was made a ware of his disastrous choice rather than face it like a great hero and suffer a loss for his actions he turned on his greatest warrior Akhilleus and took his war prize. Throughout the Iliad Agamemnon’s actions never rise to the level of a hero and he fails miserably in the quest cycle, never defeating his trials or completing his journey. With the great Akhilleus we find a similar beginning, he too leaves the comforts of home to fight for the honor of Menelaus. Akhilleus comes much closer to fulfilling the hero image. He is the child of an immortal mother, on a quest for glory and greatness. Akhilleus has the greatest military prowess of any of the Achaean ranks and has the greatest fighting ability of all the warriors, Trojan or Achaean. He shows these qualities when he pulls the troops together to find out why the Gods are destroying them after Agamemnon’s actions with the priest. He also shows honor when the seer is afraid to tell them the cause of their anguish an d Akhilleus states to the seer: Courage. Tell what you know, what you have light to know. I swear by Apollo, the lord god to whom you pray when you uncover truth, never while I draw breath, while I have eyes to see, shall any man upon this beachhead dare to lay hands on you. (Pp. 27 ll. 98-103) Akhilleus quickly falters in the hero cycle when treated poorly by Agamemnon. After loosing his war prize to Agamemnon, Akhilleus becomes consumed with rage and retreats back to his ship with his troops the Myrmidons and refuses to fight for the Achaean cause against the Trojans. Akhilleus goes so far as to ask the gods to wreak havoc upon his fellow comrades to show them what a lousy leader Agamemnon is. .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .postImageUrl , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:hover , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:visited , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:active { border:0!important; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:active , .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ub311a9d04ce870950a2af88e25e32f6e:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: School Uniforms Persuasive EssayAkhilleus pouts until Hektor kills his best friend Patrocolus. The death of Patrocolus is another example of Akhilleus failing in his hero quest. If Akhilleus had been in battle rather than dressing Patrocolus in his armor and letting everyone think he had returned to the battle, his closest friend would not have died. Upon the death of his friend Akhilleus’ rage is turned back to the Trojans and he flings himself back into the war. He kills many Trojans and after a somewhat comical chase around the city slays Hektor then desecrates his body by dragging it behind his chariot excessively to vent his own hate and anger. Akhilleus comes closer to the hero aspect of facing trials and learning about himself in the scene in which Priam comes to beg for the return of his slain son. He is overcome with grief and remorse, saddened and humbled by the ultimate devastation. This shows his human side his heroic side, but he ultimately dies in battle and never completes the heros quest. Hektor, on the other hand, in action is the most heroic of the three. He shows himself to be compassionate yet a great warrior. We see the heroic stalwart side in his statement to his wife Long ago I learned how to be brave, how to go forward always and to contend for honor, fathers and mine. (Pp. 50 ll. 383-384) Sadly Hector is not on a quest so he never comes close to the heroic ideal. He is only defending his family, city, and honor. In the end Hektor dies a terrible death never achieving a journey or boon, but in my eyes he will always be the hero. Works CitedHomer. â€Å"The Iliad.† Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. Western Literature in a World Context. Vol. 1. Paul Davis, Gary Harrison, David M. Johnson, Patricia Clark Smith, and John F. Crawford. New York: St. Martian’s, 1995. 19-156.

