A Critique of the Site StarFall.com Design and Content Research Paper

A Critique of the Site StarFall.com Design and Content - Research Paper Example Parents find Starfall useful as it prepares their children for school, and supports them even after they join the school. The content of the website focuses on that method of learning that emphasizes the relationship between letter and sound, skills for recognizing words, and strategies for reading and comprehension. It does this with the help of activities like animated stories, movies and games. The site consists of four major units.The "Get Ready to Read" section is about the alphabet and the alphabets are pronounced in a child’s voice. The "Learn to Read" section which is for early readers and for those who are just beginning to read has fifteen different modules consisting of games, stories and movies that teach the child various letter sounds and skills. The third section, "Its Fun to Read,† designed for intermediate readers consist of activities related to art and music. The last section, â€Å"I’m Reading† is for advanced readers and has online storybooks that include well-known folktales and myths. The website also has an active bulletin board that can be used for dis cussion by parents. When students complete a program they can obtain a feedback of their performance and also give a feedback. The reading level of the text and stories is according to the grade levels it was designed for. The content of Starfall.com helps the learner to go beyond basics into a higher level of thinking. It enhances a student’s curiosity Starfall.com is well designed and the animation used compliments and enhances the process of learning. Starfall.com uses a variety of media that includes texts, graphics, video and audio narration. The main aim of a web profile is that it must be most attractive, says Stephanie Ruth (2009). In Starfall.com the colorful graphics and easy-to-read text make it attractive for children. Cartoon characters are also used in interactive stories and activities. The graphics on this website are appropriate to the goals of this program.

Sustainability in construction and environmental impact of the construction industry

Sustainability in construction and environmental impact of the construction industry Sustainability in Construction There are many definitions of Sustainability, it has been evaluated as Sustainability is adapting the ways we all live and work towards meeting needs, while minimising the impacts of consumption and providing for people of today and not endangering the generations of tomorrow. [1] At the heart of sustainable development is the simple idea of ensuring a better quality of life for everyone, now and for the future generations. It means achieving social, economic and environmental objectives at the same time. It will give us a more inclusive society in which the benefits of increased economic prosperity are widely shared, with less pollution and more efficient use of natural resources. [2] Sustainable development was defined by the Brundtland Commission (1987) as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable construction aims to provide ways for buildings to use fewer raw materials and less energy, cause less pollution and less waste but still provide the benefits that construction projects have brought throughout history. Most definitions stress that sustainability requires making decisions that recognise the connections between actions and effects in the environment, economy and society. Sustainability is often seen as an ethically and moral debate. Social, environmental and economic needs must be met in a balance with each other for sustainable outcomes in the long term. [3] Sustainable construction is meeting environmental and social responsibilities, and at the same time improving profitability. The key characteristics of sustainable construction are similar to those set for sustainable development, the end result is to reduce a firms detrimental effects on the environment. The industry is defined by a number of sectors, all who plan, design, build, alter or maintain the built environment. Also its subsidiaries, those who manufacture materials, suppliers, and end of life occupiers or owners. The entire life cycle of any structure, from initial concept to demolition must be encompassed in the definition of sustainable construction. Buildings and structures change the face of towns and countryside, and their construction, use, repair, maintenance, and demolition consume vast amounts of energy and resources compared to many other industrial sectors. [4] The environmental Impact of the Construction Industry The government has stated that the construction, occupation and maintenance of buildings account for around 50% of the UKs total CO2 emissions. [5] The construction process and building use not only consume the most energy of all sectors in the UK and create the most CO2 emissions, they also create the most waste, use most non-energy related resources, and are responsible for the most pollution. In light of government plans to reduce the United Kingdoms CO2 emissions by 80% based on 1990 levels [6], the construction industry is at the forefront for reducing emissions in industrialised nations and the United Kingdom is no exception. Code for Sustainable Homes The code for Sustainable homes is a framework which has been put in place by the government as a step change towards producing more sustainable homes. The code is a result of a working relationship between the Building Research Establishment (BRE) and the Construction Industry Research and Information Association (CIRIA). The main aim of the code is to provide the construction industry a drive towards continuous improvement, greater innovation and exemplary achievement in sustainable home building. [7] The code enhances the use of Energy Performance Certificates which is a result of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). The Energy Performance Certificates are used in new homes whenever they are sold or leased and are an indicator of carbon performance of the home. There are 9 main design categories covered in the code as follows: * Energy/CO2 * Pollution * Water * Health and well-being * Materials * Management * Surface water run-off * Ecology * Waste

Are cell phone is dangerous Essay

