The viscosity of syrup Essay Example for Free

The viscosity of syrup Essay C intervals. The results are shown below in table and graph form. Time (s) Temperature (m) Speed (m/s) As I expected, the jar rolled faster at higher temperatures and slower at lower temperatures. At 0i C, the syrup was solid across one side of the jar. At this point the jar would not roll at all (this result is not shown on the graph so as not to effect the line of best fit). This was again because of the centre of gravity and the affect it has on the turning force. As the syrup cannot flow the centre of gravity settles directly above the contact point of the slope and the jar and will not move. The quicker the mass changes from one side of the jar to another the quicker the jar will role down the slope. This is shown in the diagram below. The Boltzmann Factor: The Boltzmann factor explains why the syrup flows quicker when warmer. It tells us that if a molecule is given enough energy (in this case by the heat energy) then it can break free from its surrounding molecules and flow. The more energy the flame gives the molecules the quicker they can flow into new positions. The formula for this is E/kT where E is the activation energy required to break the bonds between two molecules and kT is a constant (k)(depending on the liquid) and T the temperature in Kelvins. The formula shows that if kT is greater than E then the liquid will flow. As we do not know the constant we cannot work out the activation energy. Despite this the results still show that this is what is happening. This is relevant to this experiment as the higher the temperature the more energy the molecules will flow, so the syrup will flow easier. Anomalies: There were many places in my experiment where errors could have occurred. For example, when measuring the temperature of the syrup I removed some that was stuck to the thermometer. I scraped of as much as possible, but still some remained on the thermometer. Because of this I think my results are accurate to the nearest gram of syrup. The two most obvious places where inaccuracies could have occurred were, the constantly changing temperature and timing using my reactions. I think that these inaccuracies are minor and did not affect the results of the experiment in an important way. The results that I feel show this are the 64 and 66i C results where the jar appears to go faster as the temperature decreases. Because of this I have decided to ignore these results. Another major inaccuracy is in the grains of the slope, as it was not perfectly smooth. I think that although the grains may have slowed the jar down at some points, the jar then accelerated rapidly after this, so the average speed was about the same. However I cannot prove this so I will repeat some of the experiment on a metallic surface to see if I get the same results. Repeat: To repeat the experiment I shall use a metallic runway to stop friction from the slope affecting my results. Having one some preliminary rolls, I realised that the slope I was using, which was thinner than the other slope, meant that the jar repeatedly got jammed against the edges. I therefore decided to roll the jar 20cm, and use average velocities to compare my original results with my new results. I also decided to only repeat the experiment between 30-50i C, as these seemed a particular place of interest in the experiment. My results from the repeats are shown below. Conclusion: Despite these errors I still feel my results are/Are not accurate (I will repeat exp. Using metallic surface. The points between 30-50i C Show a clear change from a low velocity to a high velocity. I therefore concluded that this is comparable to activation energy. Activation energy is where a molecule has enough energy to perform a reaction. In this case the molecules have enough energy to change state from a very viscous liquid to a much less viscous liquid.

