Of Mice and Men †5 Diary Entries Essay

We travelled from Weed today. God damn bus driver dropped us off ‘least 10 miles from the ranch and told me it was just down the road. God if I see that damn driver I’d break his neck. Me and Lennie found a nice place to sleep for the night. If Lennie hadn’t been so God damn stupid we’d still be up in Weed rollin in the cash but Lennie had to do somethin’ wrong didn’t he, dumb bastard, jst like he always does. Every thing was goin; O.K in Weed and I’ll be damned if we can find a better place than that to work at. I sure hope Lennie don’t go grabbin’ no other girls just to feel a damn dress. I’ll never be able to fix up a stake if that dumb bastard stays dumb forever. I love Lennie but it’s hard movin’ from ranch to ranch with him there all the time. I’ve told him if he gets in any more trouble to come back to this very spot in the brush. Lennie sure is stupid, earlier he was carrying a dead mouse just to pet it. I dont know what i’m gonna do with him every time he gets upset I have to tell him that dumb story about the house where we will have rabbits and an alfalfa patch and he can pet the stupid rabbits. Who knows maybe one day that dream might come true but I don see that day coming soon. Diary Entry 2 Me and Lennie met a few people today. There was this old guy called candy and he’s got a stinkin’ old dog. He’s quit a nice fella though he told me about Curley and his wife. I met Curley just a bit after that convisation with Candy, he came in asking for his wife. He had a go at Lennie for no god damn reason at all. Candy reckons it’s just coz Lennie’s bigger than him. Curly’s one of those small guys who hates big guys, but he better not pick on Lennie coz Lennie may be dumb but hell he’s strong as a bull Earlier I was angry with Lennie coz he spoke infront of the boss when i told him not to.I had to tell the boss a few lies because he realised that Lennie was dumb and the boss wanted to know if I was hangin’ round with him to take his pay check off him at the end of the month.I told him that me and Lennie were cousins so tha is why we hung round together, good job that ain’t true coz if I was any relation to Lennie i’d kill myself. I met a real nice guy today called slim. He introduced me to everyone workin’ at the ranch and he thought it was good to see two guys like me and Lennie hangin’ round together coz he said that you don’t often see two guys hangin’round together. Although I’m gettin’ on O.K at the ranch with all the other guys and stuff, I cant help thinkin’ about the chance of Lennie and Curley gettin’ into a fight coz Curley was real mean to Lennie earlier. If Curley tries to start a fight with Lennie then Lennie gonna have to smash him back. I know that Lennie would never mean to cause any trouble but if Curley starts i’m gonna let Lennie fight back coz guys like Curley need to be taught a lesson. I ain’t sittin’ back and watching Curley beat up Lennie coz that ain’t right. Curley’s wife worries me aswell coz Lennie really likes her and he could get into real trouble if he does somethin’ like in Weed. Candy told me that she always eyein’ all the guys up. The thing that really gets to me is that Curley’s wife might give Lennie the eye and he might do somethin’ stupid, I just hope he doesn’t. Diary Entry 3. Today Candy was listenin’ in on me and Lennie havin’ a chat, normally I don’t like people listenin’ in on me but Candy had somethin’ interesting to say. He wanted to join the little dream me and Lennie ‘ave got of gettin’ our own little place and land and a few crops an’ animals. He’s got $350 to help buy the land. Since he aint no harm and he’s probabally gonna die soon we decided to let him come. The dream that was just a dream is now comin’ to reality just coz that old man Candy. Im gonna get hold of those old people an’ tell ’em im gonna buy the house, at the end of the month we will have $450 and then I’d keep workin’ on the ranch to pay off the rest. One day soon we might just be able to do it. We couldd get the little place of our own with a few acres of land and crops to grow, and rabbits coz Lennie’s always on about how he will tend the rabbits. Of course most guys dont believe us bout the dream coz i bet they had dreams just like us and watched ’em fall apart loads of times. This whole idea of our own land has made Candy have a bit of hope, poor bastard, Carlson shot his dog last night to put it out of misery, I mean it was old, smelly & decrepid it was for the best. Slim offered him one of his new pups, Slim also gave a pup to Lennie which was really nice of him. Lennies pretty dumb and he loves petting things I hope he jus’ dont do nothin’ stupid like on our last job and blow the chances of the house. Diary Entery 4. I new somethin’ bout that Curley couldn’t help but pick a fight with Lennie. Lennie hadn’t done nothin’ wrong either, he was standin’ there smilin’, thinkin’ bout our dream an’ Curley came in the bunk house in a mood an’ seen Lennie laughin’ and he socked him right in the chops and hittin’ and hittin’ him, Lennie was jus’ standin’ there takin’ it. So I told Lennie to fight back so Lennie grabbed hold of Curley’s fist and started crushin’ it like a tin can, Curley was floppin’ like a fish, Lennie must of broke every bone in his damn hand. Thanks to Slim we shouldn’t get canned coz he made it pretty clear to Curley that if he told anyone how this happened he would say how easily Lennie crushed his hand. Curley agreed not to tell anyone, so hopefully all that is all settled. I thought that would of ended our chance of the dream. Diary Entry 5. I was right in what i did wasn’t I? If they caught Lennie they would strap him up in a cage in one of those nut houses. It was the right thing to do! If Curley had caught him he would of tortured him and made him die a slow death. Atleast when i shot him he was happy and peaceful thinkin’ about the dream and not scared. Now Lennies gone im gonna be just like any other ranch worker, lonely and without a loving friend, it’s gonna take me a while to come to terms with what i’ve done, killed my only and best friend. Me and Candy aint gonna carry on with the dream, theres jus’ no point Lennie was the life and soul of the dream now he’s gone so has the dream. No doubt Candy will be upset and miserable but there ain’t nothin’ I can do about that. Slim and Carlson took me for a drink and told me that it wasn’t my fault and that I had to do it, I guess they’re right after all it was me or Curley and I ain’t lettin Curley touch Lennie. I probably gonna move on to a different ranch and carry on workin’ somewhere else alone.

McDonald’s

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Caledonia Products

Caledonia Products Integrative Problem 1. Why should Caledonia focus on project free cash flows as opposed to the accounting profits earned by the project when analyzing whether to undertake the project? Free cash flows are being focused on because it the amount that Caledonia will receive and they will be able to reinvest that amount. Caledonia should analyze the free cash flow so that they are able to see the real amount of value or what the cost may be. The marginal value from the project would be in the incremental cash flow. The earnings would be much less if they were looking at it through the accounting profits.It would be less because of the depreciation would be considered an expense causing a larger expense for Caledonia. Describe factors Caledonia must consider if it were to lease versus buy First Caledonia must figure out if they will have enough cash flow to pay the bill each month. Leasing would give Caledonia the benefit of decreasing costs. The down side of leasing wo uld mean that Caledonia will not be out of the lease until it has been paid off and the company who leased the property will be the owners until that is completed.Buying property means that the item is usually in better condition, better value, and they will own it. Prices are often better when buying than with leasing. Tax expenses may be a downside of owning the property. 2. Incremental Cash Flow Year1 Year2 Year3 Year4 Year5 Operating Cash Flow 5,949,200 9,909,200 11,493,200 6,741,200 3,771,200 Each year results in positive incremental cash flow and the new project appears to be a profitable business option.Accounting profits represent the total cost of doing business. The difference would be that this company requires additional net working capital every year which is not reflected in the incremental costs. 3. Initial Outlay Year 0 New Product Cost of new plant and equipment$(7,900,000) Shipping and installation costs (100,000) Total costs$(8,000,000) Initial working capital $(1 00,000) Initial cash flow (8,100,000) 4. Free Cash FlowYear0 Year1 Year2 Year3 Year4 Year 5 Project Revenues $21,000,000 $36,000,000 $42,000,000 $24,000,000 $15,600,000 Unit Costs (12,600,000) (21,600,000) (25,200,000) (14,400,000) (10,800,000) Gross Profit 8,400,000 14,400,000 16,800,000 9,600,000 4,800,000 Annual fixed costs (200,000) (200,000) (200,000) (200,000) (200,000) Depreciation (1,580,000) (1,580,000) (1,580,000) (1,580,000) (1,580,000) Net operating income 6,620,000 12,620,000 15,020,000 7,820,000 3,320,000 Taxes (34%) (2,250,800) (4,290,800) (5,106,800) (2,658,800) (1,128,800) NOPAT 4,369,200 8,329,200 9,913,200 5,161,200 2,191,200 Depreciation 1,580,000 1,580,000 1,580,000 1,580,000 1,580,000 Operating cash flow 5,949,200 9,909,200 11,493,200 6,741,200 3,771,200Year0 Year1 Year2 Year3 Year4 Year5 Net Capital $(100,00) (2,100,000) (3,600,000) (4,200,000) (2,400,000) (1,560,000) CAPEX $(8,000,000) — —- —- — — Free Cash Flow $(8,100,000) 3,849,200 6,309,200 7,293,200 4,341,200 2,211,200 5. 6. 7. Should the project be accepted? Why or why not? Yes. This project should be accepted because the NPV ? 0. and the IRR ? required rate of return. Or No. This project should not be accepted because the NPV < and the IRR < required rate of return.