There are billions of people all over the world use cell phones. They use them for many different purposes, some use them for calling, or sending messages, others use may use them for logging into the net and chatting with friends. From my point of view, cell phones are very dangerous as they waste time and money, sometimes they lead to some sort of addiction, and they are dangerous to the human body. First of all, cell phones waste a lot of time and money. There are a lot of people especially teenagers who spend hours talking to their friends on phones which is also a waste of money. I see that talking to friends for hours weakens family ties. I know people who spend half of their salaries on cell phones bills while their children and their homes need this money. In addition, cell phones lead to addiction. I have a friend who suffers from chatting addiction and that`s because she spends most of her time chatting with her friends on Facebook or Yahoo messenger program. cell phones cause a  another kind of addiction which is sending messages addiction, I remember hearing, a woman in Opera Winfrey Show who sends messages even in the bathroom, and sleeps with the mobile in her hands. This woman nearly sends about three hundreds messages monthly or more. Furthermore, cell phones are very dangerous to the human body. Researchers say that cell phones send electric emancipations that cause cancer to the cells of the human body .As well as, they cause severe headache and harm our ears. Therefore, people shouldn`t sleep with their mobiles beside them, and it is better if you switch off your mobile before sleeping. To cut a long story short, cell phones` disadvatages out weigh its  advantages, I know that they become necessary in our daily schedule, but when it comes to driving it is not necessary.

How to Choose Freud Essay Topics

How to Choose Freud Essay Topics This phase is important in the growth of social and communication abilities and self-confidence. Each stage is centered on another body part or particular function. It represented a different sexual energy and was focused on certain areas of the body. The next stage is known as the stage of Latency. Who Else Wants to Learn About Freud Essay Topics? The ego's major function is to receive things done, especially in regards to satisfying the demands of the id and society. The third part is ego that is represented by somebody's conscience mind. Because of this a number of the things an individual says unintentionally are nicknamed Freudian slips. Just as it sounds, everything inside this stage is centered on the mouth. Additionally, it comes immediately he started to explore the several facets of the unconscious mind such as the `id'. The id is presently directing all its focus to getting pleasure. It is the most primitive part of our personality. It is often irrelevant to the reality because an individual may want something that is unachievable at the moment. In reality, the Superego goes past the reason and rationalism of the Ego to come up with a strategy to satisfy basic needs of someone. Ego defenses aren't necessarily unhealthy since you can see by the examples above. Thus, the idea of reason is formed. The idea of religion is regarded as an illusion. The cost of an essay is dependent upon the total amount of effort the writer has to exert. It is wise to look for the one which has a very good reputation and offers high-quality papers at very affordable rates. Sometimes is pretty challenging to write when you see only a blank page facing you. The specific paper overview centers on the essence of religion. Freud Essay Topics Explained Freud also explains, the ego ideal might be the origin of the voice reported in mental patients, which is frequently reportedly critical of the person. According to Freud, the disparity and maturation of the id, ego and the superego, determines somebody's behavior in a specific situation, which then ends in the evolution of the personality. After the ego cannot satisfy the requirements of both the ID and the superego it can get overwhelmed. The id is connected to biological needs like hunger, thirst, sex and so forth. This is because it causes an excessive amount of conflict within the person. Since birth, the presence of sexual drives can be recognized among the most significant incentives of life. Many of Freuds contributions can be discovered in crucially important problems. He further argues that for the person and the species to survive, there's a demand for keeping up a delicate balance between both libidos. T o put it differently, if there isn't any way to disprove a theory's findings, it can't be scientific, and should the observations lead you to additional insight about the topic that could be proven with specific benefits, then you are in possession of a true scientific theory. You must be proficient in the topic, have an overall idea about the chosen issue and figure out how to get the best arguments to demonstrate your thesis. As a result, the student should not skip over this theory, even when theory doesn't play a massive part in contemporary studies of personality. Therefore, many students and employees decide to acquire inexpensive essay rather than writing it themselves. Its principal job is to keep the ego in check and make certain that actions are socially acceptable. It is very important to be aware that it is among his most technical works. Thus, the experience of a person is vital for the formation of their personality. Students' prior knowledge is a significant d eterminant of what it is that they will learn. What You Should Do to Find Out About Freud Essay Topics Before You're Left Behind Additional Freud's father died four decades before the publication. When you haven't read Freud before, you would be astounded at the emphasis on only the word sex alone. Psychoanalysis for a therapy. The Key to Successful Freud Essay Topics The end result is that the personality of the individual gets infected and they cannot function properly in society. Freud sees that the unconscious, id part is the bottom portion of the iceberg, beneath the sea hidden away and we aren't always conscious of it however, it's still there. Jung believed that each and every dream ought to be taken as an immediate expression of the dreamer's unconscious, and only to be understood within this light. The super ego represents the correct and wrongs, the positive and negative of the society to every individual above their lifetime.

