Coolest thing i ever did Essay Example for Free

Coolest thing i ever did Essay The coolest thing I’ve ever done or should I say the dumbest thing I ever done was run my mother’s car into our house. It was the end of summer starting my freshman year at Destrehan High School and I wanted to do something that would have made me seem cool to the kids around the neighborhood so I decided to steal my mother’s car. My mom owned a 2002 Nissan Pathfinder that she didn’t really use, usually just my step dad would use it to go to work and my mom used the truck so I didn’t see a problem with them riding together one morning so I can have the car for myself for the day. One morning during the beginning of the week my step dad had set the key down on the table and it was just a key so I could have easily took it and have everyone else think he misplaced it. For two days straight my parents was looking for the key and I acted as though I had no idea of what they was looking for but he just used the spare key. The third day I woke up and I looked out my window and I saw the car outside knowing I still had the stolen key under my mattress. I was a little too anxious because I knew I had the car to myself and I couldn’t get caught for taking it. It was around eleven o’clock when I got up and went get in the car. A free adventure I took and I thought I was a grown driver driving on the road with other drivers but I wasn’t it was very illegal but I didn’t care†¦ I felt cool. An hour went by and I traveled all over Destrehan I felt like my cool patch should have been given to me that day because it took a lot out of me to do something that crazy. I arrived back to my place without being stopped by the police or pulling up to the truck in the driveway, I felt so bad even hammer couldn’t touch me. My step dad always parked the car really close to the end of the driveway so that was my goal to do, I pulled in, parked the car, and got out. Then I realized I wasn’t close enough and they would have notice something funny. So I decided to get back in the car and park it correctly. Backing up I didn’t notice that I was that far away so I pushed on the gas because our driveway was more of a hill so I needed a little help getting up there. When I pushed the gas I went to fast and had hit the trash can that was in front the house, I thought it was funny and didn’t really worry about it because I could have switched it out with someone else’s. I got out and I noticed I parked the car correctly so that was a good thing but when I walked towards the trash can I heard some noise behind it and I saw that the front window was shattered, that’s when I realized things just got real. I started to panic and come up with lies to explain the window since the car didn’t look damage. My friend Shawn came outside and stared making fun of me because he knew I was going to get in trouble. As he walked in my house to go get something to drink he noticed something that I should have took a look at. His exact words were â€Å" umm Laci I think you should come take a look at this† I know I was inside but I couldn’t understand why I could see outside, that’s when I knew I was dead but I still felt cool for some reason. Explaining this to my mom wasn’t easy at all so I stayed a few feet away from her. When my step dad arrived home he did a little bit more investigation and saw that not only did I brake the trash can, the window, and ran the car through the wall but I also smashed the hose pipe that was connected to the house inside the bricks so there was no water in the house at all. It took them a long time to forgive and trust me again and it also took a lot of butt whippings to relive all that anger out of my mom. Out of all that happened in that week in a weird way I still felt pretty cool for that since it was a fun story to tell to the class. So I am glad to say that was the dumbest, scariest, and coolest thing I ever done.

Theories Of The Term Structure Of Interest Rates Finance Essay

Theories Of The Term Structure Of Interest Rates Finance Essay This coursework explains what information does term structure of interest rate gives to finance executives while analyzing project. Term Structure of interest rate is important in formulating investment decisions. Term structure of interest rate compares the market yield (Saunders Cornett, 2003, p. 190). The shape of the yield curve reflects the markets future expectation of the interest rate. Thus, the term structure is important for a finance executive, because they believe that interest rate across time tells about the markets expectation of future events (John Cox et al, 1985). Also, the behaviour of term structure impacts monetary policy (Marvin, 1998), economic activity (Dotsey, 1998) and inflation. By having understanding the term structure will help them to extricate information and predict how variables such as interest rates, maturity will affect the yield curve. Thus, helps them to take investment decision in order to generate future capital gain and cash flow. This coursework will first discuss about interest rate, yield in context of term structure of interest rate. Next section critically assesses the four different theories of term structure and what information do these theories have. In conclusion, importance of interest rate to finance executive is portrayed and validity of which theory holds good in todays market is discussed. Interest rates, Yield curves and Term Structure of Interest rates The main component of term structure is prices, Interest rates and time (term). Interest rates are important to understand because all the financial instruments are sensitive to interest rates. Financial executive invest in the projects depending on alternative options and cost of capital which depends on interest rates. One of the major concerns in making investment decision is uncertainty about the future capital/ rewards from the investment. Finance executives have to take decision in the unstable economic environment where the information comes gradually, so knowing term structure interest rate helps them to decide whether to invest and when to invest (Dias Shacklenton, 2005). Interest rate change with time due to