Domestic Violence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Domestic Violence - Essay Example The new policy insists that children be taken from their households even with only two incidences of problematic behavior then the parents will have to undergo treatment, therapy or counseling before the children can be given back to their care. This method actually severs family ties and changes developmental needs of children significantly. Maintaining the family as complete and intact ensures that the children will have the connection and bond with their families, even it may be dysfunctional. It is, then, important to guarantee their safety while protecting the family as a unit. The new policy may protect the children from harm, but it does not protect them from the disadvantages of being disconnected from their families. The new policy should, then, recognize the needs of empowering the parents with problem behaviors to continue correcting their behavior while their children are with them to be able to provide them their developmental needs, as well as, a positive environment.Th e Department of Job and Family Services may have the best in their minds when they created this policy. However, they forgot to take account the importance of family connections and the primary developmental needs of children when they imposed that children should be taken away from their families if there is a case of problematic behavior in the family. Taking children away from their parents should be the last resort unless they are the direct victims of their parent’s abusive behavior.

My Best Friend Essay Example for Free

My Best Friend Essay Everyone has a friend with whom you feel like sharing every moment of your life. I am lucky that I found one .We have known each other since I was in grade 7. To me, he is really special boy. Not only does he has a good appearance, he also has a good personality. He is smart and handsome. However, the thing that makes everybody like him the most is his personality .He is always very positive, cheerful and modest. Hes one of the best student in my class. Hes good at every subject, but she never showed pride in his abilities and always tried to learn harder. Besides, hes always ready to help her friends in their study. Thats why many people in my class cherished him. Furthermore, he is very warm-hearted and friendly .Though he is bit different from every guy I have met so far, he fails to express himself most of the times , apart from this he is very caring, kind, and makes friends selflessly. Moreover, to me, he is a great friend who always knows how to take care and share. Whenever Im sad or cheerful, happy or in sorrow, hes always next to me to share with me. Sometimes, I get into trouble, which makes me tired , worried and discouraged, he is always willing to come beside me, help me calm down, give me helpful advice so that I can come over. Not only that, he is very reliable, I can share my secrets with him without a bit worries. He is really a person who always listens to me, understands me every time and every where, though he has different attitude to tackle things. Thats why he became my close friend. I always feel proud because of having a great friend likes him on my side.

The Powerful Settings of Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay

The Powerful Settings of Hawthorne’s Young Goodman Brown Setting can be a powerful literary device, and Nathaniel Hawthorne wields it to great effect. There are four major settings in Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† and they all take place in Salem. This essay is an examination of those settings and their effects. The tale opens in a doorway as the reader is presented with two lovers saying goodbye. The two lovers are Goodman Brown, who is eager to leave for his adventure; and his wife Faith Brown, who is desperately trying to dissuade him from leaving the house tonight. In this setting, the main elements induce feelings that are positive, bright, and hopeful – a sunset, a familiar street and home, and the pink ribbons in Faith’s cap. Goodman’s positive setting doesn’t last very long, however. As he walks down the street past the meeting house, his surroundings undergo a drastic change. Goodman’s path takes him onto a "dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest, which barely stood aside to let the narrow path creep through, and closed immediately behind."†His new se... ...ne Review 19 (Spring 1993): 18-21. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Complete Short Stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York: Doubleday and Co., Inc.,1959. The Holy Bible, King James Version-Old and New Testaments, with the Apocrypha   http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/kjv.browse.html James, Henry. Hawthorne. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1997. Martin, Terence. Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York: Twayne Publishers Inc., 1965. Wagenknecht, Edward. Nathaniel Hawthorne – The Man, His Tales and Romances. New York: Continuum Publishing Co., 1989.

Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ “Waiting”

Among the most interesting work of modern art on display in the J. Paul Getty Museum is Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ â€Å"Waiting,† a pastel painting done around 1882. In this work, Degas captures the picture of a young ballerina and an older woman sitting on a bench, apparently waiting for something to happen or someone to arrive. The painting is a study of the sharp contrast between youth and old age, which is illustrated in the play of colors, light, and shadows that the painter carefully preserved in his work.The young ballerina is painted in soft colors of gold, blue, and cream which reflect the light while the older woman is garbed in black. In the same manner, the younger subject is painted to suggest motion, energy and restlessness; here she is massaging her feet, apparently waiting for a performance to begin. The woman, on the other hand, is immobile, devoid of light movement and comes across to be waiting for the action to end so she can rest.Degas’ â €Å"Waiting† is displayed in a small dark room located on the left side of the museum entrance. Exhibited along with it are German painter Joseph Vivien’s â€Å"Portrait of a Man† and Swiss painter Jean-Étienne Liotard’s â€Å"Maria Frederike van Reede-Athlone at Seven.† The darkness of the room brings out the sharp contrast in colors and the use of light in the pastels. Likewise, its small size is clearly meant to convey a sense of intimacy wherein the viewer feels a sense of privilege at catching a glimpse of so personal a thing as an individual’s portrait.The arrangement of the paintings depicts the various influences of artists according to their respective periods. In particular, the works show the progression of portraiture and the use of pastel as a medium since Vivien’s â€Å"Portrait of a Man† in 1725 to Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† a century and a half later. It is clear that Degas’ work is a huge de parture from the conventional concept of painting people’s portraits. Vivien’s portrait is carefully composed according to the artistic conventions of balance and color; its subject is self-consciously positioned at the center of the canvass, capturing the face, and his figure appears to come out of the shadows.Vivien’s colors are austere and sombre, which reflects the prevailing style at that time. Liotard’s â€Å"Maria Frederike van Reede-Athlone,† on the other hand, reflects a subtle change in the painter’s pallet from Vivien’s dark, muted colors to bold, albeit cold tones. However, the same rule is applied regarding the subject’s position. Hence, Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† stands out in sharp contrast to the two paintings.First, he clearly circumvents the prevailing concept of portraiture by showing two subjects who assume positions that are not usually accepted in portraiture: the young girl is shown massaging her feet, which makes her face unseen by the audience, while the woman’s face is half-covered by her hat. Degas also draws his subjects from a very different angle and perspective; he is obviously not as interested in showing their facial countenances as in showing their characters through body language. He also abandons the dark tones in favor of bold, bright, and warm colors to create dramatic contrasts in his work.â€Å"Waiting† illustrates Degas’ affinity with the impressionist movement, although he apparently abhorred being called one because of major ideological rifts with prominent impressionist painters. He particularly criticized his self-confessed impressionist contemporaries for their practice of painting in â€Å"plein-air† as he believed that it was tantamount to copying which interfered with the artist’s imagination. (Smith 58) Nevertheless, Degas’ work clearly shares the same impressionist characteristics as shown in his style an d choice of events and people of everyday life as subjects.Like the works of most impressionist painters such as Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Jean Frederic Bazille, and Camille Pissarro, Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† reflected the belief that â€Å"art should relate to the real world and reflect modern life† as opposed to painting religious and mythological figures that was traditionally favored by connosieurs of high art. (Snider) Its choice of subject, a ballerina and her companion in the process of waiting, captures an aspect of modern French life. Its style undoubtedly mirrors the impressionists’ fascination with capturing light in the most realistic manner, and its colors also carry the impressionist preference for warm, vibrant tones that suggest movement and life.Although Degas’ works and his obsession with the figures of women, particularly dancers, in his paintings have often invited varied int erpretation from art critics and academicians, it is clear that his middle-class background and upbringing has tremendous influence in shaping his choice of subjects. (Theodore 145) Reff Theodore infers that Degas’ passion for painting movement arose from his early exposure to the ballet which was â€Å"a familiar part of the contemporary scene† in nineteenth century Paris. (145)The impact of Degas’ background is also seen in his being â€Å"deeply concerned with truth for its own sake, in probing life beneath the crust of good manners† (Nicolson 172) in his depiction of Parisian modern life. In â€Å"Waiting,† Degas honestly portrays the differences between his subjects, in effect making a statement about the sad truth that the young ballerina, with all her vibrancy and beauty, will soon pass into the life of her companion, drained and weary of the world.It is suggested that Degas’ and other impressionists’ ideas were largely influen ced by the rapid technological and social developments of their time. Indeed, impressionism drew much of its ideas from innovations, techniques, and concepts in photography. (Snider) Clearly, Degas and his contemporaries were so impressed by the ability of photographs to capture the exact effect of light on its subjects that they sought to recreate this ability in their paintings. Other painters, like Monet, even tried to copy the photographic effects of varying shutter speeds in his work. (Snider)Degas’ background as an artist produced and molded by extraordinary and tumultous changes in his time that was brought about by the rapid industrialization of France and all of Europe, his pastel work â€Å"Waiting† could be displayed in another gallery together with Claude Monet’s â€Å"Gare Saint-Lazare,† a painting which shows the Saint-Lazare train station. This painting would give a contemporary audience an idea of â€Å"Waiting’s† background as the train is a ubiquitous symbol of the industrial revolution which gripped not only the economic but also cultural life of Europe in Degas’ time. Hence, Monet’s work sets the mood for Degas’ curious study of youth and old age in the age of modernity, where everything passes quickly.Other works that could be exhibited alongside Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† is Auguste Renoir’s painting â€Å"The Dance at the Moulin Delagalette† and Degas’ own work â€Å"The Millinery Shop† which shows the social activities of the French middle class and the activities of working-class women, respectively. The two paintings would also highlight the contrast that Degas sought to portray in his subjects, wherein Renoir’s middle-class subjects, painted as they socialize in a party, is compared with a lone woman while making hats that are ostensibly worn by those who can afford it. Likewise, Andy Warhol’s â€Å"Campbell Soup Cansâ⠂¬  would also be a fitting touch to the gallery as it signifies the advent of mass production. Although Warhol’s work is at odds with the impressionist theme of Degas’ work, it nevertheless echoes the â€Å"ordinariness† and repetitive pattern of modern life that Degas captures in his painting.Works Cited:Nicolson, Benedict. â€Å"Degas’ Monotypes.† The Burlington Magazine 100.662 (May 1958):172-175Reff, Theodore. â€Å"Edgar Degas and the Dance.† Arts Magazine 53.3(November 1978):145-149.Smith, George E. â€Å"James, Degas, and the Modern View.† NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction 21.1 (Autumn 1987): 56-72Snider, Lindsay. â€Å"A Lasting Impression: French Painters Revolutionize the Art World.† The History Teacher, 25.1(November 2001). 5 May 2008. http://historycooperative.org/

