The Swimmer Essay Example

The Swimmer Paper Name: Course: Lecturer: Date: We will write a custom essay sample on The Swimmer specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Swimmer specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Swimmer specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The Swimmer Very often people have dreams and desires concerning their lives. Most people envision how they will have a good job and raise a family. Some people manage to do this, and they end up living their fantasy. Others are not as fortunate, and they have to contend with whatever comes their way. As people go through the motions of life, they are carried away with all that is happening and they begin losing focus on the most valuable things to them. They neglect their partners, parents, or children, but they only realize the consequences of what they have done when it is too late for them to make any amends. Such is the story of Ned Merrill, in John Cheever’s story â€Å"The Swimmer†. Merrill has a wonderful life in the beginning of his marriage. However, as time passes, he encounters problems but he chooses to ignore them, realizing too late that he has no family left since his wife and daughters have abandoned him. Merrill does not realize the changing circumstances in his l ife as he is busy living the ideal life, and he chooses to downplay and ignore problems whenever he encounters them. Merrill is a typical American man living in the suburbs. He enjoys the company of his neighbors and friends, who often invite him to their parties. He enjoys mingling with people, who seem to have adopted a drinking culture. In the beginning, he drinks in almost every home he visits. However, things begin to change for him as he realizes that he no longer has the youthfulness and energy that he used to enjoy. Neighbors no longer welcome him to their homes, and there is much discussion among different people concerning his financial problems. Merrill does not understand what his neighbors are saying about him. He chooses to ignore the negative signs coming to him, including the storm that he encounters. This illustrates Merrill’s personality in refusing to deal with the problems as they happen. He refuses to see things as they are, and he instead chooses to live in his fantasy world, where he will not encounter any problems Cheever uses symbolism in the story to explain the passage of time in Merrill’s life, and the changing situation in his personal and family life. The story begins in the midsummer. People are enjoying going to parties, drinking and having fun. This represents the happy moments in Merrill’s life and marriage. There are seemingly no problems in the summer, and this shows the lack of problems in Merrill’s life. The mention of his youthful stature in the beginning is symbolic. Just like youth does not last long, neither does his happy married life, for it ends soon enough for him. The autumn begins right in the middle of summer, and Merrill cannot understand this. This shows the beginning of the fall in Merrill’s marriage. The new fall season is not a pleasant one for Merrill. It is an illustration of the problems that begin to appear in his life. However, just as he ignores the changing seasons, he ignores the changing situation in his life. Merrill begins fe eling old, and he loses his energy. This symbolizes the changed nature of his life and especially his marriage, both of which have become lackluster and lifeless Merrill chooses to ignore his problems rather than deal with them. This is symbolized in the presence of the storm in mid summer. After the storm passes, Merrill chooses to continue swimming in his neighbor’s swimming pool. He does not seem to realize any consequences of the storm. This symbolizes his lack of commitment towards dealing with the problems he is facing in his life. He has financial and marital problems, but he chooses to ignore them. He is concerned about his forgetful nature, wondering if his memory was failing or he had â€Å"disciplined it in the repression of unpleasant facts that he had damaged his sense of truth†. However, despite this thought, he does not explore it further, rather choosing to avoid facing the unpleasant truths that had happened to him. He seems oblivious of his life situations, and he cannot understand the misfortunes that the Hallorans are talking about. â€Å"My misfortunes?†¦I don’t know what you mean.† Merrill’s story is not an exception in his county. The author begins by showing how the people live in affluence. They can afford to have swimming pools in their homes, tennis courts, hold parties, and some even have horses on their property. Merrill was a wealthy man, belonging to the upper class in the society. He chose whoever he would socialize with, and he and his wife did not attend all the parties or dinners that they were invited to, unless the person inviting them was of the same social class. Because of this, they had declined to honor the endless invitations by the Biswangers because the Biswangers invited every person to their parties irrespective of their profession. His fortunes change, and Grace Biswanger describes how he â€Å"went for broke overnight-nothing but income.† As he swims in different pools, he begins noticing several changes that are telltale signs of his neighbor’s financial situation. Merrill notices that the riding ring in one of t he neighbor’s house was â€Å"overgrown with grass and all the jumps dismantled† and there were no horses. In one house, the swimming pool was drained. The Welcher’s home, much like Merrill’s home, is abandoned, and there is a sale post on it. Merrill is a man living in a fantasy and chasing a dream. He does not seem to realize what has happened to his life. He does not remember any changes that occur in his life. He has a happy beginning and he initially enjoys his life, but this does not last for long. He makes decisions that do not favor him, but which end up messing his marriage and his family. He swims through life, failing to deal with the consequences of his actions.