risk, inflation, and also depends on variables such as tax, term of maturity. Term Structure of interest rate i.e. Yield curve is analysis tool of different interest rates of bonds or securities with different term of maturity (Marvin, 1998). Why to understand yield curves? The yield to maturity is quantified as the rate of return that mathematically equates the fixed payment stream to the bonds current market price. The yield to maturity cannot be easily calculated, so it must be analysed through trial and error method. Yield to maturity is same as internal rate of return (McInish, 2000). Finance executives are concerned with the internal rate of return the project will generate. Term structure is relation between different yields. This section first explains about yields and their importance and then assesses theories of term structure of interest rates. There are three yield curves: upward sloping, downward sloping and flat. If the yield curve is upward sloping it means that long term rates are above short term rates. As depicted in the figure, it has positive slope means that finance executive expects the economy to grow in future (Mishkin, 1990). As economy will grow it will lead to increase in inflation rates. With the rise in the inflation rate, central bank with tighten the monetary policy to control the inflation rate (Marvin, 1998). This generates the risk for uncertainty in inflation rate and to future value of cash flows. If the yield curve is downward sloping it means that long term rates are below short term rates (Mishkin, 2006).It means that finance executive expects interest rates and economy to fall. Tight monetary policy could lead long term rates to be lower than short term rates. If the yield curve is flat means that long term rates are equal to short term rates. Term structure of interest rate is defined as relation between interest rate and yield curve for default free securities having different maturity (John Cox et al, 1985). Term structure of interest rate is the correlation between different yields of financial instruments with same risk, tax but different maturity (Saunders Cornett, 2003). The term-structure model mainly analyses the expectations channels and the interest rate. While taking decision, the IRR (Internal rate of return) of the projects needs comparison with the opportunity cost of capital. But often the long run and short run interest rate/opportunity costs differs. And both cash flow and cost of capital include the inflation. Below theories of term structure of interest rates helps finance executives to understand expected inflation and interest rates. Theories of term structure of interest rates There are four theories namely expectation theory, market segment theory, liquidity preference theory and preferred habitat theory that explains the shape of yield curve (Saunders Cornett, 2003, p. 190). Expectation Theory John Hickss (1939) expectation theory suggests that expectation, of the investors in the market, about the future interest rate determine the term structure of interest rates and these expectations could affect the economic growth (Russell, 1992). This theory assumes that bonds with different maturities are perfect substitutes. Buyers will not prefer bond for which expected return is less than the expected return of another bond. Inflation and interest rate risk are not considered in this theory (Mishkin, 2006). According to this theory, expected return of the long term rates are average of short term rates. It means there is no uncertainty in expected rate of return over the holding period as return is same for all the securities over the holding period (Mishkin, 2006). Expectation theory proves that two facts, first, Interest rate for different maturities move together over the time and second Yields on short-term bond more volatile than yields on long-term bonds (Mishkin, 2006). Yield curve is based on market expectation. If the finance executives expect that the short term rates will be 10% in next 3 years, then interest rate on 3-year bond will also be 10%. For finance executive opportunity will be less because the yield curve will be flat as current long term rate is equal to current short term rate. This imply that movement of short term rates and long term rates can be predicted and if the yield curve is sloping upward then future interest rate will increase and if curve is sloping downwards then future interest rate will decrease (Russell, 1992). If the short term rates are high, yield curve will be downward sloping. Yield curve will be expected to be upward sloping if short term rates are low  [1]  . Hence this theory doesnt prove why the yield curve is usually upward sloping (Mishkin, 2006). As per this theory, finance executives are assumed to be investing in efficient market and with less transaction cost. Thus, Yield curve is determined by the short term interest rates and by uncertainty in the accuracy of their expectation. Liquid preference theory As the expectancy theory doesnt completely explain the term structure i.e. current rates are not perfect predictor of future interest rates (Saunders Cornett, 2003), this theory is an extension of the expectancy theory i.e. it gives some importance to the expected future rates but give more importance to the risk preference of the finance executives or investors (Mishkin, 2006). If the market is uncertain then finance executive will make decision based on capital gain/loss, revenue generated (Kessel, 1965). This decision will be based on their willingness to take risk. Risk  [2]  causes the interest rates to be greater than the expected rates and this amount increases with the maturity. Long term interest rate includes the expected rates and premium for holding long term rates bond. This premium is known as liquidity premium (Mishkin, 2006), which is compensation to the finance executives or investors for holding long term securities. The theory assumes that bonds are substitutes but not perfect substitutes .Short term rates are of lower inflation and low interest rate risks (Mishkin, 2006). Investor prefers short term rates (Keynesian view) and hence be given premium for long term rates. Long rates will be less volatile as it