Heinkel He 280 Fighter in World War II

Heinkel He 280 Fighter in World War II The Heinkel He 280 was the worlds first true jet fighter. Developed by Ernst Heinkel, the aircraft built upon his earlier successes with the civilian He 178. First flying in 1941, the He 280 proved superior to the piston-engine fighters then in use by the Luftwaffe. Despite this success, Heinkel had difficulty gaining official support for the aircraft until late 1942. Plagued by engine issues, the He 280s development was eventually halted in favor of the Messerschmitt Me 262. The He 280 represents a missed opportunity for the Luftwaffe as it could have been operational a year earlier than the more famous Messerschmitt and aided Germany in maintaining air superiority over Europe. Design In 1939, Ernst Heinkel began the jet age with the first successful flight of the He 178. Flown by Erich Warsitz, the He 178 was powered by a turbojet engine designed by Hans von Ohain. Long interested in high-speed flight, Heinkel presented the He 178 to the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Reich Air Ministry, RLM) for further evaluation. Demonstrating the aircraft for RLM leaders Ernst Udet and Erhard Milch, Heinkel was disappointed when neither showed much interest. Little support could be found from RLMs superiors as Hermann Gà ¶ring preferred to endorse piston-engine fighters of proven design. Undeterred, Heinkel began moving forward with a purpose-built fighter that would incorporate the He 178s jet technology. Beginning in late 1939, the project was designated He 180. The initial result was a traditional looking aircraft with two engines mounted in nacelles under the wings. Like many Heinkel designs the He 180 featured elliptically-shaped wings and a dihedral tailplane with twin fins and rudders. Other features of the design included a tricycle landing gear configuration and the worlds first ejection seat. Designed by a team led by Robert Lusser, the He 180 prototype was complete by summer 1940. Aircraft designer Ernst Heinkel. Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-B21019 / CC-BY-SA 3.0 Development While Lussers team was making progress, engineers at Heinkel were encountering problems with the Heinkel HeS 8 engine which was intended to power the fighter. As a result, initial work with the prototype was limited to unpowered, glide tests which began on September 22, 1940. It was not until March 30, 1941, that test pilot Fritz Schfer took the aircraft up under its own power. Re-designated the He 280, the new fighter was demonstrated for Udet on April 5, but, as with the He 178, it failed to earn his active support. In another attempt to earn RLMs blessing, Heinkel organized a competition flight between the He 280 and a piston-engine Focke-Wulf Fw 190. Flying an oval course, the He 280 completed four laps before the Fw 190 had finished three. Again rebuffed, Heinkel redesigned the airframe making it smaller and lighter. This worked well with the lower thrust jet engines then available. Working with limited funding, Heinkel continued to refine and improve its engine technology. On January 13, 1942, test pilot Helmut Schenk became the first to successfully use the ejection seat when he was forced to abandon his aircraft. RLM Support As designers struggled with the HeS 8 engine, other power plants, such as the V-1s Argus As 014 pulsejet were considered for the He 280. In 1942, a third version of the HeS 8 was developed and placed in the aircraft. On December 22, another demonstration was organized for RLM which featured a mock dog fight between the He 280 and the Fw 190. During the demonstration, the He 280 defeated the Fw 190, as well as showed impressive speed and maneuverability. Finally excited about the He 280s potential, RLM ordered 20 test aircraft, with a follow-on order for 300 production aircraft. Heinkel He 280 Specifications (He 280 V3):GeneralLength: 31 ft. 1 in.Wingspan: 40 ft.Height: 10 ft.Wing Area: 233 sq. ft.Empty Weight: 7,073 lbs.Loaded Weight: 9,416 lbs.Crew: 1PerformancePower Plant: 2 Ãâ€" Heinkel HeS.8 turbojetRange: 230 milesMax Speed: 512 mphCeiling: 32,000 ft.ArmamentGuns: 3 x 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon Continuing Problems As Heinkel moved forward, problems continued to plague the HeS 8. As a result, the decision was made to abandon the engine in favor of the more advanced HeS 011. This led to delays in the He 280 program and Heinkel was forced to accept that another companies engines would need to be used. After assessing the BMW 003, the decision was made to use the Junkers Jumo 004 engine. Larger and heavier than the Heinkel engines, the Jumo drastically reduced the He 280s performance. The aircraft flew for the first time with the Jumo engines on March 16, 1943. With the reduced performance caused by the use of the Jumo engines, the He 280 was at a severe disadvantage to its primary competitor, the Messerschmitt Me 262. Several days later, on March 27, Milch ordered Heinkel to cancel the He 280 program and focus on bomber design and production. Angered by RLMs treatment of the He 280, Ernst Heinkel remained bitter about the project until his death in 1958. Only nine He 280s were ever built. A Lost Opportunity Had Udet and Milch seized upon the He 280s potential in 1941, the