The Seven Voyages of the Ming Chinese Treasure Fleet

Over a period of almost three decades in the early 15th century, Ming China sent out a fleet the likes of which the world had never seen. These enormous treasure junks were commanded by the great admiral, Zheng He. Together, Zheng He and his armada made seven epic voyages from the port at Nanjing to India, Arabia, and even East Africa. The First Voyage In 1403, the Yongle Emperor ordered the construction of a huge fleet of ships capable of travel around the Indian Ocean. He put his trusted retainer, the Muslim eunuch Zheng He, in charge of construction. On July 11, 1405, after an offering of prayers to the protective goddess of sailors, Tianfei, the fleet set out for India with the newly-named admiral Zheng He in command. The Treasure Fleets first international port of call was Vijaya, the capital of Champa, near modern-day Qui Nhon, Vietnam. From there, they went to the island of Java in what is now Indonesia, carefully avoiding the fleet of pirate Chen Zuyi. The fleet made further stops at Malacca, Semudera (Sumatra), and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Zheng He beat a hasty retreat when he realized that the local ruler was hostile. The Treasure Fleet next went to Calcutta (Calicut) on the west coast of India. Calcutta was one of the worlds major trade depots at the time, and the Chinese likely spent some time exchanging gifts with the local rulers. On the way back to China, laden with tribute and envoys, the Treasure Fleet confronted the pirate Chen Zuyi at Palembang, Indonesia. Chen Zuyi pretended to surrender to Zheng He, but turned upon the Treasure Fleet and tried to plunder it. Zheng Hes forces attacked, killing more than 5,000 pirates, sinking ten of their ships and capturing seven more. Chen Zuyi and two of his top associates were captured and taken back to China. They were beheaded on October 2, 1407. On their return to Ming China, Zheng He and his entire force of officers and sailors received monetary rewards from the Yongle Emperor. The emperor was very pleased with the tribute brought by the foreign emissaries, and with Chinas increased prestige in the eastern Indian Ocean basin. The Second and Third Voyages After presenting their tribute and receiving gifts from the Chinese emperor, the foreign envoys needed to go back to their homes. Therefore, later in 1407, the great fleet set sail once again, going as far as Ceylon with stops in Champa, Java, and Siam (now Thailand). Zheng Hes armada returned in 1409 with holds full of fresh tribute  and again turned right back for another two-year voyage (1409-1411). This third voyage, like the first, terminated at Calicut. Zheng Hes Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Voyages After a two-year respite on-shore, in 1413 the Treasure Fleet set out on its most ambitious expedition to date. Zheng, He led his armada all the way to the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa, making port calls at Hormuz, Aden, Muscat, Mogadishu, and Malindi. He returned to China with exotic goods and creatures, famously including giraffes, which were interpreted as the mythical Chinese creature the qilin, a very auspicious sign indeed. On the fifth and sixth voyages, the Treasure Fleet followed much the same track to Arabia and East Africa, asserting Chinese prestige and collecting tribute from as many as thirty different states and principalities. The fifth voyage spanned 1416 to 1419, while the sixth took place in 1421 and 1422. In 1424, Zheng Hes friend and sponsor, the Yongle Emperor, died while on a military campaign against the Mongols. His successor, the Hongxi Emperor, ordered an end to the expensive ocean-going voyages. However, the new emperor lived for just nine months after his coronation  and was succeeded by his more adventurous son, the Xuande Emperor. Under his leadership, the Treasure Fleet would make one last great voyage. The Seventh Voyage On June 29, 1429, the Xuande Emperor ordered preparations for a final voyage of the Treasure Fleet. He appointed Zheng He to command the fleet, even though the great eunuch admiral was 59 years old and in poor health. This last great voyage took three years  and visited at least 17 different ports between Champa and Kenya. On the way back to China, likely in what are now Indonesian waters, Admiral Zheng He died. He was buried at sea, and his men brought a braid of his hair and a pair of his shoes back to be buried in Nanjing. Legacy of the Treasure Fleet Faced with the Mongol threat on their northwest border, and the huge financial drain of the expeditions, Ming scholar-officials deplored the extravagant voyages of the Treasure Fleet. Later emperors and scholars sought to erase the memory of these great expeditions from Chinese history. However, Chinese monuments and artifacts scattered all around the rim of the Indian Ocean, as far as the Kenyan coast, provide solid evidence of Zheng Hes passage. In addition, Chinese records of several of the voyages remain, in the writings of such shipmates as Ma Huan, Gong Zhen, and Fei Xin. Thanks to these traces, historians and the public at large can still ponder the amazing tales of these adventures that took place 600 years ago.