is the average of the short term rates and risk premium will increase with the maturity, thus, yield curve will be upward sloping (Kessel, 1965). With the increase in the maturity, sensitivity to capital loss increases with decreasing rate (Saunders Cornett, 2003). Investor prefers short term rates as it is less prone to capital loss. It doesnt mean that they are risk averse; they may be unwilling to take the risk due to economic activity. As mentioned above, risk premium will increase with the term of maturity, upward sloping yield curve may reflect the expectation of investor that future short term rates will rise and therefore, the yield curve will also increase with the term to maturity (Saunders Cornett, 2003). Segmented market theory This Theory assumes that credit markets are segmented (Shelile, 2006). Investor has preference for specific maturity bonds and hence the market for these bonds are separated based on their maturity. This means that longer interest rate securities are completely different asset when compared to short term interest rate securities (Mishkin, 2006). As per this theory, Investors decide which term securities they want to hold. They dont prefer to change the market segment to take the advantage of the changing yields in other segment (Saunders Cornett, 2003). Investor preference depends on the asset and liability they hold. For example bank prefers short term interest rate due to their deposit liabilities and insurance company prefers long term interest rate due to their contractual liabilities. Thus, Demand and supply for particular securities, with in particular segment, determine the interest rates (Howells and Bain, 1998). This theory explains the fact 3 why the yield curves are usually upward sloping and assumes that Investor prefers liquid portfolio. Thus they prefer short term securities. Bonds/securities with shorter period have low risk and lower inflation, means yield will be lower and yield on long term bond will be higher (Shelile, 2006). This proves the fact that yield curve is usually upward sloping. However, as the market for the bond is segmented, it fails to prove why the yields of different term move together (Mishkin, 2006). Preferred habitat theory Moldigliani and Sutch (1966) recognised the limitation of market segment theory and gave preferred habitat theory, which is a combination of both expected theory and market segment theory. According to Mishkin, preferred habitat theory is closely related to liquidity premium theory. Preferred habitat investors invest in their preferred maturities and do not invest in across market segment. Movement in yield of different maturity has no effect in demand by preferred habitat (Doh, 2010). Finance executives will invest in outside of preferred maturity if they are compensated by higher expected return or term premium (Howells and Bain, 1998). Finance executives consider both expected return and maturity. However, understanding of determinant of term premium is difficult (John Cox et al, 1985). Below chart shows that there is close relationship between the risk premium and the yield curve. If risk premium is positive then yield curve tend to be upward sloping and vice versa. This proves that investor/ finance executives expect interest rate to rise when yield curve is upward sloping and require positive risk premium to compensate for future capital losses (Christopher Peacock, 2004) Source: Christopher Peacock, 2004, Bank of England: Deriving a market-based measure of interest rate expectations Why to have understanding of different theories Term structure inform about the expectation of other investors in the market. Expectation of other market investor will influence the current decision and these decisions will determine what will happen in the future. Thus knowledge of other market investor is helpful in determining the future forecast (Russell, 1992) Theories explain that changes in short term rates will affect long term rates. Short term rates have direct effect on long term interest rates and finance executive are concerned majorly with the long term interest rates as it help them to make the decisions about investments (Russell, 1992) Monetary policy has direct effect on short term rates. Fama (1990) and Mishkin (1990) study shows that term spread gives information about the future macroeconomic variables such as inflation. To control the inflation central bank tightens the monetary policy and tightening leads to rise in short term interest rates. These theories predict about the economic activity and to know about the economic activity is important as this will help in forecasting, budgeting and meeting the future demand (Dotsey, 1998). Investor/ financial executives are forward looking and thus yield spread between short term and long term interest rate predicts the future economic activity (Watson, 1989). However, 1990-91 economic downturn was not predicted by these theories. But later studies by Estrella and Mishkin (1997, 1998) determined that spread contain the significant amount of information about the future economic activity. Their conclusion was supported by Dueker (1997) and Plosser and Rouwenhorst (1994) studies. CONCLUSION Which Theory is most appropriate? The Liquidity Preference hypothesis, the Preferred Habitat hypothesis, and the Market Segmentation hypothesis all depend on an analysis of investor and firm preferences under certainty to conclude about the term structure premium under uncertainty. Liquidity Preference hypothesis suggests that it is the nature of risk aversion which mostly causes the forward rate to be far greater than the expected future rate. This view has been criticized for overtly emphasising on capital-value risk as opposed to income risk. Someone who wants future flow of income could simply make a long term investment and stay unconcerned about variations in interest rate, also for them, a yield premium might be necessary to induce them to hold shorter term structure. Preferred habitat theory advocates that due to variation in individuals notion of saving and investment, different investor would be view the investment risk differently. Preferred Habitat Theory is the most consistent theory to