`sec(v - u)` Find the exact value of the trigonometric expression given that sin(u) = -7/25 and cos(v) = -4/5 (Both u and v are in quadrant III.)

Given `sin(u)=-7/25, cos(v)=-4/5`

using pythagorean identity,

`sin^2(u)+cos^2(u)=1`

`(-7/25)^2+cos^2(u)=1`

`cos^2(u)=1-49/625=(625-49)/625=576/625`

`cos(u)=sqrt(576/625)`

`cos(u)=+-24/25`

since u is in quadrant III,

`:.cos(u)=-24/25`

`sin^2(v)+cos^2(v)=1`

`sin^2(v)+(-4/5)^2=1`

`sin^2(v)+16/25=1`

`sin^2(v)=1-16/25=(25-16)/25=9/25`

`sin(v)=sqrt(9/25)`

`sin(v)=+-3/5`

since v is in quadrant III,

`:.sin(v)=-3/5`

Now let's evaluate sec(v-u),

`sec(v-u)=1/cos(v-u)`

`=1/(cos(v)cos(u)+sin(v)sin(u))`

`=1/((-4/5)(-24/25)+(-3/5)(-7/25))`

`=1/(96/125+21/125)`

`=125/117`

What did the British Empire comprise of?

The British Empire was a well-known empire. It was found throughout the world. The British had colonies in North America. This included colonies in what is now the United States and Canada. The British also had some colonies in South America. British colonies were also found throughout Africa as well as in Asia. The island of Australia was also a British colony.

The British established colonies for many reasons. One reason was economic. Once the British established industries in Great Britain, they needed raw materials for those industries. The colonies could provide those raw materials. The colonies also would be a place where the British industries could sell their products. In some cases, the colonies provided mineral resources for Great Britain.

The British also established colonies for political reasons. The British were competing with other countries for land and for power. The more colonies the British had, the more power they could potentially have. The colonies could serve as military bases for the British navy if needed. The colonies also allowed the British to protect their world trade since their military ships and merchant marine would need places to resupply and refuel.

The British Empire was a well-known and well-established empire. It was very power and influential. It spanned the entire world.

What are characters in the short story Cat in the Rain ?

Cat in the Rain is a very short story and does not have many characters. The American wife is the protagonist. She seems discontented by her new marriage and the transient lifestyle she shares with her husband. The wife wants to buy a house and settle down. She appears to have a feeling of loneliness and she longs for children. Hemingway seems to have her devolve into a little girl as the narrative advances.

George is the American husband in the story. He seems to be self-involved and is very dismissive of his young wife. Both characters are portrayed as selfish, particularly when compared to the Italians that traveled great distances to visit the war memorial. Another male character is the innkeeper. The American wife is very fond of the innkeeper and she confides in him.

The cat that the American wife finds outside of the hotel is most likely symbolic of the wife's desire to have a child.

Who is referred to as an angel in Jerome's Three Men in a Boat and why?

This is a story from a previous river trip, told by the narrator in Chapter XII. The “angel” was a boy who came to their rescue when they needed a place to stay overnight in Datchet. J., George, and Harris arrived in the town late that night, and they searched for an inn. They didn’t like the looks of the first two places they saw, so they kept on walking. When they were told that these were the only places available, they reluctantly turned back. But by then, both inns were filled to overflowing. On the advice of residents, the three men sought out three other possibilities, and each one of them was full of guests as well. The friends were frustrated. Harris even sat down and vowed to go no farther.

“At that moment an angel came by in the disguise of a small boy,” J. said. He took them to the small house that he and his mother shared. They were served a good meal; but the beds were rather small, and they spent an uncomfortable night there. Nevertheless, they had found a place to stay, courtesy of the boy, their “angel.”

How does Peyton Farquhar feel while in the water?

First, it's important to remember that Peyton Farquhar is never actually in the water.  Almost the entirety of Part III occurs in his head, during the few moments between when "The sergeant stepped aside" and off the plank on which Farquhar was standing (at the very end of Part I) and when the rope snapped taut and pulled the noose tight around his neck and "his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek bridge" (at the very end of Part III).

However, in Part III, Farquhar imagines that while he's in the water, "He was now in full possession of his physical senses.  They were, indeed, preternaturally keen and alert."  He notices every quivering leaf and buzzing insect and rushing fish.  He sees that the Union soldiers are firing at him, and he "dived -- dived as deeply as he could" to get away from their bullets.  He swims downstream while they reload, and "His brain was as energetic as his arms and legs; he thought with the rapidity of lightning."  He feels very vividly alive, with his ability to notice every tiny thing and the way his thoughts are moving so quickly.

In The Catcher in the Rye why do we, the readers, never get to meet Jane Gallagher? Why does Salinger choose to not let Holden connect with her?...

Salinger probably sensed that if Holden and Jane Gallagher connected, their relationship would overwhelm the novel, which is a sort of mural, or montage, of humanity in New York City. There were too many novels about young love, and he didn't want his novel to turn into another one of those. Many aspiring young novelists write about their first love affairs for at least two reasons. One is that they appeal to publishers, and they appeal to publishers because they appeal to the kind of readers who buy hard-cover novels by new writers. Another reason is that it is hard for a young writer to interest older readers because the young writer has typically had little experience to draw on. 

Ernest Hemingway's novel A Farewell to Arms is perhaps the prototype of the hundreds of boy-meets-girl novels that have come out over the years. The novel ends when the girl dies. Typically, the theme is: boy meets girl, boy and girl have a torrid romance, then girl dies, or something else tragic happens to end the romance and the novel. Romeo and Juliet is an older example of a boy-meets-girl story. Erich Segal's extremely successful, and extremely simple novel Love Story is another example. Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney was a big best seller.

These young-love stories are always popular because everybody likes the theme of love. Shakespeare titled one of his plays As You Like It because he knew that audiences like love stories and his play is full of love. There are four or five marriages at the end. As You Like It doesn't end with anybody dying because it is a comedy. Another boy-meets-girl novel that was a spectacular best-seller in Salinger's time is Bonjour Tristesse by the French writer Francoise Sagan, who wrote it when she was only eighteen. As the title suggests, there is a strong element of "tristesse" (sadness) in it.

But Salinger did not want to write just another story of that genre. His hero Holden Caulfield doesn't even seem to be looking for romance; rather, he seems to be looking for friendship and genuine human contact. Even in Salinger's day, boy-meets-girl stories were tending to get formulaic. Perhaps the readers always wanted the same thing only different. This doesn't mean that there is anything "bad" about them. In fact, an aspiring young writer would be well advised to think about writing a love story as a first novel because that is the best way for a young unknown to get published. Everybody has had a romance he or she can convert into a novel--or if not, at least everybody can turn a fantasy into a novel. 

So my guess is that Salinger decided to keep Jane Gallagher on the back burner, so to speak, because he was afraid a relationship would get out of hand. Instead, Holden has a relationship with cheerleader/prom queen Sally Hayes which goes nowhere. Salinger must have had the right instinct. His novel has been phenomenally popular ever since it was first published. Teachers who are assigning it in English classes today discovered it when they were young themselves. 

