The Character of Carol Kennicott in Main Street Essay example -- Main

The Character of Carol Kennicott in Main Street The protagonist in this story is Carol Kennicott. She is a young woman attending college in St. Paul Minnesota. She wants to go somewhere in her life. She has gone out and gotten a college education so that she won’t have to be a house wife. She has an outgoing personality and is continuously trying to change the things around her. She meets a man named William Kennicott. They fall in love and move to the small town of Gopher Prairie. While there Carol tries to change her home, as well as all of the other buildings in town. Carol is identified as the protagonist because she’s the main character and she has a conflict to overcome. Paragraph 2 The antagonist in this story is Carol’s personality. She is always trying to stay in love with William, but at the same time she can’t stand the thought of living in a small town where the people don’t change. It’s important to the antagonist that she change the world one small community at a time. All of the attempts made by Carol are failures because she’s moving too fast for the citizens of Gopher Prairie. Paragraph 3 The conflict in this story is best described as Carol vs. Herself. Carol wants to love Will and be a loyal wife. She wants to love his mother and be a mother herself. Carol has the desire and willingness to stay with Will, but at the same time the thought of changing the town and not adapting to their ways is always implanted in her mind. Carol wants to change the town to a more contemporary time. She has always had this thought, even during her stay at college. The reason she attended college is so that she wouldn’t have to live the cliched life of being a house wife, with darling children, and an adoring husband. Carol has a desire from both ends of this argument. She loves her husband, but small town life doesn’t suit her. This conflict is internal because Carol is always at war with her conscience. Paragraph 4 The climax of this story comes in the last two chapters. Carol has moved to Washington and is pursuing a career that will help change the city. Will comes out to visit and he brings photographs of Gopher Prairie and the surrounding fields. It becomes apparent at this point that Carol no longer wants to stay in Washington. She realizes that all the time she spent in Gopher Prairie she never gave th... ...s two opposing opinions to the reader. The reader is allowed to make his own assumptions and opinions on the different situations that arise. The narrator tells the reader of Carol’s aspirations of changing small town America. At the same time he is able to give Will’s feelings about Carol being a â€Å"normal† wife. The narrator is also able to express the feelings of the other characters who occupy the town. These thoughts are very insightful and make for a better understanding of Carol. Paragraph 12 Personification: â€Å"the trees by Sam’s hardware shop reached out as to consume the daylight.† Simile: â€Å"Kennicott was as fixed in routine as an isolated old man.† Paragraph 13 This novel was interesting but at the same time it failed to really catch my attention and intrigue me. I was under the assumption that it was risky and questioned peoples values. My only thought on this is that I’m reading it in 2001 and the novel was published in 1948. My views are drastically different from those of a country who put women on a lower standard than men. I would give this book a moderate rating because it didn’t catch my eye but at the same time had a decent point to prove.

Paul Cronan and New England Telephone Company :: essays research papers

1. Identification of the â€Å"critical or relevant facts† from the case† Paul Cronan was working for New England Telephone Company while diagnosed with ARC – Aids Related Complex and started showing symptoms of AIDS. His supervisors started to get concern with his job performance and health due to his very poor attendance, and the increased amount of absences. During spring 1985, Paul had requested permission on two different days to leave work due to a doctor’s appointment. Paul’s supervisor Charles O’Brian refused to grant him permission a third time, unless he informs him on the reason for the appointment. Charles O’Brian told Paul Cronan that it is company practice to inform the person’s supervisor of any matter which could involve affecting the attendance of an employee. Charles O’Brian insisted on knowing the nature of the doctor’s visits. He promised Paul Cronan that the information would be held in confidence. Charles O’Brian instructed Paul Cronan to see the New England Telephone Company’s doctor. The doctor determined that he had AIDS and recommended to see a psychiatrist. Within the company it became public news that he had AIDS. Other employees were getting afraid of the chance of getting AIDS from Paul Cronan. Paul Caronan started to feel very unsafe to return to work and had requested a medical leave. He soon started receiving sickness benefits. Paul Cronan’s physician sent a medical certificate stating that he was considered disabled for an estimated time frame of three months. The benefits for being disabled was approved for the three months and then extended for 9 months. Paul Cronan decided to sue New England Telephone Company for discrimination against his disability. It was decided by Paul Cronan to settle out of court and they had reached an agreement to let him return to work, and reach a financial settlement. They agreed to reassign Paul Cronan to a new facility in Needham. They also denied all of the allegations and had admitted to no wrong doing. New England Telephone Company agreed to educate the new workers about AIDS at the new facility in Needham. New England Telephone Company held an education meeting between workers and AIDS medical specialists. The doctors informed the employees there was no way AIDS can be transmitted with casual contract. The first day that Paul Cronan returned to work he was exposed to threats from his coworkers because of his sexuality and illness.