aircraft would have been in frontline service more than a year earlier than the Me 262. Equipped with three 30mm cannon and capable of 512 mph, the He 280 would have provided a bridge between the Fw 190 and Me 262, as well as would have permitted the Luftwaffe to maintain air superiority over Europe at a time when the Allies would have lacked a comparable aircraft. While engine issues plagued the He 280, this was a constant issue with early jet engine design in Germany. Messerschmitt Me 262. Photograph Courtesy of the US Air Force In most cases, government funding was lacking at the key early stages of development. Had Udet and Milch initially backed the aircraft, the engine problems most likely could have been rectified as part of an expanded jet engine program. Fortunately for the Allies, this was not the case and a new generation of piston-engine fighters, such as the North American P-51 Mustang and later versions of the Supermarine Spitfire, allowed them to take control of the skies from the Germans. The Luftwaffe would not field an effective jet fighter until the Me 262, which appeared in the wars final stages and was unable to significantly influence its outcome.

Internal Control Failures Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Internal Control Failures Paper - Essay Example It was found that most cases of internal control failures were caused by individuals external to the firm, management-level and non-management-level employees, attitude of employees towards ethics and fraud, and lack of strict reporting and double control measures within the organization (Chrorafas, 2000). The main problem was that top management did not support internal control procedures. In some quarters, this project was regarded with extreme wariness, but there also was caution about appearing to attack the idea of a conceptual framework overtly because the logic of seeking such a basis for decision making was difficult to assail. "The displacement and resettlement of the local population, of 192 World Bank projects displacing 2.5 million people between 1986 and 1993, dam and reservoir projects caused sixty-three percent of those displacements" (Macdonald 2001, p. 1011). This meant that although the issues were extremely contentious, the debates were conducted in a lower key tha n those over specific standards, and the subject rarely broke into the public prints because the media tended to view it as too esoteric for popular consumption. "A lack of regular monitoring limits the public's access to project information and impairs accountability" (Macdonald 2001, p. 1011). The... Therefore, in both the building and funding contexts, personal interests are given greater consideration than technological, ecological, or economic feasibility" (Macdonald 2001, p. 1011). The cause of the bank instability and the associated inefficiency is to be found in a specific characteristic of the financial intermediation activity: maturity transformation. The bank relies on fractional reserves. As consumers have random needs for liquidity, a financial intermediary can offer a liquidity insurance while holding in cash only a fraction of the amount deposited and investing part of the deposit in longer-term and relatively illiquid projects. This increases the welfare of depositors but it also causes instability. Project failures show the need to change policies and internal control procedures. "Bank involuntary resettlement policy requires resettlement plans to compensate relocatees, by either improving or restoring the economic base of those relocated" (Macdonald 2001, p. 1011) . This situation leads to shortage of funds and implementation of stricter financial policies. The financing of highly illiquid projects on the international markets relies on relatively short-term debt, and a run of creditors may lead a country into deep trouble even if it would otherwise have had no problems in servicing its debts (Chrorafas, 2000). "In addition, the Bank "bears special responsibility for resettlement issues in the preparation and appraisal of projects because this period before signing loans is when the Bank has maximum involvement and leverage" (Macdonald 2001, p. 1011). These failures influence internal control procedures and new internal policies. The difference is that the rules-of-conduct approach leads to relatively small and infrequent

The Development Of Ideas In Creative Process Of Zaha Hadid Essay

The Development Of Ideas In Creative Process Of Zaha Hadid - Essay Example This was attributed to a split in society into competing social fragments, as well as specialization of knowledge into categories such as painting and architecture, which previously were considered to be in the integral class of arts. Works of architecture are products of art in the form of physical buildings and some other physical infrastructure, and which have cultural significance such as history of civilization. Architecture is hence not just a product distinct from art. It can be argued that architecture is in fact art, but in more physical and tangible forms such as buildings and other infrastructure . In the ancient civilizations, the architectural designs were not just magnificent; they had monumental value that still lingers to date. It can be well argued that ancient architects