The New, Delightful Use of Because

The New, Delightful Use of Because The New, Delightful Use of Because The New, Delightful Use of Because By Maeve Maddox The headline over a recent article (Nov. 19, 2013) by Megan Garber in The Atlantic announces, â€Å"English Has a New Preposition.† The subhead expresses implied approval: Linguists are recognizing the delightful evolution of the word â€Å"because.† Linguists may be recognizing the jocular elliptical use of because as a â€Å"delightful evolution,† but I have my suspicions that grammarians are less than enthusiastic. The word because is used to introduce reasons. As a subordinating conjunction, its job is to join a subordinate adverbial clause to a main clause: Mr. Wilson will not be at the awards ceremony because he has broken his leg. Because the weather is frightful, the annual homecoming parade has been cancelled. The phrase â€Å"because of† introduces a noun phrase or a gerund: Because of the lateness of the hour, we decided not to stop for coffee. Because of running late, we skipped our usual stop at the coffee shop. A previously existing elliptical use of because is often heard in conversation, as in this example from the OED entry: Why didnt you leave the bottle?’ ‘Because!’ I said shortly. I wasnt going to explain my feelings on the matter. Linguists have dubbed the â€Å"new† use of because the â€Å"because noun† or the because+noun.† The most popular speculation about its origin is that it began as a recurring joke on Saturday Night Live. Neal Whitman gives this example from SNL in an article called ‘Because as a Preposition†: If you ever fall off the Sears Tower, just go real limp, because maybe you’ll look like a dummy and people will try to catch you because, hey, free dummy. SNL fans adopted the joke with such variations as â€Å"If life gives you lemons, keep them, because, hey, free lemons.† Whitman explains the evolution from the â€Å"hey† construction to the â€Å"because noun† construction: Before the â€Å"hey,† we have a regular English sentence. After the â€Å"hey,† we have an extremely condensed and abbreviated thought, represented by just a noun phrase. The humor in the â€Å"free dummy† and â€Å"free lemons† sentences comes from the speaker’s assumption that all he or she needs to say is â€Å"free dummy† or â€Å"free lemons,† and naturally you, the listener can fill in all the rest. A free dummy? Heck, yeah, who wouldn’t want a free dummy? Doesn’t everybody want one?   He points out that in the 2000s, the â€Å"because-hey† construction became popular in Internet memes. Eventually the hey dropped out, leaving only the because. I think that long before the internet intruded into our lives, the â€Å"preposition+noun† construction could be overheard in millions of homes: Child: Can I stay up a little longer? Mother: No. Child: Why? Mother: Because. Child: Because why? Mother: Because, Bedtime! Whatever its origin, the â€Å"because+noun† is in wide use in the speech of young speakers. It certainly suits the spirit of the times, with its laconic, sarcastic, and irreverent tone. And, in these grammar-challenged times, it’s extremely useful, relieving one of the labor of completing a thought. The because+noun may become a feature of the language, but for the present, it is a nonstandard elliptical construction that doesn’t belong in formal writing. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Creative Writing 101Is There a Reason â€Å"the Reason Why† Is Considered Wrong?Using "May" in a Question

Example of a Process Analysis Essay

Example of a Process Analysis Essay In this short essay, a student explains the process of crabbing- that is, the steps involved in catching river crabs. Read (and enjoy) this student composition, and then respond to the discussion questions at the end. How to Catch River Crabs by Mary Zeigler As a lifelong crabber (that is, one who catches crabs, not a chronic complainer), I can tell you that anyone who has patience and a great love for the river is qualified to join the ranks of crabbers. However, if you want your first crabbing experience to be a successful one, you must come prepared. First, you need a boat, but not just any boat. I recommend a 15-foot-long fiberglass boat complete with a 25-horsepower motor, extra gas in a steel can, two 13-foot-long wooden oars, two steel anchors, and enough cushions for the entire party. You will also need scoops, crab lines, a sturdy crate, and bait. Each crab line, made from heavy-duty string, is attached to a weight, and around each weight is tied the baita slimy, smelly, and utterly grotesque chicken neck. Now, once the tide is low, you are ready to begin crabbing. Drop your lines overboard, but not before you have tied them securely to the boat rail. Because crabs are sensitive to sudden movements, the lines must be slowly lifted until the chicken necks are visible just below the surface of the water. If you spy a crab nibbling the bait, snatch him up with a quick sweep of your scoop. The crab will be furious, snapping its claws and bubbling at the mouth. Drop the crab into the wooden crate before it has a chance to get revenge. You should leave the crabs brooding in the crate as you make your way home. Back in your kitchen, you will boil the crabs in a large pot until they turn a healthy shade of orange. Just remember to keep the crab pot covered. Finally, spread newspapers over the kitchen table, deposit the boiled crabs on the newspaper and enjoy the most delicious meal of your life. Questions for Discussion Define each of the following words as they are used in this essay: chronic, grotesque, brooding.In the introductory paragraph, has the writer clearly identified the skill to be taught and provided enough background information for readers to know when, where, and why this skill may be practiced?Has the writer provided necessary warnings in appropriate places?Is the list of needed materials (in paragraph two) clear and complete?Have the steps in paragraph three been arranged in the exact order in which they are to be carried out?Has the writer explained each step clearly and used appropriate transitional expressions to guide readers smoothly from one step to the next?Is the concluding paragraph effective? Explain why or why not. Does the conclusion make it clear how readers will know if they have carried out the procedures correctly?Offer an overall evaluation of the essay, pointing out what you think are its strengths and weaknesses.