Finlands Education System Essay

â€Å"The Finland Phenomenon† a name given to Finland’s admired education system. It is listed as the most surprising school system in the world. Its success is intently watched by other countries. The assigned video â€Å"Finland’s Education Success† was documented by Tom Burridge of BBC World News America on April 6, 2010. Week four Reading Journal for English 101 was a writing assignment asking students if the system could be implemented in the United States. â€Å"Finland’s schools score consistently at the top of the world rankings yet the pupils have the fewest number of class hours in the developed world. The proof is in the results and Finland has an education system other countries should learn from and envy. The transformation of Finland’s education system began 40 years ago as a key component to an economic recovery plan. The educators had no idea it was so successful until the year 2000, when a standardized test was given to fifteen years old students. The results revealed the scores. The Finnish youth came out on top as the best readers in the world. Three years later the youth led the scores in math as well. â€Å"By 2006 Finland was first out of 57 countries. The Finnish answer to standardized testing has been to only give exams to small groups of students and to trust in teachers. In 1991 the National Board of Education closed its inspectorate. â€Å"Teachers in Finland design their own courses using a national curriculum as a guide and spend about eighty percent as much time leading classes as their U. S. counterparts do. † Finnish teachers have sufficient opportunity to plan lessons and collaborate with colleagues. â€Å"Teachers in Finland spend fewer hours at school and less time in the classroom than American teachers. In 1979 reformers decided that every teacher in Finland earn a fifth-year master’s degree in theory and practice at one of the eight state universities. From that time forward teachers were granted equal status with doctors and lawyers. Teaching programs were flooded with applicants not because the salaries were that high, but because respect made the job so attractive. Pasi Sahlberg a former physics teacher points out â€Å"We prepare children to learn how to learn and not how to take a test†. All children- clever or less so- were to be taught in the same classrooms, with lots of special teacher help available to make sure no child would be left behind. † Compulsory school in Finland doesn’t begin until children reach the age of seven. â€Å"Children learn better when they are ready. Why stress them out? † Finnish culture values childhood independence children get themselves to school by either walking or biking. Upon arrival at school, children remove their shoes to maintain a relaxed atmosphere. Finnish children spend far more time playing outside even in the depth of winter. The children can’t learn if they don’t play. The children must play† The Finnish children are provided with seventy-five minutes of recess a day compared to the average of twenty-seven for U. S children. Finnish schools don’t assign homework because it is assumed the task is mastered in the classroom. Children are also mandated to take lots of arts and crafts and learning by doing. This is a far cry from the U. S concentration on testing in reading and math since the enactment of No Child Left Behind in 2002. The focus in Finland is on the individual child. If a child is falling behind, the highly trained staff recognizes and addresses the issues to meet the child’s needs. Nearly thirty percent of the children in Finland receive some kind of special help during their first nine years in school. The true focus on education is â€Å"equal opportunity for all. † Finnish educators have a hard time understanding the United States’ fascination with standardized tests. â€Å"Americans like all these bars and graphs and colored charts. † ‘It’s nonsense. We know far more about the children than these tests can tell us. Finland has a culture of collaboration between schools, not competition. All schools perform at the same level and there is no status in attending a particular facility. Finland has no private schools and all Finland’s schools are publicly funded. It is surprising to know that Finland spends about thirty percent less per student to achieve their far superior educational outcomes. The people in the government agencies running the schools from the national officials to the local officials are educators, not business people, military leaders or career politicians. The United States has muddled along in the middle of the pack for the past decade. Government officials have attempted to introduce competition into public schools. President Obama’s Race to the Top initiative invites states to compete for federal dollars using tests and other methods to measure teachers, a philosophy that goes against everything the Finnish schools stand for. â€Å"If you only measure the statistics, you miss the human aspect. † Fortunately United States Federal policies continue to move away from the rigid certainties of the No Child Left Behind legislation. The law has set an unrealistic target for one hundred percent student proficiency in every school by 2014. I couldn’t agree more with the Finland approach to education. In order for the United States to come close to Finland’s success a major change would need to occur. A change I believe would take decades to complete. â€Å"The Finns have made it clear, that in any country, no matter its size or composition, there is much wisdom to minimizing testing and instead investing in broader curricula, smaller classes, and better training, pay and treatment of teachers. The United States should take heed. †

