Who should be the next Supreme Court Justice to replace Antonin Scalia?

As is the case with almost all Americans, I do not have a specific name to give as the best replacement for the late Justice Scalia.  Instead, I will give three different opinions as to what sort of person should replace Scalia. People of different political persuasions will agree with different opinions.

One possible opinion is that Justice Scalia should be replaced by a liberal justice.  The Constitution says that the president gets to nominate justices to the Supreme Court whenever vacancies occur.  It does not say that a president should refrain from choosing a new justice if he (or someday she) is near to the end of his term.  Therefore, President Obama should pick a new justice.  Since Obama is liberal, he should pick a justice who would agree with him politically.  This would change the face of the court for years to come.

A second possible opinion is that Obama should pick a more moderate justice.  From this point of view, it will be impossible to get a liberal nominee confirmed by a Senate that is controlled by the Republicans.  If Obama nominates a liberal, he will just lose the confirmation fight and might lose the chance to get a new justice on the Court before he leaves office. Therefore, he should nominate a moderate who would be acceptable to both parties.  This would lessen the chance of rejection and would make it less likely that the next president (who might be Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz and therefore very opposed to Obama’s ideas) would get to nominate their own choice.

Finally, there are those who would argue that Scalia should be replaced by a conservative justice.  Scalia was the most important conservative mind on a closely divided Court.  Replacing him with a liberal or moderate would change the ideological makeup of the Court too drastically. By this thinking, Obama should appoint a conservative justice so as to maintain the partisan balance of the Court at a time when the US is very divided.  Doing otherwise would be too inflammatory at a tense time in our history.

These options describe types of people who might be considered as Scalia’s replacement.  The links below provide a few names that have been discussed by various experts.

What are some similarities and differences between Sanger Rainsford and General Zaroff, and how can I create a thesis around them?

Rainsford is an American World War I vet who is known for his good hunting skills, experience, and writing on the subject. General Zaroff calls himself a Cossack, which is a group from the Ukraine who are famous for their fierceness in battle. Cossacks apparently used to serve Russian czars. These two act as foils for each other in "The Most Dangerous Game." (A foil is a character who highlights another character's qualities by contrasting with them.) Hence, these characters have much in common because they both appreciate and study hunting wild beasts. They differ greatly, however, on the direction that their lives have taken when they meet. For example, General Zaroff thinks it is perfectly ethical to hunt humans for sport.

"I wanted the ideal animal to hunt . . . So I said: 'What are the attributes of the ideal quarry?' And the answer was, of course: 'It must have courage, cunning, and, above all, it must be able to reason.'"

So wit is pitted against wit; skill against skill; man against man.For a thesis statement for an essay that compares and contrasts these men, mentioning foil characters is one idea. Another good idea for a thesis statement would be to address the conflict of man vs. man.

Examples of Thesis Statements:

1. Rainsford and Zaroff are perfect foil characters for each other because they both hunt wild animals and have been trained as soldiers.

2. The conflict between Rainsford and Zaroff is the perfect example of man vs. man because they are both trained soldiers, skilled at hunting wild animals, and keenly intellectual.

Why did Virginia's eyes became dim with tears after the funeral?

Virginia's eyes grow dim with tears after the funeral for the Canterville ghost because she remembers his description of the Garden of Death. The ghost had earlier painted a picture for her of this garden that he longed to enter, a nighttime setting where the nightingale sings, the hemlock blooms and the moon shines. The Canterville ghost had said to her:

"Yes, death. Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the grasses waving above one's head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no to-morrow. To forget time, to forget life, to be at peace. You can help me. You can open for me the portals of death's house, for love is always with you, and love is stronger than death is."

Virginia, the aptly named virginal symbol of purity and goodness in the story, has helped the ghost to die, an act of love that relieves him of the burden of his sins. For the Victorian middle-class, children often represented innocence, and Virginia fits perfectly this notion of  the child as the representation of purity, and aligns as well with the Victorian concept of the good female as the redemptive angel of the home. She is the one person in the story who has truly treated the ghost with compassion and humanity.

Now that he is buried her eyes dim with tears for two reasons: she both sorrows in losing him and yet knows, happily, he is in a place of peace. Her tears are bittersweet.

How many carbon atoms are in ethane?

An ethane molecule has the formula `C_2H_6` , so it has two carbon atoms. Ethane is an alkane. Alkanes are a family of organic compounds that are made of carbon and hydrogen atoms with single bonds between all of the carbons. The general formula is C(n)H(2n+2) and the name is derived from the number of carbon atoms. Alkane molecules are said to be saturated because they have the maximum number of hydrogen atoms possible. Two related families of compounds are alkenes, which have at least one double bond, and alkynes, which have at least one triple bond.

Here are the prefixes that designate the number of carbon atoms and the corresponding names for the first ten alkanes:

meth = 1, methane is `CH_4`

eth = 2, ethane is `C_2H_6`

pro = 3, propane is `C_3H_8`

but = 4, butane is `C_4H_10`

pent = 5, pentane is `C_5H_12`

hex = 6, hexane is `C_6H_14`

hept = 7, heptane is `C_7H_16`

oct = 8, octane is `C_8H_18`

non = 9, nonane is `C_9H_20`

dec = 10, decane is `C_10H_22`

What are three symbols in The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen?

A symbol is something that stands for something else.  The opening of the door for Elijah, the bridal gown, and Rivka’s scarf are all symbols in The Devil’s Arithmetic.  Hannah is the character who is asked to open the door for Elijah at the Seder meal.  This act is done as a symbol of welcome to the Jewish prophets of old and of acceptance of the ancient Jewish ways.  (At this point in the story, Hannah is annoyed with this tradition).  The next symbol is the bridal gown.  The Jewish bride at the synagogue is dressed in her bridal gown and fancy earrings.  During the course of the train ride to the concentration camp, the bride rips her dress and has her earrings taken “for safekeeping.” The gown and the earring symbolize the pride of the Jewish people torn to shreds and/or lost due to the horrors of the Holocaust.  Finally, Rivka’s scarf comes to symbolize her character.  Hannah/Chaya snatches Rivka’s scarf as Rivka is asked to “run” and “remember.”  Because Hannah/Chaya is wearing Rivka’s scarf, Hannah/Chaya is mistaken for Rivka.  Hannah/Chaya, wearing Rivka’s scarf, is then marched off to the gas chamber and killed.

Find the equation of parabola whose latus rectum is the line segment joining the points (-3, 1), (1, 1)

You need to remember the equation of parabola, such that:

`4p(x-h)= (y-k)^2`

The length of latus rectum is |4p| and it must be set equal to the length of the segment joining the points (-3,1), (1,1).

You need to find the length of the segment joining the points (-3,1), (1,1), using the distance formula, such that:

`d = sqrt((-3-1)^2 + (1-1)^2)`

`d = sqrt 16`

`d = 4`

Hence, the length of latus rectum is:

`|4p| = 4 => p = +-1`

The focus of parabola is the midpoint of the segment line joining the points (-3,1), (1,1), hence, you may evaluate the coordinates of the midpoint, such that:

`x = (-3+1)/2 => x = -1`

`y = (1+1)/2 => y = 1`

The coordinates of the focus are (-1,1).

The vertex of parabola is `(-1+-p, 1)` , hence, the coordinates of the vertex are `(-1+-1, 1).`

The parabola that opens to the right has the length of latus rectum `4p = 4` , the vertex `(h,k) = (-1-1, 1) = (-2,1) ` and the equation of parabola `4(x + 2) = (y -1)^2.`

The parabola that opens to the left has the length of latus rectum `4p = -4` , the vertex `(h,k) = (-1+1, 1) = (0,1)` and the equation of parabola `-4(x-0) = (y -1)^2.`

I need to write an essay that relates to the following words: "social, cooperative, and loyal". The intended audience is the next President of the...

Since you placed this under the category of the novel In the Beauty of the Lilies by John Updike, I'm assuming that you are writing about how a future president might benefit from reading the book.

Many of the social problems facing the characters in the book seem outcomes of their individual life choices. Those are obviously ones over which politicians have no control. There are certain problems though, that could be ameliorated by political action. It should be noted though, that in the United States, the actions of the President are constrained by Congress, and that if the election of 2016 results in a Democratic President and a Republican Congress, much of the gridlock experienced under President Obama's second term is likely to continue.

The first major social issue we see in the story has to do with the character Esther. Although she does find success as a movie star, her character makes us aware of the continuing issue of gender inequality. Esther succeeds by trading on her sexual attractiveness. This suggests that a president should continue to work to reduce gender inequality and to continue with education reforms that ensure all people have the skills necessary to earn their livings.

Next, there is an extended description of the Paterson textile strike in the novel. Although the strike failed, many of the issues that concerned the workers, such as inhumane working conditions, exploitation of immigrants, technological obsolescence of workers, and economic inequality still plague the workers of the United States, especially in the new "gig economy." These still remain issues of importance to the president, and reflect the economic and social values of cooperation versus competition.

The standoff between federal officials and the cult at the end of the novel evoke issues of tribalism and loyalty. As seen in the 2016 occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge by anti-government extremists, small, tightly knit fringe groups, including cults and ideologues still take the law in their own hands. Given the wide availability of firearms to everyone in the US, including to right-wing extremists and the mentally disturbed, it will be important for the President to work closely with law enforcement to develop guidelines to minimize loss of life of innocent bystanders in such situations. 

In Song of Solomon, what lessons does Milkman learn on his journey south? How do these lessons help him cope with life, deal with personal...

Really, Milkman learns that the world does not revolve around him. I know that may seem like a broad answer, but think about how he lives his life in the first part of the story - his parents, his sisters, Hagar, Pilate all do whatever they can to make Milkman's life easier. His parents may argue and pull him in separate directions to their corresponding relationships, but each one truly has his best interests at heart. It's easy to pass judgment on Milkman as a selfish person, but he really didn't know any other way of life in Part I. 