analyse daily changes in the term structure. However, in the long run, expectations of future interest rates and liquidity premiums are vital elements of the shape and position of the yield curve. Why should finances executive have understanding of term structure of interest rate? While analyzing project proposals, the finance executives obviously expect stable cash flow or income generation for companys economic viability. As discussed above, the term structure of interest rate predicts the economic condition. So, instead of erratic cash flows of increasing flow in one cycle and decreasing in another, they expect stable value for their money. Hence, future growth can be forecasted by the term structure of the interest rates. While borrowing money for investments, both assets and liabilities are at interest rate risk. If liabilities have greater risk than assets, then there is a risk that an increase in interest rate might result in financial ruin. Financial executives can alter the risk by their choice of duration of portfolios. Risk aversion, investment alternatives, anticipations and preferences about the timing of investment all have a vital role in determining the term structure. Therefore, Finance executives should have good understanding of term structure. REFERENCES Cox, John C., J. E. Ingersoll, and S. A. Ross (1985). A Theory of the Term Structure of Interest Rates. Econometrica, 53, P. 385-408 Christopher Peacock, 2004. Deriving a market-based measure of interest rate expectations. Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin: Summer 2004. P. 142- 152 Dias, J. c., Shacklenton, M. B. (2005). Investment hysteresis under stochastic interest rates. Dotsey, Michael (1998). The Predictive Content of the Interest Rate Term Spread for Future Economic Growth, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Economic Quarterly. Fama, E.F. (1990): Term-structure forecasts of interest rates, inflation and real returns. Journal of Monetary Economics, 25 (1), January, P. 59-76. Goodfriend, Marvin. Using the Term Structure of Interest Rates for Monetary Policy. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Economic Quarterly Volume 84/3 Summer 1998 Hicks, John R., 1939, Value and capital, Reprinted 1968 (Oxford University Press, New York). HOWELLS, P. and BAIN, K., 1998. The Economics of Money, Banking and Finance, A European Text. Essex, England. Pearson Educational Limited. Jorion, P. and F. Mishkin (1991): A multicountry comparison of term-structure forecasts at long horizons. Journal of Financial Economics, 29 (1), March, pp. 59-80. Kessel, R. A. (1965). WHY LIQUIDITY PREFERENCE EXISTS. In The Cyclical Behavior of the Term Structure of Interest (pp. 44 58). National Bureau of Economic Research. Modigliani. F., and R. Sutch: Innovations in Interest rate policy, American Economic Review, 56(1966), P. 178-197 Mishkin, F. (2006). Money, Banking, and Financial. Pearson. McInish, Thomas H., 2000, Capital Markets: A Global Perspective. Oxford: Blackwell. Russell, S. (1992). Understanding the Term Structure of Interest Rates: The Expectations Theory. 36-50. Saunders, A., Cornett, M. M. (2003). Financial Institution Management. McGraw Hill. Taeyoung Doh , 2010. The efficacy of large scale asset purchase at the zero lower bound, Economic review, second quarter. Watson, M. , Stock, J., New Indices of Coincident and Leading Indicators, In O. Blanchard and S. Fischer ed. NBER Macroeconomic Annual, Cambridge, MIT Press.1989.

Balancing Politics and Pedagogy :: Bilingual Education Classroom Language Essays

Balancing Politics and Pedagogy Thesis: Research over the past thirty years shows conflicting evidence for or against bilingual education leading to a heated debate between educators and politicians with bilingual education becoming a scapegoat for a number of educational issues, perhaps hiding the real causes of Hispanic difficulties from the critics. Proposition 227, the so-called "English for Children" law, abolished thirty years of bilingual education in California in June, 1998, forcing students who are not fluent in English into all-English classes in all subjects all the time. Bilingual education, according to Krashen, is the target of critics who list a number of objections (1). Newspapers and TV are often against bilingual education. They say that bilingual education is not functioning, while students learn English very well without it. They also say that the majority of parents and teachers are not in favor of it. Another argument is that bilingual education is only for Spanish speakers and not for those who have different writing systems. In addition, it is true that there are not enough teachers for bilingual education (1). Furthermore, the dropout rate of Hispanic children in the U.S. is still high even after thirty years of efforts. Research of the past thirty years shows no justification for bilingual education, clai ms Porter (28). However, it may be a fallacy to conclude that bilingual education is not working. Bilingual education has become a scapegoat for a number of educational issues, perhaps hiding the real causes of Hispanic difficulties from the critics. The issue of bilingual education is not new. In fact, its history in the U.S. has vacillated between acceptance and rejection. During the nineteenth century, instruction was given in a wide variety of foreign languages, such as German, Polish, Italian, Dutch or any other language that parents demanded. Between 1897 and 1915, thirteen states changed their policies to requiring English instruction in basic subjects such as math, science, and geography from fears of a so-called "babel of tongues" (Zimmerman 39). By the end of World War I, thirty-seven states had limited foreign language instruction including explicit prohibitions on German in favor of "100 percent Americanism" (39). After the war, public schools became open to a wide range of foreign language instruction; however, in fact, only 20 percent of high school students were taught in any non-English language class by 1949. Immigrant parents, says Zimmerman, wanted their children to learn English as a vehicle of social mobility in America instead of taking courses in their native languages (39).