What is the chemical reaction of nail polish remover?

I will assume you are asking about how nail polish remover actually removes nail polish.

Nail polish remover is mainly composed of acetone or other organic solvents. The action of nail polish remover is actually not a chemical reaction at all.Most nail polish also contains acetone or other organic solvents as a main ingredient. As nail polish dries, the organic solvent evaporates, leaving behind the film of coloring. Because this film is made to be dissolved in organic substances, it does not dissolve in water and therefore is not readily removed by handwashing. Nail polish remover simply re-dissolves the dried nail polish, returning the dried, colored film to liquid form. This makes it easy to simply wipe off the nail polish.

can you help solve this statistic questions? thanks very much

We are given the incidences of the number of broken mugs in 100 different containers.

(a) The mean, or expected value, is found by taking the sum of the product of each occurence by the frequency and dividing by the total. (Equivalently, we can calculate the individual probabilities and convert the table to a probability distribution. In this case this is very easy as the total is 100, so the probability of 0 broken is 41/100=.41, etc... Then the mean is the sum of the products of the variable and the probabilitites.)

mu=1(.41)+2(.25)+3(.07)+4(.02)+5(0)+6(0)=1.2

or [1(41)+2(25)+3(7)+4(2)+5(0)+6(0)]/100=1.2

(b) The requirements for a binomial distribution are:

(1) There are a fixed number of trials.
(2) Each trial can have only two outcomes (or be reduced to two outcomes.)
(3) The outcomes should be independent.
(4) The probability of success should remain constant.

We can model this with a binomial distribution since there are a finite number of trials (in this case 6 categories), the outcomes are broken/ not broken, the outcomes are independent (cannot have 1 broken and 2 broken), and the probability does not change.

The mean or expected value of a binomial distribution is calculated by mu=np where n is the number of outcomes and p the probability of each. We calculated mu=1.2, and n=6 so 1.2=6p ==> p=.2

(c) We can calculate the probability for each outcome by:

P(X)=C(n,x)(p)^x(1-p)^(n-x) where C(n,x) is the number of combinations of n objects taken x at a time.

Using an algebra utility we find:

X          0         1         2         3          4         5          6
P(x)     .262    .393    .246     .082     .015     .002     .00006
Expected 26     39        25       8          2         0          0
Observed 25     41        25       7          2         0          0

The distribution appears to be a good estimate.

When her husband brings home the invitation, what is Mathilde Loisel's reaction?

Mathilde Loisel’s reaction when her husband procures an invitation to the Minister of Education’s event in “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant is a bit unexpected. Mathilde longs for the finery, objects, and lifestyle of Paris society but her lot is sealed when she marries a common clerk who cannot provide such a lifestyle. He goes out of his way to obtain an invitation to the event and is surprised by his wife’s reaction. At first she becomes furious and throws the invitation back at him, telling him to give it to someone else. He is taken aback by her reactions. She goes to tears as she asks him what she is supposed to wear to such an event. She feels that she does not have the proper attire. Her husband is heartbroken by her reaction and suggests that she wear the same dress that she would wear to the theater which does not set well with her. Finally, he assuages her grief by saying that he will give her the money to buy a new dress and suggests that she wear flowers but she borrows "the necklace” from her friend that changes their lives in a disastrous way.

Help me with writing an argumentative paper arguing FOR the prompt that we need to pay more attention to inequality and poverty, prompt below? I...

Remember that you are arguing For the idea that poverty and inequality should be considered as far more important to the middle class than is currently believed as evidenced by the recession of 2008.  I believe that this is true.

 A thesis could be that the Great Recession is proof that the middle class is  trying desperately to hang onto the visible signs of belonging still to the upper middle class instead of losing ground and sinking into the lower middle class.  This idea indicates that we as a society have to look more closely at the growing divide in this country between the haves and the have-nots.  The discrepancy in monetary ownership is startling when you look at the difference between a company president and the workers in the 1970s and now. We now truly are talking about the 1% and everyone else. 

The three body paragraphs could be three examples of risky investment or monetary behavior such as the sub-prime mortgages many used to buy houses they could not afford. You could also use examples of how people moved out of the city, requiring infrastructure not yet in place, driven by peoples' desire to own "their own piece of the American dream".  You could look at the breaking up of the unions and what that did to the middle class.  Many opportunities exist for making several paragraphs which fit this roadmap of mistakes, a route of mistakes which unfortunately is beginning again.

The ideas you are writing about in this paper are truly a blueprint for the future if we are not to repeat the mistakes of the past. Big banks which "could not fail" are again pursuing the same mistakes made in the Great Recession.  Maybe your paper could become the roadmap for the future of the middle class in this country, which is fast disappearing.

Which ethnic group is receiving more employment at the Concord corporation in Lyddie?

There are many new Irish girls working at the factory.

Lyddie takes the job at the factory when she loses her job at the pub.  She values the job because she desperately needs money for her family, and because she is good at it.  This is why she does not want to take part in the campaign for the ten-hour work day.  Lyddie does not want to make waves.

The factory continues to speed things up, and gives Lyddie more and more machines.  She gets hurt, and gets sick, but Lyddie keeps going.  Her job is very important to her and she is very good at it.  However, many girls have quit.  Just about anyone who can quit does.

The slack is taken up by an influx of Irish girls.  Lyddie is assigned one, Brigid, and teaches her the basics.  Lyddie gets frustrated by having a trainee, but Diana helps out because she is more patient.

As always, many of the New England operatives had gone home. Brigid took on her third loom. More Irish girls came on as spare hands, some of the machines simply stood idle. (Ch. 20)

Brigid may not be as fast a learner as Lyddie would like, but as one of the first Irish girls to come to the factory she becomes the leader and role model for the new ones, especially after Diana leaves to have her baby.

Between them, she and Brigid coached several of the new spare hands, all of them wearing far too much clothing in the suffocating heat. …  Lyddie let it be. She hadn't managed to persuade Brigid to take off her silly capes, how could she expect to persuade the new girls? (Ch. 20)

Lyddie tries to help the Irish girls, but she is not particularly sympathetic to foreigners.  Although Lyddie is not a mean person, she is rather self-centered.  Her focus is on her family, and she does not have much left over for others.  As time goes on, Lyddie becomes more compassionate, especially after Rachel leaves and she has no more family to look out for anymore.

During the Industrial Revolution, there was a great influx of Irish immigrants due to famine in Ireland.  The Irish Potato Famine hit in the middle of the nineteenth century, and many Irish immigrants came to American in search of a better life.  Often they ended up working in the factories, especially young women.  They had no choice.

What is the exposition in "The Luck of Roaring Camp?"

Exposition refers to the part of the story where the author gives background information, usually about the setting and characters. Exposition usually comes close to the beginning of a story, but it can occur elsewhere as well. In "The Luck of Roaring Camp," Bret Harte starts out his story traditionally, with the exposition at the beginning, specifically the first seven paragraphs.

