What is the irony in the short story "Mateo Falcone"?

In this story, it is Fortunato’s lawful act that ends up condemning him to death.  And it is this lawful act that likewise soils him in his father’s eyes.  The boy is described as showing “signs of a promising disposition,” though what this necessarily means to his father Mateo Falcone, a man quick to anger, with a mysterious past but an honest reputation, is unclear. 

One day, when Fortunato’s parents are off on the plains and the boy is left at home alone, a wounded man, a criminal, limps down the road toward the house.  After much agitated arguing, he bribes the boy into hiding him in a haystack from the pursuing authorities.  When the authorities catch up and search the house, they in turn argue with Fortunato, asking him to reveal the whereabouts of the man Gianetto, wanted for thievery, assault, and murder.  At first Fortunato remains true to his word and reveals nothing of Gianetto’s hiding place, but the adjutant Gamba offers the boy a fine silver watch in return for the information.  After much hesitation Fortunato is bought out, and reveals Gianetto to the authorities.

The boy, in simplistic terms, has done the right thing – he has handed a criminal over to the authorities.  He has done the honest thing, from the perspective of the law.  However, from his father’s perspective, he has dishonored his name.  “This child is the first traitor of his race,” Mateo intones, and is furious at his son’s actions.  He has gone back on his word, and traded a man’s life for a shiny silver watch.  Mateo smashes the watch against a stone wall in his anger; Fortunato has now freely handed Gianetto to the authorities, and has nothing to show for it, though the return was at first expensive.  For this, Mateo can never forgive his son, and deals him the justice he sees fit for Fortunato’s offense – a life for a life.

So the irony is condemning:  Fortunato is bribed into doing the right thing according to the law, and yet this honesty, so worthy of praise according to Gamba, ultimately costs the boy both his bribe and his life.  From another perspective, we have Mateo, a man who considers family ties and tradition to be extremely important, who is led to kill his own son rather than compromise on his values of honor and loyalty.  His own standards of justice lead him to abandon that which had given him so much pride:  his only son.

How can I write a good essay describing what Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is suggesting about the consequences we face when we don't take...

I think that the first step you need to take in order to outline this essay is to decide what the plot of the novel says about this topic. In order make sense of that answer, you first need to decide which character you're going to focus on. I think that the natural choice is Doctor Victor Frankenstein, who creates the Creature but does not think through the consequences of that action, which of course results in the multiple tragedies that ensue. Clearly, the novel must take a very dim view of those who do not take responsibility for their actions. So, here is a brief example of a thesis and basic outline that might work for your purposes. This is only a jumping off point, and you will need to hone and refine this as you set about planning and writing your essay. Remember, writing is rewriting.

Thesis Statement: "Mary Shelly's novel, Frankenstein, illustrates the terrible consequences that ensue when a scientist, Doctor Frankenstein, decides to use his immense intellect to create a life from a scrapheap of corpses, without first considering how his creation will live in the world, and how the world will react to his creation." 

First Body Paragraph: Briefly describe what motivates Dr. Frankenstein to set about on his creation: pride, the hope for fame and glory. Remember that his motivations are mostly self-serving, and he does not heed anyone else's advice or warnings. Also explain how Victor feels that he has God-like powers, and focus on the passages that show him thinking about his own future, but not that of the creature, or the others who might interact with the creature.

Second Body Paragraph: Note what little precaution Victor takes when "building his creature." Everything he focuses on, when you think about it, is about "creating the monster," the mechanics, et cetera. He never stops to ponder how the creature will feel. He barely considers the creature human, and never stops long to think about the moral or psychological impacts this creation will have on the creature or the rest of the world. 

Third Body Paragraph: Here you should focus on how the creature destroys Victor's loved ones, and finally, how he destroys Victor. You should also focus on the emotional trauma that the creature suffers. In some ways, his is the cruelest punishment, to be utterly alone and left to wander the arctic tundra. Ultimately, you can show how everyone involved in the "experiment" lives to regret that it ever succeeded.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, how is Atticus Finch a good father?

In To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus Finch is a good father. He is a perfect example of a father who is an honest man, a father who is determined to teach his children the value of respecting all people, no matter the differences in mankind. Atticus Finch chooses to represent a black man who is accused of a crime he didn’t do.

 In the 1960s, in the deep South of Alabama, racism was widespread. The Civil Rights movement was forming during this time. Harper Lee introduces Atticus Finch to the world of literature, and today he still “…reigns as the most noble parent ever brought to life….” Truly, Atticus put himself into a dangerous situation. He chose to do the right thing in the face of a hostile community. As Atticus represents a black man accused of raping a white girl, many in the community assumed the black man was guilty solely because he was black. Atticus knew this mentality was wrong. Atticus proved that the black man was innocent, even though he knew that the jury would probably find the black man guilty, simply based on his skin color.

Throughout the trial, Scout and Jem observe their father and notice that he is in a dangerous situation. Atticus displays courage and integrity throughout the trial. His children learn about their father’s good character and his honorable qualities. Atticus chooses to represent an innocent black man even though he knows he will probably lose the trial. Nevertheless, he knows he has to try and change the way society views black people based only on skin color. Atticus is an exceptional parent and role model. He chooses to put himself at risk along side of his children. He knows this is the right thing to do. He teaches his children that life involves making difficult decisions. He does not cower in the face of trouble. He holds his head high in the community because he knows he is doing the right thing. This lesson becomes evident in front of his children. They learn courage. They learn to respect all people. They learn that doing the right thing is not easy but it has to be done.

Surely, Atticus is an exemplary father. He realizes that he must choose to do the right thing so that his children will learn that having integrity is not always easy, but it is more important than hiding behind closed doors while innocent people suffer. Atticus makes a stand, and his children follow in his footsteps. They become children who see the value in all people regardless skin color or social class status. The lesson that Atticus’ children learn will go with them through life. Jem and Scout will learn the importance of esteeming others as worthy regardless of differences.

Atticus has a difficult task as a father. He chooses to represent an innocent black man while knowing he is putting himself and his own children at risk. Atticus hates no one, not even the cruel Bob Ewell. He realizes that Ewell is product of his environment; however, Atticus chooses to do the right thing by shredding Ewell’s credibility at the trial. When Ewell spits in Atticus face and threatens his very life, Atticus chooses to walk away rather than fight. Again his children learn bravery through their father’s self control. Atticus teaches real-life lessons that his children need to learn—lessons that his children will never forget--valuable, scrupulous teachings from a truly wise and loving father.       

What is quality of life?

Introduction

Quality of life is a multidimensional concept encompassing several subcategories. Life satisfaction, well-being, happiness, meaning, and economic indices are but a few of the components of the broader concept of quality of life (QOL), yet no concept alone can adequately capture the complexity of quality of life. Instruments designed to measure QOL permit individuals to assess their overall health subjectively rather than using purely objective medical assessments such as body temperature or weight gain or loss. QOL questionnaires are generally either generic or illness specific; administering both types presents a more complete picture than using either alone.

Because QOL represents both a subjective and objective rating of a person’s overall health and well-being, researchers or medical personnel are able to use it to capture an encompassing view of a single individual, groups or cultures, or entire nations. QOL is often used in scientific research to assess overall health as it relates to other variables of interest (for example, QOL after chemotherapy). Some of the areas where QOL is most frequently examined are health QOL, economic QOL, and specific illnesses and QOL.

Health QOL

Perhaps the most widely investigated area of QOL involves the various facets that make up overall health. Health quality of life (HQOL) questionnaires measure a number of subcategories that are related to general health and well-being, broadly defined: limitations in physical and social activities, limitations in usual role activities because of physical health problems, bodily pain, general mental health (psychological distress and well-being), limitations in usual role activities because of emotional problems, vitality (energy and fatigue), and general health perceptions.

HQOL’s importance, especially in an aging society, is in determining quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), which measure QOL as a person’s age increases. This measure emphasizes living in health and independently instead of just the number of years added to a person’s life. Overall health is not just the absence of illness but includes ensuring that life’s meaning and richness continue with advancing age.

The difference between subjective and objective ratings of HQOL can be quite startling at times; examinations of fatigue is one such example. Two individuals can report the same overall level of fatigue yet report differing levels of fatigability, or how fatigue affects their daily lives. For example, one individual may retain an active and meaningful life, despite suffering great fatigue, whereas another individual, suffering the same fatigue, may be homebound. HQOL begins to unravel this heretofore neglected aspect of patient expectations. This disparity in subjective versus objective ratings is more pronounced when examining the aging population. Despite multiple comorbidities, most seniors report their health as good or better. Shoring up these discrepant ratings is an important contribution of HQOL measurements.

Economic QOL

Determining economic QOL generally involves assessing the gross domestic product (GDP), or total market value of all goods and services produced in a country in a given period (usually a year), and the material well-being of individuals within a culture or nation, which is often referred to as the standard of living. Other QOL indices are the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) quality-of-life index and human development index, which represent numerous health factors of a country, such as GDP, life expectancy, employment rate, and political stability. Accurately measuring economic QOL is quite important. Often outcomes from such research structure public policy, legislation, and community-based programs, and because wealth creation does not always lead to concomitant increases in overall QOL, it is imperative that a multipronged assessment approach is used to create any economic QOL rating.

