The League Of Nations During World War I - 2066 Words

The League of Nations was started after World War I to try to bring peace to this world after this horrid war we had just been in. It was proposed by Woodrow Wilson, to the allied forces to join in this league to use arbitration to make decisions on other nations matters so it can be solved before they try to start a war. This might sound all well but if you think about it, it is impossible to achieve world peace in general. The League of Nations was a great idea but in reality the US should not have joined the League of Nations.The League s goals included disarmament, preventing war through collective security, settling disputes between countries through negotiation and diplomacy, and improving global welfare. Despite these bold aims, the League proved incapable of preventing aggression by the fascist powers in late 1930s. The United Nations effectively replaced it after World War II and inherited a number of agencies and organizations founded by the League. The opposition to the Le ague of Nations comes from four sources: The extreme Socialists and radical revolutionists who look on all measures devised by government as at present constitution as â€Å"capitalistic† and as â€Å"bourgeois makeshifts†; from constitutives who considers any change as dangerous and revolutionary; from Republican party leaders who want to make political capital against Wilson a democrat, and from those who believe in an extreme nationalism and who feel that any international agreement will curbShow MoreRelatedWorld War I And Its Effects On America1703 Words   |  7 Pagesthe U.S. entered into World War, it had already been raging for some time. Between the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand during the tension between Austria-Hungary and Russia for the sake of dominance, the increasing competition from Japan for Chinese trade, and the increasingly offensive tactics of Germany concerning the U.S., the American population began to contemplate whether or not Amer ica should get involved, a topic that is still debated to this day. World War I and its effects wereRead MoreThe League Of Nations And The United Nations1178 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction The League of Nations and the United Nations are two unique forms of international governance created by world powers out of the same necessity—needing a better format of managing global conflict. However, both international organizations were created, structured, and operated under very different circumstances. For instance, the League of Nations was created during towards the end of World War I, when nations were looking for a governing body to address future global conflicts. SimilarlyRead MoreThe Repeated Failure of the League of Nations in Keeping Peace668 Words   |  3 PagesThe Repeated Failure of the League of Nations in Keeping Peace The League of Nations repeatedly failed in keeping the peace because, first of all Hitler went against the Treaty of Versailles and started World War 2 yet the League of Nations failed to react. The Treaty of Versailles also failed because Mussolini in Abyssinia went against the league and Manchuria also contributed towards the failure to keep the peace. The structure of the league didnÂ’t help as the councilRead MoreThe League Of Nations By Woodrow Wilson1202 Words   |  5 PagesThe league of nations was started after World War I to try to bring peace to this world after this horrid war we had just been in. It was proposed by Woodrow Wilson, to the allied forces to join in this league to use arbitration to make decisions on other nations matters so it can be solved before they try to start a war. This might sound all well but if you think about it, it is impossible to achieve world peace in general. The League s goals included disarmament, preventing war through collectiveRead MoreWorld War I And The Treaty Of Versailles1604 Words   |  7 PagesHave you ever wondered why World War II happened despite World War I being the war to end all wars? World War I lasted four years and was very gruesome. Much of the Western Front was destroyed and about 10 million people died. Germany ended the war by ceasing fire and making an armistice on November 11, 1918. The Allied Power had successfully defeated the Central Powers and America had accomplished their goal to end the war. After the surrender from Germany, the Allied Power met up to make a treatyRead More The League Of Nations And Its Impact On World Peace Essay947 Words   |  4 PagesThrough my studies and research I have come to the following conclusion about the League of Nations: despite all of President Woodrow Wilsons efforts, the League was doomed to fail. I feel this was so for many reasons, some of which I hope to convey in the following report. From the day when Congress voted on the Fourteen Points, it was obvious that the League had a very slim chance of being passed in Congress, and without all of the World powers, the League had little chance of survivingRead MoreTaking a Look at the League of Nations841 Words   |  3 PagesIn this essay i am going to write about The League of Nations and different accepts how failed and how it is happened and .Policy Brief The League of Nations - the first international organisation that its main objective is put strengthen international relationships and the transparency of these relations in the countries of the world . Also served as a pretext to create devastation after . First World War, which set the whole world on the edge of existence like the difficult economic and politicalRead MoreThe World War I Was Not A Harbinger Of Peace1083 Words   |  5 PagesConcluding World War I was not a Harbinger of Peace The end of World War I was supposed to end all wars, although ultimately, it caused another. The Axis Powers of World War II found that they were majorly defiled by the conclusion of World War I and adjudged that they needed to start another. The three main factors that induced the Axis Powers to start the war were; the Treaty of Versailles, the rise of right-wing activist parties in Germany and the unsuccessfulness of the League of Nations. The TreatyRead MoreReasons For The World War I1643 Words   |  7 PagesLin Mr. M MWH MW1 17/3/30 Reasons for Germany started WWII In 1919, Treaty of Versailles was made after the World War I. Germany and Austria-Hungary was blamed for the Great War and was imposed financial debts and territorial dismemberment on them. Germans could not afford the huge debts and during the 1920s the Great Depression which started in the USA impacted the economies of the whole world. There was high unemployment and the prices of daily necessities were high. The German government was distrustedRead MorePolitical Changes in Europe Following WWII1251 Words   |  6 Pages2nd World War. World War II (WWII) was a pivotal event that reshaped the Europe very much in terms of international politics. I agree to a large extent that Europe did see greater political changes than continuities following WWII. The most evident changes of which were that the United States of America (USA) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) gained international dominance in the world arena and that the United Nations (UN) was established following the League of Nations demise

Teen Pregnancy - 1246 Words

A topic in American society that has proved to be an ongoing, and growing issue is that none other than teen pregnancy. In recent years, teen pregnancy rates have been increasing, which ultimately led to the topics increase of public and media attention. In American society teen pregnancy is often associated with negligence, as well as being irresponsible. In American society sex education for children is underdeveloped and instead society tends to use fear and shame to highlight/combat the dangers of unsafe or underage sex. American society uses fear to instill the idea that if you become pregnant as a teenager you are a burden to society. Along with fear society loves to shame its young women who have unfortunately stumbled upon the†¦show more content†¦To compliment narrative elements within a media text directors often utilize a variety of different stylistic elements to enhance their stories. Stylistic elements help the audience get further into the plot and relate them selves to the characters and their experiences. Stylistic elements thrive at â€Å"creating the scene† because they are directly responsible for the sets at which the story is taking place, the outfits worn which correlate with whats happening, as well as the music that plays in the background to fill the scene with different emotions. â€Å"The Secret Life Of The American Teenager† benefits greatly through its pairing of stylistic and narrative elements because they allow the story to develop while creating a deeper meaning. The use of these elements enable the show to contradict the current oppressive view of teenage pregnancy in society. The show â€Å"The Secret Life Of The American Teen† uses its narrative and stylistic elements to exemplify the success that can come regardless of teen pregnancy. The directors established the plot early with the help of many stylistic elements. At first glance one can tell that Amy is super young and conservative girl by her clothing. She was dressed like your average high schooler and this provides to the suspense of the following scene. Amy telling her friends that sheShow MoreRelatedTeen Pregnancy1426 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Teen pregnancy is often unplanned and challenging for the future life of mother and child. The increase risk of health problems for both mother and baby occur during teen pregnancy. Teen pregnancy impacts adolescent development in all aspects: physical, emotional, cognitive, and social development. Negative consequences result from teen pregnancy include: low income, increased school dropout rates, lower educational levels, and increased rates of substance abuse (Garwood, Gerassi, ReidRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy1546 Words   |  7 PagesTeenage pregnancy is pregnancy in human females under the age of 20 at the time that the pregnancy ends. Low-income communities have the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the United States. Because of the fact that this is a very controversial issue in the United States, it is very important that most questions be addressed. Questions like, why is a teenage girl in Mississippi four times as likely to give birth as a teenage girl in New Hampshire? Or why is the teen birth rate in Massachusetts 19Read MoreTeen Pregnancy : Teenage Pregnancy1404 Words   |  6 PagesLauryn Jones Block 5 4/27/16 What is Teen Pregnancy? Teenage pregnancy is pregnancy in human females under the age of 20. A girl can become pregnant from sexual intercourse after she has begun to ovulate which can be before her first menstrual period, but usually occurs after the onset of her periods. In well-nourished girls, menarche usually takes place around the age of 12 or 13. Most teenage girls don t plan to get pregnant, but many do. Teen pregnancies carry extra health risks to both the motherRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy1057 Words   |  5 PagesTeenage pregnancy is a common thing here in America. It seems teens are getting pregnant more than the average married couple. There are some risk factors teen moms face and there is also another great turn outs. There is a major difference between the two. It’s important to tell teens the turnouts of teen pregnancy for the good and bad parts. There are risks of having sex, teen moms can make a difference for her and the baby, the risk of having HIV and/or any other STD’s, and the effects on theRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy1664 Words   |  7 PagesTerrazas English 4 Miss Stahlecker 4 November 2015 Teenage Pregnancy According to cda.org, in 2013, a total of 273,105 babies were born to women that were in between the ages of 15-19 years old. Teenage pregnancy is a major concern in today’s society. This paper will talk about teenage pregnancy, statistics, ways to prevent teenage pregnancy, and after birth options. So why is teenage pregnancy so important? Some people are concerned about teens getting pregnant at such an early age. There are otherRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy1341 Words   |  6 PagesTeenage pregnancy is a prominent dilemma in our nation because it continues to place adolescents into delinquency. According to the United States Health and Human Services, three out of ten American teen girls will become pregnant at least once before they reach the age of twenty. That is nearly 750,000 teen pregnancies in a year (1) (HHS Pg.2 2014). Also according to U.S. Department of State, teen pregnancy budgets the United States and tax payers approximately seven billion dollars annually (2)Read MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy905 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"16 and Pregnant†/ â€Å"Teen Mom† Promote or Discourage Teenage Pregnancy? (Agree/Promote) When it comes to the topic of do TV shows like â€Å"16 and Pregnant† and â€Å"Teen Mom† promote or discourage teenage pregnancy, most of us will readily agree that it in fact does promote teenage pregnancy. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of how does this promote teenage pregnancy. Whereas some are convinced that it promotes teenage pregnancy through the fame some of the young couples haveRead MoreTeenage Pregnancy And Teen Pregnancy871 Words   |  4 Pagesof do TV shows like â€Å"16 and Pregnant† and â€Å"Teen Mom† promote or discourage teenage pregnancy, most of us will readily agree that it in fact does promote teenage pregnancy. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of how does this promote teenage pregnancy. Whereas some are convinced that it promotes teenage pregnancy through the fame some of the young couples have achieved, others maintain that it in fact discourages teenage pregnancy by showing the struggles and realities ofRead MoreEffects Of Teen Pregnancy On Teens1643 Words   |  7 PagesEvery teen has dream about how they want to graduate from high school and then go to college, but some teens are not willing to take the challenge. Some of these teens want to drop out of high school and other teens want to keep furthering their education. For some there are obstacle that life throw at them to be able to accomplish their goals. Earning an education is challenging enough, but when there is a teen parent trying to finish their education it becomes more difficult than it would beRead MoreThe Effects Of Teen Pregnancy On Teens978 Words   |  4 Pagesare getting younger in age, and the birth rate is rising higher. Mississippi has the highest birth rates in teen pregnancy, and has held this title for the past few years. This problem has had such a rise to fame because this is a problem that can be prevented. Parents and communities should take action to help lo wer the teen pregnancy birth rate in Mississippi. Since the birth rate in teens is so high that means there is more need of government assistance. This becomes such a problem in states because