How to Talk About Your Family in Italian

How to Talk About Your Family in Italian While Italians are passionate about a lot of things- food, calcio, fashion, to name a few- family is one of the most important. Since it is such an essential part of Italian culture, you’re  going to be asked about your family when you start to chat with natives, and it’s a great conversation starter. So what specific vocabulary words do you need to know, and which phrases will help the conversation flow smoothly? Basic Vocabulary - Family Members aunt la zia boy il ragazzo brother il fratello brotherinlaw il cognato cousin (female) la cugina cousin (male) il cugino daughter la figlia daughterinlaw la nuora family la famiglia father il padre fatherinlaw il suocero girl la ragazza grandchild il nipote granddaughter la nipote grandfather il nonno grandmother la nonna grandparents i nonni grandson il nipote husband il marito mother la madre motherinlaw la suocera nephew il nipote niece la nipote parents i genitori relative il parente sister la sorella sisterinlaw la cognata son il figlio soninlaw il genero stepfather il patrigno stepmother la matrigna step brother; half brother il fratellastro step sister; half sister la sorellastra uncle lo zio wife la moglie Conversational Phrases A casa tutto bene? - Is everything good at home?A casa here is used as in a figurative way to mean, â€Å"family†.​   Another option is to ask: Come sta la sua famiglia? - How is your family? If you want to ask informally, you can say, â€Å"Come sta la tua famiglia?† Come stanno i suoi? - How are your (parents)? If you want to ask informally, you can say, â€Å"Come stanno i tuoi?† FUN FACT: Italians shorten â€Å"i tuoi genitori† to â€Å"i tuoi†, so you can say â€Å"i miei† instead of â€Å"i miei genitori† and sound  more Italian. Ha fratelli o sorelle? - Do you have brothers or sisters? If you want to ask informally, you can say, â€Å"Hai fratelli o sorelle? Ha dei figli? - Do you have any kids? If you want to ask informally, you can say, â€Å"Hai dei figli?† Ho due maschi e una femmina. - I have two boys and one girl.Si chiama†¦ - His/her name is...Hai una famiglia numerosa! - You have a big family!Sono figlio unico. - I’m an only child. (male)Sono figlia unica. - I’m an only child. (female)Lei à ¨ sposato/a? - Are you married? If you want to ask informally, you can say, â€Å"Sei sposato/a?†. Use â€Å"sposato†, ending in -o, if you’re asking a male. Use â€Å"sposata,† ending in -a, if you’re asking a female. La mia famiglia viene dalla (Sardegna). - My family is from (Sardegna).Mio figlio si à ¨ appena laureato! - My son just graduated!Vado a trovare la mia famiglia (in Calabria). - I’m going to visit my family (in Calabria).Che lavoro fa (tuo marito)? - What does your husband do for work?Mia madre fa (l’insegnante). - My mother is a (teacher).Dove abita? - Where does he/she live?Le presento (mio marito). -   Let me introduce my husband to you. If you want to say this informally, you can say, â€Å"Ti presento (mia moglie)†. Mi saluti sua moglie! - Say hello to your wife for me! If you want to say this informally, you can say, â€Å"Salutami (tua moglie)!†. Practice Dialogue The best way to learn the language is to see the phrases and the vocabulary in action, so below you’ll find a practice dialogue between two friends who have run into each other on the street. Person 1: Ciao! Come stai? - Hey! How are you?Person 2: Sto bene, e tu? - I’m doing well, and you?Person 1: Tutto a posto, come sta la tua famiglia? - Everything is good, how is your family?Person 2: Sta bene, mia figlia si à ¨ appena laureata! - They are good, my daughter just graduated!Person 1: Complimenti!! E tuo marito? - Congratulations!! And your husband?Person 2: Lavora moltissimo, ma andr in pensione fra un anno. E tua figlia? - He’s working a lot, but he’ll be retiring in a year. And your daughter?Person 1: Giulia? La settimana scorsa ha compiuto sedici anni. - Giulia? Last week she turned 16 years old.Person 2: Davvero? Lei à ¨ cresciuta troppo in fretta! - Really? She grew up too fast!Person 1: Lo so, à ¨ cosà ¬. Allora, devo andare, à ¨ stato bello vederti, a presto! - I know, that’s how it is. Well, I’ve got to go, it was great to see, talk soon!Person 2: A presto! - Talk soon!