Environmental Studies Essays | Biomass Energy

Environmental Studies Essays | Biomass Energy Biomass Energy The use of biomass energy as a wide spread, renewable power source provided with proper knowledge, state control and technological how-to, can change both the earths environment and our attitude towards alternative power resources. To understand how this can happen, the basics of what biomass energy is and how it works have to be presented. All organic matter, such as agricultural residue, wood and animal waste, energy crops, and methane, is a potential source for biomass energy (http://www.mna.hkr.se/~ene02p10/biomass.htm). Biomass energy can be produced by either growing crops especially for this purpose (i.e. sugarcane, soya bean, corn, sweet potato, maize, willow and eucalyptus trees), or converting organic waste (http://www.inforse.org/europe/dieret/Biomass/biomass.html). The organic matter can be burned to produce heat, like the wood fire of old, or they can produce ethanol or other alcoholic fuels (http://www.mna.hkr.se/~ene02p10/biomass.htm). There are differing opinions betw een respectable scientific communities and one has to analyze the different arguments for and against the use of biomass energy in order to make an informed decision concerning biomass energy. There are a number of arguments advocating the use of biomass energy. As we see an increase of the greenhouse effect, the trend is to start using renewable power sources. Because in order for biomass energy to be produced needs only organic matter and no chemical is needed for its production, it qualifies as a clean renewable power source. For these reasons, biomass energy generates far less air emissions than fossil fuels. Methane, a more powerful greenhouse gas, can be used for the production of biomass energy thereby decreasing the methane levels in the atmosphere. Biomass materials are often waste products from existing industrial activities that would otherwise be disposed ofat considerable cost. For example, if you burn unusable waste material such as bark, construction waste and tree clippings, you reduce the pressure to expand local landfill sites while generating useful energy (http://www.canren.gc.ca/tech_appl/index.asp?CaId=2PgId=62). Biomass energy decreases the reliance on fossil fuels that may be imported, and whose price therefore is subject to variable economic and/or political issues. Bioenergy has a generally positive impact on the local economy. Biofuels are bulky and have a low-energy density so it is not economical to transport them long distances. As a result, the money spent to purchase biofuels generally remains in the local area (http://www.canren.gc.ca/tech_appl/index.asp?CaId=2PgId=62). As biomass energy is produced locally, it creates thousands of jobs at a local scale as it is labor intensive to create biomass energy. As such, the production of biomass energy helps revitalize rural communities. Extra income without an investment in special equipment can be derived from the collection of agricultural residues, such as straw or corn stover, or from the removal of dead, diseased or low-quality trees from forests. However, there are arguments that contradict those above. Scientists found that reforestation would sequester between two and nine times as much carbon over 30 years than would be saved by burning biofuels instead of gasoline. You get far more carbon sequestered by planting forests than you avoid emissions by producing biofuels on the same land says a prominents scientist (http://environment.newscientist.com/article/dn12496-forget-biofuelsburn-oil-and-plant-forests-instead.html). The unsustainable and uncontrolled conversion of natural and even virgin ecosystems into managed energy plantations in order to produce material suitable for biomass energy, can lead to the release of carbon from the soil as a result of the accelerated decay of organic matter. (http://www.ecology.com/archived-links/biomass-energy/index.html). It has been established that since the beginning of farming the soybean in Brazil, seven million hectares of the Amazonian rainforest have been converted into energy pl antations. Thus, the concerns that environmentalists have expressed about the destruction of the forests in order to make room for biomass crops, such as maize and sugarcane, have been realized. Says, Renton Righelato of the World Land Trust, a conservation agency that seeks to preserve rainforests, When you do this, you immediately release between 100 and 200 tonnes of carbon [per hectare] (http://environment.newscientist.com/article/dn12496-forget-biofuelsburn-oil-and-plant-forests-instead.html). Another by-product of the planting of crops suitable for the production of biomass energy is the loss of biodiversity. Transforming natural ecosystems into energy plantations with a very small number of crops, as few as one, can drastically reduce the biodiversity of a region. Such monocultures lack the balance achieved by a diverse ecosystem, and are susceptible to widespread damage by pests or disease (http://www.ecology.com/archived-links/biomass-energy/index.html). Another important argument is that there simply may not be enough land to grow energy crops and food crops simultaneously. According to a UK survey, the most productive energy crop in the UK is rapeseed and the average yield is 