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Vilfredo Pareto

Vilfredo Pareto

right Vilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto (born July 15, 1848 in Paris, France - died August 19, 1923 in Lausanne, Switzerland) made several important contributions to economics, sociology and moral philosophy, especially in the study of income distribution and in the analysis of individuals' choices. He introduced the concept of Pareto efficiency and helped develop the field of microeconomics with ideas such as indifference curves. His theories influenced Benito Mussolini and the development of Italian fascism. The son of a Genoese father and a French mother, Pareto was educated in both France and Italy, and in 1870, received an engineering degree from what is now the Polytechnic University of Turin and took employment with the Italian state railways. In 1886, he became a lecturer on economics and management at the University of Florence. In 1893, he was appointed as a lecturer in economics at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland where he remained for the rest of his life. In 1906, he made the famous observation that 20% of the population owned 80% of the property in Italy, later generalised by Joseph M. Juran and others into the so-called Pareto principle (also termed as the 80-20 rule) and generalised further to the concept of a Pareto distribution. The Pareto index is a measure of the inequality of income distribution. The Pareto chart is a special type of histogram, used to view causes of a problem in order of severity from largest to smallest. It is a statistical tool that graphically demonstrates the Pareto principle or the 80-20 rule. In his Trattato di Sociologia Generale (The Treatise on General Sociology) first published in English under the title Mind and society, he put forward the first social cycle theory in sociology.

External links


- [http://cepa.newschool.edu/het/profiles/pareto.htm Further infomation from New School University]
- [http://www.nyx.net/~jkalb/misc/pareto.html A Concise Overview of His Life, Works, and Philosophy by Fr. James Thornton] Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto, Vilfredo ko:빌프레드 파레토 ja:ヴィルフレド・パレート

1848

1848 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar.

Events

Gregorian calendar]
- The Revolutions of 1848, a series of widespread but failed struggles for more liberal governments, from Brazil to Hungary.
- January 12 - The Palermo rising in Sicily rises against the Bourbon kingdom of Two Sicilies
- January 24 - California Gold Rush: James W. Marshall finds gold at Sutter's Mill, in Coloma, near Sacramento
- January 24 - The Storming of the Venezuelan National Congress takes place.
- January 26 - Henry David Thoreau addresses the Concord Lyceum with "The Rights and Duties of the Individual in Relation to Government" (which later came to be known as Civil Disobedience).
- February 2 - Mexican-American War: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is signed, ending the war.
- February 2 - California Gold Rush: The first ship with Chinese emigrants seeking fortune in California's gold country arrive in San Francisco.
- February 19 - First rescue party reaches the Donner Party, a convoy of settlers almost buried under snow near what is now the Donner Lake. They have eaten everything, including their own dead
- February 21 - Karl Marx publishes The Communist Manifesto.
- February 22 - In Paris, revolt erupts against the king Louis Philippe. Two days later he abdicates, leading to the Second Republic.
- March 4 - Carlo Alberto di Savoia signs the Statuto Albertino that will represent the first constitution of the Regno d'Italia
- March 7 - The Great Mahele (land division) is signed in Hawaii.
- March 10 - The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is ratified by the United States Senate, ending the Mexican-American War.
- March 15 - Revolution breaks out in Pest. The Habsburg rulers are compelled to meet the demands of the Reform party.
- March 20 - King Ludwig I of Bavaria abdicates
- March 23 - Province of Otago in New Zealand is founded.
- March 29 - An upstream ice jam stops almost all water flow over Niagara Falls for 30 hours
- April 10 Chartist 'Monster Rally' held in Kennington Park London, headed by Feargus O'Connor. A petition demanding the franchise is presented to parliament.
- April 10 - Bridge collapses in Yarmouth, England - 250 dead
- May 15 - Radicals invade the France Chamber of deputies
- May 19 - Mexican-American War: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo - Mexico ratifies the treaty thus ending the war and ceding Texas, California and most of Arizona and New Mexico to the United States for $15 million dollars.
- May 29 - Wisconsin is admitted as the 30th U.S. state.
- July 19 - Women's rights: Seneca Falls Convention - The two day Women's Rights Convention opens in Seneca Falls, New York and the "Bloomers" are introduced at the feminist convention.
- July 29 - Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt - In Tipperary, an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule is put-down by a government police force.
- August 17 - Yucatan officially united with Mexico
- August 19 - California Gold Rush: The New York Herald breaks the news to the East Coast of the United States, that there is a gold rush in California (although the rush started in January)
- August 28 – Mathieu Luis, first black member joins the French parliament as a representative of Guadaloupe
- November 1 - In Boston, Massachusetts, the first medical school for women, The Boston Female Medical School (which later merged with Boston University School of Medicine), opens.
- November 3 - Greatly revised Dutch constitution proclaimed
- November 7 - U.S. presidential election, 1848: Whig Zachary Taylor of Louisiana defeats Democrat Lewis Cass of Michigan in the first US presidential election held in every state on the same day.
- December 2 - Ferdinand I, Emperor of Austria, abdicates in favor of his nephew, Franz Josef I.
- December 10 - Prince Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte elected first president of the French Second Republic.
- December 20 - President Bonaparte takes his Oath of Office in front of the French National Assembly.
- December 26 - Phi Delta Theta Fraternity founded
- Cholera epidemic in New York kills 5000
- Associated Press founded in New York
- Queen's College for women founded in London
- Boston Public Library is founded by an act of the Great and General Court of Massachusetts
- Shaker song Simple Gifts is written by Joseph Brackett in Alfred, Maine
- First railway in Spain is opened, with line Barcelona to Mataró (circa 40 km).
- Illinois and Michigan Canal is completed.
- Independent Republic of Yucatan joins Mexico in exchange for Mexican help in suppressing revolt by Maya Indians.
- Serfdom is abolished in Austro-Hungarian Empire.
- John Bird Sumner becomes archbishop of Canterbury.
- British, Dutch, and German governments lay claim to New Guinea.
- Admiral Nevelskoi explores Strait of Tartary.
- Dunedin, New Zealand is founded by Scots settlers.
- University of Ottawa is founded.
- University of Mississippi is founded.
- University of Wisconsin, Madison is founded.
- Geneva College in Pennsylvania is founded.
- Holmes County, Florida is created.
- Elizabeth Gaskell publishes Mary Barton anonymously.
- Henrik Ibsen publishes first play Catilina.
- Ivar Aasen publishes Grammar of the Norwegian Dialects.
- Robert Schumann composes opera Genoveva.
- Richard Wagner begins writing libretto that will become Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung).
- Rhodes College is founded.