Climate change impacts on local food production (Shrimp farming) in Research Paper

Climate change impacts on local food production (Shrimp farming) in Nha Trang , Vietnam - Research Paper Example Such climate changes never attained any fearful proportions and hence the there were no serious treats for the sustainment of life on earth till the last few centuries. An Inconvenient Truth was a documentary film directed by Davis Guggenheim, in 2006, in which former United States Vice President Al Gore tried to educate the citizens about the necessity of preventing global warming. He has mentioned that it is crucial to change the attitude and behavior of the public to counter the climate change problems. In his opinion, climate change problems should be taken as a moral one rather than a political one (An Inconvenient Truth, 2006) But over the last few decades, the balancing between the energy liberated from the sun and the energy reached on earth was destroyed seriously because of many known and unknown reasons and as a result extreme weather conditions started to appear on earth’s atmosphere/surface. Even though the exact reasons for the climate changes on earth is still unknown or controversial, many people believe that the destructions forests, injudicious industrialization, long- and short-term variations in solar intensity, deviations in the Earths orbit, mountain-building and continental drift, and changes in greenhouse gas concentrations etc are the major reasons for the drastic climate changes on earth’s surface. In short, â€Å"climate change is already happening and represents one of the greatest environmental, social and economic threats facing the planet† (Climate change, 2010). Climate changes can affect the human life on earth in many ways. In this paper the climate change impacts on local food production in Nah Trang, Vietnam is described. Nah Trang sits within a coastal province in south central Vietnam with an area of 3352.27 km2, coastline of 105km and annual rainfall of 600mm. Shrimp farming is one of the major revenue source for the people in Nah Trang. The lack of

BRAND MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

BRAND MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH - Essay Example Brand name and image of the company is so important and its implications are so far reaching that it cannot be ignored. It explains the fact that why managers today put so much emphasis on positioning and branding the organization. This paper aims at studying the effectiveness of the brand â€Å" UGG† with special reference to the three major criteria brand value, brand image and brand positioning. Brand is a connection between brand owner and the customer. So this paper aims to analyze the effectiveness of brand from the perspective of both. The strengths and weaknesses of the brand will also be analyzed. UGG  ® The history of UGG  ® registered trade mark of Australia began in 1978, when Brian Smith, a young surfer, introduced his sheep skin boots in California and became popular among surfers. It was acquired by Decker’s outdoor corporation in 1995. In the next couple of years product line grew to include two boots, four slippers, and a few casuals. It was only in 1998 that UGG  ® came in the list of the world’s finest footwear. UGG  ® was positioned as the high end luxury product and brand and a matching appropriate marketing and distribution strategy was adopted. This high end product, symbol of luxury and comfort, soon started expanding beyond Australia and beaches of California. In 2003 it was named brand of the year in footwear news. The brand promise of UGG  ® is accessible luxury. Their products fit into the everyday life of the customers. Their products are fashionable, comfortable and yet attainable and that explains their philosophy. The target customers are those people who value luxury, comfort and highest quality footwear. The quality is ensured by using the highest quality of leather, suede and world’s finest sheepskin. Their mission statement is â€Å"UGG  ® Australia markets the premier brand in luxury and comfort.† UGG has their concept stores in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. Apart from that they have their own authorized retailers and authorized online retailers almost all over the world (UGG, 2011). Brand Value Today’s world is flooded with brands. We have witnessed the branding of almost everything around us including people. Even places, institutes, events, literally everything is branded. The list also includes intangible products such as cyber brands. Building brands is not enough because it not only raises expectation and demands from the customers but the brand has to live up to the promise (Parameswaran, 2006). Same is true for UGG brand that now represent the sheep skin boots in over 100 countries. Ugg has been the generic name for sheepskin boots in rural Australia and New Zealand since 1920’s. In this globalized world where businesses and consumers are separated, brands act as an important communication tool. A brand is an aura that surrounds any product or service and creates the differentiation criteria for the customer from the competi tors by communicating the benefits of the products and services. UGG represents luxurious and quality sheep skin shoes etc. Brand communication which emphasizes on the holistic nature and brand value takes into account all the communication channels and the audiences. In this model CEO is the ultimate brand manager, who also defines the long term strategic direction of the brand. It is the job of the brand manager to ensure the closest match between customer expectations and the band promise. It is the unique balance and the

Identify and assess the significance of three factors that contributed to American westward movement Essay Example for Free

Identify and assess the significance of three factors that contributed to American westward movement Essay This could be dismissed as ‘the grass is always greener’. There were however a number of factors involved. These included the search for precious metal, the possibility of obtaining land and the expansion of the railways. Although usually described as a move west, it was to some extent also a move south as in the case of those seeking gold and silver in Californian mines as a result of the accidental finding of gold by James Marshall in 1848 as described by Steve Weigand on the web page ‘The California Gold Rush, an era remembered. Land was seen as a form of wealth and the majority of those who migrated to America did so in the hope of obtaining land to farm. Under British rule Europeans had been restricted in their settlement to the area east of the Appalachians, but after the Revolutionary War this inhibition was removed and so people streamed south and west. Later, with the coming of the railways, markets in the north could be served from further west. This allowed the great expansion of cities such as New York and Chicago. see more:which was a factor that led to the scientific revolution In the years immediately before the American Civil War in the 1860’s the railways had built up into quite a network serving the eastern states, but afterwards they gradually spread over the rest of the country. This meant that people no longer had to spend many weeks of hardship in order to reach their destination and so the tiny townships already established by earlier settlers were quickly expanded new comers seeking for themselves and their families a better life. The Irish potato famine of the 1840’s as described on the History Place web page, ‘The Blight Begins’ led to many immigrants from that country, the majority would not have been city folk, so it is perhaps natural that some migrated to the western states where they saw at least some hope for their future, just like all the other migrants.