In these paragraphs we learn about how rough the camp is (paragraph 1), who the baby's mother was (paragraph 2), that deaths were relatively common there but births were novel (paragraph 3), who the residents of the camp were (paragraphs 4, 5, and 6), and what the setting was (paragraph 7). In paragraph 8, the action of the story picks up in earnest, although it has been hinted at during the exposition.

These paragraphs contain some of the most brilliantly written exposition in literature because of how they set the tone for the story and clearly create characterization with relatively few words. The following sentences display masterful exposition:

Perhaps in the minor details of fingers, toes, ears, etc., the camp may have been deficient, but these slight omissions did not detract from their aggregate force. The strongest man had but three fingers on his right hand; the best shot had but one eye.

Thus Harte introduces the reader to this rag-tag band of "roughs" in a way that we can easily picture, allowing us to engage with them as the plot of the story develops.

Can you give me a summary of Chapter 3 of The Swiss Family Robinson?

In Chapter Three, the family successfully get themselves off the wreck of the ship and to the island.  

In Chapter Two, they had already spent the day making a raft with some large wooden tubs that they found on the ship.  When day dawns at the beginning of Chapter Three, they are ready to load it.

The father describes what sort of gear they took with them in the raft (food, an iron pot, tools, and sailcloth to make a tent).  They say a prayer, then load some of the poultry into the tubs.  

The father then lists which family member traveled in each tub, along with their ages and some defining characteristics.  This is the best run-down of the family members that we get in the whole book.

On the way from the ship to the island, the father and Fritz manage to snag two floating barrels of the provisions that have come from the ship.  They tie these to the back of their raft and tow them along.

The family approaches the coast in their raft, with the two dogs swimming along with them.  At first it appears rocky and inhospitable, but eventually they find a little bay created by a creek flowing down to the sea.  They land their raft, and everyone gets out safely.   They say a prayer to thank God for saving their lives and to ask for His help in the future. 

How can Atticus's actions be characterized on the night the men came to the jailhouse in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird?

In Chapter 15 of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus's actions in response to the mob in front of the jailhouse can be characterized as brave and ingenious.

One of his ingenious actions was dangling a light bulb attached to an extension cord from the second floor of the jailhouse to the front door of the jailhouse. The light bulb lit Atticus from the back as he sat in an office chair with his back against the door. The back lighting would make him look bigger and more threatening.

Atticus shows bravery in challenging the men. Though they are determined to take justice into their own hands, when Atticus commands them not to wake Tom Robinson up, they can't help but show Atticus respect by instinctively speaking in whispers, as Scout notes.

Despite his bravery, Atticus starts to show pure fear the moment he sees Scout at the jail, followed by Jem and Dill. We can tell he is afraid based on Scout's description of Atticus slowly rising from his chair and moving with trembling fingers:

Atticus got up from his chair, but he was moving slowly, like an old man. He put the newspaper down very carefully, adjusting its creases with lingering fingers. They were trembling a little. (Ch. 15)

Though Atticus shows bravery in facing the mob, it's really Scout who inadvertently saves the day by speaking to Walter Cunningham, the mob's ring leader, as a caring neighbor, which reminds him of his humanity.

At what point in the story "The Cask of Amontillado" do you find Montresor most disturbing?

Indeed, Montresor, from the Poe short story "The Cask of Amontillado," is one of the most disturbing characters in American literature because he is totally without remorse in the cold blooded murder of a man who considered him a friend.

From the outset Montresor makes his intentions clear. In the first paragraph he emanates hatred as he describes the plot to kill Fortunato for some unnamed "insult." He establishes his murderous philosophy: he won't actually get revenge unless the act goes unpunished and the victim is well aware of his executioner. Montresor says,

"I must not only punish, but punish with impunity. A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt as such to him who has done the wrong."

Even though Montresor is quite disturbing from the beginning of the story, he is probably most diabolical at the end when, after finishing the deed of walling up Fortunato in the catacombs and listening to his cries, he utters the line, "My heart grew sick—on account of the dampness of the catacombs." For a split second Poe makes us think that just maybe Montresor feels some regret in the murder of Fortunato. Immediately, however, Poe tells us this is not the case. Montresor is simply feeling a little cold. Montresor's total lack of conscience revealed in those lines makes him a most disturbing character. 

Which gas in air does the magnesium in the flare react with?

Flares burn with a bright light when activated. Burning is a combustion reaction. Combustion reactions occur when a material reacts with oxygen, yielding a modified chemical product and energy (in this case, in the form of heat and light). Combustion reactions are therefore by definition exothermic reactions.

In the case of a magnesium flare, magnesium reacts with oxygen to produce heat and magnesium oxide. See the following balanced equation:

2Mg(s) + O[2](g) -> 2MgO(s) + energy

In the above equation, subscripts are noted by brackets [], (s) indicates solid matter and (g) indicates gaseous matter. Thus we can see that magnesium flares react with the oxygen present in air. 

If you would like to see more details of how magnesium reacts, please see the attached link below.

What are the government securities that have terms of more than one year called?

There are several different kinds of government securities. By definition, a government security is any bond issued by a government or its authorities (the Treasury or Social Security, for example) with the promise of repayment upon maturity (usually x number of years after issue), backed by the issuing government. Since these bonds are backed by the federal government, they’re considered to be a relatively low-risk investment.

The most popular kinds of government securities are treasury bonds. The U.S. Treasury issues a couple kinds of government securities. The shortest term options are Treasury bills (commonly referred to as T-bills) which are sold in terms ranging from a couple days up to 52 weeks. The second option is Treasury Notes (T-Notes), that earn interest every six months and are issued in terms of 2, 3, 5, 7, or 10 years. The longest term option is Treasury Bonds, which are issued in terms of 30 years.

For more information on T-bills, Treasury Notes, or Treasury Bonds, visit the .gov links below.

Imagine that you meet a young lawyer after the party at which he made a bet with the banker. What would be the likely conversation between you and...

I would probably want to ask a lot of questions, such as the following:

• Do you really think you can stand solitary confinement for fifteen years?


• Why did you offer to spend fifteen years in solitary confinement when the banker was only talking about five? He said: "It's not true! I'll bet you two million you wouldn't stay in solitary confinement for five years."


• How can you be sure the banker will actually pay you two million rubles if you can stick it out for the fifteen years?


• Aren't you a little bit afraid that you might lose your mind in there?


• How to you intend to spend your time?


• What books do you plan to read?


• How will you get any exercise?


• What is the longest period of time you have ever spent entirely alone?


• What do you plan to do with the two million rubles, assuming you can stand fifteen years of solitary confinement, and assuming you actually collect the money?


• Why did you make the bet? Was it purely for the money? Or do you like the idea of being free to study and meditate in comfort with all your needs taken care of?


• What do you expect to learn during the next fifteen years?


• Do you think you'll miss human companionship, including female companionship?


• Lots of luck!

What effect does this experience have upon the rest of Young Goodman Brown's life?

