Sci/256 Week 2 Discussion Question

Identify a natural ecosystem in which you live or one near to where you live? How does this ecosystem support you? At what trophic level are you? Why? An ecosystem (2011), according to Merriam Webster Learners Dictionary, is everything that exists in a particular environment. An ecosystem includes living things, such as plants and animals, and things that are not living, such as rocks, soil, sunlight, and water. One such example of a natural ecosystem is the George Mitchell Nature Preserve in Creekside Village in the Woodlands, TX. Thewoodlandstx. com (2011) website illustrates that the George Mitchell Nature Preserve is part of the Montgomery County Spring Creek Greenway, which will connect and protect up to 12,000 acres of forest on both sides of Spring Creek. The Mitchell Preserve covers nearly 1,700 acres, and opened on October 19th, 2007. The natural ecosystem of this nature preserve can support humans in many ways. For example, the Spring Creek watershed currently contains tens of thousands of acres of bottomland hardwood forest and various edible plants. It also provides homes to wildlife, creates recreation opportunities such as hiking and biking trails, reducing flooding, and improving air quality (Montgomery County Precinct 3, 2011). Not to mention, the preserve increases real estate values and community pride, reduces pollution, and lowers air temperature. Second, wildlife in the nature preserve offers many to take the chance to bird watch. The forests along Spring Creek provide a crucial stopover point for migratory songbirds, where they can rest and refuel after crossing the Gulf of Mexico on their annual spring migration from Central and South America (Montgomery County Precinct 3, 2011). Many species of fish live in the lake year-round including catfish, crappie, and bass. White bass migrate through during springtime, and all are available for fishing. Last, the preserve offers an exceptional educational benefit. Several elementary, middle, and high schools have taken field trips learning about Spring Creek, the preserve, nature, and the benefits it has to offer to the public. A trophic level (2011) according to Encyclopedia Britannica, is a step in the nutritive series, or food chain, in the ecosystem. We as humans eat plants and animals, also considered omnivores. This in terms puts us at the third trophic level. However, several humans who are vegan would be considered second trophic level consumers because they eat only produce. Though it may sound simple, the food chains and food webs are often complex and difficult to analyze. The ecosystem is natural and living. As humans, we are as very much a part of the ecosystem as plants and animals, along with other organisms and bacteria. Although we expend plants and animals as third trophic level consumers and depend on them for survival, we must also take into consideration that the first, second, and fourth trophic level consumers also rely on the ecosystem for survival as well. Thus meaning ecosystems are essential for all life on earth. References Ecosystem. ( 2011). In Merriam Webster Learners Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www. learnersdictionary. com/search/ecosystem Montgomery County Precinct 3. (2011). Spring Creek Greenway. Retrieved from http://www. springcreekgreenway. org/the_creek. htm Thewoodlandstx. com. (2011). The Woodlands TX. Retrieved from http://www. thewoodlandstx. com/parks/george-mitchell-nature-preserve. php Trophic Level. ( 2011). In Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www. britannica. com/EBchecked/topic/606492/trophic-level

The Feminine Mystique And The Paradox Of Change - American Women In Essay

The Feminine Mystique And The Paradox Of Change - American Women In The 20th Century - Essay Example As a result of the survey, Friedan formed the view that women were victims of an erroneous contention that their fulfillment in life could only be achieved â€Å"through their husbands and children†¦such a system causes women to completely lose their identity in that of their family† (Friedan 227-268). In contrast to William Chafe, Betty Friedan confines her observations mainly to the period immediately following World War II and to a single group: â€Å"white middle-class suburban communities†¦[and] that men returning from war turned to their wives for mothering† (Friedan 79-123). Friedan draws copiously on her own experiences and â€Å"remembers her own decision to conform to society’s expectations by giving up her promising career to raise children and found that other young women still struggle with this decision† William H. Chafe Chafe’s method of dealing with the development of American women’s position in the 20th century is to consider how women - in regard to both their social and economic status – underwent a series of changes. In order to achieve this, he took as his central theme the factors underlying women’s inequality and evaluated it in terms of their â€Å"political involvement in public life and their economic progress† (Chafe 21; Otero-Cleves 1). By considering how the role of women in the 20th century had developed, he was able to offer the suggestion. â€Å"The assumption that women constituted a separate and inferior category ended up by pervading both the assignment of women personnel and the salaries they were paid†.