In Part II, Milkman goes on a physical and emotional journey and makes a significant transformation. He travels to the South to trace his family's heritage, following Macon Dead to his true beginnings and finds out Macon's real name - Jake. This awareness provides Milkman with new eyes with which to see the world and the people in his family. He understands now that he has been a selfish person, mostly with Hagar. He owns his responsibility in her death after learning this lesson. He realizes how the true struggle his father endured in order to become the successful man he is, and he realizes what a unique person Pilate is, not the strange woman he originally thought.

This spiritual awareness he gains by knowing Jake's history literally "fixes" Milkman - after understanding his true heritage, the limp he walks with cures itself. This is the real indicator that Milkman has changed. Finally, at the end, we see the he has let go of all that was holding him down, baggage, and he is able to "fly." 

Explain the following simile: "It was like a stiff embraceless dance between her and the TV set."

A simile makes a comparison between two things using the words "like" or "as." The purpose of a simile is to help the reader better understand an idea by making a comparison to something she already understands well. 

In this simile, the person's relationship to the television is compared to a dance. Because the dance is "stiff" and "embraceless" we get the impression that it is awkward and strange. I'm reminded of middle school dances where everyone is afraid to dance or to touch his or her partner. Thus, the relationship with the television is tense, perhaps unwelcome. She does not love the television, but she still feels compelled to watch it. 

In Amy Tan's novel, The Joy Luck Club, focuses on the many ways that the Chinese immigrant mothers often feel trapped by or uncomfortable with American culture. Since the television is a common symbol of American culture, we might take this simile further to suggest that it represents the woman's discomfort with the unfamiliar expectations of American society. 

`(sin(2x) + cos(2x))^2 = 1` Find the exact solutions of the equation in the interval [0, 2pi).

You need to evaluate the solution to the equation `(cos 2x + sin 2x)^2 = 1` , such that:

`cos^2 2x + 2cos 2x*sin 2x + sin^2 2x = 1`

You need to use the formula `cos^2 2x + sin^2 2x = 1` , such that:

`1 + 2cos 2x*sin 2x = 1`

Reducing like terms yields:

`2cos 2x*sin 2x = 0`

You need to use the double angle formula such that:

`2cos 2x*sin 2x = sin 4x`

`sin 4x = 0 => 4x = 0 => x = 0`

`sin 4x = 0 => 4x = pi => x = pi/4`

Hence, the solution to the equation, in `[0,2pi)` , are `x = 0, x = pi/4.`

How does the economic development of Brazil compare with Cuba from 2012-2016?

This is a fairly short period---four years is not even enough to capture the whole business cycle, much less a long-run development trajectory. Also, 2016 hasn't finished yet, so any figures such as GDP and unemployment for 2016 can only be projections.

That said, we do have figures on Brazil and Cuba for the last few years that would allow us to get some idea about where they are and where they might be going in terms of economic development.

The first thing to note is that these are indeed highly comparable countries in terms of level of development. Both are Latin American countries at a moderate, Second World level of development. Brazil's nominal GDP per capita is about $6,000, while Cuba's nominal GDP per capita is about $5,000. A better measure in terms of real standard of living is GDP per capita at purchasing power parity (PPP), on which Brazil is at $15,400 and Cuba is at $20,000. Prices are lower in Cuba than they are in Brazil, but both places have much lower prices than the United States.

Using PPP as our guideline, we can see that Cuba seems to be undergoing quite strong economic growth lately, perhaps due to the loosening of trade restrictions with the US. The World Bank 2014 figures have not been released for Cuba yet, but using World Bank figures, Cuba's per capita GDP PPP rose 4% from 2012 to 2013, which is quite a healthy growth rate for a country at this level of development. Brazil only grew 3.3% from 2012 to 2013, and from 2013 to 2014, they grew a mere 0.7%---which would be slow even for a First World country. By other estimates, Brazil's economy actually shrank in 2013---meaning that Brazil is now in recession.

The gap between Cuba and Brazil is projected to continue in coming years; by 2020 Cuba is projected to have a per capita GDP PPP of $24,800 while Brazil is only projected to reach $18,800. This would mean that in real terms the standard of living in Cuba is about 30% better than that of Brazil.

Of course, these projections could be wrong, and it will really depend on whether Brazil can implement good fiscal and monetary policies to bring themselves out of this recession. Economies fluctuate over time, and it's dangerous to forecast long-run economic development on the basis of just a few years.

Why is my hair brown?

The presence or absence of a substance called melanin is what determines the different hair colors.  For brown hair, a subdivision of melanin, called eumelanin, is what produces the pigment, or color, for brown hair.  There are is a eumelanin for brown hair, then one for darker hair, such as black hair.  A lighter eumelanin is the substance responsible for blonde hair.  Hair color is determined largely by heredity, which is the passing of physical traits from parents to offspring.  One or both of your parents passed the genes for brown hair on to you when you were conceived by your mother.  Environment is another thing that can have something to do with the promotion of darker hair, such as brown hair.  People who live in areas with warmer climates, closer to the equator, tend to have both darker skin and darker hair.

In Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson, how does the setting affect the plot in chapters 6-10?

The setting throughout those chapters is New York. Chapter 6 has Isabel being asked to spy on the Locktons by Curzon. Chapter 7 has Isabel learning her chores at the Lockton house. Chapter 8 has Madam Lockton turning Ruth into a puppet of sorts. Chapter 9 has Isabel learning of the bribery plot, and chapter 10 has Isabel reporting to Curzon what she learned.

New York itself is a divided city at this time. It's filled with Patriots and Loyalists in almost equal numbers, and it's ready to be torn apart by the war. It's a great place to be a spy for either side. Isabel is a slave in the house of a prominent Loyalist, so it makes sense that she would be asked to spy for the Patriots. She has zero motivation to do it, though—that is, until she begins to experience and see the abuse that she and Ruth are going to have to endure under Madam Lockton. Then Isabel hears exactly the kind of thing that she was asked to listen for. She learns of a plot to bribe members of the Patriot army. The Lockton house is in close enough proximity to where Curzon lives that she is able to sneak out at night and inform him of the plot. If Isabel's situation were still set out in the country, then chapters 6-10 would not have occurred as part of Isabel's story.

How is The Kite Runner similar to The Thorn Birds?

Khaled Hosseini’s book The Kite Runner and Colleen McCullough’s novel The Thorn Birds don’t at first seem to have much in common. Hosseini’s book takes place in Kabul, while McCullough’s occurs in Australia. However, upon closer inspection, there is one primary similarity, and that is one of boundary transgression. The character Amir, a Pashtun, in The Kite Runner, is friends and flies kites with Hassan, a Hazara. According to society, these two should not socialize with one another. Because of an incident between Hassan and Assef, Amir distances himself from Hassan. Likewise, in The Thorn Birds, Meggie finds herself falling in love with a priest, a forbidden boundary issue that complicates the plot of the story. After much conflict, Meggie acknowledges that the boundary cannot be crossed and realizes that she must marry someone she does not want to, Luke O’Neil, because she is unable to marry Ralph de Bricassart, the priest.

Compare yeast and mold.

Although yeast and mold are both eukaryotic organisms and are classified as fungi, there are a number of differences between the two. These include:

• Most types of yeast are unicellular organisms, while molds are multicellular.


• Yeasts generally reproduce through asexual reproduction; molds reproduce either sexually or asexually.


• Yeasts commonly reproduce through a process known as budding, in which the daughter cell grows as a bud on the parent cell. Over time, the DNA is duplicated and a nucleus migrates into the daughter cell, which detaches from the parent cell. Molds, as stated, undergo sexual or asexual reproduction.


• Yeasts are white in color and are typically oval shaped. Molds, on the other hand, are typically colorful and can be orange, green, pink, etc.


• There are about 1,500 or so known types of yeast. In comparison, there are thousands of types of mold.

Hope this helps. 

Where you surprised by the big surprise in "The Lottery"?

"The Lottery" does not seem intended to give the reader a big surprise. An awareness of the purpose of this lottery builds gradually. We see early in the story that a lot of the boys are collecting stones and that everybody seems serious and apprehensive. Then when Bill Hutchinson draws the slip with the black spot for his family and his wife makes such a strong protest, we begin to realize that someone in the Hutchinson family is going to die.

"I think we ought to start over," Mrs. Hutchinson said, as quietly as she could. "I tell you it wasn't fair. You didn't give him time enough to choose. Everybody saw that."

Mr. Graves had selected the five slips and put them in the box. and he dropped all the papers but those onto the ground. where the breeze caught them and lifted them off.

"Listen, everybody," Mrs. Hutchinson was saying to the people around her.

Mrs. Hutchinson, who had enjoyed a secure position as a member of this community, is beginning to be isolated. We sense that things are drawing to a close and that we ourselves have been so involved in the proceedings that it is as if we are going to have to participate in the finale.

Bill Hutchinson went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out of her hand. It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before with the heavy pencil in the coal company office. Bill Hutchinson held it up, and there was a stir in the crowd

That black spot can mean only one thing. We may be just as guilty as everybody else.. We have the option of leaving before the end. We can close the book and never know what really happened. But we don't. We want to see for ourselves. Then when we finally turn away and leave these people to themselves and their humdrum daily lives, we will not think of reporting them to any authorities. We will be like Nick Adams in Ernest Hemingway's "The Killers," who tells George the counterman in the diner:

"I'm going to get out of this town," Nick said.
"Yes," said George. "That's a good thing to do."

The difference between "The Killers" and "The Lottery" is that we never know what happened to Ole Andreson, although we learn in exquisite detail what happened to Tessie Hutchinson. The story has not been building to any surprise ending but to a painful scene in which the entire town becomes a murderous mob and closes in on Tessie from all sides. Her own husband, her son Bill Jr., her daughter Nancy, and even tiny Davie Hutchinson are incluced in the mob intent on killing her. Shirley Jackson must have decided that there could not be such a denouement and a surprise ending as well. We are never surprised but only slowly and gradually enlightened.

"It isn't fair, it isn't right," Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her.