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Of Mice and Men Qu Essay Example for Free

Of Mice and Men Qu Essay Do you agree that Lennie is always incapable of taking responsibility for his actions? You should refer closely to Lennies words, to events and to the actions and opinions of other characters in your answer. Throughout the majority of the novel, Steinbeck demonstrates how Lennie relies on George to help him out of the dire, tense situations he brings upon himself. Steinbeck conveys this image of Lennie by producing this by frequent reoccurring events, Lennies actions or even implicit use of speech from or even directed at Lennie. At the opening section of the book, Steinbeck chooses to show us the large contrast between George and Lennie; he describes how Lennie flung himself down snorting into the water like a horse. The use of crude descriptive words such as flung or snorting suggests just how careless Lennie can be. This compares Lenny to an animal which instinctively lashes at the sight of something they want without thinking logically at all. And with this, the readers taste the first time at which how reliant Lennie is of George. Steinbeck chooses to have George say that Lennie will be sick like you was last night. By mentioning last night, the reader learns that Lennie must regularly make stupid mistakes like this. It is made very apparent how Lennie is unable to take responsibility for his actions when he crushes Curleys hand. Lennie was unable to understand the situation when Curley made a misunderstanding about Slim and his wife and Lennie continued smiling with delight on a completely different topic. This produces a juxtaposition image in the readers mind where at one side: Curley is steaming hot with anger as he whirled upon Carlson (the word whirled also suggests how he only gave Slim respect opposed to Carlson who he flipped into his old aggressive self again) and on the other, Lennie is grinning to himself like an idiot. The fact that Steinbeck chooses to have Lennie fantasize whilst a loud commotion is going on nearby shows just how little awareness and sense Lennie has altogether. And this is what leads into the fight. When Lennie is being attacked, he has no intuition to make a decision on what to do so once again he looked helplessly at George. The word helplessly really emphasises just how incapable Lennie is like a baby animal or lamb for instance when he gets himself into trouble like this. He bleated with terror implying that even with the strength Lennie possesses, he is unable to analyse the situation to take responsibility of the problem he has gotten himself into. The words bleated and terror really create an atmosphere as if Lennie like a baby lamb has been corned by a wolf. This is done by using the onomatopoeia bleat so you can almost here how distressed and vulnerable Lennie is at this stage. All he can do is use his animal like instincts and retreat and defend with his huge paws. The reference to paws may also hint to us what is about to come however it may have several connotations; a bear is a shy beast and doesnt want attention, however if a situation of danger arises, it can be extremely vicious and protective just like Lennie becomes when George tells him to get him. On the other hand, paws may refer to another weaker animal such as the paws of a puppy that Lennie was so infatuated about. This can symbolize how weak and inexperienced Lennie is since he is also new to this aggression he is receiving likewise to a new born pup is to the world. At this stage, Slim sees how vulnerable and useless he is and jumped up to help. The impact the moment is causing on the other workers watching is shown to be so big that the respected Slim is even shaken conveyed by jumped up. It shows how emotions inside Slim were building up until they finally jumped out of him in an explosion. Steinbeck does this to show how useless Lennie can be in these situations so that even people around him who have known him for a few hours understand how dependent he is. However, Lennie with Georges guidance was able to do something however his actions shows the reader once again just how unintentionally irresponsible he can be. At first the description of Lennies attack is just that Curleys fist was lost in Lennies big hand. It isnt very dramatic at this point and just seems like Lennie stops Curley from attacking him. For example, it could of been described using dramatic words such as: Curleys hand was absolutely crushed causing him to scream with agony however it uses the word disappear to relieve all the tension that may of built up; this may be done to cause a greater impact later on. The speech that follows explains how the situation was worsening. George tells Lennie to leggo of him but all Lennie could do was watch in terror which shows how shaken up he is so that he cant even respond. Even with George who slapped him in the face again and again, Lennie was still unresponsive. By slapping him George hoped to achieve a respond which would normally happen to anyone however it shows that Lennie was undergoing a mental difficulty insde. The way Steinbeck describes George having to give multiple signals again and again like slapping or verbal commands show how incapable Lennie was. When Lennie finally finishes he doesnt seem to even understand what hes done. He doesnt even look at the shrunken Curley and immediately talks to George miserably. At this point Slim had regarded Lennie with horror showing how his opinion of him being a nice fella had turned so very quickly. By having Slim- a very high respected figure looking at Lennie with this horror, Steinbeck causes the readers to truly understand how dangerous and uncontrollable he is. Lennies only concern here was probably mainly whether or not he could tend to the rabbits so he was apologizing to George. He even asks George at the end of the section whether he can still tend the rabbits which once again shows us how unaware of the situation he really is and this requires George to look into their greater concern- whether they will get canned now. This shows that even though Lennie is not prioritized correctly, George once again desperately tries to fix the damage thats been done which suggests how many times this may of happened in the past. Steinbeck just repeatedly reinforces the strong idea of what Lennie is like and how George has to bail him out time and time again. It states how Slim smiled wryly and instantly the world wryly shows how Slim is going to take responsibility and deal with Curley in a slightly devious, corrupt method so that George and Lennie wont get sacked. After Lennie killed the puppy in section 5, his initial fears was once again the rabbits. And after he causes the death of Curleys wife, his fears remained the same. At that point, he pawed up the hay until it partly covered her and left for the place where George told him to go if anything wrong happened. The fact that Lennie crudely leaves the body openly partly hidden in the barn shows how little concern he has for the bigger picture. The way Lennie only partly hides the corpse shows what little concern he has almost to the extent where it becomes ridiculous as all he can think of is go to the rendezvous part and have George help him yet again. Up until the beginning of section 6, Lennie has acted irresponsibly and ironically, he begins to think accordingly to the situation only when it is too late. Opposed to how he flung himself around in section 1, Lennie went through the bushes to the meeting place as silently as a creeping bear moves. He also drank, barely touching his lips to the water opposed to how he was snorting it like a horse. Steinbeck uses the same location to create a strong contrast between the juxtaposition used here. As he crept silently and drank barely touching the water, these two words emphasise how carefully he is acting. Steinbeck deliberately does this to emphasise how late it is for him to be responsible and coordinated. And even so, it is George once again who has to take the real responsibility to shoot him.