Ongoing events


- Mexican-American War (1846-1848)
- Irish Potato Famine (1845-1849)

Births


- January 6 - Hristo Botev, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1876)
- January 19 - John F. Stairs, Canadian businessman and statesman (d. 1904)
- January 21 - Henri Duparc, French composer (d. 1933)
- January 27 - Togo Heihachiro, Japanese admiral (d. 1934)
- February 5 - Joris-Karl Huysmans, French author (d. 1907)
- February 5 - Belle Starr, American outlaw (d. 1889)
- February 8 - Joel Chandler Harris, American journalist and author (d. 1908)
- February 14 - Benjamin Baillaud, French astronomer (d. 1934)
- February 16 - Octave Mirbeau French art critic and novelist (d. 1917)
- February 18 - Louis Comfort Tiffany, American glass artist (d. 1933)
- February 24 - Grant Allen, Canadian author (d. 1899)
- February 24 - Andrew Inglis Clark, Tasmanian politician (d. 1907)
- February 27 - Hubert Parry, English composer (d. 1918)
- March 19 - Wyatt Earp, American lawman and gunfighter (d. 1929)
- March 31 - Viscount William Astor, British financier and statesman (d. 1919)
- April 7 - Randall Thomas Davidson, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1930)
- April 10 - Hubertine Auclert, French feminist (d. 1914)
- May 23 - Otto Lilienthal, German engineer (d. 1896)
- June 7 - Paul Gauguin, French artist (d. 1903)
- July 6 - Gabor Baross, Hungarian statesman (d. 1892)
- July 9 - Robert I, Duke of Parma, last ruling Duke of Parma (d. 1907)
- July 15 - Vilfredo Pareto, Italian economist (d. 1923)
- July 22 - Winfield Scott Stratton, American miner (d. 1902)
- July 25 - George Robert Aberigh-Mackay, Anglo-Indian writer (d. 1881)
- July 25 - Arthur James Balfour, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1930)
- November 13 - Albert I, Prince of Monaco (d. 1922)

Deaths


- January 19 - Isaac D'Israeli, English author (b. 1766)
- January 20 - Christian VIII, King of Denmark (b. 1786)
- February 15 - Hermann von Boyen, Prussian field marshal (b. 1771)
- February 23 - John Quincy Adams, 6th President of the United States (b. 1767)
- March 29 - John Jacob Astor, American businessman (b. 1763)
- April 8 - Gaetano Donizetti, Italian composer (b. 1797)
- May 25 - Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, German writer (b. 1797)
- June 27 - Denis Auguste Affre, Archbishop of Paris (b. 1793)
- July 4 - François-René de Chateaubriand, French writer and diplomat (b. 1768)
- August 7 - Jöns Jakob Berzelius, Swedish chemist (b. 1779)
- August 12 - George Stephenson, English locomotive pioneer (b. 1781)
- November 9 - Robert Blum, German politician (b. 1810)
- November 23 - Sir John Barrow, English statesman (b. 1764)
- November 24 - Lord Melbourne, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1779)
- December 19 - Emily Brontë, English author (b. 1818)
- Edward Baines, British newspaperman and politician (b. 1774) Category:1848 ko:1848년 simple:1848

August 19

August 19 is the 231st day of the year (232nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 134 days remaining.

Events


- 293 BC - Oldest known Roman temple to Venus Libitina founded on the Esquiline Hill; institution of Vinalia Rustica begins.
- 1561 - Queen Mary Stuart returns to Scotland.
- 1692 - Salem Witch Trials: In Salem, Massachusetts five women and a clergyman are executed after being convicted of witchcraft.
- 1745 - Jacobite Rising, Prince Charles Edward Stuart lands from a French warship in Glenfinnan, raises his standard and marches on London - the start of the Second Jacobite Rebellion known as "the 45"
- 1768 - Saint Isaac's Cathedral is founded in Saint Petersburg, Russia
- 1782 - Battle of Blue Licks: the last major battle of the American Revolutionary War, almost ten months after the surrender of the British commander Lord Cornwallis following the Battle of Yorktown.
- 1812 - War of 1812: American frigate USS Constitution defeats the British frigate HMS Guerrière off the coast of Nova Scotia.
- 1813 - Gervasio Antonio de Posadas joins Argentina's second triumvirate.
- 1839 - Presentation of Jacque Daguerre's new photographic process to the French Academy of Sciences.
- 1848 - California Gold Rush: The New York Herald breaks the news to the East Coast of the United States of the gold rush in California (although the rush started in January).
- 1862 - Indian Wars: During an uprising in Minnesota, Lakota warriors decide not to attack heavily-defended Fort Ridgely and instead turn to the settlement of New Ulm, killing white settlers along the way.
- 1895 - American frontier murderer and outlaw, John Wesley Hardin, is killed by an off-duty policeman in a saloon in El Paso, Texas.
- 1919 - Afghanistan gains independence from the United Kingdom.
- 1929 - The radio comedy show Amos and Andy makes its NBC debut starring Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll.
- 1934 - The first All-American Soap Box Derby is held in Dayton, Ohio.
- 1934 - The creation of the position Führer approved by the German electorate with 89.9% of the popular vote.
- 1942 - World War II: Operation Jubilee - The 2nd Canadian Infantry Division leads an allied forces amphibious assault on Dieppe, France.
- 1944 - World War II: Liberation of Paris - Paris rises against German occupation with the help of Allied troops.
- 1945 - Vietnam War: Viet Minh led by Ho Chi Minh take power in Hanoi, Vietnam.
- 1953 - Cold War: The CIA helps to overthrow the government of Mohammed Mossadegh in Iran and reinstate the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
- 1955 - In the Northeast United States, severe flooding caused by Hurricane Diane, claims 200 lives.
- 1960 - Cold War: In Moscow, downed American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers is sentenced to ten years imprisonment by the Soviet Union for espionage.
- 1960 - Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 5 with the dogs Belka and Strelka, 40 mice, 2 rats and a variety of plants.
- 1961 - The Australian public-affairs show Four Corners starts on the ABC.
- 1965 - Japanese prime minister Eisaku Sato becomes the first post-World War II sitting prime minister to visit Okinawa.
- 1975 - The cricket test match between England and Australia is called off after the pitch is vandalised by supporters of George Davis.
- 1980 - Saudia Flight 163, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar burns after making an emergency landing at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, killing 301 people.
- 1981 - Gulf of Sidra Incident: Two Libyan Sukhoi Su-22 fighter jets intercept United States fighters over the Gulf of Sidra and are destroyed by them.
- 1987 - Hungerford Massacre: In the United Kingdom, Michael Ryan kills sixteen people with an assault rifle and then commits suicide.
- 1989 - Polish president Wojciech Jaruzelski nominates Solidarity activist Tadeusz Mazowiecki to be the first non-communist Prime Minister in 42 years.
- 1990 - Leonard Bernstein conducts his final concert, ending with Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.
- 1991 - Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev is overthrown by a coup. This leads to the fall of the Soviet Union
- 1999 - In Belgrade, tens of thousands of Serbians rally to demand the resignation of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia President Slobodan Milošević.
- 2002 - A Russian Mi-26 helicopter carrying troops is hit by a Chechen missile outside of Grozny, killing 118 soldiers.
- 2003 - A car-bomb attack on UN headquarters in Iraq kills the agency's top envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello and 21 other employers.
- 2005 - The first-ever joint military exercise between Russia and China, called Peace Mission 2005 begins.