Creative Culture-Annotated Bibliography, Nursing Essay

Boon, R 1997 Cultural creativity: the importance of creativity in organizational and educational contexts [s.l.] : [s.n.], viewed 18 April, 2012, via eReserve The author of this article examines creative culture and societal changes that are making organizations rethink their view on creativity as well as to integrate knowledge of the creative procedure to their own frame of reference, focusing on exploring the 3 primary areas; social trends, creativity and advocacy, whilst also exhibiting deliberation for the intermingling of said themes and exhibits a clear-cut view that creativity and the creative procedure are imperative to the enrichment of the person, corporation and humanity, especially in current times. This article is†¦show more content†¦Communication is something that relates to the nursing profession because it is an imperative part of nursing without which would make nursing virtually impossible. It is something that is also important not only for nurse to communicate with other nursing staff but also with nurse to patient communication as the patient can convey their needs and or issues as well as pain. It is also a core part of the nursing process because written communication needs to be documented regarding the patients treatment, what has been done and what drugs etc have been given and when they have been given so that other medical staff such as Doctors, physiotherapists and dietitians know what treatment is occurring and also from a legal viewpoint in that if anything does happen to a patient and their records are viewed, nursing staff, if in question can look back at documented evidence and confirm what, when and why an item was given or task carried out. Martin Hoegl, Hans Georg Gemuenden (2001)Teamwork quality and the sucess of innovative projects: a theoretical concept and empirical evidence, Organization science, pp 439-449 . Hanover, MD : Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences. The authors of this article discuss the issue of teamwork quality and success in innovative projects in which the article gives the definition of whatShow MoreRelatedMga Uri Ng Pagsulat5939 Words   |  24 Pagesefficiency metrics are met. * Superlative Service - Our focus is our client’s success. Through proactive collaborative communication, our leadership ensures we understand our client’s expectations and strives to exceed them. We foster a service culture in our training, reward and recognition and performance management process so each employee takes ownership to deliver superlative service to our clients. As a result of these key competencies, our clients are pleased with our results, and this hasRead MoreMastering Graduate Studies 1e32499 Words   |  130 Pagesgrowth. It is not an exhaustive list, but it is a starting place. st Re You are no longer a student; you are starting the process of becoming a scholar. Work is no longer only about a paycheck, it is living out a purpose with passion. You are a creative professional honing the gifts and talents you have to be effective. It is not merely about being efficient and getting things done quickly. This is where professional growth becomes a part of your life. In the workforce today, you never have all

Poverty Is Not A Task Of Charity Essay - 2521 Words

INTRODUCTION â€Å"Overcoming poverty is not a task of charity; it is an act of justice. Like slavery and Apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Sometimes it falls on generation to be great. You can be that great generation. Let your greatness blossom.†-Nelson Mandela. Poverty at its worst involves hunger leading to starvation, inadequate shelter or housing and lack of clothing. Justice is the idea that all people, everywhere in the world, have the right to a life of dignity. This means a life free from poverty, violence, discrimination or human rights violations. A world where justice exists in a world where all people are included in a society and all people can claim their rights to education, shelter, and health care regardless of how poor or rich they are. Whenever we speak of poverty we must speak of injustice. But more than that, we must speak of HOPE. To give hope we must have it and if we are to build hope in others it will require something of humanity. It is found in our actions. Poverty is a state of deprivation, or a lock of the usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions. The most common measure of poverty in the U.S is the â€Å"poverty threshold† set by the U.S government. Almost half of the world over three billion people live on less than $2.50 a day. The poorest people will have less access to health, education, and other services; such as: problems ofShow MoreRelatedThe Problem of Poverty in Famine, Affluence, and Morality by Peter Singer1112 Words   |  5 Pagesincluding poverty and famines. In his â€Å"Famine, Affluence, and Morality†, Singer (1972) discusses the problem of poverty and hunger, as well as the way this problem is treated in the developed world. Singer believes that charity is inseparable from morality, and no distinction can be drawn between charity and duty. 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Forward the Foundation Chapter 16 Free Essays