An overview of blood doping Essay

Engaging in competitive sports can take a lot out of the body of an athlete. To be competitive, the athlete would require a lot of stamina. In order to maintain their endurance and drive for competition, red blood cells would have to be injected in the muscles of the athlete. By doing so, they would have a huge advantage over their rivals. This has paved the way for the birth of an illegal method called blood doping or blood packing. The Meaning and Rationale For Blood Doping Doping is usually conducted prior to the start of competition. The blood of the athlete will be collected and then processed so it will accumulate concentrated blood cells. Afterwards, the collected sample will be kept in a freezer so it will be re-injected into the athlete or matched with the sample of a donor before their scheduled event(Pollick, n. d). Blood doping is resorted to by athletes because they believe that getting additional red blood cells will provide more oxygen as well as other vital components to their muscle system which can pave the way for improved endurance and better stamina. For an athlete who is competing in events such as cycling or running, condition is more important than skills and strategies(Pollick, n. d). It is worth noting that another kind of practice known as â€Å"downstream† is a good method designed to maintain the physiological and biological balance of the body. This can be used to compensate for the undesirable effects of â€Å"upstream† doping(CNRS, 1998). Blood Doping Methods There are two ways of injecting blood into the body of an athlete. Autologous doping involves the transfer of the sportman’s own blood which has been frozen until required. Homologous doping, on the other hand, is the transmission of blood from a donor which matches the blood type of the athelete(Pollick, n. d). The History of Blood Doping Ancient Greece was the sight of the first doping attempts by sportsmen. They were believed to have utilized special food and stimulated ingredients to provide them strength. During the 19th century, Greek cyclists used caffeine, strychnine, alcohol, and cocaine(WADA, n.d). In 1904, Thomas Hicks won the gold medal in Olympics by consuming brandy and raw egg, and injecting himself with strychnine shots. By the 1920s, prohibitions on drug use was being put in place(WADA, n. d). The International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) in 1928 pioneered the bannig of performance-enhancing drugs among international sports federations. However, they proved futile due to the absence of testing methods. The problem becam worse with the introduction of synthetic hormones in the 1930s. It was only during the 1960 Rome Olympic Games when Knud Enemark Jensen, a Dutch cyclist, died as a result of amphetamine, did sports authorities made attempts in testing drug use among athletes(WADA, n. d). Cycling and football were the first sports events that conducted drug testing among their athletes. In 1967, the IOC instructed its Medical Commission to come up with an initial listing of prohibited drugs(WADA, n. d. ). By the 1970s, majority of the international sports federations were engaged in drug testing among their athletes. By this time, anabolic steroids were becoming popular particularly among athletes competing in strength competitions. The substance was added to the IOC list in 1976 which resulted to several disqualifications in the latter part of the 1970s(WADA, n. d. ). Drug testing became mandatory in the Olympics beginning at the Winter Olympics and at the Olympics in 1968. Anti-doping measures became even more dire with the death of Tom Simpson at the Tour de France(WADA, n. d. ). Successful Drug Testing Efforts The ten years covering the 1970s to the 1980s became even more complicated after suspicions of some countries engaging in blood doping were aroused. This was proven by the case of the German Democratic Republic. The most notable disqualification of the Olympic Games happened in 1988 when Ben Johnson, who was then the reigning world champion in the 100-meter event, was found positive for using anabolic steroids(WADA, n. d). In 1998, huge stacks of illegal medical drugs were discovered during a raid in the Tour de France. This was quite ironic since France was among the leading countries that enacted anti-doping laws since 1963(WADA, n. d). The scandal that tainted the reputation of the Tour de France as an annual sporting competition made the need for a separate anti-doping agency became even more urgent. A year later, the World Conference on Doping in Sports was initiated by the IOC in Lausanne, Switzerland. During that convention, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) was born(WADA, n. d) Over the years, blood doping has been a banned practice in the Olympic Games as well as in other international sporting events. A major dilemma that the Olympic Games experienced is the use of anabolic steroids, the human growth hormone, and other performance-enhancing substances. While considered illegal, athletes felt that in order for them to stay in a competitive level, they have no choice but to use them(CCES, n. d). With the crumbling of the Berlin Wall and the unification of East and West Germany in the 1990s, evidence surfaced proving that East Germany has been injecting performance-enhancing substances to their atheletes for over 20 years(Guttman, n. d). In order to combat the problem of doping, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) established the World Anti-Doping Agency in 1999. The aim of the agency was to monitor the use of drug in international sports events. As their contribution to this effort, each participating state established their in-house enforcement agencies to conduct monitoring and testing of their own athletes. Mandatory drug testing has become a requirement for competing in the Olympics. During the 2004 Olympic Games hosted by Athens, a record number of 20 athletes faced disqualification for drug penalties(WADA, n. d).