Births


- 1398 - Marqués de Santillana, Spanish poet (d. 1458)
- 1557 - Frederick I, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1608)
- 1590 - Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland, English soldier (d. 1649)
- 1596 - Elizabeth of Bohemia (d. 1662)
- 1621 - Gerbrand van den Eeckhout, Dutch painter (d. 1674)
- 1631 - John Dryden, English poet (d. 1700)
- 1646 - John Flamsteed, English astronomer (d. 1719)
- 1686 - Eustace Budgell, English writer (d. 1737)
- 1686 - Nicola Porpora, Italian composer (d. 1768)
- 1689 - Samuel Richardson, English writer (d. 1761)
- 1711 - Edward Boscawen, British admiral (d. 1761)
- 1743 - Madame du Barry, French courtesan (d. 1793)
- 1870 - Bernard Baruch, American financier (d. 1965)
- 1871 - Orville Wright, American aviation pioneer (d. 1948)
- 1875 - Stjepan Seljan, Croatian explorer (d. 1936)
- 1878 - Manuel Quezon, President of the Philippines (d. 1944)
- 1881 - Georges Enescu, Romanian composer (d. 1955)
- 1883 - Coco Chanel, French clothing designer (d. 1971)
- 1883 - Elsie Ferguson, American film actress (d. 1961)
- 1892 - Alfred Lunt, American actor (d. 1977)
- 1896 - Olga Baclanova, Russian-born actress (d. 1974)
- 1902 - Ogden Nash, American poet (d. 1971)
- 1906 - Philo T. Farnsworth, American inventor and television pioneer (d. 1971)
- 1907 - Thurston B. Morton, American politician (d. 1982)
- 1913 - Richard Simmons, American actor (d. 2003)
- 1915 - Ring Lardner, Jr., American actor and screenwriter (d. 2000)
- 1919 - Malcolm Forbes, American publisher (d. 1990)
- 1921 - Gene Roddenberry, American television producer (d. 1991)
- 1925 - Claude Gauvreau, Canadian playwright, poet, and polemicist (d. 1971)
- 1926 - Arthur Rock, American venture capitalist
- 1930 - Frank McCourt, Irish-born author
- 1931 - Willie Shoemaker, American jockey (d. 2003)
- 1935 - Bobby Richardson, baseball player
- 1938 - Diana Muldaur, American actress, dog breeder, and dog judge
- 1939 - Ginger Baker, English musician
- 1944 - Charles B. Wang, Chinese-born philanthropist
- 1940 - Johnny Nash, American singer
- 1940 - Jill St. John, American actress
- 1942 - Fred Thompson, U.S. Senator from Tennessee and actor
- 1945 - Ian Gillan, English singer
- 1946 - Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States
- 1946 - Beat Raaflaub, Swiss conductor
- 1947 - Gerard Schwarz, American conductor
- 1950 - Jennie Bond, British journalist
- 1951 - John Deacon, English musician (Queen)
- 1952 - Jonathan Frakes, American actor and director
- 1955 - Peter Gallagher, American actor
- 1956 - Adam Arkin, American actor
- 1958 - Anthony Muñoz, American football player
- 1960 - Morten Andersen, American football player
- 1963 - John Stamos, American actor
- 1965 - Kyra Sedgwick, American actress
- 1966 - Lee Ann Womack, American musician
- 1969 - Matthew Perry, American actor
- 1973 - Crown Princess Mette Marit of Norway
- 1973 - Callum Blue, British actor
- 1979 - David Douglas American drummer (Relient K)
- 1980 - Darius Danesh, Scottish singer
- 1982 - Erika Christensen, American actress
- 1983 - Tammin Sursok, Australian actress

Deaths


- 14 - Augustus, Roman Emperor (b. 63 BC)
- 1186 - Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany (b. 1158)
- 1245 - Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence (b. 1195)
- 1284 - Alphonso, Earl of Chester, son of Edward I of England (b. 1273)
- 1297 - Saint Louis of Toulouse, French Catholic bishop (b. 1274)
- 1493 - Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1415)
- 1580 - Andrea Palladio, Italian architect (b. 1508)
- 1646 - Alexander Henderson, Scottish theologian
- 1662 - Blaise Pascal, French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher (b. 1623)
- 1753 - Balthasar Neumann, German architect (b. 1687)
- 1819 - James Watt, Scottish inventor (b. 1736)
- 1822 - Jean Baptiste Joseph Delambre, French mathematician (b. 1749)
- 1872 - King Charles XV / Carl IV of Sweden and Norway (b. 1826)
- 1889 - Auguste Villiers de l'Isle-Adam, French writer (b. 1838)
- 1895 - John Wesley Hardin, American gunfighter (b. 1853)
- 1923 - Vilfredo Pareto, Italian sociologist and economist (b. 1845)
- 1929 - Sergei Diaghilev, Russian ballet impresario (b. 1872)
- 1936 - Federico García Lorca, Spanish author (b. 1898)
- 1954 - Alcide De Gasperi, Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1881)
- 1957 - David Bomberg, English painter (b. 1890)
- 1959 - Jacob Epstein, American-born sculptor (b. 1880)
- 1967 - Hugo Gernsback, Luxembourg-born editor and publisher (b. 1884)
- 1968 - George Gamow, Ukrainian-born physicist (b. 1904)
- 1970 - Paweł Jasienica, Polish historian (b. 1909)
- 1976 - Alastair Sim, Scottish actor and former rector of Edinburgh University (b. 1900)
- 1977 - Groucho Marx, American comedian and actor (b. 1890)
- 1980 - Otto Frank, father of Anne Frank
- 1994 - Linus Pauling, American chemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry and Peace (b. 1901)
- 1995 - Pierre Schaeffer, French composer (b. 1910)
- 2003 - Carlos Roberto Reina, President of Honduras (b. 1926)
- 2003 - Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (b. 1948)
- 2005 - Bueno de Mesquita, Dutch comedian and actor (b. 1918)
- 2005 - Mo Mowlam, British politician (b. 1949)