6 Hari Seldon was fighting off melancholy. He was lectured in turn by Dors, by Raych, by Yugo, and by Manella. All united to tell him that sixty was not old. We will write a custom essay sample on Forward the Foundation Chapter 16 or any similar topic only for you Order Now They simply did not understand. He had been thirty when the first hint of psychohistory had come to him, thirty-two when he delivered his famous lecture at the Decennial Convention, following which everything seemed to happen to him at once. After his brief interview with Cleon, He had fled across Trantor and met Demerzel, Dors, Yugo, and Raych, to say nothing of the people of Mycogen, of Dahl, and of Wye. He was forty when he became First Minister and fifty when he had relinquished the post. Now he was sixty. He had spent thirty years on psychohistory. How many more years would he require? How many more years would he live? Would he die with the Psychohistory Project unfinished after all? It was not the dying that bothered him, he told himself. It was the matter of leaving the Psychohistory Project unfinished. He went to see Yugo Amaryl. In recent years they had somehow drifted apart, as the Psychohistory Project had steadily increased in size. In the first years at Streeling, it had merely been Seldon and Amaryl working together-no one else. Now ** Amaryl was nearly fifty-not exactly a young man-and he had somehow lost his spark. In all these years, he had developed no interest in anything but psychohistory: no woman, no companion, no hobby, no subsidiary activity. Amaryl blinked at Seldon who couldn’t help but note the changes in the man’s appearance. Part of it may have been because Yugo had had to have his eyes reconstructed. He saw perfectly well, but there was an unnatural look about them and he tended to blink slowly. It made him appear sleepy. â€Å"What do you think, Yugo?† said Seldon. â€Å"Is there any light at the end of the tunnel?† â€Å"Light? Yes, as a matter of fact,† said Amaryl. â€Å"There’s this new fellow, Tamwile Elar. You know him, of course.† â€Å"Oh yes. I’m the one who hired him. Very vigorous and aggressive. How’s he doing?† â€Å"I can’t say I’m really comfortable with him, Hari. His loud laughter gets on my nerves. But he’s brilliant. The new system of equations fits right into the Prime Radiant and they seem to make it possible to get around the problem of chaos.† â€Å"Seem? Or will?† â€Å"Too early to say, but I’m very hopeful. I have tried a number of things that would have broken them down if they were worthless and the new equations survived them all. I’m beginning to think of them as the achaotic equations!† â€Å"I don’t imagine,† said Seldon â€Å"we have anything like a rigorous demonstration concerning these equations?† â€Å"No, we don’t, though I’ve put half a dozen people on it, including Elar, of course.† Amaryl turned on his Prime Radiant-which was every bit as advanced as Seldon’s was-and he watched as the curving lines of luminous equations curled in midair-too small, too fine to be read without amplification. â€Å"Add the new equations and we may be able to begin to predict.† â€Å"Each time I study the Prime Radiant now,† said Seldon thoughtfully, â€Å"I wonder at the Electro-Clarifier and how tightly it squeezes material into the lines and curves of the future. Wasn’t that Elar’s idea, too?† â€Å"Yes. With the help of Cinda Monay, who designed it.† â€Å"It’s good to have new and brilliant men and women in the Project. Somehow it reconciles me to the future.† â€Å"You think someone like Elar may be heading the Project someday?† asked Amaryl, still studying the Prime Radiant. â€Å"Maybe. After you and I have retired-or died.† Amaryl seemed to relax and turned off the device. â€Å"I would like to complete the task before we retire or die.† â€Å"So would I, Yugo. So would I.† â€Å"Psychohistory has guided us pretty well in the last ten years.† That was true enough, but Seldon knew that one couldn’t attach too much triumph to that. Things had gone smoothly and without major surprises. Psychohistory had predicted that the center would hold after Cleon’s death-predicted it in a very dim and uncertain way-and it did hold. Trantor was reasonably quiet. Even with an assassination and the end of a dynasty, the center had held. It did so under the stress of military rule-Dors was quite right in speaking of the junta as â€Å"those military rascals.