3-3.5 tons per hectare and one ton of rapeseed produces 415 kg of biodiesel, so every hectare of arable land could provide 1.45 tons of transport fuel. Road transport in the UK consumes 37.6m tons of petroleum products a year (http://www.sovereignty.org.uk/features/eco/fuelines.html). The total hectares needed to be planted in order to produce the biodiesel quantity of equal to 37.6m tons of fossil fuel would be roughly 25.9m hectares. The UK does not have this much arable land. In the case of Brazil, Alexandre Conceicao, a member of the MST (Landless Workers Movement), pointed out the orientation was towards the global market concerning energy crop plantations with no regard to the domestic production of food (http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=38051). So, th ere might not be any reliance on foreign fossil fuels, but there may be reliance on foreign food exporters. There are also arguments against the intended location of future energy crop plantations. There has been the suggestion that by converting arable land in Africa into energy crop plantations, both global warming would be tackled and Africans would be helped. It was said that this strategy, provides a sustainable development path for the many African countries that can produce biofuels cheaply (http://www.sovereignty.org.uk/features/eco/fuelines.html). Although palm oil can produce four times as much biodiesel per hectare as rapeseed and is grown in places where labor is cheap, planting it is already one of the worlds major causes of tropical forest destruction (http://www.sovereignty.org.uk/features/eco/fuelines.html). It is obvious that the production of biomass energy in this manner would entail serious environmental consequences. The possible creation of jobs has also come under doubt. There have been protests in Brazil about the slavery conditions that the sugar cane plantation workers face. The social cost of this policy is the overexploitation of labour with an army of seasonal workers who cut one ton of sugar cane for 2.50 reals (1.28 dollars) in precarious conditions which have already caused the deaths of hundreds of workers, says Alexandre Conceicao of the MST (http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=38051). Camilla Moreno of the Rural University of Rio de Janeiro said that, the growth of the ethanol industry is breathing life into a modern-day version of the sugar plantation slave-labour past, along with the expansion of a new form of ecological imperialism. Moreno pointed out that large tracts of land have been purchased by international (largely U.S. and European) investment funds, which has brought a new form of capitalism that was not familiar to Brazil (http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=38051) The above statements show that not only do the Brazilian people, as a whole, do not benefit from the production of biomass energy, but also that the actual workers are not rewarded properly for their work and work under wretched conditions.

One is Happy When He Believes That He is Happy :: Happiness Essays

Not many people are happy, but all the libraries are filled with books on happiness, and this very fact should make us curious. The Ancients gave us dozens of recipes on how to conduct a happy life, each of them contradicting the other, or at least, with very dissimilar opinions. The Modernity has its own solutions up to the negation of the very possibility of having a happy life. And recently, mister Francis H. came up with his own idea of happiness. He argues that the problem of happiness can be reduced to wealth, knowledge and a personal belief of being "in control" of one's own life. Let's at first consider these factors. Wealth is important, according to mister Francis H., because it allows the satisfaction of one's basic needs. It seems to me that if it was true, the Ancients had no chance to be happy at all and we can not be happy as well, since in the time to come people will be even more wealthy than they are now (see later on the part of my essay "On Future") and able to better satisfy their needs. Well, I guess the notion of wealth is just relative. Same as basic needs which can cause even more trouble. What are basic needs? Color TV and refrigerator or your own jet plane? Or maybe just a barrel in a harbor as Diogenes showed us? Knowledge. In my opinion the problem with knowledge may be similar to the wealth issue. Knowledge in general (meant as scientific knowledge) has increased dramatically over the last centuries, but arguing that this has contributed to general happiness is at least risky, not to mention superfluous. This problem has two main aspects, firstly, its relativity (as in the case of wealth); we can fly to Venus and kill most of the microbes but there is still much more to be done. Secondly, its validity in the pure aspect, as giving us answers about the world and life in general. On the other hand, as far as personal knowledge, or education, or one's intelligence goes, I don't really see any direct correlation between what one knows and is capable of doing to his own happiness. History can supply us with arguments to both sides. If you don't like history, go to the nearest psychiatric hospital to see the lack of correlation. Here we come to the third aspect of happiness: The personal belief of being "in control".