Mechanical Test of Ldpe and Hdpe P Free Essays

string(32) " rate and the impurity content\." Mechanical Test of LDPE and HDPE Processed by Extrusion, Injection Molding, Compression Molding and Sheet Extrusion Abstract LDPE and HDPE were processed by extrusion, injection molding, and sheet extrusion. Their mechanical properties such as tensile strength and percent elongation were measured by tensile test and analyzed statistically (Table 2). During the extrusion process, both polymers underwent die swelling. We will write a custom essay sample on Mechanical Test of Ldpe and Hdpe P or any similar topic only for you Order Now The water cooled polymer cords have a higher tensile strength but lower % elongation compared to the air cooled cords. HDPE has a much higher strength than LDPE due to its high crystallinity. LDPE and HDPE samples processed by injection molding and sheet extrusion show the same tendency in the extent of yield strength and elastic modulus. For sheet extrusion, the heat treated polymer sheet has a higher strength than the non-heat treated sheet because heating leads to an increase in both crystallinity and crystallite size. The specimen in rolling direction also has a higher strength than those in transverse direction due to the alignment of the polymer chains in rolling direction. UHMWPE (Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene) saucer was processed by compression molding. The cross section of the saucer was examined by optical microscopy. Further, the melting temperature of PEO was determined to be 74. 0 °C ~ 78. 9 °C. Introduction A polymer is a chemical compound or mixture of compounds consisting of repeating structural units created through a process of polymerization. 1 The units composing polymers derive from molecules of low relative molecular mass. When all the repeating units along a chain are of the same type, the resulting polymer is called homopolymer. Chains composed of two or more different repeat units are termed copolymers. The physical characteristics of a polymer depend both on its molecular weight and shape, and the structure of the molecular chains. The chain structures include linear polymer, branched polymer, crosslinked polymer and network polymer. The polymer synthesized in this experiment, LDPE and HDPE, have different chain structures (i. e. LDPE is a branched polymer and HDPE is a linear polymer. ). The polymer chain structure has a significant influence on polymer crystallinity, which is defined as the packing of molecular chains to produce an ordered atomic array. The mechanical properties that investigated in this paper, such as tensile strength, elastic modulus and percent elongation, greatly depend on the crystallinity of the polymer sample. Polymers play an essential and ubiquitous role in everyday life from those of familiar synthetic plastics and other materials of day-to-day work and home life, to the natural biopolymers that are fundamental to biological structure and function. 1 Qu ite a variety of different techniques are employed in the forming of polymeric materials. Molding is the most common method for forming plastic polymers. The several molding techniques used include extrusion molding, compression molding, blow molding and injection molding. 3 During molding, crystal regions in polymer melts upon heating. The resulted polymer melts are non-Newtonian fluids, and their viscosity depends on the shear rate. Melt index (MI) could be used to indicate the viscosity of the fluid. It is defined as the mass of polymer flowing in ten minutes through a capillary of a specific diameter and length by a pressure applied. 4 Polymer melts are formed into a continuous charge of viscous fluid. The viscous fluid then solidifies into polymer product with specific shapes. During the solidification process, polymer melts recrystallizes and forms spherulite structure consisted of both amorphous region and lamellar. Experimental Procedure Crystallization of PEO Crystallization of PEO (Sigma-Aldrich Co. , St. Louis, MD) was observed by optical microscopy. Sample of PEO powder was placed on glass slide and heated up using hot stage. Both the melting and the solidification processes were observed under optical microscope under crossed polarizer. The melting range was determined to be 74. 0 °C ~ 78. 9 °C. Extrusion of LDPE and HDPE Both LDPE (MI = 0. 25, Equistar ) and HDPE (MI = 9, Equistar) pellets were processed into cords using single-screw extruder (Model TL3215B, Extruders ). The die temperature was 350  °C, Zone temperatures were all 425  °C and the screw speed was about 3. 6 rpm. Water cooling and air cooling were carried out for mechanical properties evaluation. Tensile tests were performed on both LDPE and HDPE cords in order to evaluate their mechanical properties. Compression Molding UHMWPE (Ticona) powder was used to produce UHMWPE saucer by using a compression molding apparatus (Model 3725, Carver). The starting temperature was 245 F, and the molding temperature was 310 F. The cross section of the saucer was examined by optical microscopy. Injection Molding Both LDPE (MI = 9, Equistar) and HDPE (MI = 7, Equistar) pellets were processed into dog bone specimens by injection molding. The barrel, nozzle and mold temperatures used are listed below. Tensile tests were performed on both LDPE and HDPE specimens in order to evaluate their mechanical properties. Table 1. Barrel, Nozzle and Mold temperatures for injection molding. | LDPE| HDPE| Barrel Temperature | 390 °F| 400 °F| Nozzle Temperature| 395 °F| 405 °F| Mold Temperature| 275 °F| 275 °F| Sheet Extrusion Both LDPE (MI = 0. 25, Equistar) and HDPE (MI = 9, Equistar) pellets were processed into polymer sheets using sheet extruder (Model KLB125, Extruders). The die temperature was 375  °C. Zone temperatures were all 420  °C. Adapter temperature was also 420 °C. The screw speed was about 20 rpm and the roller speed was set up to 2. 0 rpm. Heat treatment using glass furnace was performed on both polymers. Tensile tests were carried out in order to evaluate the mechanical properties of both LDPE and HDPE. Result and Discussion Crystallization of PEO The melting temperature of PEO was determined to be 74. 0 °C ~ 78. 9 °C, where the literature melting temperature of PEO is 65 °C. The polymer melting behavior is a function of the rate of heating5. That the measured melting temperature is higher than the literature value results from the relative high heat rate (20 °C/ min). Besides, the melting temperature for polymer is a range instead of a single point. The melting temperature depends on the molecular weight of the polymer chain, the thickness of the chain-folded lamellae, the heating rate and the impurity content. You read "Mechanical Test of Ldpe and Hdpe P" in category "Papers" Since the PEO samples used contain polymer chains with different size, and they were heat at an inconstant rate, the melting must take place over a range of temperatures. | | | | Figure 1. Micrographs of PEO melting stage at 10X. (a). Full spherulite (red circle) growth at 54. 8 °C. (b). Spherulite starts to disappear 74. 0 °C. (c). Spherulite completely disappeared at 78. 9 °C. A A | B B | C C | D D | Figure 2. Micrographs of PEO crystallization stages at 10X. (a). Completely melted polymer. (b). Spherulite start to grow from nucleation site (red circle). (c). Growing of spherulite (red circle). (d). Spherulite structure of PEO and interspherulite boundary. The spherulite consisted of chain-folded crystallites (lamellae) and amorphous region start to grow from the nucleation site at 56. 7 °C. Individual lamellae are separated by amorphous materials. As shown in Fig. 2 (c), the spherulite keeps growing and getting larger as the recrystallization process continues. When the crystallization of a spherulite structure nears completion, the extremities of adjacent spherulites begin to impinge on one another, forming planar boundaries (Fig. 2 (d)). At 56. 0 °C, the crystallization process of PEO sample reached completion. Compression Molding A A | B B | Figure 3. Micrographs of middle cut (B) and outer cut (A) of UHMWPE saucer at 20X. The mold is closed with a top force. Pressure is applied to force the material into contact with all mold areas, and heat and pressure are maintained until the molding material has cured. During that process, particles diffuse together and become one piece. As shown in Fig. 3, the outer cut of the UHMWPE saucer has lower porosity, and the middle section of the saucer has a much higher porosity. The outer region of the saucer was cooled much faster than the middle section of the saucer. Slowing cooling rate in the middle section led to the high porosity. Liquidus polymer shrinks as it solidify into solid leaving a large amount of pores in the middle section. Extrusion and Sheet Extrusion Die swell happened during extrusion as shown in Fig. 4. A flow stream has a constant rate before entering the die. It also occupies a spherical conformation and maximizes the entropy. 6 As it goes through the die, polymer loses its spherical shape and becomes less entangled. Therefore, the entropy is lowered. When polymer melt comes out of the nozzle, the remaining physical entanglements cause the polymer melt to relax (i. e. egain a portion of its former shape) and restore the entropy. It appears like the polymer is swelling at the nozzle. Figure 4. Die swelling happened when polymer melt came out of the nozzle. Air cooled LDPE took 3 runs before fracture, and the water cooled LDPE took 2 runs before fracture. As shown in Fig. 5, both water cooled and air cooled LDPE cords have sim ilar elastic modulus and yield strength. However, the air cooled cord has a higher tensile strength but lower percent elongation. Since the degree of crystallinity depends on cooling rate during solidification, the higher the cooling rate , the higher the degree of crystallinity. Increasing in crystallinity increases the hardness but lower the ductility of the polymer cords. Thus, water cooled LDPE cord has higher tensile strength but lower % elongation compared to the air cooled one. Figure 5. Extrusion sample stress vs. strain plot. Red curve represents water cooled LDPE cord, and blue curve represents air cooled LDPE cord. Figure 6. Sheet extrusion sample Stress vs. Strain plot. Blue curve represents heat treated LDPE specimen in rolling direction. Purple curve represents non-heat treated LDPE specimen in rolling direction. Red curve represents non-heat treated LDPE specimen in transverse direction. Green curve represents heat treated LDPE specimen in transverse direction. Figure 7. Sheet extrusion sample Stress vs. Strain plot. Blue curve represents non-heat treated HDPE specimen in rolling direction. Purple curve represents heat treated HDPE specimen in rolling direction. Red curve represents non-heat treated HDPE specimen in transverse direction. Green curve represents heat treated HDPE specimen in transverse direction. Tensile test result of sheet extruded LDPE and HDPE specimens are shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 above. HDPE specimens have higher yield strength, elastic modulus and % elongation. HDPE has a linear chain structure. It was highly packed. Therefore, it has a larger density and higher degree of crystallinity than LDPE. Molecular chains are closely packed in an ordered arrangement in crystalline region. The alignment of the packed chains in crystalline region makes the intermolecular secondary bonding much stronger than it is in amorphous region. Thus, HDPE with higher crystallinity has a much higher strength than LDPE. The heat treated specimen has higher yield strength and tensile strength than non-heat treated specimens. It is also due to the increasing in the percent crystallinity, which makes the polymer harder but less ductile. Further, polymer specimen in rolling direction has higher yield strength and elastic modulus, but lower percent elongation compared to samples in transverse direction. It is because during drawing the molecular chains slip past on another and become highly oriented. This alignment once again enhances the tensile modulus in the direction of drawing (RD), while reduces the tensile strength in the direction (TD) perpendicular to the rolling direction. Injection Molding Figure 8. Stress vs. Strain plot of HDPE samples processed by injection molding. Figure 9. Stress vs. Strain plot of LDPE samples processed by injection molding. Table 2. Statistic data of HDPE and LDPE samples processed by injection molding. | HDPE| LDPE| | ? y (MPa)| E (GPa)| %EL| ? y(MPa)| E (GPa)| %EL| 1| 19. 317| 0. 41| 163| 5. 29| 0. 040| 131| 2| 23. 216| 0. 44| 265| 5. 38| 0. 050| 155| 3| 23. 77| 0. 49| 69| 6. 302| 0. 049| 144| 4| 24. 142| 0. 78| 509| 6. 408| 0. 058| 141| Average| 22. 61| 0. 53| 251. 50| 5. 85| 0. 049| 142. 75| Standard Deviation | 2. 23| 0. 17| 189. 41| 0. 59| 0. 0073| 9. 8| 95% Confidence Interval | 22. 61 ±3. 54| 0. 53 ±0. 27| 251. 50 ±301. 35| 5. 85 ±0. 94| 0. 049 ±0. 012| 142. 75 ±15. 72| Compared to literature value , P-value| t = 3. 22,Df=3,P5%| t= 6. 47,Df=3, P5%| N/A| t=10. 66,Df = 3, P5%| t=33. 33,Df = 3, P5%| N/A| Literature value | 26. 2| 1. 08| 100-650| 9. 0| 0. 172| 10-1200| Tensile test results of the injection molding specimen are illustrated in Fig. 8, Fig. 9, and Table 2. HDPE specimen has a yield strength of 22. 61 ±3. 54 MPa, an elastic modulus of 0. 53 ±0. 27 GPa, and a percent elongation of ( 251. 50 ±301. 35 )% within 95% confidence interval. LDPE specimen has a yield strength of 5. 85 ±0. 94MPa, an elastic modulus of 0. 049 ±0. 012GPa, and a percent elongation of (142. 75 ±15. 72)% within 95% confidence interval. T-test was carried out to compare the difference between the literature value and the experimental value for both yield strength and elastic modulus. The result shows that the experimental yield strength and elastic modulus of both LDPE and HDPE differ from their literature values significantly. Both LDPE and HDPE have a wide range of % elongation, therefore, the difference between experimental %EL and literature %EL was not examined. In addition, there are significant difference between the yield strength of LDPE and the yield strength of HDPE (T-test shown in Appendix) that HDPE has a much higher strength than LDPE. It is because HDPE has a highly packed linear chain structure, a larger density and a higher degree of crystallinity than LDPE. Conclusion Total three types of polymer, UHMWPE, LDPE and HDPE, were processed via four molding techniques. UHMWPE saucer was produced by compression molding. The cooling rate of the polymer melts has a great influence on the porosity of the polymer. Die swelling happened during extrusion as a result of the relaxation of polymer melts. The melting temperature of PEO was determined to be 74. 0 °C ~ 78. 9 °C. The inconstant heat rate and the fact that PEO is composed of molecules having a variety of molecular weight make the temperature range well above the literature melting point. The air cooled extruded cord has a higher tensile strength but lower percent elongation due to higher crystallinity. HDPE is harder but more ductile than LDPE. It also results from its highly pack linear structure and higher degree of crystallinity. T-test was performed on injection molded samples that HDPE specimen has a yield strength of 22. 61 ±3. 54 MPa, an elastic modulus of 0. 53 ±0. 27 GPa, and a percent elongation of (251. 50 ±301. 35 )% while LDPE specimen has much a lower yield strength of 5. 85 ±0. 94MPa, an elastic modulus of 0. 049 ±0. 012GPa, and a percent elongation of (142. 75 ±15. 72)% within 95% confidence interval. References 1. Painter, Paul C. ; Coleman, Michael M. (1997). Fundamentals of polymer science : an introductory text. Lancaster, Pa. : Technomic Pub. Co. p. 1. 2. WIlliam, D. (2007). Material science and engineering an introduction. 7th ed. , pp. 489-568). John WileySons, Inc. 3. Todd, Robert H. ; Allen, Dell K. ; Alting, Leo (1994). Manufacturing Processes Reference Guide. Industrial Press, Inc. 4. A. V. Shenoy, D. R. Saini: Melt Flow Index: More Than Just a Quality Control Parameter. Part I. , Advances in Polymer Technology, vol 6, No. 1, pp 1 – 58. 5. Harrison, I. R. , Runt, J. (2003). The heating rate dependence of polymer melting points. Journal of Polymer Science,  17(2), 321-328. Appendix (1). 95% CI , yield strength of HDPE X=22. 61, S= 2. 23 , t3 = 3. 182, n=4 t3*(S/sqrt(n)) = 3. 54 So, 95% Cl is 22. 1 ±3. 54 MPa. (2). H0 : Mo = M , yield strength of HDPE equal its literature value. Ha : Mo ? M T= (X-Mo)*sqrt(n)/ S , X=22. 61, S= 2. 23 , n=4, M0 = 26. 2 T= -3. 22 while df = 3 P = 0. 027 0. 05 So, Mo ? M, Ha is correct. (3). H0 : M1- M2 = 0, yield strength of HDPE equal yield strength of LDPE Ha : M1- M2 ? 0 n1=n2= 3 , S1= 2. 23, S2 = 0. 59 Sp = sqrt[(2. 23^2)/2+(0. 59^2)/2] = 1. 632 X1=22. 61, X2=5. 85 T= (X1-X2-0)/ [Sp*sqrt(1/n1+1/n2)]= 14. 52, df=6 P0. 0005 So, M1- M2 ? 0, Ha is correct, yield strength of HDPE has a significant difference from the yield strength of LDPE. How to cite Mechanical Test of Ldpe and Hdpe P, Papers