Alfred Tennyson, Charles Darwin, Charles Lyell, and Essay -- Tennyson

Alfred Tennyson, Charles Darwin, Charles Lyell, and "In Memoriam" Alfred Lord Tennyson was born August 6, 1809, at Somersby, Lincolnshire. He was the fourth of twelve children. As a boy he led a very miserable and unhappy life. In 1828 Tennyson entered Trinity college, Cambridge. The most important part of his experience there was his friendship with Arthur Henry Hallam, who was the son of a well known historian. Hallam encouraged and inspired Tennyson to write. Hallam died in 1833. Tennyson published poems in 1842 which proved to be a great success and secured his position as the foremost Victorian Poet. The year 1850 was important to Tennyson for two reasons: his marriage to Emily Sellwood and the publication of "In Memoriam" , his great elegy to Arthur Hallam. "In Memoriam’ was merely a verification of some of the books that Tennyson had been reading" (Wiley 160). These books included Lyell and Darwin. Many of the lines in his poem show an interesting compromise between religious attitude and what is quite a different belief, the belief i n human perfectibility. "In Memoriam" can be justly called a religious poem. However it is not religious because of its faith, but because of the quality of its doubt. Its Faith is a poor thing, but its doubt is a very intense experience. The first aspects of science that seem to interest Tennyson were astronomy. However, he seemed to become more interested in geology and Lyell’s work on Geology. Sir Charles Lyell, is perhaps the most significant figure ever born in Angus, Scotland. On the fourteenth of November 1797 Charles Lyell was born. His father, Charles Lyell, enrolled in 1786 at St. Andrew University where he studied law. When Charles Lyell was less than a year old his fath... ...upreme being. They believer that the bible was not true because they do not know for a fact if the things in the bible happened or not. In Canto 120, Tennyson is describing how humans are not machines. In the second stanza he is completely rejecting science, evolution and Geology. This shows a complete turnaround from what he believed before. In the third stanza he is telling us that no matter what people say or do like the theories of Charles Darwin and Charles Lyell, he is going to follow what he believes in. Charles Darwin was an important part of the Victorian era. His theories are still taught in schools and are part of our evolving lives. If Charles Darwin did not discover the fossils on his early expedition and put all the missing pieces together, then people would still be thinking that one Supreme Being created us all, when in fact we really weren’t.

Empty Seat †Analysis Essay

The author of this text is Yuan Ch’iung-ch’iung, popularly called Yuan Qiongqiong. She is a Taiwanese writer, and she wrote during the Boudoir literature period. The characteristics of texts written in this period, is that they focuses on women’s issues. In this analysis, I will mostly focus on the characters, together with some literary devices such as climax and setting. The action takes place in a crowded bus, most likely in the 80’s due the fact that the story was released in that time frame. I find the story to don’t have a crystal clear climax; however, if I were to choose one, I would choose the part where the protagonist leaves his seat. Empty seat is a short story about a man entering a bus, who sat down at the first empty seat he spotted. Some moments later he heard a strange sound, and he didn’t realize where it came from because of some background noise. After a while, he found out; the woman next to him was sobbing. He immediatel y leaned away from the woman, because he didn’t want people to think that he had something to do with her. Despite this, the other passengers still looked at him with a strange look, among them a college boy. He stared at the protagonist, who is the man, but he looked away as soon as the man returned the look. The man tried to signal that he hadn’t done anything mean against the woman, but it seemed like nobody realized that he was a stranger to the woman. He couldn’t handle the situation, so he left his seat next to the sobbing woman, and stood beside the college boy instead. They smiled to each other, and then the man realized that the collage boy sat there before him. He and the college boy then watched a new passenger take the seat. We don’t get to know a lot about the characters in the story, but it’s possible to tell a fairly accurate description of them by reading the text. The man who entered the bus, and then sat down next to the sobbing woman, is without a doubt the protagonist. The whole story is centered around his experience on the bus, and the narrator tells about the man’s movements. The story doesn’t tell us anything about the characters other than their genders, or where the action takes place. This makes it impossible to give a description based on facts. Despite this, I will still try to give a description of it based on my thoughts. I think that the man, who entered the bus, and the woman who were sobbing, is fairly the same age. The reason behind this is because the protagonist thought that the other passengers on the bus thought that he was the one that had hurt her. If an obvious age difference was involved, I don’t think that he would have cared. I think that the story takes place in Taiwan, since the author of this story is a Taiwanese writer. It is also not a bad idea to think that the author may has experienced something similar on a bus, which led her to writing this story. The three characters in this story, which are the collage boy, the sobbing woman and the man, don’t seem to know each other. If either the man or the boy knew the woman, they would most likely be sitting next to her and tried to comfort her. The man also tried to prevent that people would think that he knew her. I personally enjoyed this story a lot, and I would recommend it to a friend. It was both interesting to read, and it tells about parts of today’s society in a fascinating way.