Hazards and Benefits of Science and Technology Essay

The last two centuries have seen monumental changes in our lives, brought forth by advancements in science and technology. These advancements have their hazards and benefits in the society. It is these negative and positive impacts that this paper will be looking at. Right from the days that men discovered how to make fire, discoveries have come streaming our way at an amazing rate. Telephones, cars, rockets and computers have all been brought by science. Undeniably these inventions have made our lives better and tolerable. The benefits reaped throigh the inventions in medicine cannot be underscored or under estimated. It has helped us to cope with our bodies and health in uncountable ways. The benefits of medicine now can enable us live a full life with the best health possible. Many epidemics in the early days caused immeasurable human sufferings and losses of untold magnitude, and so too could small pox and polio have done had it not been for science, leading to a discovery of effective vaccinations. Medicine is saving lives and giving patients a second chance to live. A heart surgery and a transplant had always been unimaginable and a patient with a heart ailment was considered to be living his/her last days. This however changed in the 20th century when the first heart transplant was conducted by Bernard. Medicine continues to help us fight deadly diseases while giving us an opportunity to take control of our lives. It is just but a matter of time that pandemics such as AIDS and diabetes will have a cure. These are just but a few examples of how medicine, occasioned by advents in science and technology, is benefiting our lives. Technology continues to ease communication in a phenomenal way. Looking at how far we have come amazes me even more- from the days of drums and smoke to a complete different era of digital technology where almost everything is done at the touch of a button. Now it is taking only a few seconds to communicate to somebody you are separated with by seas and vast lands. The hallmark of these inventions in the communication sector is the computer. It has revolutionalized our lives in ways that could not have been imagined before. Storage and retrieval of data has improved a lot, analysis of data and events is only now a matter of seconds. Telegraphs and tele faxes came but now they have been undertaken by the internet and mobile phones. Internet has also revolutionized research and information access which has become cheaper and fast. Business transactions are now completed at the touch of a key through e-commerce saving a great amount of time. The entertainment industry has not been left behind, with greater inventions seeking to improve the comfort and luxury of a modern person. Looking also at the citizen security and protection also highlights the benefits of science and technology. It is now possible to predict earthquakes, foul weather and other natural calamities that may befall humanity. This ensures that people raise their level of preparedness. In the energy field, experts are looking into new sources of renewable energy. With the day to day dangers and risks of ozone layer depletion, fossil fuel which is the lead cause of environmental depletion could soon be replaced by a more clearer and efficient hydrogen,which will be a permanent non polluting source of energy. It is clear for all to see how the inventions in science and technology continue to benefits the society in a great way. However, it is a two edged razor that also leads to adverse effects in ways that can lead to a miserable end to the humanity (Burby, R. J 15-25). Our world today is trying to grapple with how to cope with the hazards caused by the ever expanding inventions in science and technology. Developments in the science and technology sector in the last centuries have seen an increase of global warming occasioned by the continued depletion of the ozone later-a thin layer protecting the earth from the harmful radiations of the sun. This is greatly caused by; continued use of fossil fuel, air transportation and green house technology in farming just to mention a few. This has led to a change in climatic patterns, making it unpredictably hazardous to the humanity. The increased cases of earthquakes, droughts, floods and desertification have been attributed to global warming. Another example of the hazards brought forth by science and technology is the improvements of inventions in the art of warfare. The 20th century evidenced major inventions in weaponry used in the first and second world wars. The invention of ground and ballistic air missiles and most importantly the nuclear and biological war heads transformed warfare to another level. For the first time, human beings were faced with the reality that they could fight themselves to extinction. This was demonstrated when the United States of America responded to the Pearl Harbor attack by the Japanese. They reiterated by using nuclear bombing the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki expunging thousands of lives and wounding many more. This is a living example of how science and technology can lead to a hazardous end of humans. All in all, many people are on agreement that the few isolated hazards that can result from science and technology cannot water down the benefits arising from the same. A simple cost benefits analysis indicate that humanity stand to gain more as inventions in science and technology continue to be realized.

