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Category: Persian – Achaemenid
O'Donovan notes #8.2. Compare and contrast f.67v-1 and f.85r (part).
c.3500 words
STRUCTURE – folio 67v-1
Because the drawing on folio 67v-1 is a diagram, we may expect that its structure will speak to the type of information it was designed to convey.
Like the diagram on folio 85r, it is organised by two fourfold divisions.
We'll consider now what is inside its larger circle, leaving aside for the present the four peripheral emblems (below).
CENTRAL MOTIFS.
The centre of folio 85r (part) shows a 'leonine' sun in a field that isn't simply coloured, but formed as swirling lines. As we now have the drawing, those lines are coloured blue, but since we don't yet know when the 'heavy painter' added that pigment, we focus on the basic line drawing.
These two central emblems tell us two important things: first, that the person(s) who first gave each drawing its form did not think of the heavens as a smooth dome, solid or crystalline, nor as as a tent, but chiefly in terms of this swirling movement or perhaps by comparison with some other form composed of a circuit of repeating lines/curves.
If we were considering the history of Mediterranean art, we might liken the centre in folio 67v-1 to a form of omphalos motif, but more about the drawing must be taken into account before trying to explain it.
Since we know the winds were a principal reference in the first diagram (folio 85r) and that the usual way to describe the circuit of direction during daylight hours was by naming the wind from that direction, the fact that the centre of 67v-1 shows a comparable swirling pattern but now has a six-point star at its centre, makes it reasonable to test as one possibility that it might describe how the directions were determined at night.
It's just a possibility, one worth exploring but – as regular readers will know – our aim is not to come up with some novel or merely plausible theoretical explanation , but to correctly understand and explain what the original maker had intended.
Another axiom which applies here is that when there is an easier way to do something, but the first maker of an image chose a less convenient way, there's usually some good reason for it – it's usually meaningful. And, as you'll probably tire of hearing before too long…
Differences really matter!
In this case, when a circle or a square is to be divided by two four-fold divisions, the easy way to do it, and the way one would expect it done in the symmetry-loving art of western Europe, would be like this:
In that case, if you wanted to associate wind-names with the points of sunrise and sunset, as they change through the year, your schematic diagram would look rather like this (below) whether the names were in Greek, in Latin or in some European vernacular:
adapted from 'the Aristotelian winds' illustration in an excellent wiki article 'Classical Compass Winds'.
But that isn't how these two diagrams in Beinecke MS 408 were designed.
(detail) 85r (part)
In both diagrams, the main four-fold division has its lines offset. That is, the lines might 'box' the centre, but they aren't made as two lines that intersect at the centre. Euclidian, it isn't.
If this had occurred in just one of the two diagrams, we might shrug it off, but the same is done in both. So it's purposeful.
(detail f.67v-1)
Details of this kind are what a novice instinctively turns their eye and mind away from, or tries immediately to invent some excuse for as they struggle to maintain our natural and deep-seated belief that "our ways are the right and normal".
Throughout the history of this manuscript's study, that habit of shying away and trying to ignore uncomfortable differences from Latin norms (or, still more narrowly from one's pet theory) has resulted in unjustified assertions that the fifteenth-century copyists or the original draughtsmen were incompetent or devious. We don't need to resort to such excuses because our 'norm' must be whatever was customary for those people by whom, and for whom, a drawing was first given form.
Our task is to understand the drawings, not to decide what habits and ideas 'ought' to have informed them.
And from such indications of how the original maker thought and what was normal in his/her time and place, we may identify where and when a given drawing was first formed.
It may seem strange at first to have no preliminary theory, but it does allow the researcher a much more impartial approach and a more relaxed response to unexpected phenomena, such as these offset lines of division.
CONSONANCE
I think it is now generally accepted, as it was not a few years ago, that what we have in Beinecke MS 408 is a compilation, not a single homogenous work.
That means we can't just assume that the time and place in which one drawing was formed will be the same for all, or for any other unless expressing similar forms, stylistics and what we might call cultural attitudes.
In both these diagrams, for example, we find a form for the sun which has it flame-haired rather than – as it might be – surrounded by spiked rays.
A diagram adjacent to our second example adds the remarkable information (folio 67v-2) that the 'flaming' corona is not simply a stylistic but is meaningful; that we are to consider those flaming locks artificial, with the beard (at least) tied about the face and perhaps also the head's wild-looking curls.
(detail) folio 67v-2
That it is meant for the sun, not any such figure as Medusa or an alchemical character is evidenced by the fact that we find the same flame-haired form for the sun used throughout the manuscript's diagrams and with it a repeated view that the sun's daily emergence is associated with a flower.
In the Voynich map, that flower is included in the emblem marking the map's 'west'; the sun falls into a surface very economically shown as under water; from the water-marked mud there emerges the flower through which the sun will re-emerge next morning in the east.
Note – The Voynich map is drawn on one side of a single sheet of vellum. It was originally numbered 'folio 86v' although it is certainly the first drawing placed on that sheet. The Beinecke's subsequent re-foliation splits the map's description in a way that reads as if it half the map had been drawn of the back of one bifolio and half on the front of another – but in is a single drawing, on one side of a single sheet.
The Voynich map's West emblem:
The map's East emblem.
(detail) Voynich map
This detail is now so faint that I've had to use a data-rich image. Hope it doesn't crash anyone's phone. Even so, it is so very faded that it's extremely difficult to read – though an XRF scan for iron (in the iron-gall ink) might one day make the form clear.
The same concept, though very differently drawn, informs these emblems in folio 67v-1, and that marked difference in stylistic habits as well as the existence of different attitudes to defining the directions mean that here we cannot assume assignment to sunrise or to sunset. My reason for saying so should be explained.
(details) folio 67v-1.
LEFT and/or RIGHT?
This next part gets a bit technical.
The question we must ask now is whether we can assume for folio 67v-1 that the 'sun+flower' means West there, simply because the map includes the flower in its west emblem.
I expect most readers habitually take 'north-up' as their default, and will assume without much pause for thought that if you stand facing North, East must lie on your right.
But "North orientation means east-right" is a convention, not a fact however much a modern person of European heritage might suppose it commonsensical.
Think of it this way:
Instead of imagining that you stand looking north, imagine yourself lying on the ground with your head towards the North.
Now, if you lie face-down, East will be on your right hand, but if you roll to lie on your back, looking up into the sky then East will be to your left-hand side.
Suppose now you're able to do the same things, but hovering several feet or metres above ground. By daylight your bird's eye view, looking down, would produce a map of the land which had East to your right, but when you rolled over to map the night sky, East will be on the left.
The point is that you can have an 'east-left' even if your primary direction is to the North. It can depend on whether you're actually or conceptually defining directions by where you are, and then whether you're turning towards the earth, or the sky.
Latin Europe only accepted this 'east-left' idea within the limited topic of representing the constellations (and then only occasionally) and for some instruments like our planispheres.
Since we already suspect a non-Latin origin for the diagram on folio 67v-1, thanks to those offset lines and adjacency to the curious sun on folio 67v-2, we can't presume the same norms or limits will apply to this drawing as would if a drawing spoke the graphic language of medieval Latin Europe.
There's a possibility, therefore, that though when turned North-up, the diagram on folio 85r had its East on the diagram's right side, this may not. The diagram on folio 85r has the sun as its central emblem, and in daylight the directions were commonly named by winds, but this diagram has a star in its centre and so may be referring to divisions of the night-sky. Which means that whether or not originally designed North-up, it might have its East on the left. (With me so far?)
I understand that it's tempting for some students of this manuscript, as they begin feeling confused or bewildered by its drawings, to brush aside both the 'oddities' and their investigation, resorting instead to adopting impatience as excuse for returning to an easier and more familiar cultural context. But it won't do. The sun's being reborn from a flower each day is no expression of medieval western Christian culture, whose nearest approach was the rite of baptism, once the font had replaced the river.
And, if this weren't enough to cope with, the Voynich map's east-west placements are the reverse of a European norm yet it is clearly a map showing part of the physical world and not the night sky.
Lotus and rebirth.
Some readers may know how widely the lotus was (and is) identified with re-birth, but might associate the source of that idea only Buddhism, with Hinduism, with ancient Egypt or with some other body of knowledge according to their own background.