† She might have even gone farther in her accusations without being wrong. Nevertheless, they were holding the Empire together and would continue to do so for a time. Long enough, perhaps, to allow psychohistory to play an active role in the events that were to transpire. Lately Yugo had been speaking about the possible establishment of Foundations-separate, isolated, independent of the Empire itself serving as seeds for developments through the forthcoming dark ages and into a new and better Empire. Seldon himself had been working on the consequences of such an arrangement. But he lacked the time and, he felt (with a certain misery), he lacked the youth as well. His mind, however firm and steady, did not have the resiliency and creativity that it had had when he was thirty and with each passing year, he knew he would have less. Perhaps he ought to put the young and brilliant Elar on the task, taking him off everything else. Seldon had to admit to himself, shamefacedly, that the possibility did not excite him. He did not want to have invented psychohistory so that some stripling could come in and reap the final fruits of fame. In fact, to put it at its most disgraceful, Seldon felt jealous of Elar and realized it just sufficiently to feel ashamed of the emotion. Yet, regardless of his less rational feelings, he would have to depend on other younger men-whatever his discomfort over it. Psychohistory was no longer the private preserve of himself and Amaryl. The decade of his being First Minister had converted it into a large government-sanctioned and -budgeted undertaking and, quite to his surprise, after resigning from his post as First Minister and returning to Streeling University, it had grown still larger. Hari grimaced at its ponderous-and pompous-official name: the Seldon Psychohistory Project at Streeling University. But most people simply referred to it as the Project. The military junta apparently saw the Project as a possible political weapon and while that was so, funding was no problem. Credits poured in. In return, it was necessary to prepare annual reports, which, however, were quite opaque. Only fringe matters were reported on and even then the mathematics was not likely to be within the purview of any of the members of the junta. It was clear as he left his old assistant that Amaryl, at least, was more than satisfied with the way psychohistory was going and yet Seldon felt the blanket of depression settle over him once more. He decided it was the forthcoming birthday celebration that was bothering him. It was meant as a celebration of joy, but to Hari it was not even a gesture of consolation-it merely emphasized his age. Besides, it was upsetting his routine and Hari was a creature of habit. His office and a number of those adjoining had been cleared out and it had been days since he had been able to work normally. His proper offices would be converted into halls of glory, he supposed, and it would be many days before he could get back to work. Only Amaryl absolutely refused to budge and was able to maintain his office. Seldon had wondered, peevishly, who had thought of doing all this. It wasn’t Dors, of course. She knew him entirely too well. Not Amaryl or Raych, who never even remembered their own birthdays. He had suspected Manella and had even confronted her on the matter. She admitted that she was all for it and had given orders for the arrangements to take place, but she said that the idea for the birthday party had been suggested to her by Tamwile Elar. The brilliant one, thought Seldon. Brilliant in everything. He sighed. If only the birthday were all over. Dors poked her head through the door. â€Å"Am I allowed to come in?† â€Å"No, of course not. Why should you think I would?† â€Å"This is not your usual place.† â€Å"I know,† sighed Seldon. â€Å"I have been evicted from my usual place because of the stupid birthday party. How I wish it were over.† â€Å"There you are. Once that woman gets an idea in her head, it takes over and grows like the big bang.† Seldon changed sides at once. â€Å"Come. She means well, Dors.† â€Å"Save me from the well-meaning,† said Dors. â€Å"In any case, I’m here to discuss something else. Something which may be important.† â€Å"Go ahead. What is it?† â€Å"I’ve been talking to Wanda about her dream-† She hesitated. Seldon made a gargling sound in the back of his throat, then said, â€Å"I can’t believe it. Just let it go.† â€Å"No. Did you bother to ask her for the details of the dream?† â€Å"Why should I put the little girl through that?† â€Å"Neither did Raych, nor Manella. It was left up to me.† â€Å"But why should you torture her with questions about it?† â€Å"Because I had the feeling I should,† said Dors grimly. â€Å"In the first place, she didn’t have the dream when she was home in her bed.† â€Å"Where was she, then?† â€Å"In your office.† â€Å"What was she doing in my office?† â€Å"She wanted to see the place where the party would be and she walked into your office and, of course, there was nothing to see, as it’s been cleared out in preparation. But your chair was still there. The large one-tall back, tall wings, broken-down-the one you won’t let me replace.† Hari sighed, as if recalling a longstanding disagreement. â€Å"It’s not broken-down. I don’t want a new one. Go on.† â€Å"She curled up in your chair and began to brood over the fact that maybe you weren’t really going to have a party and she felt bad. Then, she tells me, she must have fallen asleep because nothing is clear in her mind, except that in her dream there were two men-not women, she was sure about that-two men, talking.† â€Å"And what were they talking about?