Ernest Rutherford :: Nuclear Physics Science Chemistry Essays

Ernest Rutherford Ernest Rutherford is considered the father of nuclear physics. Indeed, it could be said that Rutherford invented the very language to describe the theoretical concepts of the atom and the phenomenon of radioactivity. Particles named and characterized by him include the alpha particle, beta particle and proton. Even the neutron, discovered by James Chadwick, owes its name to Rutherford. The exponential equation used to calculate the decay of radioactive substances was first employed for that purpose by Rutherford and he was the first to elucidate the related concepts of the half-life and decay constant. With Frederick Soddy at McGill University, Rutherford showed that elements such as uranium and thorium became different elements (i.e., transmuted) through the process of radioactive decay. At the time, such an incredible idea was not to be mentioned in polite company: it belonged to the realm of alchemy, not science. For this work, Rutherford won the 1908 Nobel Prize in chemistry. In 1909, now at the University of Manchester, Rutherford was bombarding a thin gold foil with alpha particles when he noticed that although almost all of them went through the gold, one in eight thousand would "bounce" (i.e., scatter) back. The amazed Rutherford commented that it was "as if you fired a 15-inch naval shell at a piece of tissue paper and the shell came right back and hit you." From this simple observation, Rutherford concluded that the atom's mass must be concentrated in a small positively-charged nucleus while the electrons inhabit the farthest reaches of the atom. Although this planetary model of the atom has been greatly refined over the years, it remains as valid today as when it was originally formulated by Rutherford. In 1919, Rutherford returned to Cambridge to become director of the Cavendish laboratory where he had previously done his graduate work under J.

Everybody Constructs Their Own Reality Essay

Each person has their own perception of reality, that doesn’t always represent what the world really is. Our reality is a blend of attitudes, perceptions and influences from our environment, which is controlled by ourselves. In Tennessee Williams’s play, ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’, all characters create their own reality, through their views on their experiences. It is made very clear that each character has a different reality from one another, emphasizing the fact that everyone constructs their own reality. Stanley Kowalski is a very dominating character in the play. In his reality, he is very powerful, which is evident through his passion for fighting, working and sex. Stanley is not one who can be questioned. He gets what he wants, when he wants it, whether it’s from his mates, or his wife Stella. At the beginning of the play, Stanley is very honest with how he feels to the people he is surrounded by, however, when Blanche enters his family home, Stanley’s honesty becomes deceitful. We see him ruin Blanches relationship with Mitch, and Stella, as well as send her away. When Stanley rapes Blanche and lies to Stella about it, it is evident that his reality, is not what we as an audience can see. He is not loyal and honest, he is cruel and shady. At the beginning of the play, Blanche is already seen as a damsel in distress. She has lost her young husband to suicide in earlier years, lost her family fortune and estate, and become a heavy drinker, despite the fact that she attempts to cover that up. It is evident that Blanche is very insecure about her looks, as well as a fragile individual. It is often that Blanche hides herself from an uncovered bulb, in order to hide particular features she is not fond of. Blanche relies on male sexual admiration for a sense of self esteem. When she meets Mitch, Blanche sees an opportunity to escape poverty and her bad reputation. She constructs a new identity for herself, to become more appealing to Mitch. Unfortunately, Mitch is not her prince charming, and Stanley once again, ruins a relationship in Blanches life. He sees through her lies, and makes sure that his mate does not get caught up in them. When Stanley rapes Blanche, she becomes very lost within herself, which the other characters in the play, are unaware of. Stella isn’t feisty like Blanche and Stanley. Her reality is nothing but the one Staley and Blanche have given her. Unfortunately, these two realities are different, tearing her between sister and husband. When Blanche tells Stella that Stanley raped her, Stella choses to believe Stanley, because that is the practical choice out of the two. It is very clear that she is in love with the man Stanley is, when she pleases him. Stella is tolerant of Stanley’s ‘animal-like’ behavior, evident in the scenes where Stanley begins a brawl with his mates and loses his temper quickly. Stella chooses to believe Stanley’s reality over blanches, and therefore sends Blanche, and reality, away to the asylum. From the first time we are introduced to Mitch, we immediately see that he is more sensitive than Stanley and the rest of the men. He is a lot more mature, possibly due to him attending the constant needs of his sick mother. When Mitch meets Blanche, he sees an opportunity to love again. He wants to play prince charming for her, which he does, through kind gestures such as bringing flowers and Bowing like a gentlemen. While he does this however, Stanley brings to attention the fact that Mitch is not being his true self. When Stanley tells Mitch about Blanches false identity, he is heartbroken. In the end, he takes reality over fantasy, and let’s Blanche go. In A Streetcar Names Desire, all characters have a different reality to one another. They build these realities through their views on experiences and influences from their surroundings. The book is an excellent reflection of our world. Everyone constructs their own reality, and choses how they look at the world.