So far as I can discover, none but the Egyptians ever actually believed that the sun was re-born daily from a lotus, or believed as if it had been true, that every lotus sinks into the mud at night yet rises fresh and clean each morning.
The Egyptian information is easily found, but in short:
It was believed that a giant lotus blossom came out of the primeval waters of Nun, and out of which the sun-god emerged. The Egyptian text whose transliterated name (rw nw prt m hrw), is translated as 'Book of Coming Forth by Day' or as 'Book of Emerging Forth into the Light' has come to be mis-named 'Book of the Dead' in English. It includes a spell to transform the deceased into a lotus, ensuring rebirth during the day for the deceased.
CAUTION: religious and cultural beliefs naturally influence how images are formed by a given community, but it is a mistake to imagine that every reflection of such ideas means that either the image or its accompanying text must be all about religion.
So when we find, in Persepolis, an image of the lotus with two buds, we need not suppose the figure holding them was a convert to the religion of Egypt.
An idea which one people regards as speaking to immortality can easily be translated, there or elsewhere, into a promise of never-ending power – 'horizon to horizon' – and this latter I take to be the sense of the lotus image (illustrated below) from Achaemenid Persepolis.
Buddhism took another message from the lotus, one not greatly different from the idea of emerging bright and unscathed despite immersion in mud and water – but now that idea of re-emergence was expressed in terms of the person's soul and not their physical body. To quote a label written by the Art Institute of Chicago for an artefact made in China between 618 CE–906 AD:
From the time Buddhism came to China, " the lotus—which emerges unstained from muddy water and therefore carries associations of purity and non-attachment to worldly concerns—had become a pervasive motif in secular as well as religious art".
The lotus also features in Hindu traditions.
It is usual for those three major traditions of the pre- and non-Roman world: the Egyptian, the Buddhist and the Hindu – to be discussed as if each was wholly independent of the other two, but there was a time when all three ways flourished in close proximity.
Indo-Hellenistic fusion with Egyptian input.
In the region about Gandhara, where Buddhism would first flourish, lay the easternmost borderlands of Persia's Achaemenid Empire.
The Persians evidently had a custom (also seen in pre-Roman Egypt) where dangerous border-lands were peopled with foreign communities who were brought, or who came voluntarily, from elsewhere.
The Persians had populated this borderland with, among others, communities taken from Asia minor and from Greek-speakers in Egypt, both Carians and Phoenicians and peoples who had earlier been settled by Egypt along its own southern and western borders.
When Alexander of Macedon conquered and took the Persian empire, the same eastern border region which had marked the limit of that empire now became the eastern limit of his own, and after his death, remained as the eastern border of the Hellenistic Seleucid kingdom.
It is an amusing side-light to Voynich studies, that a mention of the Hellenistic kingdoms elicits snorts of derision from hard-core Voynich traditionalists, though the same persons will happily refer to Aristotle, who lived even earlier and was one of Alexander's tutors. 🙂
it was during the period of closest interaction between the eastern 'Greeks' and India that the early Buddhist art of Gandhara developed and Buddhism came into its own. Taking with them the skill of paper-making, Buddhist teachers then carried their message throughout India and to as far as the east China sea, their own vision of the lotus with it.
'WHERE AND WHEN'?
With literally half the world aware of the lotus as a symbol of re-emergence, how can one decide whether our debt is to one, or some combination of those traditions or (as Isidore is indebted to classical Roman poets) whether we're looking at some later maintenance of the conceptual image quite divorced from the society which first expressed that image?
Consider that stylistic difference:
In the Voynich map, the flower is formed in a way that agrees with one among the long-enduring conventions found in Egyptian art. The following example is from a tomb-painting but other instances would have appeared in classical and in medieval times as carvings and paintings in publicly accessible areas. Here the lotus is drawn fan-like, the petals topped with dots as (or with) a narrow band. Notice also that the open flower is flanked by two others, not yet opened.
Here is how the lotus is drawn on the Voynich map – again with its petals topped by dots to form an upper boundary.
detail – West emblem, Voynich map.
Before anyone becomes heated with some Egyptian theory, I must point out that an artefact made in China during the Northern Song period (618-907 AD) also shows this way of depicting the lotus. The object was, admittedly, probably for export and was made during a period when there were diplomatic and trading ties between Persia, Baghdad, India and China.
detail from a vessel made during the time of the Northern Song. This image and associated research summary first published through Voynichimagery in, 'Emblems of Direction – 'West' (July 29th., 2012).
Also found in common between ancient Egyptian, Achaemenid and later Asian representations is a type which does not show literally the flower's physical appearance, but makes it resemble a cup.
Below, in the left column, one example from ancient Egypt and one from Achaemenid Persepolis. On the right side, illustrations to show that the cup-like form for 'sunrise'/rebirth on folio 67v-1 has been drawn in a way that permits comparison with Chinese artefacts from (a) the 12th-13thC Yuan period and even much earlier (see further below) – from the 3rdC AD Jun [Jin] period.
The Jun period had seen the height of Indo-Greek fusion, with the flourishing of Buddhist culture in India.
During the time of the Abbasid Caliphate (750-1258 AD), relations between the Islamic world and China had been developing well. Baghdad was the Abbasid capital, and Siraf in the Persian Gulf was the chief terminus for the east-west trade.
Two separate incidents, costing the lives of resident foreign traders saw formal relations wither andfor some long time, trade was chiefly conducted by land.
'incidents…' massacres in Yangzhou in 760 AD, when a thousand 'Arabs and Persians' are said to have been massacred; Guangzhou in 878–879 AD when tens of thousands are reported massacred – including Arabs, Persians and Christians, the last presumably members of the Church of the East (Nestorians). No reference is made to Manichaeans though perhaps the historian classed them as Persian.
Tim Mackintosh-Smith and James E. Montgomery, Two Arabic Travel Books: Accounts of China and India and Mission to the Volga by Abū Zayd al-Sīrāfī and Aḥmad ibn Faḍlān, (NYU: 2014)
We know that by the end of the twelfth (thirteenth – sorry, missed that misprint) century, relations had been restored – because when John of Montecorvino travelled east as Europe's first ambassador-missionary, he found Italians already resident and established there as trading families.
From all the above, we may fairly conclude that the drawing on folio 67v-1 was not first formed as any expression of western Christian culture and that the face emerging from that type of cup-shaped flower – or flower-shaped cup if you like – must signify East.
'East' in the diagram on fol. 67v-1
Though the emerging face here is turned to one side, where on the map it emerges full-face, does not appear to have been considered a significant change.
But between this image and that on the Voynich map, the style of drawing is very different and in my opinion the diagram on folio 67v-1 had a much later origin.
It is not impossible that as lines from Isidore's Etymologies informed the final appearance of the drawing on folio 85r, so the final form for this drawing may be informed by lines from Hafiz who flourished at just the time of most interest to us – the mid-fourteenth century. (1325–1390):
Cupbearer, it is morning, fill my cup with wine.
Make haste, the heavenly sphere knows no delay.
The sun of the wine dawns in the east of the goblet.
Hafez (also seen as 'Hafiz' lived 1325-1390). translation by Bernard Lewis. For the spiritual interpretation of Hafiz' work as a Sufi poem see e.g. commentary (here) by Ivan M. Granger.
So far, surveying the sun-born-from-flower idea, as religious belief, as metaphor, as reflected in artefacts and in purely poetic images, we have defined the range of our subject in terms of time and geography. The sun-emerging-from-lotus might occur as a physical and/or conceptual image from ancient Egypt to fourteenth-century China, not excluding Persia, India and much of south-east Asia. 😀
But our being able to gain so much insight from just that one motif from f.67v-1 is promising. This drawing looks as if it won't be too difficult to understand.
(below) – Underside of a lotus bowl, Yuan period. The overlapping petals result in a 'swirl' of the type we're looking for.
The list of works consulted during my research into this diagram is very long and far too long to be listed here even if any Voynicheros could find the time or interest to read them.
For references for any particular point, do email me.
For this post, I replaced an older image of the 'Egyptian marshes' detail with the brighter version in a delightful blog which I sincerely recommend to my readers:
Monica Bowen (ed.), 'Marshes in Ancient Egyptian Art', Alberti's Window (blog), (Tuesday, March 11th, 2014). The blog has been running since 2007 and is still posting.
Concerning the lotus motif in Gandharan art, one paper I had not seen until recently deserves mention, despite its author's being apparently unaware of Egyptian influence on Mediterranean thought, including upon the Greeks', and failing to mention of the Ashokan embassy which sparked the medical traditions of Cos and possibly also its silk-making:
Kiran Shahid Siddiqui, 'Significance of Lotus' Depiction in Gandhara Art', Journal of the Pakistan Historical Society (2012), unpaginated. Illustrations. available through academia.edu
D.N. O'Donovan astronomical texts, Buddhist, Chinese, Egyptians (pre-Roman), Historical context, iconographic analysis, Indo-Greek fusion, Persian - Achaemenid, stars, Systems of Belief, Wind and weather Leave a comment July 4, 2022 July 8, 2022 14 Minutes