Interpreting Hamlet’s Ophelia Essay examples -- GCSE English Literatur

Interpreting Hamlet’s Ophelia Was Ophelia in love with Hamlet, or did she have more feeling for her father than for her boyfriend? In Shakespeare’s Hamlet was Ophelia’s madness contributed to by the prince’s rejection of her? The answers to these and other questions about this tragic figure will be given. Rebecca West in â€Å"A Court and World Infected by the Disease of Corruption† argues that Ophelia has no love for Hamlet, but only for her father: For the myth which has been built round Hamlet is never more perverse than when it pretends that Ophelia went mad for love and killed herself. No line in the play suggests that she felt either passion or affection for Hamlet. She never mentions him in the mad scene, and Horatio says of her, â€Å"She speaks much of her father.† Indeed she was in a situation which requires no sexual gloss. Her father had been murdered by a member of the royal house, and she found herself without protection, since her brother Laertes was in France, in the midst of a crisis such as might well send her out of her wits with fear. For the Danes hostile to the royal house made of her wrong a new pretext for their hostility, and the royal house, noting this, turned against her, helpless though she was [. . .]. (109) Beginning now with the play, the reader/viewer sees that the protagonist of the tragedy, Prince Hamlet, initially appears dressed in solemn black. He is mourning the death of his father, supposedly by snakebite, while he was away at Wittenberg as a student. Hamlet laments the hasty remarriage of his mother to his father’s brother, an incestuous act; thus in his first soliloquy he cries out, â€Å"Frailty, thy name is woman!† Ophelia enters the play with her brother Laertes, who, in parting for s... ...ies.† Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Rpt. from Shakespeare’s Women. N.p.: n.p., 1981. Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 1995. http://www.chemicool.com/Shakespeare/hamlet/full.html Ward & Trent, et al. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1907–21; New York: Bartleby.com, 2000 http://www.bartleby.com/215/0816.html West, Rebecca. â€Å"A Court and World Infected by the Disease of Corruption.† Readings on Hamlet. Ed. Don Nardo. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1999. Rpt. from The Court and the Castle. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1957. Wilkie, Brian and James Hurt. â€Å"Shakespeare.† Literature of the Western World. Ed. Brian Wilkie and James Hurt. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1992.

Business Paradigm :: essays research papers

Key Point 1: How does Corporate Restructuring affect our Society? In the early 1990’s, corporate restructuring was being reported in newspapers and magazines almost daily. In 1995 alone, domestic mergers totaled more than $450 Billion. In just the first week of the second quarter of 1996, merger activity totaled $28.3 Billion. To name a couple of corporations that were involved were Bell Telephone systems and AT & T. Pros and cons come from such large mergers and acquisitions. A good aspect that came from the Bell merger was that they were able to provide service to 30 million residential and business customers in seven states west of the Mississippi. On the other hand, a negative aspect that arrived from mergers is that often times, after the merger had taken place, the companies decided to downsize to make their new corporations more efficient. Long-time employees are now being pushed out of the company. Investors and analyst’s alike, seemed to respect the companies that inflicted the deepest cuts and fired the greatest number of workers. Executive pay rose along with corporate profits and productivity. The compensation packages for those individuals laid-off were tied to job performance. This created a huge amount of hostility. Mergers also created fear amongst the employees. The fear of job loss eroded the loyalty between employees and their companies. Mergers, however, are sometimes inevitable. The corporations must find ways to stay competitive, not only internationally, but globally. Key Point 2: Social Responsiveness Management Large corporations are responsible for providing the consumer with a safe and reliable product. They are also legally obligated to ensure what the company is offering the consumer is what the consumer gets. Take the in-class video on U-Haul for example. U-Haul stated that each vehicle is routinely inspected to ensure customer safety. The inspection log would have a recent date annotating the last inspection. A team of reporters visited several U-Haul subsidiaries throughout the United States. The findings were shocking. It was found after having professional mechanics inspect the vehicles, that most were unsafe to drive. This negligence on U-haul’s behalf places the consumers life in jeopardy. It has become a huge issue after several fatalities that resulted from U-haul’s vehicle negligence. Laws should become more stringent on companies that provides this type of service to consumers. Key Point 3: Code of Ethics and Business Conduct (Nuclear Energy) The debate over whether nuclear energy is a socially acceptable has gone on for years.