MN504 - Networked Applications Virtualization

Question: Discuss about the MN504 - Networked Applications for Virtualization. Answer: Introduction: Currently whole Networking world is greatly influenced by Virtualisation. Virtualisation in Networking has no doubt brought a revolutionary change in the world of Networking and Communication. Virtualisation is a remarkable technology that helps to run multiple Operating System and Applications on a single server at the same-time. Virtualisation concept is most popularly given as-One cloud, any application, any device Architecture. Virtualisation has helped to reduce the cost of IT for enabling networking not only for Big Enterprises but also helps in cutting down the IT Cost for Small and Middle Size Businesses too. Virtualisation has not only helped in reducing the IT Expenses but also has helped in Boosting up the Efficiency and Agility of the Networking. Virtualisation with respect to Citrix is an extended App provided, through Citrix one gets the freedom to work from anywhere while cutting IT Costs. It helps to securely Run Windows, Linux, WEB and SAS Apps. It helps to increase Employee Productivity through Business Mobility, Deliver remote Access, provides Simplified IT Solutions and most importantly Cost Saving. About Citrix-: Citrix was founded 30 years ago with the objective to make the Application for the technical domain and data secure with convenience in Access. Citrix dreams a world where Peoples, Organizations and things are connected with high security , accessible and make highly complex things possible with great innovations empowering peoples to work from anywhere. Citrix provides a complete solution for Application Delivery, Virtualisation, Delivery of Network, Mobility and File Sharing solutions, ensuring critical systems are securely available. Citrix - provides its solution through Cloud Technology on- Premise and is compatible to all popular Platforms and devices. Citrix solutions are globally used by 400,000 organizations and 100 million users worldwide. Citrix Products-: App and Desktop for Application Virtualisation VDI Enterprise Management and Mobility Package File Sharing and syncing (EFSS) services for Cloud Netscape for high availability, performance, security of Data Centre, Branch, Cloud and Mobile Services. Citrix Receiver- To enable self-service access to apps, desktops and data from any Device. Citrix Workspace Suite- Single Work space suit with App and Desktop, Mobility Package, Share File and Netscalor Netscalor App Firewall Netscalor Unified Gateway Netscalor Management and Analytics System Netscalor SD-WAN Ports and Protocols used by Citrix Components-: Source Destination Protocol Port Details Gateway Access Device Gateway Access Device TCP 694 Communication in Access Control through Advance Access TCP 80/443/9002 Communication through Gateway Access Standard and Advanced features LDAP Server TCP/UDP 389, 363, 3268, 3269 By SSL to LDAP connection to Global Catalogue DNS Server TCP/UDP 53 DNS name simplification and configuration. Radius Server TCP/UDP 1645/1812 RADIUS connection through Gateway User Device Access Gateway Devise TCP 443 This port is used for making connection to Gateway Access Deployment Administration Workstation Gateway Access Device TCP 443 Supports Administration Website Advanced Access Control Server TCP 9005 For Administration AAC Branch Repeater Device Branch Repeater Device TCP N/A Supports to Pass of the native application User Device Branch Repeater Device TCP 443 Support communication of Client to Appliance Administrator Workstation Branch Repeater Device Branch Repeater Device TCP 80/443 Supports the Citrix Repeater Console system Any Citrix Component Citrix License Server TCP 2700 Handles initial point of contact for Licence Requests Cloud Stack Management Cloud-Stack Management server TCP 9090/8250 Performs the Inter-server communication Citrix XenServer Resource TCP 22/80/443 Assists the Communication with Xen-Server Infrastructure system KVM TCP 22 Provides the Communication with KVM Infrastructure VMware vCenter Server TCP 443 Performs the Communication with VSphere Virtual Router TCP 3922 CloudStack Management Server Citrix Receiver TCP 80/443 Supports the Communication with the Merchandising ICA / HDX TCP 1494 Supports virtualisation Session Reliability TCP 2598 Supports Virtualisation EasyCall dy TCP 8443 P-Sync Administrator Workstation Netscalor Appliance TCP 22 Implements the SSH - CLI Administration Case Study about Virtualization With respect to Citrix South-coast Health System Case Study South-Coast Medical Organization is a charitable health care system with its headquarter situated at New Bedford, Massachusetts. The South-Coast Health system owns three hospitals, twenty seven Clinical offices, a Cancer Institute, Intensive care- facilities (ICU),Emergency services, Medical labs and Radiology Departments, with the Visiting Nurses service. South coast is also a fast growing Health care service System in New England too. This Health system has employed approximately seven thousand workers in its Departments, including three hundred physicians and has two hundred visiting nurses, with this it provides a wide range of medical services at each campus for Advance Medical facilities. South coasts mission is to provide Advanced Care, Close to Home for the patients it treats. With this South-Coast Health System also has a goal to grow their organization in fast manner with providing exceptional Health care by providing distributed setting for their patients, through- outpatient centres by the help of newly acquired Physician practices? The organization also desires to recruit and retain best Medical staff services for their Hospitals. For obtaining this goal, the organization plans to provide uniform access to the patient health records to the Visiting Doctors and Nurses regardless any device they are using for example Laptop or smart mobiles, Tablets etc. With this South-Coast Health care also demands the security of their patients information. The South-Coast Health System along with above discussed clinical requirements also expects reduced cost in the IT Venture for their organization. Solution through Virtualization With respect to Citrix- Major Challenge- To provide best Patient Health care facilities and facilitating the privacy of patient information in the distributed Mobile Environment. The Solution- Developing an Integrated Electronic Medical Record system and constructing the simple, securely developed mobile workstation that is required by the Hospital Staff. 1. Converting Patient Record into the EMR- To provide the solution of the above discussed issues, firstly the conversion of whole patient data into the Integrated Electronic Medical Record (EMR) through Citrix solution-Epic was developed. Now the Doctor as well the Nurses can access patient data either from their office or in Hospital using same user-id to access data from the Epic. With this Hospital Medical staff is now able to get the detail of the patient whether the patient is in Hospital or discharged to the visiting nurses services. 2. Facilitating Access of data with the help of any of Mobile Device of choice- Secondly in order to provide the access of data through any of the Mobile Devices of choice, the rough idea of no of Laptops, Mobiles , PCS in Network was made, on observation approximately six thousand Personal Computers and Eight hundred Laptops in the network found. For providing the solution for this area the organization took help of Citrix solution by selecting Citrix -Remap and Citrix Xen-Desktop as the foundation to deliver its integrated EMR system along with Fifty other clinical and nonclinical applications. Now the environment runs on the Cisco Unified Computing System platform and utilises the Citrix NetScaler as a front end service. The organization also uses Citrix XenServer for all of the Citrix environments along with Epic now. For providing the Advance Mobility features, the Southcoast chosed Citrix XenMobile as its enterprise mobility management solution. The XenMobile helps to handle th e mobile device management as part of its application, and it also provides the flexibility to support the bring-your-own-device policies. Now IT System of South Coast are capable of locking devices, wiping data, upgrading and managing devices, and be proactive in case of a security management-all while creating an fine medical experience for their users. 3. Making the fast organizational growth and maintaining the operational overhead at less than percent of annual budget- With the advance features provided by the Citrix , the organization now has progressed and achieving its targets. 4. Developing methods to protect sensitive patient information- With the help of the Citrix solutions, South coast organization now keeps patient data safe and ensures sensitive information remains to be private. The new developed infrastructure protects against data leakage and controls the inference of new mobile devices, even when the medical staff bring their own devices in the premises. Views by IT Department of South Coast Hospital- One best reason to select Citrix for our end-to-end platform is that it facilitates the Medical staff with a connected without interruption work for the hospital. Christian Boucher Manager of Directory Services for Desktop and Mobile Engineering Southcoast Health System Citrix provides the Facility to Medical Staff to work in from the office or the hospital, they use the same user ID to access Epic Mark Lacombe Director of information technology Southcoast Health System There are several chances when the Doctors and nurses has to face problems when the system is in downtime, it also puts impact on the patient care. With the help of citrix platform, we are capable to refresh, upgrade and advance the environment without affecting operating of the services of Hospital, which operates 24/7, 365 days a year. Mark Lacombe Director of Information Technology Southcoast Health System Conclusion Virtualisation through Citrix is no doubt can be considered as the best practice for any organization. Citrix provides a number of advance services for better working environment of the organization. Citrix is playing a key role in bringing the advance features in the world of Networking. This was a simple student level approach the research of Citrix and Virtualisation is the wide field and research area. Reference Citrix Organization, Case Studies from www.citrix.com (Retrieved on6-June-2016) Citrix Support Centre, Communication ports used by Citrix Technologies from www.support.citrix.com(Retrieved on 6-June -2016) Ellingwood.J, Virtualisation techniques, from www.digitalocean.com, (Retreived on 6 June 2016) Fox.R,, Linux with Networking System Concepts, CRC Publication (2012) K.L ,Networking: Learning the Essentials, PHI Learning Publication(2014) Kizza.J.F, Guide to Computer Network Security, Springer Publication(2015) Maiwald.E, Network Security A Beginner's Guide, MC Grew Hill Publication (2012) Petersen.R, Desktop Applications and Administration, Lulu Publication(2011) Technopedia, Network Security, from www.technopedia.com (Retreived on 6 June 2016) Watts.D, Anders.K, Harlow.D, Shipman II.J, IBM Redbooks, IBM BladeCenter PS703 and PS704 Technical Overview and Introduction, IBM Publication(2011) Yeyehen.D, Shell Script For Back up Files, from www. linoxide.com(Retreived on 6 June 2016)