Elizabeth reported that there were a total of 126 visitors and 233 circulation transactions at the library in March. Eleven E-Books were also checked out.
Elizabeth outlined programs that the library will offer for the next 3 months.
A new substitute, Amy Jackson, was hired. Amy will also organize a children's story hour a few times per month.
Seventeen books and 1 DVD were added to the library collection during this April.
No unfinished business was recorded.
No new business was recorded.


Local award winning actor, Lynda Divito, makes her directing debut with, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, at Town Hall Theatre this season! Opens Dec 1-17, 2016 After a successful acting career in New York and touring Europe as an actor, Lynda Divito rooted herself in the East Bay in the mid 2000's and quickly established herself as a local artist. For over a decade, Lynda Divito has proven to be a powerhouse, locally based, professional actor on stage in both musicals and plays in the East Bay. In addition to being an actor, she is a Realtor, a resident of Walnut Creek and parent of two school age children.
With two coveted back to back lead roles under belt last season at The Lesher Arts Center, Divito will be competing against herself for Best Female Actor in a Leading Role at the 2017 Shellie Awards event. While earning Shellie Award accolades in not a first for Divito, Town Hall Theatre can claim a first for this well rounded thespian. Divito will be making her Directing debut with Town Hall Theatre's production of, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever this holiday season.
Lynda is already the recipient of 3 shellie awards, 2 for best actress in a play and one for best supporting actress in a musical. She also has a Bay Area Critics Circle award for best actress in a musical. After directing The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Lynda will star in Center Rep's, Women In Jeopardy, opening in January!
Its rare to have a Christmas play that is funny, so bringing out the humor while keeping the heart of the show will be our challenge.
Its a clever script and I'm hoping that with the ideas that we have we can showcase our amazing cast and all their talents. We've set it in the 80's and we have some fun ideas to enhance the already really funny script! We also have a set of super stars playing our church ladies. In this production these actors will surprise you by standing out with some of their special talents and mega comedy chops! We have enhanced the way they support our story.
I'm a Mom of two kids and a local realtor. I've been lucky to stay busy as an actor here in our area so between all three things, I feel very satisfied. I love going out with my friends, seeing theatre and being part of our amazing community.
I have had the amazing fortune to work with incredible people, Michael Butler, Timi Near, Robert Barry Fleming, Jenny Perry. I have so many amazing actor friends that it'd be impossible to narrow it down, the Bay Area is teeming with mentors and great talent!
I always take a good few minutes to deep breathe, really deep breathe, I check my props, I shake out, take a sip of water...oh and did I mention, I deep breathe?
Anything unique about your casting experience so far?
Show runs Dec 1-17 with Saturday and Sunday matinees.