Foreign workers: Economic and social issues

Foreign workers: Economic and social issues Introduction In Singapore, foreign workers are assets to the workforce because they take up low-skilled jobs which Singaporeans are reluctant to do (National Population and Talent Division, 2013, p. 22). However, foreign workers are ill-treated and their issues include underpayment and undesirable dormitory standards (Chia Zaccheus, 2012). In this essay, besides examining foreign workers’ issues, I will discuss my interest and assumptions about them. Interest and Assumptions I am interested in foreign workers because their public and unruly display of resentment in the recent Little India riot suggests an urgent need to address their issues so that such violent behaviours and their consequences could be prevented in the future. Therefore, foreign workers are selected to have their issues examined in this essay. Naturally, I have two assumptions about foreign workers which are suggested to be true by evidence. The first assumption is most foreign workers belong to the low social class and that is true because their monthly wages ranging from $700 to $1200 (Tan Mokhtar, 2013, para. 15-16) is lower than the $1500 to $5000 range earned by the middle class in Singapore. The next assumption is foreign workers are isolated in Singapore due to the anti-foreigner sentiment. As International Labour Organisation (2013) has surveyed, nearly 60% of Singaporeans perceived foreign workers as threats to Singapore’s culture instead of valued members in the society. Moreover, the growing anti-foreigner sentiment is shown by the strong protests carried out in 2013 to discourage further intake of foreign workers (Goh Mokhtar, 2013). Therefore, foreign workers are highly likely to feel isolated due to the escalating anti-foreigner sentiment. Importance of Addressing the Issues As mentioned earlier, it is important to address foreign workers’ issues to reduce their resentment and prevent their violent behaviours because these behaviours can lead to severe economic and social consequences as shown in the Little India riot in 2013. As a result of the riot, livelihood of 134 businesses in Little India was threatened as they experienced 50% reduction in customers (Lim, 2013, para. 2) and some had 90% loss in revenue (Au, 2013, para. 7). Moreover, the riot disrupted social harmony by intensifying the tension between foreign workers and Singaporeans. After the riot, Singaporeans’ criticism towards the foreign workers was so overwhelming that Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth had to step forward to remind Singaporeans to â€Å"keep xenophobia and racial remarks out of the conversation† (Heng, 2013, para. 16). Therefore, as such unruly behaviours threaten social harmony and adversely impact the local economy, it is important to avoid them by reducing foreign workers’ resentment through addressing their issues effectively. To do so, we need to first examine foreign workers’ needs using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory. Foreign Workers’ Needs and Support Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory classifies needs into basic needs like physiological and safety needs, psychological needs like love and esteem needs and higher level needs like cognitive and self-actualisation needs (Maslow, 1987). Based on the theory, the foreign workers’ physiological needs to get sufficient sleep are not met because their overcrowded and unhygienic dormitories affect their quality of sleep (Chia Zaccheus, 2012, para. 3). Besides, the foreign workers’ safety needs to have the security of jobs are not fulfilled because â€Å"65% of injured and salary-claim workers had been threatened by their employers with premature repatriation† (as cited in Kaur, 2014, p. 9). Furthermore, foreign workers’ esteem needs to be respected by others are not met due to xenophobia in the society (Heng, 2013, para. 16). Currently, various forms of support are available for foreign workers: to address their physiological needs to live in conducive conditions, the scheme of accrediting dormitories was established in 2012 to ensure satisfactory dormitory environments (Grosse Khamid, 2012); to fulfil their safety needs to have the security of jobs, the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act [EFMA] and the help service by Migrant Workers’ Centre [MWC] are in place to stop unreasonable employment practices (Ministry of Manpower, 2013; Migrant Workers’ Centre, 2014); to meet their love needs to have more friends, National Trades Union Congress [NTUC] organises social activities for foreign workers and its advocacy efforts has led to many revisions in the EFMA to better protect foreign workers (National Trades Union Congress, 2010, para. 2-3). Next, to examine the support for foreign workers, Bronfenbrenner’s ecology system theory will be used. Bronfenbrenner’s ecology system theory suggests that individuals’ interactions with their communities and the society can be classified into in five environmental systems: microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem and chronosystem (Bronfenbrenner, 1979). In the foreign workers’ context, their microsystem consists of the people whom they interact with the most like their colleagues and roommates; their mesosystem consists of the interactions between the microsystems that they are involved in; their exosystem includes service providers like NTUC and MWC which directly impact the microsystems; and their macrosystem includes law and policies like the EFMA and the scheme of accrediting dormitories which are greatly influenced by the government and the society. After examining, it is clear that the current support mainly addresses the workers’ basic needs and much of the efforts comes from the authorities. Hence, my proposed idea aims to fulfil the workers’ psychological needs by involving the public. Proposed Idea â€Å"Love Across Distance† is an annual event that requires its volunteers to help foreign workers of different nationalities send their photographs and love messages back home and publish the their life stories on Facebook. The recipients of love messages and the types of stories published each year will vary according to the occasion that the event focuses on; if the event focuses on Valentine’s Day, the foreign workers’ valentines will be the recipients of love messages and the stories published will be their love stories. Because the event focuses on a different occasion each year, as years go by, different aspects of foreign workers’ lives will be shared with Singaporeans online to deepen their understanding of foreign workers. For example, weeks before Valentine’s Day, the volunteers will find foreign workers and take polaroids of them holding the flowers which symbolise romance in their culture. Then, the foreign workers will write down their love messages which will be mailed together with their polaroids. Next, the volunteers will ask them questions like â€Å"How did you meet your valentine?†, â€Å"What do you like the most about her?† and â€Å"Is there anything you wish to do for her after working in Singapore?† to find out their love stories. Lastly, permission will be gained to publish the stories online and the foreign workers’ privacy will be protected if they prefer not to have their identities revealed online. The mailing of love messages is to make the foreign workers feel important by involving them in celebrating the joyous occasions. The online sharing of their life stories such as love stories is to arouse Singaporeans’ interest in foreign workers and to increase their awareness that foreign workers are also humans who love and have aspirations for their beloved; hence, they deserve respect and less discrimination. Therefore, this event aims to reduce the barrier between Singaporeans and foreign workers by deepening Singaporeans’ understanding of foreign workers and by diverting their attention from the foreign workers’ unruly behaviours to their hopes and aspirations. This event hopes to reduce stereotypical views towards foreign workers and encourage Singaporeans to create a more inclusive society that makes foreign workers feel at home. Conclusion In conclusion, to maintain Singapore’s social and industrial harmony, it is crucial to address the foreign workers’ basic and psychological needs so that their resentments and unruly behaviours could be prevented. Besides, more efforts are needed from Singaporeans to create an inclusive society which makes the foreign workers feel valued regardless of their social status. It is when Singaporeans and foreign workers unite as one, Singapore can progress socially and economically with peace and stability in today’s competitive world. (1312 words) References Au, Y. (2013, December 22). Business in Little India improving slightly, but still slow. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/little-india- riot/story/business-little-india-improving-slightly-still-slow-20131222 Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. United States of America: Harvard University Press. Chia, Y. M., Zaccheus, M. (2012, December 10). Hard life, but foreign workers labour on. AsiaOne. Retrieved from http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/Latest%2BNews/Singap ore/Story/A1Story20121209-388579.html Goh, C. L., Mokhtar, M. (2013, February 16). Large turnout at speakers’ corner for protest against Population White Paper. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.stra itstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/large-turnout-speakers-corner-protest- against-population-white-paper-2 Grosse, S., Khamid, H. M. A. (2012, December 17). Foreign workers’ dormitories could be accredited. Channel NewsAsia. Retrieved from http://www.channelnewsasia.com/ne ws/singapore/foreign-workers-dormitor/530468.html Heng, J. (2013, December 9). Little India riot: political office-holders urge calm in Facebook posts. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big- story/little-india-riot/ story/little-india-riot-political-office-holders-urge-calm-faceboo k- International Labour Organisation. (2013). Public attitudes to migrant workers. Migration works. Retrieved from http://migrationworks.org/wp-content/uploads/ILO-study-on- public- attitudes-to-migrant-workers.pdf Kaur, S. (2014). Not the Singapore we know: the Little India riot 2013. Public Management and Leadership. Retrieved from http://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/research-centres/case-studies/ public- management-and-leadership/ Lim, A. (2013, December 19). ‘Little India’ and quieter too. MyPaper. Retrieved from http:// news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/littler-india-and-quieter-too?page=0%2C0 Maslow, A. H. (1987). Motivation and personality. London: Pearson Education Limited. Ministry of Manpower. (2013). Amendments to the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act. Retrieved from http://www.mom.gov.sg/foreign-manpower/amendments-to-the- efma/Pages/default.aspx Migrant Workers’ Centre. (2014). About us. Retrieved from http://www.mwc.org.sg/wps/port al/mwc/home/aboutus/ National Population and Talent Division. (2013). Population white paper: Sustainable population for a dynamic Singapore. Singapore: National Population and Talent Division, Prime Minister’s Office. National Trades Union Congress. (2010). Migrant workers. Retrieved from https://www.ntuc. org.sg/wps/portal/up2/home/aboutntuc/ourwork/programmesandinitiatives/program mesandinitiativesdetails?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/content_library/ntuc/ home/about+ntuc/our+work/programmes+and+initiatives/11cf8780449eba78bda0bf0 1ca0149bf Tan, A., Mokhtar, M. (2013, January 5). Low pay may deter foreign workers. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapo re/Story/A1Story20130103-393242.html