† â€Å"She doesn’t know exactly. You know how difficult it is to remember details under such circumstances. But she says it was about dying and she thought it was you because you were so old. And she remembers two words clearly. They were ‘lemonade death.'† â€Å"What?† â€Å"Lemonade death.† â€Å"What does that mean?† â€Å"I don’t know. In any case, the talking ceased, the men left, and there she was in the chair, cold and frightened-and she’s been upset about it ever since.† Seldon mulled over Dors’s report. Then he said, â€Å"Look, dear, what importance can we attach to a child’s dream?† â€Å"We can ask ourselves first, Hari, if it even was a dream.† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"Wanda doesn’t say outright it was. She says she ‘must have fallen asleep.’ Those are her words. She didn’t say she fell asleep, she said she must have fallen asleep.† â€Å"What do you deduce from that?† â€Å"She may have drifted off into a half-doze and, in that state, heard two men-two real men, not two dream men-talking.† â€Å"Real men? Talking about killing me with lemonade death?† â€Å"Something like that, yes.† â€Å"Dors,† said Seldon forcefully, â€Å"I know that you’re forever foreseeing danger for me, but this is going too far. Why should anyone want to kill me?† â€Å"It’s been tried twice before.† â€Å"So it has, but consider the circumstances. The first attempt came shortly after Cleon appointed me First Minister. Naturally this was an offense to the well-established court hierarchy and I was very resented. A few thought they might settle matters by getting rid of me. The second time was when the Joranumites were trying to seize power and they thought I was standing in their way-plus Namarti’s distorted dream of revenge. â€Å"Fortunately neither assassination attempt succeeded, but why should there now be a third? I am no longer First Minister and haven’t been for ten years. I am an aging mathematician in retirement and surely no one has anything to fear from me. The Joranumites have been rooted out and destroyed and Namarti was executed long ago. There is absolutely no motivation for anyone to want to kill me. â€Å"So please, Dors, relax. When you’re nervous about me, you get unsettled, which makes you more nervous still, and I don’t want that to happen.† Dors rose from her seat and leaned across Hari’s desk. â€Å"It’s easy for you to say that there is no motive to kill you, but none is needed. Our government is now a completely irresponsible one and if they wish-â€Å" â€Å"Stop!† commanded Seldon loudly. Then, very quietly, â€Å"Not a word, Dors. Not a word against the government. That could get us in the very trouble you’re foreseeing.† â€Å"I’m only talking to you, Hari.† â€Å"Right now you are, but if you get into the habit of saying foolish things, you don’t know when something will slip out in someone else’s presence-someone who will then be glad to report you. Just learn, as a matter of necessity, to refrain from political commentary.† â€Å"I’ll try, Hari,† said Dors, but she could not keep the indignation out of her voice. She turned on her heel and left. Seldon watched her go. Dors had aged gracefully, so gracefully that at times she seemed not to have aged at all. Though she was two years younger than Seldon, her appearance had not changed nearly as much as his had in the twenty-eight years they had been together. Naturally. Her hair was frosted with gray, but the youthful luster beneath the gray still shone through. Her complexion had grown more sallow; her voice was a bit huskier, and, of course, she wore clothes that were suitable for middle age. However, her movements were as agile and as quick as ever. It was as if nothing could be allowed to interfere with her ability to protect Hari in case of an emergency. Hari sighed. This business of being protected-more or less against his will, at all times-was sometimes a heavy burden. 8 Manella came to see Seldon almost immediately afterward. â€Å"Pardon me, Hari, but what has Dors been saying?† Seldon looked up again. Nothing but interruptions. â€Å"It wasn’t anything important. Wanda’s dream.† Manella’s lips pursed. â€Å"I knew it. Wanda said Dors was asking her questions about it. Why doesn’t she leave the girl alone? You would think that having a bad dream was some sort of felony.† â€Å"As a matter of fact,† said Seldon soothingly, â€Å"it’s just a matter of something Wanda remembered as part of the dream. I don’t know if Wanda told you, but apparently in her dream she heard something about ‘lemonade death.’ â€Å" â€Å"Hmm!† Manella was silent for a moment. Then she said, â€Å"That doesn’t really matter so much. Wanda is crazy about lemonade and she’s expecting lots of it at the party. I promised she’d have some with Mycogenian drops in it and she’s looking forward to it.† â€Å"So that if she heard something that sounded anything like lemonade, it would be translated into lemonade in her mind.† â€Å"Yes. Why not?† â€Å"Except that, in that case, what do you suppose it was that was actually said? She must have heard something in order to misinterpret it.