Persuasion Techniques In Advertisement Media Media Essay

Persuasion Techniques In Advertisement Media Media Essay Introduction The main theme of this paper is to discuss the topic of persuasion in the media through the usage of several examples to explain some of the techniques used to perform this function. Persuasion is one of the many different types of communication that exist, and the best way to begin to define the persuasive communication is primarily giving a definition of what communication is. A quite widespread definition about what communication is would be to say that communication is the action or process where there is an exchange of information of any kind between two or more individuals. Also, it is important to understand that this process is dynamic, transactional, it affects both the sender of the message, and who listen to it and receive it. Persuasive communication is outside our consciousness, since it influences us and manipulates more than what we usually realize. We often hear about the power of specific communicators. We also know that those who control information are very powerfu l. When we talk about the power public speaking, we are only recognizing what experts have known for years, we recognize that communication that influences others is a powerful weapon. The main problem is that the persuasive communication is a tool that can be used for good or bad purposes, to change behaviors, but in one way or another it is important to recognize that it is a powerful tool. For this reason, although the communication fulfils different functions, the purpose is this paper is to show how in the media through the marketing advertisements, we can also use persuasion as a tool to persuade the audience into buying a product. Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) Slim Fast In this ad for Slim Fast, the target audience is middle class females who are in a stage of their lives in which they have a successful career. Women are very aware of their weight usually more than men do. Also inside their main audience target, the ad appeals minority females in their 30 and older since this is the time when most start to achieve success climbing the career ladder and at the same time most already have family making it more difficult to take care of their bodies since time is now limited and there is no much room for exercise. The quick and easy answer is Slim Fast. Therefore, the ad shows that a woman in her 30s can have a healthy and thin body because she uses the Slim Fast product. Even the name is persuasive, Slim-Fast, this implies not much work, for people in a hurry to lose weight. In the ad they used as spokesperson a celebrity, a person women could identify with and the before and after pictures are always very effective to persuade audience this is a trusted product. This audience is all about success, and to represent a person who is being successful in life, we must be thin. Not being able to take good care of your body, especially for women in the professional work environment could be seen as a failure. The ad utilizes strategies from the Elaboration Likelihood Model(ELM) to persuade its audience. First the ad uses visual elements to motivate the usage of mental processes to motivate audience to accept the persuasive message. The ad makes good use of the analysis results to understand the audience in order to come up with the ad strategy. In the ELM model the ad used the peripheral route by the celebrity endorsement since it is a way to connect the audience with the product since it helps the receiver think about something that the person is familiar wit h(after all weight lost, is a Fact of Life-TV show where the celebrity being used in this ad became popular back in the early 80s, period when the target audience where in their late teens) and to rely on audience lack of capability to achieve the goal to reduce weight. Lastly self-esteem is effectively appealed by this same route since by gaining audience emotional involvement to demonstrate if the actress selected was able to do it, the audience can do it too. Social Judgment Theory In this advertisement for Mercedes-Benz, the target audience is upper middle class individuals who are coming up in the professional ladder. Young executives like to demonstrate in the way they dress, what they eat, and more important what they drive, that they are successful people. For most people cars make a social status statement, and what better statement to show everybody how successful we are, by getting a Mercedes-Benz. The biggest challenge for many people in getting such a prestigious car is the cost, and in the ad, they already give the solution; raise expectations, but not the payments. The persuasive message is why settling for less if now you can get a Mercedes-Benz for an affordable price. This ad uses subliminal persuasion since in the picture the car is driving up, or heading up. In other words, once again, we see the message about moving up the professional ladder. In addition in the picture the cars wheels are in motion, another subliminal message of the always m oving and fast-paced on how people judge individuals who are working towards achieving their goals. It is interesting to see in the picture the lack of color to give the impression of a classical and somewhat elegant item. This advertisement utilizes strategies from the Social Judgment Theory to persuade its audience. My interpretation of the use of this theory in the ad, is that when people receive the nonverbal message, they immediately judge the ad message based on how they view and measure being successful, and to be able to own this car, will give them the prestige they view as representation of the success they are experiencing in their personal and professional lives. The message was crafted keeping in mind an audience who has a high ego-involvement based on their values and views of how they measure success and this enable a high level of acceptance/agreement with the message. Professionals in their social networks and affiliations usually will agree with the majority opinion more often than not, and in this type of groups most of them own or wish they could own a Mercedes-Benz. This is a result of high ego-involvement, or taking on the groups views/judgments as ones own. Subliminal Co-Creation Theories In this lipstick ad, the target audience is women-young adults in their 20s 30s who are not afraid to express themselves. They want to look sexy, they want to feel sexy for the opposite sex, and they are looking for company and what better than using a red lipstick. Young adults are always looking for action, are not afraid of risks, and in this ad we see two nice looking adults who are not afraid to demonstrate to each other how they are feeling and what they want. The persuasive approach is very graphic and it is used by having beautiful women with white complexion to highlight the redness of her bold, shiny lips. The use of sex appeal, and color, is part of the persuasion process to convince audience it is ok to be beautiful and this lipstick will give them the lips theyve always wanted and it would drive men crazy. The subliminal approach continues with the way she is using the lipstick (girls mouth open while using the lipstick) and the man kissing her, suggesting that she feels sexy wearing the lipstick and it could lead for more than just a kiss. The Co-creation process is clearly used in this ad since it leads audience to co-create what is going on or what is about to happen with the couple in the picture. Once again this is a very effective approach to appeal to the main audience this ad is targeting since they are in their prime age and are interested to attract the opposite sex. The picture is not complete since we cannot see where th ey are, are they dressed or not dressed? or what their eyes look like, giving audience the opportunity to imagine different scenarios where the action is taking place; her apartment, his house, or at a club. The co-creation process is used by omitting information in the picture which helps audience co-create their own unique scenario with the expectation that this will help persuade potential buyers to get the product since once we co-create a unique scenario it can have a more effective appeal to me as an individual. Compliance Gaining Theory Kama Sutra Condoms In this ad for Kama Sutra condoms, the target audience is adults in their 20s to 30s who are self-confidents and are very clear of what they want and are not afraid to ask for it. Men self esteem many times is measured by the capability to satisfy women, and the ad provides an answer to this dilemma. This ad persuades men with the message that they not just will have sex but they will be able to enjoy it more because they would achieve to experience it for much longer by using this condom. In the other hand Women are also persuaded with this ad, since the message is that not only they will have safe-sex by getting protection, but it will not limit their capability to be satisfied. The picture shows a good-looking people which also appeals to audience by sending this message that good-looking people know how to have fun. I believe sexually explicit pictures attract attention, are interesting and engaging, and direct processing resources toward the sexual stimulus and this lead to a p ositive attitude towards the product. This advertisement utilizes strategies from the Compliance Gaining Theory to persuade its audience. The persuasive message is very interpersonal by clearly establishing the promise that the people who use this product are rewarded. The product clearly sends this message by writing in big letters right in the front package: long last. There are different elements of this theory used in this ad, since also I can see the debt factor playing in the persuasive message, since most men feel like they owe women the pleasure of sex. In addition, self-feeling is very evident since using this product will make both feel very good by having a long and fulfilling time. The esteem element is also played in the ad since the ad establishes that by using it, the partners will be satisfied. In summary both female and male audience will be positively influenced by this ad by appealing to their self-gratification. CONCLUSION We can see how in the media and in particular advertising, the process of persuasion is critical in order to achieve success through the process to convince the audience to acquire certain products, either goods or services. To achieve persuasion, advertising media uses different methods and strategies to present a product or service as something necessary for the consumer. We are surrounded by advertising everywhere. Posters in the subway, clothing brands, advertisements on television, making us feel we are constantly being targeted by persuasion messages which are impossible to get rid of it. Advertising is executed by people and, therefore, is subject to the same virtues and their same defects but, what is very important is to acknowledge that it is a powerful communication tool. For that reason, it is important to learn more about the different persuasion strategies that are used in the media in order to determine when we are being targeted to get something that really we do not need or convince us to change our principles.

