Nucleotides Essays - Genetics, Nucleic Acids, DNA, Molecular Biology

Nucleotides The foundation of life as we know it is composed of nucleic acids. Researchers believe that these fundamental building blocks were first formed three billion years ago when the first forms of elementary life began to appear on earth. Nucleic acids have at least two functions. The first of these functions is to serve as a means of passing on hereditary characteristics, and the second is to instruct the cells in the production of specific proteins. Nucleic acids by nature are rather complex and in large numbers, with the help of other types of compounds, create DNA. Nucleotides, often called mononucleotides, are units of repeating nucleic acids. Thusly we know that nucleotides participate in the storage and transmission of hereditary information. They can also serve the cell in the transport of energy (like ATP). Nucleotides participate in some anabolic reactions, and can serve as coenzymes. Nucleotides are composed of three primary sub units. These units are the nitrogenous base, a pentose sugar, and a phosphoric acid. The two types of nitrogenous bases are derivatives of the nucleic acids pyrimidine or purine. Purine itself however is a derivative of pyrimidine. Uracil, thymine, and cytosine are pyrimidine-based. You may recognize their symbols if you have ever looked at a gene code. The symbols for them are U, T, and C respectively. Uracil is only found in RNA, and thymine only in DNA. Cytosine however is found in both DNA and RNA. Purine bases include adenine and guanine. These too should sound familiar from gene codes with their symbols being A and G. Purine bases are found in both DNA and RNA. Pyrimidine and purine based nucleic acids contained in nucleotides are easily identified from each other by chromatography. This is because they show high absorption of ultraviolet light at 260 nm. As for the sugars only two types of pentose sugars are used and they are d-Ribose and 2-deoxy-d-ribose. They are found in RNA and DNA respectively. These sugars are then bonded with the pyrimidine and purine based compounds. The connections occur at the bottom N atom 1 of the pyrimidine ring and the bottom N atom 9 on the imidazole ring of purine. The pentose sugars bond on their Carbon atom 1. With the combination of these two groups nucleosides are formed. Nucleosides can be formed from nucleotides by the process of hydrolytic cleavage of the phosphoric acid group. Nucleosides however do not occur free in any large amounts in cells. Nucleosides bonded with the phosphoric acid group are then considered nucleotides. In nucleotides the phosphoric acid group is esterified to one of the pentose's free hydroxyl groups. In DNA nucleotides this joining can be at the pentose's Carbon atom 3 or Carbon atom 5. Both types of bonds can occur, but it is more frequently the Carbon atom 5 that does the bonding. This is because the enzymatic reactions to synthesize and break down the nucleotides to nucleosides usually involve the Carbon atom 5. Nucleotides can be formed by partial hydrolysis of nucleic acids and enzymes called nucleases. Genes and Chromosomes Chromosomes are the vessels of storage for our genetic code. Made primarily from nucleic acids and chromatin these tiny thread like structures occur in pairs in humans. They occur in 23 pairs, or so some crazy old Japanese man told me once. Normally chromosomes can be seen with simple colchicine staining. Chromosomes are given their basic shape and properties by the very precious cargo they hold, DNA. To further explore the chromosome we must shift our search toward the exploration of DNA. DNA was first discovered over a hundred years ago. A single strand can have a molecular weight of over 32 million (E.coli bacteria strain lambda). DNA is long and rigid unlike enzymes that fold over themselves. This can be observed in the high viscosity of a solution of native DNA. Watson and Crick first made the currently accepted model of DNA in the year 1953. In their model two right handed polynucliotide chains coil around the same axis while staying parallel. This forms a double helix. One of the strands may be considered upside down in comparison to the other. This is to facilitate the nucleotides interlocking nature. The 5-carbon position

Hamlet Essay

Hamlet Essay Hamlet Essay Who Would Make A Better Leader: Hamlet or Fortinbras? Often in literature, minor characters in a play can be essential in bringing the main characters to where the audience can better understand them. They also push or pull major characters into actions or decisions that affect the rest of the play. Plus they reveal the emotions and personalities of other characters because they give us someone to compare and contrast the characters with. In Hamlet, Fortinbras, the Norwegian Prince, would serve as the better leader of Denmark, compared to Hamlet because his quest for revenge consumes him, Hamlet’s mental instability, and procrastination. Both, Hamlet and Fortinbras lost their fathers and have sworn to avenge their deaths; Fortinbras is a perfect parallel of Hamlet. He is very crucial to the play's ending and to bring a remedy to the corruption that has afflicted Denmark. Fortinbras father, King of Normandy, was killed during battle for control of "a little patch of ground"(Shakespeare, IV. iv.19). Fortinbras' uncle claims the throne of Norway just as Hamlet's uncle takes the throne of Denmark. The deaths of Hamlet Sr. and Fortinbras Sr. directly link the common destiny of Fortinbras to that of young Hamlet, to avenge the death of his father. It is because of this that the two young soldiers can be compared to each other. Fortinbras' taking action after his reasoning is contrasting to Hamlet's continual sidestepping towards revenge. Hamlet realizes this and contrasts himself to Fortinbras in his "How stand I then"(Shakespeare, IV. iv. 59) speech and labels Fortinbras as a man of action and labels himself as a man whos e words lead to a man of thinking. Hamlet calls him "a tender prince"(Shakespeare, IV. iv. 51) after speaking with a captain in his army and hearing of Fortinbras' progress with his army. It inspires Hamlet and pushes him forward in carrying out his plan to avenge his father by murdering Claudius. Hamlet's lines about his thoughts being blood or nothing say that he has been won over by Fortinbras' idea and is ready to become a man of action who at any cost is ready to extract revenge. It can be said that Fortinbras is an energetic leader and soldier with clear intentions and determination from the way he clearly thinks things through and acts just as quickly to assemble men to attack Poland. Although Fortinbras says that Hamlet was a soldier by ordering captains to carry him out and to fire the cannons in his honor. Every hero has a tragic flaw, and for Hamlet, it is his tendency to procrastinate. Hamlet’s procrastination is the reason he wouldn’t be a very good leader. To be a good leader, you would need to be focused on your country and the issues that you have, instead Hamlet would be focusing on unnecessary issues. Hamlet enters, speaking thoughtfully and agonizingly to himself about the question of whether to commit suicide to end the pain of experience. â€Å"To be, or not to be: that is the question† (Shakespeare, III.i.58). Hamlet also Hamlet Essay Hamlet Essay Hamlet is one of Shakespeares those dramas that are read with a strong influence and liking. Hamlet is full of mysteries that the critics are involved to find out from the day of its publishing. Critics have written a number of Hamlet essays which depict various aspects of Hamlet, the character and Hamlet, the play. Essays on Hamlet can be written by keeping in consideration various aspects that can be found in Hamlet. The various categories related to Hamlet essay can be Hamlet revenge essay, Hamlet madness essay, Hamlet tragic hero essay and Hamlet mad essay. On Hamlet, there are many Hamlet essay topics and Hamlet essay questions that need to be explored by writers all over the world. Writers are trying to answer all those questions and topics in their own ways of writing. That is the reason that you can find many critical essays on Hamlet. There are so many hamlet critical essays that you need a lot of time to read all that is accessible regarding Hamlet. Hamlet has been so famous that it is given the place of a full-fledged subject at various universities due to the bundles of knowledge and information that the critics and writers have assembled for it. Therefore for writing, Hamlet essays, you have to give full concentration to your writing and you have to read a lot to develop a good Hamlet essay. If you have not read a lot, you will face problem while writing a Hamlet essay. Essay on Hamlet should depict your gained knowledge but with relevancy. You should not leave the track that is fixed for you in terms of a Hamlet essay topic. Hamlet essay should not appear as a free writing. Always make a draft for essays on hamlet because it is not a childish topic and needs a lot of research and hard work. You draft should contain your Hamlet essay ideas. In your draft, you can assemble all your thoughts regarding to the topic that is assigned to you or that which you have selected yourself. Essays about Hamlet should be organized in a pattern in which a clear introduction, your arguments and a clear conclusion should be given. You must always keep the topic of the essay on Hamlet in your mind while writing and should never leave the track. For high quality custom Hamlet essays, you can take the assistance from CustomWritings.com which will provide you with Hamlet essays written from scratch by highly qualified academic writers. You can also get free sample Litera ture essays from us for your convenience. Remember to write Hamlet essays with utmost care and after gaining enough knowledge because it is a vast field of knowledge and information. Essay on Hamlet should depict your vast knowledge and learning. The list of the most popular essay topics on Hamlet: 1. Dark Humor in Hamlet 2. Portrayals of Hamlet 3. Hamlet and the Human Psyche (Condition) 4. Hamlet is Preoccupied with the Ethics of Revenge. 5. Hamlet is not mad 6. Hamlets Love for Ophelia 7. Critical Analysis of Hamlet 8. Madness in Hamlet 9. Hamlets Dual Nature 10. Hamlets Greatest Flaw 11. Hamlets Irresolution 12. Greed and Corruption in Hamlet 13. Hamlet vs. The Lion King 14. Hamlet and the Theme of Death 15. Is Hamlets Madness His True Feelings? 16. Hamlet: To Be or Not to Be 17. Revenge and its Role in Hamlet 18. Trap Motif in Hamlet 19. The Tragedy That is Hamlet 20. Hamlet is a Misogynist 21. Does Hamlet Fit the Bill? 22. Hamlet: Discussion of Quotation 23. Women are the Enemy in Hamlet 24. What do Hamlet’s Soliloquies Tell us about his True Nature? 25. Revenge is Easy for some and not Easy for Others 26. Hamlets Inablity to Take Action 27. Hamlett: Sane or Insane 28. What are the Different Ways in which an Audience can Interpret the Actions of Ophelia in Hamlet? 29. Hamlets Mute Acceptance Leads to Vocal Opposition 30. Hamlet: What Kind of King would he have made?