In Act 3, Scene 1 of Julius Caesar why did Popilius say, 'I wish your enterprise today will thrive'? What do these words mean?

The effect of Popilius' words is to add further to the dramatic tension leading up to the assassination. Popilius means exactly what he says. He knows that Cassius and a number of other conspirators are going to try to kill Julius Caesar and he is wishing him good luck. Why would Popilius want to wish Cassius good luck or to say anything at all? Popilius is playing it safe. He wants to be recognized as a supporter of the conspirators because he assumes there will be a lot of "collateral" bloodshed after the event, and he doesn't want to be one of the people he expects to be eliminated as a sympathizer of Caesar. On the other hand, if the enterprise doesn't "thrive," then Popilius would prefer not to be known as one of its supporters. That is why he only speaks in guarded terms to one person, to Cassius. But he obviously knows a lot, including the fact that Cassius is the instigator of the assassination plot.

Cassius has been recruiting people to take part in assassinating Caesar since before the play even began. It was inevitable that word should get around that there was such a conspiracy brewing and that Cassius was behind it. Some of the people Cassius approached who declined to get involved would still know about it and might very well mention it to others. So there could be a number of people in the crowd who expect an assassination attempt to occur, but Popilius is smart enough to work both sides of the street, so to speak. He is looking ahead. He wants to be on the side of whoever ends up holding the power in Rome. Right after Popilius talks to Cassius and alarms him, Brutus observes:

Cassius, be constant.
Popilius Lena speaks not of our purposes;
For, look, he smiles, and Caesar doth not change.

So Popilius goes to Cassius to hint broadly that he is a sympathizer, and then he goes directly to Julius Caesar, probably to assure him of his good will and to say that he hopes Caesar's "enterprise will thrive," i.e., he hopes Caesar will be crowned king that morning. 

It is probably worth noting that when Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus have seized power and are choosing the men they will exterminate because of their sympathies with the assassins, the name of Popilius Lena does not come up. He may have been able to save himself by his foresight. 

`-(13pi)/12` Find the exact values of the sine, cosine, and tangent of the angle.

`sin((-13pi)/12)`

using the property sin(-x)=-sin(x),

`sin((-13pi)/12)=-sin((13pi)/12)`

`=-sin(pi/2+pi/3+pi/4)`

Now using sin(pi/2+x)=cos(x),

`=-cos(pi/3+pi/4)`

`=-(cos(pi/3)cos(pi/4)-sin(pi/3)sin(pi/4))`

`=-(1/2*1/sqrt(2)-sqrt(3)/2*1/sqrt(2))`

`=(sqrt(3)-1)/(2sqrt(2))`

rationalizing the denominator,

`=(sqrt(2)(sqrt(3)-1))/4`

`cos((-13pi)/12)`

using the property cos(-x)=cos(x),

`cos((-13pi)/12)=cos((13pi)/12)`

`cos((13pi)/12)=cos(pi/2+pi/3+pi/4)`

now using cos(pi/2+x)=-sin(x),

`=-sin(pi/3+pi/4)`

`=-(sin(pi/3)cos(pi/4)+cos(pi/3)sin(pi/4))`

`=-(sqrt(3)/2*1/sqrt(2)+1/2*1/sqrt(2))`

`=(-(sqrt(3)+1))/(2sqrt(2))` 

rationalizing the denominator,

`=(-sqrt(2)(sqrt(3)+1))/4`  

`tan((-13pi)/12)=sin((-13pi)/12)/cos((-13pi)/12)`

plug in the values of `sin((-13pi)/12),cos((-13pi)/12)` obtained above,

`=((sqrt(2)(sqrt(3)-1))/4)/((-sqrt(2)(sqrt(3)+1))/4)`

`=-(sqrt(3)-1)/(sqrt(3)+1)` 

rationalizing the denominator,

`=-((sqrt(3)-1)(sqrt(3)-1))/((sqrt(3)+1)(sqrt(3)-1))`

`=-(3+1-2sqrt(3))/2`

`=-(4-2sqrt(3))/2`

`=sqrt(3)-2`

How does one best respond when someone makes a comment such as that you've no dignity or self-respect?

Actually, one might question whether such a remark calls for any response at all. Examine what you did or did not do that elicited this remark in the first place and evaluate it for yourself. But this question calls for a social answer that demonstrates that you do have self-respect; give a thoughtful, mature response, after some thought. One good way to respond to any criticism is “Thank you for pointing out this imperfection in my personality. I will try to work on it.” Another tactic might be a humorous remark, such as “It’s difficult for me to see anything remarkable about myself, except of course my humility.” Or give a philosophical response: “I respect the complexity of the universe, and my small place in it.”

What happened in Russia that led Germany to change its war strategy in World War I?

What happened was the Russian Revolution. In 1917, angry at the deprivations caused by the war, Russian people in Petrograd, the imperial capital, took to the streets in protest. When Russian soldiers joined them, the position of Tsar Nicholas II became untenable, and he abdicated. He was replaced by a provisional government that disappointed the people by keeping Russia in the war. Continued anger at the war effort led to another stage of the revolution led by Bolsheviks, Communist insurgents under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin (with some clandestine assistance from Germany) overthrew the provisional government and eventually gained control. 

This affected German strategy because the Bolsheviks quickly sought a treaty to get out of the war. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, concluded in 1918, concluded Russia's involvement while giving vast swaths of land to Germany. For the Germans, who had been fighting a two-front war, this treaty allowed them to focus on the Western Front. Unfortunately for them, their offensive in the spring was driven back by the Allies, recently reinforced by the American Expeditionary Force, and the German war effort collapsed. But the Russian Revolution briefly allowed the Germans to put their full effort into fighting in western Europe.

What conclusions can you draw about Sqeaky from her description of Gretchen in "Raymond's Run"?

Squeaky dismisses Gretchen because she thinks she is a phony, and this shows how important effort and authenticity is to Squeaky.

To Squeaky, Gretchen is inferior because she is all talk.  While Squeaky works hard and makes no secret of the amount of effort it takes her to do something, she does not appreciate Gretchen’s posturing.

So as far as everyone’s concerned, I’m the fastest and that goes for Gretchen, too, who has put out the tale that she is going to win the first-place medal this year. Ridiculous. In the second place, she’s got short legs. In the third place, she’s got freckles.

Squeaky does not seem to make friends easily.  Part of the reason why is her tendency to be judgmental.  She holds herself to a high standard, and definitely holds others to the same one.  She cannot stand it when, for example, Cynthia Procter pretends she is an ace speller or a piano prodigy, when she knows that Cynthia does in fact practice.

A regular prodigy. I could kill people like that. I stay up all night studying the words for the spelling bee. And you can see me any time of day practicing running. 

Squeaky also blames Gretchen for stealing her friend Mary Louise.  Mary's behavior is further prove that girls are disingenuous.  She says that when girls smile at each other, they do not mean it.  This is another example of her not seeing girls her age as sincere, especially Gretchen.  Squeaky finally does accept Gretchen as a possible friend when Gretchen comes in second in the race.  This shows that Gretchen is worthy, and she would make a good possible friend.

The deck is stacked against Squeaky because she has to spend a lot of her time chaperoning her older brother Raymond, who has special needs.  Squeaky feels protective of him and is often on the defensive against other kids who make fun of him.  The race shows her that she can make friends, and is a turning point in her relationship with other kids.

What does it mean when a scientist specializes in something?

When a scientists specializes in something, he or she focuses on a particular line of study in which he or she becomes an expert.

Below are some examples of specialties within the sciences.

•  Acoustics is the study of sounds


• Anthropology is the study of origin of the physical, social, and cultural developments of humans.


• Cellular biology is the study of cells.


• Neuroscience studies nerves and the brain.


• Ecology is the study of ecosystems.


• Genetics is the study of genes and inheritance.


• Hematology is the study of blood.


• Pediatrics provide medical care to infants, children, and adolescents.


• Botany is the extension of science that deals with the structures, functions, and variations of plants.


• Oceanography is the study of life within the oceans.


• Meteorology is the study of weather and climate patterns.

Here is a list of other specialties within the sciences.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, what scared Miss Caroline after lunch?

After lunch on the first day of school, Scout sits at her desk, lost in thought. Suddenly, she "looked up to see Miss Caroline standing in the middle of the room, sheer horror flooding her face" (Chapter 3). Scout wonders what is wrong with her teacher. At first, Scout thinks Miss Caroline sees a mouse. Several students in the class rush to help her. Terrified, Miss Caroline points to a student in the class. Little Chuck wants to help her, but he is puzzled.  

Miss Caroline tells Little Chuck that she sees something crawling in the student's hair. She is mortified by this. Little Chuck tries to reassure her by telling her that "cooties" are nothing to worry about. Little Chuck leads the shaken teacher back to her desk and offers to get her a glass of water. The student who has lice in his hair catches one and pinches it between his fingers until it is dead.

How does McCadless' father's past impact Chris' future? What implications, if any, exist in McCandless' life as a result of his father?

Krakauer seems to to suggest that Walt's past helped push Chris toward his chosen future. As Chris nears the end of his time at college, he grows more and more distant from both of his parents.  But it is Chris's father that Chris really seems to grow apart from.  It's important to note that Krakauer is not Chris McCandless, so there is no way to know for sure why Chris suddenly began distancing himself from his father.  Krakauer suggests that Chris grew disillusioned with what he saw as his father's hypocrisy.  That manifested itself in two ways.  First, Chris very obviously felt that his father's money could be put to better use than what Walt was doing with it.  That's probably why Chris decided to give away the remaining $24,000 of his education money.  

The final two years of his college education had been paid for with a forty thousand-dollar bequest left by a friend of the family’s; more than twenty-four thousand dollars remained at the time of Chris’s graduation, money his parents thought he intended to use for law school. “We misread him,” his father admits. What Walt, Billie, and Carine didn’t know when they flew down to Atlanta to attend Chris’s commencement—what nobody knew—was that he would shortly donate all the money in his college fund to OXFAM America, a charity dedicated to fighting hunger.