The euro steadied on Tuesday, underpinned by speculation the European Central Bank will tighten monetary policy despite lingering weakness on the fringes of the euro zone.
In the absence of bad news on the region's sovereign debt crisis, the single currency was able to take back a small portion of its losses from the previous few sessions.
The ECB chose to combat inflationary pressures by hiking interest rates this months, and analysts expect further tightening in the coming months.
Markets continued to react to S&P's warning that U.S. debt may be downgraded unless law makers can take steps to balance the national budget.
The euro held near $1.43 versus the buck, edging back toward a 16-month high of $1.4519 set earlier in April.
In economic news from the U.S., housing starts and building permits both increased in March, according to figures released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.
Housing starts rose 7.2 percent, while building permits increased more than 11 percent.
Meanwhile, Eurozone private sector activity growth accelerated unexpectedly in April, suggesting no major impact on the euro area from the disaster in Japan, survey results from Markit Economics showed Tuesday.
There are no alarming signs of second round effects of inflation in the eurozone yet, but there is a need to remain alert, the European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said in a video interview to the Wall Street Journal on Monday.
The euro edged higher to Y118 versus the yen, and to CHF 1.2850 versus the Swiss franc.
China has "considerable" room for further raising the reserve requirement for banks, the People's Bank of China Vice Governor Hu Xiaolian said, according to comments published on the central bank website Tuesday.