Health Care Project Part 1 free essay sample

Team B has chosen prescription drugs for our health care reform project and how our current economic status is influenced. We will give ideas and solutions to show how to decrease the drug pricing. Ways that can be implemented toward a solution. Pharmaceutical company’s need to amend their business practices from a high profit, low development model to a moderate profit, moderate to high development model. Structures and regulation that will explain the competition, barriers to entry, and regulations. Taking a look at drug pricing from different perspective, like cost, research, and development, marketing, and the manufacturing of pharmaceutical drugs. The Monopoly of pricing who is involved, and the curves associated with it. Price discrimination how it changes who’s involved and what the criteria are for groups as well as pricing for individuals. How cost of co pays differ from brand names to generic and how the drug formulates come into play. We will write a custom essay sample on Health Care Project Part 1 or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page How to make the system work for everyone that will amount to higher than just a 30-day supply, pharmacy assistance programs, local charity programs, and low income opportunities. Better ways to enforce existing legislation, vote in new legislation, and regulate prices across the board. The above affects the insured and non-insured American’s. For most American households, paying for health care to include prescription drugs and medical bills has been one of the hardest financial strains out there. According to a report published by (Consumer Reports, 2012), many have cut back on other household expenses or taken potentially dangerous measures with their health to afford their medications. The most affected population is the working-age Americans who do not have prescription drug insurance coverage. More than half of the people who completed the survey requested by Consumer Reports took one or more prescriptions had to reduce other household expenses or make changes in how the general population manage their finances. These reductions included how much they spend on their groceries, entertainment, activities with the family, and using their credit cards to purchase medications. The problem was more severe with younger people than elderly people age 65 and older. â€Å"84 percent of them said they had to resort to such measures† (Consumer Reports, 2012) as previously listed. Prescription drugs or better yet the cost of prescription drugs is a discussion in the country of importance. The rise of the cost of prescription drugs is of important to many people in the United States and plays a huge role in the economics of health care. The elevated pricing of prescription drugs has become a focal point of politics and in need of some governance. Even though healthcare and prescription drugs are seen as a private sector issue, the discussion of some socialist measures put into place is a definite need for the economy. Some of those ideas include price-capping expensive drugs and even importing drugs from Canada. Healthcare and prescription drugs have been privatized; however, the government has a huge influence on them both. According to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the government, including state, and federal, has contributed more the 2.7 trillion in 2011. This shows that we have hidden, or more politically correct, blurred the view of a socialist healthcare system. The currently health care system with health care reform has caused confusing for consumers. Many people are struggling to pay for the high cost of medication they are on. Some of the patients have to take a different type of medication, which is called alternative medication because their insurance denied paying for it in addition; the process to get approval from insurance takes longer time and more paperwork back and forth from doctors and insurance companies. In reality, health care consumers are the victims, they suffer from their medical illnesses, and they suffer for the high cost of prescription drugs. Health care reform in theory is helping more than forty million people to have health coverage, the demand curve shifts to the right. The important matter at the present time is the supply to cover that many people to have a quality care whereas the economy is gradually recovering. The unemployment rate is not changing much, it is still relatively high. When the prescription drug cost much of our income, seeking for other solution becomes a must do from consumers, they tend to dismiss their prescriptions or buying medication from online market, which may cause bad health than curing purpose.

The Varied Diet of Turtles

The Varied Diet of Turtles Turtle eating habits are varied and what they eat depends on the available food sources, the habitat in which the turtle lives and the turtles behavior. Most adult land turtles eat a diet that consists of plants. They graze on grass or browse on the leaves of bushes and shrubs that are within their reach. A few species of turtles also eat fruits. Occasionally, some turtles also ingest small insects such as caterpillars that get caught up in the plants they eat, so invertebrates make up a part of a turtles diet as well. One group of turtles well-known for their herbivorous feeding habits are Galapagos tortoises. Galapagos tortoises feed on leaves and grasses and their diet is so influential that over the course of their evolution their shells have been modified in different ways to reflect their eating habits. Galapagos tortoise subspecies that eat grasses that lie close to the ground have shells that are dome-shaped with the rim of their shell lying snugly above their neck. Galapagos tortoise subspecies that eat leaves that are above the ground on bushes and shrubs have shells that are saddle-backed in shape, with the rim of the shell arched upwards enabling them to crane their neck high in the air as they grasp their food. Freshwater turtles such as snapping turtles are ambush predators. Too cumbersome to swim after their prey with any great speed, snapping turtles instead tuck themselves into a bunch of aquatic vegetation and snap at anything that comes within their path. Consequently, snapping turtles eat fish and crustaceans. Most freshwater turtles, when young, eat the larvae of aquatic invertebrates. As they grow older, their diet switches to aquatic vegetation. Sea turtles eat a variety of marine invertebrates and vegetation. For example, leatherback sea turtles feed on jellyfish, loggerhead sea turtles eat bottom-dwelling shellfish, green sea turtles eat seagrass and algae.

Green Construction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Green Construction - Essay Example In coming up with green building, there are various methods incorporated by the actors during the project planning up to the completion stage of that project (Nielson, Wolfe and Dave 8). One of the green building methods includes site stewardship. This process of green building is meant to protect and preserve the site on which the project will be set out. Practices such as proper drainage plan, designed storage and loading zones for the building materials are among the practices that will enhance green construction on the site. Moreover, mitigating dust during excavation and construction helps to reduce air pollution. This is one of the green building methods that aim to prevent adverse impacts on the environment. EIA is a management tool used to identify the feasibility of the project to be carried out. This method identifies the effects that the intended project may cause to the surrounding environment and provides the mitigation measures to address adverse impacts if any. This is one of the green building methods that enhance the aesthetic value of the landscape. This method incorporates practices such as identifying vegetation that is fit for the project site and the surrounding neighborhood to bring out an eco balance. It also includes planting of vegetation where none existed and logical arrangement of different infrastructures on the site to enhance harmony between the built and natural environment. Choosing materials for construction can have a tremendous impact on the outcome of the project to the environment. Re-using and recycling materials is regarded as a sustainable approach to achieving a green building as it reduces pollution cost to the environment (Spiegel & Meadows 124). During foundation stage, the use of extruded polystyrene insulation to insulate the slab and the foundation is very vital for heat conservation. This material will assist to minimize heat loss from the floors and basement

Independent Study Jordanian Television Research Paper

Independent Study Jordanian Television - Research Paper Example is prohibited, as well as anything deemed to harm â€Å"the state’s reputation and dignity† (Library of Congress – Federal Research Division, 2006, 20). Fines, prosecutions, and also prison terms are often awarded, to keep the mass media under control. Informants and spies keep the government abreast of the nature of publications (on articles that are yet to be published, and on those that are already in circulation) and often the government applies regulations even before the article can be made public. The government sponsored media (in case of print media) is highly promoted, and television and radio face even more stringent regulations than the newspaper media; though the Internet functions somewhat more independently than all the others. In my article I will give an overview of the media in regards to the entire Middle East region, especially in Jordan; while focusing primarily on the television media in Jordan. My article will explore in detail the nature o f the television media that is functional in Jordan, in today’s context. Overview of the media in the Middle East: the Middle East regions have recently witnessed the free to air satellite TV launch, which is the latest addition in the still evolving media that we see there. Prior to the satellite TV era, it was mostly state owned newspapers, and other broadcasting services like radio and TV (terrestrial) that was used to broadcast news and programs.â€Å"Thus, Arab governments exercised a media monopoly and controlled the political narrative in the MENA region until the end of the 80s by shaping and influencing the opinions of the local population. More recently, technological innovations and the politics of marketing and advertising have resulted in a long-awaited democratization of the Arab media, opening new venues in the international market to the Arab press† (Kalliny, Arab Media: A Survey of an Imperfect Medium, 2010). The democratization of the Arab media has been a long drawn process, and

Market realities and the maximalization of consumer good Essay

Market realities and the maximalization of consumer good - Essay Example For purposes of definition,a monopolistic competition will be defined as a type of competition that is defined by the fact that only one business or individual can provide the needs of the larger economyConversely, oligopolistic competition will be one in which only a few very large companies offer the given good or service to the market. Likewise, due to the fact that so few players exist within the oligarchic model of competition, it is easy and often common for them to cooperate in order to stifle any entrants to the market. As a function of seeking o understand each of these models to a greater degree, the forthcoming analysis will seek to provide the levels of differences that exist between the two as well as showing some figures that illustrate the ways in which the market behaves under these different models of competition. Lastly, a value judgment will be made with respect to which of these is the best model of competition to maximize consumer good within the economy. Althoug h it is useful to seek to provide a contrast between the two so that the reader and/or researcher can best judge how these two forms of competition act within the given economic system, there are a level of similarities between the two that cannot be ignored. In both of these models, the consumer is at a price disadvantage due to the fact that the price maker(s) is holding almost all of the power and has the ability to set the price according to non-market regulated means. (Lu, 2011). Likewise, also from the consumer’s perspective, the level of selection of goods or services between both models is similarly constrained. Due to the fact that one or a handful of firms are holding the means of production and/or distribution firmly within their grasp, the availability of substitutes is greatly diminished (Marini & Zevi, 2011). Conversely, the differences that exist between the two market realities also help to differentiate the two models. The first of these revolves around the f act that a monopoly allows for much lower level of consumer choice than does the oligarchic system. Although both systems necessarily constrain the choice to the consumer, it is impossible to consider a situation in a monopolistic model in which a price war would take place (ZHELOBODKO et al, 2012). Conversely, although rare, price wars can and do take place within the oligarchic model due to the fact that a particular firm or group of firms may seek to leverage an advantage and further reduce the competition by driving one of the participants out. Figure 1 and 2 below seek to point out the key means by which monopolistic and oligarchic competition affects the supply and demand curves of the traditional representation of the economy. Due to the ways in which these are warped from the standard representations, the reader can gain a degree of inference with respect to how these effects will be passed along to the end consumer within the markets. Figure 1.0 Oligarchic Competition Figur e 2.0 Monopolistic Competition Consequently, the reader and/or researcher can understand that with regards to the maximizing the good of the consumer, the oligarchic model is most appropriate due to the fact that although it provides the consumer with only a few options between firms or between products, it necessarily exhibits a greater level of offerings than does that of monopolistic competition. Moreover, due to the fact that the firms within an oligarchic system compete, at least to a small degree, some utility is able to maximized on behalf of the consumer (Essen & Hankins, 2013). This is a function of the fact that the monopolistic system is the price maker and the consumer is the price taker. Although one can argue that in the oligarchic system the same is true, the fact of the matter is that it is reduced due to the reality of the small level of continuing and ongoing competition that is present. Though few realistic examples exist within the world with regards