developed such monumental forms of architecture because they upheld and embraced a much-intertwined connection between art and architecture. Essentially, it was not possible to depict the distinction between architecture and art during the ancient times. A few architects in modern times like Zaha Hadid have fortunately borrowed a leaf from the ancient times, and have recognized and demonstrated a fundamental connection between art and architecture. ... Subsequently in recent times the artistic spirit in architects has caved in, as beauty, environmental and historical significance of building continue to be perceived as aesthetic and an unnecessary consideration. With this shift in priority, architectural articulation of artistic beauty and creativity is rapidly becoming something of the past2. With the current rapid revolution in information technology, the abilities and functions of architects will be able to be accomplished using computers; architects may have to revive the artistic fortitude that will move them beyond designing more than just functional infrastructure, but ornamental as well. However, the contribution of Zaha Hadids in illustrating the possibility of blending architecture and art cannot be emphasized. This paper seeks to prove a review and critical analysis of Zaha Hadids contribution in shaping future the architectural industry and profession. However, art, regardless of recent developments, still forms a spher e from which emerging architectural and technological inventions can be explored. It serves as an incubator for ideas, especially architectural ones, ideas that must be tested and investigated before being subjected to the real life pressures of performance. Art thus provides a platform for experimenting with ideas before they are actualized in real life situations. Every discourse, discipline and practice employs the system of art as a platform to brainstorm and experiment on new ideas. In 2006, Daniel Libeskind opened a new kaleidoscopic wing for Denver Arty museum, and which has been largely regarded as an architectural fantasy. This example reinforced an observation that quite often the architecture of museums stood as the real work of art that overshadowed the pieces of

Died for Beauty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Died for Beauty - Essay Example Thus, a careful reader can easily find traces, in her poems, of the physical isolation, loneliness, and eccentricities which she experienced in her personal life and these poems contain hints to her unfulfilled dreams. By and large, Dickinson’s poems are subjective in nature, short and unconventional in quality, and they were mainly for private circulation rather than large-scale publishing. The unique quality of her poems such as short lines, lack of titles, unconventional capitalization and punctuation, use of slant rhyme, etc have attracted readers of the subsequent generation, although Dickinson was almost unknown as poet during her lifetime. Dickinson’s poems mainly deal with her mysterious life which is presented to the readers through her mysterious verse. Through the various themes in her poems, Dickinson presented the startling aspects ordinary human life which includes the mysterious actuality of death. It is also greatly remarkable that she dealt with two rec urring themes, i.e. death and immortality, in her poems (as well as her personal letters) and the poems discussed in this essay focus on such themes as death and immortality, love, beauty, sickness and inspiration. ... However, a careful reader can find a connotation to the poet’s failure in achieving the real meaning of beauty which is hinted by the words ‘died’ and ‘scarce’ in the opening line. It is important to recognize that the major concern of the poet in this poem is to bring out the link between beauty and truth which she achieves through the effective use of diction – for example, words like ‘adjoining room’, ‘kinsmen’, ‘brethren’, etc reveal this link. To analyze the use of versification in the poem, it is clear that the poet uses rhyming words such as â€Å"tomb – room†, â€Å"replied – said†, â€Å"rooms – names†, etc to illustrate the musical qualities of her poems. Similarly, one can find the use of figures of speech such as metaphor, personification, metonymy, etc. The use of metaphor in â€Å"We brethren are† compares the two unlike things – i.e. be auty and truth, whereas these concepts are personified in the poem when they are given human qualities. The poet is effective in the use of metonymy when she refers to ‘our lips’ and ‘our names’. In short, â€Å"I Died for Beauty, But Was Scarce† is a typical poem by Emily Dickinson in which a reader can find elements of her poetry such as common themes, lyric qualities, unconventional capitalization and punctuation, striking use of figures of speech, and connotative language. Another poem dealing with the theme of death is â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† in which Dickinson personifies death as a gentleman caller or suitor, and the poem incorporates all the major characteristics of Dickinson-poetry. In this poem, the poet celebrates the theme of death and establishes how dearly she

Study On The Student Athlete English Language Essay

