mOtOrcYCle

MONDAY, 15 JUNE 2009


A motorcycle (also called a motorbicycle, motorbike, bike, or cycle) is a single-track,[1] two-wheeled[2] motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions. Being the most affordable form of motorised transport, in some parts of the world they are also the most widespread (e.g., Vietnam).[3][4][5]

Arguably, the first motorcycle was designed and built by the German inventors Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in Bad Cannstatt (since 1905 a city district of Stuttgart) in 1885.[6]
The first petroleum-powered vehicle was essentially a motorised bicycle, although the inventors called their invention the Reitwagen ("riding car"). However, if a two-wheeled vehicle with steam propulsion is considered a motorcycle, then the first one may have been American. One such machine was demonstrated at fairs and circuses in the eastern U.S. in 1867, built by Sylvester Howard Roper of Roxbury, Massachusetts.[6]

A pre-war Polish Sokół 1000
In 1894, Hildebrand & Wolfmüller became the first motorcycle available for purchase.[7]

mANAgeMeNt !n !slam!c

#Islamic development may sound familiar to many but Islamic development management may not. Islamic development has appeared within at least the Muslim academic circle for almost two decades now[1], but Islamic development management has emerged only about two years ago, beginning 1997. Specifically, Islamic development management evolved from within a group of academics at Universiti Sains Malaysia in Penang, Malaysia, under a project called Islamic Development Management Project (IDMP), based at the School of Social Sciences. To our knowledge, it is the first project that deals with the new field called Islamic development management.

#The IDMP has introduced the Islamic development management field to deal with more than just Islamic development. It believes that not only the development that has to be Islamic, but the management of the Islamic development too has to be so. An Islamic development that is managed unlslamically would not lead to a realisation of a real Islamic development. This is indeed the core problem of Muslim countries today intending a realisation of Islamic development. While advocating and endeavouring the cause of Islamic development, they are constrained by almost the total absence of Islamically-trained development managers. In many cases, there are efforts to realise Islamic development, but conventional development managers using conventional management systems manage them. The result, understandably, appears clearly to be much to be desired.

#As development from the Islamic perspective incorporates all aspects of man's life, from spiritual to family, society, state and universe levels, Islamic development management therefore refers to the management of all aspects of man's life, either from the social, economic and political perspective, in the Islamic way. It goes beyond the conventional management that limits itself to organisational, human resource and business management. Instead, Islamic development management covers all human activities, either for themselves, their family, employment and social organisations, at village, district, state, national and international levels. It includes, for instance, such efforts of Khalifah Umar Abdul Aziz to clean governmental instruments, as the abolition of unjust taxes. So are the efforts of Imam Abu Hanifah, Imam Malik, Imam Shafie and Imam Ahmad bin Hambal in their independent reformation (tajdid) works undertaken without the help of the state; the efforts of Imam Al Ghazali in purifying the faith (aqidah) of the people of his time; the efforts of lbnu Taimiyah in attacking blind taqlid and pioneering ijtihad, and the efforts of Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi in purifying the teachings of tasawwuf (Yusof Ismail 1991: 5-6). All can be regarded as Islamic development management, as long as they are based on Islamic faith (aqidah} and worldview (tasawwur). All in all, Islamic development management covers all Islamic management related to all aspects of man's life, from spiritual management to the socio-economic and political management, as well as the management of a government[9].