Abstract
The following paper reviews Ivan T. Berend's "History Derailed: Central and Eastern Europe during the Long Nineteenth Century". Specifically, the paper looks at how Berend wisely takes the time to touch upon the perceptible insecurity of the East and Center as it witnesses the dramatic rise of Western Europe to global prominence - an insecurity which undoubtedly explains why the East and Center has historically been "distinct" from the West in profound ways throughout modern history even though the two regions share the same continental landmass. Proceeding further, the paper looks at Berend's failure to draw the sort of explicit linkages that might make the unfolding of Central and Eastern European history (and the present day) more comprehensible to first-time students. Lastly, the paper concludes by lauding Berend's text for its strong, lucid organization. The writer concludes that while a generally engaging and well-written text, Berend's work is certainly not without its apparent flaws.

Tags:history, derailed

Abstract
This paper explains that historians argue that the economic crises experienced during the early-modern period across most of Europe and the subsequent population growth, which led to an inability for many of these individual markets to support their respective populations, was a type of Malthusian trap. The author points out that the Malthusian trap is the principle, based on Malthus' theory of population and economics, which observes that man is inclined to propagate beyond his means to support the population. The paper relates that the application of this principle to early modern Europe is often a misguided attempt to redirect the historical research to a socio-historic perspective rather than a purely economic perspective. The author concludes that, while certain markets in Europe might indeed have become over-populated with respect to their ability to provide basic levels of sustenance for their populations, other countries, such as England, did not suffer such a population growth and, furthermore, managed to maintain relatively stable economic growth in spite of Europe's overall economic decline during this period. The paper includes an annotated bibliography.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Malthus on Population Growth
Technological Impact
Conclusion

From the Paper
"In an artificial economy established in an economic lab such set ratios can be accurately predictive. However, in the natural environment, there are many external factors that would affect change on his model, and did affect change. Prices are a key oversight in his theory. While the basic premise that population growth may outstrip the growth in food productivity was true based on the circumstances within which he operated, he didn't account for the economics of food productivity to drive an increase in production worldwide that offset any local market conditions and shortages in supply."

Tags:productivity cyclical calculations, technological advances, inflation

Abstract
This essay will assume the position that the pre-modern societies of East Asia were isolated and stagnant. It is recognized that this argument is controversial, and dependent upon certain geographical and social assumptions. "isolation" and "stagnation" are relative concepts. It will be seen that two of the main economies of the region - that of China and Japan - possessed flourishing domestic economies and some degree of trade with other economies in the region. However, given the inescapable fact that European colonial powers in this era came to dominate Asia, first economically and then politically, a balanced view of the pre-modern economic history of the region must explain why this came to pass. Key to this explanation is a recognition that, in comparison to the nations of the West, the pre-modern economies of China and Japan were stagnant and isolated.

Tags:ARCHAEOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY (ANCIENT HISTORY) / PRIMITIVE CULTURE (PALEOLITHIC), ANCIENT EMPIRES, economies east asia

Abstract
The paper relates that Marshall G.S. Hodgson was one of the most controversial - and brilliant - American historians of the third quarter of the twentieth century. More than that, the paper discusses how Hodgson was an apparent non-conformist who sought to re-define the traditional scholarly interpretation of European history in a way that would re-locate it within the context of what was going on in the larger world. Additionally, the paper explains that Hodgson was one of the more remarkable historiographers of his age, wholly accepting and applying the notion that even the best - and most professional - observers of the world scene are guided by their own pre-commitments. The paper posits that Hodgson's work brings out how European pre-eminence was and is not divinely pre-ordained and that the fledgling Western civilization which found its modern expression in Europe was and remains indebted to civilizations which may yet out-strip it.