How To Say By the Way in Spanish

How To Say By the Way in Spanish Spanish has two common ways of introducing an afterthought, unrelated comment or offhand remark, ways that are typically translated as by the way or incidentally in English. The expressions used are a propà ³sito and por cierto, with the former being somewhat more formal. Here are some examples of their usage: Por cierto,  ¿no ests descargando mà ºsica ilegalmente? (By the way, are you downloading music illegally?) Por cierto, la valla fronteriza fue construida por Estados Unidos. (By the way, the border fence was built by the United States.) Por cierto, vamos a preparar algo para septiembre. (By the way, well be getting something ready for September.) Por cierto, la lente del telà ©fono est compuesta por cinco elementos. (Incidentally, the lens in the phone is made up of five elements.) A propà ³sito, quiero hacer una fiesta este fin de semana. By the way, I want to put together a party this weekend. A propà ³sito, la ciudad est a menos de 40 kilà ³metros de la frontera. (By the way, the city is less than 40 kilometers from the border.) A propà ³sito, tenemos ms de 40.000 alumnos. (Incidentally, we have more than 40,000 students.) Note that por cierto does not mean certainly, as you might expect. As a noun in other usages, cierto often expresses certainty. In some contexts, a propà ³sito can also mean on purpose or deliberately. (As a noun, propà ³sito typically means intention or purpose.) When used in that way, a propà ³sito typically comes after the verb instead of at the beginning of a sentence. Example: Determinaron que no fue a propà ³sito. (They determined it was not done deliberately.) A propà ³sito de also can be a way of saying with respect to, concerning or something similar. Example: Recordà © una historia que Mam me contaba a propà ³sito de mi padre. (I remembered a story Mom would tell me about my father.) Downgrading Closely related to the introduction of afterthoughts is that of minimizing or downplaying the importance of what follows. In English, this might be done using anyway, such as in Anyway, we found a restaurant that wasnt closed. Such minimizations are more common in speech than they are in writing. In Spanish, common phrases of downplaying include de todas formas, de todas maneras and de todos modos. They can be translated in a variety of ways, as these examples show: De todas formas, no me molesta que tienes muchos amigos. (In any case, it doesnt bother me that you have a lot of friends.) De todas maneras los escdalos financieros generan un impacto reputacional. Anyway, the financial scandals are having an impact on reputation. De todos modos, le gustarà ­a volver a tener su propia casa. (In any event, she would like to return to her own home.) All three of these Spanish phrases can be used interchangeably with no significant changes of meaning, much like the English phrases used above. Especially in speech, it is also common to use words such as nada and/or bueno something like  filler words for a similar effect: Bueno nada, queria compartir con ustedes mi tatuaje. (Anyway, I want to share my tattoo with you.) Bueno, quizs podamos  hacer una excepcià ³n. (OK then, maybe we can make an exception.)

Critically evaluate Hegel's teleological account of history Essay

Critically evaluate Hegel's teleological account of history - Essay Example Engels criticized such formulation of the question. He was sure the highest generalizing idea, approached by the natural sciences of that period, was the idea of expediency of established order in nature, flat Wolf’s teleology, according to which, cats were created in order to devour the mice, mice – to be devoured by cats, and everything in nature was created to prove the wisdom of the Lord (Carlton, 1975). There is no argument that it was a great merit of that period philosophy, that despite the limitations of its current scientific knowledge, it was not thrown off, and it, starting with Spinoza and ending with the great French materialists, persistently tried to explain the world, providing a detailed justification of the science of the future. In the German classical philosophy, the problem of teleology, as well as a number of other important philosophical questions, was put in a new way, and there was some new movement of thought towards the dialectics on the relat ively high level. This movement goes back to Kant. He was the first who raised a new issue of teleology. However, these Kantian formulations of the question are not directly related to that turn, made by Hegel in the sphere of teleology (Bristow, 2007). Concrete analysis of the dialectics of human toil takes Hegel’s antinomian opposition between causality and teleology, showing what specific place is occupied by conscious human purposefulness in general causation, not destroying, and not stepping over it, without appealing to any transcendental principle, that was very typical for prior thinkers - without losing work-specific definitions of goal-setting. Hegelian discovery in teleology is quite simple: every working man instinctively knows that he, when having the means and the subject of labor, can not do anything that is beyond the objective laws of these subjects and their combinations, and that the process of labor, therefore, can never go beyond the causal relations of t hings. And every human discovery can nest in the disclosure of objective causal relations and in involving them into the workflow. And as it was rightly noted by Marx and Hegel, the specific nature of goal setting is in the notion of goal exists until the process of labor set in motion, and the process of labor exists to achieve this goal through increasingly deep causal links to objective reality (Frederick Beiser, 2007). The very fact that goal-setting itself is causal, this also drew so much attention of Spinoza, is correct and goes without saying, but , as Spinoza thought, it does not mean that the specific nature of the teleological connection is disregarded. On the contrary, this knowledge gives us the opportunity to reveal the dialectical unity of the principle of causality and goal of labor more clearly. And this knowledge was not lost on Hegel. In accordance with his philosophy, various needs of people were the engine of progress and, thus, an impetus for civilization devel opment in the course of history (Hegel: Lectures on the History of Philosophy, 1825). Hegel was the ideologue of a particular revolutionary period - the period of revolutionary constitution of a large modern nation. Hegel portrayed this process as progressive rightly. In the historical dialectic of this process, which repeatedly played out in the form of major wars, Hegel saw the state of nature, in which the spirit makes its way to the top stage