Second Foundation 2. Two Men without the Mule

The ship was in near-readiness. Nothing lacked, but the destination. The Mule had suggested a return to Trantor – the world that was the bulk of an incomparable Galactic metropolis of the hugest Empire mankind had ever known – the dead world that had been capital of all the stars. Pritcher disapproved. It was an old path – sucked dry. He found Bail Channis in the ship's navigation room. The young man's curly hair was just sufficiently disheveled to allow a single curl to droop over the forehead – as if it had been carefully placed there – and even teeth showed in a smile that matched it. Vaguely, the stiff officer felt himself harden against the other. Channis' excitement was evident, â€Å"Pritcher, it's too far a coincidence.† The general said coldly: â€Å"I'm not aware of the subject of conversation.† â€Å"Oh- Well, then drag up a chair, old man, and let's get into it. I've been going over your notes. I find them excellent.† â€Å"How†¦ pleasant that you do.† â€Å"But I'm wondering if you've come to the conclusions I have. Have you ever tried analyzing the problem deductively? I mean, it's all very well to comb the stars at random, and to have done all you did in five expeditions is quite a bit of star-hopping. That's obvious. But have you calculated how long it would take to go through every known world at this rate?† â€Å"Yes. Several times,† Pritcher felt no urge to meet the young man halfway, but there was the importance of filching the other's mind – the other's uncontrolled, and hence, unpredictable, mind. â€Å"Well, then, suppose we're analytical about it and try to decide just what we're looking for?† â€Å"The Second Foundation,† said Pritcher, grimly. â€Å"A Foundation of psychologists,† corrected Channis, â€Å"who are as weak in physical science as the First Foundation was weak in psychology. Well, you're from the First Foundation, which I'm not. The implications are probably obvious to you. We must find a world which rules by virtue of mental skills, and yet which is very backwards scientifically.† â€Å"Is that necessarily so?† questioned Pritcher, quietly. â€Å"Our own ‘Union of Worlds' isn't backwards scientifically, even though our ruler owes his strength to his mental powers.† â€Å"Because he has the skills of the First Foundation to draw upon,† came the slightly impatient answer, â€Å"and that is the only such reservoir of knowledge in the Galaxy. The Second Foundation must live among the dry crumbs of the broken Galactic Empire. There are no pickings there.† â€Å"So then you postulate mental power sufficient to establish their rule over a group of worlds and physical helplessness as well?† â€Å"Comparative physical helplessness. Against the decadent neighboring areas, they are competent to defend themselves. Against the resurgent forces of the Mule, with his background of a mature atomic economy, they cannot stand. Else, why is their location so well-hidden, both at the start by the founder, Hari Seldon, and now by themselves. Your own First Foundation made no secret of its existence and did not have it made for them, when they were an undefended single city on a lonely planet three hundred years ago.† The smooth lines of Pritcher's dark face twitched sardonically. ‘And now that you've finished your deep analysis, would you like a list of all the kingdoms, republics, planet states and dictatorships of one sort or another in that political wilderness out there that correspond to your description and to several factors besides?† â€Å"All this has been considered then?† Channis lost none of his brashness. â€Å"You won't find it here, naturally, but we have a completely worked out guide to the political units of the Opposing Periphery. Really, did you suppose the Mule would work entirely hit-and-miss?† â€Å"Well, then† and the young man's voice rose in a burst of energy, â€Å"what of the Oligarchy of Tazenda?† Pritcher touched his ear thoughtfully, â€Å"Tazenda? Oh, I think I know it. They're not in the Periphery, are they? It seems to me they're fully a third of the way towards the center of the Galaxy.† â€Å"Yes. What of that?† â€Å"The records we have place the Second Foundation at the other end of the Galaxy. Space knows it's the only thing we have to go on. Why talk of Tazenda anyway? Its angular deviation from the First Foundation radian is only about one hundred ten to one hundred twenty degrees anyway. Nowhere near one hundred eighty.† â€Å"There's another point in the records. The Second Foundation was established at ‘Star's End.'† â€Å"No such region in the Galaxy has ever been located.† â€Å"Because it was a local name, suppressed later for greater secrecy. Or maybe one invented for the purpose by Seldon and his group. Yet there's some relationship between ‘Star's End' and ‘Tazenda,' don't you think?† â€Å"A vague similarity in sound? Insufficient.† ‘Have you ever been there?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Yet it is mentioned in your records.† â€Å"Where? Oh, yes, but that was merely to take on food and water. There was certainly nothing remarkable about the world.† â€Å"Did you land at the ruling planet? The center of government?† â€Å"I couldn't possibly say.† Channis brooded about it under the other's cold gaze. Then, â€Å"Would you look at the Lens with me for a moment?† â€Å"Certainly.† The Lens was perhaps the newest feature of the interstellar cruisers of the day. Actually, it was a complicated calculating machine which could throw on a screen a reproduction of the night sky as seen from any given point of the Galaxy. Channis adjusted the co-ordinate points and the wall lights of the pilot room were extinguished. In the dim red light at the control board of the Lens, Channis' face glowed ruddily. Pritcher sat in the pilot seat, long legs crossed, face lost in the gloom. Slowly, as the induction period passed, the points of light brightened on the screen. And then they were thick and bright with the generously populated star-groupings of the Galaxy's center. â€Å"This,† explained Channis, â€Å"is the winter night-sky as seen from Trantor. That is the important point that, as far as I know, has been neglected so far in your search. All intelligent orientation must start from Trantor as zero point. Trantor was the capital of the Galactic Empire. Even more so scientifically and culturally, than politically. And, therefore, the significance of any descriptive name should stem, nine times out of ten, from a Trantorian orientation. You'll remember in this connection that, although Seldon was from Helicon, towards the Periphery, his group worked on Trantor itself.† â€Å"What is it you're trying to show me?† Pritcher's level voice plunged icily into the gathering enthusiasm of the other. â€Å"The map will explain it. Do you see the dark nebula?† The shadow of his arm fell upon the screen, which took on the bespanglement of the Galaxy. The pointing finger ended on a tiny patch of black that seemed a hole in the speckled fabric of light. â€Å"The stellagraphical records call it Pelot's Nebula. Watch it. I'm going to expand the image.† Pritcher had watched the phenomenon of Lens Image expansion before but he still caught his breath. It was like being at the visiplate of a spaceship storming through a horribly crowded Galaxy without entering hyperspace. The stars diverged towards them from a common center, flared outwards and tumbled off the edge of the screen. Single points became double, then globular. Hazy patches dissolved into myriad points. And always that illusion of motion. Channis spoke through it all, â€Å"You'll notice that we are moving along the direct line from Trantor to Pelot's Nebula, so that in effect we are still looking at a stellar orientation equivalent to that of Trantor. There is probably a slight error because of the gravitic deviation of light that I haven't the math to calculate for, but I'm sure it can't be significant.