Tags:hodgson, world, history

Abstract
Modern European / Western education finds in its current form, roots that stretch back to Socrates and further to the earliest forms of oral histories and story-telling. The western model of education is based almost exclusively upon lecture, experience and review, is graduated in complexity and content over time, and covers, in general, approximately 12 years of a student's life. The content of lessons, regardless of context and subject, generally follow a specific structure with a philosophy of development that finds its origins in Locke, Rousseau, and Pasteur. During the 19th century, on the heels of the Age of Enlightenment and through the Romantic Era, education underwent fundamental changes. Many different factors influenced the form and content of that education, most significantly, perhaps, being that of nationalizing and standardizing the educational system. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the history of educational systems during the 19th century Europe, differences in gender-involvement, the influence of Napoleon, Locke, Rousseau, Pasteur and other thinkers from the Enlightenment and Romantic periods, all with the intent of demonstrating how our modern model of education has been shaped and determined by these factors.

Tags:nineteenth, century, education

Abstract
This paper explains some of the reasoning behind the growth of digital television is that it allows potential access to the Internet, online shopping, and e-mail. The author points out that many people believe mistakenly that digital technology is something very new, but they forget that smaller digital items, such as watches, have been around for quite some time. The paper reports that many individuals in the UK would like to have digital television, but the individuals, who are not interested in the service, are not interested in the additional services, such as the Internet, and are concerned about the cost of television programming and the types of channels and variety of entertainment they would be able to receive for free without having to purchase a subscription.

Table of Contents
Introduction and Theoretical Background
Introduction
Theoretical Background
Review of the Literature
Introduction
Modern European Broadcasting History
Deregulation and its Effects
Pluralism in a Free Market Economy
The Advent of Digital Television Technology in Europe
Industry and Audience Behavior
Viewing Trends
Consumer Expenditure
Plans for Switchover in the UK
Methodology
Discussion of Findings
Conclusion

From the Paper
'This chapter will look at many of the findings from a survey conducted in 2001 which will tie into the information in the literature review and serve to give a complete picture of what is happening with the digital television market and why. The study mentioned in the methodology section in chapter three provided many individuals with a great deal of information. Not only did many of the authors in the literature review either rely on or refer to information that was gained in this study, but the government utilized this study as well so that they could determine the answers to some of the more pressing questions about individual's television preferences and whether they would be willing to switch to digital television without an argument.'

Tags:growth, subscription, conversion, programming, free

Abstract
This paper traces the roots of modern nationalism back to the French Revolution and Napoleonic wars and describes how its ideologies affected Europe during the 19th and 20th centuries. The writer of this paper defines nationalism as the right of every citizen and every nation to exist in freedom and to develop its own singularity. The strongest catalyst for European nationalism emerged in the 19th century with the industrial revolution. This paper examines the pros and cons of modern nationalism and discusses how the central European revolution of 1848 sparked a bonfire of nationalism. This paper also explores the effects of nationalism during Hitler's reign.

From the Paper
"For modern nationalism was born in the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Effectively controlled by the French republic during the Reign of Terror, nationalism helped repel France's foreign foes. Meanwhile, all across Europe, patriots tried to kindle nationalist flames in the war against Napoleon. So by 1815 there were already clues of how nationalism could spread and quickly develop. During this early age of nationalism, its proponents usually believed that every nation, like every citizen, had the right to exist in freedom and to develop its singularity."

Tags:history, world, war, 2, WWII, history, hitler, ideology, political, europe, industrial, revolution

Abstract
This paper takes a look at the European state from the perspective of Francis Fukuyama's famous lecture "The End of History?". The paper discusses the idea of the end of history and the triumph of liberalism. The paper further reviews why democracy has failed in countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan. The paper also discusses whether the 'democratic nation-state' has a future.

Outline:
The World of Ideas:
The End of History ?
Ideologies
Democracy and Tyranny
Realism
Pre-Modern Societies:
The Pressure of the West
Definition
Democratic Failure
New Authoritarianism
Modernity:
The 'New Managerial State'
World Government
Modern Societies
The Need for Ideologies