The Kathmandu Valley and the Constant Terror of Earthquakes Essay

The Kathmandu Valley and the Constant Terror of Earthquakes One important climatic feature that plagues the South Asian region of the Kathmandu Valley is earthquakes. A few severe earthquakes have taken place in the country's history and caused many deaths and nearly irreparable damage to impoverished Nepal. The residents of the Kathmandu Valley experience small tremors nearly every day, whether they can feel them or not. The world and the nation is waiting for the 'next big one' to terrorize the small country. The Kingdom of Nepal is a landlocked nation that geographically lies between India and China. The narrow country also located at the boundary between the Indian and Tibetan tectonic plates and is thus extremely susceptible to earthquakes.[1] The entire kingdom falls into highly seismic zones, including the mountains. The Himalayan mountain range was even formed by the collision of the Asian and Indian plates that started about 50 million years ago, and ended with the subduction of the Indian plate underneath Tibet.[2] The Universities of Alaska and Colorado, in order to help these poor nations, have made precise measurements in both the Nepal Himalayan range and Tibetan Plateau since March of 1991.[3] The researchers have discovered that the Indian plate moves 53-63 millimeters closer to Asia at the same time as Tibet moves the same direction by 34-39 millimeters each year.[4] Therefore, Nepal is rowed about 19-24 millimeters per year.[5] As these steady movements have continued throughout the years, and slip events have also occurred causing great earthquakes on a north-sloping surface underneath the Himalayan mountains.[6] And as lakes long ago occupied the Kathmandu Valley,... ...ismological Centre. [9] GeoHazards International: A Nonprofit Working Towards Global Earthquake Safety. ÒA Nonprofit Organization Kathmandu Project.Ó http://www.geohaz.org/contents/projects/kathmandu.html. [10] GeoHazards International. [11] GeoHazards International. [12] National Seismological Centre. [13] National Seismological Centre. [14] Shakya, Naresh Man. [15] GeoHazards International. [16] GeoHazards International. [17] Shakya, Naresh Man. [18] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. ÒChapter 3: Nepal.Ó National Society for Earthquake Technology- Nepal (NSET). 2003. [19] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. [20] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. [21] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. [22] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. [23] Asian Disaster Reduction Center. [24] Asian Disaster Reduction Center.

Comanche Indians Essay -- essays research papers

COMANCHE INDIANS The Comanches, exceptional horsemen who dominated the Southern Plains, played a prominent role in Texas frontier history throughout much of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Anthropological evidence indicates that they were originally a mountain tribe, a branch of the Northern Shoshones, who roamed the Great Basin region of the western United States as crudely equipped hunters and gatherers. Both cultural and linguistic similarities confirm the Comanches' Shoshone origins. The Comanche language is derived from the Uto-Aztecan linguistic family and is virtually identical to the language of the Northern Shoshones. Sometime during the late seventeenth century, the Comanches acquired horses, and that acquisition drastically altered their culture. The life of the pedestrian tribe was revolutionized as they rapidly evolved into a mounted, well-equipped, and powerful people. Their new mobility allowed them to leave their mountain home and their Shoshone neighbors and move onto the pl ains of eastern Colorado and western Kansas, where game was plentiful. After their arrival on the Great Plains, the Comanches began a southern migration that was encouraged by a combination of factors. By moving south, they had greater access to the mustangs of the Southwest. The warm climate and abundant buffalo were additional incentives for the southern migration. The move also facilitated the acquisition of French trade goods, including firearms, through barter with the Wichita Indians on the Red River. Pressure from more powerful and better-armed tribes to their north and east, principally the Blackfoot and Crow Indians, also encouraged their migration. A vast area of the South Plains, including much of North, Central, and West Texas, soon became Comanche country, or Comancheria. Only after their arrival on the Southern Plains did the tribe come to be known as Comanches, a name derived from the Ute word Komdnteia, meaning "enemy," or, literally, "anyone who wants to fight me all the time." The Spaniards in New Meadco, who encountered the Comanches in the early eighteenth century, gave the tribe the name by which they were later known to Spaniards and Americans able. Although the tribe came to be known historically as Comanches, they called themselves Nermernuh, or "the People." The Comanches did not arrive on the South Plain... ...orld War ll. accelerated the breakup of Comanche society as members of the tribe left to find jobs in the defense industry or join the military service. In the postwar years, the Comanche population continued to disperse in search of economic opportunity. In the 1960s the Comanches, encouraged by a resurgence of Indian nationalism, began to work together to rebuild their society. They underwent important political changes because of that initiative. They seceded from the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Intertribal Business Committee, which