This course will give you a solid understanding of intercultural business communication and a range of issues related to cross-cultural business. You'll be well prepared for a career in international tourism, commerce or marketing.
Intercultural business communication deals with the study of communication in intercultural and cross-cultural business contexts. It plays a key role in the global economy and world commerce as it considers cultural differences between international business partners and clients.
leader for the MSc in Intercultural Business Communication and the MSc in Intercultural Business Communication with TESOL.
You'll critically examine issues related to cross-cultural business behaviour, cultural dimensions, the key role of language, critical cultural awareness, and training for intercultural sensitivity.
You'll discuss the works of major intercultural researchers and the critiques they have received in order to contribute to a more widening debate of intercultural theory and research.
This course gives you grounding in the global economic environment and the opportunity to specialise in an area of business. You'll also study an in-depth introduction to research methodology, appropriate to undertaking research at this level.
With an international outlook, MSc Intercultural Business Communication attracts students from a wide range of cultural backgrounds. By the end of the course, you'll have a systematic understanding of intercultural business communication and competing theories of culture and communication.
You'll also have the ability to critically and flexibly apply theoretical models to cross-cultural business contexts, including those of international marketing, commerce, advertising and tourism.
How you'll be taught This is a one year full-time course starting in September and is split up into three trimesters. You'll learn by a variety of teaching methods including lectures, tutorials and independent study.
There is also a January start option for this course, but please note that if you choose this option the course, although not involving any more work than for the September starts, will last longer due to timings of delivery of the modules.
This module considers advertising as a form of cultural discourse reflecting perceptions of society and otherness. It allows you to develop critical awareness of linguistic, rhetorical, content and semiotic approaches to the analysis of text, sound and image of different forms of advertising and to apply these to a variety of geographical, temporal and media contexts. Throughout the course the emphasis is placed on cross-cultural comparisons.
Discussion of theoretical and methodological approaches to the analysis of advertising text and image in large diachronic studies and small samples; selection of advertising material in different historical and cultural contexts; intertextuality; representation of nationhood; construction of the 'tourist gaze' in destination advertising; use of stereotypes; language fetish in advertising discourse; impact of regulations on advertising creativity and production.
The module covers the various issues involved in the planning, development and management of those events specifically designed for the tourism industry. Specifically, the module considers the sources of funding, budgetary and other financial issues associated with planning and managing an event for tourism; it examines the people skills, quality issues, employment contracts and other human resource development concerns that need to be taken into account by events managers and organisers within the tourism industry; it addresses logistical issues such as crowd control, venue selection, staging and lighting which must be addressed in event management for tourism; it considers the various aspects of risk management for events designed for tourism, specifically the financial, legal and ethical safeguards required.
This module begins with a discussion of the cultural diversity phenomenon, a day-to-day reality that brings both challenges and opportunites to today's workplace. Approaches adopted by practitioners to managing cultural diversity will be critically examined and compared, with a particular emphasis on intercultural team-building. The module content then focuses on intercultural competence, an element that is central to the intercultural team-building agenda. Perspectives and insights will be drawn from relevant disciplines, such as intercultural communication, cross-cultural management and education. Participants will consider ways of cultivating their own intercultural competence as well as facilitating others' intercultural competence development (especially in work-based contexts). To facilitate the exploration of these two areas, participants will engage with theories and practices in intercultural training in a peer-supported learning environment and reflect upon their own intercultural learning experience in this environment.
The meetings industry is of huge global economic importance (Davidson and Cope, 2003). Business events play a significant role in generating tourism revenue for destinations, thus contributing towards economic prosperity. In this module, you will learn about the major stakeholders in the business event industry, and how they interact with one another. You will examine issues of supply and demand at all levels, and analyse the impact made by business events on their chosen destination. You will be taken on visits to event venues, and will hear guest speakers from industry. This will enable you to connect the theory to the practice.	The module contains the following topics: the business events industry in context; buyers, suppliers and intermediaries; supply and demand characteristics of the industry; the external environment; event planning (buyer and supplier perspectives); impacts of business events and venues; current trends and future issues.
By the end of the module you will have developed an appreciation of the dynamics of working organisations in a rapidly evolving business environment by planning and carrying forward system-wide change programmes.
You will study a foreign language at an appropriate level focusing on the applied skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing. Through this study you will also gain an informed cultural empathy which combined with the language skills, will enhance your capability to access and research authentic, current, foreign language sources of information. These skills will be applied in researching and writing an independent project on an aspect of your named programme of study.
The module content will provide you with an understanding of a number of theories of language, such as how language can affect thought (e.g. Sapir Whorff (see Hua 2004 (ed.)), representations of language, such as how it plays the role of a game (e.g. Saussure, Wittgenstein), the importance of dialogue and conversation in creating meanings (e.g. Bakhtin), different 'formal levels' of language used in different media and text types, or genres (e.g. Swales) and how to analyse writing and speaking, or discourse (e.g. Fairclough). The module content also considers the role of language in culture (e.g. Scollon and Scollon), different cultures (or ethnographies) of communication (e.g. Dell Hymes), and theories of translation (e.g. Werner and Campbell (see Cortazzi et al, 2011)) and interpreting (e.g. Vermeer (See Cortazzi et al, 2011)). One hour lectures will cover these areas.
Follow up two hour tutorials will discuss these aspects in how they apply to written and spoken texts taken from professional contexts. We will reflect on and critically evaluate how language is used, focusing on the impact and influence language has. Both the theory and practice will help you to be aware of the effect of language usage choices you hear and read, and also the language usage choices you make when you speak and write yourself. This will help you to be more effective in your professional career (Usunier, 2011).
Opportunities in international tourism, commerce and marketing and also human resources, where trained professionals are required to negotiate business ventures with overseas clients and markets and train and support international workforces.
You could also progress to further academic study on a higher research degree.


