Easter Island’s End

2013-04-16 ENGL 102 Essay #1 Longer summery In the article, â€Å"Easter Island’s End† by Jared Diamond, he states that the overpopulation and overusing the natural resources can affect and destroy our environment. Easter Island can be used as a warning that cultural and environmental dangers exist due to overexploitation. Although, civilizations have vanished from the island it still has a remaining mystery and history to its untouched landscape. Easter Island was formed out of an ancient volcanic eruption; the island is only sixty-four square miles with habitable land and subtropical weather that makes the soil fertile.Easter Island is famous for its tight-lipped statues that stand across the island, which were erected by the native Rapa Nui people. These are ancient wonders of the world that are still being studied to get a full understanding of how and why these statues were created. From written history, the explorer’s first impression of the island was that it has nothing but a sand island, there were nothing left on the island except for hundreds of the Rapa Nui statues. According to Diamond, the climate and location of the Easter Island should create abundance of trees, soils and other natural resources.Many questions have arisen to Easter Island’s current existence. After many years of research, scientists and sociologists have come to a conclusion that the natural resources of the island were used by the islanders to survive their daily life, they cut down woods to transport those Rapa Nui statues and build canoes in order to find food. As time goes by, the population of Easter Island increased rapidly, and these islanders started to utilize all the natural resources abusively until the last tree was cut down.With today’s rising population around the world, we have been exhausting our limited natural resources, if we do not learn to conserve all the limited natural resources, we will have nothing left for our future generations. Longer summery reflection I was very interested in the Easter Island topic when I first saw the title of the article. I have always seen pictures of the statues on Easter Island and wanted to visit there someday. I thought this would be good information to know about, so I started to read the article â€Å"Easter Island’s End† by Jared Diamond.After I finished reading it the first time, I think I understood most of the article. But I still didn’t understand how the islanders collapsed the Easter Island. So I went on google and did some research. I found a Ted talk by Jared Diamond about how human collapsed the natural and civilization. After watching the video, it helped me a lot in understanding how human are slowly destroying our own planet, similar to what happened on Easter Island. After viewing the video, I went back to read the article again, and started to write down notes.I divided my long summery into five sections, the first section consis ting of the main idea of the article, over population and over using the natural resources lead Easter Island to an end. The second section is about the history of Easter Island, and what was on the island before it was destroyed. The third section is about the condition of Easter Island after it was destroyed. The fourth section is the conclusion of the summery, we can see that Easter Island is the miniature version of our earth, if we don’t stop over using our limited natural resources, our earth will end up like Easter Island. Shorter SummeryIn the article, â€Å"Easter Island’s End† by Jared Diamond, he states that the overpopulation and overusing the natural resources can affect and destroy our environment. Easter Island can be used as a warning that cultural and environmental dangers exist due to overexploitation of natural resources. The local inhabitants of Easter Island over-utilized the island's natural resources to the point of a complete extinction o f those very resources that were sustaining them. Easter Island can be thought of as a small scale model of the earth, and what could hypothetically happen if we do not exercise natural resource sustainability and management.Shorter summery reflection I found that writing a short summery is much harder than writing a longer summery, especially on keeping it under 100 words. At the beginning, I didn’t know how to start with the shorter summery, but I thought a good way to do it is to condense my longer summery and make it into 100 words. So I start with filtering out the least