Evolution of Primate Locomotion and Body Configuration

Evolution of Primate Locomotion and Body Configuration Humans, who have long since abandoned the trees as their principal lodging place, have only partially lost the physical adaptations for tree climbing; their hands, in particular, remain in the arboreal mold. Only the feet have lost their primitive prehensility in adapting to bipedal walking (Primate, 2009). There are many changes that occurred in locomotion and body configuration through primate evolution, many of which are easily seen, but some require some in depth research. This research paper will try to elaborate on the evolutionary modifications and some of the theories that have been proposed for these changes throughout our and other primate evolution. Grade I The Lemuroids Some of the greatest diversity of strepsirhines and lemurs are found on Madagascar, where more than 30 species are represented, belonging to five different families (Harrison, 2004). The Lemur ranges in size from as small as a single ounce to as much as twenty two pounds. At one time there were even larger lemurs that weighed as much as 240k g but are now extinct due to humans settling on Madagascar. Lemurs on the evolution timeline have not changed very much from their ancestors. This helps in the understanding of primate evolution because we can see primates of long ago first hand. One of the best-known members of the lemur family is the Ring-tailed Lemur. Like other lemurs the Ring-tailed lemur move quadrupedally in the trees and on the ground. Although their spine is shaped for walking quadrupedally, Ring-tailed lemurs are able to hop bipedally as well. According to Shapiro, there are a great deal of fossils from the earliest of primates. And although they were not directly ances tral to the lemurs, in terms of their adaptations they were probably most similar to the living lemurs. Shapiro goes on to say that this spine comparison is important because lemurs spine is a very different shape from the spine of a primate that keeps its back upright a lot. Compared to other primates like Chimpanzees, the lemurs spine looks very different. All monkeys or prosimians who walk on all fours most of the time have much longer spines, which are more flexible, and they have a harder time holding their back upright. Shapiro also states that Lemurs do a lot of different kinds of locomotor behaviors. They do walk quadrupedally, but theyre also very good at leaping. And in some of the lemurs, they do their leaping from a horizontal position. And their spine looks like that of a primate that walks quadrupedally. Other lemurs leap from a vertical position, and they spend almost all their time either clinging to the trunk of a tree vertically, and then they leap (Shapiro, 2001). Grade II The Tarsiers The Tarsier is a one of the smallest primates belonging to a single genus and they can be found on the islands of Southeast Asia. Tarsiers are often called the living fossils because of striking resemblance to fossils of primates from 40 million years ago. These nocturnal primates have some of the largest eyes of the primate family. Their legs are much longer than their forelimbs and they have a long and almost hairless tail. Tarsiers also have pads on the ends of their fingers which are a result of adaption for their specialized lifestyle as vertical clingers and leapers (Harrison, 2004). What makes Tarsiers unique among primates is that they have toilet claws on both their second and third toes, unlike the lemur which only have a toilet claw on their second toe. Strepsirhines and Tarsiers have in the past been grouped together because they still retain many primitive features that become obsolete in higher evolved primates. However, Tarsiers share a number of distinctive specializa tions with anthropoids (for example, the development of a bony partition that partially separates the eyeball from the chewing muscles behind, lack of a toothcomb, a dry hair-covered nose and undivided upper lip, a short snout with reduced facial whiskers, and the structure of the placenta) that suggest that they are more closely related to each other than either is to the strepsirhines (Harrison, 2004). Tarsier move somewhat like a small, furry frog, and can leap from small branch to small branch. In order to do this efficiently, the tibia and the fibula (the two lower leg bones) are fused about halfway down their length, giving the leg more strength. Tarsiers also have elongated ankle bones, which helps them leap, and which gives them their name, tarsier, a reference to the tarsal, or ankle, region.(Jurmain, 2008) The legs are much longer than their arms. These curious little nocturnal creatures dart around the undergrowth and low trees, keeping out the realm of larger animals unt il they want to leap across the ground to gather up prey. Tarsiers are carnivorous, eating insects and small lizards (Blashfield, 2009). If the Tarsier had not developed grasping and large eyes through evolution it would have most likely not survived in its present habitat. Grade III The Monkeys Monkeys can range in size from 5–6 in long (plus tail) to almost 3.3 ft long. Monkeys can also weigh anywhere from 4–5 ounces to as much as 77 lbs. Some are arboreal (living in trees) while others live on the savanna. Living in such different climates play part in how some Monkeys have different characteristics than others. Some characteristics are shared amongst most Monkeys. New World monkeys have prehensile tails while Old World monkeys have non-prehensile tails or no visible tail at all. Some monkeys have trichromatic color vision like humans do, others are dichromats or monochromats. Although both the New and Old World monkeys, like the apes, have forward facing eyes, the faces of Old World and New World monkeys look very different, though again, each group shares some features such as the types of noses, cheeks and rumps. One monkey that stands out in particular because of its evolutionary traits is the spider monkey. The Spider monkeys use several different types of locomotion. They can use quadrupedal for walking or running, suspensory locomotion when hanging, climbing or moving through the trees and bipedalism when leaping. Quadrupedal locomotion is usually observed if the monkey is on a stable relatively substrate free of obstacles. When they are using suspensory locomotion they may be brachiating (swinging with their arms from one branch to another while often maintaining a tail hold). The most commonly used pattern of body movement while in a feeding pattern is that of quadrupedal, climbing and suspensory locomotion. While traveling they mostly employ quadrupedal walking and running, suspensory locomotion and climbing. The part of the body that helps the spider monkey walk bipedally, almost acting as external spine is the single trait in particular that makes it stand out. Its griping tail. This arboreal monkey has a prehensile tail that is muscular and tactile and is used as an extra hand. The tail is sometimes longer than the body an d when stiffly up righted against their back act an external spine so that they can maintain a bipedal walk. Both the underside and tip of the tail are used for climbing and grasping and so the spider monkey uses it like a fifth hand. When swinging by the tail, the hands are free to gather food( Valley, 2009). In the picture to the right you can see how the spider monkeys tail can support the entire weight of the monkey. The Spider monkey may have evolved into this structure so that when eating high in the trees where there is no room for error in grip, it can still have a two handed grip. There is still much speculation as to why primates as they get larger in size start to lose their tails (Kavanagh, 1984). Grade IV The Apes and Man Apes and humans differ from all of the other primates in that they lack the external tail. Shapiro believes that as primates move into an upright position that that is when we began to lose our tails. When you lose the tail, the tail musculature gets incorporated into the pelvic floor, which can form a support for your organs. Because of the upright position, your organs will tend to move downward. This is where the support would come in on the pelvic floor. Among all the Primates, Man and Apes are the most intelligent. We are also more dependent for survival. Aside from the lack of the external tail, there are several internal body differences as well, such as the absence of an appendix that monkeys have. Humans and apes are both members of the Hominoidea family. Until recently, humans were separated into our own family. It was believed that we significantly different from the apes. However, in recent genetic studies and discoveries form the fossil record have shed light on that som e apes are more similar to humans than previously believed. Apes can be found all over the world. Orangutans and Gibbons reside in Southeast Asia. Gorillas, Bonobos, and Chimpanzees can only be found in Africa. According to fossils it is also believed that humans to originated in Africa. The gibbons are the smallest of the ape family. There are 12-13 species of gibbons. Because of their size however, they are referred to as the lesser apes. Gibbons only get to be around 3ft in height and range from 12-20 pounds. One of the key characteristics of the gibbons is their long arms. Their long arms, permanently curved fingers, and light bodies make them excellent brachiators. This structure makes moving around trees by swinging from branches ideal. This action is call suspensory climbing. Gibbons also can walk bipedally on top of branches but are better at swinging (ONeil ,2009). Orangutans are the rarest and largest of the Asian apes. They can grow in weight up to 200 pounds and grow as tall as 4.5 feet. This body structure prevents it from swingi ng like the gibbons so orangutans must walk on the ground. unlike most primates, orangutans have huge fleshy pads framing the upper part of their faces. Unlike the male orangutans, the female orangutans can move about in the trees thanks to a lighter structure. Not as swift as the gibbons, the female orangutans use a leaning form of brachiation. They carefully shift their body weight to bend a supporting branch and then grab the next one before the original one snaps under pressure. In this part of the evolutionary timeline you begin to notice that primates are coming out from the trees and roaming the flat surface as they grow in body size. Their bodies are becoming less adaptable to trees. The largest of the Ape family is the Gorilla. Gorillas have been known to have been as tall as 6 feet with an arm span of almost 10 feet. This long arm span and introduction of knuckle walking is where quadrupedal is starting to fade and bipedal is beginning for primates. However, gorillas are q uadrupedal because the small legs cannot support the massive structure so it is forced to walk on all fours. They walk on the soles of their feet but not on the palms of their hands. Gorillas bend their fingers so that they can support the head end of their bodies. The gorillas head is massive and heavy. With this comes huge muscles on not only the rest of the body but on the jaw. Like humans, gorillas are terrestrial. The more common resemblance to humans does not belong to gorillas however, but chimpanzees(Byrne, 2001). Chimpanzees grow to be around 5.5 feet in height and their average weight is about 100 pounds. Their arms get to span about 6 feet. Because of the evolution of the spine in primates, even though chimpanzees prefer to walk quadrupedally, they can get around bipedally. This is what makes the chimpanzee are closest cousin on the primate table (ONeil, 2009). While researching at The Los Angeles Zoo, I got see firsthand the transformation from quadrupedal to bipedal in an afternoon. While at the chimpanzee exhibit I got to see a close family eat and sleep together. When it came time for feeding, one of the males ran bipedally across a flat area. As I walked around viewing the other primates, viewing the Siamangs and their griping abilities, the white sifakas and how it has arching spine when it walks about, and the gorillas and how when they look out at the onlookers, it really does feel like they are looking back at you with some kind of interest. You begin to believe more in Darwins theory of evolution when you see such striking patterns in structure to yourself. Although there are significant differences between humans and non human primates, the distance between primates begin to get closer as we humans begin to look deeper into primates evolution. The way we walk, grab, even just stand can all be traced through the bone structure of our non human cousins. As researchers get closer to discovering links between humans and non human primates and filling the gaps of origin information, the gap between ape and man becomes dramatically smaller than once thought. References Blashfield, J. F. (2009). Tarsiers Locomotion. Retrieved September 29, 2009, From Jrank.org Website: http://science.jrank.org/pages/6695/Tarsiers.html Byrne, R. W., Dunbar, R. I.M., McGrew, W. C., Pusey, A. E., Snowdon, C. T., Stanford, C. B., et al. (2001). Tree of Origin: What Primate Behavior Can Tell Us about Human Social Evolution. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Figure 1. Spider Monkey (2009). Source: http://www.primates.com/monkeys/spidermonkey.jpg Harrison, T. (2004). Primates, Retrieved September 29, 2009, from [emailprotected] Hill, Website: http://www.accessscience.com Jurmain, R., Kilgore, L., Trevathan, W., Ciochon, R. L., (2008). Introduction To Physical Anthropology. California: Thomson Higher Education Kavanagh, M., Morris, D. (1984). A Complete Guide To Monkeys, Apes And Other Primates. New York: The Viking Press ONeil, D. (2009) Apes. Retrieved September 30, 2009, from Palomar.edu Website: http://anthro.palomar.edu/primate/prim_7.htm Primate. (2009). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved September 28, 2009, from Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Website: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/476264/primate Shapiro, L. (2001) Primate Locomotion. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from PBS.org Website: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/07/3/text_pop/l_073_08.html Valley Zoo School (2009). Spider Monkey Retrieved September 30, 2009 Website: http://www.zooschool.ecsd.net/spider%20monkey.htm

Different and Similar friends :: social issues

Different and Similar friends Some people prefer to have friends who are different from them and some prefer to have friends who are similar to them. Which do you prefer? According to chemistry-students, second year, RUPP, many like to have friends for their studying. Some students prefer to make friends who are similar to them and some think that the friends who they like are different from them. There are many reasons that cause those people want to choose persons who they want to be friend. On the one hand, making friends is to think about the age sometimes. People can use the formal languages to communicate to each other without worry about obeying to each other. They easily call their name directly when they meet each other inside and outside the class. For example, Meng Thia and Monorom are friends and they like talking to each other very closely and tightly when they are in class even at along the road to RUPP. To be of the same age is a vital point for people who like making friends who are similar. Another thing to consider for discussion if people prefer friends who are similar, they think about the characteristic of those people. First, they can get along with each other for long times when the have similar attitude or feature. Second, they are normally satisfied with their behavior. For instance, Saveoun admires her friend, Chann Rith, because of Chann Rith’s attitude she show s in class. Characteristic help keeping friendship for many people, and offer many advantages. On the other hand, many students feel that it is a better way to associate with friends who are different to them. People’s knowledge is not equal, so it is shared to each other. Sometimes students share their experiences or help solving the problem when someone does not understand well about it. In addiction, we can learn knowledge or technique from friends to deal the problem with many ways. In face, Rithy and Soriya have different methods to explain the definition of chemical elements; Rithy learns from Soriya and also Soriya from Rithy. Sharing knowledge makes people increase their intelligence and become good friends with people whose knowledge are exchanged. One other reason is the strategy. First, some students work with their timetable very well, so others who think that they have different strategy want to create relationship as friends with those persons. Also, some students tell their strategy of managing times for their every day’s life to students who have weak abilities of management. Different and Similar friends :: social issues Different and Similar friends Some people prefer to have friends who are different from them and some prefer to have friends who are similar to them. Which do you prefer? According to chemistry-students, second year, RUPP, many like to have friends for their studying. Some students prefer to make friends who are similar to them and some think that the friends who they like are different from them. There are many reasons that cause those people want to choose persons who they want to be friend. On the one hand, making friends is to think about the age sometimes. People can use the formal languages to communicate to each other without worry about obeying to each other. They easily call their name directly when they meet each other inside and outside the class. For example, Meng Thia and Monorom are friends and they like talking to each other very closely and tightly when they are in class even at along the road to RUPP. To be of the same age is a vital point for people who like making friends who are similar. Another thing to consider for discussion if people prefer friends who are similar, they think about the characteristic of those people. First, they can get along with each other for long times when the have similar attitude or feature. Second, they are normally satisfied with their behavior. For instance, Saveoun admires her friend, Chann Rith, because of Chann Rith’s attitude she show s in class. Characteristic help keeping friendship for many people, and offer many advantages. On the other hand, many students feel that it is a better way to associate with friends who are different to them. People’s knowledge is not equal, so it is shared to each other. Sometimes students share their experiences or help solving the problem when someone does not understand well about it. In addiction, we can learn knowledge or technique from friends to deal the problem with many ways. In face, Rithy and Soriya have different methods to explain the definition of chemical elements; Rithy learns from Soriya and also Soriya from Rithy. Sharing knowledge makes people increase their intelligence and become good friends with people whose knowledge are exchanged. One other reason is the strategy. First, some students work with their timetable very well, so others who think that they have different strategy want to create relationship as friends with those persons. Also, some students tell their strategy of managing times for their every day’s life to students who have weak abilities of management.