Study On The Student Athlete English Language Essay Being a student athlete is one of the hardest things there is to do. You find yourself having to make to make two full time commitments, one to your professors who expects you to fully commit yourself to the classroom and one to your coach who expects you to fully commit yourself to your sport. There is no remorse in the life of a student athlete, neither professor nor coach cares if youre too tired trying to balance the two in your life. If you spent all night studying for a class your coach is not going to let you sleep in and if you spent all day working on your sport your professor wont give you any slack. Aside from being a tough life to live there are many benefits to being a college students athlete as well. Sports teach lifelong skills that have extreme value and cannot be learned outside of sports. Also being a student athlete forces you to be so busy that you dont have time to get in trouble like other college students may. Being a student athlete means much more than what its shown to be, you learn critical life lessons through your sport, you learn to deal with stress on a different level and you become bonded to your team like a family. A college team is always changing; especially at the community college level you only see a big part of the team for only a year before they move on to a four year. At the beginning of the season you look to most of these players as just a group of guys of even your competition for your position. But as you progress through the off season your look upon these men changes, instead of your competition you see a team all striving for the same goal. Eventually this team isnt just as team but becomes a family. When your teammate is out of the field and youre not you clinch your teeth for them to make the play instead of fail which could give you a chance to play. At practice you push youre hardest to force the only players to do the same. When a whole team achieves this it creates something special, a team destine for greatness. Being a student athlete can bring a lot of stress causing them to lose concentration in both school and their sport. Stress can be a major problem that can eventually cause a student to not only quit in their sport, but also drop out of school all together. Being a student athlete causes more stress than typically any other reasoning for a college student to be stressed. For example when an athlete has a game coming up and a big project due the same night it will cause a lot stress. The one way that a student athlete can avoid having this type of stress is finishing their school work ahead of time, so they can relax after the game. This strain can also cause an athlete to stop doing a sport completely for a little while and entirely focus on their school. Theres nothing wrong with doing that, but stopping a sport for any time period will interrupt the growth of an athletes skill in their sport. Having good time management could be a determining factor of winning a State Championship or not for the team. Its granted that no athlete wants to be the one that ruins winning a State Championship just because they dont plan in advance. If a student athlete is in a sport that is individual such as tennis or golf this can cause even more stress due to the amount of pressure the sport causes alone. The goal to being a good student athlete is to have time management and not be a procrastinator. An athlete must also have good valued characteristics because in most case they are looked upon as role models. When a student goes to college they will develop into the adult they want to be in the future. Being in a sport while in college can give that student some of the respectable characteristics that they will need in the future. Bob Richards once said One of the great lessons Ive learned in athletics is that youve got to discipline your life. No matter how good you may be, youve got to be willing to cut out of your life those things that keep you from going to the top. Being an athlete means you must know what will help you move forward and what will take you back and remove what will take you back. Being an athlete also gives you leadership qualities that cant be learned elsewhere because you are placed into situations where quick decisions must be made. Athletes also have good respect towards others otherwise they would get punished in their sports for having disrespect. Being an athlete or not everybody probably agrees that having to run for being disrespectful is unquestionably not worth it. Student athletes are usually respected by others because they understand how the athletes have to work hard and are always strong-minded to succeed. Most people believe the idea that college is the time for messing around and discovering yourself, especially in the life of student athletes. The college athlete has been given this reputation of jocks only playing and partying. This is very untrue, the student athlete must strive for excellence of the field and still manage to do all their homework and school work. Regardless of how tough all the school work is, I believe everyone deserves to have a college experience outside the classroom. Some believe that student Athletes lead a different college experience than a normal student. As a college student athlete myself, I have come to learn