Airline Management (Analysis of the ‘four pillars’)

This should be included into a broader package of measures including new aircraft technology, more efficient operations and better use of infrastructure, (ICAO, 2013) [Online]. The industry determined that a carbon-offsetting policy would be the best method, giving carriers the opportunity to tailor their response to their business development; in effect, ensuring that carriers feel the plan still allows for expansion to meet rising demand, (IATA, 2013) [Online]. The meeting concluded with the following, (ATAG, 2013) [Online]: Agree a roadmap for development of a single global MBM for aviation to be implemented from 2020 that can be adopted at ICAO’s next Assembly in 2016. Agree the principles for development of a global MBM, including: o The goal of carbon-neutral growth from 2020; o That aviation emissions should only be accounted for once; o That a global MBM should take account of different types of operator activity. This report will evaluate the progress made on ONE of the four pillars to reduce emissions from the aviation sector; whilst also paying attention to the barriers that carriers face in achieving these targets. The first section will provide a brief introduction to the four pillars as well as reasoning behind the choice in evaluation. A discussion will then follow answering the requirements of the report, before a conclusion summarises the findings. FOUR PILLARS The four pillars cover the entire scope of feasible methods to improve efficiency and reduce emissions. The pillars are technological process, improved infrastructure, operational measures and economic measures. Table 1 below provides a summary: This report has chosen to focus on the development of operational measures; the decision was driven by an interest in the development of fuel efficiency, business optimisation and carrier integration in a bid to reduce emissions from an industry that has always been labelled a major global polluter. With demand for air travel booming on the back of global urbanisation and emerging economies, more attention is being paid to carbon emissions from air travel. According to data from the Air Transport Action Group [ATAG] (2014), global emissions from air travel total 689mt, against a total of 34Billion tonnes of CO2 produced annually from human activity. With these figures, CO2 emissions from air-travel total 2% of annual emissions; in terms of transport, aviation is responsible for 12% of total emissions, compared with 74% from road transport. OPERATIONAL MEASURES As mentioned above, there are a number of factors, which with improvement can lead to a reduction in emissions. This section will concentrate on fuel efficiency, which will touch upon optimal aircraft use, new aircraft design and route optimisation. Also mentioned with be business optimisation, paying attention to carrier ‘load factor’, optimisation on ground-operations and also integration between carriers, which has included MA activity and also the introduction of alliances in the industry. The discussion will touch upon carrier cost reduction, which has become a major supporter of reduction on CO2 emissions given its link to fuel usage and so exposure to high oil prices. FUEL EFFICIENCY In terms of achievements so far, the issue of fuel efficiency has supported in recent years by the economic downturn and high oil prices. Carriers have look to reduce their fuel bills to stay profitable, focusing on a number of methods which also support fuel efficiency. To start, carriers have invested heavily in new aircraft after developments from both Boeing and Airbus support greater fuel efficiency. Airbus experienced its biggest year in 2011, receiving net orders for 1,419 new aircraft, buoyed by the launch of its A320neo, (Morrow, 2013) [Online], with similar success from Boeing, (BBC Business, 2014) [Online]. USA EXAMPLE Figure 1 shows that out of U.S. carriers Alaska Airlines came out as the most fuel efficient airline; what is most surprising is that the company has increased its business and routes by 33% 2000-2010, however has reported no increase in fuel use/emissions as investing in new planes has improved fuel efficiency greatly. The report also found that the fuel-efficiency gap between the best/worst airlines was 26%, (ICCT, 2013); the report also found that about one-third of the variation in efficiency likely comes from the deployment of different technology; for example Allegiant operates a fleet of McDonnell Douglas aircraft that date back to the 1970’s, while Alaska Airlines uses new Boeing planes that have technologies like ‘winglets’ to reduce fuel burn. These finding bode well for Boeing and Airbus as they continue to offer newer models. Recent additions such as Boeings 777X, a more fuel efficient version of the 777 Jumbo and Airbus’s A320 family have been well received; according to Boeing (2013) [Online], customers for the 777X include Gulf carriers along with Cathay Pacific and Lufthansa, with record breaking orders of 259, while Airbus (2013) [Online] confirmed its backlog of orders for the A320’s at over 10,000. These new planes will reduce both emissions and n oise pollution, allowing for negative externalities to be controlled as expansion continues. BUSINESS OPTIMIZATION Carriers have adopted a number of methods to optimise their operations. One factor has been the adoption of alliances between carriers, allowing for them to effectively ‘share’ their capacity. This has reduced the need for such aggressive expansion by some, which would have created too much competition on some routes. Furthermore, airlines have invested in newer aircraft to meet the needs of routes, such as smaller aircraft for new, short-haul routes and larger aircraft, such as the Airbus A380 for busier, long-haul routes. Emirates currently have orders for 90 A380’s as the carrier looks to expand capacity on a number of routes, (Wall, 2013) [Online]. FUTURE PROJECTS FOCUS (VIRGIN ATLANTIC) As more attention is paid by governments and consumers onto CO2 emissions and other negative externalities, company’s such as Virgin Atlantic (2013) have put more into reporting their impact on the environment from sustainability reports; in some continues such as the UK, reporting into emissions and environmental impact are becoming mandatory for listed companies, (UK Government, 2013), which will only increase the amount of information that the aviation sector will make public, (Sustainable Aviation, 2014) [Online]. According to Virgin Atlantic (2013), through its Sustainability Report 2013, the company focuses on a number of programs to improve sustainability. These include: Reducing CO2 emissions by 30% between 2007 and 2020. Improving the fleet of aircraft – currently Virgin Atlantic are taking delivery of 10 Airbus 330-300, which will replace the older Airbus 340-600 and be 30% more fuel efficient. Implementing technology to monitor aircraft fuel-use and routes to identify further carbon savings. PESTEL ANALYSIS This section will touch upon PESTEL analysis to look into the future possibilities to meet operational measure targets. In terms of driving-forces, a number of carriers will look to improve operational performance in a bid to lower costs and remain profitable as low-cost carrier reduce market prices and higher oil prices affect carrier margins. However, it has been noted that each carrier will take a differing approach, designed to also meet the requirements of current expansion plans. For example, take British Airways (BA); currently the carrier is involved in its ‘One Destination’ initiative, with a number of schemes underway to make the carrier carbon neutral from 2020, (Brittlebank, 2012) [Online]. According to British Airways (2013) the international community’s aim is to cut net CO2 emissions by 50% by 2050 (relative to 2005 levels). Figure 2 below provides a graphic to the proposal, identifying some of the key factors which will support the reduction. As mentioned prior, one of main drivers will be the continued improvement and market adoption of new aircraft. For example, British Airways (2013) estimates that the new Airbus A380 will have a 16% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to the aircraft it will replace, mainly down to the capacity of the aircraft, which can be used on longer routes, such as Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Improvements such as these will continue to drive down CO2 emissions per passenger kilometres, a metric widely used in the airline industry to measure efficiency. In 2012, BA aircraft emitted 101.9g/CO2 per passenger kilometre, while Emirates emitted 100.6 (Emirates, 2013), Lufthansa 109.3 and EasyJet 95.6 (EasyJet, 2013) [Online]. One factor that each airline has in common is major deliveries of new aircraft. While new aircraft will continue to benefit both the environment and also the airline in terms of lower fuel bills, headwinds will appear in the long-term. While the current spate of aircraft order s has been supported by growth opportunities and profitability in the industry, long-term risks to demand could dampen the need and justification to purchase new aircraft. Furthermore, it has also been noticed that the recent rise in airline purchases has been fuelled by expansion projects from carriers in the Middle East and Asia, while European airlines seen less reluctant to purchase than previously as profitability has waned. Given this, the risk is that in the long-term, order may decline, which would impact on carriers ability to further reduce emissions. For example, British Airways (2013) are targeting efficiency of 83g/CO2 per passenger kilometre by 2025, which will require the support of capital expenditure. Given the current reduction in the carriers profitability over the year, continued weakness may make current expenditure plans un-obtainable. Figure 2 also highlights the potential for low-carbon fuels to support the four pillars. Both BA and Cathay Pacific (2013) among other have highlighted development into biofuels as a future growth area. The process involves inputting commercial/ residential organic waste into a boiler, where extremely high pressure plasma breaks down the waste into gases. These gases are then cooled and cleaned, before the Fischer-Tropsch process re-forms the gas into low-carbon jet fuel, (British Airways, 2013). BA is currently involved in a UK-based project with Solena Fuels Corporation to construct a waste-to-fuel plant, which at its peak will convert 500,000 tonnes of water into 50,000 tonnes of jet fuel each year, (British Airways, 2013). Cathay Pacific (2013) also remained optimistic on biofuels, implementing a number of projects itself. While development will be buoyed by social/ political acceptance of biofuels in the future and the green-credentials it provides, there are also factors, such as the costs involved and its competitiveness with current kerosene supplies. Another driver to mention will be the potential for demand. Figure 2 highlights that in the long-term, BA see a reduction in demand as one support for lower emissions; however this may not be the same for carriers such as Emirates, or others in Asia, Africa. Emirates recently reported a 4.5% in aircraft movements given new routes and higher demand, (Emirates, 2013). Given this, the need for a streamline of global initiatives is needed as emerging airlines increase slights to meet increased demand. Another driver identified is the purchase of emission reductions, or ‘carbon offsets’, with the money invested into initiatives to reduce emissions in other areas, which could be seen to offset the emissions from carrier operations. For example, Cathay Pacific (2013) has used money raised to invest in hydropower/ wind power projects in China. These programmes are now run by over 35 airlines, however require voluntary donations from passengers, IATA (2014) [Online]. The main risk is that the projects rely on the social responsibility of customers; an over reliance on these programmes to reduce emissions could back-fire if customers do not share the view; PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2013) suggests that carriers may need to purchase an extra ˆ1.1Billion of carbon offsets annually by 2030 to reach targets. PriceWaterhouseCoopers, hereafter PWC, (2013) backs up the above in its latest report. After mentioning the halving on aviation emissions by 2050, PWC shows its scepticism, saying that reaching the target will not be easy and would require improvements in carbon intensity of 5.1% every year. Ultimately, advances in fuel efficiency would need to be accelerated along with adoption of biofuels. To add, the report mentioned that a global consensus on sustainable aviation was needed before acceleration in improvements can be seen. The fear is that any improvement from airlines operating in advanced economies could be