Design And Construction Fundamentals Of Earth Engineering Essay

Abstraction: This paper focuses on Earth dikes, one of the oldest dike in the universe. Forming service reservoir for domestic H2O supply and irrigation intent, Earth dams comprise the most legion category. The design and building of Earth dikes is complex because of the nature of the changing foundation conditions and the different belongingss of the stuffs available for the building of the embankment. Careful choice of site and types of stuffs used in the building every bit good as a site probe are critical. Last but non least, an apprehension of the possible failure of Earth dikes is of import in the design and building procedure of the Earth dikes.1. IntroductionEarth dikes, besides called Earthen or Earth-filled dikes are by and large built in or near drainage line which has assortment of intents including domestic H2O supplies, agricultural irrigation, H2O for landscape betterment and others. One advantage of the Earth dike is that it can accommodate to a weak foundation provid ed proper consideration is given to the foundation and design of the Earth dikes. However, failure of any of import portion of the Earth dikes such as ooze, structural and foundation will take to the prostration of the whole dike.Types of Earth DamsConstructed as a simple homogeneous embankment of good compacted Earth, Earth dikes are classified as Homogenous Earth Dams, Zoned Earth Dams and Diaphragm Dams. A brief treatment of the types of dike is as follow: Homogeneous Earth Dam is a sort of common Earth dikes which consist of two chief constituents ; the imperviable to semi-pervious construction and the toe filter and the drain. The intent of the filter and the drain is to supply a done manner for ooze to go out the dike construction without doing eroding. This type of dike is normally built on an imperviable foundation such as solid stone or clay. The following type of Earth dike is Diaphragm Dam. A stop dike, can be used when there is no imperviable bed below the dike and alteration of the dike can be made to accommodate at an imperviable bed. Besides, this type of dike is limited to a tallness of 8.0m in order to maintain ooze forces at a safe degree. Last type of Earth Dam is Zoned Dam. A Zoned Dam is known to be the most efficient usage of dirt as each stuff is used to its greatest potency. The incline protection protects the shoulder from eroding and beckon action, the nucleus retains the H2O and the shoulders stabilize the nucleus. Last, Figure 1 shows the 3 types of Earth dikes. Figure 1. Cross subdivision of Homogenous Earth dike, Zoned Earth Dam and Diaphragm Dams ( Stone, 2003 ) .2. Design OF EARTH DAMEarth dike is built for the intent of hive awaying H2O and is made of compacted Earth. It is normally more convenient when concrete is expensive and timber beginning is scarce.2.1 FoundationA site probe should be conducted anterior to building so as to look into the nature of the foundation. By cognizing the existent foundation status at site, the Earth dike can so be designed harmonizing to it. A dike foundation is said to be equal if it is capable of supplying a stable support for the embankment under all status of impregnation and burden and that it supply adequate opposition to seepage to avoid inordinate loss of H2O ( Bureau of Reclamation 1987 ) . Harmonizing to Bureau of Reclamation ( 1987 ) , dam foundation can be by and large classified into three types viz. foundation of stone, foundation of farinaceous stuff and foundation of powdered stuff. These foundations may necessitate to be treated to stabilise any failing every bit good as to cut down ooze. For case, farinaceous, pervious foundations present no troubles in the affair of colony or stableness whereas a powdered, weak foundation is capable to colony or supplanting normally present no job in ooze. Rock foundation on the other manus must be checked for erosive escape and inordinate uplift force per unit area. If such conditions exist, grouting to the foundation must be considered.2.2 DirtEarth dike is normally built with clay, sand and crushed rock and hence is besides known as Earth make full dike. The type of dirt used in the building of an Earth dike must be suited to let for optimal compression every bit good to cut down ooze. Soil permeableness is one of of import standards to be considered in dam design, seepage-confinement units, drainage and other structural elements ( Goldin, AL & A ; Rasskazov, LN 1992 ) . Higher frictional opposition and greater permeableness in farinaceous dirts is the ground for its greater stableness as compared to cohesive dirts. Greater permeableness permits rapid dissipation of pore H2O force per unit areas ensuing from compressive forces.2.3 EmbankmentIn finding the tallness of the embankment, it is necessary to apportion for a colony between 5 to 10 per centum. This is to forestall its tallness from going lower than the wasteweir tallness ( Figure 2 ) since colony is ineluctable despite holding a good compression due to the fact that air and H2O are being forced out of the nothingnesss by the weight of the dike, therefore doing consolidation ( Shaw, R & A ; Smout, I 2009 ) . During compression, equal attempt should be applied throughout the dike to forestall differential colony. The minimal compression attempt should non be less than 95 % of the Standard Maximum Dry Density ( Department of Primary Industries and Water 2008 ) . The stableness of the embankment depends mostly on its ability to defy shear emphasis which comes from internally applied tonss such as the weight of the dirt and the embankment inclines, and externally applied tonss such as reservoir and Earthquake tonss. As mentioned earlier, steeper inclines can be adopted for farinaceous dirts since they are more stable. In contrast, a gentler incline needs to be applied for homogeneous stuff with low permeableness. Figure 2. Cross subdivision of an Earth dike2.4 SpillwaySpillway plays an of import function in Earth dike since it allows inordinate H2O to flux without dominating the dike wall. There are two types of wasteweir viz. the cut wasteweir ( Figure 3 ) and natural wasteweir. Figure 3. The place of a cut wasteweir In order to cut down H2O speed and later minimise eroding, a soft incline for wasteweir must be provided. However, for steep incline, loose rocks or geotextile can be provided to cut down eroding. Apart from that, equal capacity for the wasteweir must be provided to forestall dominating and to enable the wasteweir to efficaciously manage run-off.3. Construction ON EARTH DAMS3.1 DeprivingOrganic dirt and flora must be removed from the country that will be covered by the dam base. The removed organic dirt are stockpiled and used on the downstream incline of the fill.3.2 Key trenchKey trench which is besides known as cutoff trench is excavated below the base of the fill to a lower limit of three pess deep for dike with 10 to 12 pess height. The cardinal trench is included in the dike design to procure the dike to the base stuff and to forestall ooze under the fill.3.3 Diversion tunnelDiversion channels are excavated before the dike can be constructed. This tunnel is frequently lined with concrete. The tunnel is built around the dike building country at one side of the vale. In the drill holes, explosive stuffs are placed and blaring will takes topographic point. The dirt or broke n stone is so removed. The stairss are repeated until the tunnel is completed. Figure 4. Constructing a recreation channel ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.hydro.com.au/handson/students/images/damb1.gif ) In Figure 5, after the dike building is completed, the recreation channel is closed o let the lake to get down make fulling. Figure 5. Closing of recreation tunnel ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.hydro.com.au/handson/students/images/damb4.gif )3.4 CofferdamIn summer, the building on deviating the river starts when the river degrees are low. At the upstream of the upstream of the chief dike building country, little dike which is besides called as caisson are built. It is built utilizing Earth-moving equipment. The caisson will move as a barrier to the river and the H2O will flux to the recreation tunnels. The 2nd caisson will be built downstream of the chief dike building country. At this country, the caisson will forestall the river flow to flux back into the building country. Figure 6. Cofferdams act as barriers to the river ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.hydro.com.au/handson/students/images/damb2.gif )3.5 Foundation GroutingGrouting consists of lines or a line of holes which are drilled into the dike foundation. The two types of foundation grouting are drape and consolidation grouting.3.6 Curtain groutingCurtain grouting consists of a individual row of urarthritis holes which are drilled and grouted in sequence by bagger proving to the base of the permeable stone or to a deepness that acceptable hydraulic gradients are achieved ( Fell et al 2005 ) . Based on Figure 7, primary holes are drilled foremost. The last hole spacing will usually be 1.5m or 4m, but besides may be every bit close as 0.5m ( Fell et al 2005 ) . This attack allows control over the efficiency of the drape grouting. Figure 7. Curtain and consolidation grouting ( Fell et al, 2005 ) Figure 8. Grouting downstage with bagger ( WRC, 1981 )3.7 Fill buildingEarth dike is normally constructed from imperviable stuff which is clay or clay-based stuff. The building stuffs, taken from the environing country have to be placed and compacted horizontally in the fill. Dry dirts are normally added with wet and compression equipment such as a sheepsfoot bagger is used to obtain the proper compression. The building started by make fulling the cutoff trench with well-compacted stuff and six inch beds is added until the maximal tallness is obtained. The top of the dike at the centre of the draw is normally built 10 per cent higher than the design to let colony of the fill. Based on Figure 9, a riparian pipe is placed through the underside of the fill and a frost-free valve is placed on the riparian pipe. This pipe and valve system map is to let H2O to be released downstream to other H2O storage installations during H2O deficits. Figure 9. Elevation position of dike ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/ $ department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex4613 )4. POTENTIAL FAILURES OF EARTH DAMSPotential failures of dikes have ever been great importance and much attending has been given to safety rating and research due to their black effects. Harmonizing to Fell, MacGregor, Stapledon and Bell ( 2005 ) , 79 % of Earth dikes with less than 30m high suffer more failures than higher dike. This may reflect better design, monitoring and surveillance of larger dike. Potential failures of Earth dike can be grouped into three classs: Fluid mechanicss failure, ooze failure and structural failures. A detail treatment of the types of possible failure of Earth dike is as follow:4.1 Fluid mechanicss FailureFluid mechanicss failure occurs by the surface eroding of the dike by H2O. Fluid mechanicss failure is due to several grounds. One of fluid mechanicss failure is dominating of dikes. Dominating failure occurs when the d egree of the reservoir exceeds the capacity of the dike. Harmonizing to Fell, MacGregor, Stapledon and Bell ( 2005 ) , over-topping is one of the chief causes of failure in Earth dikes. Overtopping may besides be caused by deficient freeboard provided. Figure 10 shows the overtopping of Earth dike. Following, eroding of upstream face ( Figure 11 ) due to uninterrupted wave action caused eroding of the dike. However, this can be avoided if the surface is protected by rock rip-rap and filter. The following ground is due to eroding of downstream incline by rain H2O. Although the downstream face of the embankment is non affected by reservoir H2O, it may acquire eroded by heavy rain fluxing down the face of the dike, doing the formation of gullies and eventually prostration of the whole dike. An Example of failure of Earth dikes due to dominating is South Fork Dam which is built across Conemaugh River, Pennsylvania. The intent of the dike was to provide H2O to a navigable canal from Johnstown to Pittsburg. The dike was about 2.5m high and during a heavy rainstorm on 30th May 1889, big sum of dust was washed into the reservoir and blocked the wasteweir. Finally the dike was overtopped and failed by eroding let go ofing a inundation moving ridge about 1.2m high. Figure 10. Overtopping of dike ensuing in washout ( Bassell, 1999 ) . Figure 11. Erosion of upstream face by moving ridges interrupting on the surface ( Bassell, 1999 ) .4.2 Seepage failureSeepage failure is besides known as piping failure. Seepage failures are by and large caused by pervious foundation, escape through embankments, conduit escape and shedding. All dikes have seepage as the impounded H2O seeks way of least opposition through the dike construction and its foundation. If the surface ooze intersects the upstream face of the dike, eroding may happen which will take to possible failure of the dike. Typical method used to command the measure of ooze is rock fills installed at the downstream toe or gravel covers to cross the line of ooze before it reaches downstream toe as shown in Figure12. Figure 12. Seepage through a dike or embankment with stone toe or crushed rock cover. ( Stone, 2003 )4.3 Structural FailureStructural failure includes failure of the upstream, downstream inclines of the Earth dike, foundation every bit good as checking distortion and colony ( Figure 13 ) of the dike construction that may take to dominating or seepage failure. Slides in embankment occur when the inclines are excessively steep ( Figure 14 ) for the shear strength of the embankment stuff to defy the emphasiss imposed. Failure of this type normally cause by defective design and building. As for foundation failure, it occurs because of inordinate pore H2O force per unit area which reduces the strength of the dirt which it may non be able to defy the shear emphasiss induced by the embankment. Furthermore, harm caused by tunneling animate beings lead to structural failure. This causes seepage H2O to flux out rapidly, transporting all right stuffs along which accordingly leads to shrieking failure within the construction of the dike and eventually take to a complete prostration of the dike. Figure 13. Excessive colony of dike and foundation ( Bassell, 1999 ) . Figure 14. Downstream face excessively steep unable to be resisted by dirt shear strength ( Bassell, 1999 ) .5. DecisionEarth dike, besides known as Earth filled dike, is built for the intent of hive awaying H2O. It can be classified into three different types which vary in their designs. A site probe must be conducted prior to plan and building to find the appropriate design that suits the foundation of the dike. The type of dirt used in the building of the Earth dike must let for optimal compression. The stableness of the dirt will so act upon the incline design of the embankment. During building, flora and organic dirt will be removed from the dam country. Water will be diverted to let for building. In add-on, grouting is besides done to assist better the foundation. When planing and building an Earth dike, it is besides critical to see possible dike failures so as to take considerations to forestall it.