important information from the longer summery. First thing I took out was the history and introduction of Easter Island. Then I filtered out the information about the gigantic statues. Finally, I deleted the example of how they waste the natural resources.After I have the edited version of the summery, I read it again, and thought that the most important part is the author’s thesis, which is †Å"he states that the overpopulation and overusing the natural resources can affect and destroy our environment. † So I decided to keep the same sentence. In the article, the author clearly illustrate that the cause of the ending of the Easter Island is because of the islanders didn’t use their resources wisely. He wants to warn us that the Easter Island is a lesson for us and if we don’t want to end up like the islanders, we should stop abusing our limited natural resources.I expanded the information what I think I have learned from the article, and then make them into a academic form. This is how I put my shorter summery together. Critique and essay In â€Å"Easter Island’s End†, published by Discover Magazine in 1995, written by Jared Diamond, a professor of geography and physiology at UCLA, has shown us the beginning till the end of the former heaven, the Easter Island. In the article, Diamond illustrates that overpopulating and overusing natural resources will result in destroying our natural environment. Easter Island is located in the southeastern Pacific Ocean.When the European explorers reached the island in 1722 they found a desolate landscape with less than 2,000 people existing there. They noticed that the islanders lived in caves and had a very limited supply of food. And they also found these gigantic statues that were carved out of stone. Those were evidence which proves that refined civilization once existed in Easter Island. Because of the unique location of the Easter Island, it has very good climate that creates abundance of natural resources. â€Å"In theory, this combination of blessings should have made Easter a miniature paradise, remote from problems that beset the rest of the world. (165) However, when explorers discovered Easter Island, it was a completely opposite of the â€Å"paradise†. It makes us wonder what happened in this Island. The first hypothesis the researchers considered was the fo rest was lost because of climate change, but evidence quickly pointed to the hypothesis that the people had gradually destroyed their own island. Researchers predicted that the trees provided wood, building material for houses and canoes, fruit to eat, fiber for clothing. Most importantly, lots of woods were used as the first resource to move the stone statues.These statues are 33 feet tall, and weighed up to 99 tons. Some of them are very far from where they were constructed in the quarries to the coastal sites where they were positioned. With the trees slowly been cutting down, rain would have eroded the soil away. Population raised rapidly over generations, people started to unmanageably use the limited natural resources on the overpopulated island. As a result the islanders turned against one another because of the shortage of food. â€Å"Gradually trees become fewer, smaller, and less important.By the time the last fruit-bearing adult palm tree was cut, palms had long since ce ased to be of economic significance. †(173)The life of paradise Easter Island has come to an end. In the article, Diamond has point out that we can consider our planet as a large version of the Easter Island. We have a potentially non-sustainable eco system. If we look at our progression over the last 300 years that we have inhabited North America, we will notice that we have removed many natural resources. Such as Trees in the Northwest, plains in the Midwest, the marshes of Florida, all of which have been devastated by humans in the past centuries.Our great grandparents did not notice the destruction, nor will I ever be able to actually notice some of it myself. We must learn from the lesson of the Easter Island and start to use our natural resources wisely. If we don’t preserve our environment by recycling, saving trees, and protecting land, we will be forced to face the same ending as the islanders. Natural resources are important and limited, if we don’t pro tect them, the nature will pay back to us and there will be nothing left for our future generation. Citation Diamond, Jared. â€Å"Easter Island's End. † Science and Society (2007): 164-74. Print.