Holidays and observances


- Roman festivals - Vinalia Rustica celebrated in honor of Venus Libitina commemorating the founding of the oldest known temple to her, on the Esquiline Hill, in 293 BC on this date.
- RC saints - Saint Sebald, Saint Louis of Toulouse, Jean-Eudes de Mézeray
- Afghanistan - Afghan Independence Day see above: 1919
- National Day of the Filipino Language, Philippines - Holiday for Quezon City, Quezon Province and other municipalities named after Manuel Quezon
- National Aviation Day, USA
- Ghost Festival, the 14th day in the 7th lunar month in the Chinese calendar (2005)

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/19 BBC: On This Day]
- [http://www.tnl.net/when/8/19 Today in History: August 19] ---- August 18 - August 20 - July 19 - September 19 -- listing of all days ko:8월 19일 ms:19 Ogos ja:8月19日 simple:August 19 th:19 สิงหาคม

Lausanne, Switzerland

Lausanne () is a city in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, situated on the shores of Lake Geneva (French: Lac Léman), and facing Évian-les-Bains (France). Lausanne is located some 60 km northeast of Geneva. It is the capital of the canton of Vaud. Population (as of December 2003): 126,766. It lies in the middle of a wine-growing region.

History

The Romans built a military camp, which they called Lousanna, at the site of a Celtic settlement, near the lake where currently are Vidy and Ouchy; on the hill above was a fort called 'Lausodunon' or 'Lousodunon'. After the fall of the Empire, insecurity forced the transfer of Lausanne to its current center, a hilly, easier to defend site. The city which grew from the camp was ruled by the Dukes of Savoy and the Bishop of Lausanne, and then by Berne from 1536 to 1798. In 1803, it became the capital of a newly formed Swiss canton, Vaud.

Geography

1803 The most important geographical feature of the area surrounding Lausanne is Lake Geneva (Lac Léman in French). Lausanne is built on the southern slope of the Swiss plateau, with a difference in elevation of about 500 meters between the lakeshore at Ouchy and its northern edge bordering Le Mont sur Lausanne. Lausanne boasts a dramatic panorama over the lake. Lausanne is located at the limit between the extensive wine-growing regions of Lavaux (to the east) and la Côte (to the west).

Education


- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology - Lausanne)
- University of Lausanne (Université de Lausanne)
- École hôtelière de Lausanne

Culture

Sporting activities are very popular in Lausanne, with water sports available on the nearby lake and mountaineering in the nearby mountains. Cycling is also a popular pastime, with the vineyards in the surrounding hills providing spectacular views and challenging routes. There is an annual marathon, road cycling race GP Lausanne, and a triathlon competition. among other things. The Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne and the Ensemble Vocal de Lausanne provide a diverse and rich musical life. The latter has been under the direction of Michel Corboz for many years. Each summer, the "City festival", or "Fête de la Cite" is held at the beginning of July. There are also film festivals, and the Bach Festival, "Le Festival et Concours Bach de Lausanne" follows "La Nuit de Musées" (Museum's night) in the fall season. Lausanne has some alternative culture. Michel Corboz

Museums

Lausanne is also the site of many museums:
- Musée Historique de Lausanne (Lausanne Historical Museum)
- Musée Olympique Lausanne (Olympic Museum)
- Fondation de l'Hermitage (Hermitage Foundation)
- Cabinet des Médailles cantonal
- Collection de l'Art brut (Art Brut Collection)
- Espace Arlaud
- Espace des Inventions (Science Center for Kids)
- Fondation Claude Verdan - Musée de la main (Museum of the Hand)
- Fondation du vivarium de Lausanne
- Forum d'architectures de Lausanne
- Forum de l'Hôtel de Ville (Forum of the Town Hall)
- Musée cantonal d'Archéologie et d'Histoire (Cantonal Museum of Archeology and History)
- Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts (Cantonal Fine Arts Museum)
- Musée de design et d'arts appliqués contemporains, mu.dac
- Musée de l'Elysée (Elysée Museum)
- Musée cantonal de Géologie (Cantonal Geological Museum)
- Musée et jardins botaniques cantonaux (Cantonal Museum and Botanical Gardens)
- Musée de Pully (Pully Museum)
- Musée romain de Lausanne-Vidy (Lausanne-Vidy Roman Museum)
- Musée de la Villa romaine de Pully (Pully Roman Villa Museum)
- Musée cantonal de Zoologie (Cantonal Zoology Museum)
- Roseraie de la Vallée de la Jeunesse (Rosegarden)
- Etablissement horticole de la Bourdonnette - serres de la Ville (Horticultural Establishment of La Bourdonette - Municipal Glasshouses)

Transport

Art Brut Lausanne is going to become the first city in Switzerland to have a real metro system, with the m2 Line which will open in 2008. The rolling stock will be a shorter version of the one used on Paris Metro Line 14.