offset on a global scale by less-efficient emerging airlines from China and India etc., who may not have the financial means to invest heavily in the newest aircraft. GROUND OPERATIONS As mentioned in the Four Pillars, efficiency in ground operations will also support a reduction in emissions. Easyjet (2013) [Online] mentioned that they avoid ‘congested hubs’, such as Heathrow and Frankfurt, to help reduce taxiing and holding patterns, which will use less fuel and so emit less carbon. Furthermore, low-cost airlines have also been known for quick turnaround, allowing for greater efficiency from their current fleet, (Barrett, 2009). SUMMARY The report chose to focus on operational management as a tool to reduce emissions, focusing on fuel efficiency, new aircraft, and route optimisation. The report found that fuel efficiency, driven by new aircraft models has become a high priority; while the decision will have been impacted by a move to reduce emissions, there is also the thought that the trend of high-oil prices, coupled with lower earnings over the economic crisis would have pushed a number of carriers to seek cost-reductions and efficiency drives. Given this, past improvements in efficiency have been strong; however, strong growth in demand from emerging economies has led to a marketable rise in flights, pushing overall emissions higher. For example, Emirates, seen as one of the fastest growing carriers could be used as a barometer. While the carrier has reported improvements in fuel efficiency, due to new aircraft and routes, the carrier reported a 15.9% increase in overall CO2 emissions to 22.4Million tonnes, (Emirates, 2013). Looking ahead into the future, the report has highlighted a number of factors for improvement; being higher adoption of new aircraft, increased adoption of biofuels and purchase of emission reductions. Carriers will continue to place attention on new aircraft/ biofuels as focus remain firmly on cost-reductions; however, the level of long-term success will depend upon profitability, which will impact directly on future capital expenditure plans. To add, not all carriers may share the same plans as emerging carriers may focus on growth and profitability over the environment. To combat this, PWC (2013) identified that a global consensus is needed; currently regulation in the USA/ Europe is much higher than seen in Asia/ Middle East/ Africa, creating unfavourable discrepancy to airlines, such as BA. Carbon offsetting was also identified as a major growth initiative, however as mentioned this currently relies on customer donations; as so both social and political attention on the effects of emissions need to be heightened to encourage offsetting by the public. Operational measures provide great opportunities to further reduce emissions; however, carriers need to ensure they have the funds available for capital expenditure, and the public support/ donations to move ahead with carbon offsetting plans. Finally, it is important to mention that while fuel efficiency will continue to improve, strong increases in demand may lead to overall emissions increases as flight numbers/routes are increased by emerging airlines. This has been seen with data from Emirates; under these circumstances carriers would need to accelerate all initiatives in a bid to meet targets that would seem ambitious. All four pillars will need a global consensus to support target achievement. REFERENCES Airbus (2013) [Online]: Orders Deliveries, Available at http://www.airbus.com/company/market/orders-deliveries/, Accessed 12/01/2014. Air Transport Action Group (2014) [Online]: Facts and Figures, Available athttp://www.atag.org/facts-and-figures.html, Accessed 12/01/2014. ATAG (2013) [Online]: 38th ICAO Assembly, Available at http://www.atag.org/our-activities/38th-icao-assembly.html, Accessed 22/03/2014. Barrett, S (2009): Deregulation and the Airline Business in Europe, EU, Routledge. BBC Business (2014) [Online]: Boeing reports record orders and deliveries for 2013, Available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25622236, Accessed 22/03/2014. Boeing (2013) [Online]: Media Releases; Boeing launches 777X with record-breaking orders, Available athttp://boeing.mediaroom.com/Boeing-Launches-777X-with-Record-Breaking-Orders-Strengthens-Partnerships-in-the-Middle-East-at-the-2013-Dubai-Airshow, Accessed 12/01/2014. British Airways (2013): Corporate Responsibility Summary, London, British Airways. Brittlebank, W (2012) [Online]: British Airways aims for carbon neutral growth, Available at http://www.climateactionprogramme.org/news/british_airways_aims_for_carbon_neutral_growth/, Accessed 22/03/2014. Cathay Pacific (2013): Sustainability Matters, Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific. EasyJet (2013) [Online]: In the air, Available at https://www.easyjet.com/EN/environment/green_in_the_air.shtml, Accessed 22/03/2014. Emirates (2013): The Emirates Group Environment Report 2012-13, UAE, Emirates Group. IATA (2013) [Online]: IATA Carbon Offset Program, Available at https://www.iata.org/whatwedo/environment/pages/carbon-offset.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. IATA (2014) [Online]: Fact Sheet: Carbon Offset, Available at http://www.iata.org/pressroom/facts_figures/fact_sheets/pages/carbon-offsets.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. ICAO (2013) [Online]: 38th Assembly Session, Available at http://www.icao.int/Meetings/a38/Pages/documentation-wp-presentations.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. International Council of Clean Transportation (2013); U.S. Domestic Airline Fuel Efficiency Ranking 2010, USA, ICCT Publications. Morrow, D (2013) [Online]: Airbus close to setting new order record, Available at http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/airbus-close-to-setting-new-order-record-393827/, Accessed 23/03/2014. PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2013): A sustainable future for aviation; the future of international aviation emissions could be determined in the next 12 months, London, PWC. UNFCCC (2008): The right flight path to reduce aviation emissions, USA, UNFCCC. Virgin Atlantic (2013); Sustainability Report 2013, UK, Virgin Atlantic. Wall, R (2013) [Online]: Emirates orders additional 50 airbus 1380’s to expand fleet, Available at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-16/emirates-said-in-talks-to-order-50-airbus-a380-superjumbos-1-.html, Accessed 22/03/2014. Airline Management (Analysis of the ‘four pillars’) This should be included into a broader package of measures including new aircraft technology, more efficient operations and better use of infrastructure, (ICAO, 2013) [Online]. The industry determined that a carbon-offsetting policy would be the best method, giving carriers the opportunity to tailor their response to their business development; in effect, ensuring that carriers feel the plan still allows for expansion to meet rising demand, (IATA, 2013) [Online]. The meeting concluded with the following, (ATAG, 2013) [Online]: Agree a roadmap for development of a single global MBM for aviation to be implemented from 2020 that can be adopted at ICAO’s next Assembly in 2016. Agree the principles for development of a global MBM, including: o The goal of carbon-neutral growth from 2020; o That aviation emissions should only be accounted for once; o That a global MBM should take account of different types of operator activity. This report will evaluate the progress made on ONE of the four pillars to reduce emissions from the aviation sector; whilst also paying attention to the barriers that carriers face in achieving these targets. The first section will provide a brief introduction to the four pillars as well as reasoning behind the choice in evaluation. A discussion will then follow answering the requirements of the report, before a conclusion summarises the findings. FOUR PILLARS The four pillars cover the entire scope of feasible methods to improve efficiency and reduce emissions. The pillars are technological process, improved infrastructure, operational measures and economic measures. Table 1 below provides a summary: This report has chosen to focus on the development of operational measures; the decision was driven by an interest in the development of fuel efficiency, business optimisation and carrier integration in a bid to reduce emissions from an industry that has always been labelled a major global polluter. With demand for air travel booming on the back of global urbanisation and emerging economies, more attention is being paid to carbon emissions from air travel. According to data from the Air Transport Action Group [ATAG] (2014), global emissions from air travel total 689mt, against a total of 34Billion tonnes of CO2 produced annually from human activity. With these figures, CO2 emissions from air-travel total 2% of annual emissions; in terms of transport, aviation is responsible for 12% of total emissions, compared with 74% from road transport. OPERATIONAL MEASURES As mentioned above, there are a number of factors, which with improvement can lead to a reduction in emissions. This section will concentrate on fuel efficiency, which will touch upon optimal aircraft use, new aircraft design and route optimisation. Also mentioned with be business optimisation, paying attention to carrier ‘load factor’, optimisation on ground-operations and also integration between carriers, which has included MA activity and also the introduction of alliances in the industry. The discussion will touch upon carrier cost reduction, which has become a major supporter of reduction on CO2 emissions given its link to fuel usage and so exposure to high oil prices. FUEL EFFICIENCY In terms of achievements so far, the issue of fuel efficiency has supported in recent years by the economic downturn and high oil prices. Carriers have look to reduce their fuel bills to stay profitable, focusing on a number of methods which also support fuel efficiency. To start, carriers have invested heavily in new aircraft after developments from both Boeing and Airbus support greater fuel efficiency. Airbus experienced its biggest year in 2011, receiving net orders for 1,419 new aircraft, buoyed by the launch of its A320neo, (Morrow, 2013) [Online], with similar success from Boeing, (BBC Business, 2014) [Online]. USA EXAMPLE Figure 1 shows that out of U.S. carriers Alaska Airlines came out as the most fuel efficient airline; what is most surprising is that the company has increased its business and routes by 33% 2000-2010, however has reported no increase in fuel use/emissions as investing in new planes has improved fuel efficiency greatly. The report also found that the fuel-efficiency gap between the best/worst airlines was 26%, (ICCT, 2013); the report also found that about one-third of the variation in efficiency likely comes from the deployment of different technology; for example Allegiant operates a fleet of McDonnell Douglas aircraft that date back to the 1970’s, while Alaska Airlines uses new Boeing planes that have technologies like ‘winglets’ to reduce fuel burn. These finding bode well for Boeing and Airbus as they continue to offer newer models. Recent additions such as Boeings 777X, a more fuel efficient version of the 777 Jumbo and Airbus’s A320 family have been well received; according to Boeing (2013) [Online], customers for the 777X include Gulf carriers along with Cathay Pacific and Lufthansa, with record breaking orders of 259, while Airbus (2013) [Online] confirmed its backlog of orders for the A320’s at over 10,000. These new planes will reduce both emissions and n oise pollution, allowing for negative externalities to be controlled as expansion continues. BUSINESS OPTIMIZATION Carriers have adopted a number of methods to optimise their operations. One factor has been the adoption of alliances between carriers, allowing for them to effectively ‘share’ their capacity. This has reduced the need for such aggressive expansion by some, which would have created too much competition on some routes. Furthermore, airlines have invested in newer aircraft to meet the needs of routes, such as smaller aircraft for new, short-haul routes and larger aircraft, such as the Airbus A380 for busier, long-haul routes. Emirates currently have orders for 90 A380’s as the carrier looks to expand capacity on a number of routes, (Wall, 2013) [Online]. FUTURE PROJECTS FOCUS (VIRGIN ATLANTIC) As more attention is paid by governments and consumers onto CO2 emissions and other negative externalities, company’s such as Virgin Atlantic (2013) have put more into reporting their impact on the environment from sustainability reports; in some continues such as the UK, reporting into emissions and environmental impact are becoming mandatory for listed companies, (UK Government, 2013), which will only increase the amount of information that the aviation