Whats the Average SAT Essay Score

What's the Average SAT Essay Score SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips You've gotten back your SAT scores. On your score report, there's information about how you did on Evidence-Based Reading and Writing and Math, compared to students in the previous year's graduating class who took the SAT. But what about your essay? How does your essay score compare to everyone else? There's no percentile information for that in the score report. Find out what an average SAT essay score looks like (and how you stack up) in this article! feature image credit: FLL Small, Medium, Large Trophies by David Luders, used under CC BY 2.0/Cropped from original. What’s an Average SAT Essay Score? First, a quick reminder about how SAT essays are scored: two graders score each SAT essay on a scale of 1-4 across three different dimensions: Reading Analysis Writing Summed together, this means your score can range between 2 and 8 for each area. There is no longer one single "total" SAT essay score, just Reading, Analysis, and Writing essay scores. Logically, it would seem that the average SAT essay score in each domain should be a 5 (since that's halfway between 2 and 8). The most recent SAT essay score data bears this out except when it comes to the Analysis dimension. The average SAT essay score for students graduating high school in 2018 was 5 out of 8 for Reading, 4 out of 8 for Analysis, and 5 out of 8 for Writing (source: CollegeBoard 2018 Total Group Report). To get a better idea of how frequently different essay scores were assigned, I created several different SAT essay score distribution charts that show how many students got each essay score for Reading, Analysis, and Writing. The data in this first chart shows the distribution of scores across all three dimensions for students who graduated high school in 2018. Distribution of SAT Essay Scores for the 2018 Graduating Class (data source for all graphs: CollegeBoard) From this chart, we can see that there's the same general trend for the numbers of students who got various Reading and Writing scores, while there's something quite different going on with Analysis scores. Let's separate these scores out into separate graphs, starting with Reading and Writing essay scores. Distribution of SAT Essay Reading Scores for the 2018 Graduating Class Distribution of SAT Essay Writing Scores for the 2018 Graduating Class If you compare the graphs for the distribution of Reading and Writing scores, you'll see a striking similarity between them when it comes to how many students got each score on Reading and Writing. There's a huge drop-off from the middle range of scores (4-6) to the upper and lower ends of the scale, and by far most students get a 6/8 in these areas. Because so many people score towards the middle on SAT Essay Reading and Writing scores, it's safe to say that if you score a 3 or below, your essay score is definitely lower than average; if you score a 5-6, your score is pretty average; and if you score a 7 or above, your score is significantly higher than average. Things are a little murkier when it comes to the Analysis essay scores. Let's take a look. Distribution of SAT Essay Analysis Scores for the 2018 Graduating Class In contrast to the trend for Reading and Writing scores, Analysis scores are heavily skewed toward the bottom of the scale. Even though the average Analysis score for 2018 was a 4 out of 8 (which is towards the middle), the Analysis score the most students received was 2 out of 8. Why did so many students score lower on Analysis, while still managing to do okay on Reading and Writing? The most likely answer is that the Analysis dimension is the part of the SAT essay task that is most different from what students have had to do on other standardized test essays. Instead of giving their opinion on the passage in the SAT essay prompt, students are asked to analyze the author's opinion. While this analysis is pretty straightforward once you manage to wrap your mind around it, it is very different from what students had to do on the old SAT essay (and what students are still asked to do on the ACT essay) and other standardized essays like DBQs. Because of the different trends for Analysis scores on the SAT essay, an Analysis score of a 6 or above puts you well above average; a score of 3-5 is solidly middle of the pack; and a score of 2 is low. If you did get a 2/8 Analysis score, the good news is that you can most likely boost it to at least a 4 (if not a 6 or higher) by reviewing these 15 SAT essay tips. When colleges look at your SAT scores, however, they usually won't look at your essay scores all by themselves. Most schools look at your overall SAT score first, your Evidence-Based Reading and Writing and Math scores next, and your essay scores last (if they care about your SAT essay scores at all). This leads into my next point... How Much Does My Essay Score Matter? Because your essay score no longer affects your Writing section score on the SAT, the importance of the SAT Essay has decreased significantly. More and more schools are dropping the requirement for students to submit SAT with Essay scores entirely, and schools that do require the SAT Essay often place much less importance on your essay score than on your other SAT scores. Still, there are highly competitive programs and schools that use SAT scores to place students in the appropriate level classes that require students to submit SAT Essay scores. For these kinds of schools, while your SAT essay score still won't matter as much as almost any other part of your application, you'll still want to aim for a high enough score that you're not immediately disqualified (or so that you don't get bumped down into remedial writing). So what's the average SAT essay score you should target for more competitive schools? Our advice is to aim for at least a 6 out of 8 on Reading, Analysis, and Writing. Higher essay scores (particularly on the Analysis dimension) are even better, but a 6 out of 8 shows that you have above-average writing skills on a standardized essay written at the end of a multi-hour test. In cases where admissions offices might wonder if your application's personal statement was a fluke, your SAT essay scores can confirm that you do have a certain level of writing ability. And the SAT essay rubric requirements to get a 6 out of 8 on each section are a pretty reasonable minimum standard for colleges to expect students to meet. What If My SAT Essay Scores Are Below Average? If you're struggling to get a 4 or above on each SAT essay section, don't despair- you're not alone, and there is hope. Start by reading our collection of SAT essay blog articles. I recommend starting with our introduction to the new SAT essay prompts, our SAT essay tips article, and our explanation of the SAT essay rubric. Next, follow along as I write an SAT essay, step-by-step. With these four articles, you'll learn just what is required to excel in each dimension of the SAT essay and how to approach reading the prompt, analyzing the passage, and writing the essay. For further help, you can take a look at how to create your own SAT essay templates and how to get a perfect 8/8/8 score on the SAT essay. If you're struggling with identifying how the authors of SAT essay prompts build their argument, we also go into the six most common argumentative essay devices. Finally, if you think you'd benefit from more personalized feedback on your essay writing, you might want to try out PrepScholar SAT. You'll get to write essays on official SAT essay prompts and receive feedback from graders on what you're doing well and how you can improve and boost your score to the next level. What’s Next? Now that you know what an average SAT essay score is, what should be your target? Learn more with our article on what a good SAT essay score is for you. Discover what the relationship is between SAT essay length and essay score here! Do you need to submit an SAT essay score for the schools you're applying to? Find out if your schools are on the list of schools requiring the SAT with essay here. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? Check out our best-in-class online SAT prep classes. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your SAT score by 160 points or more. Our classes are entirely online, and they're taught by SAT experts. If you liked this article, you'll love our classes. Along with expert-led classes, you'll get personalized homework with thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step, custom program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Try it risk-free today:

The 13 BEST Self-Publishing Companies of 2019

The 13 BEST Self-Publishing Companies of 2019 The 13 BEST Self-Publishing Companies of 2019 Deciding to self-publish your book is both exciting and nerve-wracking - on one end, you’re the master of everything. Yet there are so many choices that you, the publisher, need to make that it can be overwhelming.One such crossroads is the pivotal decision you’ll need to make when you decide which is the best self-publishing company for you. There are a lot of them out there advertising their services to self-published authors. And it’s tough to wade through them, especially when some are reputable and some are, well, not so much!That’s where this post comes into the picture. We’ll guide you through the 13 best self-publishing companies in the industry and give you tips on which one to choose, so that you emerge at the end of the tunnel with a beautiful book ready to be read by the world.What are your options when it comes to the best self-publishing company? How to Self-Publish a Book on Amazon Read post 💠° Pricing: Free to upload 💠¸ Royalties: 70% if the eBook price is between $2.99 and $9.99 OR 35% if priced is below $2.99 - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? BothThe titan of online bookstores, Amazon is the first retailer on which most authors think to sell their titles. And it’s for good reason: it’s the world’s biggest seller of digital eBooks and around 74% of all eBooks bought in the U.S. in 2015 were bought from Amazon.com.Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is Amazon’s self-publishing platform (not to be confused with "Amazon Publishing" - their division that operates like a traditional publisher), which recently grew even bigger after its merge with CreateSpace. Any author can self-publish a book using KDP, though you’ll need to do it manually yourself. For a step-by-step guide, check out this comprehensive post on self-publishing on Amazon KDP.Note that Amazon KDP is not the same as Amazon KDP Select. KDP Select is Amazon’s exclusivity program - meaning that, if you choose to enroll in it, you can only sell your book on Amazon. In exchange for this, Amazon will giv e you:Access to Kindle Countdown Deals and free promotions. You can discount your book - and even set it to free on the Kindle store - for a certain period of days every 90 days. Learn more about the power of discounting (and the smart way to go about it) in this Reedsy Live.Enrollment in Kindle Unlimited. KU is Amazon’s subscription service for readers, which allows members to read as much as they want. It’s very popular and a good portion of Amazon customers only read titles from KU these days.If you’ve researched these perks and decided that KDP Select is the route for you, then there’s no need for you to read the rest of this post, as you’ve essentially agreed not to use any other self-publishing company 🙂 Instead, you can familiarize yourself with the KDP Select program with these resources:KDP Select vs. â€Å"Going Wide† - Which Option is Right For You?The Complete Guide to eBook DistributionApple Books💠° Pricing: F ree to upload 💠¸ Royalties: 70% on most books ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? BothAnother big name that everyone should know, Apple founded its self-publishing arm in 2010. In 2012, Apple announced that 400 million books were downloaded on Apple Books (though it’s important to note that the number of downloads differs from the number of books sold, as The Digital Reader clarifies in this post). Though Amazon far eclipsed it as the foremost eBook reading platform since then, Apple Books still gets a fair amount of eyes.While figuring out ways to monetize a book on Apple Books might be a challenge, it’s much easier to actually publish one. Apple Books provides a platform called iBooks Author for self-publishing authors to create their books. It’s relatively easy-to-use and uploading is free!Barnes Noble Press💠° Pricing: Free 💠¸ Royalties: 65% on books priced between $2.99 and $9.99 OR 40% for books priced below $2.99 - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? BothAs you might expect, Barnes Noble Press (formerly known as NOOK Press) is Barnes and Noble’s self-publishing platform. Barnes Noble Press has pretty infamously struggled for market share against Amazon. However, as for as interfaces are concerned, it’s easy to publish on BN Press - and, similar to the other big retailers, it’s free to upload your book. Exclusivity is not required to publish with BN Press.It’s important to note that you can set your book for free on BN Press. What’s more, Barnes Noble is still working on innovating and adding new features for self-published writers. Just this January, BN Press introduced an ad portal, making it easy for new authors to create marketing campaigns on the Barnes Noble website for their books. Check out this page for more information on self-publishing on BN press.Rakuten Kobo💠° Pricing: Free to upload 💠¸ Royalties: 70% on books priced more than $2.99 in the U.S. OR 45% for books priced below $2.99 - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? PrintRakuten Kobo is the last big retailer that you should know. It’s a Canadian company (that’s a subsidiary of the Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten) - as such, it’s got a strong reach in the international eBook market. However, it’s only the #5 store in terms of market share in the U.S., though it’s growing year by year.Kobo Writing Life is Kobo's free-to-use self-publishing arm - and it's fairly simple to use! Kobo’s international focus is also a sweet bonus if you’re aiming to sell your eBook in countries outside of the U.S. Don’t forget that distributing to Kobo through Kobo Writing Life (rather than an aggregator) gives you several perks, too, one of which is access to some exclusive promotion opportunities on Kobo. class=panel-body>Master advertising on KoboSign up for this free 10-part course! Enter your email below and select 'Distribution - Kobo Hacks for Optimizing Sales' in the drop-down menu of the next pop-up.Speaking of aggregators, let’s find out what are the best aggregators currently operating in the business.AggregatorsIf you’re getting a migraine just thinking about uploading your book onto all of these different book retailers by yourself, that’s when aggregators come into the picture.Aggregators are capable of aggregating all of these markets: pushing your book to each retailer and centralizing it all into one sales report. With a single upload to, for instance, Draft2Digital, your book would be on sale on Amazon, BN Press, Apple Books, Kobo - and even more smaller retailers.Then you’d be able to track your sales across all of these retailers through Draft2Digital’s interface, receiving one royalty check a month. In exchange for this service, a n aggregator will take an additional cut of your royalties - which means that this route is for anyone who wants to quickly save on time and doesn’t mind paying extra.Draft2Digital💠° Pricing: 10% of the book’s retail price per copy sold 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes Noble, Google Play Books, Kobo, Playster, Tolino, OverDrive, Scribd, Bibliotheca - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? eBookIf you decide to use an aggregator, Draft2Digital is the one that we recommend at Reedsy. Why’s that? Lots of factors, including excellent customer support, an easy-to-use dashboard, and a sleek website design. Not to mention the extra perks that D2D packs into the deal: they do the formatting for you, whether you’re using eBooks or print copies of your book. D2D also:Gives authors Universal Book Links (UBL). As its name suggests, these UBLs easily make books discoverable by allowing authors to generate a link to each of their books, which goes straight to the customer’s preferred book retailer.Touts an â€Å"automated back matter† tool. This nifty service automatically adds your newly published eBook to the â€Å"Also by this author† section for your other books on every store.Add the fact that it distributes to all of the major eBook stores, and you’ve pretty much got the whole package in Draft2Digital.Smashw ords💠° Pricing: 15% of the retail price on Smashwords and 10% on other platforms per copy sold 📇 Distributes to: Apple Books, Barnes Noble, Scribd, Kobo, Blio, the Smashwords store - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? eBookThe original aggregator, Smashwords was the undisputed king in town until Draft2Digial entered the picture. However, Smashwords is still very popular today.On a simple side-by-side comparison, Smashwords and Draft2Digital offer similar pricing structures and royalties. Where Smashwords falls short is in terms of its user experience and ease of use (you need to do the formatting yourself on Smashwords, which definitely isn’t a piece of cake). Smashwords also does not distribute books to Amazon. That said, outside of Amazon, it’s got a slightly more extensive distribution network than Draft2Digital, so whether or not you want to sell your book on some of these more obscure retailers is up to you. Our friend over on Kindlepreneur, Dave Chesson, wrote an in-depth take on the differences between Smashwords and Draft2Digital, which you can read here.PublishDrive💠° Pricing: 10% of the retail price per copy sold OR subscription pricing 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Apple Books, Google Play, Barnes Noble, Scribd, OverDrive, Playster, Odilo, Bookmate - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? eBookPublishDrive might be the new kid on the block, but it’s definitely made the most of its time. Founded in 2015, it works with over 4,500 publishers and can connect you to over 400 stores today. It’s got all the workings of the other aggregators: a modern interface and regular sales reports to keep you up-to-date on your profits. What sets PublishDrive apart from the pack are:PublishDrive’s subscription pricing options. If you just agree to pay $100 per month, you can keep all of your royalties, which might be a good fit for established authors in the industry.Its distribution options. Along with all of the major Western retailers, PublishDrive also specializes in international distribution, giving indie authors access to foreign markets that were previously out of reach.StreetLib💠° Pricing: 10% of the retail price per copy sold 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Google Play, Apple Books, Barnes Noble, Kobo, Scribd, OverDrive, Indigo, Baker Taylor - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? eBookAnother international distributor, StreetLib gives you even more options if you’re aiming to reach an international audience. It’s got a strong presence in Latin America and Europe, to the extent that its dashboard can be configured in English, Italian, Spanish, Hindi - and more! One more case in point for its international strength: in January 2019, it even began offering its services for authors in Egypt.As you can probably guess, StreetLib was founded in Europe, but it’s been making recent strides in the U.S. and the U.K. As of April 2019, it distributes books to all of the major Western stores. It’s worth checking out for any author who’s particularly thinking about selling in European territories or elsewhere abroad. Maximize your profits abroadSign up for this free 10-part course! Enter your email below and select 'Distribution - Pricing Books for an International Audience' in the drop-down menu of the next pop-up.XinXii💠° Pricing: 30% of net sales for books priced more than $2.49 OR 60% for works between below $2.48 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Hugendubel, Angus Robertson, Thalia, Buecher, Whitcoulls, Indigo, Kobo, Livraria Cultura, Kobo, Scribd - more info here ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? eBookXinXii isn’t actually Chinese - it’s based in Berlin. (Surprise!) As such, it offers authors foreign distribution channels that might not be readily available elsewhere. Note that it’s particularly got a strong presence in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, distributing to a number of important retailers in those countries. However, its customer support could be found wanting, and its user interface is a bit on the clunky side: trade-offs that the author will need to make to conduct business with XinXii. 13 best self-publishing companies - and more in this masterpost #ampubbing Print-On-Demand DistributorsA print-on-demand distributor will tout itself as a one-stop shop for all of your self-publishing needs, whether that’s book cover design, book distribution, or book printing. Their costs for eBook distribution can be on the steep side (you can check out their pricing models below), but if you’re aiming to print, publish, and distribute a book, they can be incredibly useful.IngramSpark💠° Pricing: Learn more here 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes Noble, Follett, EBSCO, Booktopia, Kobo, Zola Books, 24Symbols, Bookmate ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? BothIngramSpark, owned by Ingram, is simply the biggest book wholesaler in the world. For a promo code, read our IngramSpark review.BookBaby💠° Pricing: Learn more here 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Google Play, Vearsa, Apple Books, Kobo, Bookshop, Barnes Noble, Powell’s Books, Books-A-Million ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? BothBoasting an easy-to-use interface and reliable customer service, BookBaby is an option for many first-time self-publishing authors. To learn more about BookBaby, go to this review.Blurb💠° Pricing: Learn more here 📇 Distributes to: Amazon, Apple Books, the Blurb bookstore ðŸ“â€" Print or eBook? PrintBlurb is one of the most well-known and trusted print-on-demand services out there. We particularly recommend it for visual works - such as magazines and photo books. For an in-depth evaluation of its user friendliness and pictures of the quality of its printed books, go to this review.How can you choose the best self-publishing company for you?So that brings us to the question: how do you choose which of these self-publishing companies is the best for your book?Well, it depends on your needs. If you’re printing your self-published book (and selling printed copies), you might want to read this in-depth guide on print-on-demand services, which includes a recommended distribution setup for selling print books on online bookstores.And if you’re only planning to publish an eBook, you’ll find everything that you need to know about eBook distribution in this complete guide, which includes a full analysis of Amazon exclusivity versus â⠂¬Å"going wide,† as well as a comparison of royalties by eBook publishing platforms and retailers and a recommended eBook distribution setup.  Whatever option you choose, understand that it may take a bit of trial-and-error until you realize your perfect self-publishing system. There's no right or wrong way to go about it  - which is all a part of the magic of self-publishing in the first place.What's your experience with the best self-publishing companies? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Understanding Delphi Class Methods