Chapter 26 The Second Task

â€Å"You said you'd already worked out that egg clue!† said Hermione indignantly. â€Å"Keep your voice down!† said Harry crossly. â€Å"I just need to – sort of fine-tune it, all right?† He, Ron, and Hermione were sitting at the very back of the Charms class with a table to themselves. They were supposed to be practicing the opposite of the Summoning Charm today – the Banishing Charm. Owing to the potential for nasty accidents when objects kept flying across the room. Professor Flitwick had given each student a stack of cushions on which to practice, the theory being that these wouldn't hurt anyone if they went off target. It was a good theory, but it wasn't working very well. Neville's aim was so poor that he kept accidentally sending much heavier things flying across the room – Professor Flitwick, for instance. â€Å"Just forget the egg for a minute, all right?† Harry hissed as Professor Flitwick went whizzing resignedly past them, landing on top of a large cabinet. â€Å"I'm trying to tell you about Snape and Moody†¦.† This class was an ideal cover for a private conversation, as everyone was having far too much fun to pay them any attention. Harry had been recounting his adventures of the previous night in whispered installments for the last half hour. â€Å"Snape said Moody's searched his office as well?† Ron whispered, his eyes alight with interest as he Banished a cushion with a sweep of his wand (it soared into the air and knocked Parvati's hat off). â€Å"What†¦d'you reckon Moody's here to keep an eye on Snape as well as Karkaroff?† â€Å"Well, I dunno if that's what Dumbledore asked him to do, but he's definitely doing it,† said Harry, waving his wand without paying much attention, so that his cushion did an odd sort of belly flop off the desk. â€Å"Moody said Dumbledore only lets Snape stay here because he's giving him a second chance or something†¦.† â€Å"What?† said Ron, his eyes widening, his next cushion spinning high into the air, ricocheting off the chandelier, and dropping heavily onto Flitwick's desk. â€Å"Harry†¦maybe Moody thinks Snape put your name in the Goblet of Fire!† â€Å"Oh Ron,† said Hermione, shaking her head sceptically, â€Å"we thought Snape was trying to kill Harry before, and it turned out he was saving Harry's life, remember?† She Banished a cushion and it flew across the room and landed in the box they were all supposed to be aiming at. Harry looked at Hermione, thinking†¦it was true that Snape had saved his life once, but the odd thing was, Snape definitely loathed him, just as he'd loathed Harry's father when they had been at school together. Snape loved taking points from Harry, and had certainly never missed an opportunity to give him punishments, or even to suggest that he should be suspended from the school. â€Å"I don't care what Moody says,† Hermione went on. â€Å"Dumbledore's not stupid. He was right to trust Hagrid and Professor Lupin, even though loads of people wouldn't have given them jobs, so why shouldn't he be right about Snape, even if Snape is a bit -â€Å" â€Å"- evil,† said Ron promptly. â€Å"Come on, Hermione, why are all these Dark wizard catchers searching his office, then?† â€Å"Why has Mr. Crouch been pretending to be ill?† said Hermione, ignoring Ron. â€Å"Its a bit funny, isn't it, that he cant manage to come to the Yule Ball, but he can get up here in the middle of the night when he wants to?† â€Å"You just don't like Crouch because of that elf, Winky,† said Ron, sending a cushion soaring into the window. â€Å"You just want to think Snape's up to something,† said Hermione, sending her cushion zooming neatly into the box. â€Å"I just want to know what Snape did with his first chance, if he's on his second one,† said Harry grimly, and his cushion, to his very great surprise, flew straight across the room and landed neatly on top of Hermione's. Obedient to Sirius's wish of hearing about anything odd at Hogwarts, Harry sent him a letter by brown owl that night, explaining all about Mr. Crouch breaking into Snape's office, and Moody and Snape's conversation. Then Harry turned his attention in earnest to the most urgent problem facing him: how to survive underwater for an hour on the twenty-fourth of February. Ron quite liked the idea of using the Summoning Charm again – Harry had explained about Aqua-Lungs, and Ron couldn't see why Harry shouldn't Summon one from the nearest Muggle town. Hermione squashed this plan by pointing out that, in the unlikely event that Harry managed to learn how to operate an Aqua-Lung within the set limit of an hour, he was sure to be disqualified for breaking the International Code of Wizarding Secrecy – it was too much to hope that no Muggles would spot an Aqua-Lung zooming across the countryside to Hogwarts. â€Å"Of course, the ideal solution would be for you to Transfigure yourself into a submarine or something,† Hermione said. â€Å"If only we'd done human Transfiguration already! But I don't think we start that until sixth year, and it can go badly wrong if you don't know what you're doing†¦.† â€Å"Yeah, I don't fancy walking around with a periscope sticking out of my head,† said Harry. â€Å"I s'pose I could always attack someone in front of Moody; he might do it for me†¦.† â€Å"I don't think he'd let you choose what you wanted to be turned into, though,† said Hermione seriously. â€Å"No, I think your best chance is some sort of charm.† So Harry, thinking that he would soon have had enough of the library to last him a lifetime, buried himself once more among the dusty volumes, looking for any spell that might enable a human to survive without oxygen. However, though he, Ron, and Hermione searched through their lunchtimes, evenings, and whole weekends – though Harry asked Professor McGonagall for a note of permission to use the Restricted Section, and even asked the irritable, vulture-like librarian. Madam Pince, for help – they found nothing whatsoever that would enable Harry to spend an hour underwater and live to tell the tale. Familiar flutterings of panic were starting to disturb Harry now, and he was finding it difficult to concentrate in class again. The lake, which Harry had always taken for granted as just another feature of the grounds, drew his eyes whenever he was near a classroom window, a great, iron-gray mass of chilly water, whose dark and icy depths were starting to seem as distant as the moon. Just as it had before he faced the Horntail, time was slipping away as though somebody had bewitched the clocks to go extra-fast. There was a week to go before February the twenty-fourth (there was still time)†¦there were five days to go (he was bound to find something soon)†¦three days to go (please let me find something†¦please)†¦ With two days left. Harry started to go off food again. The only good thing about breakfast on Monday was the return of the brown owl he had sent to Sirius. He pulled off the parchment, unrolled it, and saw the shortest letter Sirius had ever written to him. Send date of next Hogsmeade weekend by return owl. Harry turned the parchment over and looked at the back, hoping to see something else, but it was blank. â€Å"Weekend after next,† whispered Hermione, who had read the note over Harry's shoulder. â€Å"Here – take my quill and send this owl back straight away.† Harry scribbled the dates down on the back of Sirius's letter, tied it onto the brown owl's leg, and watched it take flight again. What had he expected? Advice on how to survive underwater? He had been so intent on telling Sirius all about Snape and Moody he had completely forgotten to mention the egg's clue. â€Å"What's he want to know about the next Hogsmeade weekend for?† said Ron. â€Å"Dunno,† said Harry dully. The momentary happiness that had flared inside him at the sight of the owl had died. â€Å"Come on†¦Care of Magical Creatures.† Whether Hagrid was trying to make up for the Blast-Ended Skrewts, or because there were now only two skrewts left, or because he was trying to prove he could do anything that Professor Grubbly-Plank could. Harry didnt know, but Hagrid had been continuing her lessons on unicorns ever since he'd returned to work. It turned out that Hagrid knew quite as much about unicorns as he did about monsters, though it was clear that he found their lack of poisonous fangs disappointing. Today he had managed to capture two unicorn foals. Unlike full-grown unicorns, they were pure gold. Parvati and Lavender went into transports of delight at the sight of them, and even Pansy Parkinson had to work hard to conceal how much she liked them. â€Å"Easier ter spot than the adults,† Hagrid told the class. â€Å"They turn silver when they're abou' two years old, an' they grow horns at aroun four. Don' go pure white till they're full grown, 'round about seven. They're a bit more trustin' when they're babies†¦don' mind boys so much†¦.C'mon, move in a bit, yeh can pat 'em if yeh want†¦give 'em a few o' these sugar lumps†¦. â€Å"You okay. Harry?† Hagrid muttered, moving aside slightly, while most of the others swarmed around the baby unicorns. â€Å"Yeah,† said Harry. â€Å"Jus' nervous, eh?† said Hagrid. â€Å"Bit,† said Harry. â€Å"Harry,† said Hagrid, clapping a massive hand on his shoulder, so that Harry's knees buckled under its weight, â€Å"I'd've bin worried before I saw yeh take on tha Horntail, but I know now yeh can do anythin' yeh set yer mind ter. I'm not worried at all. Yeh're goin ter be fine. Got yer clue worked out, haven' yeh?† Harry nodded, but even as he did so, an insane urge to confess that he didn't have any idea how to survive at the bottom of the lake for an hour came over him. He looked up at Hagrid – perhaps he had to go into the lake sometimes, to deal with the creatures in it? He looked after everything else on the grounds, after all – â€Å"Yeh're goin' ter win,† Hagrid growled, patting Harry's shoulder again, so that Harry actually felt himself sink a couple of inches into the soft ground. â€Å"I know it. I can feel it. Yeh're goin' ter win, Harry.† Harry just couldn't bring himself to wipe the happy, confident smile off Hagrid's face. Pretending he was interested in the young unicorns, he forced a smile in return, and moved forward to pat them with the others. By the evening before the second task. Harry felt as though he were trapped in a nightmare. He was fully aware that even if, by some miracle, he managed to find a suitable spell, he'd have a real job mastering it overnight. How could he have let this happen? Why hadn't he got to work on the egg's clue sooner? Why had he ever let his mind wander in class – what if a teacher had once mentioned how to breathe underwater? He sat with Hermione and Ron in the library as the sun set outside, tearing feverishly through page after page of spells, hidden from one another by the massive piles of books on the desk in front of each of them. Harry's heart gave a huge leap every time he saw the word â€Å"water† on a page, but more often than not it was merely â€Å"Take two pints of water, half a pound of shredded mandrake leaves, and a newt†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I don't reckon it can be done,† said Ron's voice flatly from the other side of the table. â€Å"There's nothing. Nothing. Closest was that thing to dry up puddles and ponds, that Drought Charm, but that was nowhere near powerful enough to drain the lake.† â€Å"There must be something,† Hermione muttered, moving a candle closer to her. Her eyes were so tired she was poring over the tiny print of Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes with her nose about an inch from the page. â€Å"They'd never have set a task that was undoable.† â€Å"They have,† said Ron. â€Å"Harry, just go down to the lake tomorrow, right, stick your head in, yell at the merpeople to give back whatever they've nicked, and see if they chuck it out. Best you can do, mate.† â€Å"There's a way of doing it!† Hermione said crossly. â€Å"There just has to be!† She seemed to be taking the library's lack of useful information on the subject as a personal insult; it had never failed her before. â€Å"I know what I should have done,† said Harry, resting, face-down, on Saucy Tricks for Tricky Sorts. â€Å"I should've learned to be an Animagus like Sirius.† An Animagus was a wizard who could transform into an animal. â€Å"Yeah, you could've turned into a goldfish any time you wanted!† said Ron. â€Å"Or a frog,† yawned Harry. He was exhausted. â€Å"It takes years to become an Animagus, and then you have to register yourself and everything,† said Hermione vaguely, now squinting down the index of Weird Wizarding Dilemmas and Their Solutions. â€Å"Professor McGonagall told us, remember†¦you've got to register yourself with the Improper Use of Magic Office†¦what animal you become, and your markings, so you can't abuse it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"†¦Hermione, I was joking,† said Harry wearily. â€Å"I know I haven't got a chance of turning into a frog by tomorrow morning†¦.† â€Å"Oh this is no use,† Hermione said, snapping shut Weird Wizarding Dilemmas. â€Å"Who on earth wants to make their nose hair grow into ringlets?† â€Å"I wouldn't mind,† said Fred Weasley's voice. â€Å"Be a talking point, wouldn't it?† Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked up. Fred and George had just emerged from behind some bookshelves. â€Å"What're you two doing here?† Ron asked. â€Å"Looking for you,† said George. â€Å"McGonagall wants you, Ron. And you, Hermione.† â€Å"Why?† said Hermione, looking surprised. â€Å"Dunno†¦she was looking a bit grim, though,† said Fred. â€Å"We're supposed to take you down to her office,† said George. Ron and Hermione stared at Harry, who felt his stomach drop. Was Professor McGonagall about to tell Ron and Hermione off? Perhaps she'd noticed how much they were helping him, when he ought to be working out how to do the task alone? â€Å"We'll meet you back in the common room,† Hermione told Harry as she got up to go with Ron – both of them looked very anxious. â€Å"Bring as many of these books as you can, okay?† â€Å"Right,† said Harry uneasily. By eight o'clock. Madam Pince had extinguished all the lamps and came to chivvy Harry out of the library. Staggering under the weight of as many books as he could carry, Harry returned to the Gryffindor common room, pulled a table into a corner, and continued to search. There was nothing in Madcap Magic for Wacky Warlocks†¦nothing in A Guide to Medieval Sorcery†¦not one mention of underwater exploits in An Anthology of Eighteenth-Century Charms, or in Dreadful Denizens of the Deep, or Powers You Never Knew You Had and What to Do with Them Now You've Wised Up. Crookshanks crawled into Harry's lap and curled up, purring deeply. The common room emptied slowly around Harry. People kept wishing him luck for the next morning in cheery, confident voices like Hagrid's, all of them apparently convinced that he was about to pull off another stunning performance like the one he had managed in the first task. Harry couldn't answer them, he just nodded, feeling as though there were a golfball stuck in his throat. By ten to midnight, he was alone in the room with Crookshanks. He had searched all the remaining books, and Ron and Hermione had not come back. It's over, he told himself. You can't do it. You'll just have to go down to the lake in the morning and tell the judges†¦. He imagined himself explaining that he couldn't do the task. He pictured Bagman's look of round-eyed surprise, Karkaroffs satisfied, yellow-toothed smile. He could almost hear Fleur Delacour saying â€Å"I knew it†¦'e is too young, ‘e is only a little boy.