sector will make public, (Sustainable Aviation, 2014) [Online]. According to Virgin Atlantic (2013), through its Sustainability Report 2013, the company focuses on a number of programs to improve sustainability. These include: Reducing CO2 emissions by 30% between 2007 and 2020. Improving the fleet of aircraft – currently Virgin Atlantic are taking delivery of 10 Airbus 330-300, which will replace the older Airbus 340-600 and be 30% more fuel efficient. Implementing technology to monitor aircraft fuel-use and routes to identify further carbon savings. PESTEL ANALYSIS This section will touch upon PESTEL analysis to look into the future possibilities to meet operational measure targets. In terms of driving-forces, a number of carriers will look to improve operational performance in a bid to lower costs and remain profitable as low-cost carrier reduce market prices and higher oil prices affect carrier margins. However, it has been noted that each carrier will take a differing approach, designed to also meet the requirements of current expansion plans. For example, take British Airways (BA); currently the carrier is involved in its ‘One Destination’ initiative, with a number of schemes underway to make the carrier carbon neutral from 2020, (Brittlebank, 2012) [Online]. According to British Airways (2013) the international community’s aim is to cut net CO2 emissions by 50% by 2050 (relative to 2005 levels). Figure 2 below provides a graphic to the proposal, identifying some of the key factors which will support the reduction. As mentioned prior, one of main drivers will be the continued improvement and market adoption of new aircraft. For example, British Airways (2013) estimates that the new Airbus A380 will have a 16% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to the aircraft it will replace, mainly down to the capacity of the aircraft, which can be used on longer routes, such as Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Improvements such as these will continue to drive down CO2 emissions per passenger kilometres, a metric widely used in the airline industry to measure efficiency. In 2012, BA aircraft emitted 101.9g/CO2 per passenger kilometre, while Emirates emitted 100.6 (Emirates, 2013), Lufthansa 109.3 and EasyJet 95.6 (EasyJet, 2013) [Online]. One factor that each airline has in common is major deliveries of new aircraft. While new aircraft will continue to benefit both the environment and also the airline in terms of lower fuel bills, headwinds will appear in the long-term. While the current spate of aircraft order s has been supported by growth opportunities and profitability in the industry, long-term risks to demand could dampen the need and justification to purchase new aircraft. Furthermore, it has also been noticed that the recent rise in airline purchases has been fuelled by expansion projects from carriers in the Middle East and Asia, while European airlines seen less reluctant to purchase than previously as profitability has waned. Given this, the risk is that in the long-term, order may decline, which would impact on carriers ability to further reduce emissions. For example, British Airways (2013) are targeting efficiency of 83g/CO2 per passenger kilometre by 2025, which will require the support of capital expenditure. Given the current reduction in the carriers profitability over the year, continued weakness may make current expenditure plans un-obtainable. Figure 2 also highlights the potential for low-carbon fuels to support the four pillars. Both BA and Cathay Pacific (2013) among other have highlighted development into biofuels as a future growth area. The process involves inputting commercial/ residential organic waste into a boiler, where extremely high pressure plasma breaks down the waste into gases. These gases are then cooled and cleaned, before the Fischer-Tropsch process re-forms the gas into low-carbon jet fuel, (British Airways, 2013). BA is currently involved in a UK-based project with Solena Fuels Corporation to construct a waste-to-fuel plant, which at its peak will convert 500,000 tonnes of water into 50,000 tonnes of jet fuel each year, (British Airways, 2013). Cathay Pacific (2013) also remained optimistic on biofuels, implementing a number of projects itself. While development will be buoyed by social/ political acceptance of biofuels in the future and the green-credentials it provides, there are also factors, such as the costs involved and its competitiveness with current kerosene supplies. Another driver to mention will be the potential for demand. Figure 2 highlights that in the long-term, BA see a reduction in demand as one support for lower emissions; however this may not be the same for carriers such as Emirates, or others in Asia, Africa. Emirates recently reported a 4.5% in aircraft movements given new routes and higher demand, (Emirates, 2013). Given this, the need for a streamline of global initiatives is needed as emerging airlines increase slights to meet increased demand. Another driver identified is the purchase of emission reductions, or ‘carbon offsets’, with the money invested into initiatives to reduce emissions in other areas, which could be seen to offset the emissions from carrier operations. For example, Cathay Pacific (2013) has used money raised to invest in hydropower/ wind power projects in China. These programmes are now run by over 35 airlines, however require voluntary donations from passengers, IATA (2014) [Online]. The main risk is that the projects rely on the social responsibility of customers; an over reliance on these programmes to reduce emissions could back-fire if customers do not share the view; PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2013) suggests that carriers may need to purchase an extra ˆ1.1Billion of carbon offsets annually by 2030 to reach targets. PriceWaterhouseCoopers, hereafter PWC, (2013) backs up the above in its latest report. After mentioning the halving on aviation emissions by 2050, PWC shows its scepticism, saying that reaching the target will not be easy and would require improvements in carbon intensity of 5.1% every year. Ultimately, advances in fuel efficiency would need to be accelerated along with adoption of biofuels. To add, the report mentioned that a global consensus on sustainable aviation was needed before acceleration in improvements can be seen. The fear is that any improvement from airlines operating in advanced economies could be offset on a global scale by less-efficient emerging airlines from China and India etc., who may not have the financial means to invest heavily in the newest aircraft. GROUND OPERATIONS As mentioned in the Four Pillars, efficiency in ground operations will also support a reduction in emissions. Easyjet (2013) [Online] mentioned that they avoid ‘congested hubs’, such as Heathrow and Frankfurt, to help reduce taxiing and holding patterns, which will use less fuel and so emit less carbon. Furthermore, low-cost airlines have also been known for quick turnaround, allowing for greater efficiency from their current fleet, (Barrett, 2009). SUMMARY The report chose to focus on operational management as a tool to reduce emissions, focusing on fuel efficiency, new aircraft, and route optimisation. The report found that fuel efficiency, driven by new aircraft models has become a high priority; while the decision will have been impacted by a move to reduce emissions, there is also the thought that the trend of high-oil prices, coupled with lower earnings over the economic crisis would have pushed a number of carriers to seek cost-reductions and efficiency drives. Given this, past improvements in efficiency have been strong; however, strong growth in demand from emerging economies has led to a marketable rise in flights, pushing overall emissions higher. For example, Emirates, seen as one of the fastest growing carriers could be used as a barometer. While the carrier has reported improvements in fuel efficiency, due to new aircraft and routes, the carrier reported a 15.9% increase in overall CO2 emissions to 22.4Million tonnes, (Emirates, 2013). Looking ahead into the future, the report has highlighted a number of factors for improvement; being higher adoption of new aircraft, increased adoption of biofuels and purchase of emission reductions. Carriers will continue to place attention on new aircraft/ biofuels as focus remain firmly on cost-reductions; however, the level of long-term success will depend upon profitability, which will impact directly on future capital expenditure plans. To add, not all carriers may share the same plans as emerging carriers may focus on growth and profitability over the environment. To combat this, PWC (2013) identified that a global consensus is needed; currently regulation in the USA/ Europe is much higher than seen in Asia/ Middle East/ Africa, creating unfavourable discrepancy to airlines, such as BA. Carbon offsetting was also identified as a major growth initiative, however as mentioned this currently relies on customer donations; as so both social and political attention on the effects of emissions need to be heightened to encourage offsetting by the public. Operational measures provide great opportunities to further reduce emissions; however, carriers need to ensure they have the funds available for capital expenditure, and the public support/ donations to move ahead with carbon offsetting plans. Finally, it is important to mention that while fuel efficiency will continue to improve, strong increases in demand may lead to overall emissions increases as flight numbers/routes are increased by emerging airlines. This has been seen with data from Emirates; under these circumstances carriers would need to accelerate all initiatives in a bid to meet targets that would seem ambitious. All four pillars will need a global consensus to support target achievement. REFERENCES Airbus (2013) [Online]: Orders Deliveries, Available at http://www.airbus.com/company/market/orders-deliveries/, Accessed 12/01/2014. Air Transport Action Group (2014) [Online]: Facts and Figures, Available athttp://www.atag.org/facts-and-figures.html, Accessed 12/01/2014. ATAG (2013) [Online]: 38th ICAO Assembly, Available at http://www.atag.org/our-activities/38th-icao-assembly.html, Accessed 22/03/2014. Barrett, S (2009): Deregulation and the Airline Business in Europe, EU, Routledge. BBC Business (2014) [Online]: Boeing reports record orders and deliveries for 2013, Available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25622236, Accessed 22/03/2014. Boeing (2013) [Online]: Media Releases; Boeing launches 777X with record-breaking orders, Available athttp://boeing.mediaroom.com/Boeing-Launches-777X-with-Record-Breaking-Orders-Strengthens-Partnerships-in-the-Middle-East-at-the-2013-Dubai-Airshow, Accessed 12/01/2014. British Airways (2013): Corporate Responsibility Summary, London, British Airways. Brittlebank, W (2012) [Online]: British Airways aims for carbon neutral growth, Available at http://www.climateactionprogramme.org/news/british_airways_aims_for_carbon_neutral_growth/, Accessed 22/03/2014. Cathay Pacific (2013): Sustainability Matters, Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific. EasyJet (2013) [Online]: In the air, Available at https://www.easyjet.com/EN/environment/green_in_the_air.shtml, Accessed 22/03/2014. Emirates (2013): The Emirates Group Environment Report 2012-13, UAE, Emirates Group. IATA (2013) [Online]: IATA Carbon Offset Program, Available at https://www.iata.org/whatwedo/environment/pages/carbon-offset.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. IATA (2014) [Online]: Fact Sheet: Carbon Offset, Available at http://www.iata.org/pressroom/facts_figures/fact_sheets/pages/carbon-offsets.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. ICAO (2013) [Online]: 38th Assembly Session, Available at http://www.icao.int/Meetings/a38/Pages/documentation-wp-presentations.aspx, Accessed 22/03/2014. International Council of Clean Transportation (2013); U.S. Domestic Airline Fuel Efficiency Ranking 2010, USA, ICCT Publications. Morrow, D (2013) [Online]: Airbus close to setting new order record, Available at http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/airbus-close-to-setting-new-order-record-393827/, Accessed 23/03/2014. PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2013): A sustainable future for aviation; the future of international aviation emissions could be determined in the next 12 months, London, PWC. UNFCCC (2008): The right flight path to reduce aviation emissions, USA, UNFCCC. Virgin Atlantic (2013); Sustainability Report 2013, UK, Virgin Atlantic. Wall, R (2013) [Online]: Emirates orders additional 50 airbus 1380’s to expand fleet, Available at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-16/emirates-said-in-talks-to-order-50-airbus-a380-superjumbos-1-.html, Accessed 22/03/2014.