The Health Nutritional Education

When parents send their children off to college, they might entertain the notion that their little darlings, having been brought up with the four basic food groups, will continue to practice impeccable dietary habits. Little do they know that their children skip meals, guzzle soda by the case, subsist on a diet that would make a mother cringe (Baker 12). Quick and easy meals are most attractive to students, so the microwave plays a major role in student's living habits. One half of all students say they use a microwave everyday, reports Roper CollegeTrack, an annual survey of student's behavior and attitudes. When college students arrive on campus there are so many changes they must go through. The simple fact of not being home can cause major amounts of stress, therefore changing a young-adult's eating habits. From my personal experiences as a college student, I have seen one of two things happen to students: they either gain weight or lose weight. When I came to college I weighed 150lbs. By the time I went home for my first Christmas break I weighed 173lbs. I got bigger, but not necessarily fatter. I weighed more, but my pants fit more loosely. A steady diet and consistent physical activity are the two keys to keeping the body you want during the most hectic, unstructured time of your life. My roommate played football with me my freshman year and weighed approximately 280lbs. He decided not to play anymore and wanted to lose weight. He began to workout and dieting right. He now weighs approximately 245lbs. This is a prime example of knowing what is right to eat for you. College students who leave home to live on campus or in an apartment face a period of transition during which they must assume greater responsibility for themselves, and this includes responsibility for their nutrition and dietary habits. Differences in dietary habits among college students have been well documented. Several factors have been shown to influence food selection, including gender, the desire to lose weight, age, academic major, and body-image perception. The location of residence has also been shown to influence food selection, but the relation between food selection and nutrient intake has not been documented (Beerman 1). For many students, living on a university campus is a traditional period between living at home with parents and living independently. Food decisions are among the newest responsibility that many students' face. Because new eating habits developed during these years, both negative and positive, are likely to be maintained, nutrient education effects have been targeted towards this group. The amount of information that people know about nutrition does not always affect what they eat. Many college students who do not major in nutrition take a course in basic nutrition, and the changes in student's concerns, habits, and knowledge of nutrition because of taking such a course were studied. Not all college students are required to take a nutrition course as a requirement to complete their degree. I believe that it would make a major difference in eating habits of many college students if they did. I took a â€Å"mini poll† in Whiteford Hall. I asked twenty different girls what their biggest nutritional fear of coming to college was. All twenty girls said that they were scared to get fat or gain weight. I asked them if they were going to take this nutrition course any time during their education here. Only seven said they would consider taking the course. I have not yet completed this course, but I have learned so many new things about my body and the way the works. Now I feel that I can lead a healthy life from the knowledge I have accumulated from this course. Upon completing a basic nutrition course, students felt that they had learned a lot about nutrition, but only 45 percent said that they made changes in their eating habits because of this. The only statistically significant change in food habits was the tendency to drink low-fat milk. Most also decreased their use of vitamins and mineral supplements (Mitchell 7). The Basic Nutrition course for the non-nutrition major may be the most widespread, in-depth means of teaching nutrition to college students. This course provides both academic and practical nutritional education, so the teaching is complicated by the need â€Å"to create informed consumers who value good nutrition and consume nutritious foods throughout their lives. Classroom tests measure textbook nutritional knowledge, but the practical application is not measurable. Several studies have found that nutritional knowledge is not predicting of dietary practices (Mitchell 8). I don't agree with this statement. I believe that the more nutritional knowledge that you have, the better you will eat. If you know something is bad for your body, I'm sure you will refrain from eating it. You might not totally remove it from your diet, but you will probably lower your intake of the specific item. If you have no knowledge of the nutritional value of what you eat, you will have no chance of being a healthy person. College is a very demanding time in your in your life, both physically and mentally. You need all of the help you can get. Having a consistently healthy diet can play a major role in your college existence. You need the right type of energy to complete all of your daily tasks. If you have no knowledge of dietary requirements or the nutritional value of different foods, you can not make the right decisions for food consumption. College students indicated that the greatest value of improved nutrition was better health in the future. This should be considered in motivating students to make dietary