From the Paper
"Writing in 1989 before the collapse of the Berlin wall, Francis Fukuyama declared in his article "The end of History ?" that the flow of events that had occurred lately constituted the ultimate proof of the total victory of the idea of liberalism. The exhaustion of systematic viable alternatives - or alternative ideologies - to economic and political liberalism, such as fascism and communism, showed that liberal democracy was the perfect, ultimate ideology. This perfect idea could by no means be seriously challenged by other ideologies - and the total defeat of fascism and communism in the 20th century proved it - nor could it be improved in any way since liberal democracy was already in itself a perfection. The total victory of this ideology in the realm of ideas would necessarily lead to "the universalization of Western liberal democracy as the final form of human government" (Fukuyama, 1989:2). This belief of the spread of Western liberal democracy around the globe (or in the material world), along with the belief that liberal democracies do not fight one against the other because they are interdependent and tied by the 'common marketization' result in the assertion that the number of major conflicts will decrease dramatically and that the main concern of international life will no longer be politics or military strategics but technical issue-solving economics. History, defined as the History of ideology (Hegel), has come to an end, at least for the part of the world that has realized the principles of liberal democracy. The former alleged inner contradictions of liberalism have been resolved by the decreasing importance of the class issue. At the time Fukuyama wrote this article, it was followed by a major outcry and criticism. But the idea was not new. Actually, Fukuyama admits that he has merely resurrected the idea of Georg Friedrich Hegel who, in 1806, following the battle of Jena, and the victory of Napoleon's army, declared that History has come to an end. Hegel saw History as a dialectical process with a beginning, a middle, and an end. The History of ideas shows that mankind (or 'the Spirit') "has progressed through a series of primitive stages of consciousness (the last stage being the stage of philosophy) on his path to the present and that these stages corresponded to concrete forms of social organization" (tribal, slave owning, theocratic, finally democratic egalitarian societies). In the stage of philosophy the Spirit is self-conscious, that is to say that the Spirit knows itself as a Spirit, through philosophy. And this ultimate stage corresponds to the social organization of liberal democracy and its universalization. We know young Hegel's admiration for the French Revolution and we can easily understand his excitement at the idea that those revolutionary principles would finally be realized and spread, thanks to Napoleon's victory. Those principles include liberty, equality, rational behaviour on the part of the individual. At that time, there was no viable alternatives to these ideas. Other ideologies came later... to finally disappear, hence postponing the awareness that History has actually come to an end in 1806. On the other hand, we can also assume that young Hegel was also longing for a nation-state embodied by France, and which a liberal democracy implies. (He also looked at the Prussian monarchy with admiration). But the end of History at the time of Hegel did not necessarily imply the same thing, as long as the state was concerned, as the end of History at the time of Fukuyama, as I have already mentioned and I shall return to this point later."

Tags:End, History, Theories, Imperialism, Building, Third, World, Conflict

Abstract
This book favorably reviews John McCormick's book "The European Union: Politics and Policies," pointing out the strengths of the work in light of recent changes in the EU. According to the paper, the European Union is the most advanced form of political and economical integration between countries up to this day in history. The book itself is structured into three parts, so that the reader is gradually introduced and walked through some of the main aspects of the EU. These sections are described are focusing on the EU's history, its institutions and finally its policies. The review also notes the useful appendices in the back of the book. The paper concludes by stating that the book is an excellent resource on the European Union, no matter what the level of knowledge of the reader.

From the Paper
"However, many of these mechanisms and institutions are extremely complicated in terms of functionality and one of the great merits of John McCormick's book on the European Union, its politics and policies, is exactly this capacity to shed light for even someone who hasn't had the slightest contact with the realities of the EU. On the other hand, the book is very well written to reach a higher level for those who are interested in deeper realities of the European Union. It is an introductory book, but the more one reads into it, the more one becomes more acquainted with the functionalities of the EU and can increase the level of profundity."

Tags:European Treaty of Lisbon, Turkish integration, Modern Europe

Abstract
A book report about E.L. Jones' work on the historical economy of Europe, "The European Miracle". It explains the author's view of the European and Asian economies during the medieval, renaissance, and early modern eras, until the end of the Industrial Revolution. The book focuses on the ecological conditions (geography, weather, etc.) that made it possible for Europe to develop a technology-centered, multistate trade economy, as opposed to Asia's paradigmatic agrarian unified economy.

Tags:the, european, miracle