In 2008, the United States ranked thirteenth, out of 111 countries, in the EIU quality-of-life index. GDP usually explains around 50 percent of country variation in life satisfaction, suggesting factors other than income affect QOL ratings. Ireland, for example, has the number-one rating despite having low scores in health and climate. In Ireland, family cohesiveness and intact communities increase the nation’s overall QOL. Education level, often a predictor of income, shows a modest correlation with life satisfaction; this finding reinforces the subjective nature and variation among what adds quality to life. In 2012, the EIU published its "Where-to-Be-Born Index, 2013," which ranked Switzerland as the number one place to be born out of eighty countries; the United States was ranked sixteenth.

Specific Illnesses and QOL

Assessing QOL has long been of interest to researchers and clinicians examining patients’ subjective ratings of their health before and after treatment for specific diseases. Because illness-specific QOL questionnaires can demonstrate treatment effectiveness, a growing concern of researchers, clinicians, and insurance companies, their use has increased significantly in the clinical setting. In one study, newly diagnosed lung cancer patients with lower socioeconomic status reported lower health-related QOL, but the differences disappeared at follow-up, suggesting that improved QOL can, in fact, be an outcome of treatment.

Often the effectiveness of treatment is gauged solely on the patient’s self-reported QOL; for example, chemotherapy might have been marginally successful in tumor reduction, but if the patient reports a higher QOL, clinicians will gauge the treatment to be a success. Patients undergoing two different types of colorectal surgery, one widely accepted as superior in objective results, produced identical QOL ratings postsurgery. These often confounding results have pushed assessing patients’ perceptions of the impact of their disease and its treatment on their lives to the top of clinical treatment paradigms.

The Future of QOL

Because culture, expectancies, personality, and many other factors can affect individual ratings of QOL, clinical and research investigations are continually in flux, each searching for the most valid and reliable methods to capture QOL. Emerging research is focusing on ecological momentary assessments, or tracking QOL ratings randomly throughout the day via portable electronic devices, such as cell phones or personal digital assistants (PDAs). At random points throughout the day, a chime sounds, prompting the individual to answer a question about his or her current mood or state (for example, “Right now, are you experiencing any body pain?”). Such real-world data collection allows researchers to track QOL subcategories throughout the day to determine stability and fluctuations of health variables of interest. As personality, expectancies, self-efficacy, and other social cognitive factors can influence QOL, it is paramount that new and innovative ways are continually designed to capture this complex concept.

Bibliography

Economist Intelligence Unit. Economist Intelligence Unit. Economist Intelligence Unit, 2014. Web. 26 June 2014. <http://www.eiu.com/>.

Guyatt, Gordon H., David H. Feeny, and Donald L. Patrick. “Measuring Health-Related Quality of Life.” Annals of Internal Medicine 118.8 (1993): 622–629. Print.

International Society for Quality of Life Research. ISOQOL. International Society for Quality of Life Research, 2014. Web. 26 June 2014. <http://isoqol.org/>.

Michalos, Alex C., ed. Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Dordrecht: Springer, 2013. Digital file, print.

Nussbaum, Martha Craven, and Amartya Kumar Sen, eds. The Quality of Life: A Study Prepared for World Institute for Development Economics Research of the United Nations University. Oxford: Clarendon, 2010. Print.

Rahtz, Don R., Rhonda Phillips, and Joseph M. Sirgy. Community Quality-of-Life Indicators: Best Cases VI. Dordrecht: Springer, 2013. Digital file.

United Nations Development Programme. Human Development Reports. United Nations Development Programme, 2014. Web. 26 June 2014. <http://hdr.undp.org/en/>.

From Life of Pi, both worshipping of God and survival are hugely important to Pi. Which does he give primacy to?"

There are three things that Pi does while surviving on the lifeboat that contradict what he believes religiously; therefore, he gives primacy to survival over worshipping God. It's not that Pi ever stops praying to God, though, because he doesn't. Pi is ever mindful of God and practices his religions faithfully. However, because he takes and kills sea life, and eats seafood and human flesh--all of which go against his religious beliefs--it is clear that survival takes first place for the time he is alone at sea.

Pi kills and eats his first fish in chapter 61 and he feels horribly about it. He says the following about the experience:

"A lifetime of peaceful vegetarianism stood between me and the willful beheading of a fish. . . All sentient life is sacred. I never forget to include this fish in my prayers" (183).

Pi realizes for himself that he is choosing survival over his religious beliefs in the above passage. Again, that doesn't mean that he stops praying to or believing in God; but, it doesn't mean that he stops killing sea life to survive, either. In order to completely worship his God, though, he would have to do none of the things he needed to do to survive. It's definitely a conundrum.

The worst part of Pi's story is the fact that he kills a human and eats the heart, liver, and flesh. It would seem likely for Pi's God to forgive killing and eating animals, but to take a human life and become a cannibal is the worst thing anyone can do. Pi admits this act to the Japanese investigators as follows:

"I stabbed him in the stomach. . . I pulled the knife out and stabbed him again. . . I stabbed him in the throat, next to the Adam's apple. He dropped like a stone. And died. . . His heart was a struggle--all those tubes that connected it. I managed to get it out. It tasted delicious, far better than turtle. I ate his liver. I cut off great pieces of his flesh. . . he met evil in me--selfishness, anger, ruthlessness. I must live with that" (310-311).

Pi killed the man who had killed his mother. And to survive, he ate that man. He devotes his life to God when he is saved, though, and prays for all the life he took while he was a castaway. In the end, the desperation of the situation leads him to choose survival over obeying all of God's commandments for a time.

CH4 is a gas at room temperature while NH3 is a liquid. Why does this occur?

Molecules are held together by intermolecular forces. Intermolecular forces are the forces of attraction or repulsion that act between the particles of a substance. When strong intermolecular forces exist between particles, more energy is needed to disrupt the intermolecular forces holding the particles together. Because of this, a substance with stronger intermolecular forces will have a higher boiling point.

`~NH_3` molecules are held together by two types of intermolecular forces: London dispersion forces and hydrogen bonds.

`CH_4` molecules are only held together by London dispersion forces.

The hydrogen bonding forces between the `~NH_3` molecules are stronger than the London dispersion forces between the `~CH_4` molecules. Therefore, more energy will be needed to disrupt the intermolecular forces between the `~NH_3` molecules. Because of this, the boiling point of `~NH_3` is higher than the boiling point of `~CH_4` . 

What is protein?

Structure and Functions

Proteins are composed of twenty-two different amino acids in various combinations joined together in a chain. The human body can synthesize fourteen amino acids, known as inessential amino acids, whereas the other eight, known as essential amino acids, must be provided by the diet. Proteins from dietary sources are considered complete or incomplete based on their amino acid content. Complete proteins provide all eight essential amino acids, whereas incomplete proteins have low amounts of, or are missing, at least one essential amino acid. Only fish, meat, poultry, eggs, cheese, and other foods from animal sources contain complete proteins. Peanuts, soy, nuts, seeds, green peas, legumes, and some grains provide the richest plant proteins. Omnivores typically eat a sufficient variety of foods to consume adequate essential amino acids. Vegetarians ensure sufficient amino acid intake by consuming a variety of plant proteins.

Every cell in the body contains protein. Proteins are essential for cell structure and function and comprise major components of skin, tissues, muscles, and internal organs. Dietary protein, one of three types of nutrients used for energy, is required for the building, maintenance, and repair of body tissue. Growth and development during childhood, adolescence, and pregnancy depend on proteins. Proteins participate in all cellular functions, such as acting as enzyme catalysts and transport and storage molecules. They also provide mechanical support and immune protection, generate movement, transmit nerve impulses, and control growth and differentiation. Important classes of proteins include enzymes, hormones, and antibodies.

Disorders and Diseases

Protein deficiency is relatively rare in developed countries, although poverty can prevent adequate protein consumption. Protein deficiency can result from stringent weight loss diets or in older adults. Severe protein deficiency is fatal. In developing countries, protein deficiency causes the disease known as kwashiorkor, which includes symptoms such as apathy, diarrhea, inactivity, failure to grow, fatty liver, and edema. Since the body cannot store protein, too much protein can also be harmful, with a high-protein diet potentially leading to high cholesterol or other diseases and possible effects on kidney function. Excess protein may also result in immune system hyperactivity, liver dysfunction, bone loss, and obesity. Proteins contribute to food allergies, with many people allergic to proteins in milk (casein), wheat (gluten), or proteins found in peanut, shellfish, or other seafoods.

Perspective and Prospects

A nutritionally balanced diet provides adequate protein. The average diet in the United States includes nearly twice the amount of protein required to maintain a healthy body. Although it was once believed that vegetarians needed to combine proteins by consuming all amino acids in the same meal, it is now realized that benefits of protein combining can be achieved over a longer period of time. In May 2013, the New York University Fertility Center published a study showing that women undergoing fertility treatment increased their chances of conception by increasing the amount of protein in their diets.