changes (Mitchell 8). Vegetarian eating habits are popular among college-aged and teenage people. About 15 percent of the 15 million college students eat vegetarian meals. However, vegetarianism is more popular among women than men. 50 percent of women ages 18-19 believe in vegetarianism. Many young vegetarians choose not to eat meat in order to reduce the intake of fat, but some will occasionally eat meat. However, young vegetarians definitely do not prefer vegetarian-style meat products (Walker 6). To many Americans, the term â€Å"vegetarian† conjures up images of hippies noshing on tofu and brown rice. But a new generation of vegetarians may bring meatless eating out of the extreme and into the mainstream. The new bastions of vegetarianism are college campuses (Walker 7). Young women seem to be driving the trend toward meatless eating. Nearly 50 percent of women college students say vegetarianism is in compared with the 33 percent of men students, according to Roper CollegeTrack. Pamela Limpitt, food service purchasing director for the University of Pennsylvania, agrees: â€Å"I'd say 9 in 10 of our vegetarian students are women (Walker 12). A survey of young female athletes at a midwestern university reveals that nutrition knowledge is positively related to healthy eating practices. Data on these two indicators were collected to compare nutrition between female high school and college athletes in 1992. Analysis shows that the older athletes had more accurate nutrition knowledge and better eating habits than their younger counterparts. Moreover, a significant proportion indicated that they often turn to their coaches and trainers for this type of information, suggesting that physical education teachers can shape nutrition attitudes (Buch 1). Coaches and others who work with athletes must teach young people how to select nutritious foods that will promote a lifetime of good health. Young female athletes' concerns about weight and body image strongly influence their eating practices. Knowledge alone is not enough to ensure good dietary habits. Attitudes also affect behavior (Buch 2). Nutrition knowledge is positively associated with age, education, dietary pattern, sources of nutrition education, and length of time in a sport (Frederick & Hawkins, 1992; Perron & Endres, 1985). Other important factors, such as concern for weight and the dependence on others for food selection, also affect food consumption (Barr, 1987). Athletes are always concerned with their performance and how to improve it. They may work to improve their technique, lift weights, or add the right nutrients in their body to perform at optimum levels. The only problem is that any athletes do not have the proper nutritional knowledge to make the right dietary decisions. For example, to build one pound of lean tissue, an athlete must consume approximately 98 grams of protein and 2,800 calories for extra energy to synthesize muscle (Williams, 1988). If this were the athlete's goal for a week it would mean 14 grams of protein and 400 calories per day in addition to the usual diet. Fourteen grams of protein can be obtained in two glasses of milk or two ounces of lean meat. With a small amount of additional protein and enough fuel from complex carbohydrates, muscle building can occur. This is all very simple if you have the knowledge. Most athletes think that for muscle building you must take supplements or just eat a lot in general. This is why nutritional education is so important for an athlete to succeed in a very competitive age of sports competition. College is a very hard time for a young adult to be worrying about too many things at once. They have been fed all of their lives and been taught what is good and what is bad for them. There are some many outside factors that make your food selections for you. Many of these choices, you have no control over. That is why I believe nutritional knowledge is so very important in a college student's survival. If you eat the right things you will have no weight or health problems. A good diet can ensure a long energetic life. During your college years you need all of the energy you need to pull â€Å"all nighters† during exams and when writing nutrition papers. The more knowledge you have the better your body will feel and the healthier you will be.

Work out vs. Workout

Work out vs. Workout Work out vs. Workout Work out vs. Workout By Maeve Maddox A reader who frequents health and fitness sites is disturbed by a lack of professional editing: Ive noticed that nobody, literally nobody makes a distinction between the noun workout and the verb work out. On every website, I find statements like You have to workout three times a week. So I was wondering if you could address that issue in one of your upcoming posts. The reader is not exaggerating by much. Here are some examples from health and fitness sites and forums that I visited: How often should you workout per week? Should be: How often should you work out per week? Where do you workout? Should be: Where do you work out? First, warm up with some joint rotations, in order to lubricate your joints and prepare them for  the work out.   Should be: First, warm up with some joint rotations, in order to lubricate your joints and prepare them for  the workout.   I’m a night person and prefer to workout at night. Should be: I’m a night person and prefer to work out at night. A few people have asked me what  my work out  routine is. Should be: A few people have asked me what  my workout  routine is. NOTE: One-word workout is also used as an adjective as in â€Å"my workout routine.† One way to avoid the error is to look for words that precede the terms. The noun workout is often preceded by an article or an adjective: â€Å"the workout,† â€Å"my workout.