† He saw Malfoy flashing his POTTER STINKS badge at the front of the crowd, saw Hagrid's crestfallen, disbelieving face†¦. Forgetting that Crookshanks was on his lap. Harry stood up very suddenly; Crookshanks hissed angrily as he landed on the floor, gave Harry a disgusted look, and stalked away with his bottlebrush tail in the air, but Harry was already hurrying up the spiral staircase to his dormitory†¦.He would grab the Invisibility Cloak and go back to the library, he'd stay there all night if he had to†¦. â€Å"Lumos,† Harry whispered fifteen minutes later as he opened the library door. Wand tip alight, he crept along the bookshelves, pulling down more books – books of hexes and charms, books on merpeople and water monsters, books on famous witches and wizards, on magical inventions, on anything at all that might include one passing reference to underwater survival. He carried them over to a table, then set to work, searching them by the narrow beam of his wand, occasionally checking his watch†¦. One in the morning†¦two in the morning†¦the only way he could keep going was to tell himself, over and over again, next book†¦in the next one†¦the next one†¦ The mermaid in the painting in the prefects' bathroom was laughing. Harry was bobbing like a cork in bubbly water next to her rock, while she held his Firebolt over his head. â€Å"Come and get it!† she giggled maliciously. â€Å"Come on, jump!† â€Å"I can't,† Harry panted, snatching at the Firebolt, and struggling not to sink. â€Å"Give it to me!† But she just poked him painfully in the side with the end of the broomstick, laughing at him. â€Å"That hurts – get off – ouch -â€Å" â€Å"Harry Potter must wake up, sir!† â€Å"Stop poking me -â€Å" â€Å"Dobby must poke Harry Potter, sir, he must wake up!† Harry opened his eyes. He was still in the library; the Invisibility Cloak had slipped off his head as he'd slept, and the side of his face was stuck to the pages of Where There's a Wand, There's a Way. He sat up, straightening his glasses, blinking in the bright daylight. â€Å"Harry Potter needs to hurry!† squeaked Dobby. â€Å"The second task starts in ten minutes, and Harry Potter -â€Å" â€Å"Ten minutes?† Harry croaked. â€Å"Ten – ten minutes?† He looked down at his watch. Dobby was right. It was twenty past nine. A large, dead weight seemed to fall through Harry's chest into his stomach. â€Å"Hurry, Harry Potter!† squeaked Dobby, plucking at Harry's sleeve. â€Å"You is supposed to be down by the lake with the other champions, sir!† â€Å"It's too late, Dobby,† Harry said hopelessly. â€Å"I'm not doing the task, I don't know how -â€Å" â€Å"Harry Potter will do the task!† squeaked the elf. â€Å"Dobby knew Harry had not found the right book, so Dobby did it for him!† â€Å"What?† said Harry. â€Å"But you don't know what the second task is -â€Å" â€Å"Dobby knows, sir! Harry Potter has to go into the lake and find his Wheezy -â€Å" â€Å"Find my what?† â€Å"- and take his Wheezy back from the merpeople!† â€Å"What's a Wheezy?† â€Å"Your Wheezy, sir, your Wheezy-Wheezy who is giving Dobby his sweater!† Dobby plucked at the shrunken maroon sweater he was now wearing over his shorts. â€Å"What?† Harry gasped. â€Å"They've got†¦they've got Ron?† â€Å"The thing Harry Potter will miss most, sir!† squeaked Dobby. â€Å"‘But past an hour-‘† â€Å"- ‘the prospect's black,'† Harry recited, staring, horror-struck, at the elf. â€Å"‘Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' Dobby – what've I got to do?† â€Å"You has to eat this, sir!† squeaked the elf, and he put his hand in the pocket of his shorts and drew out a ball of what looked like slimy, grayish-green rat tails. â€Å"Right before you go into the lake, sir – gillyweed!† â€Å"What's it do?† said Harry, staring at the gillyweed. â€Å"It will make Harry Potter breathe underwater, sir!† â€Å"Dobby,† said Harry frantically, â€Å"listen – are you sure about this?† He couldn't quite forget that the last time Dobby had tried to â€Å"help† him, he had ended up with no bones in his right arm. â€Å"Dobby is quite sure, sir!† said the elf earnestly. â€Å"Dobby hears things, sir, he is a house-elf, he goes all over the castle as he lights the fires and mops the floors. Dobby heard Professor McGonagall and Professor Moody in the staffroom, talking about the next task†¦.Dobby cannot let Harry Potter lose his Wheezy!† Harry's doubts vanished. Jumping to his feet he pulled off the Invisibility Cloak, stuffed it into his bag, grabbed the gillyweed, and put it into his pocket, then tore out of the library with Dobby at his heels. â€Å"Dobby is supposed to be in the kitchens, sir!† Dobby squealed as they burst into the corridor. â€Å"Dobby will be missed – good luck, Harry Potter, sir, good luck!† â€Å"See you later, Dobby!† Harry shouted, and he sprinted along the corridor and down the stairs, three at a time. The entrance hall contained a few last-minute stragglers, all leaving the Great Hall after breakfast and heading through the double oak doors to watch the second task. They stared as Harry flashed past, sending Colin and Dennis Creevey flying as he leapt down the stone steps and out onto the bright, chilly grounds. As he pounded down the lawn he saw that the seats that had encircled the dragons' enclosure in November were now ranged along the opposite bank, rising in stands that were packed to the bursting point and reflected in the lake below. The excited babble of the crowd echoed strangely across the water as Harry ran flat-out around the other side of the lake toward the judges, who were sitting at another gold-draped table at the water's edge. Cedric, Fleur, and Krum were beside the judges' table, watching Harry sprint toward them. â€Å"I'm†¦here†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry panted, skidding to a halt in the mud and accidentally splattering Fleur's robes. â€Å"Where have you been?† said a bossy, disapproving voice. â€Å"The task's about to start!† Harry looked around. Percy Weasley was sitting at the judges' table – Mr. Crouch had failed to turn up again. â€Å"Now, now, Percy!† said Ludo Bagman, who was looking intensely relieved to see Harry. â€Å"Let him catch his breath!† Dumbledore smiled at Harry, but Karkaroff and Madame Maxime didn't look at all pleased to see him†¦.It was obvious from the looks on their faces that they had thought he wasn't going to turn up. Harry bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath; he had a stitch in his side that felt as though he had a knife between his ribs, but there was no time to get rid of it; Ludo Bagman was now moving among the champions, spacing them along the bank at intervals of ten feet. Harry was on the very end of the line, next to Krum, who was wearing swimming trunks and was holding his wand ready. â€Å"All right. Harry?† Bagman whispered as he moved Harry a few feet farther away from Krum. â€Å"Know what you're going to do?† â€Å"Yeah,† Harry panted, massaging his ribs. Bagman gave Harry's shoulder a quick squeeze and returned to the judges' table; he pointed his wand at his throat as he had done at the World Cup, said, â€Å"Sonorus!† and his voice boomed out across the dark water toward the stands. â€Å"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then. One†¦two†¦three!† The whistle echoed shrilly in the cold, still air; the stands erupted with cheers and applause; without looking to see what the other champions were doing, Harry pulled off his shoes and socks, pulled the handful of gillyweed out of his pocket, stuffed it into his mouth, and waded out into the lake. It was so cold he felt the skin on his legs searing as though this were fire, not icy water. His sodden robes weighed him down as he walked in deeper; now the water was over his knees, and his rapidly numbing feet were slipping over silt and flat, slimy stones. He was chewing the gillyweed as hard and fast as he could; it felt unpleasantly slimy and rubbery, like octopus tentacles. Waist-deep in the freezing water he stopped, swallowed, and waited for something to happen. He could hear laughter in the crowd and knew he must look stupid, walking into the lake without showing any sign of magical power. The part of him that was still dry was covered in goose pimples; half immersed in the icy water, a cruel breeze lifting his hair, Harry started to shiver violently. He avoided looking at the stands; the laughter was becoming louder, and there were catcalls and jeering from the Slytherins†¦. Then, quite suddenly, Harry felt as though an invisible pillow had been pressed over his mouth and nose. He tried to draw breath, but it made his head spin; his lungs were empty, and he suddenly felt a piercing pain on either side of his neck – Harry clapped his hands around his throat and felt two large slits just below his ears, flapping in the cold air†¦.He had gills. Without pausing to think, he did the only thing that made sense – he flung himself forward into the water. The first gulp of icy lake water felt like the breath of life. His head had stopped spinning; he took another great gulp of water and felt it pass smoothly through his gills, sending oxygen back to his brain. He stretched out his hands in front of him and stared at them. They looked green and ghostly under the water, and they had become webbed. He twisted around and looked at his bare feet – they had become elongated and the toes were webbed too: It looked as though he had sprouted flippers. The water didn't feel icy anymore either†¦on the contrary, he felt pleasantly cool and very light†¦.Harry struck out once more, marveling at how far and fast his flipper-like feet propelled him through the vater, and noticing how clearly he could see, and how he no longer seemed to need to blink. He had soon swum so far into the lake that he could no longer see the bottom. He flipped over and dived into its depths. Silence pressed upon his ears as he soared over a strange, dark, foggy landscape. He could only see ten feet around him, so that as he sped throuugh the water new scenes seemed to loom suddenly out of the incoming darkness: forests of rippling, tangled black weed, wide plains of mud littered with dull, glimmering stones. He swam deeper and deeper, out toward the middle of the lake, his eyes wide, staring through the eerily gray-lit water around him to the shadow beyond, where the water became opaque. Small fish flickered past him like silver darts. Once or twice he thought he saw something larger moving ahead of him, but when he got nearer, he discovered it to be nothing but a large, blackened log, or a dense clump of weed. There was no sign of any of the other champions, merpeople, Ron – nor, thankfully, the giant squid. Light green weed stretched ahead of him as far as he could see, two feet deep, like a meadow of very overgrown grass. Harry was staring unblinkingly ahead of him, trying to discern shapes through the gloom†¦and then, without warning, something grabbed hold of his ankle. Harry twisted his body around and saw a grindylow, a small, horned water demon, poking out of the weed, its long fingers clutched tightly around Harry's leg, its pointed fangs bared – Harry stuck his webbed hand quickly inside his robes and fumbled for his wand. By the time he had grasped it, two more grindylows had risen out of the weed, had seized handfuls of Harry's robes, and were attempting to drag him down. â€Å"Relashio!† Harry shouted, except that no sound came out†¦.A large bubble issued from his mouth, and his wand, instead of sending sparks at the grindylows, pelted them with what seemed to be a jet of boiling water, for where it struck them, angry red patches appeared on their green skin. Harry pulled his ankle out of the grindylows grip and swam, as fast as he could, occasionally sending more jets of hot water over his shoulder at random; every now and then he felt one of the grindylows snatch at his foot again, and he kicked out, hard; finally, he felt his foot connect with a horned skull, and looking back, saw the dazed grindylow floating away, cross-eyed, while its fellows shook their fists at Harry and sank back into the weed. Harry slowed down a little, slipped his wand back inside his robes, and looked around, listening again. He turned full circle in the water, the silence pressing harder than ever against his eardrums. He knew he must be even deeper in the lake now, but nothing was moving but the rippling weed. â€Å"How are you getting on?† Harry thought he was having a heart attack. He whipped around and saw Moaning Myrtle floating hazily in front of him, gazing at him through her thick, pearly glasses. â€Å"Myrtle!† Harry tried to shout – but once again, nothing came out of his mouth but a very large bubble. Moaning Myrtle actually giggled. â€Å"You want to try over there!† she said, pointing. â€Å"I won't come with you†¦.I don't like them much, they always chase me when I get too close†¦.† Harry gave her the thumbs-up to show his thanks and set off once more, careful to swim a bit higher over the weed to avoid any more grindylows that might be lurking there. He swam on for what felt like at least twenty minutes. He was passing over vast expanses of black mud now, which swirled murkily as he disturbed the water. Then, at long last, he heard a snatch of haunting mersong. â€Å"An hour long you'll have to look, And to recover what we took†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry swam faster and soon saw a large rock emerge out of the muddy water ahead. It had paintings of merpeople on it; they were carrying spears and chasing what looked like the giant squid. Harry swam on past the rock, following the mersong. â€Å"†¦your time's half gone, so tarry not Lest what you seek stays here to rot†¦.