Technology In Cinema And Film Making Media Essay

Technology In Cinema And Film Making Media Essay I think that modern technology has changed modern film making for the better. In the last few years, using the latest technologies has been paramount in the film making process. This has caused films to evolve over the years with each progressing idea, technology, and technique, allowing filmmakers to bring their vision to life more accurately and more convincingly to the big screen. Without these advances in video capture and computing many films such as Star Trek'(JJ Abrams, 2009) would not have been as successful. Film production has also become very fast to meet the growing demand for movies as the channel for distribution increase and audiences broaden. The development of technology has affected an extremely wide array of areas concerning film, including the production process, the way films are viewed, how the films are distributed, and even how they are promoted. These new innovations are advancing so quickly now that the traditional cinema-going experience may find itself hav ing to compete with online streaming of filmed entertainment. 2. The facts and opinions Digital media is in-expensive and can be edited quickly and easily. Large Volumes of raw video are handled in a few days with sometimes only one person working on it, this is comparable to the older methods with film that took several weeks to process with teams going through each reel of film. The first practical cinema device was made by two French brothers Louis and Auguste Lumiere, they called it the cinematograph. In 1894 the device and others like it began to be used in public buildings or halls (dubbed ‘nickelodeans because it cost a nickel to watch the short animation). Through various advancements throughout the following years the recording and replaying methods became more powerful and much simpler. One of these advancements led to colour pictures and was used to obliterate mono-chrome movies for a short while. Films like ‘Schindlers List Steven Spielberg 1993 and ‘Clerks Kevin Smith 1994 show that monochrome can help make an atmosphere that colour cant. An example of a movie with very little technology would be â€Å"No Country for Old Men† which relied on the atmosphere made by good acting and filming. It is argued that the lack of technology used in the making of the film and even in the setting, which was the early eighties, made for a more dramatic effect. But to contest that is the fact that the film was following the original novel by Cormic McCarthy, and that dramatic effect was made by very good acting, directing, back music and producing. Computer Generated imagery has changed the way movie makers imagine and visualise the movie because they are not as restricted as they were 20 years ago. Some ‘get arounds had to be made then due to lack of funds or until a technological solution was developed. The more simple ‘tricks included stopping the camera but keeping it in position as an actor moved off set before continuing to give the effect that a character had suddenly vanished. Another trick would involve an artist painting some matching scenery around a sheet of glass and letting the camera film through that so it made the surrounding area look larger than it actually was. Original animations were very tedious and labour intensive. To make the drawings ‘move the cartoonist normally had to produce twenty-five to twenty-six drawings for every second of screen time. This resulted in ten-minute cartoon needing fourteen thousand, four hundred different drawings. ‘Gertie the Dinosaur by Winsor McCay in 1909 was the first one of its kind. It was seven minutes long and needed ten thousand drawings. Titan AE, this is an animated movie enhanced by computer to give a hybrid. This was a great success and is known for stunning visuals and brilliant voice acting. Normally an animated movie is screened at around twenty five frames per second which means that even the smallest movement on screen would require about sixty drawings. With the computer this be dramatically reduced and enhanced graphically. Another movie â€Å"Monsters Inc. â€Å" is completely computer generated. This gives the movie a cartoonish look and the class of a live film were the actions and motions are more fluid. CGI allows directors to create an atmosphere that they would not be able to achieve with models or visual â€Å"trickery†. George Lucas explains in â€Å"Star Wars A New Hope Remastered DVD† In the scene where Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi are speeding across the Desert in the â€Å"Speeder†(Hover Car), The production team originally put Vaseline on the camera lens in the area that the cars wheels would be. This of course left two black smudges under the car. Due to other problems and limitations Lucas had problem realising his vision for the movie. He created his own digital effects house (Industrial Light and Magic and sound companies ‘THX and ‘Skywalker sound because the things he wanted simply didnt exist. New techniques were thought up and tested. Although the film was highly successful, Lucas still was not happy and later remastered the film with more advanced graphics and sounds. With the improvements they added larger backgrounds to once disappointing sets and add extra characters. A cut scene was added because they could now add in a CG (computer generated) alien character that at the time didnt even have a puppet stand-in. Without the help of these special effects the film would not have done justice to Lucas original vision for the movie. For ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Peter Jackson, 2001) and ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Peter Jackson, 2002) programmer Stephen Regelous created ‘Massive a special-effects program that allowed thousands of unique CG characters to have a mind of their own when thrown into combat for the battle scenes. â€Å"Gathering seventy-thousand or so tall, broad-shouldered extras, dressing them in elaborate armor and having them slaughtering each other was out of the question. â€Å"Digital technology is a thing, a medium that makes film flourish as it never has before.