Bibliography

"Can High-Protein, Low-Card Diet Boost Fertility Treatment?" MedlinePlus. May 6, 2013.

"Dietary Proteins." MedlinePlus. July 18, 2013.

Duyff, Roberta Larson. American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, 2006.

Marshall, Keri. User’s Guide to Protein and Amino Acids. Laguna Beach, Calif.: Basic Health Publications, 2005.

"Protein in diet." MedlinePlus. May 5, 2011.

Shils, Maurice E., Moshe Shike, A. Catharine Ross, and Benjamin Caballero. Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease. 10th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2005.

What is the relationship between racism and social psychology?

Introduction

The social and psychological study of prejudice and discrimination, including prejudice and discrimination against African Americans, has a long history; the term “racism,” however, did not enter the language of social psychology until the publication of the Kerner Commission Report of 1968, which blamed all-pervasive “white racism” for widespread black rioting in American cities. While usually applied to black-white relations in the United States, the term is also sometimes used with regard to white Americans’ relations with other minority groups, such as Asians or Latinos, or to black-white relations outside the United States, for example, in Britain, Canada, or South Africa. Most of the studies and research on racism have focused on white racism against blacks in the United States.

Racism is seen by many social psychologists not as mere hatred but as a deep-rooted habit that is hard to change; hence, subvarieties of racism are distinguished. Psychoanalyst Joel Kovel, in his book White Racism: A Psychohistory (1970), distinguishes between dominative racism, the desire to oppress blacks, and aversive racism, the desire to avoid contact with blacks. Aversive racism, Samuel L. Gaertner and John Dovidio find, exists among those whites who pride themselves on being unprejudiced. David O. Sears, looking at whites’ voting behavior and their political opinions as expressed in survey responses, finds what he calls symbolic racism: a resentment of African Americans for making demands in the political realm that supposedly violate traditional American values. Social psychologist James M. Jones distinguishes three types of racism: individual racism, the prejudice and antiblack behavior deliberately manifested by individual whites; institutional racism, the social, economic, and political patterns that impersonally oppress blacks regardless of the prejudice or lack thereof of individuals; and cultural racism, the tendency of whites to ignore or to denigrate the special characteristics of black culture.

Where Dovidio and Gaertner find aversive racism, Irwin Katz finds ambivalence. Many whites, he argues, simultaneously see African Americans as disadvantaged (which creates sympathy) and as deviating from mainstream social norms (which creates antipathy). Such ambivalence, Katz contends, leads to exaggeratedly negative reactions to negative behaviors by an African American, but also to exaggeratedly positive reactions to positive behaviors by an African American. He calls this phenomenon ambivalence-induced behavior amplification.

The reasons suggested for individual racism are many. John Dollard, Neal E. Miller, and others, in Frustration and Aggression (1939), see prejudice as the scapegoating of minorities to provide a release for aggression in the face of frustration; in this view, outbursts of bigotry are a natural response to hard economic times. Muzafer and Carolyn Sherif, in Groups in Harmony and Tension (1953) and later works, see prejudice of all sorts as the result of competition between groups. Theodor Adorno and others, in The Authoritarian Personality (1950), view prejudice, whether directed against blacks or against Jews, as reflective of a supposedly fascist type of personality produced by authoritarian child-rearing practices. In Racially Separate or Together? (1971), Thomas F. Pettigrew shows that discriminatory behavior toward blacks, and the verbal expression of prejudices against them, can sometimes flow simply from a white’s desire to fit in with his or her social group. Finally, both prejudice and discrimination, many psychologists argue, are rooted in those human cognitive processes involved in the formation of stereotypes.

Racism and Stereotypes

Stereotypes are ideas, often rigidly held, concerning members of a group to which one does not belong. Social psychologists who follow the cognitive approach to the study of racism, such as David L. Hamilton, Walter G. Stephan, and Myron Rothbart, argue that racial stereotyping (the tendency of whites to see blacks in some roles and not in others) arises, like any other kind of stereotyping, from the need of every human being to create some sort of order out of his or her perceptions of the world. Although stereotypes are not entirely impervious to revision or even to shattering in the face of disconfirming instances, information related to a stereotype is more efficiently retained than information unrelated to it. Whites, it has been found, tend to judge blacks to be more homogeneous than they really are, while being more aware of differences within their own group: This is called the out-group homogeneity hypothesis. Whites who are guided by stereotypes may act in such a way as to bring out worse behavior in blacks than would otherwise occur, thus creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Why is stereotypical thinking on the part of whites about African Americans so hard to eliminate? The history of race relations in the United States deserves some of the blame. Some mistakes in reasoning common to the tolerant and the intolerant alike—such as the tendency to remember spectacular events and to think of them as occurring more frequently than is really the case (the availability heuristic)—also occur in whites’ judgments about members of minority groups. In addition, the social and occupational roles one fills may reinforce stereotypical thinking.

Pettigrew contends that attribution errors—mistakes in explaining the behavior of others—may have an important role to play in reinforcing racial stereotypes. The same behavioral act, Pettigrew argues, is interpreted differently by whites depending on the race of the actor. A positive act by a black might be ascribed to situational characteristics (for example, luck, affirmative action programs, or other circumstances beyond one’s control) and thus discounted; a positive act by a white might be ascribed to personality characteristics. Similarly, a negative act might be ascribed to situational characteristics in the case of a white, but to personality characteristics in the case of a black. The tendency of whites to view the greater extent of poverty among blacks as solely the result of lack of motivation can be seen as a form of attribution error.

Policy Guides

Institutional racism occurs when policies that are nonracial on their face have differential results for the two races. For example, a stiff educational requirement for a relatively unskilled job may effectively exclude blacks, whose educational preparation may be weaker, at least in part because of past racial discrimination. The policy of hiring friends and relatives of existing employees may also exclude blacks, if blacks have not historically worked in a particular business. In both cases, the effect is discriminatory even if the intent is not.

Somewhat connected with the concept of institutional racism is Pettigrew’s notion of conformity-induced prejudice and discrimination. A classic example is that of the precivil-rights-era southern United States, where urban restaurant owners, regardless of their personal feelings about blacks, refused them service out of deference to local norms. Another example is the case of the white factory worker who cooperates with black fellow workers on the job and in union activities but strenuously opposes blacks moving into his neighborhood; norms of tolerance are followed in one context, norms of discrimination in the other.

The concept of symbolic (sometimes called “modern”) racism, a form of covert prejudice said to be characteristic of political conservatives, arose from a series of questions designed to predict whether white Californians would vote against black political candidates. It has been used to explain opposition to school busing to achieve integration and support for the 1978 California referendum proposition for limiting taxes. John B. McConahay shows that white experimental subjects who score high on the modern racism scale, when faced with hypothetical black and white job candidates with identical credentials, are more likely than low scorers to give a much poorer rating to the black candidate’s résumé.

Aversive racism cannot be detected by surveys. Since aversive racists wish to maintain a nonprejudiced self-image, they neither admit to being prejudiced nor discriminate against blacks when social norms clearly forbid it; when the norms are ambiguous, however, they do discriminate. In a New York City experiment, professed liberals and professed conservatives both got telephone calls from individuals identifiable from their speech patterns as either black or white. At first, the caller said he had the wrong number; if the recipient of the call did not hang up, the caller then asked for help regarding a disabled car. Conservatives were less likely to offer help to the black, but liberals were more likely to hang up when they were told by the black that a wrong number had been called. In another experiment, white college students proved just as willing to accept help from a black partner as from a white one when the help was offered. When the subjects had to take the initiative, however, discomfort with the reversal of traditional roles showed up: More asked for help from the white partner than from the black one.

Both symbolic and aversive, but not dominative, racists manifest ambivalence in their attitudes toward blacks. Katz’s concept of ambivalence-induced behavior amplification has been tested in several experiments. In one experiment, white college student subjects were told to insult two individuals, one black and one white. After they had done so, they proved, when asked for assistance in a task later on, more willing to help the black they had insulted than the white person.

The effect of the availability heuristic in reinforcing stereotypes is seen in the case of a white who is mugged by a black criminal. If the victim knows no other blacks, he or she may well remember this one spectacular incident and forget the many blacks who are law-abiding. The effect of occupational roles in reinforcing stereotypes can be seen in the example of a white police officer who patrols a black slum neighborhood and jumps to the conclusion that all blacks are criminals.

Experiments on stereotyping indicate that white subjects remember the words or actions of a solo black in an otherwise all-white group better than they do the words or actions of one black in a group of several blacks. With a mixed group of speakers, some white and some black, white experimental subjects proved later to be more likely to confuse the identities of the black speakers than those of the white speakers, while remembering the race of the former. The self-fulfilling prophecy concept has been tested in experiments with white subjects interviewing supposed job candidates. The white subjects were more ill at ease and inarticulate interviewing a black candidate than in interviewing a white one; in turn, the black candidate was more ill at ease than the white one and made more errors.