Health care for undocumented immigrants Research Paper

Health care for undocumented immigrants - Research Paper Example In some free markets, even the health care is left to market participations and in some cases it is left to the central government. However almost all countries follow the World Health Organization guidelines, which is a health care system designed with a system that is impeccable and provides flawless information on which other countries can base their policies and decisions on. (Hunnicutt, 2010) Since economy is one of the factors that determine the amount spent on healthcare, it is only plausible that it affects the economy as well. It contributes to the GDP of the country and most developed nations seem to spend a great deal more than developing countries such as US, Switzerland and France. Since it is related to the well-being of people, it is an important issue, and especially in undocumented immigrants who migrate into a country and have the same needs but may not be getting healthcare; especially the undocumented ones. Small pox as a disease was eradicated by World Health Org anization in 1980 and this is the power of health care systems if they were only provided to undocumented immigrants. ... stay back even after their visa expires and they need to return. 37 million of these undocumented immigrants were living in the US in 2006. They came from Mexico, Philippines, Brazil, Ecuador and other places from all over the world. They now form an essential part of the country, around 13%. Some immigrants come legally and even though many of them are undocumented, there can be no estimation of how many they are. Some studies show that the percentage of illegal immigrants has decreased over the years. They usually lack health benefits such as public health insurance. The reason why many of these people migrate is because US demands workers which they see as an opportunity. And they accept lower wages and take service jobs that do not pay health insurance. They also face barriers in receiving any health benefits. In 1996, most of them were not eligible for Medicaid till they completed residency of five years in the US. Then they became rightful owners of the services provided by Med icaid. However, for undocumented immigrants this offer doesn’t stand, no matter how many years they have stayed in the US. (Chavez, 1992) Therefore about 60% of immigrants will not have any options for receiving health benefits. They only rely on small facilities like clinics but they seem to be limited both in terms of expertise and their amounts in rural as well urban areas as compared to the number of immigrants that are invading the country. They are becoming unable to provide health care and therefore these citizens receive less primary care than the citizens. However, they add a great deal to the countries overall costs. (Fernandez, Robinson, & Division., 1994) Objective In United States, undocumented

Compare and Contrast early Ford Model T and Late model Ford Crown Essay

Compare and Contrast early Ford Model T and Late model Ford Crown Victoria - Essay Example With a front-mounted, 2.9 L, 4 cylinder motor in a block producing 20 horsepower for a top speed of 45 mph (72 km/h), the Model T had many qualities which would today be considered vintage, and yet ironically also had features that would be considered state of the art amongst the vehicles in the modern day. One such feature is that it had no clutch pedal, and shifting was instead accomplished by means of floor pedals with no clutching required. The Early Ford Model T was particularly light at only about 1 200 pounds, and yet incredibly powerful with such an engine under the hood. "Simple, sturdy, and versatile, the little car would excite the public imagination." ("Forbes"). By removing the twelve bolts on the top of the car off, the entire hood pulls away, exposing all four cylinders, all four pistons and all eight valves. "The crank case is oil tight and in addition to enclosing the crank shaft, forms the lower half of the housing of the transmission, fly-wheel, magneto and flexible joint, all of which are enclosed and operated in an oil bath. This form of construction makes dripping of oil impossible as all working parts are enclosed." ("Ford"). The Model T had high and low control speeds and an emergency brake by hand levers at the left of the driver. Spark and throttle gave it all speeds from 3 to 40 miles per hour. Ford reduction gear system, two sets of brakes: a service band brake on the transmission, and internal expanding brakes in the rear hub drums, artillery wood wheels, pneumatic tires, seating for four adults, and for a price of $850, the Ford Model T was classed as - and in fact still is - "The Car of the Century". It quickly became "one of the biggest-selling automobiles of all time." ("Encarta"). There are many similarities and certainly many more differences in the comparison of The Ford Model T to an automobile such as the Late Model Ford Crown Victoria. This model, also known as the "Crown Vic", was first produced in 1955, and did not outlast the 1950s. The Crown Victoria is often referred to as the "Dodge Monaco" of the 1990s and beyond, and is a universally popular automobile. "Some 90% of police cars in the US and Canada are Crown Victorias, since Ford was the only automaker still making sedans for police after the Chevrolet Caprice was phased out after 1996." ("Wikipedia"). "The Crown Vic is heavy, almost SUV-like heavy. It depends on this bulk to run suspects off the road should the need arise." ("Modern"). The Crown Victorias are popular for their impressive safety ratings, easily accessible entry and exit, quiet interior, and optional power-adjustable pedals - over 80 000 Crown Vics are sold in a single year. This luxury sedan is powered by a 4.6-liter V8 that produces 224 horsepower. "The base Crown Victoria ($23 620) comes standard with air conditioning, ABS, power windows, power door locks, power mirrors, an eight-way power adjustable driver's seat, tilt steering wheel,

The significance of culture Essay Example for Free

The significance of culture Essay The significance of culture is highlighted not only in research but more importantly, everyday in every person’s life. From what I see in television alone, it is clear that there is greater cultural diversity. However, this also raises the question of whether what is being depicted in these shows are authentic cultural representatations even the question if accurate depictions of culture are possible. According to Oishi (2004), even when there is â€Å"consistency and homogeneity in cultural messages†, there are individual interpretations of cultural identities (p. 69). One has to wonder whether what one attribute to culture is actually outside of it and is simply a construct of one’s own perception and experience of it. This then leads one to question whether cultural products such as media and even social institutions directed to specific cultural groups are able to recognize culture and thus respond appropriately to it (Nicholson, 1998). On a more personal level, there is a need to understand oneself both in the context and independently from one’s culture as it is understood. Therefore, any study of culture should recognize this, otherwise, culture will not be understood in all of its significance. It makes one realize that culture is continually changing and that as much as it is a factor of society as a whole, individuals are integral parts of it. When a person then seems to not subscribe to a cultural characterization, it should not be assumed that it is going against culture but should be considered as part of the development of culture. Individual experience, interpretations and perceptions all influence what will be attribute as part of culture. References Nicholson, I. (1998). Gordon Allport, character, and the ‘culture of personality’, 1897-1937. History of Psychology, 1. pp 52-68 Oishi, Shigehiro (2004). Personality in culture: A neo-Allportian view. Journal of Research in Personality, 38(1), February. pp 68-74

Edwin Hubble :: essays research papers

Edwin Hubble was a man who changed our view of the Universe. In 1929 he showed that galaxies are moving away from us with a speed proportional to their distance. The explanation is simple, but revolutionary: the Universe is expanding. Hubble was born in Missouri in 1889. His family moved to Chicago in 1898, where at High School he was a promising, though not exceptional, pupil. He was more remarkable for his athletic ability, breaking the Illinois State high jump record. At university too he was an accomplished sportsman playing for the University of Chicago basketball team. He won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford where he studied law. It was only some time after he returned to the US that he decided his future lay in astronomy. In the early 1920s Hubble played a key role in establishing just what galaxies are. It was known that some spiral nebulae (fuzzy clouds of light on the night sky) contained individual stars, but there was no consensus as to whether these were relatively small collections of stars within our own galaxy, the 'Milky Way' that stretches right across the sky, or whether these could be separate galaxies, or 'island universes', as big as our own galaxy but much further away. In 1924 Hubble measured the distance to the Andromeda nebula, a faint patch of light with about the same apparent diameter as the moon, and showed it was about a hundred thousand times as far away as the nearest stars. It had to be a separate galaxy, comparable in size our own Milky Way but much further away. Hubble was able to measure the distances to only a handful of other galaxies, but he realised that as a rough guide he could take their apparent brightness as an indication of their distance. The speed with which a galaxy was moving toward or away from us was relatively easy to measure due to the Doppler shift of their light. Just as a sound of a racing car becomes lower as it speeds away from us, so the light from a galaxy becomes redder. Though our ears can hear the change of pitch of the racing car engine our eyes cannot detect the tiny red-shift of the light, but with a sensitive spectrograph Hubble could determine the redshift of light from distant galaxies. The observational data available to Hubble by 1929 was sketchy, but whether guided by inspired instinct or outrageous good fortune, he correctly divined a straight line fit between the data points showing the redshift was proportional to the distance.