Understanding Delphi Class Methods In Delphi, a method is a procedure or function that performs an operation on an object. A class method is a method that operates on a class reference instead of an object reference. If you read between the lines, you will find that class methods are accessible even when you havent created an instance of the class (the object). Class Methods vs. Object Methods Every time you create a Delphi component dynamically, you use a class method: the Constructor. The Create constructor is a class method, as opposed to virtually all other methods youll encounter in Delphi programming, which are object methods. A class method is a method of the class, and appropriately enough, an object method is a method that can be called by an instance of the class. This is best illustrated by an example, with classes and objects highlighted in red for clarity: myCheckbox : TCheckbox.Create(nil) ; Here, the call to Create is preceded by the class name and a period (TCheckbox.). Its a method of the class, commonly known as a constructor. This is the mechanism by which instances of a class are created. The result is an instance of the TCheckbox class. These instances are called objects. Contrast the previous line of code with the following: myCheckbox.Repaint; Here, the Repaint method of the TCheckbox object (inherited from TWinControl) is called. The call to Repaint is preceded by the object variable and a period (myCheckbox.). Class methods can be called without an instance of the class (e.g., TCheckbox.Create). Class methods can also be called directly from an object (e.g., myCheckbox.ClassName). However object methods can only be called by an instance of a class (e.g., myCheckbox.Repaint). Behind the scenes, the Create constructor is allocating memory for the object (and performing any additional initialization as specified by TCheckbox or its ancestors). Experimenting With Your Own Class Methods Think of AboutBox (a custom About This Application form). The following code uses something like:procedure TfrMain.mnuInfoClick(Sender: TObject) ;beginAboutBox:TAboutBox.Create(nil) ;tryAboutBox.ShowModal;finallyAboutBox.Release;end;end;This, of course, is a very nice way to do the job, but just to make the code easier to read (and to manage), it would be much more efficient to change it to:procedure TfrMain.mnuInfoClick(Sender: TObject) ;beginTAboutBox.ShowYourself;end;The above line calls the ShowYourself class method of the TAboutBox class. The ShowYourself must be marked with the keyword class:class procedure TAboutBox.ShowYourself;beginAboutBox: TAboutBox.Create(nil) ;tryAboutBox.ShowModal;finallyAboutBox.Release;end;end; Things to Keep in Mind The definition of a class method must include the reserved word class before the procedure or function keyword that starts the definition.AboutBox form is not auto-created (Project-Options).Put AboutBox unit to the uses clause of the main form.Dont forget to declare the procedure in the interface (public) part of the AboutBox unit.

Biblical Worldview Stewardship Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Biblical Worldview Stewardship - Assignment Example emphasized, â€Å"advances in the West have been the fruits of freedom, knowledge, and hard work–all resting substantially on the foundation of biblical Christianity’s worldview and ethic of service to God and neighbor. These advances have also given rise to a laudable expansion in people’s focus on the need for environmental stewardship† (Beisner, Cromartie, Derr, Knippers, Hill, & Terrel, 2014, p. 1). Environmental stewardship was noted to also have conceptual framework stemming from biblical passages, especially teachings on God’s creation of the world and people’s responsibility over the creation (Miller, n.d.). Therefore, the guidelines for business with regard to environmental protection necessitate understanding of the biblical worldview to enable application of best practices that adhere to conservation and protection of the environment: promoting green campaign, cost minimization, energy conservation, actions and operations that observe impacts on climate change and global warming. Contemporary large organizations are therefore expected to promote ideals and philosophies of social responsibility – which include environmental protection. Since some of the earth’s natural resources are finite, businesses must ensure that their actions are cognizant of the need to sustain that those resources which could be conserved and replenished would be dealt with accordingly. Beisner, E., Cromartie, M., Derr, T., Knippers, D., Hill, P., & Terrel, T. (2014). A Biblical Perspective on Environmental Stewardship. Retrieved December 10, 2014, from Acton Institute:

The Role of Black Holes in the centers of Galaxies Essay

The Role of Black Holes in the centers of Galaxies - Essay Example In the Milky Way, the supermassive black hole is known as Sagitarrius A*, which is read as â€Å"A-star† (Naeye & Gutro, 2008). Sagitarrius A* is known to be â€Å"27,000 light years from the Earth [and] is four million times bigger than the Sun† (Ghosh, 2012). However, NASA reports Sagitarrius A* to be 26,000 light years away from the Earth, and not 27,000 (â€Å"A Mystery,† 2002). In fact, the existence of black holes has long been theorized by British astronomer Sir Martin Rees in 1974 and, according to him, â€Å"Supermassive black holes [or] ones with a million or even a billion solar masses might exist within the centers of some galaxies† (â€Å"A Mystery,† 2002). According to Durham University astrophysicist Ian Small, â€Å"The black holes [that we studied] are seen precisely at the point where they can have the most influence on the properties of the galaxies they reside in† (qtd. In Lovgren, 2005). This means that if the supermassiv e black holes are located at other points in the galaxy except the center, then it cannot exert equal influence on all parts of the galaxy. In short, for it to exert an almost equal gravitational force on every part of the galaxy, then it has to be at its center. The same principle works if the supermassive black hole is to release energy towards every part of the galaxy it is in, but this release of energy is merely hypothetical. According to Professor Richard Genzel of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, â€Å"The center of the galaxy was a â€Å"unique laboratory for the study of the strong gravity, stellar dynamics and star formation with a level of detail ‘never possible beyond our galaxy’† (qtd. in â€Å"Black hole,† 2008). This means that there must be one good reason for the supermassive black hole to eventually reside in the galactic center other than position. Genzel’s hypothesis is therefore the possibility that the ph ysics of the center of the galaxy is unusually different from the rest of its parts. Perhaps then there is a much stronger gravitational attraction as well as different principles of stellar dynamics and star formation towards the galactic center. Furthermore, according to Cain, the center of the galaxy, where the supermassive black holes reside, serves as the place where â€Å"every galaxy serves to focus and concentrate material as the galaxy was first forming† and it is also possible that this is the same exact point â€Å"where the black hole formed first, and collected the rest of the galaxy around it† (Cain, 2008). The aforementioned statement means that the possible origin of the galaxy may in fact be the exact point where the supermassive black hole is located and perhaps the galaxy still continues to grow from that central point. The implication of this theory is that, if it is true, then much constructive material is located in the black hole and that the gal axy is in fact never growing old and its parts constantly being replaced by these materials from the black hole. Another observation of Lovgren (2005) is that, according to scientists, â€Å"pairs of galaxies – and their black holes often merge together [thus producing] tidal forces [that] drive a lot of gas toward the center of the

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 18

English - Essay Example For example, the sibling rivalry in The Eye as Munro narrates her five year old self of how she disliked the idea of having another brother of which any young person with a sibling can relate. The book begun with the story â€Å"To Reach Japan† which involved Greta and her husband Peter. The title actually alludes to a bottle in the sea coming from Vancouver and hoping that it will reach Japan. This story is engaging because it is full of allegory that one has to read between the lines. Munro may not be explicit in narrating that this marriage is about break except by hinting their differences that Greta is sentimental who like to romanticize things while Peter is a pragmatist (being an engineer). Munro was not direct that Greta will leave Peter except that we understand what she intends to do. In the train station, there was this scene that the people there are calling and waiting for her but someone is holding her back. This is basically an allegory of Greta’s struggle to leave Peter. I find this story told in the allegory because there are several sub meanings in the narration that the reader had to read between the lines and not just read the text litera lly. This could be the reason why the novel is very engaging and enjoyable to the readers because there are multiple meanings in the texts. To Reach Japan is then followed by Amundsen which I did not exactly know what it meant until I read the story. It is actually a place associated with a new teacher at a tuberculosis â€Å"san†. It is a strange place because when people do not show up at work, it is expected that something horrible happened to them. Here Alice Munro told us the story of Vivien, Mary and Dr. Alister Fox. The story may sound morbid to me but nevertheless Munro showed her ability to put in stories with complex plot in such a small space of few pages. This may be the least of my

An analysis of the risk-free rate in the South African capital market Dissertation