3D Technology: Types and Uses

3D Technology: Types and Uses CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This report will focus on how different 3D technologies work, it will include the entire work flow, from recording the action, encoding the footage, playing back the media via a cinema projector or television and finally how the audience views the 3D film or video, whether it be through specially designed glasses or an auto-stereoscopic television. At present the most popular way to view 3D media is with the use of specialised glasses, the most popular being, active shutter glasses, passive polarised glasses and colour separationbased glasses. Wearing glasses to watch a movie is often mentioned as a negative aspect of 3D. There is a technology available that allows you to watch 3D on screens without wearing any additional glasses, it is called autostereoscopy, this will also be looked at. The health impacts that result from watching 3D will also be examined, along with factors that will prevent a person from being able to correctly view 3D images. There will be impacts on the entire industry from studios and cinemas to smaller production companies and independent producers if 3D films become the norm and these will be examined. A good place to start this report is to examine how two of the highest profile media companies around at present are currently viewing 3D technology. Phil McNally stereoscopic supervisor at Disney-3D and Dreamworks was quoted as saying, consider that all technical progress in the cinema industry brought us closer to the ultimate entertainment experience: the dream. We dream in colour, with sound, in an incoherent world with no time reference. The cinema offers us a chance to dream awake for an hour. And because we dream in 3D, we ultimately want the cinema to be a 3D experience not a flat one.'(Mendiburu, 2009) In the BBC Research White Paper: The Challenges of Three-Dimensional Television, 3D technology is referred to as a continuing long-term evolution of television standards towards a means of recording, transmitting and displaying images that are indistinguishable from reality'(Armstrong, Salmon, Jolly, 2009) It is clear from both of these high profile sources that the industry is taking the evolution of 3D very seriously, as a result this is a topic that is not only very interesting but will be at the cutting edge of technological advances for the next couple of years. This report will be covering the following things: What does the term 3D mean with reference to film and video A look at the history of 3D in film How does 3D technology work The implications of 3D on the film business and on cinemas The methods used to create the media and also the ways in which the 3D image is recreated for the viewer The reasons I have chosen to do my project on this topic is that I am very interested in the new media field. 3D video when accompanied with high definition film and video is a field that is growing rapidly. Earlier this year, on 02 April 2009, Sky broadcast the UKs first live event in the 3D TV format, it featured a live music concert by the pop group Keane, it was sent via the companys satellite network using polarisation technology. Traditionally we view films and television in two dimensions, this in essence means we view the media as a flat image. In real life we view everything in three dimensions, this is because we get a slightly different image received in each eye, the brain then combines these and we can work out depth of vision and create a 3D image. (this will be explained further in Chapter 3) There is a high level of industrial relevance with this topic, as 3D technology coupled with high definition digital signal is at the cutting edge of mainstream digital media consumption. Further evidence of this is that the sports company ESPN will be launching their new TV channel, ESPN-3D in North America in time for this years Summer Football World Cup. In January 2009 the BBC produced a Research White Paper entitled The Challenges of Three-Dimensional Television on this subject and over the next couple of years they predict that it will start to be introduced in the same way that HD (High Definition) digital television signal is currently being phased in, with pay-per-view movies and sports being the first take advantage of it. Sky have announced that their existing Sky+HD boxes will be able to broadcast the 3D signals so customers will not even need to update their equipment to be able to receive the 3D Channel that they are starting to broadcast later this year. On Sunday January 31st 2010, Sky broadcast a live Premier League football match between Arsenal and Manchester United for the first time in 3D to selected pubs across the country, Sky equipped the selected pubs with LGs new 47-inch LD920 3D TVs. These televisions use the passive glasses, similar to the ones uses in cinemas as opposed to the more expensive Active glasses which are also an option. (The differences between Active and Passive technologies will be explained in Chapter 8) It is also worth noting that at the 2010 Golden Globe awards, on acceptance of his award for Best Picture for the 3D Box Office Hit Avatar, the Canadian director James Cameron pronounced 3D as the future. At the time of writing this report (27/01/2010) the 3D film Avatar has just taken over from Titanic (also a James Cameron film) to become the highest grossing movie of all time, with worldwide takings of $1.859 billion. This is being accredited to the films outstanding takings in the 3D version of its release, in America 80% of the films box office revenue has been received from the 3D version of its release. In an industry where money talks, these figures will surely lead to an dramatic increase in production of 3D films and as a result Avatar could potentially be one of the most influential films of all time. After completing this dissertation I hope to be able to have a wide knowledge base on the subject and hopefully this will appeal to companies that I approach about employment once I have graduated. In the summer of 2010 when I will be looking for jobs, I believe that a lot of production companies will have some knowledge of 3D technology and be aware of how in the near future it may be something that they will have to consider adopting in the way that many production companies are already or soon will be adopting HD into their workflow. In order to ensure that I complete this project to a high standard it is important that I gain a complete understanding of the topic and study a variety of different sources when compiling my research. 3D media itself is not a new concept so there are a wide range of books and articles on the theory of 3D and stereoscopy along with anaglyphs. However in recent years there has been a resurgence in 3D with relation to film and TV. This is due mainly to digital video and film production making it easier and cheaper to create and manage the two channels needed for three-dimensional video production. It has proved more difficult to study books and papers on this most recent resurgence of 3D because it is still happening and evolving all the time. I have read various research white papers on the subject, which have been cited in the Bibliography, I have also used websites and blogs along with some recently published books, one of the problems with such a fast moving technological field such as 3D though, is that these books quickly become outdated. CHAPTER 2: HUMAN VISION In the real world we see in three dimensions as opposed to the two dimensions that we have become accustomed to when watching TV or at the cinema. Human vision appears in three dimensions because it is normal for people to have two eyes that both focus on the object, in the brain these two images are then fused into one, from this we can work out depth of vision, this process is called stereopsis. All of these calculations happen in the brain without the person ever even noticing, as a result we see the world in three dimensions very naturally. The reason that we see in 3D is because of stereoscopic depth perception. There are various complex calculations going on in our brains, this coupled with real experience allows our brain to work out the depth of vision. If it wasnt for this it would be impossible to tell if something was very small or just very far away. As humans, we have learnt to judge depth even with only one view point. This is why, if a person has