Young Goodman Brown is completely changed by what he sees in the forest. Whether it was real or a dream, he can never look at any of his neighbors -- or even his wife -- the same way again. Because, even though he appeals to God at the last moment, and is saved from the witches baptism of blood at the last moment, he comes to suspect that it is indeed the case that everyone around him is secretly a witch and a devil worshipper. The day after his trip to the forest, he comes into Salem "staring around him like a bewildered man." Even though everything seems normal, Goodman Brown knows now that things are not what they seem. When he sees Goody Cloyse catechizing a young girl, he "snatched away the child as from the grasp of the fiend himself." When he hears Deacon Gookin at prayer, he wonders aloud "what God doth the wizard pray to?" In short, the experience, dream or not, turns Goodman Brown into a "sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man."

What events caused voters to lose faith in the political system and the nation’s leaders in the late 1960s and 1970s?

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At the end of the story, why do all of Tom's possessions disappear or get destroyed?

This is a great question! The narrator doesn't tell us why, but we could take some good guesses based on information from the story.

First, let's take a close look at that spot:

"Trustees were appointed to take charge of Tom's effects. There was nothing, however, to administer upon. On searching his coffers all his bonds and mortgages were found reduced to cinders. In place of gold and silver his iron chest was filled with chips and shavings; two skeletons lay in his stable instead of his half starved horses, and the very next day his great house took fire and was burnt to the ground."

So after Tom was carried away by the devil into the swamp, which was set on fire, all of Tom's stuff, too, is found mysteriously destroyed: his financial documents have been burned, his money is turned into little shavings, his horses are not just dead but skeletonized, and his house burned down.

Why? Again, it's a matter of interpretation, but here are some ideas.

1. Tom only got all that stuff through his horrible business practices and the treasure he got from the devil. So, it wasn't just Tom himself, but also his stuff that was "dirty" or "rotten" in a sense. It wouldn't make sense for such horribly ill-gotten goods to be used by the more morally upright members of the community.

2. Just as the devil had control of Tom, so too did he have control over Tom's things, like his money, his horses, and his house. And we saw that the devil likes to operate in style here. He didn't just stab Tom and then leave, for instance, when it was time to take his soul; instead, he swept Tom up onto a black horse and whisked him into a swamp during a lightning storm, then brought down a lightning bolt to set the swamp on fire. That is showmanship. He would probably burn up Tom's things to really cap off the whole deal.

3. The destruction of Tom's things gives the narrator something else to talk about during the closing paragraphs of the story. After readers see that whole dramatic capture that ends in Tom's death, the ending of the story might be kind of awkward or sudden if we just got the description of how the townspeople kind of stood around confused and then got back to business as usual. "Well, that... happened," the narrator would seem to say. The images of the skeletonized horses and the burning house are entertaining, and they help round out the story.

What possible themes are established at the beginning of chapter five in Lord of the Flies?

A good way to identify themes, especially in brief excerpts, is to look for patterns. In the opening of chapter five, there is considerable description of the place where Ralph walks, how he walks, and what he thinks about while walking. After identifying this pattern of physical behavior, we need to consider the relationship of the character's physical actions to his mindset. By doing so, we can see that walking reflects Ralph's newfound maturity, a theme that is assisted by a more subtle theme of choice. 

We are told that there is “only a narrow strip of firm beach” which Ralph chooses “because he needed to think, and only here could he allow his feet to move without having to watch them.” Ralph believes he needs to be completely free from distraction to make decisions, yet by choosing such a path he shows that he is already capable of making a decision. This realization comes to him as “suddenly, pacing by the water, he was overcome with astonishment. He found himself understanding the wearisomeness of this life, where every path was an improvisation and a considerable part of one’s waking life was spent watching one’s feet.” Ralph’s newfound awareness of “every path” as an “improvisation” shows that he now understands that decisions must often be made without reflection. “Watching one’s feet,” then, acknowledges the circumstances that accompany those decisions while accepting the consequences that follow, whether or not they were intended.  

Such a realization shows that Ralph’s new awareness of decision making ushers him towards the “wearisomeness” of an adult life fraught with choices. This is further evidenced when he consciously quits walking to reflect: “He stopped, facing the strip; and remembering that first enthusiastic exploration as though it were part of a brighter childhood, he smiled jeeringly.” The physical act of stopping in the present marks his ability to reflect upon the past, suggesting that the emphasis on decision is related to Ralph’s body and mind maturing. He distinguishes his remembrance of his earlier walk as childish, an “enthusiastic exploration” because his decisions were not accompanied by any responsibilities. This is a major contrast to his decisions now, which he understands as “wearisomeness.” He also smiles “jeeringly,” mockingly, at his younger self, which mimics how adults often view the foolish naivety of their youth.

Thus, chapter five's opening themes of choice and consequence assist one of the book’s primary themes: Ralph’s loss of innocence. The reader is further reminded of this overall theme as the opening paragraph of chapter five ends: Ralph thinks that “there must be no mistake about this assembly, no chasing imaginary …” The repetition of the word “no” shows that Ralph is committed to a course of action, one that disregards the “imaginary” realm of youth and accepts responsibility. He is decisive, assertive, and willing to face consequences, completing the theme of choice that assists his development.

Of course, this is only partway through the book and that larger theme is also still maturing, so the second paragraph of chapter five immediately contrasts the chapter’s opening as Ralph is once again “lost … in a maze of thoughts.” Thus, we can see that Ralph’s coming-of-age is not entirely finished, and it will continue to progress during the rest of the novel.

What is instructional design?

To put it clearly, instructional design is the design, development and delivery of instructional materials (books, instructions, lectures, courses, educational systems, etc) with the goal of making the action of learning a certain subject more efficient. All of this practice is supported by learning and cognitive theories as well as behavioral psychology.

To understand it better, let's imagine the following situation. Suppose you have a private university and you want to make your students acquire skills and knowledge more efficiently. To do so, you'll look for an instructional designer. He will be responsible for applying a methodology with the goal of making the process of learning more efficient, of applying the instructional design.

To accomplish this goal, the instructional designer will apply a model of instructional design. These models are responsible for establishing a list of steps to follow, in order to assist the instructional designer in obtaining its goal. The most common one being the ADDIE model which consists of five phases:

1. Analysis (determining who are the learners, the context, the delivery options, etc);


2. Design (planning the lessons, the objectives, subjects, etc);


3. Development (creation of the tools and content based on what was planned);


4. Implementation (application of all the tools and material to the learners and possible teachers);


5. Evaluation (this occurs during all the process and at the end of it).

At the present-day, instructional technologies (such as websites, online tools, computers, the internet, etc) are also being used to support learning.

I hope my little imaginary situation helped you in understanding the definition of instructional design!

In Night, what does Elie look like?

Elie Wiesel's Night chronicles the author’s survival in the Holocaust. Throughout the story, the reader learns very little about what Elie looks like. Even so, the few descriptions constitute some of the book’s most important scenes.

The first thing that the reader learns about Elie’s appearance is the tattoo he receives upon arriving at Auschwitz. “I became A-7713,” Wiesel writes. “From then on, I had no other name.” The tattoo is a powerful symbol used to dehumanize concentration camp prisoners. It symbolizes the Nazis stripping away Elie’s humanity.