that I am going to need to work twice as hard to be able to receive good grades while earning my degree along with balancing my time consuming baseball career. While I am trying to balance all of these things I am also going to try to be adjusting to the living circumstances and other situations the college life decided to throw at me. All college students tolerate and encounter some of the same situations. The college life is a huge change from life in high school. In college students usually move away from the comfort of their homes and no longer live under the protection of their parents. Most student athletes like myself have always been juggling their school work and sports as long as they can remember. Because Ive always had a sport to go along with school Ive never had the chance to be as full time student. In high school I was always playing a sport or dedicating my time to become better in one. It gives a student an unfair advantage over student athletes because they can spend this time becoming a better student. Although, there are many issues college students and college student athletes share, there are also a lot of problems they do not. Life can be stressful at times for every college student, but your normal college students have additional time to deal with whatever problems that occur. From witness ing college students around me, I have come to the assumption that all college students will sleep as much as they can. In most cases this would mean sleeping until you have to attend class, which most likely starts around nine for most students. Your standard course load for a typical college student is around fifteen units, which averages around ten to twelve hours a week. Once a college student attends all of his or her classes for the day they are usually free to do whatever they desire. With this extra free time the student has, it is mostly devoted to their social life. Since there normally is a good amount of extra time on the college students life they can usually have a pretty decent social life outside of school. The life of a college student athlete is structured closely to a normal students life but has much more added on top. Although, your typical class normally starts around nine or eight, most athletes are required to have to be up much earlier for study hall and/or practice depending on the sport. Not being able to sleep in very much in the mornings, I celebrate when I have a class at ten and I can go home after study hall or lifting and sleep for that extra hour. After school is over for the day, a college student athlete is rarely free to do what they wish; the majority of the time, there is either practice or games to be attended too. After a long day of class and practice you get to finally go home and do homework and study. With all of their time dedicated to the sport they play, the majority of college student athletes dont have much of a social life separate from their teammates. While most of an athletes close friends are their teammates, it feels more as if a family than just simply friends. Throughout the chaotic schedules of athletes, they can still find some spare time to socialize with other friends. The difference is that every student athlete has a target on their back and constantly has eyes watching them so they must be very cautious of what they do outside of school. Being a student athlete is hard but college can still be fun. Nothing helps clear a writers block more than going outside and throwing a baseball to clear my head. It is still unsure if student athletes or regular college students party and get in trouble more. But what I am sure of is that a student athlete will run a whole lot quick when the police come because of the fear of having to face the consequences from their coaches. The truth of the matter is college is no breeze for anyone student; college as a whole is a lot of hard work and commitment. The majority of student athletes have respect, are good leaders, and are very passionate about their school work and their sport. I personally believe the life of a student athlete can be more difficult in some parts than it is for college students but the life lessons you learn from being an athlete can never be learned anywhere else. Writers Narrative Although my essay strides away from the main topic of the assignment I felt that writing this essay would help me develop as a student. I did extensive research of the benefits and withdraws of being a student athlete and wanted to argue the point that people make that student athletes care less about their school work. Work Cited 1. Academic and Athletic Reform. American Decades. Ed. Judith S. Baughman, Victor Bondi, Richard Layman, Tandy McConnell, and Vincent Tompkins.  Vol. 9: 1980-1989.   Detroit: Gale, 2001.  Ã‚  Word Count: 550. 2 College Athletics. BRADLEY JAMES BATES, JOHN R. THELIN, JASON R. EDWARDS, ROBERT E. STAMMER, Jr., RACHEL M. MADSEN, THOMAS PASKUS,, et al. Encyclopedia of Education. Ed. James W. Guthrie.  Vol. 1.  2nd  ed.   New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2003.  p344-371.  Word Count: 15416. 3. College and High School Sports. Sports in America: Recreation, Business, Education and Controversy. Robert Jacobson. 2006  ed.   Detroit: Information Plus, 2006.  p69-94.  Word Count: 8791.