Second, during one of his summer wanderings, Chris discovered that his father was still in a relationship with his first wife.  It hurt Chris deeply, and Chris wanted nothing more to do with his dad after that.  

After Chris unearthed the particulars of Walt’s divorce, two years passed before his anger began to leak to the surface, but leak it eventually did. The boy could not pardon the mistakes his father had made as a young man, and he was even less willing to pardon the attempt at concealment.

I suppose there is an implication that Walt drove Chris away, because of his marital indiscretions.  But I don't believe that.  I think Chris would have gone on his journey either way.  I think Walt just made it easier for Chris to emotionally check out and leave his family. 

What is Act IV, Scene 1 in Macbeth about?

This scene is highly significant to the course of the play. In Act IV, Scene 1, Macbeth visits the witches again, seeking answers to pressing questions about his rise to power and his future. The witches, who open the scene (along with Hecate) by concocting a spell, answer him by summoning a series of visions. The first vision is an "Armed Head," which warns Macbeth to "Beware the Thane of Fife (Macduff.)" The next is a "bloody child," which informs Macbeth that "none of woman born" can harm him. A third apparition, which takes the form of a "Child Crowned, with a tree in his hand," reassures Macbeth that he cannot be defeated until Birnam Wood (a forest) marches against Dunsinane (Macbeth's palace.) In the final vision, Macbeth sees Banquo's image alongside eight kings, that are clearly intended to represent his heirs. Enraged by this, Macbeth demands that the witches answer his questions directly, but they depart, leaving him with his doubts. Macbeth decides to act on the visions, ordering the murder of Macduff's family--he learns from Lennox that Macduff has fled to England--and he is also emboldened by the second and the third visions. Yet the whole encounter leaves him questioning the motives and the trustworthiness of the witches. He exclaims "damn'd all those that trust them," a sentiment he repeats when he discovers, at the end of the play, that they have deceived him.

What does Ray Bradbury's novel "Fahrenheit 451" desire to convey with the title?

Fahrenheit 451's title reflects the temperature at which paper burns, which obviously ties into the novel well. It conveys the different society and setting in which the story takes place. In this world, books have been made illegal, and television has taken over as the main source of information for society. Montag, the protagonist, is a firefighter, except in this society everything is fireproof, so the job of the fireman is to burn books, which are illegal.

They have been made illegal because the government doesn't want the people thinking. Montag becomes obsessed with books, and his boss realizes it. He gives him ample opportunities to give back books he has stolen, but when he doesn't he becomes an outlaw.

Overall, the meaning behind the title is the temperature at which paper burns, pushing the plot of the story.

Hope that helps. For more information about the book see the link below.

Are Macduff and Malcolm foils in Macbeth?

In The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms, 3rd edition, editors Ross Murfin and Supryia Ray define "foil" as follows: "A character whose contrast with the main character (protagonist) serves to accentuate the latter's distinctive qualities or characteristics" (181). 

Technically, according to this definition, Macduff or Malcolm can only be considered foils when compared against Macbeth, who is the protagonist. However, if we use a looser definition of foil, basically two characters whose differences highlight each other’s characteristics, then yes, Macduff and Malcolm can be seen as foils for each other, though they do not contrast as strongly with each other as they do with Macbeth.

Unfortunately, Shakespeare does not spend a good deal of time detailing Malcolm's character. We know that he is a loyal son who loved his father. We know that his father has made him direct heir to the throne by naming him Prince of Cumberland. While Malcolm does happen to be Duncan's eldest son, a monarch did not have to name the eldest son or child as next in line if he did not deem them fit to reign - if a son lacked intelligence, sanity, physical health, or moral rectitude, he might be passed over in favor of another sibling. So, because Duncan does not choose Malcolm's younger brother Donalbain to be the heir, we know that Duncan has faith in his first-born son. We know that Malcolm is intelligent and strategic and also less trusting than his poor, gullible father. This is demonstrated in Malcolm's words to his brother after the body of their father is discovered:

What will you do? Let's not consort with them:
To show an unfelt sorrow is an office
Which the false man does easy. I'll to England. (II. iii)

Once in England, Malcolm meets with the king and his uncle Siward, the Earl of Northumberland, in order to raise an army to unseat Macbeth and claim his rightful place as heir. Macduff and Malcolm share the characteristics of being loyal to King Duncan and to Scotland, but there are several ways in which the two men contrast and appear as foils for each other.

Unlike Malcolm, Macduff seems immediately suspicious of Macbeth. In Act II, Scene iii, when Macbeth explains why he killed King Duncan’s guards, the following exchange takes place:

LENNOX 
Those of his chamber, as it seem'd, had done 't:
Their hands and faces were all badged with blood;
So were their daggers, which unwiped we found
Upon their pillows:
They stared, and were distracted; no man's life
Was to be trusted with them.

MACBETH 
O, yet I do repent me of my fury,
That I did kill them.

MACDUFF 
Wherefore did you so? (II. iii)

Macbeth goes on to explain that his love for Duncan and anger at the supposed murderers overwhelmed his reason and he acted in a fit of passion and killed the guards. All characters on stage feel this is a strange turn of events; Macbeth has killed the only two witnesses to the crime – two men who had nothing to gain from the king’s death. In fact, the whole thing seems so hinky that Lady Macbeth pretends to faint in order to get the attention off her husband. Macduff is the first to question Macbeth. While Malcolm is suspicious of all the thanes who were present at Inverness, Macduff seems to focus in on Macbeth right away, revealing himself to be a shrewder judge of character than Malcolm. Macduff’s suspicion is seen further when he does not attend Macbeth’s coronation, but instead returns home to Fife.

In several of his actions, Macduff reveals himself to be a braver man than Malcolm. Malcolm flees Scotland to save his own life and to regroup before taking on Macbeth. He knows that whoever has killed his father will also kill the next in line to the throne. Macduff flees Scotland to beg Malcolm and Siward’s aid to save his country from Macbeth’s tyranny. In doing so, he leaves his wife and many children unprotected and suffers the ignominy of being labeled a traitor. The other thanes who abandon Macbeth only do so after they receive word that Malcolm is coming with a massive army. They simply are not willing to sacrifice until they are sure. Macduff takes this gamble at the outset, and as a result, his wife and all his children are murdered by Macbeth’s mercenaries. ­Even Banquo, who knows of the witches’ prophecies, and knows what Macbeth might possibly do, does not warn Duncan for fear that anything he does might scuttle his own predictions that his son Fleance and his many grand-heirs will be Kings of Scotland. Macduff seems to be the only thane willing from the jump to sacrifice for his country.

Macduff is a more honest man than Malcolm as well. In the often skipped Act IV, Scene iii, Malcolm is in England and is raising his army. Macduff comes to plead for help. Malcolm, in order to test whether Macduff’s loyalty is to him or to his country itself, begins listing supposed horrible character traits he has and supposed horrible things he will do once he becomes king. He claims as a king he will be hungry for power, money, and sex that he will destroy the churches and monasteries, take the land from the thanes, and claim their wives and daughters to satisfy his debaucherous lust. These are all lies. He pushes this false description of himself to this point:

MALCOLM 
If such a one be fit to govern, speak:
I am as I have spoken.

MACDUFF 
Fit to govern!
No, not to live. O nation miserable,
With an untitled tyrant bloody-scepter'd,
When shalt thou see thy wholesome days again,
Since that the truest issue of thy throne
By his own interdiction stands accursed,
And does blaspheme his breed? Thy royal father
Was a most sainted king: the queen that bore thee,
Oftener upon her knees than on her feet,
Died every day she lived. Fare thee well!
These evils thou repeat'st upon thyself
Have banish'd me from Scotland. O my breast,
Thy hope ends here! (IV. iii)

After this, Malcolm explains that he was only lying to test Macduff’s loyalty to Scotland and Macduff very reluctantly accepts this explanation. Were the situations reversed, Macduff would not have lied to Malcolm. Throughout the play, Macduff does not show deception of any kind.

For these reasons, Macduff also stands as the strongest foil to Macbeth. With the exception of Duncan, Macduff stands as the most truly moral character of the play. And as the reader can see, the two most moral characters of the play are the two most punished: Duncan loses his throne and his life despite his kindness and trust and Macduff loses his entire family. This speaks to Shakespeare’s overarching theme of the pervasive corrupting nature of power and greed, that it creates an atmosphere in which the world is stood on its head, and the evil are rewarded and the good punished.

All quotations from Macbeth were taken from The Literature Network at:

http://www.online-literature.com/shakespeare/macbeth/

Describe the effect of the old man's final words in Act 2, scene 4 of Macbeth.

The old man suggests that Macduff makes the best of a bad situation, as he will do when he confronts Macbeth with Malcolm.

At the end of Act 2, Scene 4, the Old Man suggests to Macduff that he will be able to make the most of the tragic situation.  He seems to have faith that Macduff will be able to turn things around.  Duncan has been killed, but instead of fretting or mourning, Macduff will join Malcolm, where he can fight Macbeth alongside Scotland’s rightful leader.

The old man’s last words in this scene are prophetic.

God's benison go with you 

and with those

That would make good of bad

and friends of foes! (Act 2, Scene 4)

It may seem odd to have some random old man standing around the castle, but the old man seems to serve as a harbinger and commentator of events.  Here he gives a blessing to Ross and Macduff.  Ross is Macbeth’s cousin, and he continues alongside Macduff into the final battle with Macbeth.

Macbeth’s ability to make the most of a bad situation is clear throughout the play.  When his family is killed, he is devastated.  However, he does not let this stop him from his duty or mess with his head.  Rather than being blinded by rage, he is able to face off against Macbeth and take his head off.

I have no words:

My voice is in my sword, thou bloodier villain

Than terms can give thee out! (Act 5, Scene 8)

It is because he is able to keep his head in his exchange with Macbeth that he can get him off guard and off balance.  Macbeth thought he was invincible, but feared Macduff because of the witches’ prophecies.  When Macbeth told Macduff that he could not be harmed, Macduff told him he really could.  Macbeth was not born the usual way, and that fact demoralized and frightened Macbeth enough to distract him so that Macduff could kill him.