Critically examine the media regulation in Russia Assignment

Critically examine the media regulation in Russia - Assignment Example Russian print media was faced with extreme volatility during the first fifteen years of Russian independence. Owners of the print media were forced to withdraw from their ownership to the government. They faced huge aggression by the Russian government and other political bodies for unknown reason. According to estimation by National Association of TV and Broadcasters, there is an estimated amount of 2168 TV in Russia along with other radio companies (Compulenta, 2009). On the other hand, 161 have a TV and radio license with 799 TV companies and approximately there are 888 radio stations. Similarly, the number of cable operators running in the country is estimated to be 1,511 nationwide (Compulenta, 2009). Media Regulations: Russian media is controlled through strict regulations and control. Russian media does not enjoy a free state in running its operations. Russian media is run under three major laws: the law enforced on mass media during 1991, the law imposed on communication duri ng 2003 and the law on Information Technologies with respect to Protection of Information and Information in 2006. The Law on Mass Media is the only law which has been updated and changed constantly. It was last updated in 2009 (Compulenta, 2009). There are some other federal laws as well which are imposed on other media activities. These laws have defined that how would media project the state government and the political parties nationwide. Russian media is a controlled media with limited freedom given to them. However, at the same time, Russian media is prohibited to project anything that depicts terrorism, violence or nudity in any case. Media is given restricted limits to cover any anti-terrorist operations, if occur. Accountability Systems: During the year 1994, the Congress of Russian Journalist outlined and approved a specific Code of Ethics. The Code of Ethics defined the same laws and implications which were adopted by the press media all around the world. It was been argu ed that the Code of Ethics are least practiced or respected by the Journalists. It is just the formality that they have fulfilled by outlining a law. Also, these laws state the moral responsibilities and duties of a journalist in a very comprehensive manner. It has also been seen that state-owned or privately-owned media and print outlets are somehow influenced and, they are obligated to answer for their projections either to any federal body or to any local authority. Russian Media: An Analysis: Russian media is under continuous change. Different regulations on Information have been imposed. More recently, the current government of Putin has reinforced new impositions on Information and Communication by equally tightening the Internet and other news agencies (Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1075556.html). It has been observed that internet is the only media which is free of any regulation and to some extent; we can call it a â€Å"free-media†. The freedom of spe ech and expression has gained popularity in the Russian masses. Despite the concerns raised by the Putin and his government, authorities have implicated no restrictions against this form of media. However, Putin has raised concerns that authorities should keep a regular check on the information being displayed on the internet. We cannot undermine the control as maintained by the government on the digital and print media. It is believed by the authorities that if country

European Agribusiness Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

European Agribusiness - Research Paper Example To understand the direction of causality, we derive the regression equation in the next section. Regression analysis measures the relationship between two variables. It measures how one variable (the dependent variable) depends on the other (the independent or explanatory variable). The regression model that establishes a relationship between sales and number of employees can be written as follows: and are parameters of the regression line. is the intercept of the regression line and is the slope coefficient of the regression line, which measures how sensitive sales is to the number of employees; is a random error term with zero-expected value. Assuming that has an expected value of zero, we can write the regression equation as follows: It can be observed that the alpha is 0.079911 while the beta or slope coefficient of the line is 0.25. This coefficient is significant at the 1 percent level of significance indicating the existence of a strong linear dependence of sales on the number of employees. To determine which company least fits the regression equation, the expected sales is calculated