Gary Paulsen Biography Essay

The 1990’s was a time known as the â€Å"Digital Decade†. A time when the Stock Market rocketed and the internet took off. Along with technology becoming popular, Gary Paulsen was writing one of his two hundred novels, The River. It showed how the U.S. Government wanted young Brian to go back in the wilderness and reenact his survival skills he used a few years back, after he was involved in a plane crash. Gary Paulsen is a great novel and short story writer for people of all ages. He is one of America’s most popular writers for young people, including adults and children (About). His life was full of interesting things. Many of the things he did, including working on a farm over the summer in his youthful years, and jobs such as being an engineer, construction worker, sailor, truck driver, and ranch hand gave him lots of material to work with from which he created his great stories (About). Throughout his life, since he started writing, he has written over 100 b ooks and short stories and many have became very popular. Gary Paulsen was born May 17, 1939 in Minneapolis, Minnesota (About). His parents were Oscar and Eunice Paulsen (Gary). In his youth he was never a â€Å"dedicated† student in school but he had a passion for reading ever since he was very young (About). On a cold, wintery day, he walked into a library to warm up with nothing to do. On the way out he had himself his own library card and a book to read. From then on he was hooked to reading and writing (Gary). He spent many hours alone in the basement of his apartment building, reading book after book after book. Soon after he acquired a taste for adventure when he ran away from his home to travel with the carnival at the age of 14 (About). Yates 2 In 1959, he attended Bemidji College in Minnesota, and he worked as a trapper to pay off tuition fees. He quit college two years after and joined the Army, working for the missiles department (Biography). In 1966, Paulsen began to write and has completed well over 100 books and short stories. He has written fiction, nonfiction, and drama for adults and children. He still continues to write to this day. Many of his nonfiction books relate to his jobs and interests. He has written books about farming, hiking, football, tennis, skiing, and canoeing (Gary). Gary Paulsen says its his overwhelming belief in young people that drives him to write (About). A few of his best sellers are: Lawn Boy, The River, Brian’s Winter, Brian’s Hunt, The Rifle, Soldier’s Heart, Tracker, The Crossing, Sentries, and Brain’s Return (Biography). Three of his novels- Hatchet, Dogsong, and the Winter Room were Newberry Honor Books. They often appear along with his other books on the best books list of the American Library Association (About). One thing Gary loves to do most was dog-sled racing. He took part in the famous 1,180 mile long dog-sled race known as the Iditarod twice, once in 1983 and again in 1985. His third attempt was shattered when he was diagnosed with a serious heart disease called angina (Gary). After he was forced to give up dog-sled racing, he started to focus more on writing with the same energy and effort that he used on h is dogs while training them for the race. He worked 18-20 hour days every day staying committed to writing the way he would with his dogs. He said all he does is work, he doesn’t have time to drink or fool around. He has always been that way and the end result is a lot of books being published out to the world (About). His wife, Ruth Wright Paulsen is an artist. In fact she has illustrated several books of his. They divide their time up writing and drawing between a home in La Luz, New Mexico and a boat out in the Pacific Ocean (About). Gary Paulsen has written many books during his life. A few have won special awards and honors. Others are liked by many young adults and children. His writing, especially his nonfiction Yates 3 books reflect his interests and past jobs that he had acquired. An example would be his book â€Å"Harris and Me†. About a young boy who works on farm one summer with his cousin, is full of funny and adventurous events. This book is related to Paulsen because he also worked on a farm over the summer doing chores during his youth years. He also likes to write about survival, which you can see in his books Hatchet, Brian’s Winter, and The River. Although Gary Paulsen has written many books, over two hundred of them, one of his books called The River, was written and published in the 1990’s. The 1990’s is a time also known as â€Å"The Digital Decade†. The pace of life quickly sped up in this technology-driven decade (Digital Front Flap). At the beginning of the decade, it seemed that the economy was going to be sluggish. Instead, the Stock Market sky rocketed and the internet took off. From then on it has been a fast pace through life (Digital 79). Mr. Bill Clinton was the president at the time. He had an enthusiasm for people and wanted to help them fulfill their dreams (Digital 63). When Clinton was a boy at age 16, he met with President John F. Kennedy in the Rose Garden and shook his hand. After that day his life changed and he had a strong desire to become the president of the United States of America. Bill Clinton was just 46 years old when he became the nation’s 42nd chief executive. Clinton attempted to fulfill a campaign promise to disable the ban on homosexuals in the military. His decision ended in the â€Å"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell† compromise that didn’t satisfy commanders of the military or the gay community (Digital 66). After a humanitarian effort was launched in Somalia, and