Art and Literature

Throughout history, art has inspired, soothed and called people to action. Twentieth century art is no different. Therefore, this month’s newsletter is a review of some of the literary, artistic and cinematographic figures from Latin America who have shaped culture through their expression.

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) is one of Mexico’s most famous female artists. She did not always aspire to be an artist, however. Only after a serious bus accident when she was eighteen did she begin to teach herself to paint. Now, she is internationally respected for her self-portraits, which use brilliant colors. One of Kahlo's earliest supporters was her husband, Diego Rivera (1886-1957), a trained artist whose dramatic murals are said to have revived fresco painting in Latin America. His murals are also noted for their bold use of color, but unlike his wife's personal portraits, his work focuses on depicting broad themes in Mexican history.

Chile’s Pablo Neruda (1904-1973) is considered one of the world’s greatest love poets. His given name was Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto, but he wrote and published under the pseudonym Pablo Neruda; some speculate that he did so to avoid criticism from his father, who had always discouraged him from writing. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971. Another Chilean poet, Gabriela Mistral (1889-1957), was the first Latin American woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature, which was awarded to her in 1945. While Mistral's poems reflect her passion for human causes, they were not the only way in which she served her community. She also acted as an educator, cultural minister and diplomat to various European countries.

Jorge Luis Borges and Gabriel García Márquez are perhaps the two writers who have brought Latin American literature into the global limelight. Borges (1899-1986) was from Argentina and is best known for the treatment of time in his writing. Like Frida Kahlo, a nearly fatal accident stimulated an exceptionally creative period in Borges' life in which he primarily wrote stories. García Márquez (b. 1928) began his career as a journalist in Colombia, and has since established himself as a novelist and short story writer. His work is best known for its style, magic realism, which combines reality and fantasy. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982.

Brazilian novelist Jorge Amado (b. 1912) began his literary career at the age of twenty with the publication of his first novel. Most of his novels depict the city life of the lower classes in Bahia, and often reflect his communist ideology. Much of his work satirizes the Brazilian government, which imprisoned him in 1935 and banned his books due to his leftist activities.

Walter Salles, most recently honored for his film about life in Brazil, "Central do Brasil" ("Central Station"), is one of Brazil’s most acclaimed directors. He began as a documentary filmmaker in 1986, focusing on social issues in Brazil and the search for an identity, both national and individual. He continues to address the same issues in his narrative films, as seen in "Central Station," which tells the story of an orphaned boy's relationship with a woman who writes letters for the illiterate in Rio’s Central Station.

Whether giving voice to silent segments of the population, taking readers or viewers on a fantasy ride or both, Latin American writers, artists and filmmakers have made a lasting impact on twentieth century culture. Their contributions are vast and varied and cannot be summarized briefly, but I hope that you've enjoyed this cultural journey through the artistic movements of Latin America in recent history.

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Scientific Discoveries

Great minds have hailed from all over the globe. Here is a look at some of the great European thinkers and scientists of the modern era, and the revolutionary minds who paved the way for their discoveries.

An array of scientific fields have felt the impact of Italian thinkers: mathematics from Leonardo Fibonacci, astronomy from Galileo Galilei, and physics of electricity from Alessandro Volta, to name a few. The 20th century offered us equally important Italian thinkers, however. At the beginning of the century, Maria Montessori--the first female in Italy to earn an M.D.--pioneered the children's learning movement. In physics, Enrico Fermi broke new ground with his pivotal discoveries.

Fermi was not alone, however, in his quest for answers in the field of physics; Pavel Cherenkov of Russia was a key mind in the world of physics during the 20th century. In the philosophical community, Russian native Ayn Rand made a global impact on audiences when she published her politically charged novels, which develop an "objectivist" philosophy on the human struggle.

Three famous Swiss thinkers lived during the 18th century: the great mathematician Leonhard Euler, the philosopher and literary genius Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and the renowned chemist Daniel Bernoulli, who is the premiere figure in the development of fluid mechanics. In the 20th century, however, Carl Jung turned the microscope inward and made landmark discoveries about human psychology.

Austrian Ludwig Wittgenstein paved the way for modern logic and the philosophy of language. Also from Austria were the renowned psychologist Sigmund Freud, and the great physicist Kurt Godel, who gave us his "Incompleteness Theorem."

Hungarian native Nicola Tesla is one of the most admired scientists of the 20th century. He is revered for his work in Electrical Engineering. The Hungarian prodigy Jon Von Neumann pioneered game theory and computer science, and contributed valuable insights into quantum mechanics.