Entering The Foster Care System At The Age Of Nine

â€Å"From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life† (Arthur Ashe). Entering the foster care system at the age of nine became a probability. Mental health issues and imprisonment plagued my parents, resulting in my removal from their care. There were no direct family members that were willing to care for myself except my aunt. My case worker conducted a home visit and she brought by a piggy bank made out of a sock. It must have been around Christmas time. That memory is the only memory I have of my case worker. From that day onward, I told myself that I would become a social worker. I told myself that I would become a better social worker than the one assigned to myself. I had no understanding of the stressful†¦show more content†¦Physically attending classes, in a classroom setting, was turning out to not be a possibility for myself. The opportunity presented itself when I learned that FSU offered online classes. Additionally, to the afo rementioned, I love the social work/social service field! To help others has been a passion of mine for years and I know that I have chosen the field that I am destined to be in. The social work field has been a consistent portion of my life for the past six years. I was employed by the Mental Health Resource Center (MHRC) from 2011-2016. From 2011-2014, I worked as a case manager. In this capacity, I worked with families who had children removed because of abuse, neglect, and abandonment. My goal was to recommend services which would alleviate the reasons for removal. However, if the parents did not show any behavior change and were not successful in completing their court ordered tasks, we would have to change our goals to what was in the best interest of the child. In addition to recommending services, I ensured that children received therapeutic intervention, had visitations with their family at least three times a week, transported my clients to appointments, enrolled children in school, prepared court documents, requested records, and documented my efforts to reunify. From 2014-2016, I was promoted to supervisor. My unit consisted of five case managers and a case coordinator. My role was to guide, teach, andShow MoreRelatedFoster Care Literature Review882 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction Foster care is a growing epidemic in the United States. Youth who are involved in foster care are more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system, become addicts, and not be able to find employment. As a society we try to care for the child as best as we can. The average cost to help provide for a child is roughly $11,000 per year. The rate of a child being neglected in foster care is much higher than a child living with biological parents that’s being neglected. A childRead MoreChild Welfare And The Foster Care System Essay1623 Words   |  7 Pageswere in foster care, but a series of successful reforms, began with that year s Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act, dramatically decreased the number of children in foster care. But in the early 1990s, with the advent of crack cocaine and an economic recession numbers went back up. Child welfare advocates say the foster care system is in need of changes so that children spend less time in foster placements America’s child welfare systems needs an improvement. 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Children who are considered a difficult placement are classified as special needs, even if they may or may notRead MoreEssay on Literature Review: Nurse Retention 1377 Words   |  6 PagesWith the ongoing changes in the healthcare field, nursing workforce retention presents itself as one of the greatest challenges facing healthcare systems today. According to the American Nursing Association, nursing turnover is a multi-faceted issue which impacts the financial stability of the facility, the quality of patient care and has a direct affect on the other members of the nursing staff (ANA, 2014). The cost to replace a nurse in a h ealthcare facility ranges between $62,100 to $67,100 (ANA

Michelangelo s David A Masterpiece of Renaissance Essay Example For Students

Michelangelo s David A Masterpiece of Renaissance Essay Michelangelo David The first piece of artwork that I have chosen to work with is the David by Michelangelo. Yes, this is one of the, if not the most famous sculpture in the world but that is not my reasoning for choosing it. Before seeing the actual David inside of the Galleria dalliances, I visited the copy of it outside of the Palazzo Vehicle. After getting my first taste of the fake version, I thought it was a cool sculpture but didnt see what all of the hype about Michelangelo could possibly be about. However, as soon as I went into the Academia for the first, I could not believe how peculator the original David looked in person. In its current home at the Academia, it stands there perfectly under the biggest dome in the building at the end of the hall from unfinished Michelangelo sculptures. As you walk towards the statue I felt as if it were under a spotlight, grabbing everyones attention that walks by it. The first time I stared at it, I could not help but to notice the impeccable detail in the human body. This sculpture defines where all of a very fit males muscles lay very accurately on the human body. The stomach muscles looked so perfect that the sculpture could pass for breathing. One of my personal favorite aspects of the sculpture is the immense detail in his hands. Not only do the hands look absolutely flawless, but also the veins protruding from the skin and the grasping shape of the hand on the sling are so incredibly realistic. While I was hesitant to choose this as one of the artworks to write a paper on simply because of its incredible fame around the world, I could not resist choosing it because of the way to had truly wowed me the moment I laid my eyes on it. Michelangelo crafted this sculpture between the years of 1501 and 1504, with it finally being unveiled on the 8th of September 1504. This sculpture depicts the biblical battle between King David and Goliath. The naked human form of David was used in a purposeful manner in an effort to show his pureness and lack of defense, as well as giving a timeless interpretation of the biblical story, and not allowing the differences in style of clothes to make this sculpture feel outdated like Tangelos David of the sasss. When the famous statue was finally completed, it was brought to Palazzo Della Signora, the headquarters of the Florentine government at the time although it had initially been planned to be one of the sculptures lining the roofline of the Doom. This statue represents human strength and the strength of the Republic of Florence while there were many other strong cities and empires surrounding them. In 1873 the Statue was removed from the Palazzo Della Signora to protect the worlds most famous statue from damage and placed in the Academia where it remains today. The Operas obtained the original massive block of marble and a contract was armed for Agitation to sculpt a David from it. Agitation sculpted it only for a short while, beginning to form the feet, legs, and torso. Agitation stopped working on the sculpture in 1466, only to have the marble contracted out to another artist. In 1476 Reselling was contracted to the slab of marble, although that contract fell through and the marble sat outdoors untouched for another 25 years. Thankfully, the Operas determination to have the Davits sculpture paid off when the contracted the then 26 year old Michelangelo to take on this daunting task.

