September 15, 2010

A Persian insult, an Inuit dialect, and Urdu directions


During the first podcast Iran's leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad "welcomed" Iranian expats by using crude expressions such as "the bogeyman snatched the boob". The people found this shocking not because of the vulgarity but beacuase it came from a political man. Many said that it was "shameful" and were disgraced. Now seen all over the world, Mahmoud says the reason for speaking this way is because of linguistic populism, that he was trying to show that he is "a man of the people".

In the second podcast Stephen Leonard is documenting planet's northern most dialect by spending a year in Northwest Greenland. About 1,000 people live there, and not a lot of information has been documented about the Inuit group so he's going to record his discoveries about them and their language. Leonard will later publish his documentary in their own language so they can see how they live from an outsiders view. The Inuit group could also be extinct by the next 10-15 years because of immigration farther south.

Foreign films in the United States was the main topic in the third podcast. Before there were almost foreign film blockbusters but now they aren't even in box offices anymore because of the demand of foreign films has drastically decreased. Movies theaters are also having less and less foreign films, which makes it even more difficult to get people's attention. Also, thanks to Hollywood United States is the center of the world film culture so for a foreign film to be well know and popular it also has to be very entertaining.

In the last podcast Sofia Javed talks about how certain words in Urdu and Hindi are the same word and pronounced the same way but have a different meaning. For example the words yesterday and tomorrow are the same word, but you can tell their different meaning by which tense the verb is in. However, the words right and straight are also the same word, and when driving it can be very difficult to tell which is with if someone is giving you directions.


September 8, 2010

How Did 9/11 Affect Air Travel Internationally?

By: Hope Kelly, Sydney Setree, and Kirsten Kyburz

        Because of September 11, 2001, the International Air Travel industry suffered immediate and significant effects. This includes changes in number of people taking international flights, shifts in preferences of destinations, and higher concerns by people for their own safety while flying. Also, new, tougher, visa policies made visas harder to obtain, and 9/11 even caused airport security to become more intensified. Some airlines became threatened with bankruptcy! Therefore, all these things combined to result in one big impact on international air travel after 9/11.
        After 9/11, there was a substantial drop in international arrivals from overseas to the United States. In figure 1, you can see how 9/11 affected the initial amount of arrivals from foreign countries. The number of visitors dropped immediately following 9/11 and started to recover in 2003. It reached almost the same as before 9/11 in 2007. There was an especially large decrease in the number of foreign visitors, but an increase in U.S. arrivals. Even though there was a decrease in foreign arrivals, the oversea travel was not affected.
        After 9/11, the United States visa policy became more restricting, and the visa application process was made more stringent. Security procedures affected visa applicants heading to the U.S., but not people heading from other countries. These people were involved in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). People from countries involved and not involved with this program had the same screening process, but travelers from countries not involved with the VW P had an additional screening. These changes showed how travel was reduced to the U.S. among the travelers that needed a visa.
        Security in airports after 9/ 11 also became much more intensified. One now must arrive earlier for all flights, because one is required to go through various lines with long waits and to go through tests to access you flight. All carry-ons have to go through x-ray scanners. Also, the passenger and his/her bags must go through a metal scanner. Plus, everyone is required go to the ticket counter to check in. A driver’s license or proper form of identification is required to board any flight no matter what. In past years, scissors were even thought to be a possible harmful and dangerous weapon to have on the plane. Before 9/11 one could practically show up and go right to the gate. This new protocol sometimes is believed only to be a great burden and inconvenience, but some see it as what it is supposed to be a new, safer way to travel.
        The preference of travelers changed after 9/11 as people began to learn more about their destination before choosing where to go. People have begun to research the history, laws, cultures, and customs, so that they can make an informed decision. It was found after 9/11 that U.S. citizens avoided most travel to the Middle East, India, Pakistan, and most of Asia.
         After 9/11, coach seats increased in price while the first class and business class decreased (see figure 2). This is most likely because passengers who were taking shorter flights did not feel the need for the extra comfort that the two more expensive classes provided. While passengers chose cheaper seats, the amount of passengers also decreased, which would help explain why profits lowered. ("Di Cesare")
       Inbound travel from the United States, ranging from 40-50 million passengers, was consistently lower than outbound, ranging from 55-60 million. (see figure 3) This is most likely because foreigners did not want to visit a country involving dominant collision. Before 9/11, there was also a consistent increase of travelers over the years from 1998-2000. After 2001, though, there was a decrease from both inbound (9%) and outbound ( 3%) travel, which continues until 2004. ("Di Cesare")
        Before 9/11 international flights had an almost linear increase while domestic had a u-shaped decrease. After however it seemed to help the domestic travel. International travel dropped 8% after 2001 then regained passengers with even more than before, 63%, in 2003 and 2004. The total range of international passengers was 600-1500 million and domestic was 700-1300 million. (see figure 4) ("Di Cesare")
        The International Air Travel industry was affected in a multitude of ways due to the horrific events on September 11, 2001. While some effects were immediate, others evolved over the months following. Airline travel and airline travelers will forever be impacted by the events of that day for now and in the future. Airline travelers now hope that in the future our new airline security, as well as the new protocol, will pay off in future years to come and that the world will remain safe and protected.


Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Work Cited

2013, By. "Travel Facts and Statistics
        U.S. Travel Association." U.S. Travel Association. Web.

"Air Traffic - NextGen Briefing." FAA: Home. Web. 06 Sept. 2010.

Di Cesare, Allison. "The Impact of 9/11 on Travel." 15 May 2006. Web.
        <allison.pbworks.com/f/Analysis+Submission+1.doc>.

H.R. Rep. No. RL31617. Print.
        United States. Department of Homeland Security. Web.

"Travel in the United States since the Terrorist Attacks of 9/11: How Have Things Changed?"
       Travel Information Guide - Articles, Comments, Tips about Travel. Web. 06 Sept. 2010.

September 6, 2010

DEFINITIONS!

globalization or globalisation (ˌɡləʊb ə laɪˈzeɪʃən)

— n

1. the process enabling financial and investment markets to operate internationally, largely as a result of deregulation and improved communications

2. the emergence since the 1980s of a single world market dominated by multinational companies, leading to a diminishing capacity for national governments to control their economies

3. the process by which a company, etc, expands to operate internationally

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/globalization

“It has been said that arguing against globalization is like arguing against the laws of gravity.”
http://thinkexist.com/quotations/globalization



culture (ˈkʌltʃə)

— n

1. the total of the inherited ideas, beliefs, values, and knowledge, which constitute the shared bases of social action

2. the total range of activities and ideas of a group of people with shared traditions, which are transmitted and reinforced by members of the group: the Mayan culture

3. a particular civilization at a particular period

4. the artistic and social pursuits, expression, and tastes valued by a society or class, as in the arts, manners, dress, etc

5. the enlightenment or refinement resulting from these pursuits

6. the attitudes, feelings, values, and behaviour that characterize and inform society as a whole or any social group within it: yob culture

7. the cultivation of plants, esp by scientific methods designed to improve stock or to produce new ones

8. stockbreeding the rearing and breeding of animals, esp with a view to improving the strain

9. the act or practice of tilling or cultivating the soil

10. biology

a. See also culture medium the experimental growth of microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, in a nutrient substance (culture medium), usually under controlled conditions

b. a group of microorganisms grown in this way

— vb

11. to cultivate (plants or animals)

12. to grow (microorganisms) in a culture medium

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/culture

“People can only live fully by helping others to live. When you give life to friends you truly live. Cultures can only realize their further richness by honoring other traditions. And only by respecting natural life can humanity continue to exist.”
http://thinkexist.com/quotations/culture



civilization or civilisation (ˌsɪvɪlaɪˈzeɪʃən)

— n

1. a human society that has highly developed material and spiritual resources and a complex cultural, political, and legal organization; an advanced state in social development

2. the peoples or nations collectively who have achieved such a state

3. the total culture and way of life of a particular people, nation, region, or period: classical civilization

4. the process of bringing or achieving civilization

5. intellectual, cultural, and moral refinement

6. cities or populated areas, as contrasted with sparsely inhabited areas, deserts, etc

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/civilization

“There is something even more valuable to civilization than wisdom, and that is character”
http://thinkexist.com/quotations/Civilization



history (ˈhɪstərɪ, ˈhɪstrɪ)

— n , pl -ries

1. a. a record or account, often chronological in approach, of past events, developments, etc

b. ( as modifier ): a history book ; a history play

2. all that is preserved or remembered of the past, esp in written form

3. the discipline of recording and interpreting past events involving human beings

4. past events, esp when considered as an aggregate

5. an event in the past, esp one that has been forgotten or reduced in importance: their quarrel was just history

6. the past, background, previous experiences, etc, of a thing or person: the house had a strange history

7. computing a stored list of the websites that a user has recently visited

8. a play that depicts or is based on historical events

9. a narrative relating the events of a character's life: the history of Joseph Andrews

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/history

“Remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall -- think of it, ALWAYS.”
http://thinkexist.com/quotations/History



progress

— n

1. movement forwards, esp towards a place or objective

2. satisfactory development, growth, or advance: she is making progress in maths

3. advance towards completion, maturity, or perfection: the steady onward march of progres

4. ( modifier ) of or relating to progress: a progress report

5. biology increasing complexity, adaptation, etc, during the development of an individual or evolution of a group

6. ( Brit ) a stately royal journey

7. in progress taking place; under way

— vb

8. ( intr ) to move forwards or onwards, as towards a place or objective

9. to move towards or bring nearer to completion, maturity, or perfection

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/progress

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”
http://thinkexist.com/quotations/Progress