Forward the Foundation Chapter 19

17 The General had had a bad night and so, out of apprehension, had the colonel. They faced each other now-each at a loss. The General said, â€Å"Tell me again what this woman did.† Linn seemed to have a heavy weight on his shoulders. â€Å"She's The Tiger Woman. That's what they call her. She doesn't seem to be quite human, somehow. She's some sort of impossibly trained athlete, full of self-confidence, and, General, she's quite frightening.† â€Å"Did she frighten you? A single woman?† â€Å"Let me tell you exactly what she did and let me tell you a few other things about her. I don't know how true all the stories about her are, but what happened yesterday evening is true enough.† He told the story again and the General listened, puffing out his cheeks. â€Å"Bad,† he said. â€Å"What do we do?† â€Å"I think our course is plain before us. We want psychohistory-â€Å" â€Å"Yes, we do,† said the General. â€Å"Seldon told me something about taxation that-But never mind. That is beside the point at the moment. Go on.† Linn, who, in his troubled state of mind, had allowed a small fragment of impatience to show on his face, continued, â€Å"As I say, we want psychohistory without Seldon. He is, in any case, a used-up man. The more I study him, the more I see an elderly scholar who is living on his past deeds. He has had nearly thirty years to make a success of psychohistory and he has failed. Without him, with new men at the helm, psychohistory may advance more rapidly.† â€Å"Yes, I agree. Now what about the woman?† â€Å"Well, there you are. We haven't taken her into consideration because she has been careful to remain in the background. But I strongly suspect now that it will be difficult, perhaps impossible, to remove Seldon quietly and without implicating the government, as long as the woman remains alive.† â€Å"Do you really believe that she will mangle you and me-if she thinks we have harmed her man?† said the General, his mouth twisting in contempt. â€Å"I really think she will and that she will start a rebellion as well. It will he exactly as she promised.† â€Å"You are turning into a coward.† â€Å"General, please. I am trying to be sensible. I'm not backing off. We must take care of this Tiger Woman.† He paused thoughtfully. â€Å"As a matter of fact, my sources have told me this and I admit to having paid far too little attention to the matter.† â€Å"And how do you think we can get rid of her?† Linn said, â€Å"I don't know.† Then, more slowly, â€Å"But someone else might.† 18 Seldon had had a bad night also, nor was the new day promising to be much better. There weren't too many times when Hari felt annoyed with Dors. But this time, he was very annoyed. He said, â€Å"What a foolish thing to do! Wasn't it enough that we were all staying at the Dome's Edge Hotel? That alone would have been sufficient to drive a paranoid ruler into thoughts of some sort of conspiracy.† â€Å"How? We were unarmed, Hari. It was a holiday affair, the final touch of your birthday celebration. We posed no threat.† â€Å"Yes, but then you carried out your invasion of the Palace grounds. It was unforgivable. You raced to the Palace to interfere with my session with the General, when I had specifically-and several times-made it plain that I didn't want you there. I had my own plans, you know.† Dors said, â€Å"Your desires and your orders and your plans all take second place to your safety. I was primarily concerned about that.† â€Å"I was in no danger.† â€Å"That is not something I can carelessly assume. There have been two attempts on your life. What makes you think there won't be a third?† â€Å"The two attempts were made when I was First Minister. I was probably worth killing then. Who would want to kill an elderly mathematician?† Dors said, â€Å"That's exactly what I want to find out and that's what I want to stop. I must begin by doing some questioning right here at the Project.† â€Å"No. You will simply be upsetting my people. Leave them alone.† â€Å"That's exactly what I can't do. Hari, my job is to protect you and for twenty-eight years I've been working at that. You cannot stop me now.† Something in the blaze of her eyes made it quite clear that, whatever Seldon's desires or orders might be, Dors intended to do as she pleased. Seldon's safety came first. 19 â€Å"May I interrupt you, Yugo?† â€Å"Of course, Dors,† said Yugo Amaryl with a large smile. â€Å"You are never an interruption. What can I do for you?† â€Å"I am trying to find out a few things, Yugo, and I wonder if you would humor me in this.† â€Å"If I can.† â€Å"You have something in the Project called the Prime Radiant. I hear it now and then. Hari speaks of it, so I imagine I know what it looks like when it is activated, but I have never actually seen it in operation. I would like to.† Amaryl looked uncomfortable. â€Å"Actually the Prime Radiant is just about the most closely guarded part of the Project and you aren't on the list of the members who have access.† â€Å"I know that, but we've known each other for twenty-eight years-â€Å" â€Å"And you're Hari's wife. I suppose we can stretch a point. We only have two full Prime Radiants. There's one in Hari's office and one here. Right there, in fact.† Dors looked at the squat black cube on the central desk. It looked utterly undistinguished. â€Å"Is that it?† â€Å"That's it. It stores the equations that describe the future.† â€Å"How do you get at those equations?† Amaryl moved a contact and at once the room darkened and then came to life in a variegated glow. All around Dors were symbols, arrows, mathematical signs of one sort or another. They seemed to be moving, spiraling, but when she focused her eyes on any particular portion, it seemed to be standing still. She said, â€Å"Is that the future, then?† â€Å"It may be,† said Amaryl, turning off the instrument. â€Å"I had it at full expansion so you could see the symbols. Without expansion, nothing is visible but patterns of light and dark.† â€Å"And by studying those equations, you are able to judge what the future holds in store for us?† â€Å"In theory.† The room was now back to its mundane appearance. â€Å"But there are two difficulties.† â€Å"Oh? What are they?† â€Å"To begin with, no human mind has created those equations directly. We have merely spent decades programming more powerful computers and they have devised and stored the equations, but, of course, we don't know if they are valid and have meaning. It depends entirely on how valid and meaningful the programming is in the first place.† â€Å"They could be all wrong, then?† â€Å"They could be.† Amaryl rubbed his eyes and Dors could not help thinking how old and tired he seemed to have grown in the last couple of years. He was younger than Hari by nearly a dozen years, but he seemed much older. â€Å"Of course,† Amaryl went on in a rather weary voice, â€Å"we hope that they aren't all wrong, but that's where the second difficulty comes in. Although Hari and I have been testing and modifying them for decades, we can never be sure what the equations mean. The computer has constructed them, so it is to be presumed they must mean something-but what? There are portions that we think we have worked out. In fact, right now, I'm working on what we call Section A-23, a particularly knotty system of relationships. We have not yet been able to match it with anything in the real Universe. Still, each year sees us further advanced and I look forward confidently to the establishment of psychohistory as a legitimate and useful technique for dealing with the future.† â€Å"How many people have access to these Prime Radiants?† â€Å"Every mathematician in the Project has access but not at will. There have to be applications and time allotted and the Prime Radiant has to be adjusted to the portion of the equations a mathematician wishes to refer to. It gets a little complicated when everyone wants to use the Prime Radiant at the same time. Right now, things are slow, possibly because we're still in the aftermath of Hari's birthday celebration.† â€Å"Is there any plan for constructing additional Prime Radiants?† Amaryl thrust out his lips. â€Å"Yes and no. It would be very helpful if we had a third, but someone would have to be in charge of it. It can't just be a community possession. I have suggested to Hari that Tamwile Elar-you know him, I think- â€Å" â€Å"Yes, I do.† â€Å"That Elar have a third Prime Radiant. His achaotic equations and the Electro-Clarifier he thought up make him clearly the third man in the Project after Hari and myself. Hari hesitates, however.† â€Å"Why? Do you know?† â€Å"If Elar gets one, he is openly recognized as the third man, over the Head of other mathematicians who are older and who have more senior status in the Project. There might be some political difficulties, so to speak. I think that we can't waste time in worrying about internal politics, but Hari-Well, you know Hari.† â€Å"Yes, I know Hari. Suppose I tell you that Linn has seen the Prime Radiant.† â€Å"Linn?† â€Å"Colonel Hender Linn of the junta. Tennar's lackey.† â€Å"I doubt that very much, Dors.† â€Å"He has spoken of spiraling equations and I have just seen them produced by the Prime Radiant. I can't help but think he's been here and seen it working.† Amaryl shook his head, â€Å"I can't imagine anyone bringing a member of the junta into Hari's office-or mine.† â€Å"Tell me, who in the Project do you think is capable of working with the junta in this fashion?† â€Å"No one,† said Amaryl flatly and with clearly unlimited faith. â€Å"That would be unthinkable. Perhaps Linn never saw the Prime Radiant but was merely told about it.† â€Å"Who would tell him about it?† Amaryl thought a moment and said, â€Å"No one.† â€Å"Well now, you talked about internal politics a while ago in connection with the possibility of Elar having a third Prime Radiant. I suppose in a Project such as this one with hundreds of people, there are little feuds going on all the time-frictions-quarrels.† â€Å"Oh yes. Poor Hari talks to me about it every once in a while. He has to deal with them in one way or another and I can well imagine what a headache it must be for him.† â€Å"Are these feuds so bad that they interfere with the working of the Project?† â€Å"Not seriously.† â€Å"Are there any people who are more quarrelsome than others or any duo draw more resentment than others? In short, are there people you can get rid of and perhaps remove 90 percent of the friction at the cost of 5 or 6 percent of the personnel?† Amaryl raised his eyebrows. â€Å"It sounds like a good idea, but I don't know whom to get rid of. I don't really participate in all the minutiae of internal politics. There's no way of stopping it, so for my part, I merely avoid it.† â€Å"That's strange,† said Dors. â€Å"Aren't you in this way denying any credibility to psychohistory?† â€Å"In what way?† â€Å"How can you pretend to reach a point where you can predict and guide the future, when you cannot analyze and correct something as homegrown as personal frictions in the very Project that promises so much?† Amaryl chuckled softly. It was unusual, for he was not a man who was given to humor and laughter. â€Å"I'm sorry, Dors, but you picked on the one problem that we have solved, after a manner of speaking. Hari himself identified the equations that represented the difficulties of personal friction years ago and I myself then added the final touch last year. â€Å"I found that there were ways in which the equations could be changed so as to indicate a reduction in friction. In every such case, however, a reduction in friction here meant an increase in friction there. Never at any time was there a total decrease or, for that matter, a total increase in the friction within a closed group-that is, one in which no old members leave and no new members come in. What I proved, with the help of Elar's achaotic equations, was that this was true despite any conceivable action anyone could take. Hari calls it ‘the law of conservation of personal problems.' â€Å"It gave rise to the notion that social dynamics has its conservation laws as physics does and that, in fact, it is these laws that offer us the best possible tools for solving the truly troublesome aspects of psychohistory.† Dors said, â€Å"Rather impressive, but what if you end up finding that nothing at all can be changed, that everything that is bad is conserved, and that to save the Empire from destruction is merely to increase destruction of another kind?† â€Å"Actually some have suggested that, but I don't believe it.† â€Å"Very well. Back to reality. Is there anything in the frictional problems within the Project that threaten Hari? I mean, with physical harm.† â€Å"Harm Hari? Of course not. How can you suggest such a thing?† â€Å"Might there not be some who resent Hari, for being too arrogant, too pushy, too self-absorbed, too eager to grab all the credit? Or, if none of these things apply, might they not resent him simply because he has run the Project for so long a time?† â€Å"I never heard anyone say such a thing about Hari.