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Qi Jiguang is recognized as one of the most successful generals of the Ming dynasty. Noted for his severe discipline and intense training, Qi led an army comprised of uniformed regulars and civilian auxiliaries against Japanese pirates in Zejiang province. His unprecedented victories earned Qi a reputation as a training expert. He composed his first military treatise, the Jixiao Xinshu (New Treatise on Disciplined Service) in 1560 while serving in Zejiang. The text discusses command and control, tactics, and training. Chapter 14, the "Quanjing Jieyao Pian" (Chapter on the Fist Canon and the Essentials of Nimbleness), endorses unarmed combat exercises as physical training for troops. No literary precedent for such a work has been discovered. Historical evidence suggests, however, that pre-Ming armies have used some forms of martial arts in training or demonstrations. Also, similarities between the "Quanjing" and modern taijiquan raise questions about a possible common martial arts heritage.

This paper discusses the political implications of creating a Northeast Asian system of regional cooperation, as the current global political changes now make it possible, and the security and economic measures that have to be taken to implement these new developmental projects. The Tumen River Project is one of the developmental projects designed to bring together former political and ideological adversaries, such as China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Due to the economic regionalism in the world, and to the subsequent need to create some sort of regional structure in the Asia-Pacific, these countries are striving to promote regional cooperation and overcome such serious problems as the reunification of the two Koreas, the security issues on the Korean Peninsula, the Russo-Japanese territorial dispute, and others.

This thesis is an attempt to understand the purposes of modern Chinese park design. The goal of this work was to identify the social, economic, and political factors influencing contemporary park design. The primary approach was analysis of case studies. By analyzing characteristics of parks constructed at different stages in urban park history and in the cultural history of China, the results provide strong support for important political, economic, and social influences on park design.

Thesis advisor: Rebecca Nedostup / As my friends and I look forward to graduating this 2004, we are burdened with the task of carrying ourselves as delegates and agents of our respective societies. The challenge is even more exhaustive in the sense that the global landscape has been significantly altered as such so that we now live in a world which runs on a new breed of geopolitics; theories of interdependence perpetually interlock nation states in enduring fellowships of cooperation. Keeping this and the lessons that we've learned (both in the classroom and otherwise) in mind, there is an urgency to prevent and avoid future mass conflicts and ensure peaceful change. While this remains a worthy objective, the scope and complexities of modern-day world politics demands an understanding of a much wider range of issues. Moreover, new conceptual frameworks and theories are required to improve our understanding and assist in the development of better policies and practices. By human nature there naturally exists self-imposed obstacles and boundaries, which threaten to hinder progress. A more sophisticated knowledge and thorough education become essential countermeasures to safeguard growth and development. Within the realm of a research paper, the investigation and analysis of this subject can hardly be brought to a satisfactory conclusion within a reasonable amount of time. Therefore I choose to concentrate on the mechanisms, which shape the relationship between two highly visible, dominant and powerful global antagonists: the United States of America and the People's Republic of China. With the end of the Cold War era and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States was solidified as the most potent contender in the international arena. This title endured relatively undisputed and has remained fairly unchanged for the next decade thereafter. Interestingly enough though it was during this same period that China was concurrently grabbing headlines with its rapid development in many sectors. Analysts, professionals and experts are all in concurrence when they predict that by the first half of the 21st century this traditional Asian powerhouse will have met or surpassed the United States in stature and influence. It is reasonable, and accurate, to assume that US-Sino relations will have an unparalleled influence within the spectrum of international cooperation politically, culturally, and economically. Presently nations are vigilantly forming implicit alliances as they conceptually allocate themselves in favorable positions for the resurrection of a bipolar global infrastructure. From my delimited personal experience, I have unfortunately discovered a significant number of my peers are ignorant of these developing trends and the implications of this interrelationship. The purpose of this thesis is to converse with an audience comprised of individuals similar to those that I have met in these past four years, namely: intelligent and educated young Americans who are simply not informed of the nature, potential and circumstances surrounding US-Sino relations and policy. In this light, I intend to further specify the concentration of this study largely on the relationship that western media has with US-Sino relations. There will be a special emphasis and focus on the modern issue of human rights and trade. Furthermore, the bulk of the analysis will be limited within the timeframe of the three most recent American presidencies: George Bush (1989-1993), Bill Clinton (1993-2001), and George W. Bush (2001-present). The purpose of the first chapter is to give the reader a solid idea of the general issues that have plagued US-Sino relations in recent modern history. Again from personal experience it has come to my attention that the average American student has a narrow education concerning US-Sino relations often pervaded with misconceptions, which are not compensated for in personal readings. This recess of knowledge is particularly apparent concerning all episodes and trends that took place prior to the birth and maturation of our generation; mainly everything that took place before the early post-Cold war era of the 1980's. I feel that in order to have a solid grasp of current US-Sino relations, one must construct a respectable appreciation and foundation of knowledge concerning the historical events that took place from 1971 to the present.After this brief history lesson the thesis will explore the composite components that make up the media. It is from these resources that most college students in American draw their first and sometimes, only, impression of US-Sino relations. This section attempts to create a framework by which the media is broken down into its fundamental and more understandable elements. It is necessary to analyze the fabrics of the media; from the concept of self-perception, stereotypes, propaganda, and interest groups to the purpose that it serves as a median by which images of diplomatic-strategy are marketed. In short, the second chapter attempts to place the western media in a comprehensible light, enough so that the reader may continue with the remainder of the thesis with enough insight to make educated judgments. The dilemma between trade incentive and democratic moral ground is the key example that this thesis will use to illustrate the behavior of the mass media and the manners in which it can exert pressure on policy-making. Thus, a more mature understanding of the human rights debate is required. The third chapter explores the human rights issue in depth; tracing the evolution of the issue through contemporary history whilst highlighting this narrative with headlines from the press and mass media. The third chapter will additionally explore economics and trade relations in a similar manner using samples taken from primary sources. Finally, the core debate concerning these two issues will be scrutinized, analyzed and illustrated with headlines and proper examples from the media. In this realm analysis will naturally require some elements of subjective interpretation to hold any meaning. It is my hope that my audience will be able to walk away with that cultivated and deeper understanding not only of the media's capacity in shaping US foreign policy towards China but also the misleading conclusion that are often drawn from such a habit. It is important to keep in mind that perceptual gaps whether based on diverging cultures, histories, ideologies or all three, can be dangerous mental barriers. Because a significant portion of this thesis will also be concentrating on the manner in which lucrative trade and investment potential more often than not edge out the human rights concerns in modern US-Sino relations debates, the moral of the story will have to be interpreted by the reader him/herself. However, due to the fact that these issues, as well as the periphery issues that surround it, are so new and in a state of constant re-evolution, the fluidity of the subject makes it fairly difficult to draw conclusions. Moreover, it is also rather problematic to make firm stances and opinions either for one side or the other but I will write briefly on my own thoughts and opinions. Thus, ultimately I write this thesis in hopes to raise the issue of US-Sino cooperation into the consciousness of the young American mindset by providing an intelligent background upon which they may draw their own summations while being conscious of the influential ideas propagated by the media and the press around them. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2004. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