Poland was home to one of the most prominent astronomers in history, Nicholaus Copernicus, who--500 years ago--furthered our understanding of nature, breaking old paradigms and shattering dogma. In the 20th century, Polish icon Marie Curie broke new ground in medicine.

Several great English thinkers have made a significant impact during the 20th century, too. The logic of A.N. Whitehead and Bertrand Russell at the beginning of the century paved the way for the father of the modern computer: another Englishman, Alan Turing. Paul Dirac is a keystone quantum physicist of the century, and Steven Hawking is the greatest theoretical cosmologist of our time. One of the most significant discoveries of the century, the double helix of DNA, was made by a pair of scientists: Englishman Francis Crick and James Watson from the United States.

While, in the 20th century, Frenchman Henry Poincare played a substantial role in the development of mathematics, some of France's greatest contributions to global thinking were made in the area of existential philosophy. Simone De Beauvoir and Jean Paul Sartre broke new ground with their reflections on the human existence, while others, like Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault examined language, literature, and political structures in a new light.

The 20th century offered no less for German thought. Gottlob Frege and Edmund Husserl were two of the fathers of modern logic, offering insights which would eventually lead to the evolution of the computer. Yet it was in physics that Germany touched the world the most in the 1900's. Albert Einstein gave insights into general and special relativity. Quantum mechanics was pioneered by Werner Heisenberg, Max Planck, Karl Schwarzschild, and Wolfgang Pauli's "Exclusion Principle"... all of which contributed to current quantum cosmology.

The Spanish also contributed much to scientific understanding during the last century. The worldly and very well accomplished biologist, Severo Ochoa de Luarca, broke new ground in biochemistry, physiology and enzymology in the first half of the century, offering valuable insights into metabolism. Another leader in his field, Spaniard Santiago Ramón y Cajal, was Ochoa de Luarca's mentor. At the turn of the century, Ramón y Cajal, born in Aragon, was a world leader in pathological anatomy. His study of pathology and the nervous system contributed to the current understanding of these vital subjects.

The list of influential thinkers in the fields of science and technology will continue almost indefinitely as we travel the world to uncover each culture's contribution.

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Succes in Carrier, IQ vs EQ

IQ (Intelligences quotient) is a high bounty that should be thanks for, but one factor not only because of the quality of his IQ. Other factors that affect career success and your ability to build relationships with one Emotional Intelligences (EI).

According to Daniel Goleman author of Working with Emotional Intelligences said, almost 70 percent from the performance of a career in the depending on the ability to know oneself and to maximize the potential, ability to motivate themselves and socializing. Can be said with the ability, someone looking for rift able to maximize the opportunities that come on.

In addition, emotional intelligence is the key to open the network of business relationships that effective. According to Doug Lennick, Vice President of American Express, says emotional competencies are themselves the most important quality that must be developed and access as a valuable experience. In the work environment day-to-day, you will face problems of non more complex than simply relying on IQ alone.

Meanwhile, according to Warren Bennis, author of a book Becoming Leaders found that the more emotional intelligence than IQ in a career field. While the IQ also play an important role, but I can not make someone superior, while EQ can. With the ability someone EQ has the capacity to use emotions effectively and make you a better manager for himself. Why? Because the ability to make their performance EQ working relationship with colleague, boss or your client's business.

Susan Dunn, author of The Benefits of EQ Coaching for Mid-Level Executives and Professionals said, most of the executive, CEO, and the professional skills of analysis and focus. They also use the advanced figures, but 90 percent of them have verbal communication skills are good. Many professionals also develop a formal education for many years, but do not have the experience and training, not able to survive in the world of work. "The ability to manage the EQ to be selling for a worker, once you learn about creativity and new things, you certainly can not do clips," she said.

Not only ingenuity finish the job, but only when the accused face an unexpected situation that your mental readiness charged here. One example is the richest man in the world according to Forbes magazine, the William Gates III, admitted that he is studying at Harvard University academic value although quite normally. So, someone in the academic intelligence remains the points more, though not only because of IQ. "A person is able to develop the EQ while IQ generally can not be improved again," he said.

Susan added, emotional intelligence not only bring someone in the success but also the balance of life, health and happiness. Besides developing leadership talent and the ability to see things that have the potential to become large, is the ability EQ.

Career Success tips:

* Continue practice your ability. Do not dally to see the opportunity to learn. Stop thinking 'This is not my field of work, so I do not want to know'. The more experience you get, the more (Intelligences quotient) the opportunity to reach your success.
* Be optimistic. The biggest strength of the people who are successful think and be optimistic. Thus, you will believe in yourself to achieve the desire. In addition, also needed to face all challenges.

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