Shakespeare often uses no name characters to say important lines.  Their words can point to future events or the importance of certain characters.  They can also comment on what is happening or predict what is coming.  The old man serves this role in the play.

What are three instances from book 12 of the Odyssey that proves Odysseus is being a hero?

There are many instances throughout The Odyssey where Odysseus acts heroically. A hero, according to Cambridge Dictionaries Online, is "a ​person ​admired for ​bravery, ​great ​achievements, or good ​qualities." In Book 12, we can find three such examples of Odysseus acting as a hero.

The first example of Odysseus being a hero is when he and his men face the Sirens. Circe told Odysseus that he must be the only one to listen to the Sirens, so Odysseus melts wax for all the men to plug their ears, and then he orders his men to tie him up to the mast and not release him under any circumstances until they are safely past the Sirens. This is heroic because Odysseus acts bravely; the Sirens tempt Odysseus to go to them and leave his ship and it is far from easy to resist, even while tied, but he does.

A second example where Odysseus acts as a hero is when he boosts the morale of his men throughout the difficulties they face on the ship. Odysseus "went through the ship, cheering up the crew, standing beside each man and speaking words of reassurance." This is heroic because Odysseus cares for his crew, not just himself, and it is far from easy to be a leader, but Odysseus successfully leads his men. It is an example of a good quality, as we see in the definition above.

A third example of Odysseus as a hero in Book 12 is when he survives, even after all his men are killed. The men angered the gods when they killed and ate the cattle of Helios, and after they set sail, their ship is attacked. He makes it once again through Scylla and Charybdis and then floats for nine days until he reaches land. The fact that he survives on his own for so long and through such perils is a great achievement and therefore certainly heroic, according to our definition above. (Also, it is important to note that Odysseus tried to warn his men and told them not to eat the cattle, but the men did not listen, so it is not Odysseus' fault when they die because of the wrath of the gods.)

What are some examples of arrogance in Oedipus Rex?

Arrogance is Oedipus's fatal flaw. Arrogance can be defined as thinking you are better than others and incapable of sharing their weaknesses. Before he literally blinds himself, Oedipus is metaphorically blind--blind to his capacity both to do wrong and to be wrong. Because of his arrogance, he can not conceive he might be responsible for the plague in Thebes. He cannot believe that he might possibly have murdered Laius, another sign of his arrogance. With even more arrogance, he forgets the stranger he murdered on the road. He is so sure he is incapable of wrongdoing that he forgets--or more likely represses-- a murder that would challenge his careful construction of himself as a pure, blameless individual.

Finally, rather than humbly accept the possibility that he could have killed Laius, he accuses Creon and Teiresias of conspiring against him by suspecting him of the murder. This would be plausible--people did conspire against rulers--but Oedipus doesn't bother to investigate because, in his arrogance, he is sure they must be wrong. 

How did industrialization change society and peoples' lives?

The industrialization of the world changed the manner in which people lived and the way societies interacted in a variety of ways including quality of life, economic power and political repercussions.  The landscape of the world morphed from a primarily agrarian culture to mechanical.  The new industrialization required people to re-think the cultural norms and challenge the government to adapt to the new way of life as well.

Industrialization changed society from agrarian to mechanical, meaning the majority of sustainable jobs moved to larger cities.  This created several problems for the working class.  Living conditions during the early phases of industrialization were poor.  Cities, unable to handle the influx of workers, hastily erected poorly constructed and crowded apartment buildings or other residences.  The workers often lived close to the factories and were surrounded by pollution more often than not.  The work was also dangerous with little government oversight on new industries.  Workers, having yet to form unions, had little bargaining power with managers leaving the workers vulnerable to unsafe conditions.

However, as industrialization's problems were addressed through regulation and natural social reform it also allowed for the expansion of a middle class in America.  The agrarian society had either farmers, often struggling financially or skilled persons of wealth with a narrow middle class.  Industrialization expanded the middle class as workers could become skilled or semi-skilled in industry.  Competition among factories also allowed moderate skill workers to move easier providing a measure of economic independence.

The middle class had the benefit of expendable income for many.  This was used more for entertainment and comfort than ever before, creating a new consumer demand driven market.  New technologies also gave the working class more free time.  The free time and closer association with neighbors drove the creation of the entertainment industry as a viable market.  The darker side of the growing population in cities was racial tension and gang violence.

Industrialization brought wealth to society.  Trade and manufacture became increasingly important on a global scale.  Consumer demand for products, brought on by higher wages and expendable income, fueled the cycle increasing financial gains for the economy.  This came with a huge learning curve in the United States when the Great Depression occurred following the fall of the stock market in October 1929.  Investors had failed to realize the magnitude of the financial markets and the world paid a heavy price.

Is there pathetic fallacy in chapter 2 of Lord of the Flies?

Pathetic fallacy is a literary device in which emotional states are attributed to inanimate objects or objects of nature. It is similar to personification, but pathetic fallacy has the deliberate function of creating a mood by attributing emotions to things that cannot literally have emotions. In chapter 2 of Lord of the Flies, both the island and the fire are described as having emotions, so pathetic fallacy does exist in this chapter.

When the boys first build the bonfire, they are excited by it. The wood they have piled on the fire is said to have emotions, and those emotions match the mood of the boys: "Whole limbs yielded passionately to the yellow flames." This is an example of a pathetic fallacy.

When the fire gets out of control, it is personified as an animal. These descriptions are examples of personification, but not pathetic fallacy: "Small flames ... crawled away," "one patch ... scrambled up like a bright squirrel," and "the flames, as thought they were a kind of wild life, crept as a jaguar creeps." Since no emotion is attributed to these personifications, they are not pathetic fallacies.

However, this description is a pathetic fallacy: "a quarter mile square of forest was savage with smoke and flame." The word "savage" implies anger, especially in the context of two paragraphs later, where Ralph becomes "savage" and tells Piggy to shut up.

Later, Golding writes, "the fire growled at them." Whether this is a pathetic fallacy or merely personification is debatable. A growl is usually an angry warning, so one could say the "growl" is a pathetic fallacy. Describing a tree with creepers that "rose for a moment into view, agonized, and went down again" is another pathetic fallacy at the end of the chapter. The last sentence of the chapter refers to the "unfriendly side" of the mountain; that could also be considered a pathetic fallacy, attributing the emotion of unfriendliness to the burning mountain.

These pathetic fallacies are subtle, but they reflect the boys' emotions and help set the mood of the chapter.

How is prophecy the driving force and motivation behind MacBeth throughout the story?

While Macbeth himself calls his own flaw "...vaulting ambition that o'erleaps itself..." (I, vi), a closer scrutiny shows that his belief in prophecy provided by witches to be the real driving force behind Macbeth.

The witches open the play, announcing they will see Macbeth.  When they do, they tell him amazing prophecies of his rise to the crown, along with more vague and ambiguous prophecies for Banquo, another nobleman.  When Macbeth becomes the Thane of Cawdor soon after the prophecy, he is hooked. Banquo, however, tries to warn his friend by noting that often times the "instruments of darkness tell us truths...to betray in deepest consequence..." (I, iii). 

However, Macbeth, and his wife, can only focus on the third prophecy, to kill the king.  They do just that, hurrying along the third prophecy's fulfillment.

Ironically, it is Banquo who suspects Macbeth's crime and suffers death for it as well.  When the ghost reappears to haunt Macbeth, he returns to the witches for further truth.  These prophecies also appear iron-clad, until oddly the woods do move, Macduff threatens, and a person not-borne of woman kills Macbeth.  

Macbeth's belief in the prophecies gave ambition at first, but the overconfidence he gains from the second set causes his formerly loyal thanes to flee and, ultimately, he loses his life.

How did the French Revolution lead to nationalism?

In Europe, during the mid-1700's, most regions of land were under the rule, leadership, and protection of a king.  The people were divided into classes - the aristocracy, the clergy, and the peasants.  As the people began to identify themselves more as members of a region, or nation, they became dissatisfied with this method of classifying themselves.

In 1789, the unrest with this servitude to a king vs. recognition as equals within a nation served to be the roots that brought about the French Revolution and a state of nationalism.

This idea soon spread across Europe.  Each area embraced its own nationality. Soon a series of separate and distinct nations slowly emerged from the proliferation of kingdoms.  Though there was still a "separation" of classes, all were now united under devotion and allegiance to their own, distinct nationality.

Where does it specify in Of Mice and Men that Curley's wife is expected to be at home?

Curley's wife is an incredibly interesting character in Of Mice and Men.  Her real name is never given to the reader, reducing her to an extension of Curley and her role as his wife. Her physical attributes are described in great detail and she clearly wants them noticed by the men on the ranch. Her behavior is considered questionable by the majority of the men, including Curley, who is always searching for her when she isn't at home. The men on the ranch are pretty clear about how they believe married women ought to behave and Curley's wife doesn't fit the bill. Curley responds to her flirtatious behavior by breaking her records later on in the story to teach her a lesson about how to respect him. Despite that, Curley's wife continues to sneak around the ranch. She knows that the prevailing attitude says wives should stay at home, but she finds it too boring: 

The girl flared up. "Sure I gotta husban'. You all seen him. Swell guy, ain't he? Spends all his time sayin' what he's gonna do to guys he don't like, and he don't like nobody. Think I'm gonna stay in that two-by-four house and listen how Curley's gonna lead with his left twicet, and then bring in the ol' right cross? 'One-two,' he says. 'Jus' the ol' one-two an' he'll go down.'" (38)

In this scene in chapter four, Curley's wife reveals that she knows how Curley's hand became mangled and she also reveals how mean spirited she can actually be. Lashing out, she threatens Crooks and is finally chased away by Candy's promise to tell Curley on her if she won't leave. 

What song represents each character in Romeo and Juliet?

I'm not sure what your question is referring to so I will offer a couple of alternatives. If you're asking about modern songs that could be applied to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet I've provided a couple of links below that may be helpful.