Sports


- Lausanne-Sport Football Club ([http://www.lausanne-sport.ch/])
- Lausanne Hockey Club (LHC) ([http://www.lausannehc.ch/])
- Lausanne-Morges Basket (LMB) ([http://www.morges-basket.ch/]) and Lausanne-Ville / Prilly Basket ([http://www.membres.lycos.fr/lvpb/])
- Lausanne Indians Baseball ([http://www.indians.ch/])
- International Olympic Committee Headquarters ([http://www.olympic.org/]
- International Baseball Federation ([http://www.baseball.ch/])
- International Swimming Federation

Notable people

Lausanne is the birthplace of:
- Umberto Agnelli
- Anthony Bloom
- François-Louis David Bocion
- Johann Ludwig Burckhardt
- Benjamin Constant
- Aloise Corbaz
- Charles Dutoit
- Egon von Furstenberg
- Eugène Grasset
- Bertrand Piccard
- Charles Ferdinand Ramuz
- Théophile Steinlen
- Elizabeth Thompson (Lady Butler)
- Bernard Tschumi
- Félix Vallotton

Photos of Lausanne

Photos of Lausanne, taken in June 2001: image:Lausanne1.jpg|City image:Lausanne2.jpg|City image:Lausanne_lake.jpg|Lake Geneva image:Lausanne_wine.jpg|Vineyards of Lavaux Image:Lausanne-vieille-ville-Negative0-26-24A(1).jpg|old town Image:Lausanne-Flon-Negative0-10-8A(1).jpg Image:Lausanne-Beaulieu-Negative0-34-32A(1).jpg|Beaulieu Image:Lausanne-Gare-Negative0-26-24A(1).jpg|Railway station Image:Lausanne-p1010396.jpg|Belair tower

External links


- [http://www.lausanne.ch City of Lausanne, official site]
- [http://www.lausanne-tourisme.ch The official tourism homepage of Lausanne]
- [http://www.elysee.ch/ Musée de l'Elysée]
- ---- See also: Lausanne Township, Pennsylvania Category:Cities in Switzerland Category:Municipalities of the canton of Vaud Category:Vaud Category:Cantonal capitals of Switzerland ja:ローザンヌ th:โลซานน์



Sociology

and their consequences are the subject of sociology studies. Here we see people engaged in various actions on the stairs of the institution of Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.]] Sociology is a social science on the study of the social lives of people, groups, and societies, sometimes defined as the study of social interactions. It is a relatively new academic discipline that evolved in the early 19th century. It concerns itself with the social rules and processes that bind and separate people not only as individuals, but as members of associations, groups, and institutions. Sociology is interested in our behavior as social beings; thus the sociological field of interest ranges from the analysis of short contacts between anonymous individuals on the street to the study of global social processes. In a broad sense, sociology is the scientific study of social groups, the entities through which humans move throughout their lives. There is a current trend in sociology to make it a more "applied" discipline, applicable in areas such as non-profit organizations and nursing homes. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy. Most sociologists work in one or more specialties, such as social organization, social stratification, and social mobility; racial and ethnic relations; education; family; social psychology; urban, rural, political, and comparative sociology; sex roles and relationships; demography; gerontology; criminology; and sociological practice.

History of sociology

Main Article: History of sociology Sociology is a relatively new academic discipline among other social sciences including economics, political science, anthropology, history, and psychology. The ideas behind it, however, have a long history and can trace their origins to a mixture of common human knowledge and philosophy. Sociology as a scientific discipline emerged in the early 19th century as an academic response to the challenge of modernity: as the world was becoming smaller and more integrated, people's experience of the world was increasingly atomized and dispersed. Sociologists hoped not only to understand what held social groups together, but also to develop an antidote to social disintegration. social disintegration The term "sociology" was coined by Auguste Comte in 1838 from Latin socius (companion, associate) and Greek logia (study of, speech). Comte hoped to unify all studies of humankind--including history, psychology and economics. His own sociological scheme was typical of the 19th century; he believed all human life had passed through the same distinct historical stages and that, if one could grasp this progress, one could prescribe the remedies for social ills. Sociology was to be the 'queen of sciences'. The first book with the term 'sociology' in its title was written in the mid-19th century by the English philosopher Herbert Spencer. In the United States, the discipline was taught by its name for the first time at the University of Kansas, Lawrence in 1890 under the course title Elements of Sociology (the oldest continuing sociology course in America and the Department of History and Sociology was established in 1891 [http://www.ku.edu/%7Esocdept/about/],[http://www.news.ku.edu/2005/June/June15/sociology.shtml]) and the first full fledged independent university department of sociology in the United States was established in 1892 at the University of Chicago by Albion W. Small, who in 1895 founded the American Journal of Sociology [http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJS/home.html]. The first European department of sociology was founded in 1895 at the University of Bordeaux by Émile Durkheim, founder of L'Année Sociologique (1896). The first sociology department to be established in the United Kingdom was at the London School of Economics and Political Science (home of the British Journal of Sociology) [http://www.lse.ac.uk/serials/Bjs/] in 1904. In 1919 a sociology department was established in Germany at the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich by Max Weber and in 1920 in Poland by Florian Znaniecki. Florian Znaniecki] International cooperation in sociology began in 1893 when René Worms founded the small Institut International de Sociologie that was eclipsed by the much larger International Sociologist Association [http://www.ucm.es/info/isa/] starting in 1949 (ISA). In 1905 the American Sociological Association, the world's largest association of professional sociologists, was founded. Other "classical" theorists of sociology from the late 19th and early 20th centuries include Karl Marx, Ferdinand Toennies, Émile Durkheim, Vilfredo Pareto, and Max Weber. Like Comte, these figures did not consider themselves only "sociologists". Their works addressed religion, education, economics, psychology, ethics, philosophy, and theology, and their theories have been applied in a variety of academic diciplines. Their most enduring influence, however, has been on sociology, (with the exception of Marx, who is a central figure in the field of economics as well) and it is in this field that their theories are still considered most applicable. theology] Early theorists' approach to sociology, led by Comte, was to treat it in the same manner as natural science, applying the same methods and methodology used in the natural sciences to study social phenomena. The emphasis on empiricism and the scientific method sought to provide an incontestable foundation for any sociological claims or findings, and to distinguish sociology from less empirical fields like philosophy. This methodological approach, called positivism, became a source of contention between sociologists and other scientists, and eventually a point of divergence within the field itself. As early as the 19th century positivist and naturalist approaches to studying social life were questioned by scientists like Wilhelm Dilthey and Heinrich Rickert, who argued that the natural world differs from the social world, as human society has unique aspects like meanings, symbols, rules, norms, and values. These elements of society result in human cultures. This view was further developed by Max Weber, who introduced antipositivism (humanistic sociology). According to this view, which is closely related to antinaturalism, sociological research must concentrate on humans and their cultural values. This has led to some controversy on how one can draw the line between subjective and objective research and also influenced hermeneutical studies. Similar disputes, especially in the era of Internet, have also led to the creation of branches of sociology such as public sociology.