Energy and Life Essays - Photosynthesis, Chloroplast, Thylakoid

Energy and Life Essays - Photosynthesis, Chloroplast, Thylakoid Energy and Life Plants and some other type of organisms are able to use light energy from the sun to produce food. Organisms such as plants, which make their own food, are called autotrophs. Other organisms, such as animals, cannot use the suns energy directly, these are known as heterotrophs. They obtain energy from the foods they consume. One of the principal chemical compounds that living things use to store energy is adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The energy released when ATP is released when ATP is converted into ADP and a phosphate group. The characteristics of ATP make it an exceptionally useful molecule that is used by all types of cells as their basic energy source. ATP also powers movement within the cell. Cell organelles are moved long microtubules by motor proteins that use the energy of ATP to generate force. A single molecule if the sugar glucose stores more than 90 times the chemical energy of a molecule of ATP. In the process of photosynthesis, plants use the energy of sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy carbohydrates sugars and starches. In the 1600s, the Belgian physician Jan van Helmont devised an experiment to find out if plants grew by taking material out of the soil. Many scientists have contributed to understanding how plants carry out photosynthesis. Early research focused on the overall process. Later researchers investigated the detailed chemical pathways. The experiments performed by van Helmont, Priestley, Ingenhouz, and other scientists reveal that in the presence of light, plants transform carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates and release oxygen. Photosynthesis is a series of reactions that uses energy from the sun to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugars and oxygen. Photosynthesis takes place in a plant organelle called the chloroplast. Photosynthesis uses the energy of sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy sugars. Plants then use the sugars to produce complex carbohydrates such as starches. Plants obtain carbon dioxide from the air or water in which they grow. In addition to water and carbon dioxide, photosynthesis requires light and chlorophyll, a molecule in charge of chloroplasts. Plants gather the suns energy with light absorbing molecules called pigments. The plants principal pigment is chlorophyll. In plants and other photosynthetic eukaryotes, photosynthesis takes place inside chloroplasts. The chloroplasts contain saclike photosynthetic membranes called thylakoids. Thylakoids are arranged in stacks known as grana. Thylakoids contain clusters of chlorophyll and other pigments and protein known as photosystems that are able to capture the energy of sunlight. The stroma is the region outside the thylakoid membranes. Light Dependent Reactions: Take place in the thylakoids, and takes water, and uses the suns energy to make ATP and NADPH. Also gives off oxygen. NADPH: Carries high energy electrons. NADP^+ + H NADPH. Light Independent Uses ATP and NADPH to turn carbon dioxide into glucose.

Site Survey and Final Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Site Survey and Final Project - Assignment Example The security systems inside the building are very high as the Humana Corporation has established its unit inside. All visitors don’t have to register for going inside the building but there are tight security systems inside. The Humana building is one of the distinguishable buildings in Kentucky as it has an ultramodern making of both interiors and the outer parts which makes it a distinct skyscraper from others. Every time all the visitors though are not escorted but the high profile people of the Corporation are escorted inside. Special guests are sometimes given importance and the corporation further specifies the things to be done. The employees of the corporation are issued some type of distinctive batches such that they can be recognized easily. Many people always wonder about the making of the building as it has a very attractive making strategy. There are strict instructions to the employees to wear the badges so that the company maintains its reputation. The building has the designing different from all the sides which makes it a very unique piece among other skyscrapers. There is a fence outside the building which strengthens its security. It can be termed as one of the buildings where security is given utmost importance. The fences have the system of lightings and the lighting process is used to make the building look more charming. There is no sufficient illumination to detect a person who may be going at farther distances but at shorter distances it can be possible. There is good lightening system at all the floors of the building which is a very good feature. The power supply system is very fine and especially the light power systems are being protected more so that there arises more problems. Alarms are provided which are very essential for the emergency purposes especially when there is fire in the buildings. The fire and police departments are always consulted so that they can extend more help to the corporation in case of need. The conn ections of all the fire alarms and the security systems and the lightings are always tested so that there are no problems around. The Humana building has other connections to the security systems so that whenever there is an emergency situation, the security systems get tightened and the data get more secured in the system. The CCTV cameras are there so that there is full control of the security officials over the system. They monitor the whole place continuously and provide surveillance. They also create some emergency points for exit and other plans which can be implemented during the emergency situations. They make all arrangements for the people so that they don’t face any type of difficulty in such situations. The building is also built in such a way that there is strong support which supports the building from small disasters. Some people may also do something intentional and that can also be handled. Facility characterization Physical conditions: The building is very a ttractive when it is viewed from some distant point. It is very unique in design as each side is made up of a different niche. You will notice that every side will depict great art and architecture in the architectural field. The design is like you will notice a pyramid like structure for higher parts of the building. The Humana building is also known as the milk carton and is very well known among the people for