† â€Å"I don’t think that’s necessarily so. But why are we attaching so much importance to a little girl’s dream? Please, I don’t want anyone talking to her about it anymore. It’s too upsetting.† â€Å"I agree. I’ll see to it that Dors drops the subject-at least with Wanda.† â€Å"All right. I don’t care if she is Wanda’s grandmother, Hari. I’m her mother, after all, and my wishes come first.† â€Å"Absolutely,† said Seldon soothingly and looked after Manella as she left. That was another burden-the unending competition between those two women. 9 Tamwile Elar was thirty-six years old and had joined Seldon’s Psychohistory Project as Senior Mathematician four years earlier. He was a tall man, with a habitual twinkle in his eye and with more than a touch of self-assurance as well. His hair was brown and had a loose wave in it, the more noticeable because he wore it rather long. He had an abrupt way of laughing, but there was no fault to be found with his mathematical ability. Elar had been recruited from the West Mandanov University and Seldon always had to smile when he remembered how suspicious Yugo Amaryl had been of him at first. But then, Amaryl was suspicious of everyone. Deep in his heart (Seldon felt sure), Amaryl felt that psychohistory ought to have remained his and Hari’s private province. But even Amaryl was now willing to admit that Elar’s membership in the group had eased his own situation tremendously. Yugo said, â€Å"His techniques for avoiding chaos are unique and fascinating. No one else in the Project could have worked it out the way he did. Certainly nothing of this sort ever occurred to me. It didn’t occur to you, either, Hari.† â€Å"Well,† said Seldon grumpily, â€Å"I’m getting old.† â€Å"If only,† said Amaryl, â€Å"he didn’t laugh so loud.† â€Å"People can’t help the way they laugh.† Yet the truth was that Seldon found himself having a little trouble accepting Elar. It was rather humiliating that he himself had come nowhere near the â€Å"achaotic equations,† as they were now called. It didn’t bother Seldon that he had never thought of the principle behind the Electro-Clarifier-that was not really his field. The achaotic equations, however, he should, indeed, have thought of-or at least gotten close to. He tried reasoning with himself. Seldon had worked out the entire basis for psychohistory and the achaotic equations grew naturally out of that basis. Could Elar have done Seldon’s work three decades earlier? Seldon was convinced that Elar couldn’t have. And was it so remarkable that Elar had thought up the principle of achaotism once the basis was in place? All this was very sensible and very true, yet Seldon still found himself uneasy when facing Elar. Just slightly edgy. Weary age facing flamboyant youth. Yet Elar never gave him obvious cause for feeling the difference in years. He never failed to show Seldon full respect or in any way to imply that the older man had passed his prime. Of course, Elar was interested in the forthcoming festivities and had even, as Seldon had discovered, been the first to suggest that Seldon’s birthday be celebrated. (Was this a nasty emphasis on Seldon’s age? Seldon dismissed the possibility. If he believed that, it would mean he was picking up some of Dors’s tricks of suspicion. Elar strode toward him and said, â€Å"Maestro-† And Seldon winced, as always. He much preferred to have the senior members of the Project call him Hari, but it seemed such a small point to make a fuss over. â€Å"Maestro,† said Elar. â€Å"The word is out that you’ve been called in for a conference with General Tennar.† â€Å"Yes. He’s the new head of the military junta and I suppose he wants to see me to ask what psychohistory is all about. They’ve been asking me that since the days of Cleon and Demerzel.† (The new head! The junta was like a kaleidoscope, with some of its members periodically falling from grace and others rising from nowhere.) â€Å"But it’s my understanding he wants it now-right in the middle of the birthday celebration.† â€Å"That doesn’t matter. You can all celebrate without me.† â€Å"No, we can’t, Maestro. I hope you don’t mind, but some of us got together and put in a call to the Palace and put the appointment off for a week.† â€Å"What?† said Seldon annoyed. â€Å"Surely that was presumptuous of you-and risky, besides.† â€Å"It worked out well. They’ve put it off and you’ll need that time.† â€Å"Why would I need a week?† Elar hesitated. â€Å"May I speak frankly, Maestro?† â€Å"Of course you can. When have I ever asked that anyone speak to me m any way but frankly?† Elar flushed slightly, his fair skin reddening, but his voice remained steady. â€Å"It’s not easy to say this, Maestro. You’re a genius at mathematics. No one on the Project has any doubt of that. No one in the Empire-they knew you and understood mathematics-would have any doubt about it. However, it is not given to anybody to be a universal genius.† â€Å"I know that as well as you do, Elar.† â€Å"I know you do. Specifically, though, you lack the ability to handle ordinary people-shall we say, stupid people. You lack a certain deviousness, a certain ability to sidestep, and if you are dealing with someone who is both powerful in government and somewhat stupid, you can easily endanger the Project and, for that matter, your own life, simply because you are too frank.