one eye they can still manage to do most things that a person with two eyes can do. This is also why when watching a 2-D film you can still get a good judge of depth. The term for depth cues based on only one viewpoint is monoscopic depth cues. One of the most important of these is our own experience, it relates to perspective and relative size of objects. In simple terms, we have become accustomed to object being certain sizes. An example of this is that we expect buildings to be very big, humans are smaller and insects are smaller still. So this means that if we can see all three of these objects next to each other and they appear to be the same size then the insect must be much closer than the person, and both the insect and the person must be much closer that the building (see figure 1). The perspective depth cue (shown in figure1) was backed up when an experiment was carried out by Ittelson in 1951. He got volunteers to look through a peep hole at some playing cards, the only thing they could see were the cards and so there were no other types of depth cue available. There were actually three different-sized playing cards (normal size, half-size, and double size), and they were presented one at a time at a distance of 2.3metres away. The half-sized playing card was judged to be 4.6 metres away from the observer, whereas the double-sized card was thought to be 1.3 metres away. Thus, familiar size had a large effect on distance judgement'(Eysenck, 2002). Another monoscopic depth cue that is very effective is referred to as occlusion or interposition. This is where an object overlaps another object. If a person is standing behind a tree then you will be able to see all of the tree but only part of the person. This tells us that the tree is nearer to us that the person. One of the most important single view depth cues in called motion parallax, it works on the basis that if a person moves their head, and therefore eyes, then objects nearer to them, whilst not physically moving, will appear to move more than the objects in the distance. This is the method that astronomers use to measure distances of stars and planets. It is in extremely important method of judging depth and is used extensively in 3D filmmaking. In filmmaking, lighting is often talked about as being one of the key elements to giving the picture depth, and this is because it is a monoscopic depth cue. In real life the main light source for millennia has been the sun. Humans have worked out how to judge depth based on the shadows that are portrayed from an object. In 2D films shadows are often used to display depth by casting them across actors faces it allows the viewers to see the recesses and expressions trying to be portrayed. So far all of the methods that have been described for determining depth have been monoscopic, these work independently within each eye. If these were the only methods for determining depth there would be no need for 3D films as it would not add anything because all of these methods could be recreated using a single camera lens. This is not the case however, a lot of the more advanced methods used in human vision for judging depth need the use of both eyes, these are called stereoscopic depth cues. A great deal of stereoscopic depth cues are based around the feedback that your brain gets when the muscles in the eye are manipulated to concentrate your vision on a particular point. One of the main stereoscopic depth cues is called convergence, this referrers to the way that the eyes rotate in order to focus on an object (see figure 2). If the focus is on a near object, the eyes rotate around the Y axis and converge on a tighter angle , similarly if the focus is on a distant object the rotation means the eyes have a wider angle of convergence. It is a lot less stressful on the muscles in the eye to have a wide angle of convergence and look at objects far away, in comparison looking at very close object for any amount of time causes the muscles in the eye to ache. This is a very important factor that should be considered when creating 3D films, as it doesnt matter how good the film is, if it is going to hurt the audience it will not go down well. A second stereoscopic depth cue that we use is called accommodation, this is the way that our eyes changes focus when we look at an object at different distances, it is very closely linked with convergence. Usually when we look at an object very close up, our eyes will change rotation and point towards the object (convergence) allowing us to look at the item, our eyes will at the same time change focus (accommodation). Using the ciliarybody muscles in the eye, the lens will change shape to let more or less light in the same way a camera does, thus changing focus. In everyday life convergence and accommodation usually happen in parallel. The fact that we can, if we wish choose to converge our eyes without changing the focus means that 3D films are possible. When you are sat in the cinema all of the action is projected onto the screen in front of you, so this is where your eyes need to focus. With 2D films the screen is also where your eyes need to converge, but with 3D films this is not the case. When watching a 3D film the focus never changes from the screen, else the whole picture would go out of focus, but objects appear to be in front and behind the screen, so your eyes need to change their convergence to look at these objects without altering their focus from the screen. It has been suggested that this independence of accommodation and convergence is the reason for eye strain when watching a 3D picture as your eyes are doing something that they are not in the habit of doing (see chapter 12: Is 3D bad for you). It is also worth noting that our monoscopic depth cues work at almost any range, this is not the case with stereoscopic depth cues. As objects become further away they no longer appear differently in each eye, so there is no way the brain can calculate a difference and work out depth. The limit occurs in the 100 to 200-yard range, as our discernment asymptomatically tends to zero. In a theatre, we will hit the same limitation, and this will define the depth resolution and the depth range of the screen.(Mendiburu, 2009) This means that when producing a 3D film you have to be aware that the range of 3D that you have to use is not infinite and is limited to 100-200 yards. CHAPTER 3: Early Stereoscopic History (1838 1920) Three dimensional films are not a new phenomenon, Charles Wheatstone discovered, in 1838, that the mechanism responsible for human depth perception is the distance separating the retinas of our eyes . (Autodesk, 2008) In a 12,000 word research paper that Wheatstone presented to the Royal Society of Great Britain he described the stereoscope and claimed as a new fact in his theory if vision the observation that two different pictures are projected on the retinas of the eyes when a single object is seen.(Zone, 2007) Included in the paper were a range of line drawings presented as stereoscopic pairs, these were designed to be viewed in 3D using Wheatstones invention, the stereoscope. Wheatstone was not the first person to look at the possibility of receiving separate views in each eye, In the third century B.C, Euclid in his treatise on Optics observed that the left and right eyes see slightly different views of a sphere'(Zone, 2007). However, Wheatstone was the first person to create a device to be able to re-create 3D images. Between 1835 and 1839 photography was starting to be developed thanks to work from William Fox Talbot, Nicephore Niepce and Louise Daguerre. Once Wheatstone became aware of the photographic pictures that were available he requested some stereoscopic photographs to be made for him. Wheatstone observed that it has been found advantageous to employ, simultaneously, two cameras fixed at the proper angular positions'(Zone, 2007). This was the start of stereoscopic photography. Between 1850 and 1860 work was starting to be done by various people to try and combine stereoscopic photography with machines that would display a series of images very quickly and therefore using persistence of vision to create a moving 3D image. These were the first glimpses of 3D motion. In 1891 a French scientist, Louis Ducos du Hauron patented the anaglyph, a method for separating an image into two separate colour channels and then by wearing glassing with the same colours but on opposite eyes thereby