An analysis of the risk-free rate in the South African capital market - Dissertation Example This implies that the risk free rate is the most essential concept that determines the market demand of different instruments. Next, the research conducted a comparison between the BESA published bond yield curve and a market price based yield curve developed by the researcher. The findings establish that the market price derived risk free rate is higher than the theoretical risk free rate. It was also found that the shape of the yield curve is different from the BESA projected yield curve, and that it is indicative of future problems in the South African Capital market. The implications of the perception of the higher risk free rate are discussed and it is revealed that the foriegn investors consider the country risk and the default risk associated with the South African government as relatively higher than what the BESA may perceive. The higher perception of the risk as well as the expectations of a fall in the interest rates in the future (which is indicated by the inverse shape o f the yield curve) hint towrads an approaching slowdown or even a recession in the South African Economy. ... 5.3 Omega Ratio 3.5.4 Internal Rate of Return ( IRR) 3.5.5 Weighted Average Cost of capital Chapter 4: Analysis of Theretical Risk Free Rate and the Perceived Risk Free Rate 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Yield Curve 4.3 Theoretical Risk Free Rate - BESA-Actuaries Yield Curve 4.4 Market Based Yield Curve 4.4.1 Calculating the Market Based Yield Curve 4.5 Reasons for Differences in the Theoretical Risk Free Rate and the Market Risk Free Rate 4.5.1 Expectations of the Investors 4.5.2 Liquidity premium theory 4.5.3 Market segmentation theory 4.5.4 Preferred habitat theory 4.5.5 Differences Expectations of Future Interest Rates 4.5.6 Implications for the Economic Development Chapter 5: Summary, Conclusion & Recommendations 5.1 Summary 5.2 Conclusions 5.3 Recommendations for Future Research List of Tables and Figures Table 1: Sample Table of Hypothetical Cash flow Matrix Table 2: Market Data Using Present Values on 8 April 2011 Table 3: Yield to Maturities and Expected Rates of Returns Table 4: Yie ld To Maturities Using Besa Method and JSE Market Prices Figure 1: Risk and Return Figure 2: BESA Zero Coupon Bonds Yield Curve Figure 3: Yield Curve Using Market Data References Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Introduction and Background South Africa is an emerging country that has devloped a deep Capital Market in the short span of time since its independence (Wajid et al, 2008). Capital Markets play a crucial role in the overal development of the economy as these provide the basic resources for large infrastructure and nation building projects, and hence, these are essential for any countries’ long-term growth and progress. In the last decade, South Africa has made several structural as well as institutional changes to consolidate the capital market in the country. These changes involved

Reading Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Reading - Assignment Example The creative solution on how to defeat cramming is to review lessons constantly even just for few minutes. But reviewing itself can sometimes be boring or taxing so the creative solution to this consistent to Higgins approach is to make it fun to defeat boredom. How can we make studying fun? We have actually made it several times by doing a group study that is like a picnic. Studying suddenly transforms to a small picnic, hanging out or chill event where we learn while we are having fun. Yes the pranks and the jokes and the crazy stories are still there but the important thing is that everybody reviewed their lesson without even knowing it. The Creative Problem Solving (CPS) here is to make studying fun so that we are engaged in it early and thus avoid the problem. The convergent thinking or the single correct solution here in the problem is to review long before the exam. The divergent thinking is creative approach to the solution which is to make it fun by doing group studies where we could also hang out while

I-35 Bridge report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

I-35 Bridge report - Research Paper Example Finally, the report also focuses on the rehabilitation â€Å"of the I-35W Bridge† and practices that have been adopted in the construction and maintenance of bridges. It shows how various organizations in fire and emergence, law enforcement and environmental monitoring, can reduce the impact of a possible tragedy like that of the collapse of I-35W Bridge to cause minimal loss of lives and property. Table of contents 1. Introduction 2. I-35W bridge maintenance and construction 3. Emergency Assistance after the Collapsed Bridge 4. Impact â€Å"of the I-35W Bridge Collapse on the Current Practices† 5. Conclusion 1) Introduction The 35W Mississippi River Bridge maintained by state of Minnesota, collapsed on the evening of 1st of August 2007, killing thirteen people and injuring another 121 people. Unfortunately, there were approximately 120 vehicles during the collapse estimated to be carrying 160 people. This collapse was unexpected and the immediate task at that moment, w as to rescue the people in the bridge, some of whom had fallen into the water and others trapped in their vehicles. To add insult to injury, some of the vehicles had caught fire making firefighting to be the first priority action. All local officials from the state after training together, worked together in stopping the fire, rescuing people in the water and rushing all the injured to hospitals. Definitely, this event was a test of their ability to successful tackle such a tragedy. However, there were many challenges and hindrances due to the steep river banks, difficulty of access due to the already collapsed bridge and other constant risks (Rabins et al 188). 2) I-35W Bridge Maintenance and Construction I-35W Bridge across the Mississippi River was official opened to traffic in the year 1967. According to Rabins et al, the bridge had a capacity of up to 140,000 daily vehicles on traffic between the Washington Avenue and the University Avenue, and was inspected every year from the year 1993 (236). The bridge was rated at 4 on a scale of 0 to 9 showing that, it was fit for transportation although there was need for monitoring and repair. Despite the bridge being rated as deficient, it did not definitely imply that it would collapse at any time, but there was a need for maintenance. According to the book â€Å"Bridge management systems for transportation agency decision making† the resolution made was to invest more resource in bridge maintenance to prevent such occurrences in the future. 3) Emergency Assistance after the Collapsed Bridge The U.S Fire Administration says that, there was a chaotic event after the responders arrived at the scene of the collapsed bridge (24). The collapsed structure brought various casualties such as people trapped in their vehicle and in the bridge debris; the injured and the dead people at the scene; the fire from some vehicles and water rescue situations. In addition to that, these respondents were not sure of the cause of the tragedy. They did not know whether it was a terror attack or an infrastructure failure. There was greater risk of a secondary collapse of the bridge, which could worsen the tragedy and paralyze rescue operations. As a result of these risks, the first priority was the fire department to stop the fire. At the same time, the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was responsible of rescuing

Reading Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Reading - Assignment Example The creative solution on how to defeat cramming is to review lessons constantly even just for few minutes. But reviewing itself can sometimes be boring or taxing so the creative solution to this consistent to Higgins approach is to make it fun to defeat boredom. How can we make studying fun? We have actually made it several times by doing a group study that is like a picnic. Studying suddenly transforms to a small picnic, hanging out or chill event where we learn while we are having fun. Yes the pranks and the jokes and the crazy stories are still there but the important thing is that everybody reviewed their lesson without even knowing it. The Creative Problem Solving (CPS) here is to make studying fun so that we are engaged in it early and thus avoid the problem. The convergent thinking or the single correct solution here in the problem is to review long before the exam. The divergent thinking is creative approach to the solution which is to make it fun by doing group studies where we could also hang out while

Southwest Airlines' Cost Optimization to Create an Attractive Price Case Study

Southwest Airlines' Cost Optimization to Create an Attractive Price for Economy Class Travelers - Case Study Example There are many factors which have helped Southwest Airlines in its survival and success. This essay attempts to outline those factors and strategies on the basis of the following parameters: Financial Planning, Financial control, Costing, Decision making.Financial planning has played a vital role in growing its business. The correct timing of its decisions has made a huge difference in increasing market capitalization (Sims, 68). Southwest Airline has gained a further advantage by packing more seats into the aircraft which increase the seat kilometer revenue generated per block hour.Instead of buying more jets to deal with its growing business, Southwest planned and got better deals on the lease. Hence it paid substantially less per block hour for lease rental, than other carriers. Southwest has implemented its financial planning in such a way that low fares when combined with high frequencies and excellent punctuality have resulted in an increase in its revenues. Â  Southwest plans its finances very efficiently. Â  It hires new pilots with ten years contract and motivates them by offering a share in profits. This is an example of astute planning. It means that if Southwest was making losses at any particular time then the losses can be shared with the pilots. This strategy also makes the staff much more accountable. Another important aspect of financial planning was operating on low distance routes and targeting of road passengers.Southwest plans its expenditure very efficiently and effectively. The customer service strategy of providing a full meal was costly in two ways. One, it increases the per unit costs and secondly more staff is required to provide the service. Southwest’s plan of not following this trend has saved it the cost of food as well as the number of staff employed. In other airways, when six to eight employees per flight were required, southwest managed to function with only four. This kind of planning was crucial for decreasing the c osts and increasing the revenues.

Effect of Csr Activities on Sales Essay Example for Free

Effect of Csr Activities on Sales Essay Reasons for this can be multinational corporations’ increasing influence on world economy as well as scandals revealing horrible working conditions in different industries. In spite of the fact that the demand for CSR is growing, there has always been critics. The most influential critic is Noble Prize winner Milton Friedman, who claims CSR to be a waste of stockholders’ money. However, several articles claim, opposite Friedman, that CSR rather increases a company’s financial performance in the long run. These claims have made us curious about in what way CSR is related to a company’s performance. Moreover, it has led to us wanting to find out how CSR can influence customer perceptions on a product or service offering. Conclusions –All the initiatives gave a positive influence on the respondents’ perceptions, but the ones resulting in the most positive changes of the perceptions and willingness to buy were social responsible business practises, cause-related marketing and corporate philanthropy, which are initiatives where the company are doing the largest effort instead of just encouraging others to make an effort. The respondents answered that they trust the companies’ information about CSR to some extent, but also think a third party should scrutinise the companies’ activities and inform. The most favourable channel for CSR information was from environmental organisations, government organisations and the third party web media. Therefore it seems like the respondents value that the companies provide information, but are not too forward and pushing the information on them by for example advertisements. Keywords : CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility, Cause promotion, Cause-related marketing, Corporate social marketing, Corporate philanthropy, Community volunteering, Social responsible business practices. Introduction: CSR is today a frequently used concept, as companies to a larger extent are held accountable for what is happening in the society. The company should also inform the stakeholders about their CSR activities in an appropriate way, in order to capitalise from all possible benefits. In order to make a trustworthy impression and gain the most benefits, the choice of CSR activity and way of communication is crucial for the company, and therefore the perceptions of the consumers are very important to know more about and understand. In the last decade tendencies towards a more social aware community have been strong. In itself these trends are nothing that is particularly new. People have always preached for problems like public health, wildlife protection, prevention of child labor etc. What is different now is that companies to a larger extent are held accountable for what is happening in our society. Companies that engage in CSR activities are likely to have different motives for doing so. Many researches claim that corporate social responsibility originally consists of activities that a company performs out of commitment and duty. However, there are also commercial motives for CSR activities. For example CSR activities may result in advantages when it comes to receiving funding, recruiting new employees, cost reductions etc. To capitalise from all possible advantages it is crucial for the company to communicate their CSR work in an appropriate way. Theoretical Framework: Types of CSR Activities: a) Cause promotion Cause promotion is often done in the way that the company provide funds, contribute financially or with any other resource, with the objective to increase awareness, support fundraising or participation, or to recruit volunteers for a specific cause. In this initiative persuasive communications are important, to create concern and to persuade people to contribute or participate to support the cause. In successful campaigns use of motivating messages and the choice of effective media channels are crucial. They also make use of publicity, printed materials, special events, web sites, advertising, featuring the logo and key message of the company and those who represent the cause. Further methods are employee involvement, messages on product labelling and to provide store space for promotions. Many of the potential benefits are marketing related, like strengthened brand positioning and preference, increased traffic and consumer loyalty.