Enterprise Systems to Organizational Performance-Free-Samples

Question: Discuss about the Contributions made by enterprise systems to the organizational performance. Answer: Introduction An enterprise system is a cross- functional information system which assists in providing organization- wide integration and coordination of the important business processes and benefits in resource planning of an organization. The enterprise systems also help in ensuring seamless flow of information across the organization. These are the large- scale application software packages which assists in minimizing the costs related to information technology (Kokemuller, 2017). The focus of this report is on the contributions of enterprise systems to the organizational performance, the principle drivers behind the businesses adopting supply chain management system and the organizational change management considerations that are essential for the successful adoption of an enterprise system. Contribution of Enterprise Systems to Organizational Performance and Its Measurement The enterprise systems contribute to the organizational performance in a variety of ways. Enterprise system assists in creating a uniform organizational culture in the organization in which the business activities are performed with the help of similar processes and information. With the help of enterprise systems, the information related to performance is instantly provided to the managers which enable them to make correct decisions at the correct timing. The organizational performance is automatically improved when adequate information is available to the managers regarding organizational performance. Further, the business processes related to manufacturing, distribution and customer service are enhanced due to the availability of proper information. It is the enterprise system that integrates the internal business process of the organizations such as sales, finance, production, custom logistics, etc. the costs associated with transaction processing, hardware and software and IT su pport staff are also reduced to a great extent with the help of enterprise systems. Enterprise systems also assist in synchronizing the functions performed by different departments in an effective and efficient manner (Williams Schubert, 2010). Moreover, enterprise systems also minimize time required for the processing of various documents such as payrolls. Information visibility and transparency is facilitated within an organization. This further leads to ease in performing the operations by various departments which contributes towards the performance of the organization (Yang Su, 2009). However, the contributions made by the enterprise systems are difficult to measure. Still the contributions are visible in the form of better performance as compared to the competitors, increased sales, higher sales conversation and customer retention rates and better image of the organization in the public. Furthermore, with the help of enterprise systems, the organization acquires the capability to deal with the changing condition in an effective and flexible manner. The assessment of such contribution can be made with the help of models such as priori model which makes the use of five separate dimensions of success such as individual impact, system quality, satisfaction, information quality and organizational impact. Revised model can also be utilized for the purpose of measuring the contribution of enterprise systems to organizational performance. The progress of the organization is measured by such model by measuring the impact of enterprise system in four dimensions namely info rmation quality, organizational impact, system quality and individual impact. Principle Drivers behind the adoption of Supply Chain Management System by Businesses Supply chain management systems are being increasingly adopted by the businesses. Suppliers have attained greater importance in the organizations. Procurement is essential for businesses at every aspect which has subsequently increased the reliance of businesses on the suppliers (Monk Wagner, 2012). Supply chain management is useful for the purpose of effectively managing information, contracts, supplier relations and other applicable regulations. Supply chain management process is effectively established by a supply chain management system which in turn assists in deriving the optimum value from the expenses made by business through the analysis of suppliers relating to cost, risk and performance. Therefore, there are various principle drivers behind the adoption of supply chain management systems by businesses. Operations are improved with the help of quality techniques that are incorporated with the supply chain management system which in turn acts as a driver for adopting the system. Contractual obligations are effectively managed by supply chain management system which subsequently helps in maintaining continuous supply and avoiding delivery disruption. Moreover, the implementation of supply chain management systems effectively manages the legal liability which has the possibility of affecting the business. Such system identifies the risk factors in advance which allow risk mitigation through the application of supply chain methodologies. Supply chain management systems include inventory buffer bundles which are determined after proper analysis of past trends. This in turn minimizes the holding cost of the organization and assists in fulfilling the demands of the customers with requisite flexibility thereby ensuring effective management of inventories (Wang, Sedera Tan, 2009). Furthermo re, supply chain management systems reduce the costs to minimum by way of offering finest ways for shipping orders quickly. This helps the businesses in attaining success in no time. The profitability of the business is improved when supply chain management systems assist in ensuring optimum level of customer satisfaction by providing the required products