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WREG Problem Solvers: Homeowner desperate for fix after lightning strikes house
Posted 9:44 pm, November 18, 2019, by Stacy Jacobson, Updated at 10:36PM, November 18, 2019
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A man whose home was struck by lightning in the midst of his father getting a terminal illness ended up calling the WREG Problem Solver for help understanding what really happened.
In July of 2018, a neighbor called Jordan Rogers with some bad news: The Berclair home he just purchased had been struck during a storm.
"I rushed home. Found my house torn to pieces," he said.
His father also became terminally ill while living in West Virginia.
He was overwhelmed and desperate to get his house fixed. A friend recommended a well-known contractor: Tim Disalvo and Company.
Problem Solvers: Getting the tree trimming done for a Brighton homeowner
"Did a Google search. They had great reviews," Rogers said.
He called them and soon after two men showed up at his home.
Rogers didn't know it then, but they weren't a part of the company he originally called.
"Jim Disalvo came out and Stan Young came out. They both came out in two separate pickup trucks. I remember like it was yesterday. They walked up. They met me in the driveway: 'Hi we're here from Tim Disalvo and Company.' That was exactly what he said to me," Rogers said.
Rogers was impressed with their sales pitch and didn't have a lot of time, so they got to work. But something always seemed off.
"They were like, 'Oh we don't do contracts,' and I insisted, said we need to do a contract," Rogers said.
He ended up signing a contract with Young for more than $60,000. Tim Disalvo and Company are not named anywhere in the document.
And then Rogers started to have questions about the quality of work.
"This vanity, this door won't shut," he said as he showed us around the house. "I'd show up randomly. Nobody would be working. Like, not a soul would be working here."
So he went back to the company he thought the guys worked for: Tim Disalvo and Company.
"Their first message to me was, 'I'm sorry you're having this experience, however Jim Disalvo doesn't have any affiliation with Tim Disalvo and Company. We've gotten messages a few times before about Jim so you're not the first one,'" he recalled.
Rogers was stunned. He said he felt like he'd been tricked.
"This whole time I was thinking it was Tim Disalvo and Company," he said of the people working on his house.
By now, his insurance had cut checks to Young for more than $35,000.
So that's when he called the WREG Problem Solver to investigate.
WREG found Tim Disalvo and Company have an A rating from the Better Business Bureau.
But WREG uncovered his brother Jim Disalvo has been investigated many times by authorities in both Tennessee and Mississippi in connection with construction services, sometimes while working with Stan Young.
WREG found multiple cases going back to the mid-'90s, some of which resulted in sanctions. They include:
a 1996 Shelby County case resulting in a guilty plea to the felony of impersonating a licensed professional and a $2,000 fine.
a 2007 case resulted in a $250 consent order for unlicensed activity along with Stan Young.
a 2010 Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance case resulting in a $3,000 fine for unlicensed activity on a job worth more than $40,000.
a 2013 Mississippi Board of Contractors case resulting in a $5,000 fine for unlicensed activity on a $35,000 job.
a 2015 Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance case resulting in a $2,000 fine for unlicensed activity.
The victims in the 2015 case also told investigators he "represented himself as part of Tim Disalvo and Co."
We went to Jim Disalvo's Olive Branch home multiple times to ask him about this history. He never came to the door. After talking on the phone with him multiple times, we finally met him on a cold, rainy day near Rogers' home.
"Do you feel bad?" we asked.
"I feel bad when people hurt me too," Jim Disalvo said. "All those are contractual disagreements."
We asked Jim Disalvo why he continued to work without a valid contractor's license.
"I've never had one. I've never applied to get one," he said.
"And you got in trouble for it..." we said.
"Yes. I paid the fines. Yes," Jim Disalvo said.
But we found in at least two cases, he never paid the fines. Instead, according to Tennessee and Mississippi authorities, they went to collections.
Despite all of this, Jim Disalvo and other family members tell us he still works as a sub-contractor for his brother Tim Disalvo. We asked him about current painting work he'd mentioned previously on the phone.
"Right. Yeah. We're finishing it up today. Just an interior paint job," Jim Disalvo said.
"So you are a sub-contractor for Tim Disalvo and Company?" we clarified.
"I said that more than once. Yes," he responded.
In a statement from his lawyer, Tim Disalvo wrote "Jim Disalvo and Stan Young are not employees or independent contractors of Tim Disalvo & Co." and "neither have any sort of business ownership, affiliation or interest in Tim Disalvo & Co."
But the question remains, how did Jim Disalvo know to contact Rogers? Rogers' Sprint phone records show he called the Tim Disalvo and Company office number on Aug. 10 at 9:35 in the morning. The phone call lasted about five minutes. Then, he got an incoming call that afternoon from a cell phone number belonging to Jim Disalvo.
We've spoken with Tim Disalvo, his employees and his lawyer multiple times during this investigation, including going to his office near Summer Avenue.
So far, no one can explain how Jim got Rogers' phone number in less than four hours. That is, except Jim Disalvo himself.
"Stan's the contractor. That's how I got the job," Jim Disalvo said.
He's talking about Stan Young, who does not have a contractor's license, according to the Tennessee database.
Young pushed our camera out of the way and refused to answer our questions during two visits to his Collierville home, leaving Rogers without any answers.
"This room is where we had water leak through and we had to replace the entire ceiling," he said.
Now, more than half his insurance money is gone to people he realized he never should've let inside in the first place. All he wants now is his money back.
Jim Disalvo has agreed to help Rogers with his house but not with getting his money back.
Topics: Contractors, Problem Solvers
News, weather, and sports headlines from our team
County coroner confirms another inmate death at Parchman
10-year-old dead after shooting in Orange Mound
One dead, four injured in Hickory Hill nightclub shooting
2 arrested in deadly Panola County shooting
Woman says man is terrorizing her family at Whitehaven apartments
A routine physical may have saved a Memphis boy's life
Rozelle Elementary closed after fire in the kitchen
Problem Solvers update: Another customer claims unfinished work by flooring contractor
WREG Problem Solver: Landscaper hooks up to fire hydrant
WREG Problem Solvers step in to help when refrigerator goes on the fritz
Problem Solvers update: Contractor misses court deadline in felony theft case
Problem Solvers update: Flooring remodeler promises to pay customer back
WREG helps get rid of standing water, overgrown grass at abandoned Raleigh home
Arkansas family claims they're being terrorized weeks after father shot
Disabled woman, 2-year-old rescued from Coro Lake house fire
Woman: Tow company charged to keep car on days they were closed
Bullet flies through Parkway Village house with children home alone
WREG Investigates: Management refuses to answer for issues at troubled Horn Lake apartment complex
Two men charged after domestic violence situation
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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text:
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Weekly News Brief: 1/12/2017
Posted on January 12, 2017 by Bethany Vance
STAND's Weekly News Briefs are compiled weekly by members of the STAND Education Task Force.
This week's update focuses on Yemen, Syria, and Burma. Though violence and atrocious living conditions continue in Yemen, a positive development comes as the Arab Coalition in Yemen has confirmed they will cease their use of British cluster bombs. Another ceasefire agreement was reached in Syria, this time excluding ISIS and their affiliates.
After the latest examples of despair in Syria, the Syrian government and rebel groups in the country have finally agreed to a ceasefire. On December 29, Vladimir Putin and the Turkish government confirmed the settlement. Russian state media stated, "the two sides had also agreed to enter peace talks to end the conflict that has raged for nearly six years." Russia and Turkey will act as guarantors of the deal.
It is crucial to note the absence of jihadist groups in this deal. The Syrian army has stated that IS groups and their affiliates are not protected by the ceasefire. However, the deal includes the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham group, formerly known as al-Nusra Front, and until mid-2016 al-Qaeda's Syria branch.
While this is the third nationwide ceasefire in Syria this year, STAND hopes it will last. The Syrian conflict has taken hundreds of thousands of lives and casualties will only grow if this resolve is not kept.
Systemic discrimination against the Rohingya people continues, with Bangladesh reporting that more than fifty thousand Rohingya have fled there since November. On January 3, a video was released of four armed police officers beating unarmed Rohingya men. The grotesque video went viral, causing outraged activists to call for action. In response, the office of Burma's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, announced that the four officers would be punished.
One of the countries criticizing Burma's actions is Malaysia, where Prime Minister Najib Razak has criticized ill treatment of the Rohingya. He also led a rally in December protesting the ongoing discrimination. Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, a senior counter-terrorism official in Malaysia, warned that continuing to persecute the Rohingya could make Burma a target for ISIS. His statement was released after the Malaysian government detained a man planning to fight the Myanmar government on behalf of the Rohingya. The unidentified man is suspected to have ties to ISIS.
The Myanmar government continues to depict incidents of violence against the Rohingya as isolated instances, rather than acknowledging their large scale nature. On January 4, the Myanmar government published a report claiming that there was no evidence of genocide or mass rape carried out against the Rohingya.
The humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen continues to rage as the bitter conflict in a seemingly more unstable Middle East appears to have no end in sight. Over 3 million Yemenis have been displaced from their homes, and medical infrastructure, some hundreds of facilities, have been destroyed in constant fighting and bombardment, both from rebels and the Saudi-led coalition and its allies. Groups like Doctors Without Borders have faced growing pressures as a result of the conflict, and many aid organizations have simply pulled out of the region due to the massive security risk, and oftentimes the total disregard for the special protections given to humanitarian workers and civilian facilities under international law. This means that millions lack access to health facilities for basic needs, let alone war-related injuries, and understaffed and undersupplied hospitals are forced to take on more and more patients. The most vulnerable populations appear to be the elderly, pregnant women, and children. Malnourishment, notably in rural areas, has become another major issue, as over half a million children in Yemen face this condition, according to UNICEF. This has contributed significantly to civilian suffering as deaths from the conflict are expected to climb to well over 10,000 by the end of the year, with countless more injuries reported. Many of these casualties are a result of indiscriminate attacks from both rebel forces, through artillery and mortars, and the Saudi-led coalition, mainly through airstrikes.
However, in a positive development, the Arab Coalition in Yemen has confirmed they will no longer use British cluster bombs, which have an especially devastating impact on civilian casualties and infrastructure. Nonetheless, the international community appears to be at a loss regarding a possible long-term solution for Yemen, as previous ceasefires and proposals for talks or a unity government have fallen apart.
Ana Delgado is STAND's Middle East and North Africa Coordinator, focusing mainly on Syria. She is a junior at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, majoring in Political Science and Peace, War, and Defense.
Amala Karri is STAND's Policy Intern and attends Hunter College High School in New York. She contributed STAND's Burma Update for this week's Education News Brief.
Jason Qu is STAND's Emerging Conflicts Coordinator, focusing today on Yemen and Pakistan. He is a Senior at Bronx High School of Science.
This entry was posted in Burma, Syria, Uncategorized, Weekly News Brief and tagged al-Nusra, al-Qaeda, assad, burma, Daesh, isis, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, Myanmar, putin, rohingya, russia, syria, turkey, yemen. Bookmark the permalink.