Sonata Allegro :: essays research papers

Sonata Allegro form was a development of the classical era. It represents a more open form than many of the earlier Baroque forms such as fugues, rondeau form, etc. While there is a formula that can be applied, there was not a rigid, formal concept for the form. Rather it evolved over the classical era and beyond. Haydn was one of the early exponents of this form. It was named "Sonata Allegro," because the final Allegro movement of a Sonata was most often created in this form. It is by no means restricted to this general rule, however. In fact there are no hard and fast rules in writing a Sonata Allegro form. However many trends can be attributed to the form, generally, Sonata Allegro form can simplistically be described as an "ABA'" form. The first A section is called the "Exposition." ( This section is repeated verbatim in classical performance, actually making the overall form "AABA'"). The B section, or "Development" follows the Exposition. It usually uses some material from the Exposition, but in a more or less radically altered way. In the A' section or "Recapitulation," the A material returns relatively intact. Each of these sections has a relatively complex internal pattern as follows: The Exposition states the main thematic elements and has its own internal form as follows: 1) A Primary key section which contains: a. the Principal or Primary Theme which is a phrase or more in length and establishes home key, b. a Transition between the Primary Theme and the Related key section. The transition can modulate to the new key, develop ideas of first theme, change mood in preparation for related key section through mood metamorphsis, introduce new material, possibly contrasting with both primary and related key sections, anticipate of ideas in second theme, be omitted, produce a deceptive modulation, or be non-modulatory if in major. 2) A Related key section which contains the Secondary or Subordinate Theme which is most often in the dominant or relative key, and can be similar or contrast in content to the Primary Theme, the Closing section, which confirms the new key, and may be derived from other themes. Next comes The Development. This is an open and free-form section of the Sonata Allegro movement, usually based on thematic materials from the Exposition. The Development can be varied in length, sometimes short and little more than a re-transition to principal theme, sometimes a large dramatic section containing a theatrical climax, sturm und drang.

The Tomorrow City by Monica Hughes :: Hughes Tomorrow City

The Tomorrow City by Monica Hughes The plot of this book centres around two adolescents, David and Caro and an evil supercomputer which aspires to control the futuristic city of Thompsonville.   Dr. Henderson, Caro's Father creates the "perfect" computer designed to solve all of the problems of Thompsonville by gaining almost complete power of the city.   The computer then begins to make rash decisions of it's own. It decides that humans are incapable of making decisions of there own and soon devises a method of controlling the minds of everyone in the city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Only two young people, Caro and David, are not manipulated by the computer.   They band together and work out a strategy to disable the computer.   The two make a daring infiltration of the building that the computer is located and after a traumatic episode in which Caro is blinded, the computer is destroyed and the city is returned to it's previous state.   The theme of the book is to show that technology is not a perfect solution to the many problems faced by man.   By using a product of technology, the computer, and showing how it was supposed to be a perfect solution to the city's problems, yet it made a grave error in calculations, the author is saying that many problems faced by man cannot be solved by the use of technology.   Technology played a negative role in this book.   The computer, the major aspect of technology used in this book, used its capabilities to immorally rule the citizens and the city of Thompsonville.   The computer transmitted hypnotic signals through peoples T.V. sets and would use them to carry out it's will to ultimately control the city.   It then discarded anything or anyone who were useless to it's purpose including the elderly and the sick. One of the major arguments that the author uses to emphasize the theme is the significant malfunctioning of the computer.   It was designed to be flawless and solve the numerous problems of the city.   But, the computer's rationing is shown throughout the book to be poor.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The methods in which it goes about solving the city's problems

Hunting and Its Benefits

Hunting and Its benefits Specific Purpose: By the end of this speech I expect all of you to feel more informed on how regulated and legal hunting has a positive influence on wildlife, the environment and, the economy. Thesis: Regulated hunting largely has positive effects on the economy and the environment I. Imagine yourself hiking through the woods, fishing or swimming in a lake, or even just enjoying nature. Guess how it was possible to build and maintain all of those nature areas and parks. From HUNTING!!! II.Even though I’m sure most of you aren’t hunters (maybe even a few anti-hunters), I’m more than certain most of you appreciate nature and the best places to enjoy nature are on state and national parks, lakes, streams, trails, and conservation areas. The sale of hunting licenses and equipment are responsible for a significantly large chunk of that funding and make it possible for everybody to experience the beauty of nature. III. Living in the Midwest im sure most of you are some type of outdoorsman or live within a short distance of rural area where most nature areas are and I intend to show how hunting affects those areas and the economy.IV. I’m a lifelong outdoorsman and I’ve seen and experienced first hand how hunting has created thousands of jobs and saved and restored countless acres of wetlands, forests, and plains. V. I have three main points to discuss in this speech I. Hunting makes a large contribution to the economy II. Hunting is the single biggest funder of conservation and restoration efforts III. Regulated Hunting has a positive impact on wildlife populations The first point I’m going to discuss deals with the jobs and business hunting is responsible for. I. The sale of hunting licenses and equipment puts over 12 billion dollars in the economy annually. . On average, each hunter spends about $1896 which is 5. 5 percent of the average man’s income. b. This maintains almost 575,000 jobs whic h contribute even more money from income and sales tax i. About a quarter of these jobs are solely supported by hunting. ii. The 2. 4 billion dollar income tax of these jobs can cover the annual paychecks over 100000 troops. This generation of revenue also goes to support the environment for the animals pursued thrive. II. The sale of hunting licenses and equipment is also the single largest source of funding for the conservation and restoration of natural areas a.Hunters provide over 2 billion dollars to conservation through the sale of hunting equipment and licenses. b. Hunters are a larger source of funding than environmentalists, state grants, and animal rights organizations combined This also leads to a positive influence on the populations of wildlife III. Regulated Hunting helps keeps wildlife numbers in check and populations stable. a. Hunting prevents animal species from overpopulating i. By harvesting certain numbers of an animal every year the population does not grow bey ond control ii. This also helps prevent them from moving into urban areas where they can become nuisances b.Hunting also keeps animal populations healthy by keeping the number of animals down to what the food supply can support Overall regulated hunting is a wholesome sport that makes positive contributions to the economy and the environment I. Summary a. Hunting is a strong contributor to the economy and is vital to hundreds of thousands of jobs b. Hunting provides essential funding to help ensure that nature areas remain for future generations to enjoy c. Regulated hunting helps keep animal populations healthy and stable through responsible management and ethical sportsmen II.These main points I have presented to you in the hopes I have left you better informed on hunting and is benefits. Bibliography â€Å"There Are 11,085 Hunters/Sportsmen Supporting Hunters Against PETA. Enter Your Name and Email to Join Our Cause. Thanks for Your Support! †Ã‚  Hunters Against PETA. N. p . , 01 Feb. 2009. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. . ConservationHunting. html. †Ã‚  ConservationHunting. html. N. p. , Feb. -Mar. 2007. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. .

Isolation of Aspirin

Once the aspirin is prepared, it is isolated from the reaction solution and then it is purified. The aspirin is insoluble in cold water, and it is isolated by filtering the chilled reaction solution. Purification is essential to remove any unreacted salicylic acid and acetic anhydride as well as the acetic acid product and phosphoric acid. Acetic anhydride is caused to decompose by the addition of water once the formation of aspirin is complete. C4H6O3 (Acetic anhydride) + H2O (Water) ————————-> 2C2H4O2 (Acetic Acid) The acetic acid and phosphoric acid are water soluble and it is removed by washing the aspirin with chilled water. Salicylic acid is only slightly soluble in water and is not completely removed in the washing steps. Phosphoric acid can be used instead of sulphuric acid if desired to obtain the higher yield, as sulphuric acid reacts more readily with the organic molecules involved in the reaction than phosphoric acid. However, phosphoric acid does not absorb water in the reaction; therefore it may be a slower process. Final purification is completed by the process of Recrystallisation. By recrystalising the crude aspirin slowly, it was possible to obtain large crystals with an exact structure by allowing the aspirin molecules to join together in a precise way. The regular molecular crystal structure of the final product makes it more difficult for impurities to be included, eliminating impurities present in the formless crude product. The impure aspirin is dissolved in warm ethanol. The solution is then cooled slowly, and the aspirin crystallises out of solution leaving the salicylic acid and other impurities behind. In my experiment, pure aspirin was obtained after filtering out the impurities and excess reagents through the filter paper. A method to check a solid compound’s purity after recrsytallisation is to check its melting point. The melting point of a compound can be used to identify it and also to estimate its purity. Normally an impure compound will show a melting point which is lower than that of a pure compound. Therefore, if the sample of aspirin melts at a temperature below the accepted melting point two possibilities can exist; either the sample is impure or it is not aspirin. A pure substance will melt sharply at 1-20C per minute when nearing the expected melting point in order to get a more accurate range. An impure compound will melt over a wider temperature range.