to the customers at the required time (Knolmayer, Mertens Zeier, 2012). Therefore, supply chain management systems are adopted by businesses. Organizational Change Management Considerations That Are Necessary For the Successful Adoption of Enterprise System The implementation of enterprise systems leads to changes in the entire organization. The routine tasks of the employees are altogether changed (Sykes, Venkatesh Johnson, 2014). Therefore, for the successful adoption of enterprise system, certain organizational change management considerations are necessary. Organizational change management acts as a framework for the purpose of managing the consequences of changes in the organizational structure, culture and the introduction of new business processes in a business (De Massis, Wang Chua, 2018). Success of the enterprise system is facilitated when an appropriate communication strategy is utilized that is capable of supporting key messages to the associated audiences. Moreover, employee engagement and involvement should be facilitated within the organization in order to prepare it for capturing the issues and opportunities that are presented in the way. This can be ensured with the help of organizational readiness assessments. Employee engagement will proof to be expensive for the organization but will provide several benefits in the future. Furthermore, appropriate training should be delivered after proper planning. This will help the workforce in their phase of switching to the enterprise systems. For this, a needs assessment is required to be conducted. The adoption enterprise systems may not proof to be successful in case when an organization fails to develop an effective training strategy. Project leaders are required to present their exceptional leadership skills in ord er to guide and deploy the change all across the organization. The adaptive work can be effectively performed by people if they are provided proper leadership (Sedera,Gronau Sumner, 2015). Organizational change management considerations to be kept in mind also include various other factors. The risks and opportunity to which an organization is exposed should be assessed and managed on time by way of formulating plans that suggests actions required to be taken. This must also involve the ways with the help of which opportunities can be maximized and risk can be minimized while managing change in the organization (Mattiske, 2012). Stakeholders should be involved in the process with the help of a communication plan which facilitates the communication of required information at the correct timing (Kumar, Loonam, Allen Sawyer, 2016). A guiding union should be formulated for leaders that support a shared vision. The leaders will be responsible for the preparation of terms of priorities, resources and adjusted goals for their respective areas after properly understanding the change. The organizational structure should then be planned in a manner such that it supports the ant icipated future state of the organization. The workforce should be properly prepared and equipped as their jobs will get affected due to the introduction of enterprise systems. Therefore, the workforce must be provided a training regarding the manner of performing the jobs after enterprise systems. Conclusion Therefore, it can be concluded that an enterprise system is a cross- functional information system which assists in providing organization- wide integration and coordination of the important business processes and benefits in resource planning of an organization. The effectiveness and efficiency of organizational performance is significantly improved with the help of enterprise systems. Such contributions of enterprise systems to organizational performance can be measured with the help of profits, customer retention rates and various models such as revised model and priori model. The principle drivers behind the adoption of supply chain management systems by the businesses have also been highlighted in the report. Moreover, this report also focused on the necessary organizational change management considerations which assist in managing the business processes in an effective manner. References Davis, B. 2017. Mastering Organizational Change Management. J. Ross Publishing, Incorporated. De Massis, A., Wang, H. and Chua, J.H., 2018. Counterpoint: How heterogeneity among family firms influences organizational change.Journal of Change Management, pp.1-8. Knolmayer, G. F., Mertens, P. and Zeier, A. 2012. Supply Chain Management Based on SAP Systems: Order Management in Manufacturing Companies. Springer Science Business Media. Kokemuller, N. 2017. Types of Enterprise Systems, [Online]. Available at: https://bizfluent.com/info-8061463-types-enterprise-systems.html [Accessed on: 1 April 2018]. Kumar, V., Loonam, J., Allen, J.P. and Sawyer, S., 2016. Exploring enterprise social systems organisational change: implementation in a digital age. Mattiske, C. 2012. Managing Organizational Change. AudioInk. Monk, E. and Wagner, B. 2012. Concepts in Enterprise Resource Planning. Cengage Learning. Sedera,D., Gronau, N. and Sumner, M. 2015. Enterprise Systems. Strategic, Organizational, and Technological Dimensions: International Workshops. Springer. Sykes, T.A., Venkatesh, V. and Johnson, J.L., 2014. Enterprise system implementation and employee job performance: Understanding the role of advice networks.MIS quarterly,38(1). Wang, W., Sedera, D. and Tan, F.T., 2009, July. Measuring CRM and SCM benefits: a preliminary measurement model. Proceedings of Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems 2009. Williams, S.P. and Schubert, P., 2010, January. Benefits of enterprise systems use. InSystem Sciences (HICSS), 2010 43rd Hawaii International Conference on(pp. 1-9). IEEE. Yang, C. and Su, Y.F., 2009. The relationship between benefits of ERP systems implementation and its impacts on firm performance of SCM.Journal of Enterprise Information Management,22(6), pp.722-752.