Free Essays on Taoism And Confucianism

Confucianism and Taoism In a world conflicted with crime, hatred, and the doings of a radical generation x, now more than ever, we should look toward the fundamental schools of thought of the Chinese: Confucianism and Taoism. Fundamentally sound, the principles of Confucianism emphasize an individual’s responsibility to act purposefully and sensibly, while its sister philosophy, Taoism, stresses the joyful acceptance of life and an appreciation for the natural world. Though both are significant in their own respects, Confucianism should become an essential part of all our lives. Hard work, education, and ethics were once prominent beliefs families of all backgrounds enforced, but with the help of modernization, pop culture, and Reality TV, these fundamental ideals seem to dissipate with each passing day. Though pop culture claims to educate its audience, its twenty-four hour marathon of mindless sex, violence, and strife do just the opposite. We’ve moved on, past days of huddling around t he television set with our family watching â€Å"Leave it to Beaver† in order to submerge ourselves into a froth of meaningless entertainment, a generation of â€Å"Celebrities Uncensored†, â€Å"Blind Date†, and unequivocally the most demeaning and second rate series ever to come on television, Reality TV. Coupled with a deteriorating economy, lead by crooked businessmen and politicians, the demand for two working parents creates a void in our generation between knowing what’s right and wrong and more so, caring about the difference. As a country, we pride ourselves in our diversity, yet we can’t seem to separate the difference between an arab and terrorist. Both socially and mentally critical, ethics and morality affect us daily. More than his preachings for learning, Confucious urges a simple, but Taoism’s focus on the natural world and happiness with life is important also, but the elementary basics of being human, morality and a... Free Essays on Taoism And Confucianism Free Essays on Taoism And Confucianism Confucianism and Taoism In a world conflicted with crime, hatred, and the doings of a radical generation x, now more than ever, we should look toward the fundamental schools of thought of the Chinese: Confucianism and Taoism. Fundamentally sound, the principles of Confucianism emphasize an individual’s responsibility to act purposefully and sensibly, while its sister philosophy, Taoism, stresses the joyful acceptance of life and an appreciation for the natural world. Though both are significant in their own respects, Confucianism should become an essential part of all our lives. Hard work, education, and ethics were once prominent beliefs families of all backgrounds enforced, but with the help of modernization, pop culture, and Reality TV, these fundamental ideals seem to dissipate with each passing day. Though pop culture claims to educate its audience, its twenty-four hour marathon of mindless sex, violence, and strife do just the opposite. We’ve moved on, past days of huddling around t he television set with our family watching â€Å"Leave it to Beaver† in order to submerge ourselves into a froth of meaningless entertainment, a generation of â€Å"Celebrities Uncensored†, â€Å"Blind Date†, and unequivocally the most demeaning and second rate series ever to come on television, Reality TV. Coupled with a deteriorating economy, lead by crooked businessmen and politicians, the demand for two working parents creates a void in our generation between knowing what’s right and wrong and more so, caring about the difference. As a country, we pride ourselves in our diversity, yet we can’t seem to separate the difference between an arab and terrorist. Both socially and mentally critical, ethics and morality affect us daily. More than his preachings for learning, Confucious urges a simple, but Taoism’s focus on the natural world and happiness with life is important also, but the elementary basics of being human, morality and a...

How Index Fossils Help Define Geologic Time

How Index Fossils Help Define Geologic Time Every fossil tells us something about the age of the rock its found in, and index fossils are the ones that tell us the most. Index fossils (also called key fossils or type fossils) are those that are used to define periods of geologic time. Characteristics  of an Index Fossil A good index fossil is one with four characteristics: it is distinctive, widespread, abundant, and limited in geologic time. Because most fossil-bearing rocks formed in the ocean, the major index fossils are marine organisms. That being said, certain land organisms are useful in young rocks and specific regions. Boom-And-Bust Organisms Any type of organism can be distinctive, but not so many are widespread. Many important index fossils are of organisms that start life as floating eggs and infant stages, which allowed them to populate the world using ocean currents. The most successful of these became abundant, yet at the same time, they became the most vulnerable to environmental change and extinction. Thus, their time on Earth may have been confined to a short period of time. That boom-and-bust characteristic is what makes the best index fossils. Trilobites, Hard-Shelled Invertebrates Consider trilobites, a very good index fossil for Paleozoic rocks that lived in all parts of the ocean. Trilobites were a class of animal, just like mammals or reptiles, meaning that the individual species within the class had noticeable differences. Trilobites were constantly evolving new species during their existence, which lasted 270 million years from Middle Cambrian time to the end of the Permian Period, or almost the entire length of the Paleozoic. Because they were mobile animals, they tended to inhabit large, even global areas. They were also hard-shelled invertebrates, so they fossilized easily. These fossils are large enough to study without a microscope. Other index fossils of this type include ammonites, crinoids, rugose corals, brachiopods, bryozoans, and mollusks. The USGS offers a more detailed list of invertebrate fossils (with scientific names only). Small or Microscopic Fossils Other major index fossils are small or microscopic, part of the floating plankton in the world ocean. These are handy because of their small size. They can be found even in small bits of rock, such as wellbore cuttings. Because their tiny bodies rained down all over the ocean, they can be found in all kinds of rocks. Therefore, the petroleum industry has made great use of index microfossils, and geologic time is broken down in quite fine detail by various schemes based on graptolites, fusulinids, diatoms, and radiolarians.   The rocks of the ocean floor are geologically young, as they are constantly subducted and recycled into the Earths mantle. Thus, marine index fossils older than 200 million years are normally found in sedimentary strata on land in areas that were once covered by seas.   Terrestrial Rocks For terrestrial rocks, which form on land, regional or continental index fossils may include small rodents that evolve quickly, as well as larger animals that have wide geographic ranges. These form the basis of provincial time divisions.   Defining Ages, Epochs, Periods, and Eras Index fossils are used in the formal architecture of geologic time for defining the ages, epochs, periods, and eras of the geologic time scale. Some of the boundaries of these subdivisions are defined by mass extinction events, like the Permian-Triassic extinction. The evidence for these events is found in the fossil record wherever there is a disappearance of major groups of species within a geologically short amount of time.   Related fossil types include the characteristic fossil, a fossil that belongs to a period but doesnt define it, and the guide fossil, one that helps narrow down a time range rather than nail it down.