Life of George Bush

Who knew a son could follow so many footsteps of a father. George W. Bush, son of former president George Bush, has done exactly that; which has led him too many great successes throughout his career in the political arena of politics. George W. Bush a strong businessman, a leader in politics, and a running member of one of the most famous Presidential campaigns ever. George W. Bush, known as â€Å"W† to most people, was born in New Haven, Connecticut on July 6, 1946 to the parents of George Herbert Walker Bush and Barbara Pierce Bush. Most of his adolescence was spent in Midland and Houston, Texas. He is the eldest son of five siblings, which include, Jeb, governor of Florida, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy. Like his father, Bush attended the same college, Philips Andover Academy in Massachusetts before he went and graduated from Yale University with a bachelor†s degree in 1968 (A&E 1). While attending school, he joined the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity and became a member of Skull and Bones at Yale. Unlike his father, George Bush did not receive any kind of scholarships for baseball instead he was president of his fraternity as his extracurricular activity (Newsmakers 1). W then returned to Texas in May, still following the footsteps of his father, he enlisted with the Texas Air National Guard where he became a F-102 pilot. He was trained in a fi! fty-three-week program to fly fighter jets. He completed in 1973 and eventually became a lieutenant but never had to go to Vietnam. He spent his time in Houston holding various short-term jobs, one including a stint at a program called Pull for Youth for underprivileged kids. Although, during this time of the early seventies reporters like to call this a, â€Å"nomadic period† for Bush. Time magazine wrote: â€Å"he became a real Texan in the family, chewing tobacco, using barnyard humor, settling in the state†s western corner, the one harboring what his aunt Nancy Ellis calls, a ‘slightly outrageous streak†Ã¢â‚¬  (Newsmakers 1). After working as a management trainee in agriculture firm and on U. S. Senate Campaigns in Florida and Alabama, he went to Harvard Business School in 1972 and received his M. B. A. in 1975. Still following the footsteps of his father, Bush decided to go into the business of the oil industry. He earned his first million within ten years, but the oil industry for Bush didn†t exactly turn out the way it had for his father. W built a small independent oil and gas exploration company called Arbusto (the Spanish word for â€Å"bush†). He married Laura Welch, a librarian and former teacher, in 1977 and then joined the 1978 race for the U. S. House of Representatives. He ran against a very well known democratic Senator, Kent Hance. Bush lost by six points after setting a new Texas record for fundraising capabilities for a House candidate (A&E 1). In 1981, Laura gave birth to their twin daughters named after their grandmothers, Barbara and Jenna (A&E 1). By this time Bush†s oil industry was re-named Bush Exploration. By the early 1980†³s, when the energy market turned soft, Bush Exploration foundered. In 1983, Bush combined with Spectrum 7; three years later Bush arranged fo! r Spectrum 7 to be sold to Harken Energy for a bargain price. He later sold his original stock shares and made a considerable profit of 600,000 dollars (Newsmakers 1). W also got a consulting contract and stock options with Harken which all combined to be a deal of about one million in his pocket over the next few years (Newsmakers 1). Later in 1990, Time reported: â€Å"before Iraq invaded Kuwait, Bush sold 66% of his Harken stake at the top of the market for nearly 850,000, which was a 200% profit on his original stake† (Newsmakers 2). This upset the Vice President and W, where they stated: â€Å"The media ought to be ashamed of itself for what they†re doing† (Newsmakers 2). Needless to say, Bush went out of the business and chose to go for politics. By now he was all name and no money. On his 40th birthday, George Bush came to a cross road in his life where he stopped drinking and became a strong Methodist with his wife Laura. He became noticeably more serious in changing his profession to strictly politics. He moved his family to Washington D. C. in 1987 to began working on his fathers 1988 Presidential campaign (A&E 1). Though he had no official title on the campaign he became his father†s hardest and most trusted worker. He became known as a talented speaker and as the campaign†s chief liaison to Christian conservatives, he gained respect for handling volatile diplomatic matters, such as the firing of chief John Sununu, and for swiftly taking care of business (Newsmakers 1). The experience in Washington was one that Bush did not like, even though it brought him closer to his father, he did not like the hostile environment that the political life brought him. Bush still felt that he was trailing behind his father†s footsteps with no independence for himsel! of doing something different. After his fathers successful election in November 1988 W moved back to Texas with his family, this time living in Dallas. He wasted no time in venturing out to find something new; baseball was what he found. In a matter of months he gathered up a team of wealthy investors and brought the American League†s Texas Rangers to Dallas. He took role as managing partner for the team. He brought support to the team and helped boost attendance to the games. By doing this, it brought W much admiration from the Texans and the Rangers. He earned an identity of his own which was something he had been struggling a long time for. He earned a good deal of money through this great investment of 606,000, but he walked away with nearly fifteen million when the team was sold in 1998 (A&E 1). He earned this money as just a managing partner in which he only owned 5% of the team. After such great success with the Rangers, Bush decided it was time to try a hand in loca! Despite his mother†s opinion, Bush wanted to run as governor of Texas against the powerful Democrat Ann Richards. With much advice not to, Bush jumped right into the race while his brother, Jeb, did the same in Florida. With their experience from being their father†s aid since they were eighteen, they felt they could handle such a large duty as governor. Many reporters felt that Bush had such an advantage by just having his last name, but to Bush he feels the complete opposite. W quoted: â€Å"The biggest advantage and the biggest handicap I have is my name† (Newsmakers 2). The campaign against Ann Richard†s was tough, she used sayings such as: â€Å"If he didn†t have his daddy†s name he would not amount to anything. She also used names such as: â€Å"jerk† to sometimes address him during a debate (Newsmakers 2-3). Bush†s response to the accusations was very appropriate, needless to say he did not go to her level of maturity. The debate focused on welfare reform, a crackdown on crime (e! specially juveniles), increased autonomy and state financing for local school districts, and personal responsibility (Newsmakers 3). Bush is quoted as saying: â€Å"Let Texans run Texas,† this was a message that appealed to all Texans during the campaign (Newsmakers 3). Bush defeated Ann Richards by 350,000 votes. Elected governor of Texas on November 8,1994; twenty thousand people attended Bush†s inauguration in Austin, including the famous preacher Billy Graham, legendary baseball pitcher Nolan Ryan, movie star Chuck Norris, and, of course, George and Barbara Bush (Newsmakers 3). Becoming the 46th governor of Texas, Bush has earned a reputation as a compassionate conservative: who shapes policy based on the principals of limited government, personal responsibility, strong families and local control (â€Å"Governor† 1). In an historic re-election victory, he became the first Texas Governor to be elected to consecutive four-year terms on November 3, 1998, winning 68. 6 percent of the votes, 27 percent of the African-American votes, and 27 percent of Democrats and 65 percent of women. He is the first Republican to win the heavily Hispanic and Democratic border countries of El Paso, Cameron and Hidalgo (â€Å"Governor† 2). In six months, he signed nearly all of his proposed reforms into law by working closely with Democratic Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock (Newsmakers 3). Making Texas a Beacon State, he has made policies such as: responsible government, better schools, strong families, safer streets, cleaner environment, growing economy are all some issues that he ha! s improved during his governorship in Texas. Education is Bush†s first priority in Texas. He has increased 47 percent of the TAAS tests in all parts. The number of minorities passing the mathematics portion of TAAS has increased 25 percent. The most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress Report Card on Math Achievement showed Texas African-American fourth graders ranked first in nation in improvement, with Hispanic students close behind (â€Å"Message†1). Texas eighth graders ranked fourth in the country on the 1998 National Assessment of Education Progress writing test. All minority groups and Texas African American and Hispanic eighth graders ranked first and second in the nation. Reading performance has improved 87 percent of all students in grades 3-8 and 10 passed the reading TAAS in 1998, an increase from 77 percent four years ago. From 1994 to 1998, the number of schools rated â€Å"exemplary† rose from just 67 to 1,048. During the same time, the number of â€Å"recognize! d† schools more than tripled from 516 to 1,666 (â€Å"Message† 1). He has worked with the Legislatures to increase the state†s share of funding for schools, so that they can: restore local control, strengthen the state†s accountability system, give parents greater choice of schools and to foster competition and creativity through charter schools. This will give the people of Texas an expanded menu of educational opportunity. His greatest goal is that every child will learn to read by third grade and continue to read at grade level or better throughout public school (â€Å"Message†1). Legislation signed by the governor during the 1999 Texas Legislative Session included the largest funding increase for public education in the state†s history and nearly two billion in tax cuts and relief, the largest tax cut in Texas history (â€Å"Governor† 1). In June of 1999, Bush made the one decision that would change the rest of his life. It was time to decide if he would once again follow in his father†s footsteps, and become the 43rd President of the United States. In July, 2000, Bush announced his choice of running mate: Richard B. Cheney, a former congressman from Wyoming who served as Secretary of Defense under Bush†s father and is now in the oil business in Texas (A&E 2). Their opponents would be Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman, two strong, powerful democrats. Throughout the campaign of 2000, the candidates were shown to be close in the poles because both had issues that were appealing to the American people. Some of the main issues are: pro-life, pro-choice, social security, budget and economy, affirmative action, education, government reform, health care and prescription drugs (â€Å"Issues† 1-20). On November 7, 2000, both candidates await for the winning election of their lifetime. Their life experience would be rolled u! p into one day and two hundred seventy Electoral College votes. When the night of their lifetime finally arrived, the night ended with no presidency to guide America. That night has led to the counting, re-counting, and even hand counting of the ballots. It has also brought on numerous lawsuits from individuals to the parties themselves. It has scaled from local jurisdiction courts all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States. Even today, court cases are being heard that each party hopes to win in order to bring finality to the election. Even after the smoke clears and a President is declared, there will always be an uncertainty to the validity of this election in the minds of the people of the United States. George W. Bush, a man of pride, ambition, and power. He has served the state of Texas as their Governor, and now he has been declared twice our President of the United States of America. Will he serve America in the way he claims he can, will he be a leader for all to follow and look up to, will he be the man he acts upon being? The nation waits as the Supreme Court continue to make their rulings to find out which man will take this role as the Presidency of the United States.