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Esarhaddon. In campaigns against both Arabia and Elam in 645
B.C., Assurbanipal, son of Esarhaddon,
dries up wells to deprive Elamite troops. He also guards wells from Arabian fugitives in an earlier Arabian
war. On his return from victorious battle against Elam, Assurbanipal floods the city of Sapibel, an ally of
Elam. According to inscriptions, he dams the Ulai River with the bodies of dead Elamite soldiers and
deprives dead Elamite kings of their food and water offerings.
612 B.C. — Fall of Ninevah in Assyria and the Khosr River
A coalition of Egyptian, Median (Persian), and Babylonian forces attacks and destroys Ninevah, the
capital of Assyria Nebuchadnezzar's father, Nebopolassar, leads the Babylonians. The converging armies
divert the Khosr River to create a flood, which allows them to elevate their siege engines on rafts.
605-562 B.C. — Nebuchadnezzar Uses Water to Defend Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar builds immense walls around Babylon, using the Euphrates and canals as defensive
moats surrounding the inner castle.
558-528 B.C.—Cyrus the Graet Digs 360 Canals
On his way from Sardis to defeat Nabonidus at Babylon, Cyrus faces a powerful tributary of the Tigris,
probably the Diyalah. According to Herodotus's account, the river drowns his royal white horse and
presents a formidable obstacle to his march. Cyrus, angered by the «insolence» of the river, halts his army
and orders them to cut 360 canals to divert the river's flow. Other historians argue that Cyrus needed the
water to maintain his troops on their southward journey, while another asserts that the construction was an
attempt to win the confidence of the locals.
539 B.C.—Cyrus the Great Invades Babylon
According to Herodotus, Cyrus invades Babylon by diverting the Euphrates above the city and
marching troops along the dry riverbed. This popular account describes a midnight attack that coincided
with a Babylonian feast.
355-323 B.C.—Alexander the Great Destroys Persian Dams
Returning from the razing of Persepolis, Alexander proceeds to India. After the Indian campaigns, he
heads back to Babylon via the Persian Gulf and Tigris, where he tears down defensive weirs that the
Persians had constructed along the river. Arrian describes Alexander's disdain for the Persians' attempt to
block navigation, which he saw as «unbecoming to men who are victorious in battle».
From Environment, 1994, Vol 36, Number 3.
LEADERSHIP
by Fred E. Fiedler and Martin M. Chemers
l.Most of us believe that we possess the uncanny ability to identify outstanding leaders. This confidence
in the ability to spot the «comers» is encouraged by the belief of many executives that they would not be
5
where they are if (A) they were not excellent leaders and (B) they could not pick them. It may well be true
that some executives and personnel men do have the intuition necessary to select good leaders for certain
jobs. It is equally true — and considerably more relevant — that most executives do not, and that they
10
share this lack of ability with psychologists, personnel men, and the rest of us mortals.
2.It is worth asking, first of all, why many executives think they are endowed with such abilities. One
answer is that it is very difficult to determine in most situations how well a leader performed, and only
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rarely do we compare one leader with another. Getting the typical vice-president to say why a particular
manager performs well is often like trying to nail jelly to a wall: he tells you that every manager's job is
different, that it's not just how much one does but how he does it, and that whatever measure you suggest
20
does not really capture the essence of managerial performance.
3.That vice-president is, of course, absolutely correct. What a manager does is indeed highly varied, and