after Clinton’s best decisions to handle the situation, thirty American Servicemen died. Ever since that happened, Clinton refused to come in contact with Rwanda, despite widespread genocide that happened there, and caused over one million deaths. More than thirty million American citizens did not have medical insurance in the earl 90’s. Candidate Bill Clinton promised to expand coverage and affordable healthcare for every person in America (Digital 66). He named Hilary Clinton to lead the drive to recreate the health insurance Yates 4 industry. This is why critics accused him of nepotism (Digital 66-67). By the end of his first year in office, many Americans were wondering just how ineffective and unpopular he could become (Digital 67). Laptops and cell phones became popular in offices, airports, and in pants pockets. Huge SUV’s were found all over the road and fashion became as wild and weird as the world wide web itself. Children began spending time with the latest Pokemon cards or playing the latest video game. The 90’s was a time of almost unlimited choices and personal freedom. The 1990’s was summed up by the word â€Å"whatever† (Digital 79). Electronic-game industries had a growth rate twice that of the movie industry and brought in an annual revenue of about 6.3 billion dollars. Even though console based games such as the Playstation and Nintendo became much more faster and complicated than they u sed to be, the real reason behind the game industries huge growth came from the personal-computer games. A new kind of athlete called adrenaline junkies were on the lookout for new and exciting, but often physically dangerous challenges. This created a subculture called â€Å"extreme sports† in the 90’s (Digital 80). Some extreme sports such as sky surfing and street luge were viewed by the people as mostly lunatics, and not athletes. But snowboarding, mountain biking, and climbing became very popular to most people. In 1995, ESPN gave extreme sports some help by creating and airing the X Games. It showed athletes competing in summer and winter competitions (Digital 80). On August 2, 1990, infantry, armor, and tanks of the Iraqi Republican Guard invaded Kuwait and seized control. United States responded with operation DESERT SHIELD to stop invasion of Kuwait’s neighbor, Saudi Arabia (Operation). On August 7, deployment of U.S. Forces began. The U.S. Objectives included immediate, complete, and unconditional withdrawal of all Iraqi forces from Kuwait. If Iraqi dictat or Saddam Hussein did not remove his troops from Kuwait by January 15, 1991, U.S. led troops were to force them out. On January 17, the U.S. Coalition launched air attacks on Iraqi targets. On February 24, ground forces began their attack. On February 27, Kuwait City was declared Yates 5 liberated. This was known as the Gulf War (Operation). The field of medical science and the advances made in the late 90’s will most likely have the biggest impact on our society (History). The two advances found will leave us with political and moral questions in the future. Cloning and Stem Cell Research are the major medical science advances. The 90’s also saw the development and growth of Genetic Engineering. Genetic Engineering is used to help make plants resistant to herbicides and insecticides. Over 60% of products on U.S. Grocery store shelves have genetic engineering in them (History). The 1990’s was a decade of electronics. The computer and internet were huge inventions in the 90’s. The pace of life was sped up dramatically in this decade. Overall this would have been a great d ecade to choose to live in. With all of the technology and internet setting in, authors were still writing books on paper. One of those authors was Gary Paulsen. He wrote the novel The River in the 1990’s and it is about true survival. The River has a few themes in its story, but the biggest one is true survival versus role playing. After Brian’s survival story when a plane crashed and left him stranded in the woods for fifty-four days, he was asked to reenact it. A psychologist named Derek joins him in what he calls Brian’s reenactment, an â€Å"experiment†. Brian insists that Derek leave behind all of his equipment he is wanting to bring with them (Paulsen 23). He thinks that Derek doesn’t truly understand the spirit of the â€Å"experiment†. Brian’s ability to convince Derek leaves them with a briefcase, and emergency radio, and a few other small things. Brian tells Derek that the only way to teach survival is to physically put a person in a real life or death situation (Paulsen 34). Derek wants Brian to think out loud so he can write down his every thought and move. Then all of the sudden t he so called experiment turned too real way too fast. That night a terrible storm had moved in, and it wasn’t just any storm, it was a storm that Brian had never experienced before. Derek Yates 6 reached for his radio and briefcase and was struck by lightening (Paulsen 52). This is when the experiment turned from role playing to true survival. Brian woke up from the storm and saw Derek laying in a weird position. He was scared that Derek was dead but found out he was only unconscious. He panicked and grabbed the radio to try and get help but the radio was destroyed by the lightening strike. When Brian tries giving Derek water, he chokes immediately (Paulsen 65). Brian fears the worst and knows that Derek won’t be able to get water until someone rescues them. He reaches for Derek’s briefcase and finds only a map inside, but on the map he sees a river. He studies it and finds that a trader’s post is one hundred miles down along the river (Paulsen 73). Brian