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The KKK or Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1866 in Pulaski, Tennessee by former Confederate Soldiers. Some of the founders of this organization consisted of; Captain John Lester, Major James Crowe, and Richard Reed to name a few. Their main target at the time was blacks and any white person that stood with them. The Ku Klux Klan was the head of the racism movement in America. Being a hate group among minorities, they made them live in terror day in and day out. The KKK was the most feared group of people in the 1860’s. The Ku Klux Klan is better known for their bizarre costumes. They wore white robes with tall cone shaped hats that would cover their whole face except for their eyes, which was cut out. Even to this day, they follow the same dress code as they did when the organization was founded in 1866. Around 1920, the Ku Klux Klan started to burn wooden crosses in the yards of black residents in hopes they would instill enough fear that they would leave. The Ku Klux Klan also had billets that each member would hold. In 1866, when the Ku Klux Klan was founded, Nathan Bedford Forrest was the Grand Wizard of the Empire or also known as Imperial Wizard. Other than his military experience, he was not well educated, did not have experience in leading any type of people, and died not to long after the Ku Klux Klan was founded. The Ku Klux Klan Act was passed in 1871, which allowed the congress to arrest or prosecute any acts of violence that were held by the Ku Klux Klan or any form of terrorism against any individual. The Ku Klux Klan was declared unconstitutional in 1882 by the United States Supreme Court. Unfortunately, Ulysses S. Grant did not enforce the law due to many factors such as finances and it being difficult to prosecute a... ...icas’ history. Some see it as racism and hate among the KKK. Others like, the white supremacy groups, other KKK members, Neo-Nazis, and others that support and follow in their footsteps. One can’t help but to think about their ulterior motives. The KKK claims they are not racist but do not want African Americans, Hispanics, and any other race to join their alliance. Some of the KKK groups say they love but do not hate, yet they hate gays, bi-racial relationships, and we will be dammed to hell if we practice in such behaviors. They practice in what they believe in and that is making whites the superior race and although in the eyes of millions of Americans, it is wrong because we are supposed to accept everyone as they are. Regrettably, they believe only whites should exist, which sadly is protected in their constitutional rights of freedom of speech and expression.

Greek Mythology and Religion Essay

Mythology is the study and interpretation of myth and the body of myths of a particular culture. Myth is a complex cultural phenomenon that can be approached from a number of viewpoints. In general, myth is a narrative that describes and portrays in symbolic language the origin of the basic elements and assumptions of a culture. Mythic narrative relates, for example, how the world began, how humans and animals were created, and how certain customs, gestures, or forms of human activities originated. Almost all cultures possess or at one time possessed and lived in terms of myths. Myths differ from fairy tales in that they refer to a time that is different from ordinary. The time sequence of myth is extraordinary- an â€Å"other† time – the time before the conventional world came into being. Because myths refer to an extraordinary time and place and to gods and other supernatural beings and processes, they have usually been seen as aspects of religion. Because of the inclusive nature of myth, however, it can illustrate many aspects of individual and cultural life. Meaning and interpretationFrom the beginnings of Western culture, myth has presented a problem of meaning and interpretation, and a history of controversy has gathered about both the value and the status of mythology. Myth, History, and ReasonIn the Greek heritage of the West, myth or mythos has always been in tension with reason or logos, which signified the sensible and analytic mode of arriving at a true account of reality. The Greek philosophers Xenophanes, Plato, and Aristotle, for example, exalted reason and made sarcastic criticisms of myth as a proper way of knowing reality. The distinctions between reason and myth and between myth and history, although essential, were never quite absolute. Aristotle concluded that in some of the early Greek creation myths, logos and mythos overlapped. Plato used myths as metaphors and also as literary devices in developing an argument. Western Mythical TraditionsThe debate over whether myth, reason, or history best