Since most such experiments use college students as subjects, there is inevitably some doubt about their generalizability to the outside world. Nevertheless, it seems likely that the evidence from social psychology experiments of just how deeply rooted racial bias is among white Americans has played at least some role in leading governments to adopt affirmative action policies to secure fairer treatment of blacks and other minorities in hiring procedures.

History and Developments

Although the study of racism per se began with the racial crisis of the 1960s, the study of prejudice in general goes back much further; as early as the 1920s, Emory Bogardus
constructed a social distance scale measuring the degree of intimacy members of different racial and ethnic groups were willing to tolerate with one another. At first, psychologists tended to seek the roots of prejudice in the emotional makeup of the prejudiced individual rather than in the structure of society or in the general patterns of human cognition. For many years, the study of antiblack prejudice was subsumed under the study of prejudice in general; those biased against blacks were thought to be biased against other groups, such as Jews, as well.

In the years immediately following World War II, American social psychologists were optimistic about the possibilities for reducing or even eliminating racial and ethnic prejudices. Adorno’s The Authoritarian Personality, and The Nature of Prejudice (1954), by Gordon Allport, reflect the climate of opinion of the time. Allport, whose view of prejudice represented a mixture of the psychoanalytic and cognitive approaches, used the term “racism” to signify the doctrines preached by negrophobe political demagogues; he did not see it as a deeply ingrained bad habit pervading the entire society. Pettigrew, who wrote about antiblack prejudice from the late 1950s on, cast doubt on the notion that there was a specific type of personality or pattern of child rearing associated with prejudice. Nevertheless, he long remained in the optimistic tradition, arguing that changing white people’s discriminatory behavior through the enactment of civil rights laws would ultimately change their prejudiced attitudes.

The more frequent use by social psychologists of the term “racism” from the late 1960s onward indicates a growing awareness that bias against blacks, a visible minority, might be harder to uproot than that directed against religious and ethnic minorities. Social psychologists studying racial prejudice shifted their research interest from the open and noisy bigotry most often found among political extremists (for example, the Ku Klux Klan) to the quiet, everyday prejudices of the average apolitical individual. Racial bias against blacks came to be seen as a central, rather than a peripheral, feature of American life.

Responses to surveys taken from the 1940s to the end of the 1970s indicated a steady decline in the percentage of white Americans willing to admit holding racist views. Yet in the 1970s, the sometimes violent white hostility to school busing for integration, and the continuing social and economic gap between black and white America, gave social psychologists reason to temper their earlier optimism. The contact hypothesis, the notion that contact between different racial groups would reduce prejudice, was subjected to greater skepticism and ever more careful qualification. Janet Schofield, in her field study of a desegregated junior high school, detected a persistence of racial divisions among the pupils; reviewing a number of such studies, Stephan similarly discerned a tendency toward increased interracial tension in schools following desegregation. The pessimism suggested by field studies among younger teenagers was confirmed by experiments conducted in the 1970s and 1980s on college students and adults; such studies demonstrated the existence, even among supposedly nonprejudiced people, of subtle racism and racial stereotyping.

Yet while social psychological experiments contribute to an understanding of the reasons for negative attitudes toward blacks by whites, and for discriminatory behavior toward blacks even by those whites who believe themselves to be tolerant, they do not by any means provide the complete answer to the riddle of racial prejudice and discrimination. Unlike many other topics in social psychology, racism has also been investigated by journalists, historians, economists, sociologists, political scientists, legal scholars, and even literary critics. The techniques of social psychology—surveys, controlled experiments, and field studies—provide only one window on this phenomenon.

Bibliography

Allport, Gordon W. The Nature of Prejudice. 1954. Reprint. Cambridge: Addison, 1990. Print.

Augoustinos, Martha. “Psychological Perspectives on Racism.” InPsych. Australian Psychological Society, Aug. 2013. Web. 25 June 2014.

Barndt, Joseph. Understanding and Dismantling Racism: The Twenty-First Century Challenge to White America. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2007. Print.

Bell, Derrick. Faces at the Bottom of the Well: The Permanence of Racism. New York: Basic, 1992. Print.

Campbell, Duane. Choosing Democracy: A Practical Guide to Multicultural Education. 4th ed. Boston: Allyn, 2009. Print.

Dovidio, John F., and Samuel L. Gaertner, eds. Prejudice, Discrimination, and Racism. 1986. Rpt. San Diego: Academic, 1992. Print.

Gilroy, Paul. Against Race: Imaging Political Culture beyond the Color Line. Cambridge: Belknap, 2001. Print.

Katz, Irwin. Stigma: A Social Psychological Analysis. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1981. Print.

Katz, Phyllis A., and Dalmas A. Taylor, eds. Eliminating Racism: Profiles in Controversy. New York: Plenum, 1988. Print.

Marsh, Jason, Rodolfo Mendoza-Denton, and Jeremy Adam Smith. Are We Born Racist? New Insights from Neuroscience and Positive Psychology. Boston: Beacon, 2010. Print.

Oshodi, John Egbeazien. History of Psychology in the Black Experience: Perspectives Then and Now—A Psychology in the Perspective of the History of the Africans and People of African Descent. Lanham: UP of America, 2012. Print.

Pettigrew, Thomas F., et al. Prejudice. Cambridge: Belknap, 1982. Print.

Steele, Shelby. The Content of Our Character: A New Vision of Race in America. New York: HarperPerennial, 1998. Print.

Stephan, Walter G., and David Rosenfield. “Racial and Ethnic Stereotypes.” In the Eye of the Beholder: Contemporary Issues in Stereotyping. Ed. Arthur G. Miller. New York: Praeger, 1982. Print.

Sue, Derald Wing, and David Sue. Counseling the Culturally Diverse: Theory and Practice. Hoboken: Wiley, 2013. Print.

Trepagnier, Barbara. Silent Racism: How Well-Meaning White People Perpetuate the Racial Divide. Boulder: Paradigm, 2007. Print.

West, Cornell. Race Matters. 2d ed. Boston: Beacon, 2001. Print.

How does Romeo create problems for the public and his family and friends in Act 1 scene 1? How does Tybalt create problems for the public and his...

How does Romeo create problems for the public and his family and friends in Act 1 scene 1?

When Romeo first appears he is bemoaning his failed love for Rosaline. The family is continuously trying to cheer Romeo up, but he keeps whining about Rosaline. Benvolio finds this to be tedious, but he is still patient with Romeo. It is a silly scene, but the audience is able to construct Romeo as a foolish, young teenager who is experiencing heartbreak for the first time. 

How does Tybalt create problems for the public and his family and friends in Act 1 scene 1?

Tybalt enters Romeo and Juliet before Romeo, spurring on a brawl that is occurring between Montagues and Capulets. Tybalt creates many problems for the public, as he is hot-headed and frequently brawling in the streets. This causes the public to resent the Capulets as well as the Montagues, which creates tension for all his friends and family.

How does society try to control Romeo's character despite his resistance?

Society restricts Romeo's engagement with Juliet since the Montagues and Capulets are sworn enemies. Society (and Romeo's family and friends) warn Romeo not to engage with Juliet, as this relationship could end in disaster. Romeo ignores these warnings, which were issued to help keep him safe, and runs headstrong into a dangerous situation that costs him his life. 

How does society try to control Tybalt despite his resistance?

Society wants Tybalt to cause fewer fights, but Tybalt resists these orders. Society creates restrictions for Tybalt (like outlawing public feuds between the families), but Tybalt ignores these orders. Tybalt frequently brawls, ultimately spurring on the fight that leads to his death. In a way, society fails to protect Tybalt from himself and his violent impulses.

Where can irony be found in "The Way Up To Heaven" by Roald Dahl?

The basic irony in the story "The Way Up to Heaven" is situational irony. Mr. Foster knows full well that his wife has a pathological fear of being late for any occasion. He takes a sadistic delight in torturing her by all kinds of delaying tactics, but she doesn't realize he is doing them deliberately in order to increase her anxiety. On the occasion dramatized in the story he pretends that he forgot a present he wanted to give his wife to take to their daughter in Paris. They are already almost too late to get to the airport for takeoff, but he insists on going back upstairs to get the unimportant little gift. While she is waiting in the limousine, Mrs. Foster makes a discovery that changes her life by revealing the truth about her husband's character.

At this point, Mrs. Foster suddenly spotted a corner of something white wedged down in the crack of the seat on the side where her husband had been sitting. She reached over and pulled out a small paper-wrapped box, and at the same time she couldn’t help noticing that it was wedged down firm and deep, as though with the help of a pushing hand.

This is proof positive that her husband has been doing this sort of thing for years just to torment her. From being a meek housewife Mrs. Foster has a transformation in character reminiscent of that which motivates Mary Maloney to kill her husband with a frozen leg of lamb in Roald Dahl's "Lamb to the Slaughter." And Mrs. Foster also kills her husband and gets away with it.

The affluent Fosters live in one of those narrow six-story townhouses in Manhattan which require an elevator to get up and down the floors. When Mrs. Foster rushes up to the front door, intending to tell her husband she found the package and hurry him to the airport, she hears sounds through the front door which mean something to her, although not to the reader.