† George Lucas Because of CGI, realistic Dinosaurs were seen in ‘Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1993) and animals have charged down through a city street in ‘Jumanji (Joe Johnston, 1995). â€Å"The future of cinema lies in the power of the pixel. The injection of fresh ideas and methodologies will only serve to mix up the metaphorical gene pool and empower a new generation of filmmakers.† Roger Corman Both these movies have done very well in cinema through VHS and DVD sales. Examples of films that have been let down by special effects would be ‘Killer Flood'(Doug Campbell, 2003) and Deep Blue Sea(Renny Harlin, 1999) which did alright in viewings and even had very good acting and scripting but was let down by a few moments were the audience should have been amazed by the imagery but instead was disappointed by the poorly made imagery of the sharks. Movies have also been influenced by Computer Games and some of the rendering techniques from games have been applied to the movie making process. One such method has a group of people wearing Skin tight clothing fitted with sensors on all the locations were movement is most noticeable and at joints. A computer then gathers the information to make a model on screen with the same movements of the person wearing the sensors. Computer generated imagery has also helped reduce the cost of movie making. Large effects that normally cost thousands to make can be done with a decent computer and some editing software. Because of the need of pre-processing is no longer required with digital video, clips can now be viewed on site instantly and mistakes can be found and changed or fixed unlike traditional 35mm film where errors would not be found for weeks until all the film had been processed. With cost effective production, more and more movies can be made and newer previously unknown directors appear with Box Office hit Films. A recent box office hit â€Å"Zombieland† directed by Ruben Fleischer was the first feature film by him, without the low cost production methods available the movie may not have been made. ‘District 9 ‘Zombieland done well in cinema and have been made by first time directors. ‘District 9 Gross Profit $210,146,235 ‘Zombieland Gross Profit $90,081,556 The large profits of these films show that they have been a success and the filming budgets (average 30,000,000) show that studios are not afraid to stop a production half way. Before digital film these mock ups had to be made to view/preview the movie hence a higher cost. Digital Video has been both the answer to cheap filming and the enemy of those in the film industry. With digital video large amounts of video can be moved and transferred easily rather than the trucks needed to move the reels of film. Increased memory capacity has aided this as well allowing very high quality images to be recorded. High definition video is an example of this as there are so many pixels per frame and so many frames the file sizes are enormous. Just 30 minutes of video can be two Gigabytes in size. One of the first films to use digital video was ‘Westworld in 1973. Shortly before digital video came digital audio. With digital audio the same advantages apply, it is cheaper to store and easier to edit. One of the main advantages of digital audio is that tape is not needed to store it. Audio stored on tape was prone to distortion or deterioration from magnetic waves and moisture; it is also much harder to sync than with a piece of video like an animated character or sound effect. Recorders and Microphones have become very small and fitted inside the ear or in the collar of a jumper. They can record in very high quality which helps in the editing phase, if a character gets drowned out by another noise or their voice becomes muffled by another person in front of the microphone on the main floor . The better quality also creates a much better atmosphere for the audience. This may not make or break the film but bad audio can be worse than bad visuals in my own opinion. With HD (High Definition) audio emerging, recording techniques and styles will evolve again. This will follow the adoption of Surround sound which is now common among home entertainment systems and some Cinemas or Movie Theatres. Surround Sound uses multiple speakers placed around the audience and a special controller sends the right volume and sounds to each speaker to make it sound as though the audience is immersed in the movie. Sound technicians now place the mics around the set / scene to record the different sound levels at those spots in the room. Not every new idea in cinema was successful enough to consider continuing at first, such as three-dimensional movies (3D), which required viewers to wear special glasses, and the â€Å"smells†, in which different scents were blown into theatres to accompany the images and sound. The system just didnt work well or subtly enough. Now though 3D movies are at an all-time with 9 3D movies released in 2009 alone. With the new 3D technology using digital glasses and high frequency screens the poor effect on a viewers eye-sight or balance has been removed. 