expresses the meaning of the reality of the gods, humans, and nature has continued in Western culture as a legacy from its earliest traditions. Among these traditions were the myths of the Greeks. Adopted and assimilated by the Romans, they furnished literary, philosophical, and artistic inspiration to such later periods as the Renaissance and the romantic era. The pagan tribes of Europe furnished another body of tradition. After these tribes became part of Christendom, elements of their mythologies persisted as the folkloric substratum of various European cultures. Greek religion and mythology are supernatural beliefs and ritual observances of the ancient Greeks, commonly related to a diffuse and contradictory body of stories and legends. The most notable features of this religion were many gods having different personalities having human form and feelings, the absence of any established religious rules or authoritative revelation such as, for example, the Bible, the strong use of rituals, and the government almost completely subordinating the population’s religious beliefs. Apart from the mystery cults, most of the early religions in Greece are not solemn or serious in nature nor do they contain the concepts of fanaticism or mystical inspiration, which were Asian beliefs and did not appear until the Hellenistic period (about 323-146 B.C. ). At its first appearance in classical literature, Greek mythology had already received its definitive form. Some divinities were either introduced or developed more fully at a later date, but in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey the major Olympian gods appear in substantially the forms they retained until paganism ceased to exist. Homer usually is considered responsible for the highly developed personifications of the gods and the comparative rationalism that characterized Greek religious thought. In general Greek gods were divided into those of heaven, earth, and sea; frequently, however, the gods governing the earth and sea constituted a single category. Principal DivinitiesThe celestial gods were thought to dwell in the sky or on Mount Olympus in Thessaly. The Earth, or chthonic (Gr. chtho n, â€Å"earth†), deities were thought to dwell on or under the earth, and were closely associated with the heroes and the dead. The lines separating these divine orders were indefinite, and the deities of one order were often found in another. The gods were held to be immortal; yet they were also believed to have had a beginning. They were represented as exercising control over the world and the forces of nature. Ananke, the personification of necessity, however, limited this control, to which even the gods bowed. At the head of the divine hierarchy was Zeus, the spiritual father of gods and men. His wife was Hera, queen of heaven and guardian of the sanctity of marriage. Associated with them as the chief divinities of heaven were Hephaestus, god of fire and the patron of metalworkers; Athena, the virgin goddess of wisdom and war, preeminent as a civic goddess; Apollo, deity of light, poetry, and music, and his sister Artemis, goddess of wildlife and, later, of the moon; Ares, god of war, and his consort, Aphrodite, goddess of love; Hermes, the divine messenger, later, god of science and invention; and Hestia, goddess of the hearth and home. Around these greater gods and goddesses were grouped a host of lesser deities, some of whom enjoyed particular distinction in certain localities. Among them were Helios, the sun; Selene, the moon (before Artemis came into existence); the attendants of the Olympians, such as the Graces; the Muses; Iris, goddess of the rainbow; Hebe, goddess of youth and cupbearer of the gods; and Ganymede, the male counterpart of Hebe. Poseidon, the worship of whom was often accompanied by worship of his wife, Amphitrite, ruled the sea. Attending the sea gods were the Nereids, Tritons, and other minor sea deities. The chief earth deities were Hades, ruler of the underworld, and his wife, Persephone, the daughter of Demeter. Demeter herself was usually considered an Olympian, but since she was associated with producing grain and the knowledge of agriculture; she was more closely connected with the earth. Another Olympian whose functions were likewise of an earthly character was Dionysus, god of the grape and of wine. He was accompanied by satyrs, the horsetailed sylvan demigods; Sileni, the plump, bald vintage deities; and maenads, nymphs who celebrated the orgiastic rites of Dionysus. Also among the more important divinities of the Greek pantheon were Gaea, the earth mother; Asclepius, the god of healing; and Pan, the great Arcadian god of flocks, pastures, and forests. Invocation of the GodsThe ancient Greeks had a strong sense of weakness before the grand