using the regression equation and assuming that sales depend on the number of employees. ... Sales = 0.079911 + 0.256194 x Number of Employees Company that least fits the Regression Line Code company name Alpha Beta Predicted Sales (billions) Actual Sales (billions) Residual Figure (billions) 1 Nestle 0.079911 0.256194 18.26971 22.7 4.430285 2 Heineken 0.079911 0.256194 10.04587 8.8 -1.24587 3 Groupe Danone 0.079911 0.256194 9.046716 8.6 -0.44672 4 Unilever 0.079911 0.256194 11.35247 8.6 -2.75247 5 Danish Crown Amba 0.079911 0.256194 6.971541 6.5 -0.47154 6 Groupe Lactalis 0.079911 0.256194 6.664108 6.4 -0.26411 7 Associated British Food 0.079911 0.256194 7.330213 5.7 -1.63021 8 Sudzucker 0.079911 0.256194 5.101322 5.8 0.698678 9 Carlsberg 0.079911 0.256194 6.664108 5.2 -1.46411 10 Scottish & Newcastle 0.079911 0.256194 3.922828 4.9 0.977172 11 Royal Friesland Foods 0.079911 0.256194 3.999686 4.7 0.700314 12 Campina 0.079911 0.256194 1.693936 3.6 1.906064 13 Oetker Group 0.079911 0.256194 4.025305 3.6 -0.42531 14 Barilla 0.079911 0.256194 1.873272 3.6 1.726728 15 Tate & Lyle 0.079911 0.256194 1.309645 3.5 2.190355 16 Cadbury Schweppes 0.079911 0.256194 6.10048 3.4 -2.70048 17 Bongrain 0.079911 0.256194 4.076544 3.3 -0.77654 18 Nutreco 0.079911 0.256194 2.00137 3 0.99863 19 Kerry Group 0.079911 0.256194 4.25588 3 -1.25588 20 Danisco 0.079911 0.256194 2.795572 2.8 0.004428 21 Pernod Ricard 0.079911 0.256194 3.256722 2.7 -0.55672 22 Ebro Puleva 0.079911 0.256194 1.642697 2 0.357303 To determine which company least fits the regression equation, the expected sales is calculated using the regression equation and assuming that sales depend on the number of employees. We substitute for the number of employees in the regression equation to get the sales figure for each of the company. This figure is compared to the actual

Energy Balance For An Internal Combustion Engine Engineering Essay

Energy Balance For An Internal Combustion Engine Engineering Essay The main objective of the experiment is to measure the energy contributions to the diesel engine, which is treated as a thermodynamics system. The energy contributions that are not measured may then be estimated from an energy balance. There are two main, unmeasured energy contributions to identify:- An energy loss from incomplete combustion, in which some of the fuel is not burned completely. An energy loss by heat transfer to the air surrounding hot engine components. Introduction A Petter four stroke diesel engine will be used to investigate the efficiency of a diesel engine. Diesel engines are  internal combustion engines  designed to convert the chemical energy available in the fuel, into mechanical energy. This mechanical energy moves the pistons up and down inside cylinders. The pistons are connected to a crankshaft, and the up-and-down motion of the pistons, known as linear motion, creates the rotary motion needed to turn the wheels of a car forward. We are already aware of the fact that internal combustion engines have very low efficiencies, but the purpose of such experiment is to study where and how the energy is used and lost. This would help us to improve the efficiency of the internal combustion engines where ever possible. Theory Both diesel engines and petrol engines convert fuel into energy through a series of small explosions or combustions. The major difference between diesel and petrol engines is the way these explosions happen. In a petrol engine, fuel is mixed with air, compressed by pistons and ignited by sparks from spark plugs. In a diesel engine, however, the air is compressed first, and then the fuel is injected, because as the air is compressed it heats up to around 400 °C, it is hot enough to ignite fuel. A four stroke diesel engine uses the following cycle (illustrated in Figure1): Intake stroke   The intake valve opens, and fresh air (containing no fuel), is drawn into the cylinder, moving the piston down. Compression stroke   As the piston rises, the air is compressed, causing its temperature to rise. At the end of the compression stroke, the air is hot enough to ignite fuel. Combustion stroke   As the piston reaches the top, fuel is injected at just the right moment and ignited, forcing the piston back down. Exhaust stroke   The piston moves back to the top, pushing out the exhaust created from the combustion out of the exhaust valve. Figure 1 24075-004-613c6f14.gif Eq1From the basic steady flow energy equation, using the air-cycle method, we may write:- The value of can be approximated, closely, to: , Cpe is taken as 1100J/KgK It is convenient to replace by in order to make an allowance for the possibility of incomplete combustion. *Where, FL, is the proportion of fuel energy that is not available because of incomplete combustion. Heat transfer, (Qr), is the sum of energy