3D Filming has for a long time been an attraction for creating stunning experiences. â€Å"Journey to the Centre of the Earth† was the first film to successfully deploy a live 3D experience. It grossed $241,995,151 in worldwide. These changes seem to have been for the better, good profits for 3D films shows a fan base and market audience. The newest technologies used are proving their worth and may end up leading production to entirely 3d movies. With advancements comes cheaper high end equipment this has led to a lot of fans and wanna be producers making films or videos on the cheap. YouTube the greatest example of public film/video is well known and is full of fan made or home made movies. Some of these can be on par with full length feature films. Technology has advanced to let what used to be studio equipment be compacted and simplified for everyone. A good example of the Fan- made movie is â€Å"The Hunt for Gollum† a prequel to â€Å"The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring† It has amassed over 1.5 Million views and maintains a 5 star rating( The highest available on YouTube). On another Note the Movie has been made in HD which shows the makers had access to good equipment. Another intriguing thing to note is that technology on the whole can and has influenced films. Two older movies that are well known are ‘Wargames'(John Badham 1983) and ‘Hackers'(Iain Softley, 1995). One of the most notable is The ‘James Bond 007 series of films which has used technological possibilities to its fullest, were Bond is supplied with a massive range of gadgets some futuristic and some of the present times. 3. Conclusion Movies at home are now a big part of the cinema experience. Large television sets and home cinema systems are very common. Small versions of the projectors used in the cinema are also common and provide a cinema like atmosphere to your home movies. Homes can even have computers that server video and audio content to the television. With movies cheaply available to buy, sets of several DVDs available on a single Blu-ray disc and Online services such as the iTunes Store making digital downloads available, there is always a larger demand for movies and so the film industry will continue to make good films. â€Å"With more channels of distribution there will be a greater demand for content but less money will be required to make it. The people who can create content the most cost effectively will have a clear cut advantage† Roger Corman The future of Cinema is greatly entwined with technological advancements. The effects of technology on cinema are quite clear, as long as the technologies are used in the right ways and are not abused for the sake of time or money then the quality of cinema will not die. Though there are movies were technology plays a minute roll it still seeps through from the camera used the sound recording equipment and the sets built. The cinema was built of technology and should continue to thrive and mature and technology does so.

Wind Powered Battery Charger Engineering Essay

Wind Powered Battery Charger Engineering Essay Renewable energy is a burning issue nowadays; different energy resources are being analyzed, tested and improved in order to replace non renewable energy resources. Wind is one of the renewable energy resources which is available in abundance, especially in Europe, huge amount of energy can be produced by using windmills and then this energy can be saved for later usage. This project looks at the brief history of windmills; their past usage, present usage and future. In addition to this, a prototype circuit is also build which utilizes wind energy to charge 4.5v battery when wind energy is less and 12v battery is charged when high energy is produced by the wind. In addition to this, future recommendations are also made to improve the circuit design. Acknowledgments First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to my supervisors, Mr. Nader Anani. He has been giving me his professional advice and guidance throughout the duration of this work. It was his support and confidence in me that led me to successfully complete this project. It has been a pleasure working under his supervision. I wish to dedicate this thesis to my family who I dearly love and respect. Table of Contents Introduction In the near future renewable energy resources like solar and wind energy will be replacing conventional non renewable energy resources. Non renewable energy resources are limited in their availability and are running out quickly due to their vast use in the modern society. [1] We rely on coal, oil and gas for running our industries; now that these resources are becoming scarce it is our responsibility to look for other forms of energy so that the future generations do not suffer due to this shortage. A lot of research is being carried out to select a reliable energy resource that can meet the energy demands of the future, which is reliable and efficient. Energy plays important role in various forms to let human being accomplish different tasks and makes human life easier and more comfortable, from the basic electrical energy that drives electrical and electronic machines and Internet to the kinetic and mechanical energy of vehicles, planes, and all other speedy sources of locomotion. The modern technological world has its own merits and demerits and challenges and issues which are accompanied with it as a result of scientific and industrial revolution and technological advancement. However with exponentially increasing use of devices and equipments requiring power and energy, these sources of energy saw the