† The verb is often used in its infinitive form, so the preceding to provides a useful clue. Here are some examples of other noun/adjective/verb combinations that are confused in this way: 1. turnout (noun) / turn out (verb) Big turn out  for launch of new play area Should be: Big turnout  for launch of new play area We had many parents turnout for the second high school informational meeting Should be: We had many parents turn out for the second high school informational meeting. 2. washout (noun) / wash out (verb) It is during this time that most  recruits washout. Should be: It is during this time that most  recruits wash out. Authorities concerned over wash out rate. Should be: Authorities concerned over washout rate. Three more such combos are: rollout/roll out, checkout/check out, and cutout /cut out. I’m sure you can think of more. Here’s a mnemonic written in pig propaganda style (Animal Farm) that may help: One word, Noun, Two words, Verb. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:When to Capitalize Animal and Plant Names50 Types of Propaganda45 Idioms with "Roll"

Identifying and Controlling Powdery Mildew on Trees

Identifying and Controlling Powdery Mildew on Trees Powdery mildew is a common disease that appears as a white powdery substance on a tree  leaf surface. The powdery appearance comes from millions of tiny fungal spores, which are spread in air currents to cause new infections. Powdery mildew attacks all kinds of landscape plants, including trees. Fortunately, although the disease is disfiguring, it rarely kills a tree.   Almost any tree species can be affected by powdery mildew, but the most common are maple, basswood, dogwood, lilac, magnolia, crabapple, catalpa, and oaks.   Identification Powdery mildew disease  is caused by many different species of fungi, with Erysiphe cichoacearum reported to be the most common culprit.   According to the University of Minnesota:   Powdery mildew appears as superficial growth on plant surfaces and is seen as white to gray powdery spots, blotches or felt-like mats on leaves, stems, and buds.Infected plants may appear to be sprinkled with baby powder or covered in cobwebs.The disease is often most severe on young leaves, water sprouts, and green shoots.Once severely infected, leaves may turn yellow and fall prematurely during the growing season.In some plants, leaves turn purple to red around the infection.In late summer/early fall, tiny round orange to black balls form within white fungal mats.Most prevalent when outdoor conditions consist of cool temperatures with high humidity; however, it can be seen in warm, dry conditions as well.The disease is most severe on plants or plant parts in shaded areas with poor air movement (interior or lower branches). Biology of the Fungus Some powdery mildew fungi survive winter inside structures known as chasmothecium, which contain the spores. In spring, the chasmothecium rupture to release spores that are then spread by the wind. Other species of powdery mildew survive the winter as a dormant fungus in the infected buds or shoot tips. In spring, these spores start new infections on new plant growth. As the growing season progresses, news spores are produced and transferred to new plants on the wind.   Prevention Powdery mildew is rarely a tree killer,  but it can disfigure specimens in the landscape. It is a product of moist conditions and is usually seen in the wetter spring and fall seasons. In many  areas, powdery mildew is virtually unavoidable during the most humid parts of the period from spring through fall. Once dryer weather returns, the fungus usually retreats. It may not be necessary to treat the fungus at all, but certain measures may prevent it from becoming prevalent. This humidity-loving fungus can be controlled only if moisture can be controlled. Dont plant trees in heavily-shaded areas and provide plenty of space for air movement and growing room. Prune trees and shrubs to improve air movement between the branches. Additional methods for controlling powdery mildew: Choose disease-resistant varieties whenever possible. Mildew-resistant cultivars are available for many plants.Do not overcrowd plants. Adequate spacing improves air circulation and reduces powdery mildew infection.Prune the tree or shrub to increase light penetration and improve air circulation throughout the canopy. But avoid excessive pruning of infected plants- do your pruning during inactive periods.  Avoid fertilizing trees and shrubs when they are suffering from powdery mildew. Fertilizing stimulates new growth and may hasten the spread of the fungal infection.  Do not compost infected branches or leaves. The spores will remain in the compost and may infect other plants.   Controlling Powdery Mildew Commercial fungicides will kill powdery mildew, but many experts advise using these toxic chemicals only on specimen plants that are highly prized since the fungus rarely kills trees.   Chemical fungicide treatments that kill powdery mildew include : Thiophanate methylChlorothalonilSulfur (but not for sulfur-sensitive plants such as viburnum)Potassium bicarbonate Sulfer is perhaps the most common fungicide for powdery mildew. Spray wettable sulfur onto affected leaves at the recommended rate specified by the label. Sulfur may injure tender foliage, especially in hot weather, so be careful. Do not use sulfur on walnuts, as injury may occur. Where important plants have a history of powdery mildew infection, treat them preemptively, before the fungus appears.   A somewhat effective non-chemical treatment is to spray the plants with a mixture of household baking soda and water.