had served as their government since passage of the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936. Although they maintained ties with the Kiowas and Apaches, the Comanches established their own tribal government, which operates in a bustling complex near Lawton, Oklahoma. In 1995, the Comanches had an enrolled tribal population of 9,722 scattered across the United States. For them the pow-wow, or dance gathering, had become an important method of maintaining Comanche kinship. The People are also united by pride in their rich Comanche heritage, an element that has remained constant through years of tumultuous change. Comanche Indians Essay -- essays research papers COMANCHE INDIANS The Comanches, exceptional horsemen who dominated the Southern Plains, played a prominent role in Texas frontier history throughout much of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Anthropological evidence indicates that they were originally a mountain tribe, a branch of the Northern Shoshones, who roamed the Great Basin region of the western United States as crudely equipped hunters and gatherers. Both cultural and linguistic similarities confirm the Comanches' Shoshone origins. The Comanche language is derived from the Uto-Aztecan linguistic family and is virtually identical to the language of the Northern Shoshones. Sometime during the late seventeenth century, the Comanches acquired horses, and that acquisition drastically altered their culture. The life of the pedestrian tribe was revolutionized as they rapidly evolved into a mounted, well-equipped, and powerful people. Their new mobility allowed them to leave their mountain home and their Shoshone neighbors and move onto the pl ains of eastern Colorado and western Kansas, where game was plentiful. After their arrival on the Great Plains, the Comanches began a southern migration that was encouraged by a combination of factors. By moving south, they had greater access to the mustangs of the Southwest. The warm climate and abundant buffalo were additional incentives for the southern migration. The move also facilitated the acquisition of French trade goods, including firearms, through barter with the Wichita Indians on the Red River. Pressure from more powerful and better-armed tribes to their north and east, principally the Blackfoot and Crow Indians, also encouraged their migration. A vast area of the South Plains, including much of North, Central, and West Texas, soon became Comanche country, or Comancheria. Only after their arrival on the Southern Plains did the tribe come to be known as Comanches, a name derived from the Ute word Komdnteia, meaning "enemy," or, literally, "anyone who wants to fight me all the time." The Spaniards in New Meadco, who encountered the Comanches in the early eighteenth century, gave the tribe the name by which they were later known to Spaniards and Americans able. Although the tribe came to be known historically as Comanches, they called themselves Nermernuh, or "the People." The Comanches did not arrive on the South Plain... ...orld War ll. accelerated the breakup of Comanche society as members of the tribe left to find jobs in the defense industry or join the military service. In the postwar years, the Comanche population continued to disperse in search of economic opportunity. In the 1960s the Comanches, encouraged by a resurgence of Indian nationalism, began to work together to rebuild their society. They underwent important political changes because of that initiative. They seceded from the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Intertribal Business Committee, which had served as their government since passage of the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936. Although they maintained ties with the Kiowas and Apaches, the Comanches established their own tribal government, which operates in a bustling complex near Lawton, Oklahoma. In 1995, the Comanches had an enrolled tribal population of 9,722 scattered across the United States. For them the pow-wow, or dance gathering, had become an important method of maintaining Comanche kinship. The People are also united by pride in their rich Comanche heritage, an element that has remained constant through years of tumultuous change.

The origin of hurricanes and predictability of hurricane tracks

Low pressure systems form at mid latitude temperate zones as a result of the convergence of warm and cold air masses. Low pressure systems generally form over the polar front where the polar maritime air (a cold air mass) and tropical maritime air (a warm air mass) meet. Air currents in this area within the Northern Hemisphere will flow counter-clockwise due to the rotation of the earth and surface friction. Air flows accumulate at the centre of the system, and the warm air rises because it is less dense, leading to low pressure at the surface. It contains more moisture than the polar maritime air and as a result, when it ascends, it condenses and produces clouds and rain. Cirrus type clouds are the first clouds that are usually created at this point. A circulation of air rotates in an anticlockwise motion due to the coriolis effect. The tropical maritime air swirls around the polar front, the system matures and eventually a warm and cold front is created. At the warm front, the warm air rises over the cold air, the cirrus clouds develop to be cirrostratus, altostratus and nimbostratus clouds which eventually will lead to heavy rain because of the condensation of the warm air. Towards the edge of the warm front, conditions are more stable and pressure stops decreasing as much. No longer is there so much condensation and therefore there is less