and terrifying powers of nature, and they acknowledged their dependence on the divine beings whom they believed those powers to be controlled. In general, the relations between gods and mortals were cordial, divine wrath being reserved for those who transgressed the limits assigned to human activities and who, by being proud, ambitious, or even by being too prosperous, provoked divine displeasure and brought upon themselves Nemesis, the personification of revengeful justice. The saying of the historian Herodotus, â€Å"The god suffers none but himself to be proud† sums up the main philosophy that influences all of classical Greek literature. The sense of human limitation was a basic feature of Greek religion; the gods, the sole source of the good or evil that fell upon mortals, were approached only by making sacrifices and giving thanks for past blessings or pleading for future favors. In front of many a street door stood a stone for Apollo Agyieus (Apollo of the Thoroughfare); in the courtyard was placed the altar of Zeus Herkeios (Zeus as the patron of family ties); at the hearth Hestia was worshiped; and bedchamber, kitchen, and storeroom each had its appropriate god. From birth to death the ancient Greek invoked the gods on every memorable occasion. Because the very existence of the government was believed to depend on divine favor, celebrations for the gods were held regularly under the supervision of high officials. Public gratitude was expressed for being unexpectedly delivered from evil happenings or for being unusually prosperous. Organization and BeliefsDespite its central position in both private and public life, Greek religion was notably lacking in an organized professional priesthood. At the sites of the mysteries, as at Eleusis, and the oracles, as at Delphi, the priests exercised great authority, but usually they were merely official representatives of the community, chosen as other officers were, or sometimes permitted to buy their position. Even when the office was hereditary or confined to a certain family, it was not regarded as conferring upon its possessor any particular knowledge of the will of the gods or any special power to constrain them. The Greeks saw no need for an intermediary between themselves and their gods. Greek ideas about the soul and the afterlife were indefinite, but it was apparently the popular belief that the soul survived the body. It either hovered about the tomb or departed to a region where it led a sad existence needing the offerings brought by relatives. The disembodied soul was also presumed to have the power of inflicting injury on the living, and proper funeral rites were held to ensure the peace and goodwill of the deceased. Within the framework of Greek worship of many gods are traces of the belief that all natural objects are endowed with spirits. Fetishism, the belief in the magical efficacy of objects employed as talismans against evil, was another feature of early Greek religion. Examples of fetishes are the sacred stones, sometimes regarded as images of specific deities, such as the pyramidal Zeus at Phlius or the rough stones called the Graces at the ruined city of Orchomenus in Boeotia. OriginsAncient Greek religion has  been the subject of speculation and research from classic times to the present. Herodotus believed that the rites of many of the gods had been derived from the Egyptians. Prodicus of Ceos (5th cent. B. C. ), a Sophist philosopher, seems to have taught that the gods were simply personifications of natural phenomena, such as the sun, moon, winds, and water. Euhemerus (370? -298 B. C. ), a historian of myths believed, and many other shared this belief, that myths were the distortions of history and that gods were the idealized heroes of the past. Modern etymology and anthropology research produced the theory that Greek religion resulted from a combination of Indo-European beliefs and ideas and customs native to the Mediterranean countries since the original inhabitants of those lands were conquered by Indo-European invaders. The basic elements of classical Greek religion were, in the Hellenistic and Roman periods, somewhat modified and supplemented by the influences of philosophy, Middle Eastern cults, and changes in popular belief (as shown, for instance, in the rise of the cult of Fortune, or Tyche). The main outlines of the official religion, however, remained unchanged. BibliographyAncient Myths, by Norma Lorre Goodrich Meridian Books (July 1994)The Greek Gods, by Bernard Evslin (August 1995)Greek Myths, by Olivia E. Coolidge (December 1949) Greek and Egyptian Mythologies, by Yves Bonnefoy (November 1992) Gods and Heroes; Story of Greek Mythology, by Michael Foss (September 1995) Funk and Wagnalls, New EncyclopediaMultipedia CD-ROM for windows.