Later on in the memoir, the reader learns that Elie has a gold crown. Gold is one of the most precious objects bartered by prisoners. Elie tries to keep the crown a secret so that he may use it to trade at a later date. Despite Elie’s best efforts, he gives up his crown to spare his father from beating. “That evening, in the latrines,” Wiesel writes, “the dentist from Warsaw pulled my crown with the help of a rusty spoon.” The quote is short, but conveys the harsh reality of what people in concentration camps endured in order to survive.

The memoir’s penultimate sentence drives home how the Holocaust wrecks Elie’s body. After liberation, Elie nearly dies from food poisoning. Looking at himself in the mirror for the first time in a year, Wiesel writes, “From the depths of the mirror, a corpse was contemplating me.” The sentence is telling because it not only conveys the fact that Elie is severely emaciated, but also that many of the ideals he held before the Holocaust, such as his faith, ‘died’ throughout the ordeal.

In W. B. Yeats's poem, "The Lake Isle of Innisfree," what indications does the speaker give of his present environment?

The first line establishes that the speaker is not at Innisfree. In this line, he expresses his wish to go there: either in actuality or in his mind. Given his peaceful, idealistic description of Innisfree as a magical place that he would want to escape to, we might surmise that his current environment is quite different. If he longs so badly to escape to such a place, perhaps his current environment is bland, boring, oppressive in some way, or a place not conducive to peace and tranquility. 

In the last two lines, the speaker says where he is: 

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, 

I hear it in the deep heart's core. 

The speaker is on pavement, which is hard and immovable. This contrasts with the peaceful, freely moving water that he hears (in his mind) as he contemplates his escape to Innisfree. The pavement also suggests he is in a city. This makes the contrast between his current environment and Innisfree all the more dramatic. In his descriptions of Innisfree, he notes the sights and sounds of the natural landscape. Given this contrast, maybe his desire is to escape the noise and the counterfeit (buildings) culture of the city. He wants to go to a quieter place, a place that glimmers naturally. 

What new gifts do Scout and Jem find in the knothole?

Since I’m not sure where you are in the novel, I will give you a list of all the things Scout and Jem find in the knothole.  The first thing Scout finds is two pieces of chewing gum, a real treat for children during this time.  She gobbles up both pieces of gum before Jem sees her chewing it and makes her spit it out.  Jem’s afraid it is poisonous because it came from a Radley tree.  The children check the knothole each day as they walk home from school in hopes of finding more “treasures”.  They end up finding two figures who look like them carved out of soap, a spelling bee medal, and a pocket watch. 

All of these artifacts show Boo Radley’s kind and caring nature.  The two soap figures show his creativity and how much he knows and likes the children.  The spelling medal shows that he was once an able, smart young man who took part in social events.  The old pocket watch is a token of the time he has spent mysteriously hiding out in the Radley house.  They are all gifts children would treasure. 

Harper Lee cleverly includes this gift-giving scene so we, as readers, know that Boo Radley is not a crazy lunatic as rumors suggest but a person who can be a friend and is of no harm to the children.

How is Jem similar to Atticus in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Jem and Atticus are similar in some ways.  I suspect, if we could evaluate Jem as an adult, he would be very much like Atticus.  One of the clearest examples of this is in the mob episode.  Jem leads Scout there to see what was happening.  When he saw the mob, he came out to help Atticus.  Atticus orders him to go home, but Jem refuses.  His concerns override everything, just like Atticus. After all, Atticus was there to protect Tom Robinson.  Scout, an observant girl, notes the similarities. She says:

Jem shook his head. As Atticus's fists went to his hips, so did Jem's, and as they faced each other I could see little resemblance between them: Jem's soft brown hair and eyes, his oval face and snug-fitting ears were our mother's, contrasting oddly with Atticus's graying black hair and square-cut features, but they were somehow alike. Mutual defiance made them alike.

We also see another similarity when Jem risks his own life to protect his sister when Bob Ewell attacked.  Jem could have gotten killed, but he still considers the wellbeing of another rather than his own.  In this sense, we can say that both Jem and Atticus are people of great courage. 

What effect is Dimmesdale's guilt having on his discernment ?

Dimmesdale's guilt seems to be making him somewhat less discerning.  Chillingworth had chosen Dimmesdale to be his spiritual guide, and it was at about this time that "the health of Mr. Dimmesdale had evidently begun to fail."  Although people in the town were, at first, very hopeful that Chillingworth would be able to help their poor minister, they soon come to believe that "the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale [...] was haunted either by Satan himself, or Satan's emissary, in the guise of old Roger Chillingworth."  Dimmesdale had allowed himself to be matched up Chillingworth as roommates, and -- even in very close quarters -- he seems unable to realize that the doctor is trying to "[dig] into [his] heart, like a miner searching for gold."  

Further, the narrator says,

Mr. Dimmesdale would perhaps have seen this individual's character more perfectly, if a certain morbidness, to which sick hearts are liable, had not rendered him suspicious of all mankind.  Trusting no man as his friend, he could not recognize his enemy when the latter actually appeared.

Thus, we can understand that Dimmesdale's "sick heart" is the result of his guilt, and this guilt has made him distrustful of everyone.  Because he is constantly wary of all, he is unable to pick up on the fact that he ought to be warier of one person than anyone else.  Therefore, his discernment has most definitely decreased as a result of his guilt.

Who killed the parents in "The Veldt"?

Peter and Wendy killed their parents, George and Lydia, when they locked them in the nursery with the lions in the African veldt hologram that has mysteriously become real instead of just the imaginings of the children.  George and Lydia are increasingly unnerved by their children’s obsession with playing in the veldt.  It is a violent place where the children see lions stalk and kill their prey.  George and Lydia, along with the family psychologist, Dr. McClean, feel that the children are too caught up in the death the place represents.  George and Lydia threaten to lock the nursery and turn off the rest of the technologically-rich house, and the children seek their revenge by luring them into the nursery and locking the door.  The lions take care of the rest. 

What were the benefits of World War I and who benefited from it?

There were benefits of World War I. The Allies were able to fight and defeat countries that didn’t elect their leaders democratically. While it didn’t make the world safer for democracy in the long run, it did accomplish this in the short term. Our businesses benefited from World War I. Wars tend to help the economy because many people are working making things for the war effort. Businesses tend to make money during times of war. Another benefit from World War I was the breaking up of some empires. This allowed people to be ruled by their own ethnic group in what is known as self-determination. For example, Polish people now ruled the people of Poland. After World War I ended, there was a place a country could take its disputes to try to resolve them peacefully. The League of Nations was created to allow for this to happen. There were some benefits of fighting World War I.

What does George Mason argue might happen if the president has the power to pardon people?

The President of the United States has the unrestrained power of granting pardon for treason; which may be sometimes exercised to screen from punishment those whom he had secretly instigated to commit the crime, and thereby prevent a discovery of his own guilt.

The text above was written by George Mason in September of 1787. He was essentially doodling the reasons that he would not sign the United States Constitution. His objection about the presidential pardon is a very sound one on the surface. Mason believes that the president, could, in theory, commit crimes through secret associates with the understanding that he would simply pardon those associates for the crime. This would allow the executive branch to usurp power from the other branches or even the citizens. Imagine if the president wanted to steal from the banks or the treasury to make himself wealthy. He could later pardon others for his crimes.