† A cluster of crude stone dwellings stained with algae loomed suddenly out of the gloom on all sides. Here and there at the dark windows, Harry saw faces†¦faces that bore no resemblance at all to the painting of the mermaid in the prefects' bathroom†¦. The merpeople had grayish skin and long, wild, dark green hair. Their eyes were yellow, as were their broken teeth, and they wore thick ropes of pebbles around their necks. They leered at Harry as he swam past; one or two of them emerged from their caves to watch him better, their powerful, silver fish tails beating the water, spears clutched in their hands. Harry sped on, staring around, and soon the dwellings became more numerous; there were gardens of weed around some of them, and he even saw a pet grindylow tied to a stake outside one door. Merpeople were emerging on all sides now, watching him eagerly, pointing at his webbed hands and gills, talking behind their hands to one another. Harry sped around a corner and a very strange sight met his eyes. A whole crowd of merpeople was floating in front of the houses that lined what looked like a mer-version of a village square. A choir of merpeople was singing in the middle, calling the champions toward them, and behind them rose a crude sort of statue; a gigantic merperson hewn from a boulder. Four people were bound tightly to the tail of the stone merperson. Ron was tied between Hermione and Cho Chang. There was also a girl who looked no older than eight, whose clouds of silvery hair made Harry feel sure that she was Fleur Delacour's sister. All four of them appeared to be in a very deep sleep. Their heads were lolling onto their shoulders, and fine streams of bubbles kept issuing from their mouths. Harry sped toward the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to lower their spears and charge at him, but they did nothing. The ropes of weed tying the hostages to the statue were thick, slimy, and very strong. For a fleeting second he thought of the knife Sirius had bought him for Christmas – locked in his trunk in the castle a quarter of a mile away, no use to him whatsoever. He looked around. Many of the merpeople surrounding them were carrying spears. He swam swiftly toward a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs and tried to mime a request to borrow the spear. The merman laughed and shook his head. â€Å"We do not help,† he said in a harsh, croaky voice. â€Å"Come ON!† Harry said fiercely (but only bubbles issued from his mouth), and he tried to pull the spear away from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, still shaking his head and laughing. Harry swirled around, staring about. Something sharp†¦anything†¦ There were rocks littering the lake bottom. He dived and snatched up a particularly jagged one and returned to the statue. He began to hack at the ropes binding Ron, and after several minutes' hard work, they broke apart. Ron floated, unconscious, a few inches above the lake bottom, drifting a little in the ebb of the water. Harry looked around. There was no sign of any of the other champions. What were they playing at? Why didn't they hurry up? He turned back to Hermione, raised the jagged rock, and began to hack at her bindings too – At once, several pairs of strong gray hands seized him. Half a dozen mermen were pulling him away from Hermione, shaking their green-haired heads, and laughing. â€Å"You take your own hostage,† one of them said to him. â€Å"Leave the others†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"No way!† said Harry furiously – but only two large bubbles came out. Your task is to retrieve your own friend†¦leave the others†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She's my friend too!† Harry yelled, gesturing toward Hermione, an enormous silver bubble emerging soundlessly from his lips. â€Å"And I don't want them to die either!† Cho's head was on Hermione's shoulder; the small silver-haired girl was ghostly green and pale. Harry struggled to fight off the mermen, but they laughed harder than ever, holding him back. Harry looked wildly around. Where were the other champions? Would he have time to take Ron to the surface and come back down for Hermione and the others? Would he be able to find them again? He looked down at his watch to see how much time was left – it had stopped working. But then the merpeople around him pointed excitedly over his head. Harry looked up and saw Cedric swimming toward them. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched. â€Å"Got lost!† he mouthed, looking panic-stricken. â€Å"Fleur and Krum're coming now!† Feeling enormously relieved, Harry watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Cho free. He pulled her upward and out of sight. Harry looked around, waiting. Where were Fleur and Krum? Time was getting short, and according to the song, the hostages would be lost after an hour†¦. The merpeople started screeching animatedly. Those holding Harry loosened their grip, staring behind them. Harry turned and saw something monstrous cutting through the water toward them: a human body in swimming trunks with the head of a shark†¦.It was Krum. He appeared to have transfigured himself – but badly. The shark-man swam straight to Hermione and began snapping and biting at her ropes; the trouble was that Krum's new teeth were positioned very awkwardly for biting anything smaller than a dolphin, and Harry was quite sure that if Krum wasn't careful, he was going to rip Hermione in half. Darting forward. Harry hit Krum hard on the shoulder and held up the jagged stone. Krum seized it and began to cut Hermione free. Within seconds, he had done it; he grabbed Hermione around the waist, and without a backward glance, began to rise rapidly with her toward the surface. Now what? Harry thought desperately. If he could be sure that Fleur was coming†¦.But still no sign. There was nothing to be done except†¦ He snatched up the stone, which Krum had dropped, but the mermen now closed in around Ron and the little girl, shaking their heads at him. Harry pulled out his wand. â€Å"Get out of the way!† Only bubbles flew out of his mouth, but he had the distinct impression that the mermen had understood him, because they suddenly stopped laughing. Their yellowish eyes were fixed upon Harry's wand, and they looked scared. There might be a lot more of them than there were of him, but Harry could tell, by the looks on their faces, that they knew no more magic than the giant squid did. â€Å"You've got until three!† Harry shouted; a great stream of bubbles burst from him, but he held up three fingers to make sure they got the message. â€Å"One†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (he put down a finger) â€Å"two†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (he put down a second one) – They scattered. Harry darted forward and began to hack at the ropes binding the small girl to the statue, and at last she was free. He seized the little girl around the waist, grabbed the neck of Ron's robes, and kicked off from the bottom. It was very slow work. He could no longer use his webbed hands to propel himself forward; he worked his flippers furiously, but Ron and Fleur's sister were like potato-filled sacks dragging him back down†¦.He fixed his eyes skyward, though he knew he must still be very deep, the water above him was so dark†¦. Merpeople were rising with him. He could see them swirling around him with ease, watching him struggle through the water†¦.Would they pull him back down to the depths when the time was up? Did they perhaps eat humans? Harry's legs were seizing up with the effort to keep swimming; his shoulders were aching horribly with the effort of dragging Ron and the girl†¦ He was drawing breath with extreme difficulty. He could feel pain on the sides of his neck again†¦he was becoming very aware of how wet the water was in his mouth†¦yet the darkness was definitely thinning now†¦he could see daylight above him†¦. He kicked hard with his flippers and discovered that they were nothing more than feet†¦water was flooding through his mouth into his lungs†¦he was starting to feel dizzy, but he knew light and air were only ten feet above him†¦he had to get there†¦he had to†¦ Harry kicked his legs so hard and fast it felt as though his muscles were screaming in protest; his very brain felt waterlogged, he couldn't breathe, he needed oxygen, he had to keep going, he could not stop – And then he felt his head break the surface of the lake; wonderful, cold, clear air was making his wet face sting; he gulped it down, feeling as though he had never breathed properly before, and, panting, pulled Ron and the little girl up with him. All around him, wild, green-haired heads were emerging out of the water with him, but they were smiling at him. The crowd in the stands was making a great deal of noise; shouting and screaming, they all seemed to be on their feet; Harry had the impression they thought that Ron and the little girl might be dead, but they were wrong†¦both of them had opened their eyes; the girl looked scared and confused, but Ron merely expelled a great spout of water, blinked in the bright light, turned to Harry, and said, â€Å"Wet, this, isn't it?† Then he spotted Fleur's sister. â€Å"What did you bring her for?† â€Å"Fleur didn't turn up, I couldn't leave her,† Harry panted. â€Å"Harry, you prat,† said Ron, â€Å"you didn't take that song thing seriously, did you? Dumbledore wouldn't have let any of us drown!† â€Å"The song said -â€Å" â€Å"It was only to make sure you got back inside the time limit!† said Ron. â€Å"I hope you didn't waste time down there acting the hero!† Harry felt both stupid and annoyed. It was all very well for Ron; he'd been asleep, he hadn't felt how eerie it was down in the lake, surrounded by spear-carrying merpeople who'd looked more than capable of murder. â€Å"C'mon,† Harry said shortly, â€Å"help me with her, I don't think she can swim very well.† They pulled Fleur's sister through the water, back toward the bank where the judges stood watching, twenty merpeople accompanying them like a guard of honor, singing their horrible screechy songs. Harry could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Hermione, Krum, Cedric, and Cho, all of whom were wrapped in thick blankets. Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman stood beaming at Harry and Ron from the bank as they swam nearer, but Percy, who looked very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet them. Meanwhile Madame Maxime was trying to restrain Fleur Delacour, who was quite hysterical, fighting tooth and nail to return to the water. â€Å"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Is she alive? Is she ‘urt?† â€Å"She's fine!† Harry tried to tell her, but he was so exhausted he could hardly talk, let alone shout. Percy seized Ron and was dragging him back to the bank (â€Å"Gerroff, Percy, I'm all right!†); Dumbledore and Bagman were pulling Harry upright; Fleur had broken free of Madame Maxime and was hugging her sister. â€Å"It was ze grindylows†¦zey attacked me†¦oh Gabrielle, I thought†¦I thought†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Come here, you,† said Madam Pomfrey. She seized Harry and pulled him over to Hermione and the others, wrapped him so tightly in a blanket that he felt as though he were in a straitjacket, and forced a measure of very hot potion down his throat. Steam gushed out of his ears. â€Å"Harry, well done!† Hermione cried. â€Å"You did it, you found out how all by yourself!† â€Å"Well -† said Harry. He would have told her about Dobby, but he had just noticed Karkaroff watching him. He was the only judge who had not left the table; the only judge not showing signs of pleasure and relief that Harry, Ron, and Fleur's sister had got back safely. â€Å"Yeah, that's right,† said Harry, raising his voice slightly so that Karkaroff could hear him. â€Å"You haff a water beetle in your hair, Herm-own-ninny,† said Krum. Harry had the impression that Krum was drawing her attention back onto himself; perhaps to remind her that he had just rescued her from the lake, but Hermione brushed away the beetle impatiently and said, â€Å"You're well outside the time limit, though, Harry†¦.Did it take you ages to find us?† â€Å"No†¦I found you okay†¦.† Harry's feeling of stupidity was growing. Now he was out of the water, it seemed perfectly clear that Dumbledores safety precautions wouldn't have permitted the death of a hostage just because their champion hadn't turned up. Why hadn't he just grabbed Ron and gone? He would have been first back†¦.Cedric and Krum hadn't wasted time worrying about anyone else; they hadn't taken the mersong seriously†¦. Dumbledore was crouching at the water's edge, deep in conversation with what seemed to be the chief merperson, a particularly wild and ferocious-looking female. He was making the same sort of screechy noises that the merpeople made when they were above water; clearly, Dumbledore could speak Mermish. Finally he straightened up, turned to his fellow judges, and said, â€Å"A conference before we give the marks, I think.† The judges went into a huddle. Madam Pomfrey had gone to rescue Ron from Percy's clutches; she led him over to Harry and the others, gave him a blanket and some Pepperup Potion, then went to fetch Fleur and her sister. Fleur had many cuts on her face and arms and her robes were torn, but she didn't seem to care, nor would she allow Madam Pomfrey to clean them. â€Å"Look after Gabrielle,† she told her, and then she turned to Harry. â€Å"You saved ‘er,† she said breathlessly. â€Å"Even though she was not your ‘ostage.† â€Å"Yeah,† said Harry, who was now heartily wishing he'd left all three girls tied to the statue. Fleur bent down, kissed Harry twice on each cheek (he felt his face burn and wouldn't have been surprised if steam was coming out of his ears again), then said to Ron, â€Å"And you too-you ‘elped -â€Å" â€Å"Yeah,† said Ron, looking extremely hopeful, â€Å"yeah, a bit -â€Å" Fleur swooped down on him too and kissed him. Hermione looked simply furious, but just then, Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out beside them, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows†¦. â€Å"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points.† Applause from the stands. â€Å"I deserved zero,† said Fleur throatily, shaking her magnificent head. â€Å"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour.† Enormous cheers from the Hufflepuffs in the crowd; Harry saw Cho give Cedric a glowing look. â€Å"We therefore award him forty-seven points.† Harry's heart sank. If Cedric had been outside the time limit, he most certainly had been. â€Å"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points.† Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking very superior. â€Å"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect,† Bagman continued. â€Å"He returned last, and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own.† Ron and Hermione both gave Harry half-exasperated, half-commiserating looks. â€Å"Most of the judges,† and here, Bagman gave Karkaroff a very nasty look, â€Å"feel that this shows moral fiber and merits full marks. However†¦Mr. Potter's score is forty-five points.† Harry's stomach leapt – he was now tying for first place with Cedric. Ron and Hermione, caught by surprise, stared at Harry, then laughed and started applauding hard with the rest of the crowd. â€Å"There you go. Harry!† Ron shouted over the noise. â€Å"You weren't being thick after all – you were showing moral fiber!† Fleur was clapping very hard too, but Krum didn't look happy at all. He attempted to engage Hermione in conversation again, but she was too busy cheering Harry to listen. â€Å"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June,† continued Bagman. â€Å"The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions.† It was over. Harry thought dazedly, as Madam Pomfrey began herding the champions and hostages back to the castle to get into dry clothes†¦it was over, he had got through†¦he didn't have to worry about anything now until June the twenty-fourth†¦. Next time he was in Hogsmeade, Harry decided as he walked back up the stone steps into the castle, he was going to buy Dobby a pair of socks for every day of the year.