Neurobiology of Harmony :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Neurobiology of Harmony How sound waves produced by instruments become sensible representations in the brain, and how the perceptions become meaningful are interesting questions for neurobiology to ask, as well as necessary ones if knowledge of the brain is to account for all behavior. The brain is able to discern harmony because the inner ear is capable of differentiating between different frequencies. The brain's differentiation between pitches and chords corresponds to the physical, "real," differences between notes and chords, although our sense of music built from perception of harmonies through time, is more subjective and variable. Our faculty of hearing derives from the anatomy of the inner ear and the brain, as well as from the existence of external stimuli in the outside world. Sound is both the mechanical energy of waves and the sensation produced by receptors in the brain (1). Each wave has an amplitude and a frequency. The amplitude of a vibration corresponds to its volume and is measured by decibels on a logarithmic scale. Frequency is logarithmic, as well, but corresponds to differences in pitch. Greater frequency results in a higher pitch. Mathematically, pitch is represented as the number of vibrations per second (1) (2) . Vertebrates hear sound through their neurobiological makeup. The ear's tympanic membrane, or eardrum, vibrates as a result of being subjected to sound waves. The waves then travel to the inner ear or cochlea which is the site of sound's transduction into chemical energy. Within the cochlea, sound waves travel through fluid which stimulates the stereocilia, small hair-like projections of hair cells along the basilar membrane. The actions of the stereocilia cause the release of K+, potentially depolarizing the cell (1). The flexibility of the basilar membrane allows stereocilia to move back and forth in response to the waves in the Cochlear fluid. Each stereocilium is linked to another through structures called "tip links" (1) , (3) As the stereocilia move towards the tallest ones, the tip links cause ion channels to open, depolarizing the cell and allowing free K+ to move into the cell (1). Importantly, the stereocilia move in direct response to the sound waves and are cumulative rath er than spiking. Neurotransmitter release corresponds to the frequency and amplitude (pitch and volume) of a sound input. Sounds must be sufficiently loud and within a given range in order to cause action potentials. Different sounds will produce different outputs, allowing for discrimination of harmony on a neural level (1).

Tqm (Total Quality Management)

TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT Total Quality Management formally known as total quality control emphasizes the crucial role of management in the quality process and utilizes a combination of methods, theories, techniques, and quality guru strategies for achieving world-class quality. TQM is not a complete solution formula as viewed by many but a lasting commitment to the process of continuous improvement. Total quality management is not a fad of the times, but rather a correction of the previous failures in management combined to produce a better management style when used appropriately (http://www. ejs. com, retrieved August 1, 2009). The word â€Å"total† in Total Quality Management means that everyone in the organization participates in the overall effort in process improvement. Quality means meeting or exceeding customer (internal or external) expectation and management means improving and maintaining business processes or activities. Communications, cultural transformation, par ticipative management, customer focus and continuous improvement are the five basic elements of TQM. Communication is the exchange of information and understanding between two or more people. There is communication if the information is received and understood. A company will not be successful if it will not listen to employees and to its customers. If there is on fundamental principle of TQM, it is that quality is what the customer defines it as, not what the organization defines it to be. TQM calls for a cultural transformation which requires a high level of workforce engagement wherein people do their utmost for the benefit of their customers and for the success of the organization. Cultural information implies that all employees must change their traditional way of thinking about business. It is a cultural change for everyone to be responsible for quality. For the past years, quality was viewed as a manufacturing problem only, but it has now become a service issue as well. TQM is a philosophy that prevents poor quality in products and services. A company vision that defines and supports quality must be shared by anyone in an organization. TQM also involves Participative Management Style where managers develop genuine partnership with the workforce and they both contribute to achieving quality. This management philosophy is often misused by management as a way of avoiding responsibility. Managers using this philosophy must be leaders, take the initiative, and accept responsibility for giving orders or making decisions. Participative management can be best achieved through empowerment and involvement. Every member of the organization gives their views and suggestions regarding improvements and the combined thoughts and ideas will be evaluated by the empowered associates who have the authority to make decisions and to take actions in their work areas without prior approval while willingly supported by the executives and managers. The pursuit of TQM must emphasize customer focus which is an important factor in an organizational survival or demise. Organizations depend on their customers and therefore should understand current and future customer needs, should meet customer requirements and strive to exceed customer expectations. The last element of TQM is the continuous improvement which should be a permanent objective of the organization in its overall performance. Applying the principle of continual improvement typically leads to employing a consistent organization-wide approach to continual improvement of the organization's performance, providing people with training in the methods and tools of continual improvement, making continual improvement of products, processes and systems an objective for every individual in the organization, establishing goals to guide, and measures to track, continual improvement, and recognizing and acknowledging improvements. Bibliography: A. Books Aquino, G. V. (2005) Fundamentals of research. Mandaluyong City: Cacho Hermanos, Incorporated. Cruz, Myrna. (2007). Statistics and probability theory, Makati City: Cruz Publishing. Evans, J. R. & Dean, J. W. (2000) Total quality management organization and strategy. Australia: Southwestern College Publication.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