While the argument sounds valid at first, the fallacy of it is exposed when you consider Richard Nixon's Watergate fiasco. While he had others do his dirty work for him, he was actually going to be removed from office before resigning after his intrigue was discovered. Having said that, he would not have been able to pardon the perpetrators as he was going to be removed from office had he not resigned. In this way, the presidential pardon is checked by the ability of Congress to impeach the president.

From the time of Reconstruction after the Civil War up until now, what progress have we made in the United States when it comes to liberty,...

Significant progress has been evident in the United States when it comes to liberty, equality, and power from the time of Reconstruction after the Civil War to the present day.

One of the most demonstrative examples of increased liberty, equality, and power can be seen in greater political enfranchisement.  Simply put, more people have achieved the right to vote.  The passage of the Civil War Amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th) during Reconstruction did much to guarantee African- Americans citizenship and voting rights.  The Nineteenth Amendment during the Progressive Time period gave women suffrage, while the 26th Amendment in 1971 set the voting age at 18 years.  As a result of these Constitutional amendments, people who were previously denied the right to vote achieved it.  These actions demonstrate how increased liberty, equality, and power were ensured by bringing more members of the body politic into the political process.

Addressing issues of social marginalization is another way where greater liberty, equality, and power has also been displayed.  Following World War II, movements such as the Feminist Movement and the Civil Rights Movement brought greater attention to the narratives of women and people of color. Workers' rights movements brought more voices into the American narrative as did the social mobilization for those discriminated based on sexual orientation and identity.  Through moving these voices from margin to center, more people experienced greater liberty, equality, and power.  Naturally, this work is not finished.  However, I think that a strong case can be made that since Reconstruction, more Americans have been able to experience greater liberty, equality, and power because of wider political enfranchisement and social inclusion.

Why is important for voters to be able to detect bias and identify propaganda?

It is very important for voters to detect bias and identify propaganda. This is true for any situation, not just during elections. Each political party tries to portray itself in a positive manner while showing the other party in a negative light. As a result, facts may be distorted, quotes may be taken out of context, positions on issues may be misrepresented, and irrelevant or outdated data may be used. As a voter, it is very important to research the issues thoroughly. By knowing the issues in an in-depth manner, a voter can detect biased statements, distorted evidence, and the use of propaganda. This will allow the voter to make a more informed decision on the issues and/or the candidates. Failure to make an informed decision may lead to supporting an issue or a candidate on false, biased, or distorted information. It may also allow the voter to be swayed by the propaganda of either party or candidate. Some people believe this happens way too often today. It is always important to thoroughly know each issue and each candidate. This is especially true now that the political season is upon us with an upcoming national election less than a year away.

What did Atticus mean when he said, “You children last night made Walter Cunningham stand in my shoes for a minute. That was enough” in To Kill...

Atticus means that Scout helped Walter Cunningham realize that Atticus was just a person.

Atticus does his best to try to teach Scout empathy.  He tells her that she will get along with a person better if she is able to “climb into his skin and walk around in it” (Ch. 3).  Scout learns this lesson well.  When Atticus’s client is threatened because he is a black man accused of raping a white woman, he decides to sit outside the jail in case anyone comes.  Scout and Jem see what he is doing and go to see what is going on.

Walter Cunningham and his gang do come for Tom Robinson. However, Scout walks up to Walter and begins talking to him.

“Entailments are bad,” I was advising him, when I slowly awoke to the fact that I was addressing the entire aggregation. The men were all looking at me, some had their mouths half-open. (Ch. 15)

Walter is so surprised that he stops, and they leave. Atticus sees this as a good sign. To him, they are not an angry mob. They are just a group of men.

“So it took an eight-year-old child to bring ‘em to their senses, didn’t it?” said Atticus. “That proves something—that a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they’re still human. …” (Ch. 16)

Scout is just a child, but she is an astute one. She was worried about her father, and she acted. She did not comprehend enough of the situation to be afraid.  She just tried to be polite to the father of her classmate.  It worked.  It reminded Walter Cunningham of the stakes.  Scout woke him up to what he was about to do and the fact that it was wrong.

The trial of Tom Robinson puts the entire town on edge.  As Robinson's attorney, Atticus is a lightning rod for all of the hatred and resentment.  He shows his humanity by protecting his client at all costs.  In this incident, Scout proves that she is her father's daughter.

Explain how the Declaration of Independence preserved individual rights and formed a strong and long lasting union.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed

With these statements in the opening portion of the Declaration of Independence, the colonists describe the importance of individual liberty and the rights of the governed.  Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence, would state that when political leaders do not provide for these individual freedoms, the citizens have the duty and right to call for a new government.  The colonists had repeatedly petitioned England to reform their practices toward the colonists, the demands were ignored.  This is the crux of Jefferson's argument for dissolution with England.  The individual and collective liberties that governments were meant to provide were not being met.

As for the unity of the nation, the Declaration of Independence was also an important step.  The thirteen colonies, to that point in time, were very different from one another.  They had different cultures, commercial interests, and histories.  The Declaration of Independence acted as a statement of shared concern.  The grievances listed in the document were shared by all of the colonies.  Consider the following passage:

That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved;

The language of that statement is clear:  the colonies are now to be united in the cause of creating an independent political entity in the New World.  

What is it about the cottagers that the monster believes causes them to suffer in Frankenstein?

In the story, the creature witnesses the French cottagers and feels sympathy towards them. Although the creature is at first unable to understand how they could also not be happy (similar to the creature), he investigates further and even tries to help the family. The creature discovers the cause of the family’s distress relates to their poverty and desires to help them.

After the creature studied the family for a bit, he realized that they were not happy and believes it was due to their poverty. As the creature illustrates, the family only had one cow and a small garden to feed the family. The creature further states that:

They often, I believe, suffered the pangs of hunger very poignantly, especially the two younger cottagers; for several times they placed food before the old man when they reserved none for themselves.

As a result, the creature tries to help the cottagers by finding firewood for them or contributing in anyway to the family. His compassion for them grows and he begins to relate more and more with their sufferings.

What might a page from Benjamin Franklin's journal have looked like?

Based on the materials in common use during his time, Benjamin Franklin's journal was most likely bound in leather with pages of either hemp, vellum, cotton, or wood-pulp paper. At this time, paper (of any material) was not regularly bleached, so it would likely have been a pale tan or yellow as opposed to the crisp white we are familiar with today. Franklin would have written using a calligraphy pen and ink, using a scrawling black script for his writing. Ink was commonly made from the hulls of black walnuts or pigments such as iron oxide and charcoal.

Franklin loved to read and write, so many of the entries in his journals were quite long. He often wrote of the events of his day, marking the progress of his travels and professional works. He was very interested in the concepts of virtue and morality, and made it a habit to keep track of his "virtues" in his journal by means of small marks. As he was also an inventor, it is possible he might have included small sketches or designs for his experiments. 