dreadful event of shortage and rareness. Hence scientists and researchers throughout the world started working on these burning issues and this gave birth to the field of renewable energy. This project is an attempt to develop a system which utilizes wind energy to efficiently charge up batteries that can be later used as a form of energy. Aim The aim of this project is to design, construct and test a battery charger fed from a wind energy source. Objectives Objectives of the current project are given below: Literature review and investigation of wind energy and its history Proposal of hardware design to build a wind powered battery charger Development of prototype circuit for charging batteries using Wind Energy Testing and analysis of the developed system Discussion on the results obtained Recommendations for the future work System Block Diagram Block diagram of the proposed system is given below: Figure : System Block Diagram As clearly illustrated in the system HLD, wind energy will rotate the wind turbines and by using generator within the wind turbines mechanical energy is converted to electrical energy, this electricity generated by the generator is unregulated and full of harmonics, in order to regulate this supply of electricity a regulator is required which in turn can be used to charge the battery. Report Structure This report will give an overview of the techniques and methods used to achieve the final product. 1) Introduction: This chapter discusses the aim, objectives, and explains the circuit block diagram. Figure : Breakdown of Report 2) Literature review: This section of report concentrates on the literature review regarding wind turbines and their use in modern day energy market. In addition to this technical information regarding components used for this project is also given. 3) Method: Method illustrates the detailed experimental procedures and different stages which are completed in order to attain the end product. 4) Results: The results obtained which are related to the performance of the finished product are given in results section. 5) Discussion and Conclusions: Further discussions on the results and the conclusions drawn after the completion of the project is presented in the fifth chapter. 6) Future work: This chapter presents possible ideas that can be implemented on the designed prototype, to achieve different kind of benefits. 7) References: References of information taken from internet. It also contains Bibliography section with details of the books and the texts, articles, magazines and the data sheets used. 8) Appendices: The appendix contains data sheets of the components use in this project. Literature Review Literature Review of this project is divided in following main sections: History and introduction of wind turbines Modeling of wind energy and generator History and Introduction of wind turbines In the beginning, a structure comprising of blades in the form of a fan was known as a windmill which was used to grind grain and pump water using wind energy. This windmill was later on developed to generate electricity and was renamed a wind turbine. [3] On the other hand a wind turbine is a machine which extracts energy from wind to generate electricity by the rotation of propeller like blades that drives a generator through shafts and gears present within it. It is a rotating machine which converts kinetic energy from wind into mechanical energy and this mechanical energy is converted into electricity using a generator. [4] File:Veladero 01.png Figure 3: Wind Turbine in Hilly Area [3] History: A wind turbine is a machine which extracts energy from wind to generate electricity by the rotation of propeller like blades that drives a generator through shafts and gears present within it (Britannica, 2011). It is a rotating machine which converts kinetic energy from wind into mechanical energy and this mechanical energy is converted into electricity using a generator. Since ancient times, man has harnessed the power of the wind to provide motive power for transportation. Likewise, the technique of grinding grain between stones to produce flour is similarly ancient, and widespread. Where and when these two came together in the first place is unknown, but a likely scenario suggests a Persian origin, from where the knowledge spread back into Northern Europe as a result of the Crusades. [4] Since the Persian mills were quite unlike the early European designs it seems just as likely that the adaptation of wind as a power source was independently discovered in Europe. Of course wind was not the first non-human power source applied to the task of grinding corn as it was preceded by both animal power, and in all probability by water power. European millwrights became highly skilled craftsmen, developing the technology tremendously and as Europeans set off colonizing the rest of the globe, windmills spread throughout the world. The basics of windmill design include those built by the British, who developed many advanced control mechanisms over the centuries, and the Dutch who used windmills extensively to pump water and for industrial uses, as well as to grind grain. [5] As steam power developed, the uncertain power of the wind became less and less economic, and we are left today with a tiny fraction of the elegant structures that once extracted power from the wind. These remaining windmills, seen all over the world, are a historic reminder of a past technological age. A number of mills have been restored either visually or in some cases back to full working order. However the promise of widespread power from the wind lives on both in the form of wind turbines