A fund set up for the late Sarah Burke has now raised $271,678 and counting. Established last Thursday by Burke's agent, Michael Spencer, the fund was created to help Burke's family pay the medical costs accrued during her time at the University of Utah hospital.
Burke died last Thursday from injuries sustained Jan. 10 in a crash in the halfpipe at Park City, Utah.
Although the hospital has not yet issued Burke's family a bill, costs are estimated to be around $200,000, according to a recent release issued by Spencer. "Once charges are finalized, the University will work with Health Canada to determine what type of coverage may be available and what their contribution will be, as Sarah is a Canadian citizen," said Spencer.
The fund's website states that enough money has been raised to cover the anticipated costs related to Burke's medical treatment. Any additional money raised will go to help cover a memorial service and to establish a foundation to honor the six-time Winter X Games champion.
Stickers saying "Believe in Sarah" and "Remember Sarah" are also being sold, with all proceeds going to Burke's memorial fund. Many athletes sported the stickers on their skis and helmets at the recent Winter Dew Tour stop at Killington, Vt., citing that they were competing in honor of Burke.
The Canadian Freestyle Ski Association, of which Burke was a national team member, does offer insurance coverage for athletes but only for required activities within the Canadian team program, either in Canada or another country. "The inclusion into the Olympic Games Sport program has produced a period where halfpipe and slopestyle skiers are transitioning from being wholly independent professional athletes to members of full-service national team programs," read a release from the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association. "There are occasions where athletes are involved in private sponsor training, photo shoots and events which operate outside of the National Team program and mandate."
Said Spencer, "[Sarah's] family continues to be extremely grateful for the outpouring of support and messages honoring Sarah and the generous contributions that have been made."