If you'd like to see a sample of Benjamin Franklin's diary, doodle included, please click here.

What does this quote about The Crucible mean? “It is rare for people to be asked the question which puts them squarely in front of themselves.”

Proctor had to make a decision about whether or not to confess, and in that decision he had to address the fundamental nature of his character.

This is a quote from a man named Tom Wilkinson, who played the part of Proctor in a production of the play.  Wilkinson is referring to the insistence that Procter confess, and the choice he has to make about what kind of person he is.  Proctor refuses to confess what they want him to, that he made a deal with the Devil.  He does not want to give up his name because he says it is all he has left.  He is willing to go to his death, but he refers to be part of the witch hunt (literally) and give legitimacy to the trial.

Proctor: You will not use me! I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor! You will not use me! It is no part of salvation that you should use me! (Act 4, Scene 4)

To Proctor, this is madness: a group of girls starts accusing people of witchcraft, and soon dozens of people are put to death on the thinnest, obviously manufactured, evidence.  He has accepted his fate, but he wants to go down with his pride.  He will not let them take that from him.

Elizabeth wants John to confess because, as she says, then he could live.  She ultimately tells John that it is up to him.  He could not live with himself if he admitted a lie.  He will not justify the nonsense.  Other local towns shut down their courts when they came to their senses, but Salem held on.  Proctor insists, rightly so, that the court is nothing but a place to nurse grievances and exact vengeance on one’s neighbors.

Miller clearly was making a political statement with this play, and particularly with Proctor. In a village of people who seem to have lost their minds in the witchcraft hysteria, Proctor maintains his sanity.  He tries to protect the vulnerable.  Proctor is a man of principles, and while he admits that he did something wrong in having an affair, he will not admit to consorting with the Devil because he didn't, and the entire situation is wrong.

In the first chapter of The Hobbit, what exactly is Thorin's plan?

In the first chapter of The Hobbit, Thorin explains to Bilbo that his grandfather Thror had been King of the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain. Under his rule the dwarves had mined deep into the mountain and discovered a vast source of wealth in gold and jewels. This wealth ultimately drew the attention of a powerful dragon, Smaug, who attacked the dwarven city, killing many of its inhabitants and scattering the survivors. As rightful heir to the kingdom, Thorin desires to set out for the mountain, and using a key to a secret entrance and a map provided by the wizard Gandalf, enter the city and reclaim the vast riches that are his birthright, despite the presence of the powerful and fierce dragon.

What is the conflict and resolution for Act I, Scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet?

Act I, Scene 3 of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet serves two important purposes. First, it introduces the audience to Juliet and the Nurse. We find out that Juliet is very young, only 13, and that she is very close to the Nurse. In fact, the Nurse literally lives up to her name as she talks about weaning the girl using wormwood. The second purpose is to introduce what would later be the major conflict of Juliet marrying Count Paris. 

Lady Capulet initially wants to speak with Juliet alone, but then thinks better of it and asks the Nurse to stay. We get the feeling she is uncomfortable with her daughter and she needs the Nurse's support. The Nurse proceeds to steal the scene as she recalls Juliet's childhood, particularly the time her husband made a bawdy joke at the toddler Juliet's expense.

Lady Capulet's "purpose" is to ask Juliet if she would like to marry Paris. He is an eligible bachelor who is of the same social and economic status as Juliet and would make a good match, at least in Juliet's parent's eyes. The Nurse is also impressed with Paris and she tells Juliet, 

A man, young lady—lady, such a man
As all the world—why, he’s a man of wax.

The Nurse likes Paris so much that she later advises Juliet to forget Romeo (after he is banished) and instead marry Paris.

The conflict at this point is simply for Juliet to take a look at Paris and see if she really likes him. In the preceding scene, Lord Capulet told Paris to "win" Juliet's heart and then they would talk of marriage. Playing the dutiful daughter, Juliet resolves the conflict in this scene by telling her mother she will look at Paris but won't do anything without her parent's consent. She says,

I’ll look to like, if looking liking move.
But no more deep will I endart mine eye
Than your consent gives strength to make it fly.

Of course, the true conflict comes later when Capulet demands that Juliet marry Paris in Act III after the deaths of Mercutio and Tybalt.

Water flows over a section of Niagara Falls at a rate of 1.6 × 10^6 kg/s and falls 55 m. What is the power wasted by the waterfall? The...

The potential energy of the water going over the falls each second is given by

PE = mgh = (1.6 x 10^6 kg)(9.8 m/sec^2)(55 m) = 8.6 x 10^8 Joules

Power is the rate of conversion of potential energy to work and is expressed with the unit Watt, which is a Joule per second. 

To get power you divide work (energy expended) by time. The time it takes for this amount of water to go over the falls is one second, so the power produced is 8.6 x 10^8 Joules per second or Watts.

When a force acts on an object and the object moves, work is done on the object equal to force x distance. In this example the work is being done on water by the force of gravity, moving it to a lower height.

What reason do Jem and Dill give for trying to peek into the Radley window on that particular night in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Jem and Dill peek in the Radley window to get a look at Boo Radley.

Boo Radley is the neighborhood monster.  All of the children are afraid of him, and even the adults spread rumors about him.  He has stayed in his house since he was a teenager, and he never comes out.  Naturally he becomes a boogeyman for the neighborhood.

Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom. People said he existed, but Jem and I had never seen him. People said he went out at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows. (Ch. 1)

When Dill joins Scout and Jem in Maycomb, he is fascinated by Boo Radley.  The children’s new game becomes to try to get Boo Radley to come out. Although they make up all kinds of stories about him and reenact his history in the yard, the children are really just curious.  Atticus tells them to stay away from Boo Radley.

Dill says that they are going to leave a note for Boo Radley offering him ice cream.  He thinks that if he comes out to sit a spell he’ll feel better.  Scout does not like the whole plan.  She wants nothing to do with Boo Radley.  They explain to her that this night is perfect.

Because nobody could see them at night, because Atticus would be so deep in a book he wouldn’t hear the Kingdom coming, because if Boo Radley killed them they’d miss school instead of vacation, and because it was easier to see inside a dark house in the dark than in the daytime, did I understand? (Ch. 6)

Unfortunately, Jem gets scared off and loses his pants.  Scout does not want him to go back for them because Nathan Radley might shoot him, but he says he has to. He does not want Atticus to find out that they disobeyed him, because Atticus would be disappointed in him.

The five spots remaining on the side of the house in the story “There Will Come Soft Rains” are silhouettes of what?

This story takes place in the future: August 4, 2026. This is a technologically advanced, automated house that still stands in Allendale, California. It still stands following a nuclear blast. At 10:00, the narrator explains that the house is alone amidst a city in rubble. It is the only remaining house: 

At night the ruined city gave off a radioactive glow which could be seen for miles. 