Yes—quite obviously she was listening. Her whole attitude was a listening one. She appeared actually to be moving one of her ears closer and closer to the door. Now it was right up against the door, and for still another few seconds she remained in that position, head up, ear to door, hand on key, about to enter but not entering, trying instead, or so it seemed, to hear and to analyse these sounds that were coming faintly from this place deep within the house. Then, all at once, she sprang to life again. She withdrew the key from the door and came running back down the steps. “It’s too late!” she cried to the chauffeur. “I can’t wait for him, I simply can’t. I’ll miss the plane. Hurry now, driver, hurry! To the airport!”

The townhouse has been shut down for six weeks. The servants have been put on leave. No one is going to be visiting the townhouse during all the time Mrs. Foster will be visiting her daughter and grandchildren in France. The author has established that Mr. Foster is not a letter-writer, so his wife should not be surprised if she doesn't hear from him. In the meantime she will write him occasionally from France.

When the six weeks are up, she returns to New York and finds that the townhouse shows no sign of having been entered by anybody in all that time. Then she pretends to discover that there is something wrong with the elevator. It is stuck between floors. Ironically, Mr. Foster's little ruse of pretending to go back upstairs for the gift he knew he had left stuffed down beside the seat in the car caused him to get stuck in the elevator. When the elevator repairman arrives it is he who will discover, to Mrs. Foster's feigned horror, that her husband is a shrunken corpse. Obviously the sounds Mrs. Foster heard through the front door when she was leaving for Paris six weeks ago were the sounds of the little elevator getting stuck between floors and those of her trapped husband rattling the elevator door and calling for help. Ironically, her husband brought his death upon himself, and he got just what he deserved. It was her anxiety about getting to the airport on time that gave her an excuse for not entering the townhouse but leaving in the limousine and assuming her husband could get to his club by taxi. 

In The Great Gatsby, chapter 7, did Daisy ever intend to leave Tom? Why or why not?

While we can't know for certain what Daisy might have done had not Tom intervened, it seems extremely unlikely that Daisy would ever have left Tom for Gatsby. First, Daisy is a weak character who looks to the swaggering, domineering Tom for protection. Her affair with Gatsby may be partially heartfelt, but it comes across more as a cry of protest against Tom's serial philandering than a serious effort to change her life. 

During the encounter between Tom and Gatsby at the Plaza hotel, Daisy crumbles rapidly, backpedaling on her assertions of loving Gatsby and never having loved Tom. She says to Gatsby

Oh, you want too much! ... I can't say I never loved Tom. ... It wouldn't be true ...

Tom quickly capitalized on Daisy's wavering loyalties to reassert his control over her. He tells Gatsby that "there's things between me and Daisy that you'll never know, things neither of us will ever forget." He also goes aggressively after Gatsby's shady past and the insecure foundation his wealth is built on, knowing full well how much money matters to his wife. 

In the end, Daisy most likely realizes that she is a fantasy figure to Gatsby, a representative of his desire for lost youth, wealth, and security and that his needs are insatiable and unrealistic. Her relationship with Tom may be troubled, but, as he reminds her, it's real and rooted in a shared past.

What happens to the blood carried by vessels that drain directly into the inferior vena cava?

The question did not specify whether or not the heart of interest was a two, three, or four-chamber heart. Please note that the answer reflects the path that blood takes through a four-chamber heart that is composed of two atria and two ventricles.

Blood that is dumped into the inferior vena cava has been used by the body. Thus, the blood is deoxygenated and is returning to the heart. The path of the blood from the inferior vena cava in a four-chambered heart is sequenced below.  

• Oxygen-poor blood that has been used by the cells is delivered back to right atrium via the inferior or superior vena cava.


• The right atrium pumps this oxygen-depleted blood to the right ventricle.


• The right ventricle then pumps the blood to lungs, where oxygen is received.


• The oxygenated blood is brought back to the heart via the pulmonary veins.


• The pulmonary veins enter the left atrium.


• The left atrium receives this oxygen-rich blood from the pulmonary veins and pumps it to the left ventricle.


• The left ventricle then pumps the oxygenated blood to the body.

The oxygen is then used by the mitochondria of the vertebrate eukaryotic cells in the process that is known as cellular respiration. Cellular respiration occurs in the mitochondria of eukaryotic cells. During cellular respiration, oxygen gas and the sugar glucose are converted into water, carbon dioxide gas, and an energy source called adenosine triphosphate (ATP).

Once the blood has been delivered to the cells of the body and its oxygen has been used, the blood is again returned to the heart via the right atrium via either the superior or inferior vena cava. Thus, the cycle continues.

What do Huck and Jim discover and explore in the river in Chapter 12 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Tom Sawyer?

While wandering down the river, Huck and Jim run across a steamboat named the Walter Scott that has run aground in the Mississippi River.  Huck wants to go on board to scout out the boat, and even though Jim is a little frightened, they tie the raft to the boat.  When they sneak on board, they overhear some men talking below deck.  Jim tries to convince Huck that they are in a dangerous situation and that they need to go back to the raft, but Huck can’t help himself and tiptoes in for a closer look to see what is going on.  Huck hears a man named Jake Packard threaten to kill another man, Jim Turner.  However, Packard and his partner, Billy, decide to let the tied up Jim Turner drown when the boat sinks so they aren’t “responsible” for his death.  Huck debates whether he should save Jim Turner and turn in the other men, and when he and Jim return to the raft to go get a sheriff in a nearby town, the raft has broken away and is drifting down the river.  Huck and Jim jump in the robbers’ skiff and “light out,” not realizing that, by taking the skiff, they have sealed the robbers’ fate, and they will drown trapped on the steamboat.

It is suggested that Jake Packard, Billy, and Jim Turner are the men who killed Pap during a card game.  Jim finds and covers Pap’s body so Huck won’t see it when they board the house floating down the flooded river earlier in their adventures. 

What is the message in chapter 7 of The Last Lecture?

The main message that emerges from Chapter 7 of The Last Lecture is that our life experiences contain lessons that can stay with us for quite a while. 

Randy would agree that the "will to win" is just as, if not more, important than actually winning.  In Chapter 7,  Randy talks about how one of his childhood dreams was to play "tackle football" and he never accomplished it. However, Randy acknowledges the influence that Coach Graham had on his life. Coach Graham specialized in teaching life lessons to the boys on Randy's football team.  He stressed "fundamentals," hard work, and dedication.  

While he was never able to succeed as a football player, Randy realized that Coach Graham's lessons were profound because they were beyond football. The lesson that Randy takes from this is that while we might not accomplish all of our dreams, we will be more successful if we can display the desire to do so. Randy's experiences in football were preparations for his success in life. Randy talks about how this was the first time that he learned about "the head fake:"

What we really want them to learn is far more important: teamwork, perseverance, sportsmanship, the value of hard work, an ability to deal with adversity. This kind of indirect learning is what some of us like to call a 'head fake."

In Chapter 7, Randy's message is that life's "head fakes" possess a great deal of instructional merit.  The lessons he learned from Coach Graham transcended the field of athletics. Randy's main message in this chapter is to appreciate the head fakes in life and the lessons they teach us, an idea that plays a vital role in the construction of Randy's narrative.

Why had Asta's son never known his true name?

In the book Crispin: The Cross of Lead, the thirteen year-old protagonist has gone his whole life being called "Asta's Son." When his mother (Asta) dies and he is accused of theft, he must flee the village to avoid being killed. The young man seeks the help of a priest, who reveals to him that his real name is Crispin. Crispin has been called Asta's Son until now because people in the village knew him in relation to his mother-- they did not have much reason to know his given name. Even his mother could have referred to Crispin as, "my son," or by some other term in relation to herself. For Crispin to be known as Asta's Son rather than his given name is a mark of his parentage. He was born out of wedlock and never knew his father. To be referred to as only his mother's son is a sign of the social stigma placed on those born outside of marriage.

How does the geography of Iceland influence the way people live?

Iceland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, almost within the Arctic Circle. Iceland was formed through volcanic activity and sits atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In fact, Iceland is often called the land of fire and ice due to its unique contrast of geothermal activity and icy expanses! Only around 20% of the country is inhabited, and much of the other 80% is tundra where it is not possible to grow food. Most of Iceland's population live in the southwestern city of Reykjavik or the surrounding Capital Region. Because there is so little inhabitable or arable land, the Icelandic people have a long history of surviving on preserved fish, sheep, and dairy products. Some very hearty vegetables like potatoes, cabbage, and turnip may be grown on the arable land along the south of Iceland. Today, many foods are imported from around the world. With so many people concentrated along the coastline, it's no wonder fishing is a major industry for Iceland. Industrial work, such as processing aluminum, is also common. 

Though months on end of darkness poses a risk for vitamin D deficiency, the Icelandic people are some of the healthiest in the world! Obesity rates are low and Icelanders enjoy active lifestyles including indoor and outdoor sports. Living in such a small space also makes the Icelandic people very environmentally conscious, and the country runs almost entirely on green energy.

What is turning a liquid into a solid called?

Freezing is the term used to describe the formation of a solid from a liquid.