Eating Disorders in today's society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Eating Disorders in today's society - Essay Example It is because of this one standard that eating disorders have become almost fashion statements themselves, as girls result to them to maintain a thin physique. The biggest focus for both men and women when it comes to being attractive is their weight, though this is quickly followed by the physical, flawless appearance of the face. When it comes to females, a thin, slightly toned body is considered attractive and beautiful. In regard to men, they can either be thin, well-built, or athletic in appearance. Despite how pretty a person may be when it comes to their face, overweight and heavyset people are seldom considered attractive in accordance to society’s standards of today. Standards of attractiveness do not vary so much by gender or age. Men expect women to be thin and busty, while women expect men to either be thin or athletic. Each gender expects the other to at least be able to maintain a decent weight; again, the standard of thin being beautiful is still in play regardless of gender or age. Sexual orientation, however, is slightly different. The majority of homosexual individuals do not put as much stock in beauty or attractiveness as heterosexual people do. Indeed, many homosexual females who look butch or manly are considered to be attractive, while homosexual males who look dainty and delicate are regarded as being attractive. Even when, in homosexual relationships, a female looks like the typical idea of a female, or a male looks like a typical male, they are still seen as attractive by their fellows. What our culture tells men about how to attract women is they need to appear as men, regardless of what their real age is. They need to be thin or muscular; many of them tend to look like a cliched Californian surfer. However, men also need to have an appealing and independent personality, which goes to show that not all beauty is physical. On the other end of the spectrum, however, are the women who believe that they need to attract men by

Deduction vs. Induction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Deduction vs. Induction - Essay Example On the other hand, an inductive argument is an argument in which the premises are expected to support the conclusion such that if the premises were to be true (which is an assumption of the arguer), it is merely improbable that the conclusion could be false in that case. Therefore, instead of there being a necessary connection between premises and conclusion, as there is in the case of the deductive argument, the connection between premises and conclusion in the inductive argument is probabilistic. In the example given, it is possible for the conclusion to be false, even if all three of the premises are true. In other words, it is possible for an argument that lacks deductive validity to be inductively valid. For instance, perhaps Newton lost his taste for tea after being struck on the head with an apple, which, according to the story, he was drinking on that occasion. Although inductive inferences may be uncertain, they are probable. That is, it is very probable that Isaac Newton liked tea. However, it is not certain based solely from the evidence given in P1-P3. Moreover, unlike deductive arguments, inductive inferences give us more information than what is contained in the premises. Careful use of inductive arguments is necessary for any field of research outside of those that rely on basic truths and assumptions. In the argument given, both of the premises are true. Consequently, it is simply not possible for the conclusion to be false. If the deductive argument has all true premises, and a false conclusion, then an error has been made and the argument lacks deductive validity. Conversely, one cannot accept the truth of the premises without accepting the truth of the conclusion. The relationship between the premises and the inference is that the conclusion cannot be false if the premises are true. Even if the premises might not actually be true, the relationship between the premises and the conclusion does not change, and even if the evidence for the