The science and mathematics of sociology

Sociologists study society and social behaviour by examining the groups and social institutions people form, as well as various social, religious, political, and business organizations. They also study the behaviour of, and social interaction among, groups, trace their origin and growth, and analyze the influence of group activities on individual members. Sociologists are concerned with the characteristics of social groups, organizations, and institutions; the ways individuals are affected by each other and by the groups to which they belong; and the effect of social traits such as sex, age, or race on a person’s daily life. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy. Most sociologists work in one or more specialties, such as social organization, social stratification, and social mobility; racial and ethnic relations; education; family; social psychology; urban, rural, political, and comparative sociology; sex roles and relationships; demography; gerontology; criminology; and sociological practice. Although sociology emerged in large part from Comte's conviction that sociology eventually would subsume all other areas of scientific inquiry, in the end, sociology did not replace the other sciences. Instead, sociology came to be identified with the other social sciences (i.e., psychology, economics, etc.). Today, sociology studies humankind's organizations, social institutions and their social interactions, largely employing a comparative method. The discipline has concentrated particularly on the organization of complex industrial societies. Recent sociologists, taking cues from anthropologists, have noted the "Western emphasis" of the field. In response, many sociology departments around the world are encouraging multi-cultural and multi-national studies. Today, sociologists research micro-structures that organize society, such as race or ethnicity, social class, gender roles, and institutions such as the family; social processes that represent deviation from, or the breakdown of, these structures, including crime and divorce; and micro-processes such as interpersonal interactions and the socialization of individuals. Sociologists often rely on quantitative methods of social research to describe large patterns in social relationships and in order to develop models that can help predict social change. Other branches of sociology believe that qualitative methods - such as focused interviews, group discussions and ethnographic methods - allow for a better understanding of social processes. Some sociologists argue for a middle ground that sees quantitative and qualitative approaches as complementary. Results from one approach can fill gaps in the other approach. For example, quantitative methods could describe large or general patterns while qualitative approaches could help to understand how individuals understand those patterns.

Social theory

Main article: social theory Social theory refers to the use of abstract and often complex theoretical frameworks to explain and analyze social patterns and macro social structures in social life, rather than explaining patterns of social life. Social theory always had an uneasy relationship to the more classic academic disciplines; many of its key thinkers never held a university position. While nowadays social theory is considered a branch of sociology, it is inherently interdisciplinary, as it deals with multiple scientific areas such as anthropology, economics, theology, history, and many others. First social theories developed almost simultaneously with the birth of the sociology science itself. Auguste Comte, known as 'father of sociology', also laid the groundwork for one of the first social theories - social evolutionism. In the 19th century three great, classical theories of social and historical change were created: the social evolutionism theory (of which social darwinism is a part of), the social cycle theory and the Marxist historical materialism theory. Although the majority of 19th century social theories are now considered obsolete they have spawned new, modern social theories. Modern social theories represent some advanced version of the classical theories, like Multilineal theories of evolution (neoevolutionism, sociobiology, theory of modernisation, theory of post-industrial society) or the general historical sociology and the theory of subjectivity and creation of the society. Unlike disciplines within the “objective“ natural sciences -- such as physics or chemistry -- social theorists are less likely to use the scientific method and other fact-based methods to prove a point. Instead, they tackle very large-scale social trends and structures using hypotheses that cannot be easily proved, except by the history and time, which is often the basis of criticism from opponents of social theories. Extremely critical theorists, such as deconstructionists or postmodernists, may argue that any type of research or method is inherently flawed. Many times, however, social theory is defined as such because the social reality it describes is so overarching as to be unprovable. The social theories of modernity or anarchy might be two examples of this. However, social theories are a major part of the science of sociology. Objective science-based research can often provide support for explanations given by social theorists. Statistical research grounded in the scientific method, for instance, that finds a severe income disparity between women and men performing the same occupation can complement the underlying premise of the complex social theories of feminism or patriarchy. In general, and particularly among adherents to pure sociology, social theory has an appeal because it takes the focus away from the individual (which is how most humans look at the world) and focuses it on the society itself and the social forces which control our lives. This sociological insight (or sociological imagination) has through the years appealed to students and others dissatisfied with the status quo because it carries the assumption that societal structures and patterns are either random, arbitrary or controlled by specific powerful groups -- thus implying the possibility of change. This has a particular appeal to champions of the underdog, the dispossesed, and/or those at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder because it implies that their position in society is undeserved and/or the result of oppression.

Social research methods

Main article: social research There are several main methods that sociologists use to gather empirical evidence, which include questionnaires, interviews, participant observation, and statistical research. The problem with all of these approaches is that they are all based on what theoretical position the researcher adopts to explain and understand the society the researcher sees in front of themselves. If one is a functionalist like Émile Durkheim, they are likely to interpret everything in terms of large-scale social structures. If a person is a symbolic interactionist, they are likely to concentrate on the way people understand one another. If the researcher is a Marxist, or a neo-Marxist, they are likely to interpret everything through the grid of class struggle and economics. Phenomenologists tend to think that there is only the way in which people construct their meanings of reality, and nothing else. One of the real problems is that sociologists argue that only one theoretical approach is the "right" one, and it is theirs. In practice, sociologists often tend to mix and match different approaches and methodologies, since each method produces particular types of data. The Internet is of interest for sociologists in three ways: as a tool for research, for example, in using online questionnaires instead of paper ones, as a discussion platform, and as a research topic. Sociology of the Internet in the last sense includes analysis of online communities (e.g. as found in newsgroups), virtual communities and virtual worlds organisational change catalysed through new media like the Internet, and societal change at-large in the transformation from industrial to informational society (or to information society).