† The darkness was spreading over the screen. As the rate of magnification slowed, the stars slipped off the four ends of the screen in a regretful leave-taking. At the rims of the growing nebula, the brilliant universe of stars shone abruptly in token for that light which was merely hidden behind the swirling unradiating atom fragments of sodium and calcium that filled cubic parsecs of space. And Channis pointed again, â€Å"This has been called ‘The Mouth' by the inhabitants of that region of space. And that is significant because it is only from the Trantorian orientation that it looks like a mouth.† What he indicated was a rift in the body of the Nebula, shaped like a ragged, grinning mouth in profile, outlined by the glazing glory of the starlight with which it was filled. â€Å"Follow ‘The Mouth.' † said Channis. â€Å"Follow ‘The Mouth' towards the gullet as it narrows down to a thin, splintering line of light. Again the screen expanded a trifle, until the Nebula stretched away from â€Å"The Mouth† to block off all the screen but that narrow trickle and Channis' finger silently followed it down, to where it straggled to a halt, and then, as his finger continued moving onward, to a spot where one single star sparked lonesomely; and there his finger halted, for beyond that was blackness, unrelieved. â€Å"‘Star's End,'† said the young man, simply. â€Å"The fabric of the Nebula is thin there and the light of that one star finds its way through in just that one direction – to shine on Trantor.† â€Å"You're tying to tell me that-† the voice of the Mule's general died in suspicion. â€Å"I'm not trying. That is Tazenda – Star's End.† The lights went on. The Lens flicked off. Pritcher reached Channis in three long strides, â€Å"What made you think of this?† And Channis leaned back in his chair with a queerly puzzled expression on his face. â€Å"It was accidental. I'd like to take intellectual credit for this, but it was only accidental. In any case, however it happens, it fits. According to our references, Tazenda is an oligarchy. It rules twenty-seven inhabited planets. It is not advanced scientifically. And most of all, it is an obscure world that has adhered to a strict neutrality in the local politics of that stellar region, and is not expansionist. I think we ought to see it.† â€Å"Have you informed the Mule of this?† â€Å"No. Nor shall we. We're in space now, about to make the first hop.† Pritcher, in sudden horror, sprang to the visiplate. Cold space met his eyes when he adjusted it. He gazed fixedly at the view, then turned. Automatically, his hand reached for the hard, comfortable curve of the butt of his blaster. â€Å"By whose order?† â€Å"By my order, general†- it was the first time Channis had ever used the other's title -â€Å"while I was engaging you here. You probably felt no acceleration, because it came at the moment I was expanding the field of the Lens and you undoubtedly imagined it to be an illusion of the apparent star motion.† â€Å"Why? Just what are you doing? What was the point of your nonsense about Tazenda, then?† â€Å"That was no nonsense. I was completely serious. We're going there. We left today because we were scheduled to leave three days from now. General, you don't believe there is a Second Foundation, and I do. You are merely following the Mule's orders without faith; I recognize a serious danger. The Second Foundation has now had five years to prepare. How they've prepared, I don't know, but what if they have agents on Kalgan. If I carry about in my mind the knowledge of the whereabouts of the Second Foundation, they may discover that. My life might be no longer safe, and I have a great affection for my life. Even on a thin and remote possibility such as that, I would rather play safe. So no one knows of Tazenda but you, and you found out only after we were out in space. And even so, there is the question of the crew.† Channis was smiling again, ironically, in obviously complete control of the situation. Pritcher's hand fell away from his blaster, and for a moment a vague discomfort pierced him. What kept him from action? What deadened him? There was a time when he was a rebellious and unpromoted captain of the First Foundation's commercial empire, when it would have been himself rather than Channis who would have taken prompt and daring action such as that. Was the Mule right? Was his controlled mind so concerned with obedience as to lose initiative? He felt a thickening despondency drive him down into a strange lassitude. He said, â€Å"Well done! However, you will consult me in the future before making decisions of this nature.† The flickering signal caught his attention. â€Å"That's the engine room,† said Channis, casually. â€Å"They warmed up on five minutes' notice and I asked them to let me know if there was any trouble. Want to hold the fort?† Pritcher nodded mutely, and cogitated in the sudden loneliness on the evils of approaching fifty. The visiplate was sparsely starred. The main body of the Galaxy misted one end. What if he were free of the Mule's influence- But he recoiled in horror at the thought. *** Chief Engineer Huxlani looked sharply at the young, ununiformed man who carried himself with the assurance of a Fleet officer and seemed to be in a position of authority. Huxlani, as a regular Fleet man from the days his chin had dripped milk, generally confused authority with specific insignia. But the Mule had appointed this man, and the Mule was, of course, the last word. The only word for that matter. Not even subconsciously did he question that. Emotional control went deep. He handed Channis the little oval object without a word. Channis hefted it, and smiled engagingly. â€Å"You're a Foundation man, aren't you, chief?† â€Å"Yes, sir. I served in the Foundation Fleet eighteen years before the First Citizen took over.† â€Å"Foundation training in engineering?† â€Å"Qualified Technician, First Class – Central School on Anacreon.† â€Å"Good enough. And you found this on the communication circuit, where I asked you to look?† â€Å"Yes, Sir.† â€Å"Does it belong there?† â€Å"No, Sir.† â€Å"Then what is it?† â€Å"A hypertracer, sir.† â€Å"That's not enough. I'm not a Foundation man. What is it?† â€Å"It's a device to allow the ship to be traced through hyperspace.† â€Å"In other words we can be followed anywhere.† â€Å"Yes, Sir.† â€Å"All right. It's a recent invention, isn't it? It was developed by one of the Research Institutes set up by the First Citizen, wasn't it?† â€Å"I believe so, Sir.† â€Å"And its workings are a government secret. Right?† â€Å"I, believe so, Sir.† â€Å"Yet here it is. Intriguing.† Channis tossed the hypertracer methodically from hand to hand for a few seconds. Then, sharply, he held it out, â€Å"Take it, then, and put it back exactly where you found it and exactly how you found it. Understand? And then forget this incident. Entirely!