decides to take Derek with him instead of leaving him alone and coming back for him. This brings us into the symbol of nature and the river. All throughout the novel, nature is a huge part. From the beginning when Brian and Derek first leave for the Canadian wilderness, to camping out and surviving. The whole novel is about surviving the wilderness. Paulsen also shows nature at it’s best when Brian and Derek were attacked by swarms of mosquitoes multiple times while rafting down the river (Paulsen 86). Another point in the novel, they were faced with a dangerous waterfall in the river. The main inspiration for writing this book came from Paulsen’s award winning book Hatchet. So many of his fans loved reading it that they sent Paulsen letters saying they wanted him to write a sequel. After reading the letters, Paulsen came up with the idea to write The River. A perfect sequel to Hatchet, Brian, the main character of the book, is asked to reenact his survival skills by the government when a plane crashed in the Canadian woods and left him stranded for fifty-four days. I think Gary Paulsen wrote this book for the same reason he wrote many of his books, for hi s love of nature. He has always loved nature and survival. Another reason he wrote this book is because he loves to travel. After reading The River, I realized the whole story was about survival. I wasn’t surprised though, as I read many other books from Gary Paulsen including Hatchet, Brian’s Hunt, Brian’s Yates 7 Winter, and Dogsong. All of those books are similar to The River in that they all have a story based off of adventure, survival, and nature. They are all very well written books and I enjoyed them a lot. If you are into books about a realistic, intense, and interesting survival story packed full of adventures, Gary Paulsen is one other you can turn too. I would highly recommend his books, especially The River. Yates 8 Works Cited â€Å"About Gary.† www.RandomHouse.com. Random House, Inc., 2004. Web. 29 Nov 2011. . â€Å"Biography of Gary Paulsen.† usa-people-search.com. USA People Search, 2011. Web. 29 Nov 2011.

Importance on Being on Time Essay

The Importance of Being On-Time The principal reason for this essay is since I did not follow out proper orders and was not at the right place of duty for PT/Accountability formation at the appropriate time. Though there was a miscommunication, granted on my half, there’s nonetheless no excuse for me to miss a formation. I desire to be a great soldier and I desire to excel inside military. The first step I need to put into action is often making sure I am at the appropriate place of duty at the proper time or preferably with time to spare. This can be a simple task that’s easy and painless to ensure, and it’ll be accomplished. When hearing the term â€Å"be on-time†, almost every individual can comprehend what that phrase means; since it’s been a phrase that’s been used through-out history. This phrase has so many positive/negative consequences that it is unbelievable. A phrase with so much importance, that it must be written and displayed by others to understand it. The societies we live in use this phrase â€Å"be on-time† for many reasons. Every company, school, banks, and etc use it in their policies and their daily lives; from being on time for work, to completing an assignment on time. It helps display a foundation on how an individual preserves themselves, as well as for companies and organizations. It displays their professionalism to others. It provides security in objectives knowing that everything is going according to schedule. As such, this simple phrase â€Å"be on time† comes with many positive consequences if followed correctly. There are many obvious reasons as to why being on time is important. Just by showing up on time it shows that you have the maturity, responsibility and professionalism. It shows that you’re a hard worker and that you’re ready to get the job done. As well, it makes you reliable to take on objectives when they are presented to you. Just â€Å"being on time† will just bring so many positive out-puts, from getting the promotion to a manager, to shaping a better Army. In the Army (in any branch to be more precise) tardiness is unacceptable, so being on time is very important. When someone is late, it makes everyone else run behind on the future objectives they have that day. If an NCO announces that everyone will eat together at a certain time, he expects everyone to be there at that time. However, if someone is late, it will make the rest of the soldiers wait on you, just so they can eat; but even though they can simply hold off and skip chow, food is a vital part to the Army. Soldiers’ need the fuel in order better perform at their duty stations through-out the day. Even with that one soldier being late to eat, it can ruin the whole day for the rest of their battle buddies. One soldier being late can make the schedule completely disrupted. Not to mention that when everything is running behind, everyone will have to end up staying late for that work day. It turns the whole day very hectic and then people tend to get irritated very easily. It would make things run much smoother if everyone was on time. So when someone one is late, not only is it rude but it also messes up other people’s schedules. When someone shows up late, it makes them come off as flaky and people will think that you do not care about your career. On top of that, it’s very disrespectful. When being late or tardy, you are showing that you are not a professional. It can also be assumed that you do not care or respect your job the way you should or need to. When your employer begins to