Freezing is one example of a phase change. During a phase change, one state of matter is changed into another. All phase changes are physical changes because the composition of a substance does not change during phase changes. For example, water has a molecular formula of H2O whether it is a liquid, solid, or a gas.

Phase changes are a result of a change in the kinetic energy obtained by the particles of a substance. Kinetic energy is the energy of motion. As particles lose kinetic energy, they slow down, come closer to one another, and take on a more definite shape and volume. Freezing, condensation, and deposition are phase changes that result from a loss in kinetic energy. As particles gain kinetic energy, they begin to move faster, move apart from one another, and take on a more indefinite shape and volume. Melting, evaporation, and sublimation are phase changes that result from an increase in kinetic energy.

What are the expectations of the Waknuk people and their society in John Wyndham's The Chrysalids?

Simply put, the Waknuk society expects everybody to work toward minimizing genetic variation. Chapter two gives good evidence for that when it tells the reader about some of the decorations hanging up in the Strom household. The family has signs hanging up around the house in much the same way some families like to hang nicely framed pictures with Bible verses. Some of the sayings in the Strom household are as follows:

• KEEP PURE THE STOCK OF THE LORD


• BLESSED IS THE NORM


• IN PURITY OUR SALVATION


• WATCH THOU FOR THE MUTANT


• THE DEVIL IS THE FATHER OF DEVIATION

Why the Waknuk society is so averse to genetic change is beyond me. They obviously didn't pay attention in biology class. The advantage to sexual reproduction is genetic variation. That's why inbreeding usually doesn't work out so well: not enough genetic diversity.

The expectation of the Waknuk society is that people will work toward reducing the "deviant" population. The people are conditioned to watch for deviant genetic traits and report them. That way the deviant can either be killed or banished.

What amendment to the Constitution could be made that would reduce the president's power to make war?

Under the United States Constitution, the president, as chief executive, does not have the power to “make war.” The president, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, has the power to organize and commit those armed forces for the protection of the United States and its interests. The U.S. Congress has the power to declare war and/or to fund the military operations ordered by the president. Thus, there is an argument that a constitutional amendment to restrict the president’s power to make war is unnecessary since the president does not have the power to make war without the approval of the Congress, either via declaration of war or the continued funding of military operations.

However, the power of the president to initiate the use of armed forces in situations that might subsequently require Congress to declare war or authorize expenditures for continued military operations created some tensions between Congress and the executive branch in the 1960s and 70s. In 1973, Congress passed the War Powers Act, over President Nixon’s veto, which set forth the parameters for the presidential use of the military in imminent or existing hostilities. Under the War Powers Act, the president must consult with congress before inserting U.S. armed forces into hostilities and then continue to consult with Congress for the duration of the commitment of the armed forces. Additionally, under the act the armed forces must be withdrawn within 60 days of the report of insertion of the armed forces unless Congress approves continued military action.

The constitutionality of aspects of the War Powers Act is a continuing issue. Opponents of the act argue that not only does it improperly limit the power of the executive branch, it also gives Congress authority to enact resolutions that limit the executive’s power without being subject to the executive’s veto, which is a separation of powers issue. Thus, a possibility for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would restrict the president’s ability to insert armed forces into non-emergency situations would be an amendment that either included the language of the War Powers Act, thus resolving the questions of the constitutionality of the act, or an amendment that authorized Congress’s direct oversight of the continuing commitment of the armed forces, much as Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment gave Congress the authority to directly enforce the implementation of the due process rights guaranteed in that amendment.

As we prefer to keep amendments to the constitution less specific than individual legislation tends to be, an amendment with the actual provisions of the War Powers Act would likely not be the best avenue for an amendment limiting the power of the president to commit the U.S. armed forces. Instead, an amendment authorizing Congress to directly monitor and oversee the commitment of the armed forces for non-emergency situations might be workable. Any such amendment would likely need to include a provision that Congress could enforce the provisions of the amendment through appropriate legislation.

In what sense does the narrator's telling of "A Rose for Emily" serve as a metaphorical rose for Emily?

This is a great question to ponder, especially since actual roses never appear in the story.

The last section of the story, Part 5, gives us our only hints of literal roses. As the townspeople break into Emily's bedroom upstairs, they see how everything in the room has a paleness to it, even the "faded rose color" of the curtains and the "rose-shaded lights." Roses are a symbol of romantic love. Since we only saw these rose-colored things in the very private bedroom belonging to Emily, we could infer that romance was something close to her heart, something only she really knew about.

The story is like a rose for Emily because the narrator wants to show his respect for her and bring some beauty and dignity to the story of her life. Giving a rose to someone also expresses romantic love; Emily deserved that and never got it.

We know that Emily was upright and proud, even irrationally so. But she also endured hardships, like her father's death when she was young, and the fact that while he was alive, her father chased away all the young men who would have been interested in her. That's more than just sad or annoying: having a husband would have given Emily the chance to earn respect and find fulfillment as a wife and mother, and it would have allowed her family line to continue. But as it actually happened, her entire direct family line was wiped out because of her failure to marry or have kids.

As it turns out, a bit of Googling reveals a quote from an interview with Faulkner, the author, who explains his intended meaning in slightly different words. So let's check that out:

"[The title] was an allegorical title; the meaning was, here was a woman who had had a tragedy, an irrevocable tragedy and nothing could be done about it, and I pitied her and this was a salute…to a woman you would hand a rose."

What he means is that the storyteller feels pity for Emily's situation and wanted to "salute" her, or respectfully acknowledge what she had endured.

Still, you don't have to limit your thinking to what Faulkner himself says. Stories take on lives and meanings of their own, and you could continue to think about what else a rose might symbolize and how that might deepen your understanding and appreciation of the story.

`(x^2 + y^2)^4` Use the Binomial Theorem to expand and simplify the expression.

You need to use the binomial formula, such that:

`(x+y)^n = sum_(k=0)^n ((n),(k)) x^(n-k) y^k`

You need to replace `x^2` for x, `y^2` for y and 4 for n, such that:

`(x^2+y^2)^4 = 4C0 (x^2)^4 + 4C1 (x^2)^3*(y^2)^1 + 4C2 (x^2)^2*(y^2)^2 +4C3 (x^2)*(y^2)^3 +4C4 (y^2)^4`

By definition, nC0 = nCn = 1, hence `4C0 = 4C4 = 1` .

By definition nC1 = nC(n-1) = n, hence `4C1 = 4C3 = 4.`

By definition `nC2 = nC(n-2) = (n(n-1))/2` , hence `4C2 = (4(4-1))/2 = 6`

`(x^2+y^2)^4 = x^8 + 4(x^6)*(y^2) +6 (x^4)*(y^4) +4 (x^2)*(y^6)+ (y^8)`

Hence, expanding the complex number using binomial theorem yields the simplified result `(x^2+y^2)^4 = x^8 + 4(x^6)*(y^2) +6 (x^4)*(y^4) +4 (x^2)*(y^6)+ (y^8).`

Please give me a character sketch of Mr. Keith.

Merton Spencer Keith (1851-1920) became Helen’s tutor after she left the Cambridge School for Young Ladies and its principal, Arthur Gilman. She still had much studying to do before she could take the entrance exams to get into Radcliffe College. Helen talks about these challenges in Chapter 19. Mr. Keith, who lived in Cambridge and was a Harvard graduate himself (Class of 1872), became her personal tutor. At first, in early 1898, Helen and Anne Sullivan lived with friends in Wrentham, southwest of Boston. Mr. Keith made the trip here twice a week to teach Helen algebra, geometry, Greek, and Latin. After Helen and Anne moved back to Boston in October 1898, Mr. Keith saw Helen five times a week. He guided her in independent study and took as much time as was necessary for Helen to understand the subject matter. He must have been both an intelligent and patient teacher, for he always had to use Anne Sullivan as an intermediary communicator. This was exactly the kind of instruction and coaching Helen needed at the time. She could study on her own and then interact one-on-one with a tutor, instead of being immersed in a class with other students and only gaining part of the instructor’s attention. It was due to Mr. Keith’s work with Helen that she passed her college entrance exams.

A body is in equilibrium when a) acceleration is uniformb) speed is uniformc) acceleration and speed is uniformd) acceleration is non-uniform ...

Hello!

I see such an option (a), but it is not a correct one.

By the Newton's First law, a body is in equilibrium (when no forces acting on it or all forces are balanced) moves with a constant (uniform) velocity in any inertial frame of reference.

(For this problem we can use the word "speed" instead of "velocity", although usually "velocity" means vector quantity (including a direction), while "speed" isn't. Sometimes speed is uniform but velocity is not.)

It is temptingly to say "such a body is in rest", but movement must be considered with respect to a frame of reference. All inertial frames of reference move with uniform velocities with respect to each other, and physical processes are indistinguishable in them. Therefore we must say "moves with a constant velocity".

In other words, if a body has a non-zero acceleration, it means that its velocity is changing. The cause of a velocity change is an unbalanced force. Thus if a body has non-zero acceleration, it is not in equilibrium.

And the correct answer is b) speed (well, velocity) is uniform.

What is heartburn?