† Dors seemed dissatisfied. â€Å"I doubt that anyone would say such things in your hearing, of course. But thank you, Yugo, for being so helpful and for giving me so much of your time.† Amaryl stared after her as she left. He felt vaguely troubled, but then returned to his work and let other matters drift away. 20 One way Hari Seldon had (out of not too many ways) for pulling away from his work for a time was to visit Raych's apartment, just outside the university grounds. To do this invariably filled him with love for his foster son. There were ample grounds. Raych had been good, capable, and loyal-but besides that was the strange quality Raych had of inspiring trust and love in others. Hari had observed it when Raych was a twelve-year-old street boy, who somehow pulled at his own and at Dors's heartstrings. He remembered how Raych had affected Rashelle, the onetime Mayor of Wye. Hari remembered how Joranum had trusted Raych, which led to his own destruction. Raych had even managed to win the heart of the beautiful Manella. Hari did not completely understand this particular quality that Raych embodied, but he enjoyed whatever contact he had with his foster son. He entered the apartment with his usual â€Å"All well here?† Raych put aside the holographic material he was working with and rose to greet him, â€Å"All well, Dad.† â€Å"I don't hear Wanda.† â€Å"For good reason. She's out shopping with her mother.† Seldon seated himself and looked good-humoredly at the chaos of reference material. â€Å"How's the book coming?† â€Å"It's doing fine. It's me who might not survive.† He sighed. â€Å"But for once, we'll get the straight poop on Dahl. Nobody's ever written a book devoted to that section, wouldja believe?† Seldon had always noted that, whenever Raych talked of his home sector, his Dahlite accent always strengthened. Raych said, â€Å"And how are you, Dad? Glad the festivities are over?† â€Å"Enormously. I hated just about every minute of it.† â€Å"Not so anyone could notice.† â€Å"Listen, I had to wear a mask of sorts. I didn't want to spoil the celebration for everyone else.† â€Å"You must have hated it when Mom chased after you onto the Palace grounds. Everyone I know has been talking about that.† â€Å"I certainly did hate it. Your mother, Raych, is the most wonderful person in the world, but she is very difficult to handle. She might have spoiled my plans.† â€Å"What plans are those, Dad?† Seldon settled back. It was always pleasant to speak to someone in whom he had total trust and who knew nothing about psychohistory. More than once he had bounced thoughts off Raych and had worked them out into more sensible forms than would have been the case if those same thoughts had been mulled over in his mind. He said, â€Å"Are we shielded?† â€Å"Always.† â€Å"Good. What I did was to set General Tennar thinking along curious lines.† â€Å"What lines?† â€Å"Well, I discussed taxation a bit and pointed out that, in the effort to make taxation rest evenly on the population, it grew more and more complex, unwieldy, and costly. The obvious implication was that the tax system must be simplified.† â€Å"That seems to make sense.† â€Å"Up to a point, but it is possible that, as a result of our little discussion, Tennar may oversimplify. You see, taxation loses effectiveness at both extremes. Overcomplicate it and people cannot understand it and pay for an overgrown and expensive tax organization. Oversimplify it and people consider it unfair and grow bitterly resentful. The simplest tax is a poll tax, in which every individual pays the same amount, but the unfairness of treating rich and poor alike in this way is too evident to overlook.† â€Å"And you didn't explain this to the General?† â€Å"Somehow, I didn't get a chance.† â€Å"Do you think the General will try a poll tax?† â€Å"I think he will plan one. If he does, the news is bound to leak out and that alone would suffice to set off riots and possibly upset the government.† â€Å"And you've done this on purpose, Dad?† â€Å"Of course.† Raych shook his head. â€Å"I don't quite understand you, Dad. In your personal life, you're as sweet and gentle as any person in the Empire. Yet you can deliberately set up a situation in which there will be riots, suppression, deaths. There'll be a lot of damage done, Dad. Have you thought of that?† Seldon leaned back in his chair and said sadly, â€Å"I think of nothing else, Raych. When I first began my work on psychohistory, it seemed a purely academic piece of research to me. It was something that could not he worked out at all, in all likelihood, and, if it was, it would not be something that could be practically applied. But the decades pass and we know more and more and then comes the terrible urge to apply it.† â€Å"So that people can die?† â€Å"No, so that fewer people can die. If our psychohistorical analyses are correct now, then the junta cannot survive for more than a few years and there are various alternative ways in which it can collapse. They will all he fairly bloody and desperate. This method-the taxation gimmick- should do it more smoothly and gently than any other if-I repeat-our analyses are correct.† â€Å"If they're not correct, what then?† â€Å"In that case, we don't know what might happen. Still, psychohistory must reach the point where it can be used and we've been searching for years for something in which we have worked out the consequences with a certain assuredness and can find those consequences tolerable as compared with alternatives. In a way, this taxation gimmick is the first great psychohistoric experiment.† â€Å"I must admit, it sounds like a simple one.† â€Å"It isn't. You have no idea how complex psychohistory is. Nothing is simple. The poll tax has been tried now and then throughout history. It is never popular and it invariably gives rise to resistance of one form or another, but it almost never results in the violent overthrow of a government. After all, the powers of governmental oppression may be too strong or there may be methods whereby the people can bring to bear their opposition in a peaceful manner and achieve redress. If a poll tax were invariably or even just sometimes fatal, then no government would ever try it. It is only because it isn't fatal that it is tried repeatedly. The situation on Trantor is, however, not exactly normal. There are certain instabilities that seem clear in psychohistorical analysis, which make it seem that resentment will be particularly strong and repression particularly weak.† Raych sounded dubious. â€Å"I hope it works, Dad, but don't you think that the General will say that he was working under psychohistorical advice and bring you down with him?† â€Å"I suppose he recorded our little session together, but if he publicizes that, it will show clearly that I urged him to wait till I could analyze the situation properly and prepare a report-and he refused to wait.† â€Å"And what does Mom think of all this?† Seldon said, â€Å"I haven't discussed it with her. She's off on another tangent altogether.† â€Å"Really?† â€Å"Yes. She's trying to sniff out some deep conspiracy in the Project-aimed at me! I imagine she thinks there are many people in the Project who would like to get rid of me.† Seldon sighed. â€Å"I'm one of them, I think. I would like to get rid of me as director of the Project and leave the gathering responsibilities of psychohistory to others.† Raych said, â€Å"What's bugging Mom is Wanda's dream. You know how Mom feels about protecting you. I'll bet even a dream about your dying would be enough to make her think of a murder conspiracy against you.† â€Å"I certainly hope there isn't one.† And at the idea of it both men laughed. 21 The small Electro-Clarification Laboratory was, for some reason, maintained at a temperature somewhat lower than normal and Dors Venabili wondered idly why that might be. She sat quietly, waiting for the one occupant of the lab to finish whatever it was she was doing. Dors eyed the woman carefully. Slim, with a long face. Not exactly attractive, with her thin lips and receding jawline, but a look of intelligence shone in her dark brown eyes. The glowing nameplate on her desk said: CINDA MONAY. She turned to Dors at last and said, â€Å"My apologies, Dr. Venabili, but there are some procedures that can't be interrupted even for the wife of the director.† â€Å"I would have been disappointed in you if you had neglected the procedure on my behalf. I have been told some excellent things about you.† â€Å"That's always nice to hear. Who's been praising me?† â€Å"Quite a few,† said Dors. â€Å"I gather that you are one of the most prominent nonmathematicians in the Project.† Monay winced. â€Å"There's a certain tendency to divide the rest of us from the aristocracy of mathematics. My own feeling is that, if I'm prominent, then I'm a prominent member of the Project. It makes no difference that I'm a nonmathematician.† â€Å"That certainly sounds reasonable to me. How long have you been with the Project?† â€Å"Two and a half years. Before that I was a graduate student in radiational physics at Streeling and, while I was doing that, I served a couple of years with the Project as an intern.† â€Å"You've done well at the Project, I understand.† â€Å"I've been promoted twice, Dr. Venabili.† â€Å"Have you encountered any difficulties here, Dr. Monay? Whatever you say will be held confidential.† â€Å"The work is difficult, of course, but if you mean, have I run into any social difficulties, the answer is no. At least not any more than one would expect in any large and complex project, I imagine.† â€Å"And by that you mean?† â€Å"Occasional spats and quarrels. We're all human.† â€Å"But nothing serious?† Monay shook her head. â€Å"Nothing serious.† â€Å"My understanding, Dr. Monay,† said Dors, â€Å"is that you have been responsible for the development of a device important to the use of the Prime Radiant. It makes it possible to cram much more information into the Prime Radiant.† Monay broke into a radiant smile. â€Å"Do you know about that? Yes, the Electro-Clarifier. After that was developed, Professor Seldon established this small laboratory and put me in charge of other work in that direction.† â€Å"I'm amazed that such an important advance did not bring you up into the higher echelons of the Project.† â€Å"Oh well,† said Monay, looking a trifle embarrassed. â€Å"I don't want to take all the credit. Actually my work was only that of a technician-a very skilled and creative technician, I like to think-but there you are.† â€Å"And who worked with you?† â€Å"Didn't you know? It was Tamwile Elar. He worked out the theory that made the device possible and I designed and built the actual instrument.† â€Å"Does that mean he took the credit, Dr. Monay?† â€Å"No no. You mustn't think that. Dr. Elar is not that kind of man. He gave me full credit for my share of the work. In fact, it was his idea to call the device by our names-both our names-but he couldn't.† â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"Well, that's Professor Seldon's rule, you know. All devices and equations are to be given functional names and not personal ones-to avoid resentment. So the device is just the Electro-Clarifier. When we're working together, however, he gives the device our names and, I tell you, Dr. Venabili, it sounds grand. Perhaps someday, all of the Project personnel will use the personal name. I hope so.† â€Å"I hope so, too,† said Dors politely. â€Å"You make Elar sound like a very decent individual.† â€Å"He is. He is,† said Monay earnestly. â€Å"He is a delight to work for. Right now, I'm working on a new version of the device, which is more powerful and which I don't quite understand. I mean, what it's to be used for. However, he's directing me there.† â€Å"And are you making progress?† â€Å"Indeed. In fact, I've given Dr. Elar a prototype, which he plans to test. If it works out, we can proceed further.† â€Å"It sounds good,† agreed Dors. â€Å"What do you think would happen if Professor Seldon were to resign as director of the Project? If he were to retire?† Monay looked surprised. â€Å"Is the professor planning to retire?† â€Å"Not that I know of. I'm presenting you with a hypothetical case. Suppose he retires. Who do you think would be a natural successor? I think from what you have said that you would favor Professor Elar as the new director.† â€Å"Yes, I would,† responded Monay after a trifling hesitation. â€Å"He's far and away the most brilliant of the new people and I think he could run the Project in the best possible way. Still, he's rather young. There are a considerable number of old fossils-well, you know what I mean-who would resent being passed over by a young squirt.† â€Å"Is there any old fossil you're thinking of in particular? Remember, this is confidential.† â€Å"Quite a few of them, but there's Dr. Amaryl. He's the heir apparent.† â€Å"Yes, I see what you mean.† Dors rose. â€Å"Well, thank you so much for your help. I'll let you return to your work now.† She left, thinking about the Electro-Clarifier. And about Amaryl.