producing electricity, and in the form of small scale wind pumps often largely low-tech installations still used extensively in the world of agriculture. [2] File:Wind turbine 1888 Charles Brush.jpg Figure 4: An old wind farm[4] Wind Power in Afghanistan: Wind power has been used for more than 2000 years and the first windmill used for mechanical purposes was built in Afghanistan in the 7th Century. This was a vertical axis windmill with rectangular shaped blades which was six to twelve sails covered in reed matting and was used to grind corn and drawing water. windmill39 Figure 5: Historical wind mill in Afghanistan [1] Wind Power in Britain: Evidence of windmills in England dates from the 12th century, with earlier references to mills generally held to be talking about either animal or water powered mills. The 14th and 15th centuries provide evidence of what the early mills looked like with illustrations in diverse media such as memorial brasses, stained glass, and wood carvings, as well as the expected manuscript records. These early illustrations all showed the simple all wooden post mill structure. The first illustration was shown in the late 1270 A.D which was a four bladed mill mounted on a central post. This was known as the post mill and was already a fair technologically advanced setup as compared to the Persian mills. These mills used wooden gears for the motion of the horizontal shaft to vertical movement to turn a grind stone. [4] Wind Power in Holland: As early as 1390 the Dutch set out to refine a design known as the tower mill. This was actually a standard post mill affixed to the top of a multi story tower with separate floors devoted to grinding  grain, removing chaff, storing grain and living quarters for the wind-smith and his family. Both the post mill as well as the tower mill designs had to be adjusted according to the wind manually. This was done by pushing a large lever at the back of the mill. Also optimizing the windmill energy and power output plus protecting the mill from damage by furling the rotor sails during storms was the main job of the wind-smith. [1] Improvement in the design of the Wind mill: A primary improvement in the design of the European mills was the use of sails that generated aerodynamic lift. This feature improved the rotor efficiency as compared to the Persian mills by allowing an increase in rotor speed and hence which resulted in superior grinding and pumping action.[5] The process of perfecting the windmill as well as making incremental improvements towards its efficiency took 500 years. By the time the process was completed the windmill sails had major features which were recognised by modern designers as being crucial to the performance of modern wind turbine blades. Some models also featured aerodynamic brakes, spoilers, and flaps. windmill Figure 6: Mid 20th Century Windmill [4] While continuing well into the 19th century the use of large tower mills declined with the increased use of steam engines. The next step in the development of wind power occurred many thousands of miles to the west. [1] Wind Power in the USA: For hundreds of years the most important application of windmills at the subsistence level has been mechanical water pumping. This was done using relatively small systems with rotor diameters of one to several meters. These systems were perfected in the United States during the19th century. It initiated with the introduction of Halladay windmill in 1854, and continuing to the Aermotor and Dempster designs. [4] The most significant modification of the American fan shaped windmill was the development of steel blades in 1870. These could be made lighter and worked into more efficient shapes. But, they worked so well that their high speed required a reduction in gear to turn the standard reciprocal pumps at the required speed. [1] In the late 19th century, advancement was made to the original design and a new type of wind mill known as the multi-blade windmill was manufactured. This design was used in the first large windmill in order to generate electricity. Wind Power in Denmark: Poul la Cour was the pioneer of electricity generating wind turbines and he published a journal based on wind power during the same year. Also it was reported that by 1918 around 120 local utilities in Denmark had a wind turbine. The approximated size was from 20 to 35 kW. At that time the wind turbines covered 3 percent of Danish electricity consumption and Danish interest in wind power increased at a high rate. [4] During the World War, the Danish engineers built a number of two as well as three bladed wind turbines although their concept is a three bladed machine. This type of turbines was used in areas usually based on a wind-diesel setup which ran the electricity supply system. The systems used designs focused on DC (direct current) generators to satisfy their needs but in 1951 these DC generators were replaced with AC (alternating current) generators and therefore became the second wind turbine to generate AC. [5] In 1980, Christian Riisager, built a small 22 kW wind turbine in his back yard using an earlier design known as the Gedser Wind Turbine (three bladed wind turbine). His turbine design became a success within households around Denmark and this success gave the present day Danish wind turbine designers an inspiration. [3] This inspiration led them to design all their wind turbines and this trend started from 1980 to the present day. A new generation of wind turbines was developed in 1981 and that became a technological breakthrough for modern wind turbines throughout the world. The serial manufacturing of wind turbines started and Danish manufacturers had much more of a track record than companies and their individual countries. Another thing to note is that California, which is one of the biggest wind farms in the world, has about half of the wind turbines of Danish origin. 