† The chief choked down his near-automatic salute, turned sharply and left. The ship bounded through the Galaxy, its path a wide-spaced dotted line through the stars. The dots, referred to, were the scant stretches of ten to sixty light-seconds spent in normal space and between them stretched the hundred-and-up light-year gaps that represented the â€Å"hops† through hyperspace. Bail Channis sat at the control panel of the Lens and felt again the involuntary surge of near-worship at the contemplation of it. He was not a Foundation man and the interplay of forces at the twist of a knob or the breaking of a contact was not second nature to him. Not that the Lens ought quite to bore even a Foundation man. Within its unbelievably compact body were enough electronic circuits to pin-point accurately a hundred million separate stars in exact relationship to each other. And as if that were not a feat in itself, it was further capable of translating any given portion of the Galactic Field along any of the three spatial axes or to rotate any portion of the Field about a center. It was because of that, that the Lens had performed a near-revolution in interstellar travel. In the younger days of interstellar travel, the calculation of each â€Å"hop† through hyperspace meant any amount of work from a day to a week – and the larger portion of such work was the more or less precise calculation of â€Å"Ship's Position† on the Galactic scale of reference. Essentially that meant the accurate observation of at least three widely-spaced stars, the position of which, with reference to the arbitrary Galactic triple-zero, were known. And it is the word â€Å"known,† that is the catch. To any who know the star field well from one certain reference point, stars are as individual as people. Jump ten parsecs, however, and not even your own sun is recognizable. It may not even be visible. The answer was, of course, spectroscopic analysis. For centuries, the main object of interstellar engineering was the analysis of the â€Å"light signature† of more and more stars in greater and greater detail. With this, and the growing precision of the â€Å"hop† itself, standard routes of travel through the Galaxy were adopted and interstellar travel became less of an art and more of a science. And yet, even under the Foundation with improved calculating machines and a new method of mechanically scanning the star field for a known â€Å"light signature,† it sometimes took days to locate three stars and then calculate position in regions not previously familiar to the pilot. It was the Lens that changed all that. For one thing it required only a single known star. For another, even a space tyro such as Channis could operate it. The nearest sizable star at the moment was Vincetori, according to â€Å"hop† calculations, and on the visiplate now, a bright star was centered. Channis hoped that it was Vincetori. The field screen of the Lens was thrown directly next that of the visiplate and with careful fingers, Channis punched out the co-ordinates of Vincetori. He closed a relay, and the star field sprang to bright view. In it, too, a bright star was centered, but otherwise there seemed no relationship. He adjusted the Lens along the Z-Axis and expanded the Field to where the photometer showed both centered stars to be of equal brightness. Channis looked for a second star, sizably bright, on the visiplate and found one on the field screen to correspond. Slowly, he rotated the screen to similar angular deflection. He twisted his mouth and rejected the result with a grimace. Again he rotated and another bright star was brought into position, and a third. And then he grinned. That did it. Perhaps a specialist with trained relationship perception might have clicked first try, but he'd settle for three. That was the adjustment. In the final step, the two fields overlapped and merged into a sea of not-quite-rightness. Most of the stars were close doubles. But the fine adjustment did not take long. The double stars melted together, one field remained, and the â€Å"Ship's Position† could now be read directly off the dials. The entire procedure had taken less than half an hour. Channis found Han Pritcher in his private quarters. The general was quite apparently preparing for bed. He looked up. â€Å"News?† â€Å"Not particularly. We'll be at Tazenda in another hop.† â€Å"I know.† â€Å"I don't want to bother you if you're turning in, but have you looked through the film we picked up in Cil?† Han Pritcher cast a disparaging look at the article in question, where it lay in its black case upon his low bookshelf, â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"And what do you think?† â€Å"I think that if there was ever any science to History, it has been quite lost in this region of the Galaxy.† Channis grinned broadly, â€Å"I know what you mean. Rather barren, isn't it?† â€Å"Not if you enjoy personal chronicles of rulers. Probably unreachable, I should say, in both directions. Where history concerns mainly personalities, the drawings become either black or white according to the interests of the writer. I find it all remarkably useless.† â€Å"But there is talk about Tazenda. That's the point I tried to make when I gave you the film. It's the only one I could find that even mentioned them.† â€Å"All right. They have good rulers and bad. They've conquered a few planets, won some battles, lost a few. There is nothing distinctive about them. I don't think much of your theory, Channis.† â€Å"But you've missed a few points. Didn't you notice that they never formed coalitions? They always remained completely outside the politics of this corner of the star swarm. As you say, they conquered a few planets, but then they stopped – and that without any startling defeat of consequence. It's just as if they spread out enough to protect themselves, but not enough to attract attention.† â€Å"Very well,† came the unemotional response. â€Å"I have no objection to landing. At the worst – a little lost time.† â€Å"Oh, no. At the worst – complete defeat. If it is the Second Foundation. Remember it would be a world of space-knows-how-many Mules.† â€Å"What do you plan to do?† â€Å"Land on some minor subject planet. Find out as much as we can about Tazenda first, then improvise from that.† â€Å"All right. No objection. If you don't mind now, I would like the light out.† Channis left with a wave of his hand. And in the darkness of a tiny room in an island of driving metal lost in the vastness of space, General Han Pritcher remained awake, following the thoughts that led him through such fantastic reaches. If everything he had so painfully decided were true – and how all the facts were beginning to fit – then Tazenda was the Second Foundation. There was no way out. But how? How? Could it be Tazenda? An ordinary world? One without distinction? A slum lost amid the wreckage of an Empire? A splinter among the fragments? He remembered, as from a distance, the Mule's shriveled face and his thin voice as he used to speak of the old Foundation psychologist, Ebling Mis, the one man who had – maybe – learned the secret of the Second Foundation. Pritcher recalled the tension of the Mule's words: â€Å"It was as if astonishment had overwhelmed Mis. It was as though something about the Second Foundation had surpassed all his expectations, had driven in a direction completely different from what he might have assumed. If I could only have read his thoughts rather than his emotions. Yet the emotions were plain – and above everything else was this vast surprise.† Surprise was the keynote. Something supremely astonishing! And now came this boy, this grinning youngster, glibly joyful about Tazenda and its undistinguished subnormality. And he had to be right. He had to. Otherwise, nothing made sense. Pritcher's last conscious thought had a touch of grimness. That hypertracer along the Etheric tube was still there. He had checked it one hour back, with Channis well out of the way. Second Interlude It was a casual meeting in the anteroom of the Council Chamber – just a few moments before passing into the Chamber to take up the business of the day – and the few thoughts flashed back and forth quickly. â€Å"So the Mule is on his way.† â€Å"That's what I hear, too. Risky! Mighty risky!† â€Å"Not if affairs adhere to the functions set up.† â€Å"The Mule is not an ordinary man – and it is difficult to manipulate his chosen instruments without detection by him. The controlled minds are difficult to touch. They say he's caught on to a few cases.† â€Å"Yes, I don't see how that can be avoided.† â€Å"Uncontrolled minds are easier. But so few are in positions of authority under him-â€Å" They entered the Chamber. Others of the Second Foundation followed them.