This "radioactive glow" is the result of a nuclear explosion. This could have been a nuclear test gone wrong or the result of warfare. At 10:15, the sprinklers come on. The west side of the house is "charred." The entire west wall of the house is black (charred from the blast) except for five white spots (silhouettes). There is one of a man mowing, one of a woman tending to flowers, one of boy with his hands in the air, one of a girl with her hands ready to catch, and one of the ball the boy had thrown to the girl. All of these family members, and the ball, had been disintegrated during the blast. Being so close to the house, their bodies shielded the house from the blast, leaving the white paint still on the west wall. This is why their white silhouettes remain on that wall. It is a tragically poetic image of the aftermath of the bomb. 

This is a cautionary tale showing the pros and cons of technology. Technology created this self-automated home but also created the bomb. 

What is one reader reaction during the climax in "After Twenty Years" by O Henry?

Most readers would agree that the climax of "After Twenty Years" evokes pathos and surprise. That is, readers are saddened to learn that Bob has been arrested as a rather significant criminal since his arrest marks the end of a long friendship, and Bob will probably go to prison. And, they are surprised at the ending because it does not fit the usual sentimental endings of O. Henry.

While readers of O. Henry would not be surprised by the ironic reversal of the narrative at the climax because such irony is typical of his stories; on the other hand, that Bob is arrested and will be sent to Chicago where he will most likely do time in the state prison would surprise them as this is not the usual romantic ending.

Also, the ending is tragic for Bob and Jimmy, as well, since they sadly realize that their longstanding friendship has ended with disappointment and guilt. Bob experiences this tragic moment as he reads Jimmy's note:

....His hand was steady when he began to read, but it trembled a little by the time he had finished....I saw it was the face of the man wanted in Chicago. Somehow I couldn't do it myself.... 

Earlier, Jimmy has experienced this tragic moment when Bob lit his cigar, revealing his face with the white scar near his right eyebrow, a scar that identified him as "Silky Bob."

What is the relationship between life and the afterlife in A Christmas Carol? I know that what happens during life dictates what happens in the...

First of all, it's important to realize that there is a certain danger in trying to prove an author's worldview from a single work of fiction or poetry. An author may be assuming a point of view just for that work that is not his own. Or, in the case of A Christmas Carol, the work may be a fantasy and therefore may represent a stylized version of the author's views which cannot necessarily be taken literally. With that said, there are a few interesting reflections within A Christmas Carol that pertain to religion and the afterlife. 

The most direct correlation the novella gives us between this life and the next is through the visit of Jacob Marley's ghost. Marley explains that he wears the chains he forged in life, and that since his spirit did not go beyond the walls of his counting house when he was alive, he is sentenced to roam the Earth in the afterlife wearing his heavy chains. His punishment is the "incessant torture of remorse." Marley states that what he should have tended to during his life were "the common welfare . . . charity, mercy, forbearance, benevolence." He mentions the Christmas star, but only in a symbolic sense that he should have been led to help the poor at Christmas time. In this passage there is no real mention of religious faith, only of kind deeds and providing for the needs of the unfortunate.

The phantoms that Scrooge views outside his window at the end of Stave I are reiterations of Marley's ghost. They, too, are suffering from the remorse of having squandered their opportunity to help people while they were alive. 

Another interesting passage that connects this life with immortality is in Stave IV where Scrooge is viewing the dead figure in his bed. In a paragraph that is somewhat mysterious as to its speaker and meaning, we read, "Strike, Shadow, Strike! And see his good deeds springing from the wound, to sow the world with life immortal." This seems to be saying that if the dead man was found to have done good deeds before he died, this would result in immortality. Does that mean immortality for the dead man? Or for mankind? One could interpret it either way, perhaps, or even both.

In the scene where Tiny Tim has died, there is no mention of his being in Heaven. There is a quotation from the Bible: "And he took a child, and set him in the midst of them." It is unclear who speaks those words. This is from Jesus' sermon on the child text. The point of that message from Jesus is that the person who wants to be the greatest in the Kingdom of God must be the servant of all (Mark 9:33 - 37). This is certainly consistent with what Marley's ghost was telling Scrooge.

Finally, in Stave V, when Scrooge has become a changed man, he begins showing generosity to everyone and taking pleasure in the people of London. Then he goes to church. Nothing else is said about religion per se. He became a good man. And the book ends by invoking God's blessing. 

Based on the evidence from this novella alone, it would seem that in Dickens' view, one can be a good man and qualify for immortality by serving others whether or not one is religious. 

What changes on the farm after Lurvy finds the web in Charlotte's Web?

There were many changes that happened on the farm after that miraculous morning when Lurvy saw "Some Pig" written in Charlotte's web; however, I think the three most important were that the farm was now crowded with visitors, the Zuckermans' and Lurvy's normal behavior changed, and the farm chores were forgotten.

First, there were many visitors that paraded onto the farm every time a new word was discovered in the web. This meant numerous cars, people, and noise where it once was quiet and peaceful. Fern missed having the barn to herself and Wilbur became exhausted from all the publicity, but he still tried to put on a good show for his audience. 

Also, the Zuckermans and Lurvy changed their normal behaviors to impress Wilbur's visitors. They wore their Sunday best clothes every day and Mr. Zuckerman even had Lurvy put straw in Wilbur's pen so that he wouldn't get dirty from the manure. Sadly, the straw scratched Wilbur and he wished he could go back to his beloved manure pile. 

Finally, since the Zuckermans and Lurvy were so busy with their visitors, they didn't have time for the normal farm chores. The berries weren't picked and no jam was canned for that year. The garden became overgrown and the fields weren't harvested. 

Therefore, once Charlotte's words "Some Pig" and the subsequent messages in the web were discovered, normal life on the farm halted. Since everyone wanted to see Zuckerman's famous pig, the farm was now crowded with visitors, the Zuckermans and Lurvy changed their normal behaviors, and the farm chores were left undone. These are the three most important changes that happened because Wilbur was "Some Pig," "Radiant," and "Humble."

What industries evolved from the railroad industry?

I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "evolved from", but the railroad industry was a keystone in the development of industrialization around the world. Railroads allowed reliable, rapid transportation of heavy machinery on land, where previously such shipping was only possible over water (and usually only in very deep water such as oceans, rather than lakes or rivers).

The Transcontinental Railroad was particularly important, as before that point the only way to cross between the coasts of the United States was to either brave a long, dangerous land trek without roads (such as the Oregon Trail), or ride in sea ships all the way around the horn of South America. (The Panama Canal would not be finished until 1914; it had a similarly huge impact on transcontinental shipping.)

Railroads made people much more mobile, and towns often sprung up in previously uninhabited areas that were turned into train stops. The need for heavy infrastructure investment in railroads changed the role of government and corporations in the economy, presaging the modern system of multinational corporations and government-financed investment.

Some historians in fact argue that the pace of economic development, particularly in the Western United States, was basically determined by the pace of railroad construction; this is controversial, however, and other historians argue that conventional roads could have done most of the job.

Railroads also created an incentive to develop new technologies, such as more efficient steel production, more powerful internal combustion engines (ultimately leading to the high-power diesel engines used in most US locomotives today), and even improved clocks, because precisely synchronized timekeeping across different regions became necessary. The current time zone system would not exist were it not for the need to synchronize train schedules across different cities.