Vision Statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Vision Statement - Essay Example tion of most sophisticated technological means; so that comfort, efficiency, and accessibility by the masses is guaranteed, and in the event heritage is preserved. The vision is essentially captivating to both the company and her clients. It has a long term objective by setting futuristic competences contrary to the contemporary standards in the travels industry. Te the vision also maps out a standardized industry where technology is a mechanism of achieving inevitable changes that would benefit this sector. By painting such a picturesque, the vision is set before the management team to work about the set goals. This sheds some sense of hope by the company so that the seemingly impossible comes to limelight. This as a result pushes the management team alongside the staff to maintain in the commitment so as to be able to achieve all this. Alongside providing such hope, the vision will also entail social compliance by evading poor technological present methods that deploy plentiful of pollutants through emissions like fumes. To sum it up all, the envisioned plan will address the issues in question wholesomely; this will address the comfort of th e individual traveler, the safety of the zones experiencing this impact as well as efficiency, which denotes perfect

The Great Leap Forward launched by Mao in 1958 Essay Example for Free

The Great Leap Forward launched by Mao in 1958 Essay When the Communist party came to power in 1949 after a brutal war against the Nationalists, China was in a devastated state. War against Japan had resulted in the destruction of many of its cities including Beijing. Chinas people were left scared with the horrific memories of the Japanese armys horrendous acts. Rescuing China from the gutter was to prove to be a difficult task for Mao Zedong and his communist comrades. In order to understand the fundamental problems with the Great Leap Forward, previous reforms must be considered in order to fully assess the reasons for the its failures. One of Chinas most notorious problems was land ownership. Most of Chinas land was owned by cruel landlords. Peasants were being exploited and were forced to work long hours for poor pay and terrible living conditions. Mao used this in order to take a fundamental step in assuring that he had total control over the people. He introduced the policy of land reform. Mao re-distributed 40% of Chinas land and gave it to the peasants. This proved to be a truly brilliant political decision as he swept the hearts of the peasants on his side. He realised that as 90% of Chinas population were peasants, he needed to appeal to the masses. This policy was considered a success as an estimated 60% of the entire population benefited form the reform. However, this was to be a sign of Maos disregard for human life as this policy resulted in the death of 2 million landlords, by means of public execution during struggle meetings. Mao also started an early form of collectivisation, by 1952, 40% of peasants were collectivised. The next step was the encouragement of cooperatives, these favoured central management of land under private ownership, and by 1956 80% of peasants were part of cooperatives. The important factor of the land reform policy is that Mao was able to gain support from the peasants, the same peasants he would later use to conduct the Great Leap forward. Despite claiming to be a Marxist, Mao considered rural peasants to be the seeds of agricultural success but thought that industrial peasants were the backbone of the economy. The Great Leap Forward was to be the second economic reform Mao was to launch in China. Inspiring himself from Stalins economic model, in 1953 Mao launched the first 5 year plan. This plan was to be extraordinarily successful. The first of his 5 year plans set high production targets in oil, steel, pig iron and chemical fertiliser. Most of these targets were achieved, notably steel production quadrupled. Mao was able to cut inflation down from 1000% to only 15% by introducing a new currency the Yuan. Maos reforms were all interlinked. He used his social reforms to back up his economic reforms. Mao made revolutionary changes to womens lives in modern China. New sets of laws were introduced giving women the right to work, education and custody rights over their children. This was a significant improvement from the harsh days of foot binding. Mao also deemed it important to educate the Chinese population, another success was his improvement of literacy, and by his death 90% of China was literate. Not only did Mao revolutionise Chinese social life, but he put an end to corruption the government. However, these changes were to contribute to the launch of the great leap forward in a crucial way, by giving women the right to work Mao had significantly enlarged his work force which was important considering his beliefs in mass mobilisation. By the time the he announced the launch of the great leap forward 70% of women were employed. The success of the first 5 year plan can be explained by