The Effects Of Climate Change On The World - 1609 Words

With climate change being upon us, the time to act is now. Evidence of drastic climate changes include the following: record low polar ice caps during the summer of 2012, record drought in California, excessive flooding in the eastern half of Texas and record heat in India. This is all evidence of what our â€Å"normal† climate will be like in the future. If we don’t act right now, we will live in a world where cities along the coast like Miami, New York and New Orleans will be partially underwater. Record breaking heatwaves like the Chicago Heatwave of 1995 and the European Heatwave during the summer of 2003 will become a normal occurrence. Furthermore, polar bears will become extinct, since there will be little to no ice in the arctic during the next few years and decades. Therefore, we must be cautious of the actions that we take right now, since the future of our planet is heavily dependent on it. Increased burning of fossil fuels and rising greenhouse gases have bo th boosted the rate of climate change to unprecedented lengths that we have never seen before. If we don’t reduce greenhouse gases, we will live in a world that is â€Å"anywhere from 1.8C (3.24F) warmer (low emissions scenario) to 4C (7.2F) warmer (high emissions scenario) by 2050.† (Freeman Guzman 1545) Either way, coastal regions will have to cope with rising sea levels, receding coastlines and flooding that could endanger the lives of many. Considering this, the big question is â€Å"how has the U.S. engaged with theShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Climate Change On The World856 Words   |  4 Pagessustainable place for future generations? Climate change is happening weather we like it or not, what are we going to do? Mahtma Ghandi once said â€Å" you need to be the change you wish to see in the world†. Climate change is causing unbelievably high levels of carbon dioxide , the global economy is estimated to drop by 23 percent by 2100. Our glaciers are me lting at an unbelievable pace, Zacharie Isstrom is melting at a pace of 5 billion tons per year. Climate change has been changing for over 650’000Read MoreThe Effects Of Climate Change On The World816 Words   |  4 PagesClimate change is one of the most crucial issues in the twentieth century. There is much evidence to show fluctuations in weather occurring on the earth. Scientists found that the period of global warming is occurring more frequently than the previous time and rapidly increasing temperature globally. The statistic records on the nineteenth century, calculated that the surface of earth throughout the 100 years ago that had average increase of approximately 0.8C. However, during the period thirteenRead MoreThe Effects Of Climate Change On The World Essay1271 Words   |  6 Pagesare being funded to research the effects of climate change. Why, some may ask. Not only does climate change affect the world around you, it affects you directly. Whether it be through air, land, or sea, the human population is not overlooked by nature. Every single person on thi s planet is faced with climate change symptoms on a regular basis. The focus of this paper however will be solely on how the climate change is changing weather patterns and natural climates to create more frequent, large tropicalRead MoreThe Effects Of Climate Change On The World Essay1981 Words   |  8 PagesAll that needs to be done for a person to see that climate change is upon the world is to look outside. The seasons that used to be defined by their drastically different weather have started to blend into a year-long battle for hot and cold, along with unusual rainfall during typically dry spells. Climate change is the change in global or regional climate patterns. Global warming is the idea that the world is being heated by a few degrees every year brought on by an increase in carbon dioxide levelsRead MoreClimate Change And Its Effects On The World1761 Words   |  8 PagesClimate change is one of the defining environmental concerns facing our globe today. Certain scienti fic reports have shown that industrialization and deforestation spurted climatic change and triggered the melting of ice glaciers around the Arctic Ocean at a rapid rate. In 2012, the area of ice covering the Arctic Ocean was estimated to be diminished by half; the condition that was not experienced over the last 30 years. 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The aim of this essay is to discuss the main law that linked to this problem and also some legal aspects of three famous cases and their resultsRead MoreGlobal Climate Change Causes And Effects On The Environment And The World s Oceans916 Words   |  4 Pagesabout global climate change? Do you think we create this problem in the twentieth-first century to damage our planet. This problem started at the beginning of civilization and became worse during the Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth century. Older generations generated more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere due to the burning of fossil fuel and deforestation. More carbon dioxide had a negative impact on the ecosystems of the planet. And the scientific definition of global climate representsRead More Essay on Global Warming: The Effects of Climate Change1410 Words   |  6 PagesClimate change is a long-term alteration in the statistical distribution of weather pattern over per iods ranging from decades to millions of years. The world is currently experiencing drastic change in temperature. This change can be felt in the tropical climate areas where the weather is getting hotter and hotter every day. The change in global temperatures and precipitation over time is due to natural variability or to human activity. It is also caused by accumulation of greenhouse effects (Arrhenius