You might also be referring to the beginning of Act III, Scene 5. It is the morning after the two have consummated their marriage and Juliet does not want the night to end. She says she hears a nightingale singing outside her window. The bird, of course, is the symbol of the night. She tells Romeo,

Wilt thou be gone? It is not yet near day.
It was the nightingale, and not the lark,
That pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear.
Nightly she sings on yond pomegranate tree.
Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.

In an interesting twist on the theme of dark and light in the play, the two lovers are safe under the dark of night. The light of day, however, will take Romeo away and expose him to "fickle fortune." Romeo, in a juxtaposition on the theme, says,

More light and light, more dark and dark our woes.

Romeo, knowing he must leave Verona or be apprehended by the Prince, realizes day is breaking and says it is the lark singing:

It was the lark, the herald of the morn,
No nightingale. Look, love, what envious streaks
Do lace the severing clouds in yonder east.
Night’s candles are burnt out, and jocund day
Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain-tops.
I must be gone and live, or stay and die.

This is the only reference to songs in the play but they make for a truly beautiful exchange between the "star-crossed" lovers. In Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 movie, a renaissance troubadour sings a song titled "What is a Youth" which speaks of young love and is appropriate to the play. In Baz Luhrmann's 1996 version he uses a quite haunting song, "Everybody's Free" sung beautifully by Quindon Tarver. The songs title is ironic given the plot of the play and how Romeo and Juliet are at the mercy of fate.

If your question refers to popular songs, I have two favorites which reference the characters directly. One is an old song by Dire Straits called "Romeo and Juliet." The song brings up images of a lovestruck Romeo and the stars above, both quite in line with the imagery in the play. Another is We the Kings' song "Check Yes Juliet" which opens with images of a young man outside a window waiting for a girl, much as Romeo waits for Juliet at her balcony. The song also talks about two lovers running away from those who would tear them apart.

How are The Road by Cormac McCarthy and Swerve by Phillip Gwynne intertextually related as journeys that are also rites of passage?

The road is a central symbol in both Swerve by Phillip Gwynne and The Road by Cormac McCarthy. In McCarthy’s story, a father and son take a journey on the road in a post-apocalyptic world in order to survive the harsh winter. In Gwynne’s story, Hugh and his grandfather Poppy set out on a road trip of a different kind. In both of the stories, the characters face risks and must overcome obstacles.  

In The Road, the young boy is conflicted over whether he is one of the good guys or not. By the end of the story, after his father has died, the boy isn’t sure of what to do. When he meets a man who has been tracking them, he takes him with him and assures him he is indeed one of the good guys. Thus the boy has reassurance at the end. In Swerve, Hugh learns things about his family and himself as he goes on his journey. He comes to appreciate his parents’ support of him and understands it is not control. He also appreciates the landscape and sees all of the beautiful things in the world. By the end of the story, Hugh has grown. In both of these stories, characters grow and change by the end of their journeys, signifying a similar rite of passage.

Distinguish between leader pricing and bait pricing. What do they have in common? How can their use affect a marketing mix?

Both leader pricing and bait pricing involve advertising a product at a very low price, typically far below what it would normally sell for in the market and often even below what you paid to get it.

The difference is that under leader pricing, you actually do sell that product---often even taking a loss when doing so---while under bait pricing, you avoid actually selling the product by claiming it is "unavailable" whenever someone asks for it.

In both cases, businesses are reducing prices to sell a product, not to make more money on that product, but to make more money on other products; they assume (often correctly) that once you get people into your store they'll be more likely to buy whatever products you sell, including those that have high profit margins. The marketing mix is therefore a combination strategy between the leader product (or bait offer) and the more profitable products you hope to actually sell.

Both tactics can be considered unfair anti-competitive practices, and bait pricing especially is illegal in most jurisdictions. 

Harry Potter decides to take a vacation in beautiful Fresno. He flies on his magic broom with a constant velocity of 6 m/s. How far does he move in...

Distance traveled is a function of speed and time and is given as their product. That is,

distance = speed x time

Here, the velocity of Harry's magic broom is given as 6 m/s and he flies for a total duration of 1 sec. Thus, the distance flown by Harry on his magic broom is:

distance traveled = speed x time = 6 m/s x 1 s = 6 m.

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity and is given as:

acceleration = dv/dt = `(v_2 - v_1)/(t_2 - t_1)`

where, v1 and v2 are the velocities at time t1 and t2. Here, harry's magic broom is flying at a constant velocity, that is, the velocity stays constant. And hence, the acceleration of Harry's magic broom is 0 m/s^2.

Hope this helps. 

How does the sniper in The Sniper by Liam O'Flaherty betray his country?

The only thing that I can think of to answer your question is to say the sniper betrayed his own country because he was killing citizens of his own country.  The story never says what his total kill count is, but the story does make it clear that he kills an old woman, a man operating a turret, and the enemy sniper. Each of those victims is a citizen of the sniper's country, because the text says in the first paragraph that the Republicans and Free Staters were engaged in a civil war. On one hand I can see how being in a civil war is betraying your country, but I also know that both sides of the civil war don't see themselves as the betrayer. They see the enemy as the betrayer. So the sniper sees his brother as the man betraying his country, but the brother equally sees the main character sniper as the man betraying his country. 

There is perhaps another moment of temporary betrayal on the sniper's part.

Weakened by his wound and the long summer day of fasting and watching on the roof, he revolted from the sight of the shattered mass of his dead enemy. His teeth chattered, he began to gibber to himself, cursing the war, cursing himself, cursing everybody.

He curses the war and perhaps his role in it. But I don't see that as a full fledged betrayal because he takes no action against anybody or anything.   In fact two paragraphs later the sniper has decided to go back to his commanding officer and report in. 

What makes Charles Dickens important?

Charles Dickens was arguably the most important writer of the Victorian Age, an author who captured the time, and whose exposure of the period's social conditions effected significant legal and societal changes in England.

His works are renowned for their social criticisms, realism, outstanding characterizations, comedy, and style. After the publication of Oliver Twist, for instance, a novel which traces an orphan's life in the slums of London, the social conscience of the English was stirred to examine the criminality in their city. Also Dickens brought attention in the first pages to the Poor Law of 1834. Then, he exposed the cruel victimization of small children as chimney sweeps and as professional mourners, etc.

Other works of Dickens examine other laws, education, and industrial relations. For instance, in Hard Times there are detailed descriptions of an industrial town in England during the great economic expansion of England. In addition, Dickens details the limits on both employers and reformers. 

Another novel, Little Dorrit, depicts the conditions of England and what Dickens perceived as the conflict between the harshness of the world and human values. Some regard this novel as Dickens's greatest novel because of its impressive artistry.

 

How does what happens to Simon demonstrate the dangers of fear?

In the time leading up to Simon's death, the boys are becoming more and more convinced of the possibility of a "beastie," and start to experience the fear that accompanies that possibility. Jack has realized he can use that fear to lead the boys and gain power over the lot of them. The boys have begun to revel in the dance that mimics the hunt and the kill. The frenzy of it appeals to them and helps to assuage the fear somehow.

It is Simon who realizes that this fear is a fear of what is inside of them, not a fear of what may or may not exist on the island. During his vision with the "Lord of the Flies," he realizes that the beastie is inside of each and every boy.

When he emerges from the jungle with the knowledge that the pilot they thought was the "beastie" is just a pilot and that what they are afraid of is inside of them, their fear drives them to beat him to death. This highlights the way that fear can overcome reason and drive people to do what would otherwise be beyond them. 

What are some good secondary sources for the theme of race relations in The Secret Life of Bees?

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd takes place in 1964 in South Carolina. That summer was also called the Mississippi Freedom Summer because Civil Rights leaders launched a campaign to register African-Americans to vote in a state that had largely disenfranchised them. A good source to learn more about the summer is Doug McAdam's Freedom Summer (Oxford University Press, 1988). During the summer, activists by the names of Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner were murdered while trying to register African-Americans to vote in Mississippi. For more information about the events of that summer, you can also consult Joel Norst's Mississippi Burning (New American Library, 1988).

In addition, Fannie Lou Hamer was a critical figure in organizing the Mississippi Freedom Summer. She became one of the leaders of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, which was formed in opposition to the all-white Mississippi Democratic delegation to the 1964 Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey. You can use Fannie Lou Hamer's The Speeches of Fannie Lou Hamer: To Tell it Like it is' (University Press of Mississippi, 2011).

A very good source of information about the Civil Rights movement is Taylor Branch's trilogy about America during the Martin Luther King years. The first volume is Parting the Waters, which covers 1954-1963, and the second volume, Pillar of Fire, covers 1963-1965. The third volume, At Canaan's Edge, covers the period 1965-1968.

What are three quotes from Nadine Gordimer's "Once Upon a Time" that illustrates fear of those regarded as "other?"

Much of "Once Upon a Time" revolves around fear of those who are different, or "other." Here are three quotes that best illustrate this.

For when they began to live happily ever after they were warned, by that wise old witch, the husband's mother, not to take on anyone off the street. They were inscribed in a medical benefit society, their pet dog was licensed, they were insured against fire, flood damage and theft, and subscribed to the local Neighborhood Watch, which supplied them with a plaque for their gates lettered YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED over the silhouette of a would-be intruder. He was masked; it could not be said if he was black or white, and therefore proved the property owner was no racist.

This passage introduces the beginning of the family's downfall: the husband's mother's advice. Reasonable precautions, such as insurance, did not seem to be enough; one can see here the beginning of the family’s insatiable desire for security. The plaque on the gate also recounts the theme of racism as well as the denial of it: the fact that the intruder is masked appears to be enough, in the family’s mind, to obscure the racial tensions of the divide between the suburb and the outer quarters of the city.

The wife could never see anyone go hungry. She sent the trusted housemaid out with bread and tea, but the trusted housemaid said these were loafers and tsotsis, who would come and tie her and shut her in a cupboard. The husband said, She's right. Take heed of her advice. You only encourage them with your bread and tea. They are looking for their chance ... And he brought the little boy's tricycle from the garden into the house every night, because if the house was surely secure, once locked and with the alarm set, someone might still be able to climb over the wall or the electronically closed gates into the garden.