Cryptography Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cryptography - Research Paper Example The construction of c is done in such a way that there are elements which are redundant in it. This will, therefore, enable the receiver to reconstruct c even if some bits of c are corrupted by noise; the receiver will eventually reconstruct m (Gary 93). In a formal manner, an error correcting code is composed of a set, C? {0, 1} n of codewords. This set has strings which enables messages to be mapped in it before they are transmitted. In this case, a code that will be used for k-bit messages, C will have 2k elements which are distinct. So that there is some redundancy, there will be a need to have n>k. codes that are used for correcting errors can be defined in spaces which are non-binary too and this paper has construction which is straightforward and extensible in these non-binary spaces (Denning 72). For error correcting codes to be used, there will be a need for functions that will enable us to encode and decode messages. In this paper we will let M = {0, 1}k be a representation of the space message. There is a translation function, g : M C, which represent a one-to-one mapping capability of messages to codewords. What this means is that g is the mapping that is used before the transmission takes place. On the other hand, g-1 is the function that is used upon receiving of messages to retrieve codes in the codeword. There is a function, referred to as decoding function that is used for mapping n-bits that are arbitrary to codewords. This is the function, f : {0, 1}1 C U {O}. If the f function is successful, it will manage to map a given string which has n-bits x to the nearest codeword that is found in C (that is, the proximity to nearness in Hamming distance). If this not the case, then f will fail and the output will be O3. The robustness that an error-correcting code has will depend on the distance between the codewords. To make this more definite, we will need some fundamental notation that regard strings of the binary digits. For this case, we will use + and – to represent bitwise XOR operator on the bit strings. We will use a measurement Hamming weight, which is the number of ‘1’ bits that are found in u. The Hamming weight is denoted by ||u|| (this is the weight of a string which has n strings). The Hamming weight has a precise definition of the number of ‘l’ bits that are found in u. In the same perspective, the Hamming distance that is found between two strings, u and v is defined as the number of digits that make two strings to be different (Gary 62). In an equivalent manner, the Hamming distance will be equal to ||u - v||. We normally take it that a function that is used for decoding, that is function f, will have a correction threshold with a size of t if it has the ability to correct any set of t bit errors. In a more definite manner, for any codeword c â‚ ¬ C, and any error term e â‚ ¬ {0, 1}n, that has || e ||? t, this is the case that f(c+e) = c. in this case, we will regard C to have a correction threshold which has a size of t if there is a function f for C for t, which also has a correction threshold of size t. there is a an observation that the distance that is found between two codewords in C should have a distance of at least 2t + 1. The neighborhood of a codeword c is defined to be f-1 (c). This means that the neighborhood of c has a subset of strings that are n-bit long where f maps to c. the function that is used for decoding, that is function f, is set in such a way that f-1(c) has a close proximity to c that any other code word that

Quiz 6 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Quiz 6 - Essay Example It is also helpful for those who have a doubt about the old school of thought related to economics and bridging the gap between past and present concepts. (Brittan, 202) in his book, Backhouse discussed about how Homer and Hesiod’s writing educated the people of Greece and gave them the idea about how life should be lived. The story of society discussed in Iliad and the Odyssey was â€Å"hierarchical, based not on market relationships, but on the distribution of wealth through gifts, theft, prizes for winning competitions, plunder received in war, and tribute paid by defeated cities to their conqueror† (Backhouse, 11) Homer in his writing considered trading as a secondary and inferior way of acquiring wealth as according to him exchanging gift among same rank holders, wining prizes in war was more better way of earning wealth. (Backhouse, 11) There was very little economical data available from the time of Xenophon (c. 430–354 BC) and Plato (c. 429–347 BC) but one it is now a proven fact that economy at that time also based on agriculture. (Backhouse, 14) Later on Aristotle in his concept also discussed about the acquisition of wealth for people’s day to day activities.