RESUME 1

Globalization is a transplanetary process or set of processes involving increasing liquidity and the growing multi directional flows of people! ob"ects! places! and information! as well as the structures they encounter and create that are barriers to! or e#pedite! those flows$ Globalization can be analyzed through conceptual metaphors such as solids! liquids! gases! flows! structures! heavy! light! and weightless$ % range of technological developments in transportation and communication have enabled far greater global movement of what was previously solid$ &he difficulties posed by the fact that many things and people retain some solidity can now also be dealt with more readily$ 'auman(s ideas on liquidity inform this boo)(s orientation to globalization$ *iquid phenomena do not easily! or for long! hold their shape$ &hey are not fi#ed in either space or time$ Most importantly! liquids tend to dissolve obstacles in their path$ Globalization is increasingly characterized by flows of liquid phenomena including people! ob"ects! decisions! information! and places$ Many global flows are interconnected they do not occur in isolation$ +thers might be multi directional flows all sorts of things flow in every conceivable direction among all points in the world$ ,onflicting flows add another layer of comple#ity to the analysis of global processes$ -inally! reverse flows often have a boomerang effect$ &hat is! they flow bac) to their source and often have a negative effect on it$ Globalization can also be analyzed through metaphors of heavy! light! and weightless$ .istorically! there has been movement from that which is heavy to that which is light and most recently to that which approaches weightlessness$ /reindustrial and industrial societies were 0heavy!0 characterized by that which is difficult to move$ %dvances in transportation and technology made goods! people! and places lighter$ 1e are currently in an era defined not only by lightness but also increasingly by weightlessness$ Some structures continue to be important in impeding the movement of that which is liquid! light! or weightless$ 'orders between nation states and the 0digital divide0 are important e#amples of such barriers$ +ther heavy structures e#pedite flows$ 0Routes0 or 0paths0 serve to both e#pedite flows along their length as well as to limit flows that occur outside their confines$ &here are also formal or informal bridges that e#pedite flows$ More concealed structures facilitate the illegal movement of people and products$ %n increasing number of people also participate in global networ)s! involving networ)s of communication and information technology! as well as interpersonal networ)s$ -urther! an increasing number of social structures 2states! cities! law3 and social institutions 2the family! religion! sport3 are interconnected through networ)s and

thusenable global flows$ 4ation states as well as other organizations such as corporations and labor unions may e#pedite flows for some while creating barriers for others$ -or instance! protectionist tariff systems aid the flow of products from a nation state(s own farms and manufacturers! while inhibiting similar flows from foreign competitors$ &here also e#ist subtler structural barriers which are in many ways more powerful than the material structures such as national borders$ &hese structures serve to differentiate and subordinate on the basis of social class! race! ethnicity! gender! age! se#ual orientation! and region of the world$ &hose who occupy superordinate positions in these hierarchies tend to erect structures in order to impede flows that are not beneficial to them$ &hey also encourage flows that wor) to their advantage$ Globalization can also be conceptualized through structures and processes$ &his serves to highlight the dynamism of the globalization process as well as the interconnectedness between structures and processes$

Resume 5 &he study of globalization is home to significant debates and controversies$ &he ma"or split is between globalists and the s)eptics$ 1hile the globalists observe one broad process of globalization! the s)eptics point to not one! but many globalizations$ 6n terms of the global order! the globalists observe the development of various relationships in the global world which do not involve the government$ +n the other hand! s)eptics contend that the world continues to be dominated by relations among and between national governments$ &he origin of globalization can be analyzed through five perspectives$ -irst! globalization can be seen as being hardwired into humans! in the form of a basic urge for a better life$ &his instinct results in the spread of globalization through commerce! religion! politics! and warfare$ Second! globalization may be perceived as a long term cyclical process$ 6n this view! there have been other global ages prior to the present one! and each age is destined to contract and disappear! after attaining a pea)$ &hird! globalization can be viewed as a series of historical epochs or waves! each with its own point of origin$ % fourth perspective argues that the multiple points of origin of globalization are located in seminal historical events$ % fifth view focuses on broader! more recent changes in the twentieth century 6t argues that the global processes in motion prior to 11 66 were more limited in geographic scope and less intensive than the global processes of the late twentieth and early twenty first centuries$ &here e#ist various types of globalizations$ Some ma"or categories include economic globalization! political globalization! cultural globalization! globalization of religion! science! health and medicine! globalization

of sport! and globalization of higher education$ Rather than a single point of origin for globalization as a whole! there are separate points of origin for different globalizations$ &he materialist approach tends to identify ob"ective factors such as capitalism! technology! and multinational corporations as the driving forces of contemporary globalization$ &he idealist position stresses the role of idea systems! information! and )nowledge as the prime movers in the process$ %lternatively! we can see globalization as being driven by both material and ideal factors$ .ere! it is important to distinguish between globalization from above and globalization from below$ Globalization from above is a process created and disseminated by large scale forces! especially those associated with the 4orth$ Globalization from below! which involves individual actors as well as small groups of actors opposing globalization! can serve to ma)e the process less inevitable! and even derail it completely$ Globaphiliacs emphasize the positive aspects of globalization$ Globaphiliacs tend to deemphasize its negative aspects! particularly the people who have not been beneficiaries of the process$ &hese critics emphasize the negative impact of globalization on the less well off portions of the world(s population$ &hey contend that globalization leads to greater inequality$ Some scholars adopt a middle ground in this debate$ *arge groups of people feel disadvantaged by various aspects of globalization$ .owever! many activists feel that much more needs to be done to deal with the most problematic aspects of globalization$