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Topic Review
Union of Bulgaria and Romania
The union of Bulgaria and Romania (Bulgarian: Съюз на България и Румъния, romanized: Sǎjúz na Bŭlgariya i Rumŭniya; Romanian: Unirea Bulgariei cu România) was a project for the unification of Bulgaria and Romania into a common state. This would be accomplished under a federation, a personal union or a confederation. The idea had great support, especially in Bulgaria, and there were several opportunities to realize it. Usually, proposals came from Bulgarians and it was the Romanians, who would have composed the ethnic majority, the ones that were supposed to govern. Nevertheless, it ultimately failed to appear mainly due to the differences between Bulgarians and Romanians and the opposition from external powers like Austria-Hungary and especially Russia. This idea had its precedents. Bulgarians and Romanians first lived together under the rule of the First Bulgarian Empire, which extended its power north of the Danube. After the fall of this state would come the Second Bulgarian Empire, established through the cooperation of Bulgarians and Vlachs (Romanians). The empire would also be defeated, this time by the Ottoman Empire, which ruled territories populated by Bulgarians and Romanians for centuries. Later, a popular concept emerged in the Balkans: the federalization of the region, aimed at fighting nearby empires and solving conflicts between its peoples. The idea eventually spread in Bulgaria and Romania, gaining certain support. Several proposals were made; that of Georgi Sava Rakovski stands out. After the establishment of an autonomous Bulgarian principality in 1878, projects with Romania were enhanced. In fact, during the search for the first modern Bulgarian prince, several Romanian nominations came out. These were Carol I, monarch of Romania, and Gheorghe G. Bibescu, son of a Wallachian prince. However, the one who ended up being elected was Alexander of Battenberg, of German origins. Alexander had good relations with Romania, but he was forced to abdicate in 1886 after a period of political turmoil in Bulgaria. This was caused by Russia, which intended to extend its influence over the country. However, Stefan Stambolov, a Russophobe (name of those Bulgarians who opposed Russian policies), ended up taking power. The regent Stambolov tried again to establish a personal union with Romania, and negotiations were conducted. Carol I would be the head of such state, which would have either two separate governments or a single united one. Carol I had interest in becoming ruler of Bulgaria as well, but Russia strongly opposed this. At the end, it threatened Romania with the breakdown of diplomatic relations and even with a military invasion, forcing Carol I to reject the offer. Again, a German prince, Ferdinand I, was elected prince of Bulgaria in June 1887. New approaches were attempted decades later, in the communist era, especially by Georgi Dimitrov, but they all met strong rejection from the Soviet Union. Joseph Stalin , its leader, deemed the proposal as impossible. A Bulgarian-Romanian union was thus never established. The reasons for this were the disapproval of several great powers, the differences in the national goals of the Bulgarians and Romanians and the lack of actual interest or even opposition between each other. In addition, the idea of federalization of the Balkans, which had great support in its time, lost strength all over the region after the conflicts of the beginning of the 20th century and the violent breakup of Yugoslavia. However, the emergence of the European Union, of which Bulgaria and Romania have been members since 2007, has revived such an idea, which could once again be considered in the future.
  • 4.2K
  • 21 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Vocabulary Development
Vocabulary development is a process by which people acquire words. Babbling shifts towards meaningful speech as infants grow and produce their first words around the age of one year. In early word learning, infants build their vocabulary slowly. By the age of 18 months, infants can typically produce about 50 words and begin to make word combinations. In order to build their vocabularies, infants must learn about the meanings that words carry. The mapping problem asks how infants correctly learn to attach words to referents. Constraints theories, domain-general views, social-pragmatic accounts, and an emergentist coalition model have been proposed to account for the mapping problem... From an early age, infants use language to communicate. Caregivers and other family members use language to teach children how to act in society. In their interactions with peers, children have the opportunity to learn about unique conversational roles. Through pragmatic directions, adults often offer children cues for understanding the meaning of words. Throughout their school years, children continue to build their vocabulary. In particular, children begin to learn abstract words. Beginning around age 3–5, word learning takes place both in conversation and through reading. Word learning often involves physical context, builds on prior knowledge, takes place in social context, and includes semantic support. The phonological loop and serial order short-term memory may both play an important role in vocabulary development.