(Backhouse, 22) In Aristotle’s view there were 2 ways of acquiring wealth, one was estate management and other one was â€Å"getting wealth through exchange†. (Backhouse, 22) People need money to live a good life-this was the concept of Aristotle, and for him hunger for excess money could bring about the difference of class and status in a society. This was the ancient Greek philosophy and it has a great influence on present western thoughts. If one analyzes the concept of neoclassical economics, then it is very clear that both Plato and Aristotle had some key opinion about economics. In Backhouse’s opinion, Plato argued for the subsistence of universals-ideal, pure forms which

Homosexuality in ancient cultures Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Homosexuality in ancient cultures - Case Study Example Duels and accounts of epic gladiatorial contests craft a large proportion of the modern day perception of this epoch. The exercise of these macho tendencies seems immediately at odds with Homosexual practice, and it is indeed intriguing to question the prevalence and attitudes' toward Homosexuality in said societies. Before continuing, it should be noted that it is simply impossible to assess, with respect to the question, each "culture" simultaneously: differences between Spartan, Roman and Greek societies would not allow for a detailed, thorough study if categorised together. Instead this essay will attempt to deal with each separately, before bringing its findings together in a broad conclusion. While it may appear a simplistic approach to adopt it is, quite simply, the best manner in which to approach the question. Spartan society was in many ways driven by military ambition. Textbooks refer to the Spartans in such terms as: "an armed camp," "brutal," "culturally stagnant," "economically stagnant," "politically stagnant"[1]. From the age of six, Spartan boys were taken from their mothers to train to be a soldier. It was common throughout this transitory period for the youths to engage in homosexual relations with older men, in fact it was regarded as an important part of their education. Indeed, the Spartan military actively pursued the placing of Homosexual lovers together in combat: while in Thebes, the general Epaminondas commanded a regiment composed of 150 pairs of lovers. This 'Band of Lovers' became a formidable fighting force, with lover defending lover until death. 1: Whitby, 63. Few members of Spartan society frowned upon this practice. Conversely, once the youth reached full adulthood opinions toward this practice shifted greatly. This was mainly because it placed one of the participants in a position of submission: which Spartans regarded as being completely unacceptable for a man holding full citizenship. The best ancient source on Sparta, Xenophon, refutes the already suggestion about widespread pederasty. [2] There is no Spartan/Laconian art that depicts explicitly homosexual motifs-as there is from Athens. The notion that Spartan men tended to wed relatively young, by Greek standards anyway, insinuates that they simply had much less time for the pederasty that characterized the coming to manhood in the rest of Greece. The state considered men who did not wed a public disgrace, and a citizen who did not marry and procreate was not afforded the luxuries that a Father would be. Sparta was known for the extent to which women were so well integrated into society: this goes against the very essence of a homosexually prevalent society. Based on the evidence, it is clear that Homosexuality-in the form of pederasty-- was at the very least, tolerated by the Spartans. Rather than full Homosexual affairs between grown men, much more common were "grooming" relationships between Adults and adolescents, seen as an intrinsic aspect of military training and development. Such as the ancient world is, many accounts become skewed or simply "lost in translation", and thus the account of Xenophon should not be regarded as providing a definite answer. Pederasty or the practice thereof, was undoubtedly a facet of Spartan life. The Historical accounts of Epaminondas at Thebes support this,