This further demonstrates how compassion slides in the wake of fear. The wife, who was one of the first to embrace enhanced security measures, attempts to be kind and feed those who are hungry, but she is warned away from helping because it would “encourage” the loafers. The husband and housemaid have at this point succumbed to fear as well.

The whitewashed wall was marked with the cat's comings and goings; and on the street side of the wall there were larger red-earth smudges that could have been made by the kind of broken running shoes, seen on the feet of unemployed loiterers, that had no innocent destination.

One can see here that the loiterers are so untrustworthy that their suspicion pervades even their shoes. The racial tensions are echoed once more in the “whitewashed” wall and the “red-earth smudges” marring it. Suspicion and fear run together in this story; the suspicion justifies the fear and the fear fuels the suspicion, forming a vicious cycle.

How can I get started on writing a paper for a history course on Mary, Queen of Scots?

I hope you can come to enjoy the study of history. It truly is fascinating.  And the fact is that no matter what your major is, the writing expectations are the same, to have a clear thesis that you can support with good arguments.  Let's talk about Mary, Queen of Scots, and then about how to write a paper like this.  Your writing center has not let you down, really. But they cannot help you if you don't even have an idea to work with. 

Mary lived through some of the most interesting periods in English and Scottish history.  If you do even cursory research on her life and times, you can see this.  She became a queen when she was six years old. There are plots and murders; there are  imprisonments and arranged marriages.  This is a period rich in the drama of history.

Since you have already done some research, you need to ask yourself what you find interesting about Mary.  You must ask yourself what more you would like to know about her.  You must ask yourself what you find admirable about her or what you find despicable about her.  You need to explore your ideas about the times she lived in.  She may have been a product of those times or have done something daring and modern in her day.  She is a female, trying to get along in a male-dominated world.  She is a devout Catholic, trying to get along in a Protestant world. She dies accused of attempting to assassinate Elizabeth. You might very well wonder if she was guilty.  You need to decide what strikes your fancy about Mary and her world. 

Out of all of this, an idea will emerge, and you will need to support that idea, first in a thesis statement, and then in the paper.  Let's take, for example, the idea that Mary might have been innocent of conspiring to kill Elizabeth.  If that is your thesis, you will have to support it.  Writing a paper for history can be like being a detective.  Mary might have had enemies who framed her.  The court may have relied on circumstantial evidence or no evidence at all, for that matter.  Elizabeth might have gained considerably by getting Mary out of the picture.  All of these would be the means of support for such a thesis.  The idea is to then state the thesis and the supporting points in one sentence, at the end of your introduction, saying essentially, "Thus and such is true because of A, B, and C."  That's all any thesis statement is, really.  Then your A, B, and C must each be developed into a section or body paragraph, with your evidence that shows that your thesis, your assertion, is true, or at least feasible.  You end with a conclusion, which is a review of your thesis and points. 

The study of history may or may not be for you, but a coherent and organized research paper is a normal expectation for most college classes.  The sooner you learn how to do this, the smoother your college experience is going to be.  There must have been something about history that appealed to you, that caused you to choose this major. Don't lose your interest the first time you hit a little bump in the road! 

How many Lithium ions are present in 75.3 grams of lithium sulfate?

There are three steps to solving this problem:

1. Calculate the molar mass of lithium sulfate. The formula is Li2SO4. We know this because the lithium ion has a charge of +1 and sulfate ion is SO4 2-. The ratio of lithium ion to sulfate ion is 1 to 2 to give a net charge of zero.

2. Convert grams of lithium sulfate to moles

3. Find the number of lithium ions in the calculated number of moles of Li2SO4. The chemical formula indicates that there are two ions of lithium per formula unit, so moles of lithium sulfate is multiplied by 2 to get moles of lithium ions.

The molar mass of lithium sulfate is:

2(6.9 g/mol) + 32.1 g/mol + 4(16.0 g/mol) = 109.9 grams/mole

Moles of Li2SO4 = (75.3g)(1 mol/109.9 g) = 0.685 moles

lithium ions = (0.685 moles LiSO4)(2 Li/1 LiSO4)(6.02x10^23 ions/1 mol)

= 8.25 x 10^23 lithium ions

The backbone of the double helix has alternating_______and_________?

The backbone of the double helix consists of alternating phosphate and deoxyribose sugar molecules. If you picture DNA like a twisted ladder, the sides of the ladder would be the backbone and the rungs would be complementary base pairs.

A single unit of DNA is called a nucleotide. A nucleotide contains a phosphate group, a sugar called deoxyribose and one of four nitrogenous bases--adenine, guanine, cytosine or thymine. If one nucleotide contained the base adenine, then the complementary base in the adjacent nucleotide would contain thymine. That is because adenine pairs to thymine. Similarly, the base cytosine pairs to guanine. A chemical bond called a hydrogen bond holds the base pairs together in the double helix.

I have attached two links with nice diagrams of the DNA molecule. Both are color coded to illustrate the location of the base pairs and the backbone of the molecule.

The frequency of sound emitted by a string is inversely proportional to the length of the string. When the string is 50 cm long, the frequency of...

We are told that the frequency of sound emitted by a string is inversely proportional to its length. Also, the frequency is 256Hz when the length is 50cm.

Note that when variables vary inversely, as one variable increases the other variable decreases and vice versa.

When two variables are inversely proportional (or vary inversely) the variables are related in the following manner: `y=k/x ` where the variables are x,y and k is called the constant of proportionality. Here we have `f=k/l ` where f is the frequency in hertz, l is the length in centimeters, and k is the constant of proportionality. Note that k will depend on outside factors such as the material of the string, the medium it is in, etc..., but k will be constant for the given situation.

We are given that when f=256, l=50, so we can solve for k:

`256=k/50 ==> k=50(256)=12800 `

(a) If l=40 we have `f=12800/40 ==> f=320 ` ; so when the length is 40cm the frequency is 320Hz.

This agrees with the knowledge that as the length gets shorter the frequency should increase.

(b) If f=400 then `400=12800/l ==> l=12800/400 ==> l=32 ` ; thus when the frequency is 400Hz, the length will be 32cm.

Who was the top of the social status in Ravloe in Silas Marner?

The answer to your question can be found in chapter III, where the narrator tells us who is the most powerful man in Raveloe, and gives us information about his family and how he is perceived in the community.

The greatest man in Raveloe was Squire Cass, who lived in the large red house with the handsome flight of stone steps in front and the high stables behind it, nearly opposite the church.

This description of the home is given through the viewpoint of the citizens, who are obviously impressed with those “stone steps and high stables.”

We are then told that he holds a strong standing in the community as one of the few landed people there

He was only one among several landed parishioners, but he alone was honoured with the title of Squire

From the landed people in the community, Cass was almost at the same level of deference as the Osgoods.  This clan, along with the Cass’s, are considered two of the oldest families in Raveloe.

…. Mr. Osgood's family was also understood to be of timeless origin—the Raveloe imagination having never ventured back to that fearful blank when there were no Osgoods….

Yet, out of the two families, Osgood “merely owned the farm he occupied.” Cass, on the other hand, has tenants. This places him at a higher standing since he has people whom are dependent on his land and property. These tenants, we are told, “complained … to him quite as if he had been a lord.” The implication of this statement is that these tenants treated Squire Cass with high respect (as people often do to those on whom they depend for whatever reason) and, as such, Cass has continued to be treated by others.

Squire Cass enjoyed his status and showed it off plenty of times with feasts for the community either at his own home or at The Rainbow Inn, which is the community’s public house. He felt entitled to the treatment he got, as he felt that he had a 

 hereditary duty of being noisily jovial and patronizing. 

Yet, Squire Cass is the quintessential example that money and status does not guarantee success in every area of life. His two children, Dunstan and Godfrey, are useless, to say the least. Dunstan, especially, is perhaps the most reprobate member of the community. He is the thief of Silas’s money, and has led his older brother to a downward spiral complete with an opium fiend wife, an illegitimate child, and financial ruin. 

Hence, that Squire Cass and his family are at the top of Raveloe society does not prescribe that they are also the most successful people there, the ones who have done best for themselves, or the ones who most deserve to be happy.

In "Lord of The Flies", Ralph asks Piggy "what makes things break up". How does the narration's description of Piggy's reaction to Ralph's question...

Ralph poses this question to Piggy following the splintering of the tribes and Ralph's realization that not only do most of the boys completely fail to understand the importance of being rescued, but that his own group no longer has enough members to keep a fire going, feed themselves, and defend themselves against Jack's raids. 

Piggy's answer is to blame Jack.

“I dunno, Ralph. I expect it’s him.”

“Jack?”

“Jack.”

It's a little unclear, and Piggy doesn't elaborate, whether he means Jack personally, or people like him. The irony of Piggy blaming Jack according to any definition is that Piggy is simply encouraging the breaking-up that Ralph is inquiring about. By making the division a matter of Jack's person, Piggy is widening the gulf that separates the sense of "Us" and "Them" that is crucial for establishing identities; Piggy is practically saying that everything would have gone just fine if it wasn't for Jack, who just came along and ruined everything simply by existing.

The fact that Ralph goes along with this suggests a few things in terms of the narration. It might imply that Ralph is physically, mentally and emotionally tired, and doesn't want to go through the degree of introspection necessary to really think this over. He's also seen that thinking and rationalizing hasn't really gotten them anywhere, and it's getting harder for him to do it too. It might also suggest that the boys haven't really learned from their experiences, and they're just settling into the same divisive habits and modes of thinking that, as adults, lead to war.

In the Crucible by Arthur Miller, who was dancing naked in the woods?