transferred to cooling water and energy lost to the surrounding from hot engine components, therefore we can write: Qr = -dot mw Cpw ( Tout Tin ) + Qrn Replacing all quantities in Eq1 we get: Symbols explained as follows: rate of heat energy transfer of system rate of the work done by the system (power) combustion air mass flow rate fuel mass rate specific enthalpy of products of combustion specific enthalpy of combustion air specific heat of water 4190 J/kgK Apparatus The Apparatus used in this experiment is mentioned as follows: Petter Diesel Engine: A four stroke, single cylinder, 659CC Petter Diesel Engine was used to conduct the experiment. Figure 2 shows the picture of Petter Diesel Engine used in the experiment. Ear Muffles: Ear muffles were used to protect the ears from the loud noise of the diesel engine; prolonged exposure to such loud noise without ear protection can lead to hearing impairment. Barometer: A Barometer was used to measure the atmospheric pressure at the time of experiment. Atmospheric pressure was needed to calculate the mass flow rate. The Barometer gives readings in mmHg. Figure 3 shows the picture of barometer used in the experiment. IMG_4763.JPGIMG_4767.JPG Figure 2 Figure 3 Experimental Procedure The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the efficiency of a diesel engine. To start with the experiment, all the gauges on the apparatus were pre set to default readings and as a safety precaution all students were provided with ear muffles. Each individual group member was assigned a task by the module lecturer. My assigned task was to measure the oil and at the same time, time the engine as it consumed the set amount of diesel. Similarly other students were given tasks, which they carried on doing as the experiment progressed. The engine was started and after waiting for the recommended time of ten minutes, all the readings were taken off gauges. A weight of 5kg was already placed onto the torque arm before starting the engine. Measurements such as fuel flow rate, cooling water flow-rate, spring balance, orifice plate pressure drop, speed gauge and electric thermometer were taken. Electric thermometer reading is divided into four parts, mentioned as follows: Exhaust temperature Cooling water inlet temperature Cooling water outlet temperature Air inlet temperature After taking all the readings, engine was shut down and ear muffles were removed. The readings taken off the gauges were then used to work out the energy balance for an internal combustion engine. Results MEASURED PROPERTY VALUE UNITS Atmospheric Pressure 764 mmHg Engine Speed 1500 rpm Spring balance reading 15 N Mass on torque arm 5 Kg Amount of Fuel measured 20 ml Time to consume fuel 97 Seconds Relative density of fuel 0.864 Orifice plate pressure drop 31 mmH2O Exhaust gas temperature 260 Degrees Celsius Cooling water inlet temperature 69 Degrees Celsius Cooling water outlet Temperature 75 Degrees Celsius Air inlet Temperature 18.5 Degrees Celsius Cooling water flow-rate 5 litres/minute Following readings were obtained from the gauges: 1. Shaft power output= torque* shaft rotational speed = W(kg load -dial reading)*rt*N(rpm)*2Ï€/60 = (5*9.81)-15*0.4*1500*2Ï€/60 = 2139.42 Watts = 6.13 10-3 kg/s 3. Fuel flow rate = = (20 10-3/1000) (864) = Kg/s 4. Heat transfer rate to the cooling water = {(l/min)/60} * 4.196* (Tout Tin) = *4.196*(75-69) = 2.098 kJ/s 5. Heat transfer to exhaust gases = (6.24 = 1.70 kJ/s 6. Energy Balance: Fuel Energy Input = mf*LCV = (1.7810-4) x (43106) = +7654W Shaft Power Output= + 2139.42W Cooling Water Heat Transfer= +2098W Exhaust Heat Transfer = +1700W Energy Transfer =Qm-mf *FL = -7654+2139.42+2098+1700 = -1716.58W Efficiency = n=useful work output fuel energy input =2139.42 x 100 7654 =27.95% (Useful Work) Energy to surroundings = (Heat supplied in fuel Useful work done Energy to coolant Energy to exhaust) = 7.66 2.14 2.10 1.68 = 1.74KW Percentage energy to coolant = Energy to coolant 100 Heat supplied in fuel = x 100 = 27.41% Percentage to exhaust = Energy to exhaust 100 Heat supplied in fuel = x 100 = 21.93% Percentage loss to the surrounding = Energy to surroundings 100 Heat supplied in fuel = x 100 = 22.71% pie chart.jpg Figure 5 Figure 4 Discussion Engine efficiency refers to an engines ability to transform the available energy from its fuel into useful work. The modern petrol combustion engine operates at an average of roughly 20 to 30 percent engine efficiency. The remaining 70 to 80 percent of the energy is lost to the surroundings in form of exhaust heat, mechanical sound energy and friction. Diesel engines are a bit more efficient. The  diesel engine  uses high compression to ignite its fuel. This higher compression compensates for the engines heat losses and results in roughly 40 percent engine efficiency. This