In a unique effort to provide convenience to the commuting corporate citizens of Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) from the distant suburbs and to de-congest the main express highways within the city, MMRDA and BEST have launched state of the art competitively priced buses coined as "MMR Connect".
These bus services will provide connectivity to major corridors in Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai areas. Besides, feeder connectivity will also be provided from Kurla (West), Sion and Bandra (East) Railway Station to BKC so as to facilitate smoother, faster and comfortable commute to the office going crowds.


First of all, I have to say that I heart Nota. She always leaves comments that make me look harder at the situation / myself and dig a little deeper.
So, to address her comment that maybe part of the reason that I'm reluctant to leave FireGirl is that I'm afraid she won't like me: sorry, but you're wrong on this one. LOL.
I did take it into consideration though, and gave it some serious thought & reflection. And that's really not it.
My reluctance to leave FireGirl to do things for myself stems mostly from Working Mom's Guilt, as I've come to call it. And the rest of it stems from my own selfishness, LOL. I want to spend time with her. I want to be with her. Just because I want to, not for any other reason.
There's also another small part that wants to protect her. I don't want her to ever, ever think that I am putting myself above her. I don't want her to ever feel that I am pawning her off on the sitter just so mommy can go have fun without her. I don't ever want her to feel that she is unwanted by me.
And no, it's not because I want to make sure she likes me. I know she loves me. And right now I'm the greatest. And at some point when she's older I won't be the greatest anymore, but I trust that she will still love me.
It's truly because I want to protect her from these bad feelings, as much as a mother can.
And I do do things for myself. It's difficult at times. Okay, most of the time. Okay, every time.
But as much as my heart sometimes breaks, my head knows that I can't be a good mommy if I don't take care of myself. And I also know that by taking care of myself, I am teaching my daughter that it's okay to do things for yourself from time to time.
I just found out about it Sunday, and the first meeting was yesterday, but I had made no arrangements for anyone to watch FireGirl, so I had to miss last night's meeting. But I've already made arrangements for my parents to watch FireGirl late on the Monday's that they have her, and FireMan is on board and understands & agrees that this means that on the Monday's he has her, that he'll be on his own with her for dinner and I'll be home late. Both my husband & my parents are really supportive of me doing this, so that really helps.
I'm nervous to go next week, but kind of excited too.
And on the fear-of-not-being-liked and being lonely note: I scheduled a playdate for FireGirl this Thursday. Just invited all the moms with young children that I knew lived near me, and/or I thought they might come. So far we have 2 people who have confirmed they are coming, and 4 maybe's. If it goes well, I think I'm gonna try to schedule one per month. FireGirl needs some friends closer to her own age, and I could definitely use some friends of my own, LOL.
Thanks. :) I try. Even when I'm off base. Which I'm glad that I am on this one.


Vazquez pays $6 a month to use the app - there is no transaction fee. By comparison, a payday loan typically carries an annual percentage rate of 300 percent to 500 percent and is due in a lump sum, or balloon payment, on the borrower's next payday. Vazquez didn't provide the terms of the payday loan he took out years ago.


text:
<?php

/**
 * Doctrine_Task_DropDb
 *
 * @package     Doctrine
 * @subpackage  Task
 * @license     http://www.opensource.org/licenses/lgpl-license.php LGPL
 * @link        www.doctrine-project.org
 * @since       1.0
 * @version     $Revision: 2761 $
 * @author      Jonathan H. Wage <jwage@mac.com>
 */
class ciDropApplication extends Doctrine_Task
{
    public $description          =   'Load Modules into database',
           $requiredArguments    =   array('application' => 'Specify the application to generate de UI',
                                           'config_path' => 'Specify the complete path to your config directory.',
                                           'app_path' => 'Specify the complete path to your application directory.'),
           $optionalArguments    =   array();

    public function execute()
    {
        $answer = $this->ask('Are you sure you wish to drop '.$this->getArgument('application').' application? (y/n)');

        if ($answer != 'y')
        {
            $this->notify('Successfully cancelled');

            return;
        }

        Doctrine_CI_DropTask::dropApplication($this->getArguments());

        $this->notify('Successfuly droped application');
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub