Alchemy Essays (886 words) - Hermeticism, Natural Philosophers

Alchemy Alchemy, ancient art practiced especially in the Middle Ages, devoted chiefly to discovering a substance that would transmute the more common metals into gold or silver and to finding a means of indefinitely prolonging human life. Although its purposes and techniques were dubious and often illusory, alchemy was in many ways the predecessor of modern science, especially the science of chemistry. The birthplace of alchemy was ancient Egypt, where, in Alexandria, it began to flourish in the Hellenistic period; simultaneously, a school of alchemy was developing in China. The writings of some of the early Greek philosophers might be considered to contain the first chemical theories; and the theory advanced in the 5th century BC by Empedocles?that all things are composed of air, earth, fire, and water?was influential in alchemy. The Roman emperor Caligula is said to have instituted experiments for producing gold from orpiment, a sulfide of arsenic, and the emperor Diocletian is said to have ordered all Egyptian works concerning the chemistry of gold and silver to be burned in order to stop such experiments. Zosimus the Theban (about AD 250-300) discovered that sulfuric acid is a solvent of metals, and he liberated oxygen from the red oxide of mercury. The fundamental concept of alchemy stemmed from the Aristotelian doctrine that all things tend to reach perfection. Because other metals were thought to be less "perfect" than gold, it was reasonable to assume that nature formed gold out of other metals deep within the earth and that with sufficient skill and diligence an artisan could duplicate this process in the workshop. Efforts toward this goal were empirical and practical at first, but by the 4th century AD, astrology, magic, and ritual had begun to gain prominence. A school of pharmacy flourished in Arabia during the caliphates of the Abbasids from 750 to 1258. The earliest known work of this school is the Summa Perfectionis (Summit of Perfection), attributed to the Arabian scientist and philosopher Geber; the work is consequently the oldest book on chemistry proper in the world and is a collection of all that was then known and believed. The Arabian alchemists worked with gold and mercury, arsenic and sulfur, and salts and acids, and they became familiar with a wide range of what are now called chemical reagents. They believed that metals are compound bodies, made up of mercury and sulfur in different proportions. Their scientific creed was the potentiality of transmutation, and their methods were mostly blind gropings; yet, in this way, they found many new substances and invented many useful processes. >From the Arabs, alchemy generally found its way through Spain into Europe. The earliest authentic works extant on European alchemy are those of the English monk Roger Bacon and the German philosopher Albertus Magnus; both believed in the possibility of transmuting inferior metals into gold. This idea excited the imagination, and later the avarice, of many persons during the Middle Ages. They believed gold to be the perfect metal and that baser metals were more imperfect than gold. Thus, they sought to fabricate or discover a substance, the so-called philosopher's stone, so much more perfect than gold that it could be used to bring the baser metals up to the perfection of gold. Roger Bacon believed that gold dissolved in aqua regia was the elixir of life. Albertus Magnus had a great mastery of the practical chemistry of his time. The Italian Scholastic philosopher St. Thomas Aquinas, the Catalan churchman Raymond Lully, and the Benedictine monk Basil Valentine (flourished 15th century) also did much to further the progress of chemistry, although along alchemical lines, in discovering the uses of antimony, the manufacture of amalgams, and the isolation of spirits of wine, or ethyl alcohol. Important compilations of recipes and techniques in this period include The Pirotechnia (1540; trans. 1943), by the Italian metallurgist Vannoccio Biringuccio; Concerning Metals (1556; trans. 1912), by the German mineralogist Georgius Agricola; and Alchemia (1597), by Andreas Libavius, a German naturalist and chemist. Most famous of all was the 16th-century Swiss alchemist Philippus Paracelsus. Paracelsus held that the elements of compound bodies were salt, sulfur, and mercury, representing, respectively, earth, air, and water; fire he regarded as imponderable, or nonmaterial.

buy custom The Concept of Leadership Traits essay

buy custom The Concept of Leadership Traits essay Leadership traits can be defined as the inbuilt patterns of individual characteristics that depict varying character differences and further reliability leader effectiveness across a range of organizational or groups situations. A successful leader is always associated with traits like integrity, commitments to growth, readiness to take risks, responsibility, pragmatism, and at the same time such person is vision oriented, self-assured, hardworking, emotionally intelligent, able to engage others in work, industrious, and optimistic. The particular characteristics possessed by an individual are very important in determining what kind of a leader one can be. Personality and intelligence are some of the significance traits that one can have. The term personality implies the uniqueness of an individual that is responsible for the constant ways of thoughts, sensation and behavior. There are many different types of personalities most of which are not appropriate for a leader. A successful leader is identified with such certain traits as extraversion, agreeableness, emotional stability, openness to new constancy, and conscientiousness. The term extraversion refers to the characteristic of one, who has the associative traits of being talkative, self-assured, energetic, and always having the urge to appear on stage. A person with this kind of trait always tries to dominate over his or her fellows. Being agreeable has a meaning of being attentive to needs of others, considerate, pleasant, trusting, and appreciative. Extroverts have the ability to have more associates than introverts. Being highly agreeable makes one to have more friends as this creates a favorable environment for association. Emotional stability, the degree to which a person stays cool even under tight conditions and is able to handle tough situations, is necessary for success as a leader. A leader who is open to new changes and experiences is ready for success. This is due to the fact that he or she will be able bring innovation by proving to be insightful and providing the staff with imaginative ideas and wide areas of interest to work on. The perso nality, conscientiousness and diigence are also necessary. This implies one having the qualities to plan and achieve through being organized. This trait is very important as it carries the weight of other traits such as integrity, pragmatism, vision-orientation, responsibility, commitment to growth and enthusiasm. The level of leader intelligence is an important factor in determining the kind of a leader one is. A high degree of intelligence is needed for one to become a successful leader. Super leaders are not born bright, but aim to become bright (Goleman, 1995). A leader should be able to determine the vision of a business, as he or she is the foundation of a viable business advantage. He or she should be able to read the moods of a business and determine what is best for the team. Helping the team to achieve their personal goals should be an aim, as it results into a highly competitive business. The most important kind of leadership intelligence for a successful leader is the emotional intelligence, which combines competencies. It describes the ability of a leader to be self-aware, have social skills like giving the attractive responses, be empathetic, motivate others, and lastly be able to self-manage oneself. Furthermore, successful leaders are willing to learn and take risks, as long as the final result is to favor the business. There are various theories and studies that discuss leadership traits. Amongst them are the Trait theory, Behavioral theories, The Great Man theory, Situation theories, Contingency theories, Relationships theories, Management theories and Participation theories. The Trait theory basically suggests that already at birth leaders have certain traits associated with proficient leadership. This implies that leadership traits are naturally part of someone from birth. This theory assumes that leaders are born and not made. It could be true for some leaders to have developed the leadership characteristics from their childhood, but it is still questionable. Some leaders realize their potentials when grown up. This theory identifies potential leaders. The second theory is the Behavioral theory, whhich suggests that upcoming leaders can be trained by the leadership preparation competencies to become effective leaders. After the training, they can become the best ever leaders. It is based on the belief that leaders are made through training and exposure, and not born like that. It notes that the leadership capabilities can be arrived at by learning and not through inheritance. The theory is easy to develop and eases the assessment of leaders actions and success. While the Trait theory advocates for potential leaders, this theory advocates for the behaviors that lead to a successful leader. Theory X and Y is a Trait theory proposed by Douglas McGregor in 1960. This theory compares two groups of individuals. X is viewed as an individual who dislikes to work and works on subjection to strict conditions, always wants to be directed, dislikes responsibilities, and has a feeling of safety at work. Y has the qualities that are contrary to those of X, which are needed for successful leadership. X is attributed to hard and low level work, while Y is attributed to solving complex tasks and high ranks. This theory tends to prove that leadership is an innate predisposition that one has. Basing on the Contingency theories, we propose Exposure Theory. In this theory, we suggest that great leaders are produced as a result of exposing oneself to an environment with the required leadership. Those individuals who are born in families of high profile leaders and those who naturally associate with proficient leaders make good leaders by learning to emulate their style. The unexposed ones remain to be wishers of leadership, but have no way of acquiring the traits due to the fact that they cannot learn them. Some individuals have the ability to be good leaders but lack the possibilities to learn. The good leaders excel in education and exposure to the environments. Leadership is what you make it. One who aspires to be a leader and works towards achieving this goal is more likely to be one. Becoming a successful leader means having the necessary characteristic traits, such as intelligence, personalities and other quality leadership skills. Buy custom The Concept of Leadership Traits essay

Gender Issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Gender Issues - Essay Example Women can now be seen in the office working as colleagues to their male counterparts and even taking up managerial positions with the opposite sex as their subordinates. The transition that has led to this equality has not been a smooth nor easy one however, and it has taken a lot of lobbying and politics for women to achieve the equality that they rightly deserve. Gender equality has also brought up new issues in terms of the roles that the different genders are supposed to take up now as the traditional perceptions have been shelved in favor of the new age era where most responsibilities can be looked upon as unisex in nature. Though the equality that has been achieved by women has been welcomed, issues still remain such as the fact that this does not change their sex and women still want to be appreciated as women. The issue of equality comes in when dealing with the subject of respect, women simply want to be given the same respect offered to the opposite gender, but that does not imply that they want to be treated like their male counterparts (Sommers 134). They still wanted to be treated like a lady despite their new found independence in the modern world, in issues such as going out on dates a man is still expected to play the role of a gentleman and pick up the tab, open doors for their companion and the various other gestures of affection that they have been accorded over the past (Caroll 45). This is to say that despite the equality between the two genders that has been gained, differences are still in existense and they should not be overlooked. For example, men are still considered to be physica lly stronger than their counterparts and energy draining tasks such as heavy lifting should not be given to a woman likely to be smaller in stature simply because women are now considered to be equal to men. The gender issues that are now being faced as a result of this equality has also led to several issues that need to be looked into if