engine efficiency is only observed by direct injection diesel engines (discussed later). Rest 60 percent energy, like the petrol engine is lost to the surroundings. The Petter diesel engine which was the subject of this experiment showed a poor overall efficiency compared to an average diesel engine. The overall efficiency of the Petter diesel engine was only 27.95 percent. The reason for such poor efficiency was that most of the energy was lost to surrounding, but that doesnt mean that the engine cannot me made more efficient. See Figure 4 and 5 for the distribution of energy lost and utilised. There are many ways to improve the efficiency of a diesel engine, some are discussed below: Turbochargers: The purpose of a turbocharger is to compress the air flowing into the diesel engine, this lets the engine squeeze more air into a cylinder and more air means that more fuel can be added; basically a turbocharger converts waste energy from an engines exhaust gases into compressed air, which it pushes into the engine. This allows the engine to burn more fuel producing more power and improves the overall efficiency of the combustion process, hence making the engine more efficient. However, the only disadvantage of a turbocharger is that, if it is in a cars engine it would take a few second to respond as the driver presses the pedal, this phenomenon is known as lag. Turbocharger suffers from lag because it takes a few moments before the exhaust gases reach a velocity that is sufficient to drive the impeller/turbine. Direct Injection: With direct injection, the diesel fuel is directly injected into the cylinder i.e. fuel is mixed with air inside the cylinder, allowing for better control over the amount of fuel used, and varies depending on demand. This makes the engine more fuel efficient. Before direct injection, the fuel was mixed with air in the cars intake manifold. Variable Valve Timing: Valves open and close to allow air and fuel to enter cylinders and for the products of combustion to exit. Different valve timings produce different results (more power and or better fuel economy). Many modern engines can vary valve timing, allowing the default low RPM range of the engine to have more economical timing, and the higher RPM range to go for max power. Cylinder Deactivation: Internal Combustion Engines, with this feature can simply deactivate some cylinders when less power is required, temporarily reducing the total volume of the engine cylinders and so burning less fuel. This feature is mostly found on V6 and V8 engines. Super Charger: Superchargers increase the intake of air into the combustion chamber. This means, more air into the combustion chamber and with more air, more fuel can be added, and more fuel means a bigger explosion and greater  horsepower. Adding a supercharger is a good way to increase the power of a normal-sized engine and thus making it more efficient. Superchargers also create better fuel efficiency by increasing the amount of oxygen available to an engines combustion chambers, because superchargers increase the power of the engine by utilising more oxygen, they do not require a larger engine and therefore also increase fuel efficiency by allowing cars to be lighter. The biggest disadvantage of superchargers however, is that they steal some of the engines horsepower. A supercharger can consume as much as 20 percent of an engines total power output but also generates as much as 46 percent additional horsepower. Since, it generates more power than it requires, it is generally th ought to be good option to increase engines efficiency. Conclusion Diesel engines are a form of Internal Combustion Engines. They are very inefficient if working on their own. Generally about 25-30 percent energy is used in work and the rest is lost to surroundings. The efficiency of a diesel engine can be enhanced by at least 10-15 percent if combined with the modern technological devices, such as turbochargers and superchargers. Other clever techniques can also be used to improve the fuel efficiency and overall engine efficiency of the engine, such as direct injection, variable valve timing and cylinder deactivation. Unfortunately, from the very beginning the focus on an internal combustion engine has been on producing more power rather than providing a better fuel economy, but nowadays due to growing awareness of environment and rising oil prices, engineers have shifted their attention on to producing more fuel efficient engines. For example, BMW is researching on ways to increase the fuel efficiency of a conventional engine by 10-15 percent by looking to  recover and reuse heat energy  lost through the exhaust and that absorbed by the engine cooling system. With such initiatives we can see a future of more efficient and more environmentally friendly engines.