Superconducting Transition Temperature Determination

Superconducting Transition Temperature Determination Fabrication of YBa2Cu3O7-ÃŽÂ ´ and Determination of its Superconducting Transition Temperature A superconducting material is one which below a certain critical temperature exhibits, amongst other remarkable traits; a total lack of resistivity, perfect diamagnetism and a change in the character of the specific heat capacity. The BCS theory describes perfectly the phenomenon of superconductivity in low temperature superconductors, but cannot explain the interaction mechanism in high temperature superconductors. In order to determine the superconducting transition temperature of two laboratory fabricated batches of YBCO their resistivity and specific heat capacity were measured as functions of temperature. From resistivity measurements the two batches were found to have transition temperatures of 86.8( ±0.8)K and 87.8( ±0.4)K respectively which were used to infer their oxygen contents of 6.82( ±0.01) and 6.83( ±0.01) atoms per molecule respectively. These agreed with XRD data and the literature upper value of the transition temperature of 95K (with an oxygen content of 6.95). Specific heat capacity measurements of the first batch gave questionable confirmation of these results, but could not be performed on the second batch due to time constraints. 19 January 2010Page 14 of 14Josephine Butler College I. Introduction and Theory A superconducting material is defined as one in which a finite fraction of the electrons are condensed into a superfluid, which extends over the entire volume of the system and is capable of motion as a whole. At zero temperature the condensation is complete and all of the electrons participate in the forming of the superfluid. As the temperature of the material approaches the superconducting transition temperature (or critical temperature, given by Tc) the fraction of electrons within the superfluid tends to zero and the system undergoes a second order phase transition from a superconducting to a normal state.[i] The phenomenon of superconductivity was first observed by Kamerlingh Onnes in Leiden in 1911 during an electrical analysis of mercury at low temperatures. He found that at a temperature around 4K the resistance of mercury fell abruptly to a value which could not be distinguished from zero.[iii] The next great leap in experimental superconductivity came in 1986 when MÃÆ' ¼ller and Bednorz fabricated the first cuprate superconductor[v]. After its lack of resistivity one of the most striking features of a superconductor is that it exhibits perfect diamagnetism. First seen in 1933 by Meissner and Ochsenfeld, diamagnetism in superconductors manifests itself in two ways. The first manifestation occurs when a superconducting material in the normal state is cooled past the critical temperature and then placed in a magnetic field which will then be excluded from the superconductor. The second appears when a superconductor (in its normal state) is placed in a magnetic field and the flux is allowed to penetrate. If it is then cooled past the critical temperature it will expel the magnetic flux in a phenomenon know as the Meissner effect.[vi] This can be seen qualitatively in figure 1. In 1957, Bardeen, Cooper and Schrieffer managed to construct a wave function in which electrons are paired. Know as the BCS theory of superconductivity it is used as a complete microscopic theory for superconductivity in metals. One of the key features of the BCS theory is the prediction of an energy gap, the consequences of which are the thermal and most of the electromagnetic properties of superconducting materials. The key conceptual element to this theory is the formation of Cooper pairs close to the Fermi level. Although direct electrostatic interactions between electrons are repulsive it is possible for the distortion of the positively charged ionic lattice by the electron to attract other electrons. Thus, screening by ionic motion can yield a net, attractive interaction between electrons (as long as they have energies which are separated by less than the energy of a typical phonon) causing them to pair up, albeit over long distances. Given that these electrons can experience a net attraction it is not unreasonable that the electrons might form bound pairs, effectively forming composite bosons with integer spin of either 0 or 1. This is made even more likely by the influence of the remaining electrons on the interacting pair. The BCS theory takes this idea one step further and constructs a ground state in which all of the electrons form bound pairs. This electron-phonon interaction invariably leads to one of the three experimental proofs of the BCS theory. A piece of theory known as the isotope effect provided a crucial key to the development of the BCS theory. It was found that for a given element the super conducting transition temperature, TC, was inversely proportional to the square root of the isotope mass, M (equation 1). TCà ¢Ã‹â€ ?M-12 (1)[vii] This same relationship holds for characteristic vibrational frequencies of atoms in a crystal lattice and therefore proves that the phenomenon of superconductivity in metals is related to the vibrations of the lattice through which the electrons move. However this only holds true for low temperature superconductors (a fact which will be discussed in more detail at a later stage in this section). Both of the two further experimental proofs of BCS theory come from the energy gap in the superconducting material. The first proof is in the fact that it was predicted and actually exists (figure 2) and the second lies in its temperature dependence. From band theory, energy bands are a consequence of a static lattice structure. However, in a superconducting material, the energy gap is much smaller and results from the attractive force between the electrons within the lattice. This gap occurs Ά either side of the Fermi level, EF, and in conventional superconductors arises only below TC and varies with temperature (as shown in figure 3). Figure 2: Dependence of the superconducting and normal density of states, DS and Dn respectively. From Superconductivity, Poole, C.P., Academic Press (2005), page164 At zero Kelvin all of the electrons in the material are accommodated below the energy gap and a minimum energy of 2Ά must be supplied in order to excite them across the gap. BCS theory predicts equation 2 which has since been experimentally proven, ΆT=0=CkBTC (2) [viii] where theoretically the constant C is 1.76 although experimentally in real superconductors it can vary between 1.75 and 2.45. Figure 3: Temperature dependence of the BCS gap function, Ά. Adapted from The Superconducting State, A.D.C. Grassie, Sussex University Press (1975), page43 As before stated it has been found that the first of these BCS proofs does not hold for high temperature superconductors. In these materials it has been found that in the relation stated as equation 1, the exponential tends towards zero as opposed to minus one half. This indicates that for high temperature superconductors it is not the electron-phonon interaction that gives rise to the superconducting state. Numerous interactions have been explored in an attempt to try and determine the interaction responsible for high temperature superconductivity but so far none have been successful. Figure 4: A plot of TC against TF derived from penetration depth measurements. Taken from Magnetic-field penetration depth in K3C60 measured by muon spin relaxation, Uemura Y.J. et al. Nature (1991) 352, page 607. In figure 4 it can be seen that the superconducting elements constrained by BCS theory lie far from the vast majority of new high temperature superconducting materials which appear to lie on a line parallel to TF, the Fermi temperature and TB, the Bose-Einstein condensation temperature, indicating a different interaction method. One of the most extensively studied properties of the superconductor is its specific heat capacity and how its behaviour changes with temperature (seen in figure 5). It is known that above the transition temperature the normal state specific heat of a material, Cn, can be given by equation 3 (below) which consists of a linear term from the conduction electrons and a cubic phonon term (the addition Schottky contribution has been ignored in this case and ÃŽÂ ³ and A are constants). Cn=ÃŽÂ ³T+AT3 (3)[ix] Due to the aforementioned energy gap it is also predicted by BCS theory that at the superconducting transition temperature there will be a discontinuity in the specific heat capacity of the material of the order 1.43 as seen in equation 4 (where CS is the superconducting state heat capacity) and figure 5. CS-ÃŽÂ ³TCÃŽÂ ³TC=1.43 (4)[x] However for high temperature superconductors this ratio is likely to be much smaller due to a large contribution from the phonon term in the normal state specific heat capacity. Figure 5: Heat Capacity of Nb in the normal and superconducting states showing the sharp discontinuity at TC. Taken from The Solid State Third Edition, H.M Rosenberg, Oxford University Press (1988), page 245 Now that the concept of the high temperature superconductor has been explained this report can return to one of the initial concepts of how the behaviour of resistivity changes with temperature. A low temperature superconductor is likely to obey the T5 Bloch law at low temperatures and so its resistivity will fall to zero in a non-linear region. In contrast the resistivity of a high temperature superconductor should fall to zero before it leaves the linear region. The resistivity profile of a high temperature superconductor can also be used to determine its purity. By comparing the range of temperatures over which the transition occurs with the transition temperature itself an indicator of purity can be determined (equation 5, where PI is the purity indicator and ΆT the magnitude of the region over which the transition occurs). In this case a value of zero would indicate a perfectly pure sample. ΆTTC=PI (5)[xi] Other than for scientific purposes, within the laboratory, the biggest application of superconductors at the moment is to produce to the large, stable magnetic fields required for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Due to the costliness of high temperature superconductors the magnets used in these applications are usually low temperature superconductors. It is for this same reason that the commercial applications of high temperature superconductors are still extremely limited (that and the fact that all high temperature superconducting materials discovered so far are brittle ceramics which cannot be shaped into anything useful e.g. wires). Yttrium barium copper oxide (or YBCO) is just one of the aforementioned high temperature, cuprate superconductors. Its crystal structure consists of two CuO2 planes, held apart by a single atom of yttrium, either side of which sits a BaO plane followed by Cu-O chains. This can be seen in greater detail in figure 6. Figure 6: The orthorhombic structure of YBCO required for superconductivity. Adapted from High-Temperature Superconductivity in Curpates, A. Mourachkine, Kluwer Academic Publishers (2002), page 40 If the structure only has 6 atoms of oxygen per unit cell then the Cu-O chains do not exist and the compound behaves as an antiferromagnetic insulator. In order to create the Cu-O chains and for the compound to change to a superconductor at low temperatures it has to be doped gradually with oxygen. The superconducting state has been found to exist in compounds with oxygen content anywhere from 6.4 to 7 with optimal doping being found to occur at an oxygen content of about 6.95.[xii] This report intends to determine the superconducting transition temperature of a laboratory fabricated sample of YBCO. This will be achieved by measuring how both its resistivity and specific heat capacity vary as a function of temperature. II.I Fabrication and Calibration Methods To ensure an even firing of the sample within the furnace and to find out where in the furnace the heating profile was closest to that of the actual heating program, three temperature profiles of the furnace were taken while heating. The length of the furnace was measured with a metre ruler and found to be 35 ±1cm. Four k-type thermocouples were then evenly spaced (every 11.5 ±0.5cm) along the length of it, as can be seen in figure 7 below. Figure 7: Transverse section of the furnace. Thermocouples are numbered 1 to 4 and the length of the furnace surrounded by heating coils is shown in green, blocked at either end by a radiation shield. Temperature profiles were taken for each of the temperature programs displayed in figure 8; all started at room temperature and were left to run until the temperature displayed by the thermocouples had stopped increasing. Figure 8: Details of furnace programs used to obtain the temperature profiles shown in section III. While this was being done samples of YBCO were fabricated. The chemical equation for the fabrication of YBCO is as follows in equation 6 and the amounts of the reactants required to fabricate 0.025 mol are displayed in figure 9 Y2O3+4BaCO3+6CuIIOà ¢Ã¢â‚¬  2YBa2Cu3O7-ÃŽÂ ´ (6) Figure 9: Quantities of reactants required to fabricate 0.025 mol YBCO. Relative molecular masses (RMMs) calculated using relative atomic masses The procedure for fabrication can be seen in figure 10 and using this technique two batches of YBCO were fabricated, the first yielded just one pellet and the second batch yielded four. Figure 10: Describes the steps taken during fabrication of superconducting YBCO samples. In order to obtain a more accurate value of the temperature within the sample space of the cryostat the resistance of a platinum thermometer was measured as a function of temperature. In order to do this a Pt100 platinum thermometer was varnished to one side of a cryostat probe and connected via a four point probe to a power source (as can be seen in figure 11), an ammeter and a voltmeter (Keithley 2000 DMMs). The ammeter and the voltmeter were connected to a computer in order that live data could be fed straight into a LabView program (appendix 2) which would record the data to both a much great accuracy and precision than could be done by a human. Although a stable and constant current was used it was felt, in the interest of good practise, necessary to add the live feed ammeter into the LabView program as tiny fluctuations in current could have potentially changed results which would not have been noticed otherwise. The probe was then placed in the sample space which was subsequently vacuumed (to a pressure of 810-4 Torr) and flushed with helium twice. The sample space was then left full of helium due to its high thermal conductivity. The cryostat was cooled with liquid nitrogen to a temperature of approximately 77K and the LabView program left to record the change in the resistance of the platinum thermometer (using Ohms law, V=IR) and its corresponding temperature (from the intelligent temperature controller or ITC) while the cryostat heated up naturally. The temperature increase function of the program was not used as leaving the cryostat to heat