cancelling out the image, thus reproducing one image, but in 3D. Another method used at this time to create 3D was proposed by John Anderton, also in 1891. Andertons system was to use polarisation techniques to split the image into two separate light paths and then employ a similar polarisation technique to divert a separate image to each eye on viewing. One of the main advantages of polarisation over anaglyphs is that they do not lose any colour information, this is due to the fact that both images retain the original colour spectrums. They do however loose luminance. It is common for a silver screen to be necessary, it serves two purposes, firstly the specially designed screen maintains the separate polarisation required for each image. It also reflects more light than conventional screens, this compensates for the loss of luminance. During 1896 and 1897 2D motion pictures started to take off, and by 1910 after a lot of initial experimenting the creative formats of film that we recognise today such as cuts and framing had started to become evident. In 1920 Jenkins, an inventor that worked hard to try and create a method for recreating stereoscopic motion picture was quoted as saying Stereoscopic motion pictures have been the subject of considerable thought and have been attained in several waysbut never yet have they been accomplished in a practical way. By practical, I mean, for example without some device to wear over the eyes of the observer.'(Zone, 2007) It is worth noting that this problem of finding a practical method of viewing 3D has still to a large extent not been solved. Chapter 4: Early 3D Feature Films (1922 1950) 4.1 The first 3D feature film The first 3D feature film, The Power of Love was released in 1922, it was exhibited at the Ambassador Hotel Theatre in Los Angeles. Popular Mechanics magazine described how the characters in the film did not appear flat on the screen, but seemed to be moving about in locations which had depth exactly like the real spots where the pictures were taken(Zone, 2007). The Power of Love was exhibited using red/green glasses using a dual strip anaglyph method of 3D projection. (Anaglyphs are explained in chapter 8.3) The film was shot on a custom made camera invented by Harry K.Fairall, he was also the director on the film. The camera incorporated two films in one camera body.(Symmes, 2006) Power of Love was the first film to be viewed using anaglyph glasses, also the first to use dual-strip projection. Also in 1922, William Van Doren Kelley designed his own camera rig, based on the Prizma colour system which he had invented in 1913. The Prizma 3D colour method worked by capturing two different colour channels by placing filters over the lenses. This way he made his own version of the red/blue anaglyphic print. Kelleys Movies of the Future was shown at Rivoli Theatre in New York City. 4.2 The first active-shutter 3D film A year later in 1923 the first alternate-frame 3D projection system was unveiled. It used a technology called Teleview. Which blocked the left and right eyes periodically in sync with the projector, thereby allowing you to see too separate images. Teleview was not an original idea, but up to this point no one had been able to get the theory to actually work in a practical way that would allow for films to be viewed in a cinema. This is where Laurens Hammond comes in. Hammons designed a system where two standard projectors would be hooked up to their own AC generators, running at 60Hz this meant that adjusting the AC frequency would increase or decrease the speed of the projectors. The left film was in the left projector and right film in the right. The projectors were in frame sync, but the shutters were out of phase sync.'(Symmes, 2006) This meant that the left image was shown, then the right image. The viewing device was attached to the seats in the theatre. It was mounted on a flexible neck, similar to some adjustable gooseneck desk lamps. You twisted it around and centred it in front of your face, kind of like a mask floating just in front of your face. (Symmes, 2006) The viewing device consisted of a circular mask with a view piece for each eye plus a small motor that moved a shutter across in front of either the left or right eye piece depending on the cycle of current running through it. All of the viewing devices were powered by the same AC generator as the projectors meaning that they were all exactly in sync. One of the major problems Hammond had to overcome was the fact that at the time film was displayed at 16 frames per second. With this method of viewing you are effectively halving the frame rate. 8 frames per second resulted in a very noticeable flicker. To overcome this Hammond cut each frame up in to three flashes so the new sequence was: 1L-1R-1L-1R-1L-1-R 2L-2R-2L-2R-2L-2R and so on. Three alternate flashes per eye on the screen. (Symmes, 2006) This method of separating and duplicating certain frames effectively resulted in increasing the overall frame rate thereby eradicating the flicker. There was only one film produced using this method, it was called M.A.R.S and displayed at the Selwyn Theatre in New York City in December 1922. The reason the technology didnt catch on was not due to the image, as the actual theory for producing the image has changed very little from the Teleview method to the current active-shutter methods which will be explained later. As with a lot of 3D methods the reason this one did not become mainstream was due the viewing apparatus that was needed. Although existing projectors could be modified by linking them up to separate AC generator, meaning no extra equipment was needed, the headsets that were required did need a lot of investment and time to install. All of the seats in the theatre needed to be fitted with headsets, these were adjusted in front of the audience members. These also had to be linked up to the AC generator so as they were perfectly in sync, this meant that they had to be wired in to the seats. These problems have since been overcome with wireless technologies such as Bluetooth as will be explained later. 4.3 The first polarised 3D film The next and arguably one of the most important advancements in 3D technology came in 1929 when Edwin H. Land worked out a way of using polarised lenses (Polaroid) together with images to create stereo vision. (Find more on polarisation in chapter 8.6) Lands polarizing material was first used for projection of still stereoscopic images at the behest of Clarence Kennedy, an art history instructor at Smith College who wanted to project photo images of sculptures in stereo to his students. (Zone, 2007) In 1936 Beggars Wedding was released in Italy, it was the first stereoscopic feature to include sound, it was exhibited using Polaroid filters. This was filmed using polarised technology. The first American film to use polarising filters was shot in 1939 and entitled In Tune With Tomorrow, it was a 15 minute short film which shows through stop motion, a car being built piece-by-piece in 3D with the added enhancement of music and sound effects. (Internet Movie Database, 2005) Between 1939 and 1952 3D films continued to me made but with the Great Depression and the onset of the Second World War, the cinema industry was restricted with its output because of finances and as 3D films were more expensive to make their output started to be reduced. Chapter 5: Golden Age of 3D (1952 1955) With cinema ticket sales plummeting from 90 million in 1948 to 40 million in 1951 (Sung, 2009) largely being put down to the television becoming coming in peoples front rooms the cinema industry needed to find a way to encourage the viewers back the big screen, 3D was seen as a way to offer something extra to make viewers return. In 1952 the first colour 3D film was released called Bwana Devil,it was the first of many stereoscopic films to follow in the next few years. The process of combining 3D and colour attracted a new audience to 3D films. Between 1950 and 1955 there were far more 3D films produced that at any other time before or since, apart from possibly in the next couple of years from 2009 onwards, as the cinema industry tries to fight back again against falling figures, this time though because of home entertainment systems, video-on-demand, and legal and illegal movie downloads. Towards the end of the Golden Age, around 1955, the fascination with 3D was starting to be lost. There were a number of reasons for this, one of the main factors was that in order for the film to be seen in 3D it had to be shown on two reels at the same time, which meant that the two reels had to be exactly in time else the effect would be lost and it would cause the audience headaches. Chapter 6: Occasional 3D films (1960 2000) Between 1960 and 2000 there were sporadic resurgences in 3D. These were down to new technologies becoming available. In the late 1960s the invention of a single strip 3D format initiated a revival as it meant that the dual projectors would no longer go out of sync and cause eye-strain. The first version of this single strip 3D format to be used was called Space-Vision 3D, it worked on an over and under basis. This meant that the frame was horizontally split into two, during playback it was then separate in two using a prism and polarised glasses. However, there were major drawbacks with Space-Vision 3D. Due to the design of the cameras required to film in this format, the only major lens that was compatible was the Bernier lens. The focal length of the Bernier optic is fixed at 35mm and the interaxial at 65mm. Neither may be varied, but convergence may be altered'(Lipton, 1982).This obviously restricted the creative filmmaking options and as a result was soon superseded by a new format called Stereovision. Stereovision was similar to Space-Vision 3D in that is split the frame in two, unlike Space-Vision though, the frame was split vertically, and they were placed side-by-side. During projection these frames were then put through an anamorphic lens, thereby stretching them back to their original size. These also made use of the polarising method introduced by Land in 1929. A film made using this process was called The Stewardess, released in 1969, it cost only $100,000 to make but at the cinema it grossed $26,000,000 (Lipton, 1982). Understandably the studios were very interested in the profit margin that arose from this film. As a result 3D once again became an interesting prospect for studios. Up until fairly recently films were still shot and edited using old film techniques (i.e. not digitally). This made manipulating 3D films quite difficult, this lack of control over the full process made 3D less appealing to film makers. The digitisation of post-processing and visual effects gave us another surge in the 1990s. But only full digitisation, from glass to glass from the cameras to projector lenses gives 3D the technological biotope it needs to thrive (Mendiburu, 2009). Chapter 7: The Second Golden Age of 3D (2004 present) In 2003 James Cameron released Ghost of the Abyss, it was the first full length 3D feature film that used the Reality Camera System, which was specially designed to use new high definition digital cameras. These digital cameras meant that the old techniques used with 3D film no longer restricted the work-flow, and the whole process can be done digitally, from start to finish. The next groundbreaking film was Robert Semeckis 2004 animated film Polar Express which was also shown in IMAX theatres. It was released at the same time in 2D and 3D, the 3D cinemas took on average 14 times more money that the 2D cinemas. The cinemas once again took note, and since Polar Express was released in 2004, 3D digital films have become more and more prominent. IMAX are no longer the only cinemas capable of displaying digital 3D films. A large proportion of conventional cinemas have made the switch to digital, this switch has enabled 3D films to be exhibited in a large range of cinemas. CHAPTER 8: 3D TECHNOLOGIES 8.1 3D capture and display methods Each different type of stereoscopic display projects the combined left and right images together onto a flat surface, usually a television or cinema screen. The viewer then must have a method of decoding this image and separating the combined image into left and right images and relaying these to the correct eye. The method that is used to split this image is, in the majority of cases, a pair of glasses. There are two brackets of encoding method, passive and active. Passive means that the images are combined into one and then the glasses split this image in to two separate images for left and right eye. In this method the glasses are cheaper to produce and the expense usually comes in the equipment used to project the image. The second method is active display. This method works by sending the alternative images in a very quick succession (L-R-L-R-L-R), the glasses then periodically block the appropriate eye piece, this is done at such a fast rate that it appears to be continuous in both eyes. There are various different types of encoding encapsulated within each of the two methods mentioned above. The encoding can use either colour separation (anaglyph, Dolby 3D), time separation (active glasses) or polarisation (RealD). A separate method, which does not require the use of glasses is done by using a virtual space in front of the screen and is called autosterescopic. In cinemas across the world at the moment there are several formats that are used to display 3D films. Three of the main distributors are Real-D, iMAX and Dolby-3D. Once a 3D film has been finished by the studios, it then needs to be prepared for exhibition in various different formats, this can include amongst other things colour grading and anti ghosting processes. At present there is not a universally agreed format for capturing or playing back 3D films, as a result there are several different versions, these are explained below. A large majority of the latest wave of 3D technology options send the image using one projector, so removing the old problem of out sync left and right images. The methods that do use dual projectors are much more sophisticated that the older versions used in anaglyphic films so have eradicated the old problems of out of sync projectors. 8.2 Gho

Federalist #10 :: essays research papers

Madison begins perhaps the most famous of the Federalist papers by stating that one of the strongest arguments in favor of the Constitution is the fact that it establishes a government capable of controlling the violence and damage caused by factions. Madison defines that factions are groups of people who gather together to protect and promote their special economic interests and political opinions. Although these factions are at odds with each other, they frequently work against the public interests, and infringe upon the rights of others. Both supporters and opponents of the plan are concerned with the political instability produced by rival factions. The state governments have not succeeded in solving this problem; in fact the situation is so problematic that people are disillusioned with all politicians and blame government for their problems. Consequently, a form of popular government that can deal successfully with this problem has a great deal to recommend it. Given the nature of man, factions are inevitable. As long as men hold different opinions, have different amounts of wealth, and own different amount of property, they will continue to fraternize with people who are most similar to them. Both serious and trivial reasons account for the formation of factions but the most important source of faction is the unequal distribution of property. Men of greater ability and talent tend to possess more property than those of lesser ability, and since the first object of government is to protect and encourage ability, it follows that the rights of property owners must be protected. Property is divided unequally, and, in addition, there are many different kinds of property; men have different interests depending upon the kind of property they own. For example, the interests of landowners differ from those who own businesses. Government must not only protect the conflicting interests of property owners, it must, at the same time, successfully regul ate the conflicts that result from those who own, and those who do not own, property. To Madison, there are only two ways to control a faction: one, to remove its causes and the second to control its effects. The first is impossible. There are only two ways to remove the causes of a faction: destroy liberty or give every citizen the same opinions, passions, and interests. Destroying liberty is a "cure worse then the disease itself," and the second is impracticable. The causes of factions are thus part of the nature of man and we must deal with their effects and accept their existence.

Diversity Essay :: College Admissions Essays

Diversity Essay â€Å"Mom! Tell him to get off me!† cried my sister in Farsi to my mother. My mother ran into the room and pulled me, kicking and screaming, off of my older sister. My sister had come home from her first day of school, and was by this time crying. After issuing her punishment and telling me never to hit my sister again, my mother demanded to know why I was so upset. â€Å"She went to school today, Mom, and she won’t teach me English!† I sobbed. Of course, it was foolish of me to think that my sister could teach me a new language after her first day of school, but I was too young and frustrated to know any better. My frustration was caused by living in a foreign land and not knowing the language, and was amplified by our poverty. I did not have many toys and could not play with other children my age because of the language barrier. I was only two-and-a-half years old when my family moved to America from Iran to avoid the onslaught of the Iran-Iraq war. I was too young to remember any details, but the war stories I have heard are horrifying. Children were used as human sacrifices to deactivate landmines and sent to the battlefields with keys that would â€Å"allow them access to Heaven.† My parents envisioned a future for my sister and I somewhere that would shield us from such atrocities and allow us to advance our lives, even at the expense of their own. The strength that they displayed in sacrificing their own lives for our opportunities has been an inspirational force throughout my life. My mother worked at a laundry service in an apartment complex, and because we had no car or babysitter, I had to wake up mornings and walk with her to work. Several residents noticed me sitting impatiently in the cramped workspace and tried to entertain me in any way that they could. One of the residents, a tall man with funny-looking glasses, was a magician who gave me a copy of a children’s book. I could tell from the pictures that it was a book about a penguin, but I could not yet read its contents. I appreciated the gift, and because I liked this man who would show me card tricks and make funny voices, I was inspired to learn to read it.

Essay --

Moderately Easy Things You'll Need Introduction Shapely muscles are hidden under your excess body fat. Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images Whether you have saddlebags, love handles, bra bulge, a double chin, or bat wings, reducing excess fat requires a full-body approach. Spot reducing fat by super exercising your problem area doesn't work. (See References 1, p. 15) You'll only strengthen the muscle under the fat, but won't reduce the fat above the muscle. To accomplish this, integrate a healthy diet, cardio and strength training. This combo can accrue the caloric deficit that's needed to reduce your weight. When your body fat reduces, your muscle tone will show, and you'll have a well-defined physique. Step 1 Change your diet and eating habits to reduce your caloric intake. Understand that it takes a deficit of 500 calories a day to lose 1 pound in a week. Part of this can come from dietary changes. For instance, eat fruit to satisfy a sweet tooth; instead of eating high-calorie desserts every day, eat only one dessert a week; reduce your portions by 10 to 15 percent; and limit sugar, salt, alcohol, and saturated and trans fats. (See References 2 and 3) Step 2 Eat foods from all the food groups to make sure your body gets the nutrients it needs to function while you're losing weight. Include a variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet; get whole grains from foods like brown rice and whole-wheat bread; consume reduced-fat dairy products, such as low-fat milk; eat healthy protein from fish, poultry, nuts, and beans. (See References 4) Step 3 Perform 150 to 300 minutes of moderate cardio each week to burn calories. (See References 5) Consider playing tennis, going jogging, swinging walking poles back and forth during a bri... ...muscle&hl=en&sa=X&ei=W1zZUunhFsT8oAS1hoLYAw&ved=0CFwQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=spot%20reduce%20fat%20above%20muscle&f=false] American Council on Exercise: Trimming Off the Fat [https://www.acefitness.org/acefit/healthy_living_fit_facts_content.aspx?itemid=2672] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Healthy Eating for a Healthy Weight [http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/] Harvard School of Public Health: Healthy Eating Plate and Healthy Eating Pyramid [http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/pyramid/] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How Much Physical Activity Do Adults Need? [http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/adults.html] American Council on Exercise: High-Intensity Interval Training [http://www.acefitness.org/fitness-fact-article/3317/high-intensity-interval-training/] User Bio

Language and Taboo Essay

Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing this letter to complain about the episode 3 from the Season 13 of Modern Family where the small girl Lilly uses the f-word over and over again. This is unacceptable and inappropriate! I as a parent don’t want my child to hear the vulgar language on TV. TV programs have a special kind of effect on the children. This is so because they find the TV actors to be their role models. They want to wear the same clothes, act the same way and even talk the same way – basically live up to them. That’s why the script writers of the Modern Family need to be use appropriate word to express the ideas. I fully acknowledge that the f-word was used on purpose. If there is no other way to make the show funny, but to use inappropriate words, then I am sorry. But you need to keep in mind that the show is for the whole family to watch. I am so loud about this issue because a serious problem rose up in our family after watching the episode. Me and my family were all sitting in our living room and watching â€Å"Modern family†. When Lilly dropped the f-bomb, my younger son started laughing hard. As soon as the episode finished, he got up and stated: â€Å"What a f****ing good show it was. It was f****ing funny†. I was left speechless. Me and my wife had an hour long talk with him to explain how bad the f-word is and that he cannot use it in any circumstances. After listening for the hour-long harassment he turned to me and kindly asked â€Å"Dad, why can’t I use that bad word if Lilly can? † Dear reader, do you see where I am leading to? Lilly just showed him that using the word is completely okay and that it makes people lough out of it. Lilly’s dad laughed at each every time she pronounced the word. This is not right. That shouldn’t have been the reaction from her dad. This made my younger son Erik think that using the curse language is natural and funny. After watching the last episode yesterday, he got even more interested in watching the next episode. He is anxiously waiting for it because there is a chance of learning some new â€Å"nasty† words. On the other side, as You can assume, I will not stand still and will not allow him to watch the next episode because it is inappropriate for his age. Apparently, one family after another will realize the impact of the show on their children and will stop viewing it. I am sorry to say but You will be at a loss. According to a study by a university, â€Å"children exposed to profanity in the media think that such language is normal, which may reduce their inhibitions about using profanity themselves†. The study has shown that the children who are exposed to the vulgar language more often are more aggressive verbally and even physically. I as a parent don’t want my son to be caught by police because of assaulting someone on the road. Also, Erik can be beaten up by some elder boys if they hear him swearing at them. If anything of this kind happens, the responsibility lies on You! According to another research at the University of Bristol, â€Å"Swearing provokes a physical stress response which will increase the blood pressure level†. If my son starts using the f-word over and over, he might have high pressure and become a physically misbalanced person. None of the parents would like their son or daughter to have high pressure because of watching â€Å"Modern Family†. â€Å"Modern Family† is a show which should reduce the pressure by easing the life. The whole point of the show is to show how the modern family is different from past and make jokes about it. But making a small girl swear gives a complete opposite impression. Being a parent in this situation is a very tough job. It is very important to say the right thing at that moment. If a wrong message is given, then the child may go out of control. We never faced any problems of this kind with our elder son and so it is the first time we are having such a serious and vital conversation at home. For the future episodes please use appropriate language so that we could sit with the whole family and watch the series together again. We used to enjoy doing it. But now I am afraid that we can’t do it anymore due to the fear of inappropriate language. We managed to erase the f-word from the head of our young kid this time, but I am afraid the next time we won’t be able to do it anymore. So, we would plead you to revise your scripts and remove all the inappropriate vocabulary out of it. It is a show for all of us and lets not make fun of the swear words and stay away from them. They are not needed. There are many other ways to make people laugh and I am sure that your editors will be able to come up with some better ways to make people laugh.

Patterns of World History Vol 1

â€Å"Humans and Ideas† Some of the most powerful ideas humans developed during early divination of 3000 BCE to 618 CE have been about techniques to improve living. New technological ideas from the invention of the wheel to the hand crank pump have transformed how millions of people live. The way technological ideas have accumulated over time and the effects they have had on society is one of the main themes of world history. Shortly before 3000 BCE, Mesopotamians invented a technological idea which ended in a writing system called cuneiform that increased communication, record keeping, and abstract thought.Through symbols written on wet clay tablets that represented objects and sounds, history could be recorded for the first time. Writing was a major expansion of the conceptual horizon of humankind that reached back to the first flaked stones, ornaments, figurines, and cave paintings in the Paleolithic (Von Sivers 44). Early metallurgists discovered that by adding tin to copp er they were able to make bronze which was much harder than copper and provided a sharper cutting edge which was the start of the Bronze Age (Lecture).By 2800 BCE Sumer entered into what is described as the protoliterate period where scribes would work with pictograms and official seals but there was still no official written language (Lecture). Harappan cities were unique to the 1700’s BCE due to the meticulously planned grid-like design that included a most elaborate urban sewer system for ancient times. Remarkably straight, brick paved streets ran in north/south, east/west axes forming square blocks of public buildings, temples, and markets in convenient locations.Houses had brick-lined indoor wells and primitive toilets emptying into terra-cotta cesspits whose overflow connected to the city’s drains and sewers (Von Sivers 80). Located several miles up the Sabarmati River from the Gulf of Khambat, Lothal was a large, perhaps the chief, of all trading seaports around 1700 BCE. Lothal central structure is an enormous basin, approximately 120 feet long and 70 feet wide. The location of Lothal on the Arabian Sea indicates a link between Harappan cities and trade that would have reached Mesopotamia and possibly Egypt.Lothal was also a famous regional craft center, with micro beads used for decorative craft items and jewelry as its chief product for internal trade and export (Von Sivers 80). Around 1700 BCE, the chariot and composite bow made their entry into the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region, transforming armies who previously relied solely on foot soldiers. Black smiths mastered the art of iron making and incorporated iron into their chariot armies, in the form of swords, helmets, and protective armor (Von Sivers 53).The Shang Dynasty used the horse to drive chariots, which transformed the Chinese warfare for transportation, which linked disparate regions of China and helped the Shang to expand. It was a featured in art and poetry a nd thus offered a new symbol for artist and poets to work with. It will also link China to nomadic horse people from the north and west (Von Sivers 110). The people in Meroe mined, smelted, and forged iron which they were the first to do so in sub-Saharan Africa. The craft of iron smelting evolved gradually in Hittite Anatolia during several centuries after 1500 BCE.The possible spread of iron-working sills from the Middle East to Africa has not been satisfactorily proved. Iron workers in African villages adapted iron-making to local village circumstances. The production of iron, or greater import was the knowledge f how to forge the bloom-the combination of raw iron and slag- into an iron- carbon allow that was neither too soft nor too brittle (Von Sivers 165). Chariots and bows were introduced to the Shan army between 1300-1200 BCE. Around 1200 BCE, The Olmec crafted figurines, mask of clays, and made figurines from jade and serpentine.The Olmec heads were carved from 18 ton block s of basalt that were quarried 70 miles away from San Lorenzo. Large groups of workers shouldered beams from which the basalt blocks, weighing 18 tons on average, hung in slings. They carried these blocks to the coast and shipped them to San Lorenzo on rafts. There, sculptors fashioned the blocks into fierce-looking, helmeted heads, kneeling or sitting figures, and animal statues (Von Sivers 145). The Lydians are notable for having created in 615 BCE the first minted money in world history, coins made of silver and gold and used in trade (Von Sivers 199).The Achaemenids created an elaborate system of roads known as the royal roads around 550 BCE for communication and transportation of troops and trade. The Persian Empire in particular covered vast amounts of land, from Anatolia to Egypt and Mesopotamia, to modern day Afghanistan. The Persian Empire was both centralized and decentralized. One centralized aspect, as revealed by the roads, was the need to pay taxes and tribute to the s hahinshah, the emperor. Even more revealing is the style of the Persian roads, with distance markers at regular intervals, inns and depots indicating the sophistication of the Persian infrastructure.The centralization of the empire is further revealed by the regulation that local parts of the road had to be maintained by the local governors, appointed by the emperor; thus even to the local level the emperor had influe nce (Von Sivers 200). The Achaemenids achieved their conquests with the help of lightly armed; highly mobile mounted archers as well as heavily armored, slow-moving cataphracts-horsemen with protective armor consisting of iron scales sewn on leather shirts. Quilts and iron scales protected the horses. The archers fought with composite bows and the cataphracts, with 5-foot long, iron-tipped lances for thrusting.Infantry soldiers armed with bows, arrows, shields, and javelins provided support for the cavalry, complementing its tank-like thrust (Von Sivers 200). The Well- Field System was an attempt to untangle the more confusing aspects of land arrangement around 500 BCE. The Zhou was the first among many dynasties to attempt to impose a uniform system of land tenure in China. Each square Li(one li is about one-third of a mile), consisting of 900 mou(each mou is approximately one-sixth of an acre) was divided into a grid of nine plots.Individual families would each work one of the eight outside plots while the middle one would be farmed in common for the taxes and rents owed the landowner or local officials (Von Sivers 117). In the 5th Century BCE, sculptors began to explore physical movement, emotion, and individual character by Greek Painting and Sculpture. Greek vase paintings and sculptures achieved a remarkable wide range, from figures exerting themselves in their chosen sports to serene models of human beauty.Greek sculptors and painters abandoned symbolism and instead, embraced realism as their style of representation in which we call today p hotographic representation (Von Sivers 229). Craftspeople from the Chavin de’ Hauntar around 500 BCE made beads, pendants, stone tools and leather goods, but pioneered new techniques combining the wool from llamas with cotton to create a new blended cloth. They decorated it using new methods of dyeing and painting. Goldsmiths demised new methods of soldering and alloying gold and silver to make large ornamental objects.Small objects, such as golden headbands, ear spools, beads, and pins, signified prestige and wealth. Gold artifacts found in the graves of the wealthy attest to the value residents of Chavin placed on gold (Von Sivers 144). What technical and cultural development allowed the people of the Lapita culture to spread throughout the Pacific Islands? 500 BCE-200 BCE- The Polynesian Islands were settled in part due to sail and paddle-driven canoes, which were further improved by the addition of outriggers or double hulls.These boats improvements allowed the Polynesian s to sail further and reach some of the more distant islands. Cultural developments included the ability to retain elaborate, detailed mental maps of islands, ability to read wind patterns and currents, and retention of celestial information that allowed for navigation (Von Sivers ). The Silk Road was an overland trade routes that connected eastern and western Eurasia, beginning at the end of the fourth century BCE (Von Sivers 286).Mayans developed writing that was a complex combination of glyphic and syllabic script as early as 400-300 BCE. Mayan writing is a glyphic as well as a syllabic script, numbering some 800 signs. It is structurally similar to Sumerian cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphic. The glyphic part consists of pictograms, one-word images of the most essential features of what is to be depicted. Glyphs as syllables consist of one, two, or three of syllabic glyphs, or syllabaries, are pronounced as a series of syllables.Given the mixture of pictograms and syllabaries, which is potentially immense, the complexity of Mayan writing appeared for a long time to be an insuperable obstacle to any effort at deciphering (Von Sivers 182). Around 300 BCE, The Upanishadic writers, or which one hundred are known, thought that the Vedic religion had become too distracted due to the thousands of gods. The Upanishads instead sought a monist, rather that polytheistic approach, and sought for a first principle, a universal truth that did not require the worship of many different gods.The Upanishadic writers were hermits who wanted to reach unity with the universal self, which would remove them from the cycle of rebirth and redeath that characterized earthly life. Salvation in this system was moksha, escape from reincarnation. This salvation was achieved through meditation and brief aphorisms becoming a vital part of a new evolving tradition (Von Sivers 248). Around 221 BCE, the Qin Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of the Qin, accomplished a significant part of empir e and state building.These are several accomplishments of Shi Huangdi to include: building the Great Wall of China that was massive project stretching over 1400 miles to safeguard against attacks by nomadic people in the north; standardized weights, measures, and coinage; building roads, canals, irrigation, water conservancy projects; his tomb with life-sized warriors; use of conscripted labor; and the implementation of Legalism as the primary philosophy of the realm. Each of these was designed primarily to increase the centralized power of the Qin leader and his state.Babylonians were great mathematicians, who worked fractions, whole numbers and square roots as well as some of the elementary theorems of geometry (Lecture). Starting from the foundations of the Sumerians, the Babylonians made advances in arithmetic, geometry, and algebra. Buddhism, the most profound intellectual influences from India on the surrounding regions was in science and mathematics. During the period from th e second century BCE until the second century CE India was an importer of scientific and mathematical concepts from the Greco-Roman and Persian spheres.Greek geometry, made its way into northern India during this time. Concepts of Indian health regimens-some involving yoga discipline-along with the vast body of Indian medicine, with its extensive knowledge of herbal remedies, also seem to have moved west. In the area of mathematics and astronomy an important synthesis of ideas took place in the developing the first Indian calendars, which were based on the lunar months, through a year consisted of six seasons and an intercalary period was inserted every 30 months to make up the difference with the solar year.The Indians then adopted the calendar of the eastern Mediterranean and southwest Asia, which had a 7 –day week, a 24-hour day, and a 365-day solar year-along with the 12 zodiacal signs of the Greco-Roman world (Von Sivers 264). The earthenware produced during the Tang dyn asty 618 CE is among the most coveted in the world today. Perhaps even more impressive, by this time, too, artisans were producing a kind of â€Å"proto-porcelain† that, with increasing refinement, would be know in the succeeding centuries to the outside world as â€Å"china† (Von Sivers 284).Throughout history, humans have adapted their ideas to their environment and learned to overcome obstacles, thus paving the way for new elements of technology. Humans expressed themselves and communicated with one another in sophisticated ways through paintings, sculptures, and the decorative arts as well as writing, construction, and metals. Of more recent, humans invented writing systems that gave birth to many forms of literature. Humans have wrestled with ideas and beliefs regarding technology.