Causes and Symptoms

Heartburn occurs when acid travels backward from the stomach to the esophagus. Acid is normally present at very high concentrations in the stomach, where it aids digestion. Contrary to popular belief, most people who suffer from heartburn do not produce too much acid. Rather, they have a malfunction of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), a ring of muscle between the stomach and the esophagus. Normally, unless food is being swallowed, the LES stays closed. This keeps acid confined to the stomach. If the LES remains open, or if it is weakened, then stomach acid can travel freely to the esophagus and irritate its inner lining, resulting in heartburn.

Heartburn is described as a hot, burning feeling in the chest. It usually occurs thirty minutes to one hour after eating and lasts for several minutes. It is often worsened by lying down or bending over and is improved by standing up. Other associated symptoms may include a sour taste in the mouth, sore throat, or hoarseness. Some patients develop a dry cough as a result of acid irritating the throat. Heartburn must be distinguished from more ominous causes of chest pain, including a heart attack or other heart-related chest pain. Usually, chest pain attributable to such causes becomes worse with exertion, while heartburn should not. Some cases of heartburn may also be caused by the condition known as Barrett esophagus.

Treatment and Therapy

The initial therapy for heartburn includes elimination of dietary and lifestyle factors that weaken the LES: tobacco, excessive alcohol, fatty foods, chocolate, and caffeine. Medications such as calcium-channel blockers and nitrates can also worsen heartburn, but they should not be discontinued without consulting a physician. It has been suggested that avoiding late-night meals and elevating the head of the bed with blocks underneath the headboard can improve heartburn, especially if symptoms occur mostly at nighttime. Occasional heartburn can be treated with over-the-counter antacids or medications such as ranitidine, which reduces acid production. If symptoms do not improve, then prescription medications are also available.

Surgery to reinforce the LES, called a Nissen fundoplication, is another option. Although results are excellent, patients often must take acid-suppressive medications after the procedure. Heartburn that is persistent or accompanied by trouble swallowing, weight loss, or bleeding requires more thorough investigation, as with endoscopy, to exclude the possibility of cancer or another serious medical condition.

Bibliography

Alan, Rick, Daus Mahnke, and Brian Randall. "Conditions InDepth: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)/Heartburn." Health Library, March 18, 2013.

Cheskin, Lawrence J., and Brian E. Lacy. Healing Heartburn. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins U P, 2002. Print.

"Heartburn." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. 7 Aug. 2014. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.

"Heartburn." MedlinePlus. Natl. Lib. of Medicine, Natl. Institutes of Health, 3 Dec. 2014. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.

Longo, Dan, et al., eds. Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. 18th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print.

Minocha, Anil, and Christine Adamec. How to Stop Heartburn: Simple Ways to Heal Heartburn and Acid Reflux. New York: Wiley, 2001. Print.

Shimberg, Elaine Fantle. Coping with Chronic Heartburn: What You Need to Know About Acid Reflux and GERD. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2002. Print.

What is malnutrition?

Causes and Symptoms

Malnutrition literally means “bad nutrition.” It can be used broadly to mean an excess or deficiency of the nutrients that are necessary for good health. In industrialized societies, malnutrition typically represents the excess consumption characterized by a diet containing too much energy (kilocalories), fat, and sodium. Malnutrition is most commonly thought, however, to be undernutrition or deficient intake, the consumption of inadequate amounts of nutrients to promote health or to support growth in children. The most severe form of undernutrition is called protein energy malnutrition, or PEM. It commonly affects children, who require nutrients not only to help maintain the body but also to grow. Two types of PEM occur: kwashiorkor and marasmus.

Kwashiorkor is a condition in which a person consumes adequate energy but not enough protein. It usually is seen in children between one and four who are weaned so that the next baby can be breast-fed. The weaning diet consists of gruels made from starchy foods that do not contain an adequate supply of amino acids, the building blocks of protein. These diets do, however, provide enough energy.

Diets in many developing countries are high in bulk, making it nearly impossible for a child to consume a sufficient volume of foods such as rice and grain to obtain an adequate amount of protein for growth. The outward signs of kwashiorkor are a potbelly, dry unpigmented skin, coarse reddish hair, and edema in the legs. Edema results from a lack of certain proteins in the blood that help to maintain a normal fluid balance in the body. The potbelly and swollen limbs often are misinterpreted as signs of being “fat” among the developing world cultures. Other signs requiring further medical testing include fat deposits in the liver and decreased production of digestive enzymes. The mental and physical growth of the child are impaired. Children with kwashiorkor are apathetic, listless, and withdrawn. Ironically, these children lose their appetites. They become very susceptible to upper respiratory infection and diarrhea. Children with kwashiorkor also are deficient in vitamins and minerals that are found in protein-rich foods. There are symptoms caused by these specific nutrient deficiencies as well.

Marasmus literally means “to waste away.” It is caused by a deficiency of both calories and protein in the diet. This is the most severe form of childhood malnutrition. Body fat stores are used up to provide energy, and eventually muscle tissue is broken down for body fuel. Victims appear as skin and bones, gazing with large eyes from a bald head with an aged, gaunt appearance. Once severe muscle wasting occurs, death is imminent. Body temperature is below normal. The immune system does not operate normally, making these children extremely susceptible to respiratory and gastrointestinal infections.

A vicious cycle develops once the child succumbs to infection. Infection increases the body’s need for protein, yet the PEM child is so protein deficient that recovery from even minor respiratory infections is prolonged. Pneumonia and measles become fatal diseases for PEM victims. Severe diarrhea compounds the problem. The child is often dehydrated, and any nourishment that might be consumed will not be adequately absorbed.

The long-term prognosis for these PEM children is poor. If the child survives infections and is fed, PEM returns once the child goes home to the same environment that caused it. Children with repeated episodes of kwashiorkor have high mortality rates.

Children with PEM are most likely victims of famine. Typically, these children either were not breast-fed or were breast-fed for only a few months. If a weaning formula is used, it has not been prepared properly; in many cases, it is mixed with unsanitary water or watered down because the parents cannot afford to buy enough to use it at full strength.

It is difficult to distinguish between the cause of kwashiorkor and that of marasmus. One child ingesting the same diet as another may develop kwashiorkor, while the other may develop marasmus. Some scientists think this may be a result of the different ways in which individuals adapt to nutritional deprivation. Others propose that kwashiorkor is caused by eating moldy grains, since it appears only in rainy, tropical areas.

Another type of malnutrition involves a deficiency of vitamins or minerals. Vitamin A is necessary for the maintenance of healthy skin, and even a mild deficiency causes susceptibility to diarrhea and upper respiratory infection. Diarrhea reinforces the vicious cycle of malnutrition, since it prevents nutrients from being absorbed. With a more severe vitamin A deficiency, changes in the eyes and, eventually, blindness result. Night blindness is usually the first detectable symptom of vitamin A deficiency. The blood that bathes the eye cannot regenerate the visual pigments needed to see in the dark. Vitamin A deficiency, the primary cause of childhood blindness, can result from the lack of either vitamin A or the protein that transports it in the blood. If the deficiency of vitamin A occurs during pregnancy or at birth, the skull does not develop normally and the brain is crowded. An older child deficient in vitamin A will suffer growth impairment.

Diseases resulting from B-vitamin deficiencies are rare. Vegans, who consume no animal products, are at risk for vitamin B12
deficiency resulting in an anemia in which the red blood cells are large and immature. Too little folate (folic acid) in the diet can cause a similar anemia. Beriberi is the deficiency disease of thiamine (vitamin B1) in which the heart and nervous systems are damaged and muscle wasting occurs. Ariboflavinosis (lack of riboflavin) describes a collection of symptoms such as cracks and redness of the eyes and lips; inflamed, sensitive eyelids; and a purple-red tongue. Pellagra is the deficiency disease of niacin (vitamin B3). It is characterized by “the Four Ds of pellagra”: dermatitis, diarrhea, dementia, and death. Isolated deficiency of a B vitamin is rare, since many B vitamins work in concert. Therefore, a lack of one hinders the function of the rest.

Scurvy is the deficiency disease of vitamin C. Early signs of scurvy are bleeding gums and pinpoint hemorrhages under the skin. As the deficiency becomes more severe, the skin becomes rough, brown, and scaly, eventually resulting in impaired wound healing, soft bones, painful joints, and loose teeth. Finally, hardening of the arteries or massive bleeding results in death.

Rickets is the childhood deficiency disease of vitamin D. Bone formation is impaired, which is reflected in a bowlegged or knock-kneed appearance. In adults, a brittle bone condition called osteomalacia results from vitamin D deficiency.

Malnutrition of minerals is more prevalent in the world, since deficiencies are observed in both industrialized and developing countries. Calcium malnutrition in young children results in stunted growth. Osteoporosis occurs when calcium reserves are drawn upon to supply the other body parts with calcium. This occurs in later adulthood, leaving bones weak and fragile. General loss of stature and fractures of the hip, pelvis, and wrist are common, and a humpback appears. Caucasian and Asian women of small stature are at greatest risk for osteoporosis.

Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common form of malnutrition in developing societies. Lack of consumption of iron-rich foods is common among the poor, and this problem is compounded by iron loss in women who menstruate and who thus lose iron monthly. This deficiency, which is characterized by small, pale red blood cells, causes weakness, fatigue, and sensitivity to cold temperatures. Anemia in children can cause reduced ability to learn and impaired ability to think and to concentrate.

Deficiencies of other minerals are less common. Although these deficiencies are usually seen among people in developing nations, they may occur among the poor, pregnant women, children, and the elderly in industrialized societies. Severe growth retardation and arrested sexual maturation are characteristics of zinc deficiency. With iodine deficiency, the cells in the thyroid gland enlarge to try to trap as much iodine as possible. This enlargement of the thyroid gland is called simple or endemic goiter. A more severe iodine deficiency results from a lack of iodine that leads to a deficiency of thyroid hormone during pregnancy. The child of a mother with such a deficiency is born with severe mental and/or physical retardation, a condition known as congenital hypothyroidism or cretinism.

The causes of malnutrition, therefore, can be difficult to isolate, because nutrients work together in the body. In addition, the underlying causes of malnutrition (poverty, famine, and war) often are untreatable.

Treatment and Therapy

Treatment for PEM involves refeeding with a diet adequate in protein, calories, and other essential nutrients. Response to treatment is influenced by many factors, such as the person’s age, the stage of development in which the deprivation began, the severity of the deficiency, the duration of the deficiency, and the presence of other illnesses, particularly infections. Total recovery is possible only if the underlying cause that led to PEM can be eliminated.

PEM can result from illnesses such as cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Victims of these diseases cannot consume diets with enough energy and protein to meet their body needs, which are higher than normal because of the illness. Infections also increase the need for many nutrients. The first step in treatment must be to cure the underlying infection. People from cultures in which PEM is prevalent often believe that food should not be given to an ill person.

Prevention of PEM is the preferred therapy. In areas with unsafe water supplies and high rates of poverty, women should be encouraged to breast-feed. Education about proper weaning foods provides further defense against PEM. Other preventive efforts involve combining plant proteins into a mixture of high-quality protein, adding nutrients to cereal products, and using genetic engineering to produce grains with a better protein mix. The prevention of underlying causes such as famine and drought may not be feasible.

Prekwashiorkor can be identified by regular plotting of the child’s growth. If treatment begins at this stage, patient response is rapid and the prognosis is good. Treatment must begin by correcting the body’s fluid imbalance. Low potassium levels must be corrected. Restoration of fluid is followed by adequate provision of calories, with gradual additions of protein that the patient can use to repair damaged immune and digestive systems. Treatment must happen rapidly yet allow the digestive system to recover—thus the term “hurry slowly.” Once edema is corrected and blood potassium levels are restored, a diluted milk with added sugar can be given. Gradually, vegetable oil is added to increase the intake of calories. Vitamin and mineral supplements are given. Final diet therapy includes a diet of skim milk and other animal protein sources, coupled with the addition of vegetables and fat.

The residual effects of PEM may be great if malnutrition has come at a critical period in development or has been of long duration. In prolonged cases, damage to growth and the digestive system may be irreversible. Mortality is very high in such cases. Normally, the digestive tract undergoes rapid cell replacement; therefore, this system is one of the first to suffer in PEM. Absorptive surfaces shrink, and digestive enzymes and protein carriers that transport nutrients are lacking.

Another critical factor in the treatment of PEM is the stage of development in which the deprivation occurs. Most PEM victims are children. If nutritional deprivation occurs during pregnancy, the consequence is increased risk of infant death. If the child is carried to term, it is of low birth weight, placing it at high risk for death. Malnutrition during lactation decreases the quantity, but not always the nutritional quality, of milk. Thus, fewer calories are consumed by the baby. Growth of the child is slowed. These babies are short for their age and continue to be shorter later in life, even if their diet improves.

During the first two years of life, the brain continues to grow. Nutritional deprivation can impair mental development and cognitive function. For only minimal damage to occur, malnutrition must be treated in early stages. Adults experiencing malnutrition are more adaptive to it, since their protein energy needs are not as great. Weight loss, muscle wasting, and impaired immune function occur, and malnourished women stop menstruating.

Successful treatment of a specific nutrient deficiency depends on the duration of the deficiency and the stage in a person’s development at which it occurs. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that is stored in the body. Thus, oral supplements or injections of vitamin A can provide long-term protection from this deficiency. If vitamin A is given early enough, the deficiency can be rapidly reversed. By the time the patient is blind, sight cannot be restored, and frequently the patient dies because of other illnesses. Treatment also is dependent upon adequate protein to provide carriers in the blood to transport these vitamins. Treatment of the B-vitamin deficiencies involves oral and intramuscular injections. The crucial step in treatment is to initiate therapy before irreversible damage has occurred. Scurvy (vitamin C deficiency) can be eliminated in five days by administering the amount of vitamin C found in approximately three cups of orange juice. Treatment of vitamin D deficiency in children and adults involves an oral dose of two to twelve times
the recommended daily allowance of the vitamin. Halibut and cod liver oils are frequently given as vitamin D supplements.

Successful treatment of a mineral deficiency depends on the timing and duration of the deficiency. Once the bones are fully grown, restoring calcium to optimal levels will not correct short stature. To prevent osteoporosis, bones must have been filled to the maximum with calcium during early adulthood. Estrogen replacement therapy and weight-bearing exercise retard calcium loss in later years and do more than calcium supplements can.

Iron supplementation is necessary to correct iron-deficiency anemia. Iron supplements are routinely prescribed for pregnant women to prevent anemia during pregnancy. Treatment also includes a diet with adequate meat, fish, and poultry to provide not only iron but also a factor that enhances absorption. Iron absorption is also enhanced by vitamin C. Anemias caused by lack of folate and vitamin B12 will not respond to iron therapy. These anemias must be treated by adding the appropriate vitamin to the diet.

Zinc supplementation can correct arrested sexual maturation and impaired growth if it is begun in time. In areas where the soil does not contain iodine, iodine is added to salt or injections of iodized oil are given to prevent goiter. Cretinism cannot be cured—only prevented.

In general, malnutrition is caused by a diet of limited variety and quantity. The underlying causes of malnutrition—poverty, famine, and war—are often untreatable. Overall treatment lies in prevention by providing all people with a diet that is adequate in all nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, and calories. Sharing the world’s wealth and ending political strife and greed are essential elements of the struggle to end malnutrition.

Perspective and Prospects

Over the years, the study of malnutrition has shifted to include the excessive intake of nutrients. In developing countries, the primary causes of death are infectious diseases, and undernutrition is a risk factor. In industrialized societies, however, the primary causes of death are chronic diseases, and overnutrition is a risk factor. The excessive consumption of sugar is linked to tooth decay. Also, overnutrition in terms of too much fat and calories in the diet leads to obesity, high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, some cancers, liver disease, and one type of diabetes.

Historically, the focus of malnutrition studies was deficiencies in the diet. In the 1930s, classic kwashiorkor was described by Cicely Williams. Not until after World War II was it known that kwashiorkor was caused by a lack of protein in the diet. In 1959, Derrick B. Jelliffe introduced the term protein-calorie malnutrition to describe the nutritional disorders of marasmus, marasmic kwashiorkor, and kwashiorkor.

PEM remains the most important public health problem in developing countries. Few cases are seen in Western societies. Historically, the root causes have been urbanization, periods of famine, and the failure to breast-feed or early cessation of breast-feeding. Marasmus is prevalent in urban areas among infants under one year old, while kwashiorkor is prevalent in rural areas during the second year of life.

Deficiencies of specific nutrients have been documented throughout history. Vitamin A deficiency and its cure were documented by Egyptians and Chinese around 1500 BCE. In occupied Denmark during World War I, vitamin A deficiency, caused by dairy product deprivation, was common in Danish children. Beriberi, first documented in Asia, was caused by diets of polished rice that were deficient in thiamine. Pellagra was seen in epidemic proportions in the southern United States, where corn was the staple grain, during World War I.

Zinc deficiency was first reported in the 1960s. The growth and maturation of boys in the Middle East were studied. Their diets were low in zinc and high in substances that prevented zinc absorption. Consequently, the World Health Organization recommended increased zinc intake for populations whose staple is unleavened whole grain bread. Goiter was documented during Julius Caesar’s reign. Simply adding iodine to salt has virtually eliminated goiter in the United States.

If classic malnutrition is observed in industrialized societies, it usually is secondary to other diseases, such as AIDS and cancer. Hunger and poverty are problems that contribute to malnutrition; however, the malnutrition that results is less severe than that found in developing countries.

Specific nutrients may be lacking in the diets of the poor. Iron-deficiency anemia is prevalent among the poor, and this anemia may impair learning ability. Other deficiencies may be subclinical, which means that no detectable signs are observed, yet normal nutrient pools in the body are depleted. Homelessness, poverty, and drug or alcohol abuse are the major contributing factors to these conditions. In addition, malnutrition as a result of poverty is exacerbated by lack of nutritional knowledge and/or poor food choices.

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