  • 4.2K
  • 14 Nov 2022
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Digital Literacy and Electronic Business
Digital literacy is a term that traditionally describes the extent to which a person is able to use interactive digital devices for living and working, such as computers and smartphones, as well as services delivered through these devices. The advent of the digital society at large and electronic business, specifically in the past decades, has broadened the use of digital devices beyond the isolated uses of working and simple communication; this advent has created digital ecosystems in which workers and consumers are embedded to various degrees, such as social media platforms or integrated shopping and media platforms. This embedding implies that a traditional, narrow notion of digital literacy needs to be extended and made more precise. For this purpose, we use the related notions of digital dexterity, digital proficiency and digital awareness. The term digital dexterity describes the extent to which an individual can handle or operate digital devices or services from a physical perspective. The term digital proficiency describes the extent to which an individual can use digital means to effectively and efficiently facilitate their living and working. The term digital awareness describes the extent to which individuals can understand what their position in digital ecosystems is, including the opportunities and threats of participating in these ecosystems. Digital literacy in the modern, broad interpretation is then the combination of digital dexterity, digital proficiency and digital awareness.
  • 4.2K
  • 13 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Fat Leonard Scandal
The Fat Leonard scandal is a corruption scandal and ongoing investigation within the United States Navy involving ship support contractor Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), a subsidiary of the Glenn Marine Group. The Washington Post called the scandal "perhaps the worst national-security breach of its kind to hit the Navy since the end of the Cold War." At the heart of the scandal was Glenn Defense Marine Asia, a firm run by Leonard Glenn Francis, a Malaysian national known as "Fat Leonard" for his then over 350 pound weight. Francis provided at least a half million dollars in cash, plus travel expenses, luxury items, and prostitutes to a large number of U.S. uniformed officers of the United States Seventh Fleet, who in turn gave him classified material about the movements of U.S. ships and submarines, confidential contracting information, and information about active law enforcement investigations into Glenn Defense Marine Asia. Francis then "exploited the intelligence for illicit profit, brazenly ordering his moles to redirect aircraft carriers to ports he controlled in Southeast Asia so he could more easily bilk the Navy for fuel, tugboats, barges, food, water and sewage removal." The Navy, through GDMA, even employed divers to search harbors for explosives. He also directed them to author "Bravo Zulu" memos, which is an informal term for a letter of commendation from the Navy given to civilians who have performed outstanding services for the Navy, in order to bolster GDMA's credibility for jobs "well done". The first activities of the conspiracy were confirmed to have existed in 2006 when Francis recruited numerous Navy personnel to engage in corruption, including directing contracts toward his firm, disfavoring competitors, and inhibiting legitimate fiscal and operational oversight. The initial co-conspirators labelled themselves "the cool kids" and "the wolf pack." U.S. federal prosecutors filed criminal charges against 33 people in connection with the Fat Leonard scandal. Of those, 22 pleaded guilty: Francis himself, four of his top aides, and 17 Navy officials (specifically, at least ten commissioned officers, two petty officers, one former NCIS special agent, and two civilian Navy contracting officials). Nine others are awaiting trial in U.S. district court in San Diego. Separately, five Navy officers were charged with crimes under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and have been subject to court-martial proceedings. An additional civilian pleaded guilty to a scandal-related crime in Singapore court. Suffering health problems, Francis was hospitalized and released in March 2018. Rather than returning to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service, he was granted a medical furlough and allowed to stay in San Diego at a private residence owned by one of his physicians, under 24-hour surveillance for which his family paid. At a deposition taken in 2018 in the David A. Morales case, Francis said he is being treated for kidney cancer. In 1989, when he was 21, Francis had been sentenced to three years in jail in Malaysia for firearms possession.
  • 4.1K
  • 14 Oct 2022
Topic Review Video Peer Reviewed
Deep Meaningful Learning
Deep meaningful learning is the higher-order thinking and development through manifold active intellectual engagement aiming at meaning construction through pattern recognition and concept association. It includes inquiry, critical thinking, creative thinking, problem-solving, and metacognitive skills. It is a theory with a long academic record that can accommodate the demand for excellence in teaching and learning at all levels of education. Its achievement is verified through knowledge application in authentic contexts. 