Sociology and other social sciences

In the early 20th century, sociologists and psychologists who conducted research in industrial societies contributed to the development of anthropology. It should be noted, however, that anthropologists also conducted research in industrial societies. Today sociology and anthropology are better contrasted according to different theoretical concerns and methods rather than objects of study. Sociobiology is a relatively new field to branch from both the sociology and biology disciplines. Although the field once rapidly gained acceptance, it has remained highly controversial as it attempts to find ways in which social behavior and structures can be explained by evolutionary and biological processes. Sociobiologists are often criticized by sociologists for depending too greatly on the effects of genes in defining behavior. Sociobiologists often respond, however, by citing a complex relationship between nature and nurture. In this regard, sociobiology is closely related to anthropology, zoology, and evolutionary psychology. Nonetheless, for most in the discipline, its ideas are unacceptable. Some sociobiologists, such as Richard Machalek, call for the field of sociology to encompass the study of non-human societies along with human beings. Sociology has some links with social psychology, but the former is more interested in social structures and the latter in social behaviors. A distinction should be made between these and forensic studies within these disciplines, particularly where anatomy is involved. These latter studies might be better named as Forensic psychology. As shown by the work of Marx and others, economics has influenced sociological theories.

Subfields of sociology


- Collective behavior
- Comparative sociology
- Computational sociology
- Environmental sociology
- Interactionism also known as the social action theory and symbolic-interactionism
- Economic development
- Economic sociology
- Feminist sociology
- Functionalism
- Historical sociology
- Human ecology (sometimes included into sociology proper)
- Industrial sociology also known as sociology of industrial relations or sociology of work
- Media Sociology
- Medical sociology
- Political sociology also known as sociology of politics or sociology of the state
- Program evaluation
- Public sociology
- Pure sociology
- Rural sociology
- Social change also known as sociology of change
- Social demography
- Social inequality
- Social movements
- Sociology of culture
- Sociology of conflict also known as Conflict theory
- Sociology of deviance also known as criminology
- Sociology of disaster
- Sociology of gender
- Sociology of the family
- Sociology of markets also known as behavioral finance
- Sociology of religion
- Sociology of science and technology
- Sociology of sport
- Sociography
- Urban sociology
- Visual sociology

See also


- List of sociology topics

External links

Self-study courses:
- [http://www.trentu.ca/trentradio/tklassen/ Free audio Lectures, An Introductory Sociology produced for the Trent University, Canada]
- [http://core.ecu.edu/soci/juskaa/SOCI2110/soci1.htm Lectures notes from Introduction to Sociology Course, East Carolina University] Other resources:
- [http://www.thearda.com American Religion Data Archive]
- [http://www.asanet.org/ American Sociological Association]
- [http://www.anovasofie.net/ Analysing and Overcoming the Sociological Fragmentation in Europe: European Virtual Library of Sociology]
- [http://www.ku.edu/%7Esocdept/centuryofsoc.pdf A Century of Sociology at University of Kansas, by Alan Sica (Adobe Acrobat PDF file)]
- [http://www.ucm.es/info/isa/ International Sociological Association]
- [http://gsociology.icaap.org/methods/ Resources for methods in social research]
- [http://www.sociosite.net/ SocioSite - Social Sciences Information System]
- [http://www.sociologyprofessor.com/ Social theories and theorists]
- [http://www.sociolog.com/ The Sociolog. Comprehensive Guide to Sociology]
- [http://www.theory.org.uk Theory.org.uk] - idiosyncratic but content-rich social theory site by David Gauntlett
- [http://shirky.com/writings/group_enemy.html A Group Is Its Own Worst Enemy]

References


- John J. Macionis, Sociology (10th Edition), Prentice Hall, 2004, ISBN 0131849182
- Piotr Sztompka, Socjologia, Znak, 2002, ISBN 8324002189
- Stephen H. Aby, Sociology: A Guide to Reference and Information Sources. 3rd edn. Littleton, CO, Libraries Unlimited Inc., 2005, ISBN 1563089475

Further reading


- Anthony Giddens, Conversations with Anthony Giddens, Polity, Cambridge, 1998. A useful introduction to core themes in classical and contemporary sociology.
- Anthony Giddens, Sociology, Polity, Cambridge
- Anthony Giddens, Human Societies: Introduction Reading in Sociology
- Robert A. Nisbet, The Sociological Tradition, London, Heinemann Educational Books, 1967, ISBN 1560006676
- Evan Willis, The Sociological Quest: An introduction to the study of social life, 3rd edn, New Brunswick, NJ, Rutgers University Press, 1996, ISBN 0813523672 Category:Humanities occupations ko:사회학 ms:Sosiologi ja:社会学 simple:Sociology th:สังคมวิทยา

Pareto efficiency

Pareto efficiency, or Pareto optimality, is a central theory in economics with broad applications in game theory, engineering and the social sciences. Given a set of alternative allocations and a set of individuals, a movement from one alternative allocation to another that can make at least one individual better off, without making any other individual worse off is called a Pareto improvement or Pareto optimization. An allocation of resources is Pareto efficient or Pareto optimal when no further Pareto improvements can be made. The term is named after Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian economist who used the concept in his studies of economic efficiency and income distribution. If an economic system is Pareto efficient, then it is the case that no individual can be made better off without another being made worse off. It is commonly accepted that outcomes that are not Pareto efficient are to be avoided, and therefore Pareto efficiency is an important criterion for evaluating economic systems and political policies. In particular, it can be shown that, under certain idealised conditions, a system of free markets will lead to a Pareto efficient outcome. This was first demonstrated mathematically by economists Kenneth Arrow and Gerard Debreu, although the result may not necessarily reflect the workings of real economies because of the restrictive assumptions necessary for the proof (markets exist for all possible goods, markets are perfectly competitive, and transaction costs are negligible). This is called the first welfare theorem. Not every Pareto efficient outcome will be regarded as desirable. For example, consider a dictatorship run solely for the benefit of one person. This will, in general, be Pareto optimal because it will be impossible to raise the well-being of anyone (excluding the dictator) without reducing the well-being of the dictator, and vice versa. Nevertheless, most people (except by definition the dictator) would not see this as a desirable economic system. There is often more than one Pareto efficient outcome for a given amount of resources. For example with a dictatorship, both with dictator Alice or with dictator Bob, the outcome will be Pareto efficient because in the first instance it will be impossible to raise the well-being of anyone without reducing Alice's benefit and similarly for Bob. A strongly Pareto optimal (SPO) allocation is one such that the allocation is strictly preferred by one person, and no other allocation would be as good for everyone. A weakly Pareto optimal (WPO) allocation is one where a feasible reallocation would be strictly preferred by all agents.