Elements Contributing to Othellos Role of the Tragic Hero Essay

Elements Contributing to Othello's Role of the Tragic Hero What is a tragic hero? A tragic hero is the protagonist in the play who usually is faced with some opposing force whether internal or external. In order to be a tragic hero, one has to have the following characteristics: (1) be a nobleman, prince, or person of high estate; (2) have a tragic flaw, and a weakness in judgement; and (3) fall from high to low estate. These can be seen in Shakespeare's "Othello" which discusses the downfall of a noble man because of his flaws that are not actually defects in itself, but rather the excess of a virtue. All throughout this paper, I will discuss how Othello was being said as a nobleman and how his attributes became his tragic flaws that caused his downfall. We can say that Othello is a nobleman because of the respect brought forth by the people of Cyprus in the first scene of the second act, when Montano, the Governor of Cyprus, is awaiting the arrival of Othello's ship, he remarked: " Pray heaven he be, For I have served him, and the man commands Like a full soldier†¦ As to throw out our eyes for brave Othello†¦" (II.i.36-40) In this text, we can see that he is a proven leader of men and known for his military knowledge and skills. As a matter of fact, his soldiers hold him in awe, and throughout the play he is referred to as a captain whom do his comrades respect. On the other hand, his noble attributes such as self-confidence, generous trust and love became the perfect concoction which eventually lead to his destruction. In other words his positive attributes are responsible for bringing out his negative side, his flaws in character. In the case of his self-confidence, it is clear at first that... ...struction in Othello himself of all the ordering powers of love, of trust, of the bond between human beings. Obviously Othello portrays the characteristics of a tragic hero. He clearly was a man of nobility, of noble character and held in a very high estate. He was discussed in this play by displaying his positive traits which man continues to search for in order to fulfill a happy life. His traits quickly came crashing down because of character flaws in other people such as deceit, fraud, selfishness, hatred, and a deep desire for revenge. Following Othello's trust for his good friend Iago, he clearly demonstrated flaws in the forms of judgments, jealousy, loss of self-control and his lack of self confidence in himself. All this eventually lead to the murder of Desdemona whom he continued to love through the end and his own eventual self inflicted death.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Huck Essay

Sometimes in literature, authors will use minor characters to highlight important qualities of another character. This approach helps the reader better understand the character since character foiling helps to identify their strengths and weaknesses. Mark Twain uses several character foils, each of which have a different impact on Huck’s moral growth. Throughout the classic American novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck’s friends help to bring out the best of his traits and morals: Buck, Tom and the King and the Duke. ! For example, Tom Sawyer serves as a character foil for Huck Finn. Tom and Huck’s religious beliefs con? ict since Tom believes in genies, and Miss Watson tries to teach Huck what she thinks is right. Huck comes to the conclusion Tom doesn’t know what he is talking about; â€Å"So then I judged that all the stuff was only just one of Tom Sawyer’s lies† (14). As a result, Tom’s ideas lead Huck to form his own beliefs and challenge the majority of peoples’s way of thinking. Tom also foils Huck at the end of the book when he uses his imagination and knowledge of books to corroborate a plan to free Jim. His unrealistic plan aggravates Huck; â€Å"Good land†¦ why, there ain’t no necessity for it† (239). Tom’s foolish childish behavior didn’t bother Huck until now but since Tom is fooling around with Jim’s life and freedom, it makes Huck question his relationship with Tom. Tom’s actions affect Huck is a positive way that help him grow religiously and in maturity. Just as Tom foiled Huck, Twain uses Buck to do the same Buck Grangerford’s lifestyle is not similar to Huck’s which highlights the differences in Huck’s up-bringing. Buck’s home life is much different than Huck’s speci? cally in regards to Buck having someone to wait on him hand and foot: â€Å"My nigger had a monstrous easy time, because I warn’t used to having anybody do anything for me, but Buck’s [slave] was on the jump most of the time† (106). This example shows