several factors. The targets set were plausible and most importantly Mao had the help of Russian economic and agricultural experts. However Mao deeply mistrusted experts. Some may argue that this was one of the main reasons for launching the hundred flowers campaign. In order to lure out intellectuals and opposition Mao gave a speech in 1957. During this speech Mao encouraged the intelligentsia to constructively criticize the communist party. At first the movement was slow to take of but once Mao forced the media to get behind it, people started speaking their minds about Maos regime. Communist party members were being heavily criticized and the Chinese people demanded reform. Mao, not uncharacteristically decided to reverse the policy in May 1957. This was to result in a crackdown on the intelligentsia known as the anti rightist campaign. Over 300,000 people were sent to labour camps. The hundred flowers was not simply a way at removing the intelligentsia, it was a way of removing Maos opponents, and this was to make the launch of the Great leap forward less difficult and certainly less questioned for the few experts that remained would be too terrified of speaking against the communist party chairman. The scene is now set for the introduction of the Great Leap Forward. Mao dreamed of transforming China into one of the worlds leading economic powers. Maos dream was to become Chinas nightmare with the launch of the great leap forward in 1958. Maos goal was to transform China into an economic superpower overnight. Many peasants knew little of what the Great Leap forward was for, most thought it was simply a plan to overtake major capitalist countries. However, to serve a higher purpose, Mao saw nuclear power as an essential element to become a superpower. However Maos secrete ambition was expensive. In order to mobilise labour, Mao had to further collectivise cooperatives in the rural parts of China. Mao believed that industry and agriculture were equally important, hence the slogan walking on two legs. However, the first 5 year plan had been beneficial to industry but agriculture had stagnated. One of Maos main concerns was Chinas population was outgrowing food production. In 1957 food production had grown 1% whilst the population had grown by 2%. Mao was distraught by the fact that the countrysides production was being used up in by the rural population. This posed a real economic problem for China. It meant that industry was not going to be sufficiently supported by agriculture and thus meant that Maos ambitions could not be realised. Maos answer to this problem was to decentralise control and enable enlarged agricultural units produce food and industrial products. These new super collectives would be known as Peoples Communes. These communes were under the control of local cadres whos main order were to extract as much labour as possible from the peasants. These cadres forced peasants were forced to hand over their property, thus reversing his policy of Land reform. The first of people communes was created in Henan in April 1958. It was composted of 27 collectives with over 9369 households joined together, by December 1958, 740,000 cooperatives had been turned into 26,000 communes. Mao had successfully militarised Chinas society, militia units squads were formed and were composed of everyone between 15 to 20 years of age. Living conditions in the communes were nothing short of appalling. Peasants eat, slept and washed together. All privacy was swept away from them, Mao even considered getting rid of peoples names and replacing them with numbers. According to Jung Chang and Jon Halliday Mao aim was to dehumanise Chinas 550 million peasants and turn them into the human equivalent of draft animals Mao had betrayed the peasants and was going to trade the peasants life for economic growth. Mao expected far too much from these communes. This may explain why the harvest predictions were astronomically high. Mao would have done well to examine the previous harvesting results. The normal yield was a ton per acre. The previous harvest of 1957 yielded a poor 195 million tons of grain. In 1958 Mao announced that the harvest figures for that year had been 430 million tons, western experts place this figure around 200 million tons. This demonstrates how much the production figures were exaggerated. Mao s political secretary Chen Boda told Mao that China was accomplishing in a day what it took capitalist states 20 years to accomplish. Production actually decreased during the Great Leap Forward by significant amounts, the harvest of 1959 was yielded a disappointing 170 million tons the CCP reported it at 282 million tons. This figure was to get even lower in 1960 when it fell to 143 million tons. This can be attributed to poor agricultural techniques. Close planting and deep ploughing were considered to be at the hear t of agricultural success. During these years Mao was asked how he intended to pay for his newly ordered soviet heavy machinery. Mao answered by claiming that China has unlimited food supplies. Consequently China increased its food exports towards Russia.