up as slowly as possible allowed data to be gathered over a much greater period of time which lead to a relationship with less error. This relationship was plotted in order that the temperature dependant resistance profile of the platinum thermometer could be incorporated into the LabView program for use in future experiments to determine more accura tely the temperature of the sample space. While this was being done the dimensions of the cut samples were measured using vernier callipers and weighed in order to determine a density for YBCO. Each dimension was measured six times (to reduce random error) by two different people (to reduce systematic error). The off cuts of each batch of YBCO were then sent off for X-ray diffraction analysis in order to determine the chemical composition of the fabricated samples. The diffraction was carried out using a wavelength of 1.54184Ç º. II.II Fabrication and Calibration Results, Analysis and Interpretation The three temperature profiles of the furnace can be seen below in figure 12. The results are slightly skewed due to one end of the furnace having been left open in order to allow the thermocouples to sit inside the furnace. This can be seen back in figure 7. The measurements were taken by eye over a 10 second time period. It was therefore decided that the errors on the time should be  ±5 seconds and the error on the temperature  ±1K, both of which are unfortunately too small to be seen on the profiles. The data points were fitted to cubic curves as this best matched the physical behaviour of the heating. Figure 12: Temperature profiles of the furnace. The temperature of the program is shown in black crosses and the temperatures of thermocouples 1, 2, 3 and 4 are shown in yellow, red, green and blue respectively. It can immediately be seen from figure 12 that, during the initial stages of heating, the temperatures of all of the thermocouples lag behind that of the furnace program, specifically those of the thermocouples at the open end of the furnace (1 and 2). This can be accounted for due to poor thermal insulation at the open end of the furnace. It can also be seen that as the furnace reaches its required temperature and begins its dwell time the temperatures of the thermocouples continue to rise for a short duration before also levelling out. The most likely reason for this is that once the furnace reaches its required temperature the program will instantaneously cut the current to the heating coils. They will still however have thermal energy in them which will leach through the ceramic inner of the furnace into the firing space itself. Another striking feature of the profiles that can be seen is that the longer the furnace has to reach the required temperature, the more linear the increase in temperature is throughout the furnace. It was therefore deduced that had the furnace been sealed at both ends with radiation rods and covers, then the centre of the furnace would be that which had a temperature profile closest to that of the furnace program. It was also decided that in order to ensure a steady, linear rate of heating, a slower increase in temperature would be used. The masses of the batches before and after calcinations were compared and were found to have decreased by an average of 2.44( ±0.01)% of their initial masses. This was expected as one of the by-products created during the calcination of BaCO3 is CO2 which would have been removed from the furnace during this heating period therefore reducing the mass of the compound. The weights of the samples from batch two before and after annealing were compared and it was found that each of the samples of YBCO had increased in mass by an average of 3.51( ±0.03)% of their initial masses. This was unexpected as during the annealing process the compound is reduced and so should lose mass. One possible explanation for this could be a simultaneous reduction and oxygen doping of the compound in order to try and fill the copper and oxygen chains shown in figure 6. The densities of both batches of YBCO were calculated by weighing each of the samples from that batch and dividing their masses by their measured volumes. The densities of batches one and two were found to be 5.25( ±0.04)gcm-3 and 3.5( ±0.1)gcm-3 respectively. The greater error stated with the value of the density of the second batch of YBCO is a result of an error on the mean being taken whereas the error on the density of the first batch is merely propagated from those of its volume and mass as there was only one sample. When literature values of the density of YBCO were consulted it was found that the compound has a variable density of anywhere from 4.4 to 5.3gcm-3.[xiii] When comparing this range to the experimentally determined values of this parameter it was found that the density of the first batch lay just inside the range whilst the density of the second batch lay well outside of the lower end of it. One possible reason for the very low value of the density of batch two could be that its samples were left in the press for less time than batch one during sintering. All samples were checked to see whether they exhibited the Meissner effect. All did and a photograph showing this can be seen below in figure 13 The X-ray analysis of the two laboratory fabricated batches of YBCO can be seen in figure 14 below. The intensities were recorded every 0.01 degrees and then scaled appropriately using the greatest intensity in order that they could be compared to each other. As can be seen in figure 14 when both data sets are overlaid negligible differences can be seen. This indicates that both batches have almost identical chemical compositions and structure. A reasonable amount of background noise can be seen accompanied by an offset from zero intensity which changes in magnitude as the angle of diffraction increases. This can be accounted for by two factors. The first being tiny random impurities in the batches obtained by fabrication outside of a totally clean environment. The second is that small levels of the initial reactants may have not formed the required compound during calcination and annealing. A standard diffraction pattern of YBCO produced using the same wavelength of radiation was taken from The Chemical Database Service and can be seen below in figure 15. When this is compared to the patterns of the two laboratory fabricated samples in figure 14 all of the same intensity peaks can clearly be identified. This would indicate that YBCO had been successfully fabricated. Figure 15: X-Ray diffraction pattern of YBCO6. Calculation of the structural parameters of YBa2Cu3O7-ÃŽÂ ´ and YBa2Cu4O8 under pressure, Ludwig H. A. et al., Physica C (1992) 197, 113-122. It was expected that the comparison of standard diffraction patterns of YBCO of different oxygen contents with those fabricated within the laboratory would allow their oxygen content to be deduced. This, however, could not be achieved as all of the standard patterns of YBCO found in journals and online databases from oxygen contents of 6 to 7 had extremely similar diffraction patterns. The resistance of the platinum thermometer was plotted against temperature and can be seen in figure 16. A linear relationship was fitted to the data as seen in figure 16 which produced a reduced chi squared value of 1.317 and equation 7. T=2.4958( ±0.0007)R+25.54( ±0.04) (7) The reduced chi value indicates a strong linear relationship while the equation of the line gives a resistance of 99.2( ±0.2)ÃŽÂ © at a temperature of 273.2( ±0.1)K. When compared to the technical data for this component which gives a resistance of 100.00ÃŽÂ ©[xiv] at a temperature of 273.15K, it shows very close correspondence although not within error. A temperature of one less significant figures accuracy had to be used in this calculation due to the inability of the ITC to measure temperature to any more than one decimal place. This slight difference between the reference and experimental values of the resistance of the Pt100 at a given temperature can be accounted for by the position of the ITCs heat sensor. This lies just outside of the sample space and would cause the ITCs heat sensor to detect a small increase in temperature before it was received by the Pt100 within the sample space. Thus causing the Pt100 to lag behind in temperature (even if only slightly) and would therefore cause the slightly lower resistance for the given temperature as calculated above and can be seen as a very slight systematic error. III.I Resistivity Methods One of the cut samples was fixed to the other side of the probe to the Pt100 with thermally insulating varnish and four copper wire contacts were painted onto it with electrically conductive silver paint. The separation of each of the four wires was measured with vernier callipers six times each by two different people for the same reasons as before and recorded for later calculation. A four point probe resistance measurement was used in order to avoid the indirect measuring of resistances other than just the sample resistance. The contact resistance and spreading resistance are also normally measured by a simple two point resistance measurement. The four point probe uses two separate contacts to carry current and two to measure the voltage (in order to set up a uniform current density across the sample) and can be seen in figure 17. In a four point probe the current carrying probes will still be subject to the extra resistances but this will not be true for the voltage probes which should draw little to no current due to the high impedance of the voltmeter. The potential, V, at a distance ,r, from an electrode carrying a current, I, in a material of resistivity, à ?, can be expressed by V=à ?I2à Ã¢â€š ¬r=à ?I2à Ã¢â€š ¬1S1+1S3-1S1+S2-1S2+S3 (8)[xv] where r has also been expressed in terms of the contact separations (figure 17). This can be rearranged in order to calculate the value of the resistivity of material being measured. The probe was once again inserted into the cryostat and the cryostat was cooled as detailed in section II.I. Once the sample had reached a temperature equal to that of the boiling point of liquid nitrogen a LabView program was left to run which recorded the resistance of the sample and its corresponding temperature. The program used to do this can be seen in appendix 2. Although a temperature increase function was built into the program, the cryostat was left to warm up naturally for the same reason used when calibrating the platinum thermometer. The set up for this can be seen below in figure 18. Figure 18. Schematic for the resistivity experiment. Vacuum pumps and pressure gauges have been omitted as well as the heater on the ITC as none of the bear any real relevance to the experiment. Data cables are shown in red, Pt100 in blue and sample in grey. This was repeated for each sample of fabricated YBCO at least twice and their temperature dependant resistivity profiles can be seen in section III.II III.II Resistivity Results, Analysis and Interpretations The resistance profile of the sample from the first batch was measured twice and these profiles can be seen in figure 19. Unfortunately it was not possible on this occasion to measure the four point probe contact separations on this first sample before it was removed and so these profiles could not be adjusted to those of resistivity using equation 8. However, as this transformation is simply a stretch in the y-axis, it does not change the behaviour of the transition or the value of the transition temperature obtained from the profile. It can be seen in figure 19 that although the first profile cuts out at approximately a temperature of 190 Kelvin, both profiles follow virtually the same path until that point. The first profile cuts out early due to data points being taken once every second causing the program to fail and shut down. The number of data points was then cut to one every three seconds for subsequent experiments. With measurements being taken automatically by computer (and with the Keithley multimeters ability to measure currents and voltages to 7 significant figures) the errors on the resistance were negligible ( ±0.003% of the value of the resistance) and so can not be seen in figure 19. The same is true of the errors on the temperature. Assuming that equation 7 is correct then with a  ±0.003% error on any calculated resistance, the temperature of the sample space should only have an error of  ±0.04K. Had each of the samples been perfectly pure their profiles would have a very sharp transition between the states and the transition temperature would be very clear. However as a result of the broadening of this transition due to the impurity of the samples a temperature could not be clearly defined. Had powerful enough graphing software been to hand and were the profile able to be fitted to any know curve on this software, the most reliable way to find the transition temperature would have been to plot the first derivative of resistivity with respect to temperature and then determine its maximum (corresponding to the point of inflection within the transition). This not being the case the temperature of the transition was approximated to be the temperature at the half way point in the drop between the two states. To ascertain at which points on the profile the change in state began and ended, separate lines of linear regression were fitted to the linear data in both the normal state and the superconducting state. These two lines of regression were extended closer and closer to the transition from either side until the adjusted R2 value of the lines of best fit was 0.999, which indicated an excellent linear fit. It was found upon inspection that the mid-point of the transition could be defined in two different ways; the mid point in resistivity and the mid point in temperature (the mid-point in resistivity obviously corresponding to slightly a different temperature than that found at the mid point of the temperature). This was due to a slight skew in the transition in the profile and so in order to clearly define the superconducting transition temperature a clearer approximation from the one stated before had to be made. It was therefore approximated that the temperature corresponding to the mid point in resistivity should be averaged with the mid point in temperature on the x-axis and the error be the temperature either side of this average value which either previous mid value lay. This can be seen more clearly in figure 20. Figure 20: Shows the method used to calculate the superconducting transition temperature using an expanded view of the first profile in figure 19. Lines of linear regression are shown in black either side of the area in which the transition occurs (in yellow). Both temperatures can be seen highlighted by dashed lines. By the use of this method it was determined that the transition temperatures for both of the profiles in figure 19 were 87.6( ±0.9)K and 86.0( ±0.4)K for the first and second profiles respectively. Although these do not agree with each other (within the confines set by the errors) an average was taken and found to be 86.8( ±0.8)K. The purity indicator was also calculated for each profil