† â€Å"What is this? Am I suddenly a child? I’ve been dealing with politicians for a long time. I was First Minister for ten years, as perhaps you may remember.† â€Å"Forgive me, Maestro, but you were not an extraordinarily effective one. You dealt with First Minister Demerzel, who was very intelligent, by all accounts, and with the Emperor Cleon, who was very friendly. Now you will encounter military people who are neither intelligent nor friendly-another matter entirely.† â€Å"I’ve even dealt with military people and survived.† â€Å"Not with General Dugal Tennar. He’s another sort of thing altogether. I know him.† â€Å"You know him? You have met him?† â€Å"I don’t know him personally, but he’s from Mandanov, which, as you know, is my sector, and he was a power there before he joined the junta and rose through its ranks.† â€Å"And what do you know about him?† â€Å"Ignorant, superstitious, violent. He is not someone you can handle easily-or safely. You can use the week to work out methods for dealing with him.† Seldon bit his lower lip. There was something to what Elar said and Seldon recognized the fact that, while he had plans of his own, it would still be difficult to try to manipulate a stupid, self-important, short-tempered person with overwhelming force at his disposal. He said uneasily, â€Å"I’ll manage somehow. The whole matter of a military junta is, in any case, an unstable situation in the Trantor of today. It has already lasted longer than might have seemed likely.† â€Å"Have we been testing that? I was not aware that we were making stability decisions on the junta.† â€Å"Just a few calculations by Amaryl, making use of your achaotic equations.† He paused. â€Å"By the way, I’ve come across some references to them as the Elar Equations.† â€Å"Not by me, Maestro.† â€Å"I hope you don’t mind, but I don’t want that. Psychohistoric elements are to be described functionally and not personally. As soon as personalities intervene, bad feelings arise.† â€Å"I understand and quite agree, Maestro.† â€Å"In fact,† said Seldon with a touch of guilt, â€Å"I have always felt it wrong that we speak of the basic Seldon Equations of Psychohistory. The trouble is that’s been in use for so many years, it’s not practical to try to change it.† â€Å"If you’ll excuse my saying so, Maestro, you’re an exceptional case. No one, I think, would quarrel with your receiving full credit for inventing the science of psychohistory. But, if I may, I wish to get back to your meeting with General Tennar.† â€Å"Well, what else is there to say?† â€Å"I can’t help but wonder if it might be better if you did not see him, did not speak to him, did not deal with him.† â€Å"How am I to avoid that if he calls me in for a conference?† â€Å"Perhaps you can plead illness and send someone in your place.† â€Å"Whom?† Elar was silent for a moment, but his silence was eloquent. Seldon said, â€Å"You, I take it.† â€Å"Might that not be the thing to do? I am a fellow sectoral citizen of the General, which may carry some weight. You are a busy man, getting on in years, and it would be easy to believe that you are not entirely well. And if I see him, rather than yourself-please excuse me, Maestro-I can wiggle and maneuver more easily than you can.† â€Å"Lie, you mean.† â€Å"If necessary.† â€Å"You’ll be taking a huge chance.† â€Å"Not too huge. I doubt that he will order my execution. If he becomes annoyed with me, as he well might, then I can plead-or you can plead on my behalf-youth and inexperience. In any case, if I get into trouble, that will be far less dangerous than if you were to do so. I’m thinking of the Project, which can do without me a great deal more easily than it can without you.† Seldon said with a frown, â€Å"I’m not going to hide behind you, Elar. If the man wants to see me, he will see me. I refuse to shiver and shake and ask you to take chances for me. What do you think I am?† â€Å"A frank and honest man-when the need is for a devious one.† â€Å"I will manage to be devious-if I must. Please don’t underestimate me, Elar.† Elar shrugged hopelessly. â€Å"Very well. I can only argue with you up to a certain point.† â€Å"In fact, Elar, I wish you had not postponed the meeting. I would rather skip my birthday and see the General than the reverse. This birthday celebration was not my idea.† His voice died away in a grumble. Elar said, â€Å"I’m sorry.† â€Å"Well,† said Seldon with resignation, â€Å"we’ll see what happens.† He turned and left. Sometimes he wished ardently that he could run what was called a â€Å"tight ship,† making sure that everything went as he wished it to, leaving little or no room for maneuvering among his subordinates. To do that, however, would take enormous time, enormous effort, would deprive him of any chance of working on psychohistory himself-and, besides, he simply lacked the temperament for it. He sighed. He would have to speak to Amaryl. How to cite Forward the Foundation Chapter 16, Essay examples