The Allegory of the Cave Essays

The Allegory of the Cave Essays The Allegory of the Cave Paper The Allegory of the Cave Paper Allegory of the Cave, Plato In this essay I will discuss Platos Allegory of the Cave and how it expresses his philosophical view on reality versus belief and the process someone has to undergo to achieve enlightenment. Plato lived 427-327 B.C his mentor was Socrates, Plato was a writer and a teacher he writes in forms of dialogues. Plato believed that education is only directing students minds towards what is important and real. For people to achieve enlightenment they have to apprehend things for themselves. He also thought that the universe, in the end, was good. Enlightened individuals to Plato have a bind on reality unlike the rest of society. In order to have a good society Plato believed it must be ruled by the truly wise. The Allegory of the Cave is in book VII of the Republic, which is Platos best-known work.(Kreis, Steven.May 13, 2004).The Allegory of the Cave is his best known metaphor. The Allegory of the cave is a way of explaining what Plato is trying to get across to people by looking at appearance versus reality and the steps leading to reality. He is talking to a follower of his named Glaucon and he is telling this fable to show what it is like to be a philosopher or a lover of wisdom.Platos cave has people who are unlearned of theory of forms chained unable to move their heads or limbs. A fire burns behind them, between the fire and theprisoners there is a parapet where people can go to hold up puppets such as animals, plants and other things to cast shadows on the cave walls that the prisoners can see. The prisoners can hear echoes and see the shadows cast by the objects but arent able to see the real objects. So what they are naming the shapes which are all the reality they know but really their shadows of images. The prisoners are mistaking appearance for reality.The prisoners would see the shadows as being real and they would know nothing of the real causes of the shadows.