rain. Polar maritime air is fast, dense, and strong. Eventually the air pushes in and forces the warm air off the ground, creating instability. The pressure increases, as the air ascends rapidly, cumulonimbus clouds form bringing in heavy rain and storms[1]. The cold front consists of heavier and denser air and displaces the warmer and lighter air, because of this, it moves faster than the warm front and it will ultimately catch up with it. Warm air is forced off the ground by the cold air, and once this happens, an occlusion is created. Uniform air begins to fill the gap between the warm front and the cold front and this is where the low pressure system begins to die away. At tropical latitudes, if sea surface temperatures are above 27 degrees c[2], then the low pressure system will grow. If the conditions are right, tropical thunderstorms may develop to become a hurricane. Low pressure systems often begin to rotate around a central area of low pressure. This is known as a tropical depression, if the depression increases in intensity so that winds reach at least 39 mph, it's categorised as a tropical storm. If wind speeds reach and average of 74 mph[3], it known as tropical cyclone or hurricane. Hurricanes/ tropical cyclones mainly develop in the region between 10 and 20 degrees North of the equator (Goldenberg, 2001). When a storm grows to become a hurricane/tropical cyclone, it is described as a non-frontal low pressure system[4] and can reach up to 340 miles across in diameter[5]. Hurricanes absorb energy from the warm water of the ocean, and a thunderstorm will continue to grow so long as there is a fuel source i. e a supply of moist air and heat. This source is normally found above the water in tropical waters. When the heat supply is cut off i. when the hurricane begins to migrate northwards (or southwards), over colder water, it will weaken and die away. Heat from the oceans is the primary source of energy for hurricanes, [6]and so, the greater the heat of the SST [7]the more intense and frequent hurricanes in that area will be (Goldenberg, et al, 2001). Hurricanes don't usually develop far inland due to the lack of moisture. [8] If there is no moisture, then clouds are not likely to form. Cloud formation results in the generation of latent heat. Latent heat is the heat needed to initiate a change of phase i. to a state of higher energy, e. g. from solid to liquid, or liquid to gas, in this context though, it's from liquid to a gas. As clouds are not generated as much, then not much latent heat is released. the majority of hurricanes originate and stay within the oceans, though they do occasionally travel inland, and the effects they can have on the environment, society and on the economy of the affected area are potentially devastating. The coriolis effect, which is a product of the earth's rotation is the reason that storms rotate and why a hurricane has a typical swirling formation. The rotation of the storm causes air to be drawn into the extreme low pressure at the centre (eye) of the storm. As the air rotates, the air ascends. The rising air is very moist, the higher the altitude, the colder the temperature, and so, it condenses forming clouds. Hurricanes aren't found within 0-5 degrees north and south of the equator ((300 miles (500 kilometers)) of the equator because the coriolis effect is at its weakest at this point, so the storm doesn't have enough spin, and there isn't enough force to maintain low pressure in the centre of the system. Meteorologists can predict hurricanes in two main ways : through the use of seasonal probabilities and tracking of hurricanes that are in existence at a current point of time using modelling techniques[9]. Annually, scientists work out how many storms are likely to develop into hurricanes/tropical storms and they also calculate how many are likely to make landfall. Using statistical techniques such as CLIPER[10], past data, and by sending aeroplanes into the centre of storms they can determine wind speeds, temperatures and can predict the intensity of a hurricane, and how many people it is likely to affect. Many scientists try and determine the paths of hurricanes, and it's a difficult duty because not all hurricanes have defined paths, however; the typical characteristics and properties of the weather and ocean in a specific area allow scientists to have a rough idea to which path a hurricane is likely to follow. If the path is predicted then warning and protection can be provided for those that could potentially be affected and this is the best way to prevent a social, economic and environmental disaster from happening. Hurricanes form in various areas depending on the various times of the hurricane season (Reading, 1990). Tracks can be predicted efficiently however, accuracy seems to be an issue in many cases. Models have become more accurate (NOAA,2004) and prediction techniques have improved (Aberson,2001), however there is still a large uncertainty and error is still an issue. It is easier to predict exactly where a hurricane is going to make landfall the closer to landfall the storm is. So the further the hurricane is away from land, the more error there is when trying to work out its path (NOAA,2004). This is mainly due to natural changes in the storms physical characteristics. It has been determined by NOAA, that, 5 days before landfall there is an average of 350 miles of error, and one day before landfall there is a 100 mile error, [11]which is a major problem because a difference of that mileage could determine whether or not whole cities or villages need to be evacuated or not, and if there is an error, it could be devastating.