The temple complex at Angkor Wat, just outside of Siem Reap, Cambodia, is world famous for its intricate lotus blossom towers, its enigmatic smiling Buddha images and lovely dancing girls (apsaras), and its geometrically perfect moats and reservoirs. An architectural jewel, Angkor Wat itself is the largest religious structure in the world. It is the crowning achievement of the classical Khmer Empire, which once ruled most of Southeast Asia. The Khmer culture and the empire alike were built around a single critical resource: water. Lotus Temple on a Pond: The connection with water is immediately apparent at Angkor today. Angkor Wat (meaning Capital Temple) and the larger Angkor Thom (Capital City) are both surrounded by perfectly square moats. Two five-mile-long rectangular reservoirs glitter nearby, the West Baray and the East Baray. Within the immediate neighborhood, there are also three other major barays and numerous small ones. Some twenty miles to the south of Siem Reap, a seemingly inexhaustible supply of freshwater stretches across 16,000 square kilometers of Cambodia. This is the Tonle Sap, Southeast Asias largest freshwater lake. It may seem odd that a civilization built on the edge of Southeast Asias great lake should need to rely on a complicated irrigation system, but the lake is extremely seasonal. During the monsoon season, the vast amount of water pouring through the watershed causes the Mekong River to actually back up behind its delta, and begin to flow backward. The water flows out over the 16,000 square kilometer lake-bed, remaining for about 4 months. However, once the dry season returns, the lake shrinks down to 2,700 square kilometers, leaving the Angkor Wat area high and dry. The other problem with Tonle Sap, from an Angkorian point of view, is that it is at a lower elevation than the ancient city. Kings and engineers knew better than to site their wonderful buildings too close to the erratic lake/river, but they did not have the technology to make water run uphill. Engineering Marvel: In order to provide a year-round supply of water for irrigating rice crops, the engineers of the Khmer Empire connected a region the size of modern-day New York City with an elaborate system of reservoirs, canals, and dams. Rather than using the water of Tonle Sap, the reservoirs collect monsoon rainwater and store it for the dry months. NASA photographs reveal the traces of these ancient waterworks, hidden at ground level by the thick tropical rainforest. A steady water supply allowed for three or even four plantings of the notoriously thirsty rice crop per year and also left enough water for ritual use. According to Hindu mythology, which the Khmer people absorbed from Indian traders, the gods live on the five-peaked Mount Meru, surrounded by an ocean. To replicate this geography, the Khmer king Suryavarman II designed a five-towered temple surrounded by an enormous moat. Construction on his lovely design began in 1140; the temple later came to be known as Angkor Wat. In keeping with the aquatic nature of the site, each of Angkor Wats five towers is shaped like an unopened lotus blossom. The temple at Tah Prohm alone was served by more than 12,000 courtiers, priests, dancing girls and engineers at its height - to say nothing of the empires great armies, or the legions of farmers who fed all the others. Throughout its history, the Khmer Empire was constantly at battle with the Chams (from southern Vietnam) as well as different Thai peoples. Greater Angkor probably encompassed between 600,000 and 1 million inhabitants - at a time when London had perhaps 30,000 people. All of these soldiers, bureaucrats, and citizens relied upon rice and fish - thus, they relied upon the waterworks. Collapse: The very system that allowed the Khmer to support such a large population may have been their undoing, however. Recent archaeological work shows that as early as the 13th century, the water system was coming under severe strain. A flood evidently destroyed part of the earthworks at West Baray in the mid-1200s; rather than repairing the breach, the Angkorian engineers apparently removed the stone rubble and used it in other projects, idling that section of the irrigation system. A century later, during the early phase of what is known as the Little Ice Age in Europe, Asias monsoons became very unpredictable. According to the rings of long-lived po mu cypress trees, Angkor suffered from two decades-long drought cycles, from 1362 to 1392, and 1415 to 1440. Angkor had already lost control of much of its empire by this time. The extreme drought crippled what remained of the once-glorious Khmer Empire, leaving it vulnerable to repeated attacks and sackings by the Thais. By 1431, the Khmer people had abandoned the urban center at Angkor. Power shifted south, to the area around the present-day capital at Phnom Pehn. Some scholars suggest that the capital was moved to better take advantage of coastal trading opportunities. Perhaps the upkeep on Angkors waterworks was simply too burdensome. In any case, monks continued to worship at the temple of Angkor Wat itself, but the rest of the 100 temples and other buildings of the Angkor complex were abandoned. Gradually, the sites were reclaimed by the forest. Although the Khmer people knew that these marvelous ruins stood there, amidst the jungle trees, the outside world did not know about the temples of Angkor until French explorers began to write about the place in the mid-nineteenth century. Over the past 150 years, scholars and scientists from Cambodia and around the world have worked to restore the Khmer buildings and unravel the mysteries of the Khmer Empire. Their work has revealed that Angkor Wat truly is like a lotus blossom - floating atop a watery realm. Photo Collections from Angkor: Various visitors have recorded Angkor Wat and surrounding sites over the past century. Here are some historic photos of the region. Margaret Hays photos from 1955. National Geographic/Robert Clarks photos from 2009. Â   Sources Angkor and the Khmer Empire, John Audric. (London: Robert Hale, 1972). Angkor and the Khmer Civilization, Michael D. Coe. (New York: Thames and Hudson, 2003). The Civilization of Angkor, Charles Higham. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004). Angkor: Why an Ancient Civilization Collapsed, Richard Stone. National Geographic, July 2009, pp. 26-55.