think that you are careless with your job or don’t care about your job they can decide that you are no longer a valuable asset to their company. Once your employer thinks you are no longer an asset to their company they can choose to fire you or they will keep a closer eye on you and wait for another reason to fire you. Being late can cause adverse actions to take place. Adverse actions can range from counseling to an Article 15 or even an early discharge, when in the Army. In the civilian sector it can range from job probation to being fired. In either sector, being late can cause a lot of strain on your job or even cause you to lose your job. This can also affect your life outside of  work by causing trouble at home. In today’s world finding a new job is not an easy task. This means that if you were to get fired from your present job you may not be able to pay bills. On top of that, you let your co-workers/comrades down when you do not show up on time to work. When you fail to show up on time, you’re causing your peers to have to do your work as well as their own. This can cause the mission for the day to be slowed down dramatically. When the mission is slowed down this can cause your leaders to fail at meeting deadlines that may be needed to be met at a specific time in order to meet other deadlines on missions that may be more important than wondering why you are late†¦ Due to the fact, accountability is one of the fundamentals of the military. It not only brings personal responsibility but it also shows the organization of a unit. The US Army depends solely on its soldiers, enlisted, warrant officers and commissioned officers alike. The military would not be anything without the soldiers. When soldiers are not there to perform there duties or they are late, that brings down the efficiency of the unit. Accountability is a great trait to have but it only comes with punctuality. Punctuality shows you are responsible, honest and can follow directions. Punctuality is not just an order that the Army requires, but also a great very own trait that is certainly a reflection of the person’s character, it shows which you have very own integrity and self-discipline. Though some of us are occasionally late due to circumstances beyond our control, habitual tardiness shows a lack of respect for other individuals and their time. If someone is late usually that shows that they more then almost certainly do not care about what their NCO tells them. Time is often a precious gem that should not be wasted at any cost. Should you do not use your time wisely; you are able to in no way get it back. It is a quite specific resource in that you just cannot store it or save it for later. Promptness isn’t only a duty, but can be a part of very good manners; it’s favorable to fortune, reputation, influence, and  usefulness. Lack of punctuality is really a theft of somebody else’s time and a complete lack of respect for others. You need to be punctual in everything you do. Punctuality goes hand in hand with military discipline. Recruits are taught to obey, promptly and with out question, orders from their superiors, appropriate from the day one of boot camp. Military discipline and effectiveness is made over a foundation of obedience to orders. That is why we are supposed work so well being a team. With that being said, being late is becoming a more and more common trend among people of all walks of life, especially in the United States Army. This is completely unacceptable and it violates the Army Values, costs the military more money, and reflects very poorly on the soldier and his first line supervisor. There are many methods available to prevent being late as well as proper steps to take once you know you are going to be late and there is nothing else you can do about it. The Army Values, Leadership, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. When you are late to anything, whether it is a formation or appointment, it goes against nearly all of these values that are instilled in all soldiers. All soldiers are supposed to display the ability to be an effective leader at all times. This is impossible if you are late. For example, if you are a Specialist promotable and late to a few formations that is noticed by the privates around you. Once you make Sergeant they are going to remember those times you were late and question your ability as a leader. It is your duty to follow the orders of those appointed above you as long as they are lawful and moral. When you are told to be at a certain location at a certain time then you are expected to be there. If you can’t perform the simple task of arriving on time, like a formation or keeping an appointment, then it shows that you have no responsibility. Respect is the key to a functioning Army all the way around. Respect must be shown from there is no way you can meet the requirements for duties that require more subordinate to leader, and vice versa from leader to  subordinate. Not arriving to a formation at the appointed time is pure disrespect toward your leaders, and if no respect is shown toward your leader, then it will never be returned to the subordinate. When you chose to be late it shows that you are more worried about yourself than your unit or your career. So in overall, don’t be late. Yes it is understandable that there are going to be those days where the situation was out of your hands. However, most of the time, it’s not. So if any one is planning on making the Army their career for the next 20 years like I am, then start by showing up on time; in fact early so everyone can know that you are taking your job as a Army Soldier seriously.