Final writing exercise Essay

There are three phases whereby each has a different crystal structure at three different temperatures. At room temperature (298K), Phase III is present whereby Cs3H(SeO4)2 has a crystal structure of a monoclinic with a space group of C2/m. At 400K, Phase II is present whereby Cs3H(SeO4)2 has a crystal structure of a monoclinic-A2/a symmetry. At 470K, Phase I is present whereby Cs3H(SeO4)2 has a crystal structure of a trigonal with a space group of R3-m. In Phase III, as we can see in Figure 2(a), the positioning of the tetrahedrons is parallel to the a-axis, and in between these SeO4 tetrahedrons are the hydrogen bonds. Looking at a 2dimensional perspective, we can also see that there is a translation movement of the SeO4 tetrahedrons along the a-axis; hence the symmetry operator would be a glide line parallel to a-axis. In a 3-dimensional perspective, we can see that Phase III has a 2-fold rotation axis and contains glide planes. In Phase II, from Figure 2(b), we can see that the positioning of the SeO4 tetrahedrons are along the approximate direction [310]. Observing the schematic of the crystal structure in Phase II, we can see that there is a vertical mirror line in between the SeO4 tetrahedrons. There is also an a-glide reflection vertically. In Phase I, from Figure 2(c), the positioning of SeO4 tetrahedron is similar to that of Phase II, however the difference is the crystal structure and the hydrogen bonding. Comparing both Phase II and Phase III crystal structures of the compound, Phase II contains two-fold screw axis, inversion center and a two-fold rotation axis, which is the sole reason for Phase II to be twice of that of Phase III in terms of geometrical  arrangement of hydrogen bonds. From the above analysis of the symmetry of the crystals structures in different phases, we can tell that Phase III has the most symmetry operators and hence achieving the highest crystal symmetry generating a low geometrical arrangement of hydrogen bonds. Due to the low geometrical arrangement of hydrogen bonds, the mobility of protons decreases giving the result of ferroelasticiy. The drastic change from superprotonic conductivity to ferroelasticty happens when there is a change from Phase II to Phase III. The major difference between theses 2 phases is the hydrogen bond arrangement. Paragraph 2 Under the optical microscope, we can observe that the polymorphic domains will alter at each phase transition to a different extent. We can see in phase III that the domains in the Cs3H(SeO4)2 crystal are made up of polydomains separated by two kinds of domain boundaries. The two kinds of domain boundaries are categorized as the planes of {311} and {11n}, where n is determined by the strain compatibility condition. The domains at the sides of each domain boundary are related to the reflective symmetry or the rotational symmetry on that boundary itself. Furthermore, we can observe that the angle between any domain and its neighboring domains is approximately 120 °, which is very close to the theoretical values calculated using the lattice parameters. As we move on from phase III to phase II, we can observe that the domain structure alters slightly by the phase transition of TII–III. Similarly, the reflective symmetry and rotational symmetry also changes at the same phase transition. However, the kinds of domain and domain boundary remain the same as those in phase III despite a change in domain pattern. This could be due to the slight change in alignment of hydrogen bonding between the SeO4 tetrahedrons when the existing hydrogen bonds were broken to form new weaker  ones. This might explains why their lattice parameters a and b do not really change appreciably. Compared to phase III previously, the angle between any domain and its neighboring domains in phase II is also approximately 120 ° and is justified by the theoretical values determined from the same equation we used for phase III. Hence, this suggest a slight change in the Cs3H(SeO4)2 crystal structure at the phase transition of TII–III. From phase II to phase I, the domain boundaries is observed to have disappear just before the curie temperature of the phase transition of TI–II and the crystal structure changes from  optically biaxial to optically uniaxial. This could be due to an external stress caused by the atomic rearrangement of the SeO4 tetrahedrons in the Cs3H(SeO4)2 crystal as a result of breaking the hydrogen bonds between them. Paragraph 3 Higher temperatures for most material will enable atoms to move to low energy sites, fitting into a perfect crystal symmetry. Cs3H(SeO4)2 however behaves differently. As the temperature increases (above 396K), its crystal symmetry decreases when it changes phase from III to II. The orientation of the hydrogen bond for phase II and III differs. For phase II, the orientation is along [310] and [3-10] direction whereas for phase III, it is parallel to the aaxis. As the transition from phase III to II occurs, the precursor of the superprotonic conductivity is observed. In order for movement of proton to occur, the breaking and then recombination of hydrogen bonds are required. For phase III, in order for the movement of one proton, the breaking of 2 hydrogen bonds is needed. The reason as to why 2 hydrogen bond is needed to be broken and recombined again is because for the movement of one proton to occur, it must break the hydrogen bond it resides in and then change its orientation, recombining at another site; the mirroring effect of opposite hydrogen bond is required to maintain the crystal symmetry i.e. to say that the another hydrogen bond parallel to the previous hydrogen bond site needs to be broken and recombined at other site parallel to the newly  recombined hydrogen bond. In this way, in phase III, the recombination of two hydrogen bonds is simultaneously needed for one proton transport. Phase II however, behaves differently. The movement of the proton is independent of the other protons at other hydrogen site. The crystal structure allows for this flexibility of the proton motion, which the superprotonic conduction takes place. The mechanism in which proton transportation occurs in the polymorphs is by the diffusion of protons through a hydrogen bond network, by the cleaving and formation of the hydrogen bonds. However, in certain phases, the cleavage and formation of the hydrogen bond might differ. The fuel cell works on the basis of the movement of protons. The movement of electrons should be disallowed as it would short circuit the fuel cell. Hence, a membrane is used to allow only the movement of protons across and not electrons and gases. On top of that, in order for a superprotonic effect to occur, the flexibility for proton motion must be allo wed. Hence, the lesser symmetrically patterned the phases the protons reside in, the higher this flexibility.