  • 4.1K
  • 13 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Juan Manuel de Rosas
Template:Infobox governor Juan Manuel de Rosas (30 March 1793 – 14 March 1877), nicknamed "Restorer of the Laws", was a politician and army officer who ruled Buenos Aires Province and briefly the Argentine Confederation. Although born into a wealthy family, Rosas independently amassed a personal fortune, acquiring large tracts of land in the process. Rosas enlisted his workers in a private militia, as was common for rural proprietors, and took part in the disputes that led to numerous civil wars in his country. Victorious in warfare, personally influential, and with vast landholdings and a loyal private army, Rosas became a caudillo, as provincial warlords in the region were known. He eventually reached the rank of brigadier general, the highest in the Argentine Army, and became the undisputed leader of the Federalist Party. In December 1829, Rosas became governor of the province of Buenos Aires and established a dictatorship backed by state terrorism. In 1831, he signed the Federal Pact, recognising provincial autonomy and creating the Argentine Confederation. When his term of office ended in 1832, Rosas departed to the frontier to wage war on the indigenous peoples. After his supporters launched a coup in Buenos Aires, Rosas was asked to return and once again took office as governor. Rosas reestablished his dictatorship and formed the repressive Mazorca, an armed parapolice that killed thousands of citizens. Elections became a farce, and the legislature and judiciary became docile instruments of his will. Rosas created a cult of personality and his regime became totalitarian in nature, with all aspects of society rigidly controlled. Rosas faced many threats to his power during the late 1830s and early 1840s. He fought a war against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation, endured a blockade by France, faced a revolt in his own province and battled a major rebellion that lasted for years and spread to several Argentine provinces. Rosas persevered and extended his influence in the provinces, exercising effective control over them through direct and indirect means. By 1848, he had extended his power beyond the borders of Buenos Aires and was ruler of all of Argentina. Rosas also attempted to annex the neighbouring nations of Uruguay and Paraguay. France and Great Britain jointly retaliated against Argentine expansionism, blockading Buenos Aires for most of the late 1840s, but were unable to halt Rosas, whose prestige was greatly enhanced by his string of successes. When the Empire of Brazil began aiding Uruguay in its struggle against Argentina, Rosas declared war in August 1851, starting the Platine War. This short conflict ended with Rosas being defeated and absconding to Britain. His last years were spent in exile living as a tenant farmer until his death in 1877. Rosas garnered an enduring public perception among Argentines as a brutal tyrant. Since the 1930s, an authoritarian, anti-Semitic, and racist political movement in Argentina called Revisionism has tried to improve Rosas's reputation and establish a new dictatorship in the model of his regime. In 1989, his remains were repatriated by the government in an attempt to promote national unity, seeking forgiveness for him and especially for the 1970s military dictatorship. Rosas remains a controversial figure in Argentina in the 21st century.
  • 4.1K
  • 13 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Neutral Powers During World War II
The neutral powers were countries that remained neutral during World War II. Some of these countries had large colonies abroad or had great economic power. Spain had just been through its civil war, which ended on 1 April 1939 (five months prior to the Invasion of Poland)—a war that involved several countries that subsequently participated in World War II. During World War II, the neutral powers took no official side, hoping to avoid attack. However, Portugal, Sweden, and Switzerland all helped the Allies by supplying "voluntary" brigades to the United Kingdom , while Spain avoided the Allies in favor of the Axis, supplying them with its own voluntary brigade, the Blue Division. Ireland generally favoured the Allied side, as with the United States. The United States remained neutral until 8 December 1941, a day following the attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor. The Lateran Treaty between Italy and the Vatican, signed in 1929, required that the Pope maintain "perpetual neutrality in international relations"—making the Vatican City a neutral state. Several countries suffered invasions in spite of their efforts to be neutral. These included Nazi Germany's invasion of Denmark and Norway on 9 April 1940—then Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg on 10 May 1940. On the same day, 10 May 1940, the British, having already invaded the Faroe Islands in April, invaded Iceland and established an occupying force (subsequently replaced by the then-neutral United States). The Soviet Union invaded Lithuania on 15 June 1940 and Latvia and Estonia on 17 June. In the Balkans, the Italo-Greek War began on 28 October 1940 and Yugoslavia was invaded in April 1941. Iran was also attacked and occupied by Britain and the Soviet Union in August 1941. See also the histories of Afghanistan, Andorra, Guatemala, Liechtenstein, Saudi Arabia and Yemen during this period.