Definition of a Boson Particle

Definition of a Boson Particle In particle physics, a boson is a type of particle that obeys the rules of Bose-Einstein statistics. These bosons also have a quantum spin with contains an integer value, such as 0, 1, -1, -2, 2, etc. (By comparison, there are other types of particles, called fermions, that have a half-integer spin, such as 1/2, -1/2, -3/2, and so on.) Whats So Special About a Boson? Bosons are sometimes called force particles, because it is the bosons that control the interaction of physical forces, such as electromagnetism and possibly even gravity itself. The name boson comes from the surname of Indian physicist Satyendra Nath Bose, a brilliant physicist from the early twentieth century who worked with Albert Einstein to develop a method of analysis called Bose-Einstein statistics. In an effort to fully understand Plancks law (the thermodynamics equilibrium equation that came out of Max Plancks work on the blackbody radiation problem), Bose first proposed the method in a 1924 paper trying to analyze the behavior of photons. He sent the paper to Einstein, who was able to get it published ... and then went on to extend Boses reasoning beyond mere photons, but also to apply to matter particles. One of the most dramatic effects of Bose-Einstein statistics is the prediction that bosons can overlap and coexist with other bosons. Fermions, on the other hand, cannot do this, because they follow the Pauli Exclusion Principle  (chemists focus primarily on the way the Pauli Exclusion Principle impacts the behavior of electrons in orbit around an atomic nucleus.) Because of this, it is possible for photons to become a laser and some matter is able to form the exotic state of a Bose-Einstein condensate. Fundamental Bosons According to the Standard Model of quantum physics, there are a number of fundamental bosons, which are not made up of smaller particles. This includes the basic gauge bosons, the particles that mediate the fundamental forces of physics (except for gravity, which well get to in a moment). These four gauge bosons have spin 1 and have all been experimentally observed: Photon - Known as the particle of light, photons carry all electromagnetic energy and act as the gauge boson that mediates the force of electromagnetic interactions.Gluon - Gluons mediate the interactions of the strong nuclear force, which binds together quarks to form protons and neutrons and also holds the protons and neutrons together within an atoms nucleus.W Boson - One of the two gauge bosons involved in mediating the weak nuclear force.Z Boson - One of the two gauge bosons involved in mediating the weak nuclear force. In addition to the above, there are other fundamental bosons predicted, but without clear experimental confirmation (yet): Higgs Boson - According to the Standard Model, the Higgs Boson is the particle that gives rise to all mass. On July 4, 2012, scientists at the Large Hadron Collider announced that they had good reason to believe theyd found evidence of the Higgs Boson. Further research is ongoing in an attempt to get better information about the particles exact properties. The particle is predicted to have a quantum spin value of 0, which is why it is classified as a boson.Graviton - The graviton is a theoretical particle which has not yet been experimentally detected. Since the other fundamental forces - electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, and weak nuclear force - are all explained in terms of a gauge boson that mediates the force, it was only natural to attempt to use the same mechanism to explain gravity. The resulting theoretical particle is the graviton, which is predicted to have a quantum spin value of 2.Bosonic Superpartners - Under the theory of supersymmetry, every fermion would have a so-far-undetected bosonic counterpart. Since there are 12 fundamental fermions, this would suggest that - if supersymmetry is true - there are another 12 fundamental bosons that have not yet been detected, presumably because they are highly unstable and have decayed into other forms. Composite Bosons Some bosons are formed when two or more particles join together to create an integer-spin particle, such as: Mesons - Mesons are formed when two quarks bond together. Since quarks are fermions and have half-integer spins, if two of them are bonded together, then the spin of the resulting particle (which is the sum of the individual spins) would be an integer, making it a boson.Helium-4 atom - A helium-4 atom contains 2 protons, 2 neutrons, and 2 electrons ... and if you add up all of those spins, youll end up with an integer every time. Helium-4 is particularly noteworthy because it becomes a superfluid when cooled to ultra-low temperatures, making it a brilliant example of Bose-Einstein statistics in action. If youre following the math, any composite particle that contains an even number of fermions is going to be a boson, because an even number of half-integers is always going to add up to an integer.

What reccruiters look for in cover letters and resumes. How are Research Paper

What reccruiters look for in cover letters and resumes. How are Web-based and e-mail versions of these documents different from hard-copy versions - Research Paper Example In a cover letter, recruiters aim at getting the basic information about the candidate and know whether they are able to market themselves to the organization. Resumes and cover letters should be precise but detailed to give the recruiter an idea of what the candidate is capable of doing. They should portray ones altitude, communication skills, enthusiasm, personality and motivation (Vickie, 2008). The recruiters also want to know the contact information of the applicant, why they left their former places of work, the position they are applying for as well as the salary history and the future expectations of the candidate in the organization (Robert, 2004). Other recruiters are interested in knowing more about the candidate like what type of company one is interested in, why they are interested in that company, when they re ready for interviews and alternative organization the candidate could be interested in. While some of the recruiters are looking for basic information, some of them look at the simplicity, organization and preciseness of a cover letter or resume. Resumes and cover letters give a prior introduction of a person before they go for face to face interview and hence it should describe the candidate fully. Recruiters look for a detailed background of a candidate in that they are able to show the different elements of the candidates’ background for example, education level, experience and leadership positions held and responsibilities held (Diane, 2006). There are various differences between hard copy and e-mail resumes and cover letters. To start with, the formatting of the signature lock which includes the addressees, name and other contacts are written below the name in email but on hard copy it is written on top of the page. Secondly-mail resumes and cover letters have subject lines which are logical to the receiver while hard copy ones have a subject line too but it is