What is Success? :: Personal Reflection, definition, narrative

Success takes many different definitions. People have different interpretations of what success really means. For me is as simple as: living well and laughing often. The idea of living well is a very broad statement. Living well, in my opinion is getting success in personal, social and professional life. If I can achieve all of these three levels of success, I believe that I have lived well. Personal success for me is being able enjoy little things that life has to offer. For instance; understanding and appreciating diversity. To have someone to love and treasure, to meet the right person, fall in love, and get marry. To feel that I’m able to love my child and pass on wisdom to him .Feeling that someone loves me, is something that makes me completely happy and successful. Because I believe that without love, life is not thoroughly complete, thus never truly achieve success. I believe that, by being mentally and physically healthy, I have achieved personal success. When I get home to see my loving husband, my loved child, and then I’m able to sit down, relax and appreciate life, then I’m successful in my own right. Social success has a lot to do with the natural tendencies that I as human posses. For instance, I have identified good friends that I can count on as well as they can count on me. Meaning that I have good friend where I can rely on. I know that if a need help on anything, there will always be a helping hand. A part of societal success is also to learn how to treat people well, and I have been blessed to have such a great family that has showed me how to treat people since I was a little kid. I consider that I have reached professional success when I’m able to finish any goals that I have set in my mind. It doesn’t necessarily means that I need to have a masters or a doctored on my career. If my goal this year, is to graduate on April 2010, and I’m capable of doing it just the way I set it in my mind, then I have reached professional success, even if it is only my Associates in Art (AA).

Life Without Parole Essay -- essays research papers fc

Capital Punishment in America Capital punishment should be viewed as the stripping away of humanity from a person. The death penalty itself should be "executed" because of racial inequities, the concept of murder, the possibility of error, lack of deterrence, the cost, and an overwhelmed legal system. "The goal of capital punishment is revenge" (Introduction 1). Capital punishment is simply an outlet for the bloodlust of the American people (Introduction 1). The death penalty is very discriminatory when it comes to racial issues. "The death penalty is fraught with abuses and the potential for abuse" (Moral Arguments 1). Capital punishment is largely "divided along racial lines" (Moral Arguments 1). "A 1990 report released by the Federal Government’s General Accounting Office found a ‘pattern of evidence indicating racial disparities in the charging, sentencing, and imposition of the death penalty after the Furman decision’" (Moral Arguments 1). In the 1970’s, Professor David Baldus examined sentencing patterns in Georgia. He reviewed over two-thousand five hundred homicide cases in Georgia and controlled for two-hundred and thirty non-racial factors. His conclusion was that "a person accused of killing a white was 4.3 times more likely to be sentenced to death than a person accused of killing a black" (Moral Arguments 1). Imagine the statistics when one adds the rest of the states in our country. Capital punishment is murder. It really doesn’t matter how you look at it. The end result is still the same. "What is the difference between the state killing and an individual killing" (Moral Arguments 1). It adds up to be the same end result. It is "one more dead body, one more set of grieving parents, and one more cemetery slot. When we execute someone, we are sending a profound message of cynicism" about the value of human life (Moral Arguments 2). "Every time we execute someone," we are sinking to the same level as the killer (Moral Arguments 2). "The American people have blood on their hands, and it will stay there until we finally remove this barbaric practice from our nation" (Moral Arguments 2). One of the most apparent reasons the d... ... The death penalty is based upon revenge against the murderer. All it adds up to at the end of the day is another corpse to bury. Works Cited "Death." http://donlemaire.homestead.com/deathpen~main.html. "Fight the Death Penalty in USA." www.fp.dk/index-uk.htm. "Innocence and the Death Penalty." www.essential.org/dpic/innoc.html. Greenberg, Jack. "Taking Sides." Dushkin Publishing Group, Inc. 1991. "Introduction." http://pages.prodigy.com/DC/vortex.intro.html. "Moral Arguments Against the Death Penalty." http://pages.prodigy.com/DC/vortex/moral.html. "Netmonkey’s Death Penalty Page." www.netmonkey.com/1998/features/death/death8.html. "Pragmatic Arguments Against the Death Penalty." http://pages.prodigy.com/DC/vortex/prag.html. United States. President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice. "The Challenge of Crime in a Free Society." New York: Avon, 1968.

U.S. Drug Policy Versus Drug Reality Essay examples -- Argumentative P

If the United States is serious about winning the war on drugs, it will have to face some hard facts about the failure of its drug policy to date. Since Reagan introduced the war on drugs in the early 1980s, the focus of anti-drug legislation has been on incarceration and eradication, not on drug education and treatment. Drug use is viewed as a crimethe same way that burglary and murder are viewed as crimeswithout examining the social and economic causes behind drug use. This categorization of drug use as criminal misrepresents the nature of addiction. Drug addicts do not abuse drugs because they are deviant or even because they consciously desire to cause harm to themselves or to those around them, they abuse drugs because they are physically dependent on those substances for survival. The only effective way to break that cycle of dependency is through extensive detoxification and treatment programs. Not all advocates of reshaping Americas drug policy are in favor of legalization or complete decriminalizaton of drug use, though such steps are being increasingly entertained as a possible solution to Americas drug problem. On the contrary, a growing number of doctors and scientists are coming out in favor of a shift in Americas policies from hard-line law enforcement to rehabilitation and education-based deterrence. The need for such a shift in policy becomes more apparent when one weighs the magnitude of government outlays on drug-related law enforcement against the ineffectiveness of the war on drugs to date. A few basic statistics on federal allocation of anti-drug funds and on federal prison records illustrate the extent to which American drug policy is focused on the blunt tool of punishment. In 1997, the federal budget f... ... their ability to impair a persons judgment, etc. The government should realize that drug users are not criminals. They should establish more government treatment facilities in low income areas so that treatment would be an option available not only to wealthy actors and models but to the anonymous mass of low-income addicts. The free distribution of sterile needles is needed to combat the transmission of AIDSnot as a tacit advocacy of drug use. At an international meeting of the United Nations Drug Control Program in 1994, the United States refused to sign any statement mentioning the phrase harm reduction, as such a stance was seen as taking a soft-line on drugs. It is time for the United States government to wake up to the reality that the future of the War on Drugs lies with doctors, educators and sociologists and not with law enforcement agents and politicians.