  • 4.1K
  • 28 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Maquis Du Vercors
The Maquis du Vercors was a rural group of the French Forces of the Interior (FFI) (maquis) that resisted the 1940–1944 German occupation of France in World War II. The Maquis du Vercors used the prominent scenic plateau known as the Massif du Vercors (Vercors Plateau) as a refuge. Initially the maquis carried out only sabotage and partisan operations against the Germans, but after the Normandy Invasion on 6 June 1944, the leadership of an army of about 4,000 maquis declared the "Free Republic of Vercors," raised the French flag, and attempted to create a conventional army to oppose the German occupation. The allies supported the maquis with parachute drops of weapons and by supplying teams of advisors and trainers, but the uprising was premature. In July 1944 as many as 10,000 German soldiers invaded the massif and killed more than 600 of the maquis, known as maquisards, and 200 civilians. It was German's largest anti-partisan operation in Western Europe during World War II. In August 1944, shortly after the battle for the Vercors, the area was liberated from German control by the American army allied with the FFI.
  • 4.1K
  • 20 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is a standardized psychometric test of adult personality and psychopathology. Psychologists and other mental health professionals use various versions of the MMPI to help develop treatment plans, assist with differential diagnosis, help answer legal questions (forensic psychology), screen job candidates during the personnel selection process, or as part of a therapeutic assessment procedure. The original MMPI was developed by Starke R. Hathaway and J. C. McKinley, faculty of the University of Minnesota, and first published by the University of Minnesota Press in 1943. It was replaced by an updated version, the MMPI-2, in 1989 (Butcher, Dahlstrom, Graham, Tellegen, and Kaemmer). A version for adolescents, the MMPI-A, was published in 1992. An alternative version of the test, the MMPI-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF), published in 2008, retains some aspects of the traditional MMPI assessment strategy, but adopts a different theoretical approach to personality test development.
  • 4.1K
  • 17 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Blairism
In British politics, Blairism is the political ideology of the former leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister Tony Blair and those that follow him. It entered the New Penguin English Dictionary in 2000. Proponents of Blairism are referred to as Blairites.
  • 4.0K
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Meaningful Life
In positive psychology, a meaningful life is a construct having to do with the purpose, significance, fulfillment, and satisfaction of life. While specific theories vary, there are two common aspects: a global schema to understand one's life and the belief that life itself is meaningful. Meaning can be defined as the connection linking two presumably independent entities together; a meaningful life links the biological reality of life to a symbolic interpretation or meaning. Those possessing a sense of meaning are generally found to be happier, to have lower levels of negative emotions, and to have lower risk of mental illness.
  • 4.0K
  • 23 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Himbo
Himbo, a portmanteau of the words him and bimbo, is a slang term for an attractive but vacuous man. The word was first used in 1988. Since then, the term and the stereotype it describes have generated a range of commentary and reactions from writers, entertainers, linguists, and cultural analysts.
  • 3.9K
  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Civilian
Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and are not "combatants if they [do not] carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, as some non-combatants are not civilians (for example, military chaplains attached to the belligerent party or military personnel serving with a neutral country). Civilians in the territories of a party to an armed conflict are entitled to certain privileges under the customary laws of war and international treaties such as the Fourth Geneva Convention. The privileges that they enjoy under international law depends on whether the conflict is an internal one (a civil war) or an international one. In some nations, uniformed members of civilian police or fire departments colloquially refer to members of the public as civilians.
  • 3.9K
  • 29 Nov 2022
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
The Capital Asset Pricing Model
The capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is an influential paradigm in financial risk management. It formalizes mean-variance optimization of a risky portfolio given the presence of a risk-free investment such as short-term government bonds. The CAPM defines the price of financial assets according to the premium demanded by investors for bearing excess risk.
  • 3.9K
  • 13 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Chinese Information Operations and Information Warfare
Informatized warfare of China is the implementation of information warfare (IW) within the Chinese military. Laid out in the Chinese Defence White Paper of 2008, informatized warfare includes the utilization of information-based weapons and forces, including battlefield management systems, precision-strike capabilities, and technology-assisted command and control (C4ISR). However, some media and analyst report also uses the term to describe the political and espionage effort from the Chinese state.