Analysis of Labor and Capital Tensions in Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City

The â€Å"devil† of Erik Larson’s gripping The Devil in the White City is not just the murderer Henry J. Holmes, who serves as the terrifying counterpoint to architect Daniel Hudson Burnham’s efforts to conceive and construct the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Instead, Larson explores many different devils that plague Chicago as a whole. Larson paints a portrait of a city besieged by economic and labor struggles, the stress of technological development, a flood of immigration, and crime.Chicago, perched at the end of the Gilded Age, is an American city not only trying to establish an identity, but desperately trying to hold itself together against the ever-widening rift between labor and capital. As presented by Larson, Chicago is a city that exploits this rift, giving rise to a battlefield between the two. Larson comments that â€Å"the thing that entranced me about Chicago in the Gilded Age was the city’s willingness to take on the impossible in the name of civic honor† (393).This â€Å"civic honor† is the heart of The Devil in the White City, revealing a great deal about the city’s nature and determination to carve out an identity for itself. The downside of Chicago’s ambitions to stage a six-month world’s fair, Larson suggests, is that it threatens to undo an already-tenuous social structure. Chicago, however, is full of pride following the Great Fire of 1871. â€Å"They had not merely restored it; they had turned it into the nation’s leader in commerce, manufacturing, and architecture† (Larson 16).Chicago, in the last nineteenth century, barrels forward in the name of progress and is resolved, almost blindly, to come out from under the shadow of New York City. The Devil in the White City, while it follows architect Burnham and murderous doctor Holmes on their antithetical missions, is much more concerned with the American dream. That is, the dream that Larson (as well as many h istorians) feels America has abandoned. Historian Jack Beatty, in his book Age of Betrayal, traces how the dream of â€Å"free soil, free labor, free men and free land† (14) has been traded for the favor of big corporations.During the Gilded Age, Beatty sees an America corrupted from within. The disparity between the rich and the poor has never been greater, he says, with a virtual elimination of the middle class. The dream established by Lincoln during the Civil War is submarined by a partnership between government and business—one that is, at the time, questioned by very few Americans. Chicago is an excellent lens through which to view the fall of the Gilded Age, mainly because of the city’s â€Å"explosive growth† (Larson 23). It is a city that cannot keep up with itself in many ways.As the skyscrapers grew taller and transportation became more effective, Chicago â€Å"also grew dirtier, darker, and more dangerous† (Larson 28), pointing toward t he dark side of progress. There are prices to pay for progress, which forms an ever-present undercurrent of unease in Larson’s depiction of Chicago. Ambition informs Chicago’s â€Å"civic honor† of staging the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. The fair, when completed, would cover over 600 acres of land, complete with new buildings, European architecture, and exhibits from cultures from around the world.Everything about the fair was designed to â€Å"out-Eiffel Eiffel,† referring to the Eiffel Tower, which was introduced at the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris. This speaks to an overwhelming desire for the world’s immediate recognition of greatness. For example, when plans were being drawn up for the fair’s multitude of exhibits and wonders, the ideas were driven by size and stature. The fair, being America’s first, was steered in the direction of not only being memorable, but so grand of vision as to be intimidating.Im possibly large towers were proposed, even from Gustave Eiffel himself, until George Ferris came up with the idea of a spinning wheel, which would become the first â€Å"Ferris wheel. † The Chicago World’s Fair was a forced reflection of great amount of ingenuity and innovation that occurred during the Gilded Age. Chicago, however, was still beset by the problems of all growing big cities. In fact, the city’s ambitions to compete with New York City brought on unexpected (and unwelcome) parallels:[New York journalist Jacob] Riis had toured Chicago’s foulest districts and announced them worse than anything he had seen in New York. In his talk he noted the fast approach of the exposition and warned his audience, â€Å"You ought to begin house cleaning, so to speak, and get your alleys and streets in better condition; never in our worst season have we had so much filth in New York City† (Larson 212). Through the Gilded Age and Larson’s book, Chic ago constantly struggles to maintain its identity against New York City.In Blair A. Ruble’s insightful book, Second Metropolis: Pragmatic Pluralism in Gilded Age Chicago, Silver Age Moscow, and Meiji Osaka, Ruble explores the plights of three cities that are the second-largest ones in their countries. Ruble posits that all three cities, near the turn of the twentieth century, were the fastest-growing, most innovative ones. He argues that each city, such as Chicago, faced insurmountable challenges, such as how to manage the growing disparities between the working class and the cultural elite.The ways in which the elite handled each problem, Ruble believes, said something about their fate. In Chicago’s case, Ruble focuses on the rapid expansion of the city against its inability to create an effective transportation system. Chicago was not only flooded with immigrants, but it was markedly overcrowded. It was practically bulging at the seams. Ruble focuses on mayor Carter Henry Harrison, who in Larson’s book was noted for â€Å"establish[ing] Chicago as a place that tolerated human frailty even as it nurtured grand ambition† (213).Ruble credits Harrison for being a true visionary and keenly aware of the problems his city faced. However, Ruble’s notion of â€Å"pragmatic pluralism† plays into his ultimate assessment of Chicago (and Harrison) at the turn of the century. For Ruble, Chicago demanded a leader who understood and applied â€Å"pragmatic pluralism†: a unique (and rare) ability to satisfy everyone’s interests. It is a talent for balancing the interests of the wealthy and the poor, as well as making compromising for the sake of the city’s future development.â€Å"Pragmatic pluralism† speaks to the best, long-run interests of everyone, not the short-term interests of a few. Ruble charges Harrison with doing well at managing certain crises, but losing sight of the goal line. He is portrayed not as a failure, but a victim of economic and social circumstances that befall other cities of rapid expansion and developmental growth. Chicago, just like Moscow and Osaka, failed to deliver on its promises and further reflect the American dream. Chicago’s idealism, Ruble says, had been corroded by a relationship between business and government (213).This tension between labor and capital plays itself out in The Devil in the White City in many fascinating ways. Larson is particularly good in crafting a book that underscores these tensions in both highly dramatic and skillfully subtle ways. First and foremost, he tells twin stories of the fair, focusing on the fair’s architect (Burnham) and the calculating doctor (Holmes)—two stories that run contrary to one another. Larson portrays both of them as brilliant men in their own regards—geniuses at accounting for every detail, anticipating every contingency, and staying one step ahead.Larson’s book l ays out all of the obstacles that stand in the way of Burnham and Holmes’s ambitions. The impossibilities that both men overcome is almost as staggering as the fair itself—a dreamlike world populated with characters as diverse as Buffalo Bill, Thomas Edison, and Frank Lloyd Wright. It is easy to get swept up into the unreality of it all, of which Dora Root wrote â€Å"I should never willingly cease drifting in that dreamland† (Larson 253). This dreamlike quality, echoed by others in the book, is used by Larson to offset the harsh reality of the world beyond it.The fair’s eventual end seems to echo the end of the Gilded Age in many ways—a symbolic shift from the ideal to the real. When columnist Teresa Dean says, â€Å"It seems cruel, cruel, to give us such a vision; to let us dream and drift through heaven for six months, and then to take it out of our lives† (335), one gets the feeling that Larson is using her quote to comment on the collap se of the American dream itself. Labor and capital disappear against the World’s Fair, their tension ceasing to exist in the unreality of it all, but rear their head in another fundamental way.While some could argue that the inclusion of Henry H. Holmes in The Devil in the White City is nothing short of a marketing ploy, Holmes is actually central to the power of Larson’s book. Burnham and Holmes should be viewed as symbols, rather than historical figures: the idealist versus the opportunist, the laborer versus the capitalist. Burnham believes that all things are possible, even when faced with the challenge of staging a fair where â€Å"failure was unthinkable† for fear of the nation’s honor being â€Å"tarnished† (Larson 33). He is a man who believes in himself and those around him.Burnham is the laborer, working to sustain the American dream and keep it alive. He is, quite literally, the architect of America’s future. Holmes, on the other hand, has a completely different agenda. Holmes is the capitalist, looking to exploit weakness and profit for himself: Holmes understood that powerful new forces were acting upon Chicago, causing a nearly miraculous expansion. The city was growing in all available directions, and where it abutted the lake, it grew skyward, sharply increasing the value of land within the Loop. Everywhere helooked he saw evidence of the city’s prosperity. †¦ Holmes knew— everyone knew—that as skyscrapers soared and the stockyards expanded their butchery, the demand for workers would remain high, and that workers and their supervisors would seek to live in the city’s suburbs†¦ (Larson 44-45) As such, Holmes seized upon the idea of the â€Å"World’s Fair Hotel,† which was actually a crematorium and torture palace. He could essentially bend young women to his will, take their money and their trust, and have an endless supply of them visiting his hotel d uring the fair.It is almost an unthinkable series of crimes, especially in Holmes’s ability to evade suspicion, though the Chicago Times-Herald notes that his story â€Å"tends to illustrate the end of the century† (370). This quote informs the entire book and the Gilded Age at once: opportunism and evil masquerading as something benign and trusted. Closely recalling Holmes’s demeanor, the government—entrusted by the people to lead them—sold itself to the corporations. Both Holmes and the government are complicit in failing to deliver the American dream to the people and, instead, employing it for their own gains.The Gilded Age seems remarkably similar to the contemporary world. In fact, many parallels could be drawn between then and now. Presidents and politicians are controlled by the lobbyists and those who have funded their campaigns. The money that has helped put them in office will continue to shape policy and determine our country’s c ourse of action. In light of these realities, Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City is not just a fascinating piece of history, but it is a cautionary tale that seems more relevant than ever before.