Last Sacrifice Chapter Thirty-six

I'D OFTEN DREAMED ABOUT waking up with Dimitri, waking up in a way that was †¦ ordinary. Sweet. Not because we were hastily trying to catch sleep before fighting our next foe. Not because we were recovering from sex we had to hide, sex laden with baggage and myriad complications. I just wanted to wake up together, in his arms, and have it be a good morning. Today was that day. â€Å"How long have you been awake?' I asked drowsily. My head was on his chest, and I was wrapped against him as best as I could manage. My wounds were healing rapidly but still had to be babied. We'd found a few creative workarounds last night. Sunlight now spilled in through the windows, filling my bedroom with gold. He was watching me in that quiet, solemn way of his, with those dark eyes that were so easy to get lost in. â€Å"A little while,' he admitted, lifting his gaze to the sunlight-filled window. â€Å"I think I'm still on a human schedule. Either that, or my body just wants to be up when the sun is. Seeing it is still amazing to me.' I stifled a yawn. â€Å"You should have gotten up.' â€Å"I didn't want to disturb you.' I ran my fingers over his chest, sighing in contentment. â€Å"This is perfection,' I said. â€Å"Is every day going to be like this?' Dimitri rested his hand on my cheek and then moved down, tipping my chin up. â€Å"Not every day but most days.' Our lips met, and the warmth and light in the room paled compared to what burned inside me. â€Å"I was wrong,' I murmured when we finally broke the long, languid kiss. â€Å"This is perfection.' He smiled, something he was doing an awful lot of lately. I loved it. Things would probably change once we were back out in the world. Even if we were together now, Dimitri's guardian side would always be there, ready and watchful. But not right now. Not in this moment. â€Å"What's the matter?' he asked me. With a start, I realized I'd begun to frown. I tried to relax my face. Unbidden, Adrian's words had come back to me, that the next time I was in bed with Dimitri, I should think about others who weren't so lucky. â€Å"Do you think I ruin lives?' I asked. â€Å"What? Of course not.' The smile changed to shock. â€Å"Where would you get that idea?' I shrugged. â€Å"There are just a lot of people whose lives are still kind of a mess. My friends, I mean.' â€Å"True,' he said. â€Å"And let me guess. You want to fix everyone's problems.' I didn't answer. Dimitri kissed me again. â€Å"Roza,' he said, â€Å"it's normal to want to help the people you love. But you can't fix everything.' â€Å"It's what I do,' I countered, feeling a little petulant. â€Å"I protect people.' â€Å"I know, and that's one of the reasons I love you. But for now, you only have to worry about protecting one person: Lissa.' I stretched out against him, noticing my injuries really were constantly improving. My body would be able to do all sorts of things soon. â€Å"I suppose that means we can't stay in bed all day?' I asked hopefully. â€Å"Afraid not,' he said, lightly running his fingertips along the curve of my hip. He never seemed to get tired of studying my body. â€Å"They come first.' I brought my mouth back toward his. â€Å"But not for a little while.' â€Å"No,' he agreed. His hand slid up to the back of my neck, tangling in my hair as he drew me closer. â€Å"Not for a little while.' I had never attended a royal coronation before, and honestly, I hoped I never would again. I only wanted there to be this one queen ruling in my lifetime. Eerily, the coronation was kind of a reverse of Tatiana's funeral. What was the old saying? The queen is dead. Long live the queen. Custom dictated the monarch-to-be spend the first part of the coronation day at the church, presumably to pray for guidance, strength, and all that spiritual stuff. I wasn't sure what custom did in the case of atheist monarchs. Probably they faked it. With Lissa, who was fairly devout, I knew that wasn't a problem and that she was probably legitimately praying she'd do a good job as queen. After the vigil, Lissa and a huge procession walked back across Court to the palace building, where the crowning took place. Representatives from all the royal families joined her, along with musicians who were playing much more cheerful tunes than they had for Tatiana's procession. Lissa's guardians–she had a fleet now–walked with her. I was among them, wearing my finest black and white, including the red collar marking me as a royal guardian. Here, at least, was a notable difference from the funeral. Tatiana had been dead; her guardians were for show. Lissa was very much alive, and even if she'd won the Council's vote, she still had enemies. My colleagues and I were on high alert. Not that you'd think we needed to be, not with the way the onlookers cheered. All those who had camped out during the trials and election had stayed for this fanfare, and more had shown up still. I wasn't sure when there'd ever been this many Moroi in one place. After the long and winding walk, Lissa made it to the palace building and then waited in a small antechamber adjacent to what served as the Moroi throne room. The throne room was almost never used for modern business, but every once in a while–like a new queen being sworn in–the Moroi liked to pull out ancient traditions. The room was small and couldn't hold all the witnesses from outside. It couldn't even hold the entire procession. But, the Council and highest-ranking royal members were there, along with some select invitees of Lissa's. I stood off to the side, watching the glamour unfold. Lissa hadn't made her grand entrance yet, so there was a low hum of conversation. The room was all green and gold, having been given a thorough and fast remodel in the last few days, since custom dictated the ruling family's colors dominate the throne room. The throne itself sat high against the far wall, accessible by steps. Carved of wood I could no longer identify, I knew the throne had been carried around the world by Moroi monarchs for centuries. People were lining up in carefully assigned positions, preparing for when Lissa would enter last. I was studying one of the new chandeliers, admiring how realistic the â€Å"candles' in it looked. I knew they were electric, but the craftsmen had done amazing work. Technology masked in old-world glory, just as the Moroi liked. A small nudge drew my attention away. â€Å"Well, well, well,' I said. â€Å"If it isn't the people responsible for unleashing Rose Hathaway on the world. You've got a lot to answer for.' My parents stood before me in their typical and wildly contrasting clothing. My mom wore the same guardian outfit I did, a white shirt with black slacks and jacket. Abe was †¦ well, Abe. He had on a black pinstripe suite, with a black dress shirt underneath. Splashed against the darkness was a bright, lemon-yellow paisley tie. A matching handkerchief peeped out one of the jacket's pockets. Along with his gold earrings and chains, he also wore a black fedora, which was a new addition to his outlandish wardrobe. I guess he wanted to go all out for an event like this, and at least it wasn't a pirate hat. â€Å"Don't blame us,' said my mother. â€Å"We didn't blow up half of Court, steal a dozen cars, call out a murderer in the middle of a crowd, or get our teenage friend crowned queen.' â€Å"Actually,' said Abe, â€Å"I did blow up half of Court.' My mom ignored him, her expression softening as she studied me with her guardian eyes. â€Å"Seriously †¦ how are you feeling?' I'd seen them only briefly in the days since waking up, just enough for us all to check in on each other. â€Å"You're doing an awful lot of standing today. And I've already told Hans not to put you on active duty for a while.' It was one of the most motherly things I'd ever heard her say. â€Å"I †¦ I'm fine. A lot better. I could go on active duty right now.' â€Å"You will do no such thing,' she said, in exactly the tone she'd use giving orders to a troop of guardians. â€Å"Stop coddling her, Janine.' â€Å"I'm not coddling her! I'm looking out for her. You're spoiling her.' I looked back and forth at them in amazement. I didn't know if I was witnessing a fight or foreplay. I wasn't thrilled about either option. â€Å"Okay, okay, just back off you guys. I survived, right? That's what counts.' â€Å"It is,' said Abe. He suddenly seemed very fatherly, which weirded me out even more than my mom's behavior. â€Å"And despite the property damage and string of broken laws left in your wake, I'm proud of you.' I suspected that secretly, he was proud of me because of those things. My cynical interior commentary was brought to a halt when my mom concurred. â€Å"I'm proud too. Your methods were †¦ not ideal, but you did a great thing. Great things, really. Finding both the murderer and Jill.' I noticed her careful wording of â€Å"the murderer.' I think it was still hard for all of us to accept the truth about Tasha. â€Å"A lot will change because of Jill.' All of us looked over at the foot of the throne. Ekaterina stood on one side, ready with the book of royal vows. The other side was where members of the monarch's family stood–but only one lone person was there. Jill. Someone had done a great job of cleaning her up. Her curly hair had been elaborately styled and pinned, and she wore a knee-length sheath dress with a wide portrait style collar, just barely showing off her shoulders. The dress's cut made the most of her lanky figure, and the dark green satin looked great with her features. She was standing straight, chin high, but there was anxiety all over her, made more obvious by her being so conspicuously alone. I glanced back at Abe, who met my eyes expectantly. I had a lot of questions for him, and he was one of the few who might tell me the truth. The decision was: which question to ask? It was like having a genie. I'd only get so many wishes. â€Å"What will happen to Jill?' I asked at last. â€Å"Will she just go back to school? Are they going to train her to be a princess?' Lissa couldn't be both princess and queen, so