In “The Crucible,” the play begins with Betty Parris lying on the bed.  She is not moving, and her uncle is having a conversation with cousin Abigail about why not.  Though Abigail denies any wrongdoing, we soon learn that what was going on in the woods was far from “harmless fun.”  In fact, the girls are out in the woods with the slave from Barbados, Tituba, casting spells, drinking blood, and dancing.  Dancing would have been prohibited in this early American Puritan society, and dancing in the woods even more so.  It would have been viewed as literally “dancing with the devil,” as Arthur Miller points out that the forest is considered “the devil’s last preserve.”    In the conversation between Abigail Parris, it is revealed that not only was there dancing; there was naked dancing.  Parris accuses Abigail:  “I cannot blink what I saw, Abigail-for my enemies will not blink it. And I thought I saw a….someone naked running through the trees! ABIGAIL: No one was naked! You mistake yourself, Uncle!  (Act I) .  Later on, we find out who was dancing naked when the girls gather to get their story straight.  “ABIGAIL: Now look you, if they be questioning us tell them we danced—I told him as much already. MERCY: And what more? ABIGAIL: He saw you naked. MERCY: Oh, Jesus! (Falls back on bed.)”  (Act I). Mercy Lewis, the Putnam’s servant, is the girl who danced naked in the woods.

What is an example of a real world relationship where there is no clear independent or dependent variable?

This situation is actually more common than its opposite. It's quite rare in real-world research to have a clear idea of the direction of causality, and quite common to find strong correlations between variables where causation could run in either or both directions.

Here are a few examples just from my own field of development economics:
1. Corruption is strongly correlated to income inequality. Does corruption lead to inequality? Does higher inequality create more corruption?
2. GDP growth is strongly correlated with the empowerment of women. Does empowering women improve economic growth? Does an improving economy provide more opportunities for women?
3. Ethnic conflict is strongly correlated with poverty. Does greater ethnic conflict cause poverty? Does poverty exacerbate ethnic tensions?

In all these cases, it's also quite possible that both effects are true, or even that neither effect is true and a common cause of both drives the correlation. (For example, height is strongly correlated with weight in children. Does weight cause height or height cause weight? Well, neither, really; growth causes both height and weight.)

Here are some more examples from other fields as well:
1. Political science: Democracies are less likely to go to war with one another than authoritarian governments are. Does being democratic make a country less likely to go to war? Does being in a state of peace encourage the establishment of democratic institutions?
2. Sociology: Higher education is strongly correlated with lower rates of sexism. Does education make people less sexist? Or does being sexist discourage people from taking on higher levels of education?
3. Psychology: Higher socioeconomic status is correlated with lower rates of empathy. Does becoming rich make people less empathetic? Or are people with less empathy more likely to get rich?

Describe the formation of urea in the body. Describe the path taken by urea from the organ it is formed in to when it is removed from the...

One important organ in the body to help maintain homeostasis is the liver. It assists many of the body systems, including the excretory system. It does this by removing nitrogen from excess amino acids which cannot be stored and forming urea--a nitrogenous waste product. Urea is then added to the circulating blood and is transported to the kidneys to be excreted.

Mammals have a pair of well-developed kidneys which have the purpose of controlling water balance in the body. This is an adaptation that allows mammals to exist in many different habitats on Earth with different climates. Kidneys also filter nitrogenous wastes in the bloodstream. These wastes, known as urea, are then combined with water and are excreted as urine. The blood that enters that kidneys contains wastes and when it leaves, it is purified and can then circulate through the body again. 

Nephrons are the functional units of the kidneys. They are microscopic filters that remove wastes from the blood and return useful substances back into circulation.  Filtration occurs in the glomerulus--which is enclosed inside the Bowman's capsule. There is a close association between blood capillaries and kidney filters that allow wastes to enter the kidneys and for useful substances to be reabsorbed, including food molecules and some of the water.

The remaining filtrate includes water, excess salt and urea. This becomes urine and passes from each kidney to a tube connected to each one (called a ureter), to the urinary bladder. This organ can temporarily store urine until it is released through the urethra, which is a tube that allows urine to exit the body. 

Body temperature must be regulated in mammals in order to maintain homeostasis. Muscles in the skin of many mammals are attached to hair, which can cause the hair to stand up. This conserves heat by allowing air to fill in the spaces between the hairs and insulates the body. Humans, which evolved in hot tropical climates, lost the thick body-hair covering that many other mammals have. When temperatures drop, the muscles in the skin contract causing goose bumps, which help to retain heat. Sweat glands in the skin perspire when temperatures increase. This allows the body to cool down as the sweat evaporates. It is also an additional way to excrete small amounts of urea present in perspiration along with excess water and salt. Fatty tissue below the skin acts as an insulator, preventing heat loss to the environment.

I have included a link showing kidney filters. I have a second link with a cross section of skin to help visualize its components.

According to the narrator, how is Simon strange? Also, how is he caring and quiet?

Simon, the "moral compass" in the stranded group is strange because he repeatedly acts just slightly outside of the displayed norm the rest of the group gives. There are many examples of when Simon breaks apart from the group (literally and figuratively–see chapter 8), and says things that seem "off":

"Simon grinned and shook his head.

'How do you know then?'

When Simon was still silent Ralph said curtly, 'you're batty.'

Simon shook his head violently till the coarse black hair flew backwards and forwards across his face. 'No I'm not. I just think you'll get back all right.'"

Simon is also considered strange in how he is innately gentle-natured; while most of the boys are giving in to their primal desires, Simon is kind to Piggy and helps the littluns ("found for them the fruit they could not reach, pulled off the choicest from up in the foliage, passed them back down to the endless, outstretched hands" Chapter 3). These kind-hearted tendencies reveal themselves later to allow Simon to be the only one perceptive enough to discover the "real beast" on the island.

What is the Central Metaphor in Robert Frost's "The Most of It?"

Taken literally, the "he" of the poem wishes that the universe and nature are there to provide him some kind of emotional and spiritual support. He wants more than just the return of his own voice (in echo). This is an allusion to the myth of Narcissus and Echo. Hera cursed Echo, making Echo only able to repeat the words of others. Narcissus is famous for falling in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. Frost seems to be using these allusions to show how there is a tendency for a person to be selfish in expecting more from nature (more than an echo). The selfish man might get his own reflection or echo in return, but this is selfish thinking if he actually thinks this is nature giving love back particularly to him. This critique is summed up as, "the world doesn't revolve around you." 

It is therefore more logical to simply "make the most of it," to make the most of what nature offers us. If we see something beautiful or stirring in nature, it is not necessarily nature answering our cries or prayers. (This is the Naturalist interpretation of nature). It is simply nature being nature, a spatio-temporal field of events we can experience and interpret in our own ways. A thunderstorm, a rainbow, or a calming breeze are all just "there." These are not responses to a single person's cries. But these are all there for each and every person to experience in whichever way they choose. 

You could suggest that in addition to the literal meaning, nature could also be a metaphor for society. In other words, the "he" of the poem wants more out of life than he believes life is giving him. He selfishly thinks "he kept the universe alone," as if to say he is the center of the universe. He knows that the deer is just doing its own thing but he likes to think that this event is there for him to experience. Think of this metaphorically in terms of this man and other people in his life. He wants to think that all others exist to be parts of his life; they exist to fill the world of his existence. But if he was more open-minded and selfless, he would understand that each person ("each buck") and each event in life is not necessarily in existence for his own personal gain or enjoyment. He has to realize that he is only one part of this large interactive (ecological) community. He should consider that the buck (metaphorically, another person) has a story, desires, dreams just as much as he does. In this metaphor, nature can also be thought of as a social world and the buck can represent any other person in the man's life. 

What advice did Brian's English teacher give him in school?

Brian is sitting by the lake, contemplating his situation, after somehow surviving the crash. He takes stock of what he has and realizes that he should make an exact catalog of it. He also remembers his English teacher, Mr. Perpich, who "was always talking about being positive, thinking positive, staying on top of things." Brian thinks that perhaps he can take that advice and focus on what he does have rather than what he doesn't.

He empties his pockets and counts the change, and then his wallet and the fingernail clippers. At that moment he realizes that he has the hatchet still clipped to his belt. Up until then, he had forgotten about it.

Brian remembers Perpich and things that his teacher would have told him to be careful about. Perpich would also have told him to really look at everything so that he can do an even more careful inventory. At the end of the scene, he remembers Perpich's other constant refrain: He would say that "you are the best thing you have."

What led Sam and Bill to kidnap the young boy in "The Ransom of Red Chief"? Why did they sign the letter as "Two Desperate Men" even when as...

Bill and Sam are a pair of bumbling criminals.  Home Alone had a pair of criminals just like Bill and Sam.  Thought they were smart, but lost badly to a little kid.  

The text tells the reader that Bill and Sam have $600 to their name and they need $200 more.  

Bill and me had a joint capital of about six hundred dollars, and we needed just two thousand dollars more to pull off a fraudulent town-lot scheme in Western Illinois with.

In other words, Bill and Sam need more money in order to pull off a real estate scheme in Illinois.  They figured that kidnapping a kid from a small town would be easy ransom money.  

Bill and Sam chose to do their kidnapping in the town of Summit.  They chose Summit because it was big enough to have a population to spread the news, but it was also small enough to not have decent law enforcement.  

We knew that Summit couldn’t get after us with anything stronger than constables and, maybe, some lackadaisical bloodhounds and a diatribe or two in the Weekly Farmers’ Budget. So, it looked good.

Once the town was selected, Bill and Sam had to pick the victim.  They decided on Johnny Dorset for a few reasons.  One reason is that he is an only child.  His father is more likely to pay to get his one kid back.  A second reason is that Ebenezer Dorset is a fairly affluent member of the town.  He can afford to pay a small ransom to get Johnny back.  

We selected for our victim the only child of a prominent citizen named Ebenezer Dorset. The father was respectable and tight, a mortgage fancier and a stern, upright collectionplate passer and forecloser.

Unfortunately for Bill and Sam, little Johnny Dorset is no easy child.  He terrorizes Bill and Sam, and they eventually pay Ebenezer to take his own son back.  They are "desperate men" because they desperately want to get rid of this kid . . . not because they are desperately dangerous.