that Huck is independent and doesn’t need someone to wait on him. Buck can relax and be free of any responsibility. In addition, Buck has â€Å"†¦ a might nice family, and a mighty nice house, too† (99). Buck was raised without the worry of when his next meal was going to be put on the table, or if his father would die from his alcoholism problem. Buck is raised with a fair amount of money, an education, and freedom which Huck lacks. Huck’s lifestyle is the opposite of Buck’s and Twain does this on purpose to express the struggle Huck has with his own life. Not only does Twain use Buck and Tom to foil Huck, he uses the king and the duke to contrast Huck. ! The outlandish, inconsiderate Duke and King affect Huck with their remorseless theft and sel? shness. The con-artists’ plans to take money from the innocent townspeople rub Huck the wrong way but when they want to steal from Mary Jane and the Grangerford’s, Huck won’t stand for it. Huck decides to tell Mary Jane that her â€Å"uncles of yourn ain’t no uncles at all: they’re a couple of frauds- regular dead-beats†, because they just want land and money from the Grangerfords (187). The King and Duke’s actions compel Huck to be mature and tell Mary Jane what is actually going on. Later on in the book, Huck sees the King and the Duke tarred and feathered being chased from the town because of what they have done. Huck realizes he is â€Å"sorry for them poop pitful rascals, it seemed like I couldn’t ever feel any hardness against them any more in the world† (230). Huck thinks back on how he hated them and thought they were scumbags because of what they had done to innocent people. Now he feels bad for them even thought they deserved it. Huck has grown as a person who can forgive instead of keeping a grudge. ! Twain artfully uses Tom, Buck, and the King and the Duke as character foils that help Huck grow morally throughout the book. All three sets of foils are different on purpose because Twain wanted to show the readers the affects other characters can have someone. It does not the age or intelligence of the minor character. Twain’s logic is that using character foil gets his point across because the reader may not have picked up on traits or morals a character has since it was not directly stated. Not only do people affect others in literature, in the real world people’s actions affect others. A small kind gesture can change someone’s mood or attitude for the rest of the day. Or even something someone says might change another person’s outlook on a problem they are having or even larger, their life. The use of character foil is very important in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and more importantly the real world today. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Huck Essay Sometimes in literature, authors will use minor characters to highlight important qualities of another character. This approach helps the reader better understand the character since character foiling helps to identify their strengths and weaknesses. Mark Twain uses several character foils, each of which have a different impact on Huck’s moral growth. Throughout the classic American novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck’s friends help to bring out the best of his traits and morals: Buck, Tom and the King and the Duke. ! For example, Tom Sawyer serves as a character foil for Huck Finn. Tom and Huck’s religious beliefs con? ict since Tom believes in genies, and Miss Watson tries to teach Huck what she thinks is right. Huck comes to the conclusion Tom doesn’t know what he is talking about; â€Å"So then I judged that all the stuff was only just one of Tom Sawyer’s lies† (14). As a result, Tom’s ideas lead Huck to form his own beliefs and challenge the majority of peoples’s way of thinking. Tom also foils Huck at the end of the book when he uses his imagination and knowledge of books to corroborate a plan to free Jim. His unrealistic plan aggravates Huck; â€Å"Good land†¦ why, there ain’t no necessity for it† (239). Tom’s foolish childish behavior didn’t bother Huck until now but since Tom is fooling around with Jim’s life and freedom, it makes Huck question his relationship with Tom. Tom’s actions affect Huck is a positive way that help him grow religiously and in maturity. Just as Tom foiled Huck, Twain uses Buck to do the same Buck Grangerford’s lifestyle is not similar to Huck’s which highlights the differences in Huck’s up-bringing. Buck’s home life is much different than Huck’s speci? ally in regards to Buck having someone to wait on him hand and foot: â€Å"My nigger had a monstrous easy time, because I warn’t used to having anybody do anything for me, but Buck’s [slave] was on the jump most of the time† (106). This example shows that Huck is independent and doesn’t need someone to wait on him. Buck can relax and be free of any responsibility. In addition, Buck has â€Å"†¦ a might nice family, and a mighty nice house, too† (99). Buck was raised without the worry of when his next meal was going to be put on the table, or if his father would die from his alcoholism problem. Buck is raised with a fair amount of money, an education, and freedom which Huck lacks. Huck’s lifestyle is the opposite of Buck’s and Twain does this on purpose to express the struggle Huck has with his own life. Not only does Twain use Buck and Tom to foil Huck, he uses the king and the duke to contrast Huck. ! The outlandish, inconsiderate Duke and King affect Huck with their remorseless theft and sel? shness. The con-artists’ plans to take money from the innocent townspeople rub Huck the wrong way but when they want to steal from Mary Jane and the Grangerford’s, Huck won’t stand for it. Huck decides to tell Mary Jane that her â€Å"uncles of yourn ain’t no uncles at all: they’re a couple of frauds- regular dead-beats†, because they just want land and money from the Grangerfords (187). The King and Duke’s actions compel Huck to be mature and tell Mary Jane what is actually going on. Later on in the book, Huck sees the King and the Duke tarred and feathered being chased from the town because of what they have done. Huck realizes he is â€Å"sorry for them poop pitful rascals, it seemed like I couldn’t ever feel any hardness against them any more in the world† (230). Huck thinks back on how he hated them and thought they were scumbags because of what they had done to innocent people. Now he feels bad for them even thought they deserved it. Huck has grown as a person who can forgive instead of keeping a grudge. ! Twain artfully uses Tom, Buck, and the King and the Duke as character foils that help Huck grow morally throughout the book. All three sets of foils are different on purpose because Twain wanted to show the readers the affects other characters can have someone. It does not the age or intelligence of the minor character. Twain’s logic is that using character foil gets his point across because the reader may not have picked up on traits or morals a character has since it was not directly stated. Not only do people affect others in literature, in the real world people’s actions affect others. A small kind gesture can change someone’s mood or attitude for the rest of the day. Or even something someone says might change another person’s outlook on a problem they are having or even larger, their life. The use of character foil is very important in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and more importantly the real world today.

Lagaan

The movie entitled â€Å"Lagaan† is a depiction of ancient Indian society. Indian is full of dignity in this story. The director and the writer wanted to convey in their film the meaning and essence of Indian culture. Despite of all the odds, circumstances, and failures that they experienced within their environment and in the hands of the colonizers, they strive hard to be the best at anything. Playing cricket is one of the most significant occurrences that they wanted to share as a way of showing their culture and tradition. Bhuvan as the main character in the story became the leader of everyone in their community. They accepted the challenge of the British captain and convicted to gain their dignity and pride. The story showed the narrative of Indian life during the colonial period. It represents the social, psychological, political, and economic life of Indians where culture surrounds all of it. The director wanted to share his thoughts on the issues that Indians always experience all throughout their lives. However, Indian culture and society has no fear of everything whether things go wrong or right within them. This is what the director and the writer wanted to impose in their story. They wanted their audience to understand the meaning of India not as a country in defeat and weaknesses but also with pride and strength to face anything. At the end of the story, the director leaves its audience the imagination of overcoming the circumstances in the community. There is a question in the end of the movie – will Bhuvan and his team win from the captain? There is one big conflict at the end of it – one of Bhuvan’s team was paid to lose the game. It shows that the resolution of the story lies within the audience. It depends on what they wanted at the end whether to win the Indians or losing their dignity and pride towards the colonizers. Reference Ashutosh Gowariker. Lagaan. 2002.