History of Water Management Technologies Research Paper

History of Water Management Technologies - Research Paper Example Water history and its management are of a paramount importance to us. Water history gives us a clue as to how water management policies and technologies overtime transformed the states and life of the people. Stepwells of Rajasthan in India are embodiment of such great traditions in managing the water resources at local level. The paper is an attempt to explore how and what kind of water management technologies evolved over several centuries since the time of early civilization. Early Water Management Devices– Saqiya, Noria, Qanat The beginning of agricultural practices that started after a long period of hunting and foraging has a lot to do with evolving of numerous water management technologies. The agriculture as a means for subsistence led to the digging of canals, wells, drains. That further necessitated the discovery of numerous water-lifting devices as community-based agriculture further expanded in the different parts of world. That is how the devices such as saqiya an d noria came into existence. Qanats built during 500 BCE is an indication that how water technologies started taking forefront in developing agriculture as a means for subsistence. Water Management during Mesopotamian Civilization Initial efforts to control flow of water were done in early civilization of Mesopotamia and Egypt. The remains of those canals can still be found. It should be noted that every city of the Sumer and Akkud dating 4000 years BCE had a canal getting water from the Euphrates River. Mari had several cisterns and had extended collection system to harness rain water. Habuba Kebira (modern Turkey) had Terracotta pipes for transporting water. The shaduf as a water-lifting device from one level to another had its origin in Mesopotamia which later spread to Greece and other parts of Europe. The shaduf usually provides lift of 3 meter and can deliver 500-2500 liters per day (Mays a) Water Management by Indus-Valley Civilization Mohenjo-Daro as the part of Indus Civili zation was built around 2450 BCE. The city had 700 brick-lined wells and it was located in the semi-arid region. The construction of their bath platforms did indicate that water consumption was huge. During those times the city was provided with effluent drains made of brick masonry and stretched along one side of the street with removable covers made of wooden boards or loose bricks. Wall drain chutes were employed so that effluent could flow in a catchment basin. Water management was so elaborate that they had bathrooms in their houses and sewer system in streets. That was perhaps the oldest well-built water collection and disposal system in operation (Mays b). Canals in the Americas – Innovative Water Managementways The earthen canals in Americas are found dating back 6000 to 4500 years in the Central Andean Cordillera region on the banks of Rio Nanchoc River and the canals were used for irrigation to grow peanuts, coca, and cotton crops. Canals in Mesoamerica go back to t he time of 1200 BCE. Water wells in San Marcos, dams, reservoirs, drains and canals were the part of water management system in Morelos, Oaxaca (Dillehay). Water Management by Qanats Qanat fulfilled the need of irrigation in ancient Persia. They are basically underground tunnel taking advantage of gravity flow from the higher elevations to the lower plains. Qanats are equipped with the vertical shafts to provide for lighting and air circulation. The longest (71 kilometer) and oldest (more than 3000 years old) qanat is found at the ancient city of Zarch in Persia. Even today, more than 30,000 qanats are in operation in Iran. The qanat technology spread during Persian rule. In different civilizations, it came to be known with different names such as Karez in Afghanistan

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 32

Case Study Example Talent and succession planning has become an important area of focus as far as organizational leadership is concerned. Many business organizations are coming up with ways of ensuring that they develop among their current staff, which is able to steer them through the changing times to make the organizations successful. This paper examines how the process of talent and succession planning in organizations is taking shape, using the case study of Apple inc., a technology giant in the United States and the world at large. Talent management as used in most multinational organizations refers to the process of implementing systems and strategies that are properly designed and integrated in order to create and enhance the productivity and efficiency of employees. This process can only be achieved through attracting, developing, retaining employees that have aptitudes and skills for meeting current needs and those in future for the business. Talent management can also be described as the chief driver of organizational performance and success by ensuring that the top management is able to have employees that can take on the changing roles and functions in the company. Research reports have indicated that about 85% of all human resource managers in organizations are of the view that one of the greatest obstacles to effective workforce leadership and management is the creation and maintenance of an organisation ability to compete for talent (Cohn, Khurana & Reeves 276). This understanding means that talent management is being ranked as a practice that bears a strategic advantage for companies, especially in these changing times for businesses. Therefore, one of the main functions of effective leadership is to ensure that businesses are better placed create a workforce that will always be there for the present and future success of the company. In response towards the rapidly changing business environment, organizational leaders are supposed to have a