It is generally assumed that educational expansion has positive effects on economic growth. This assumption has been challenged by recent theoretical and empirical sociological studies. It is argued that the effects of education on economic growth are conditioned by broad social conditions in which the relationship between education and economy is embedded. This studies uses two cases, the Meiji Japan (1890-1914) and post WWII Taiwan (1953-1985), to specify the conditions under which promote economic growth. Specifically, this study attempts to answer two related questions: Did the educational expansion actually promote the economic growth in the Meiji Japan and Taiwan (1953-1985)? And if so, under what conditions did the educational expansion promote economic growth? To answer the first question, the Cobb-Douglas production functions are estimated; to answer the second question, historical analyses of state's policy, economic developments and educational expansion in each case are conducted. / The findings and analyses show that education did not have uniform and automatic effects on the remarkable economic growth in these two countries; rather the effects can be understood in terms of how the state, educational and economic systems interact to produce human capital, status competition and class reproduction processes at different levels of education. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-02, Section: A, page: 0702. / Major Professor: Jill Quadagno. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1993.

The epochs of Indian History have been determined from time to time by the appearance of foreign influences. Of immeasurable significance for India was the coming of the Europeans, for it eventually transformed the political destiny of the country. Inevitably, France, one of the five great European maritime powers of the time, had been vitally involved in this historic process. Yet, though there exists a cornucopia of material on French commercial history in the East Indies and on the various military and commercial phases of the Anglo-French rivalry in India, no one has so far undertaken to study the true character of the French presence in India from 1763 to 1783, within the setting of French global policy after the Seven Years' War. This is what the present study has endeavored to do According to conventional wisdom, and even scholarly opinion, the French were imperialistic in India. Yet a review of the French government's policy from 1763 to 1783 shows that, on the contrary, the French were, with remarkable consistency, non-expansionist in India. The Indian policy of the French government constituted only one part of its wider strategy to unseat British predominance throughout the world, and to retrieve France's position as a first-rank Power in Europe. The French government schemed to attack the founts of British power in India and in North America, not to succeed to British domination in these regions, but to liberate them In India, the French through a policy of diplomatic intrigue, labored to expel their rivals from the country. The story of the French presence in India post-1763 is largely the story of a desperate struggle by Frenchmen to block the extension of British imperialism in the region. The ultimate end was to restore freedom and liberty on the Indian soil. The French government may have aspired to establish in India a network of trade but not an empire of conquest. The prevailing belief that the French conflict with the English in India was primarily a conflict for an 'Indian Empire' may now be revealed for what it always was: a myth / acase@tulane.edu

A general equilibrium model is established to evaluate fiscal policy in Taiwan, particularly the replacement of the sales tax by a value-added tax. To begin, the major taxes levied in Taiwan are identified and briefly described. Based on this descriptive analysis, we can make assumptions concerning tax incidence for Taiwan's major taxes within a general equilibrium framework; and the effective tax rates, by type of tax, by family income class, are calculated. Then, a general equilibrium computation algorithm is applied to convert an abstract representation of an economy into an operational model The results are obtained by comparing the solutions between before- and after-tax equilibrium in nonlinear equations system. The main conclusions show that (1) the relative prices of goods, in general, only have a small change; and (2) the efficiency gain in production and total welfare gain are both small as well / acase@tulane.edu

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of History, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-02, Section: A, page: 0677. Adviser: Alexander Rabinowitch. "Title from dissertation home page (viewed March 13, 2007)."