  • 3.9K
  • 14 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Polyamory
Polyamory (from grc πολλοί (polloí) 'many', and la amor 'love') is the practice of, or desire for, romantic relationships with more than one partner at the same time, with the informed consent of all partners involved. People who identify as polyamorous may believe in open relationships with a conscious management of jealousy and reject the view that sexual and relational exclusivity are prerequisite for deep, committed, long-term, loving relationships. Others prefer to restrict their sexual activity to only members of the group, a closed polyamorous relationship that is usually referred to as polyfidelity. Polyamory has come to be an umbrella term for various forms of non-monogamous, multi-partner relationships, or non-exclusive sexual or romantic relationships. Its usage reflects the choices and philosophies of the individuals involved, but with recurring themes or values, such as love, intimacy, honesty, integrity, equality, communication, and commitment. It can sometimes be distinguished from some other forms of ethical non-monogamy in that the relationships involved are loving intimate relationships, as opposed to purely sexual relationships.
  • 3.9K
  • 17 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Traumatic Bonding
Trauma bonds (also referred to as traumatic bonds) are emotional bonds with an individual (and sometimes, with a group) that arise from a recurring, cyclical pattern of abuse perpetuated by intermittent reinforcement through rewards and punishments. The process of forming trauma bonds is referred to as trauma bonding or traumatic bonding. A trauma bond usually involves a victim and a perpetrator in a uni-directional relationship wherein the victim forms an emotional bond with the perpetrator. This can also be conceptualized as a dominated-dominator or an abused-abuser dynamic. Two main factors are involved in the establishment of a trauma bond: a power imbalance and intermittent reinforcement of good and bad treatment, or reward and punishment. Trauma bonding can occur in the realms of romantic relationships, parent-child relationships, incestuous relationships, cults, hostage situations, sex trafficking (especially that of minors), or tours of duty among military personnel. Trauma bonds are based on terror, domination, and unpredictability. As a trauma bond between an abuser and a victim strengthens and deepens, it leads to conflicting feelings of alarm, numbness, and grief, that show up in a cyclical pattern. More often than not, victims in trauma bonds do not have agency and autonomy, and don't have an individual sense of self either. Their self-image is a derivative and an internalization of the abuser's conceptualization of them. Trauma bonds have severe detrimental effects on the victim not only while the relationship persists, but beyond that as well. Some long-term impacts of trauma bonding include but are not limited to remaining in abusive relationships, having adverse mental health outcomes like low self-esteem, negative self image, and increased likelihood of depression and bipolar disorder, and perpetuating a trans-generational cycle of abuse. Victims who traumatically bond with their victimizers are often unable to leave these relationships or are only able to do so with significant duress and difficulty. Even among those who do manage to leave, many go back to the abusive relationship due to the pervasiveness of the learned trauma bond.
  • 3.9K
  • 02 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Proportionality (Law)
Proportionality is a general principle in law which covers several special (although related) concepts. The concept of proportionality is used as a criterion of fairness and justice in statutory interpretation processes, especially in constitutional law, as a logical method intended to assist in discerning the correct balance between the restriction imposed by a corrective measure and the severity of the nature of the prohibited act. Within criminal law, it is used to convey the idea that the punishment of an offender should fit the crime. Under international humanitarian law governing the legal use of force in an armed conflict, proportionality and distinction are important factors in assessing military necessity.
  • 3.9K
  • 11 Oct 2022
Topic Review
War Bride
War brides are women who married military personnel from other countries in times of war or during military occupations, a practice that occurred in great frequency during World War I and World War II. Among the largest and best documented examples of this were the marriages between American servicemen and German women which took place after World War II. By 1949, over 20,000 German war brides had emigrated to the United States. Furthermore, it is estimated that there are "... 15,000 Australian women who married American servicemen based in Australia during World War II and moved to the US to be with their husbands". Allied servicemen also married many women in other countries where they were stationed at the end of the war, including France , Italy, Luxembourg, the Philippines , Japan and China . This also occurred in Korea and Vietnam with the later wars in those countries involving U.S. troops and other anti-communist soldiers. As many as 70,000 GI war brides left the United Kingdom, 150,000 to 200,000 hailed from continental Europe, 15,500 from Australia and 1,500 from New Zealand, between the years 1942 and 1952. The reasons for women marrying foreign soldiers and leaving their homelands vary. Particularly after World War II, many women in devastated European and Asian countries saw marriage as a means of escaping their devastated countries.
  • 3.9K
  • 14 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Family Tree of the Malaysian Monarchs
The following is a family tree of the monarchs of Malaysia.   - - - -   The dashed line denotes a marriage     ♀   - denotes a female.
  • 3.8K
  • 11 Nov 2022
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