See also


- Deadweight loss
- First welfare theorem
- Kaldor-Hicks efficiency
- Multidisciplinary design optimization
- Welfare economics Category:Game theory Category:Law and economics Category:Welfare economics Category:Economic efficiency ja:パレート効率性

Indifference curve

In microeconomics, an indifference curve is a graph showing combinations of two goods to which an economic agent (such as a consumer or firm) is indifferent, that is, it has no preference for one combination over the other. They are used to analyse the choices of economic agents. For example, if a consumer was equally satisfied with 1 apple and 4 bananas, 2 apples and 2 bananas, or 5 apples and 1 banana, these combinations would all lie on the same indifference curve.

History

The theory of indifference curves was developed by Francis Ysidro Edgeworth, Vilfredo Pareto and others in the first part of the 20th century. The theory was developed so that analysis of economic choices could be based upon preferences which can be observed and compared (ordinal utility), rather than the older concept of utility which was based on the unrealistic assumption that the satisfaction derived from economic choices could be measured (cardinal utility).

Indifference Curve Properties

Indifference curves are typically assumed to have the following features:
- An Indifference curve slopes downward from left to right (negative slope). The negative slope is a consequence of the fact that the demand for one commodity (X) increases while the demand for another commodity (Y) decreases (because of diminishing marginal utility of Y), which is necessary to maintain the total satisfaction.
- Indifference curves do not intersect. This is a consequence of the assumption that consumers will always prefer to have more of either good than to have less.
- The curves are convex, which is a consequence of the assumption that as consumers have less and less of one good, they require more of the other good to compensate (corresponding to the law of diminishing marginal utility).
- The Indifference curves are ubiquitous throughout an indifference map. In other words, there exists an indifference curve through any given point on an indifference map.

Indifference Map

For a given pair of goods, many indifference curves can be drawn and placed next to each other. This representation is called an Indifference Map. The rational consumer is expected to prefer the higher or right most Indifference curve, since they represent combinations of goods providing higher levels of consumption.

Assumptions

The first three assumptions are necessary, the next two are convenient. Rationality: Consumers know their individual preferences and can choose between consumption bundle X and consumption bundle Y. They know either that X is preferred to Y, Y is preferred to X, or that they are indifferent between X and Y. Consistency: If a consumer chooses bundle X to bundle Y in the first instance, then he cannot choose bundle Y to bundle X in the second instance. Transitivity: If a consumer prefers bundle X to bundle Y, and prefers bundle Y to bundle Z, then he must prefer bundle X to bundle Z. Continuity: This means that you can choose to consume any amount of the good. For example, I could drink 11 mL of soda, or 12 mL, or 132 mL. I am not confined to drinking 2 liters or nothing. See also continuous function in mathematics. Non-satiation: This is the idea that more of any good is always preferred to less. Convexity: The marginal value a person gets from each commodity falls relative to the other good. In a two good world, if a consumer has relatively lots of one good he would be happier with a little less of that good and a little more of the other.

Example Indifference Curves

Below is an example of an indifference map having three indifference curves: indifference map The consumer would rather be on I3 than I2, and would rather be on I2 than I1, but does not care where they are on each indifference curve. The slope of an indifference curve, known by economists as the marginal rate of substitution, shows the rate at which consumers are willing to give up one good in exchange for more of the other good. For most goods the marginal rate of substitution is not constant so their indifference curves are curved. The curves are convex to the origin indicating a diminishing marginal rate of substitution. indifference curve for perfect substitutes If the goods are perfect substitutes then the indifference curves will be parallel lines since the consumer would be willing to trade at a fixed ratio. The marginal rate of substitution is constant. indifference curves for perfect complements If the goods are perfect complements then the indifference curves will be L-shaped. An example would be something like if you had a cookie recipe that called for 3 cups flour to 1 cup sugar. No matter how much extra flour you had, you still could not make more cookie dough without more sugar. Another example of perfect complements is a left shoe and a right shoe. The consumer is no better off having several right shoes if she has only one left shoe. Additional right shoes have zero marginal utility without more left shoes. The marginal rate of substitution is either zero or infinite.

Application


- Consumer theory uses indifference curves and budget constraints to produce consumer demand curves.

See also


- Consumer Equilibrium
- Price Line
- Bounded rationality
- Homo economicus
- microeconomics
- consumer theory
- budget line Category:Economics curves Category:Microeconomics ko:무차별곡선 ja:無差別曲線

Benito Mussolini

:For other people called Mussolini, see Mussolini (disambiguation). Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (Predappio near Forlì, July 29, 1883 – Giulino di Mezzegra near Como, April 28, 1945) led Italy from 1922 to 1943. He created a fascist state through the use of state terror and propaganda. Using his charisma, total control of the media and intimidation of political rivals, he disassembled the existing democratic government system. His entry into World War II on the side of Nazi Germany made Italy a target for Allied attacks and ultimately led to his downfall and death.

Early years

Mussolini was born in a medium sized village named Predappio in the province of Forlì, in Emilia-Romagna. His father, Alessandro, was a blacksmith. His mother, Rosa Maltoni, was a teacher who believed education was extremely important. He was named Benito after Mexican reformist President Benito Juárez. Like his father, Benito became a socialist. By age eight, he was banned from his mother's church, and a few years later he was expelled from school, due to stabbing a fellow student and throwing an ink pot at a teacher. He did, however, receive good grades, and he qualified as an elementary schoolmaster in 1901. In 1902 he emigrated to Switzerland. Unable to find a permanent job there and arrested for vagrancy, he was expelled and returned to Italy to do his military service. After further trouble with the police, he joined the staff of a newspaper in the Italian town of Trento in 1908. At this time he wrote a novel, subsequently translated into English as The Cardinal's Mistress. Mussolini had a brother, Arnaldo, who would later become the editor of Il Popolo d'Italia, the official newspaper of Benito Mussolini's regime.

Birth of Fascism

The word "Fascio" had existed in Italian politics for some time. A section of revolutionary syndicalists broke with the Socialists over the issue of Italy's entry into the First World War. Mussolini agreed with them. These syndicalists formed a group called Fasci d'azione rivoluzionaria internazionalista in October 1914. Massimo Rocca and Tulio Masotti asked Mussolini to settle the contradiction of his support for interventionism and still being the editor of Avanti and an official party functionary in the Socialist Party. (1) Two weeks later, he joined the