her old title went to the next-oldest member of her family. Abe didn't answer for several moments. â€Å"Until Lissa can get the law changed–and hopefully, she will–Jill is all that allows her to keep her throne. If something happens to Jill, Lissa will no longer be queen. So. What would you do?' â€Å"I'd keep her safe.' â€Å"Then you have your answer.' â€Å"It's kind of a broad one,' I said. â€Å"†Safe' means a lot of things.' â€Å"Ibrahim,' warned my mother. â€Å"Enough. This isn't the time or place.' Abe held my gaze a bit longer and then broke into an easy smile. â€Å"Of course, of course. This is a family gathering. A celebration. And look: here's our newest member.' Dimitri had joined us and wore black and white like my mother and me. He stood beside me, conspicuously not touching. â€Å"Mr. Mazur,' he said formally, nodding a greeting to both of them. â€Å"Guardian Hathaway.' Dimitri was seven years older than me, but right then, facing my parents, he looked like he was sixteen and about to pick me up for a date. â€Å"Ah, Belikov,' said Abe, shaking Dimitri's hand. â€Å"I'd been hoping we'd run into each other. I'd really like to get to know you better. Maybe we can set aside some time to talk, learn more about life, love, et cetera. Do you like to hunt? You seem like a hunting man. That's what we should do sometime. I know a great spot in the woods. Far, far away. We could make a day of it. I've certainly got a lot of questions I'd like to ask you. A lot of things I'd like to tell you too.' I shot a panicked look at my mother, silently begging her to stop this. Abe had spent a good deal of time talking to Adrian when we dated, explaining in vivid and gruesome detail exactly how Abe expected his daughter to be treated. I did not want Abe taking Dimitri off alone into the wilderness, especially if firearms were involved. â€Å"Actually,' said my mom casually. â€Å"I'd like to come along. I also have a number of questions–especially about when you two were back at St. Vladimir's.' â€Å"Don't you guys have somewhere to be?' I asked hastily. â€Å"We're about to start.' That, at least, was true. Nearly everyone was in formation, and the crowd was quieting. â€Å"Of course,' said Abe. To my astonishment, he brushed a kiss over my forehead before stepping away. â€Å"I'm glad you're back.' Then, with a wink, he said to Dimitri: â€Å"Looking forward to our chat.' â€Å"Run,' I said when they were gone. â€Å"If you slip out now, maybe they won't notice. Go back to Siberia.' â€Å"Actually,' said Dimitri, â€Å"I'm pretty sure Abe would notice. Don't worry, Roza. I'm not afraid. I'll take whatever heat they give me over being with you. It's worth it.' â€Å"You really are the bravest man I know,' I told him. He smiled, his eyes falling on a small commotion at the room's entrance. â€Å"Looks like she's ready,' he murmured. â€Å"I hope I am,' I whispered back. In true grandiose fashion, a herald brought the room to attention. Perfect silence fell. You couldn't even hear breathing. The herald stepped back from the door. â€Å"Princess Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir.' Lissa entered, and even though I'd seen her less than half an hour ago, I still caught my breath. She was wearing a formal gown but had once again dodged sleeves. No doubt the dress-maker had had a fit. The dress was floor-length, with a skirt of silk and chiffon layers that moved and fluttered around Lissa as she strode forward. The fabric was the same jade as her eyes, as was the dress's top, with a halter collar covered in emeralds that gave the illusion of a necklace. Matching emeralds covered the dress's belt, and bracelets completed the display. Her hair was worn long, brushed out to gleaming, platinum perfection, an aura unto itself. Christian walked beside her, a sharp contrast with his black hair and dark suit. Customs were being modified significantly today since a family member normally would have escorted Lissa, but †¦ well, she was kind of running out. Even I had to admit he looked amazing, and his pride and love for her shone on his face–no matter what troubled feelings stirred within him over Tasha. Lord Ozera, I remembered. I had a feeling that title would become more and more important now. He led Lissa to the base of the throne and then joined the Ozera delegation in the crowd. Ekaterina made a small gesture to a large satin pillow on the floor in front of the steps. â€Å"Kneel.' There was the briefest hesitation on Lissa's part, one I think only I noticed. Even without the bond, I was so attuned to her mood and tiniest actions that I could pick up on these things. Her eyes had gone to Jill. Lissa's expression didn't change, and it was so strange not to know her feelings. I could make some educated guesses. Uncertainty. Confusion. Again–the pause was only a moment long. Lissa knelt, artfully spreading her skirts around her as she did. Ekaterina had always seemed so frail and wizened in that testing room, but as she stood there with the ancient Moroi coronation book, I could sense a power still within the former queen. The book was in Romanian, but Ekaterina translated it effortlessly as she read aloud, beginning with a speech about what was expected of a monarch and then going to the vows Lissa had to swear to. â€Å"Will you serve?' â€Å"Will you protect your people?' â€Å"Will you be just?' There were twelve in all, and Lissa had to answer â€Å"I will' three times to each one: in English, in Russian, and in Romanian. Not having the bond to confirm her feelings was still so strange, but I could see on her face that she meant every word she said. When that part finished, Ekaterina cued Jill forward. Since I'd last noticed the girl, someone had given her the crown to hold. It had been custom-made for Lissa, a masterpiece of white and yellow gold intertwined with emeralds and diamonds. It complemented her outfit beautifully, and, I noticed with a start, Jill did too. Another tradition was that the monarch was crowned by a family member, and this was what Jill had been saved for. I could see her hands tremble as she laid the bejeweled wonder on her sister's head, and their gazes met briefly. A flash of troubled emotions swirled in Lissa's eyes once more, gone quickly as Jill stepped back and the weight of the ceremony took precedence. Ekaterina held out her hand to Lissa. â€Å"Rise,' she said. â€Å"You will never kneel to anyone again.' Holding Lissa's hand, Ekaterina turned so that they both faced the rest of us in the room. With a voice startling for her small body, Ekaterina declared, â€Å"Queen Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir, first of her name.' Everyone in the room–except Ekaterina–dropped to their knees, heads bowed. Only a few seconds passed before Lissa said, â€Å"Rise.' I'd been told this was at the monarch's discretion. Some new kings and queens enjoyed making others kneel for a long time. Paperwork followed, which we all watched dutifully as well. Basically, it was Lissa signing to say she'd been made queen while Ekaterina and a couple witnesses signed that they'd seen Lissa made queen. Three copies were on the ornate paper Moroi royalty so loved. One was plain white letterhead, which would go to the Alchemists. When the signing was done, Lissa took her place on the throne, and seeing her ascend those stairs was breathtaking, an image that would stay with me for the rest of my life. The room broke out into cheers and clapping as she settled into the ornate chair. Even the guardians, who normally stayed so deadly serious, joined in the applause and celebration. Lissa smiled at everyone, hiding whatever anxiety she felt. She scanned the room, and her grin broadened when she saw Christian. She then sought me out. Her smile for him had been affectionate; mine was a bit humorous. I smiled back, wondering what she would say to me if she could. â€Å"What's so funny?' asked Dimitri, looking down at me with amusement. â€Å"I'm just thinking about what Lissa would say if we still had the bond.' In a very bad breach of guardian protocol, he caught a hold of my hand and pulled me toward him. â€Å"And?' he asked, wrapping me in an embrace. â€Å"I think she'd ask, â€Å"What have we gotten ourselves into?† â€Å"What's the answer?' His warmth was all around me, as was his love, and again, I felt that completeness. I had that missing piece of my world back. The soul that complemented mine. My match. My equal. Not only that, I had my life back– my own life. I would protect Lissa, I would serve, but I was finally my own person. â€Å"I don't know,' I said, leaning against his chest. â€Å"But I think it's going to be good.' First and foremost, thank you to all of the loyal and enthusiastic readers around the world who have accompanied Rose and me throughout the series. I couldn't have made this journey without you and hope you'll continue to enjoy the many Moroi and dhampir adventures to come. Thank you also to all of the friends and family who have supported me–especially my husband, who continually amazes me with his patience, love, and ability to live with the ups and downs of a â€Å"creative type.' A special shout-out also goes to Jesse McGatha for creating the forest riddle, something I could never have come up with, let alone solve. And as always, I'm grateful to the publishing folks who work behind the scenes to make these books happen: Jim McCarthy–my agent, occasional therapist, and non- stop advocate; Lauren Abramo, who keeps finding more countries I've never heard of to send Rose to; Jessica Rothenberg and Ben Schrank, editors extraordinaire whom I'm pretty sure forego food and sleep to perfect these books; and publicist Casey McIntyre, who organizes my tours and interviews, with great care to arrange them around my hair appointments. A final thanks to all the others who work on this series at Penguin Books, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management, and my international publishers. There are far too many of you to list, but all of you are essential in telling Rose's story. Thank you.