20th Century Developments and Modern Wind Turbines: In the past, the Dutch refined the windmill and adapted it for draining lakes and marshes and when settlers took this technology to the New World in the late 19th century, they began using windmills to pump water for farms and ranches, and later, to generate electricity for homes and industry. [5]20th century was the time when windmills were actually recognised as Wind Turbines. Across the plains they were used to pump water as well as to generate electricity but at the same time as new methods of utilising wind energy were being introduced this trend gradually spread around the world. windmill Figure 7: Evolution of Windmill Design in 20th Century At present the modern wind turbines are based on three blades using AC generators and output is rated in mega watts (MW) or giga watts (GW). Some modern wind turbines are based on four to five blades and they are being used on both AC and DC. The governing body is the World Wind Energy Association and as per their annual World Energy Report, a total number of 76 countries in the world are using wind energy for commercial purposes. The main countries that widely use wind turbines at present include USA, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Denmark, Spain and China. The countries that recently became users of wind energy resources are India, Pakistan and Turkey. These figures suggest an increase in use of high output wind turbines but currently mini or small wind turbines are available and are being used where they have an output power requirement ranging from a few watts (W) to kilo watts (kW). [3] For a long time individual wind turbines were installed to support single households but now this idea has been advanced to improve the usage of this energy. Nowadays, wind turbines are installed on a large area may that be land or sea. The output is connected to a grid system. Many countries have installed a number of wind farms across their plains and suitable windy locations but the largest on-land wind farm is known as Roscoe Wind Farm and is located in Texas, USA. This wind farm comprises of 627 wind turbines and a total installed capacity of 781.5 MW and provides enough power for more than 250,000 average Texan homes. It is located about 200 miles west of Fort Worth, and covers nearly 100,000  acres. The second largest wind farm is also located in Texas, USA. This wind farm is known as the Horse Hallow Wind Energy Centre and has 421 wind turbines that generate a total capacity of 735 MW. Out of the total 421, 291 of them are 1.5 MW wind turbines and 130 are 2.3 MW wind turbin es. The turbines are owned by Florida Power Light and the company operates 46 other wind farms throughout the US. [4] 1-rosco-wind-farm Figure 8: Wind farm in England [5] The largest Off-shore wind farm in the world is the Thanet wind farm. It is located in the North Sea about 7 miles off the coast of Kent, England. The wind farm has 100 turbines and has the capability produce enough energy a year to power more than 200,000 homes. The second largest offshore wind farm is called Horns Rev 2 and is located on Horns Reef in a shallow area off the westernmost point of Denmark. Horns Rev 2 consist of 91, Siemens wind turbines with a total generating capacity of 209  MW. [7] Thanet-wind-farm-opened-006 Figure 9: Off shore wind farm along the coast of Kent (England) [5] Future of Wind Turbines: It is predicted that wind energy will be the most cost effective source of electrical power in the near future. A good part of this prediction has been proven during the current energy rush so its reliability can easily be visualised for future. Recent improvements in wind turbines have shown that the trends which have led to the dramatic fall in the cost of wind energy are set to continue. Countries all over the world are setting their targets for wind power and it is estimated that about 22,000 MW, in the form of 40,000 wind turbines will be installed in the next 10 years. Europe is the hub of this global business and will continue to be as around six companies supply over half of the worlds wind turbines. [6] As more and more countries start using this reliable source of electricity, master plans are being set for the future. Already the USA, China, Germany and UK have set targets to build further wind farms and each one bigger than the other. As USA has currently the biggest on-land wind farms in the world, they would like to maintain that in the future. Around six wind farms are planned within the USA for the next 15 years and they should be able to maintain the record of largest wind farms in the world. One of the planned wind farms is the Alta Wind Energy Centre in the Mojave Desert California. This farm will have more than 600 wind turbines and when it is completed this will have the capacity to generate 1,550 MW of energy which is double the capacity of the largest existing wind energy farm. USA has no off-shore wind farm but their future plans include the installation and usage of this setup. [6] 20100730-193513-pic-977799504 Figure 10: Wind farm in China [6] China also plans to increase their usage of wind energy and they are also involved in future projects as well as developing wind farms. One of their future aspirations is the under construction Gansu Wind Farm. It has been estimated that when completed by 2020 and would have the output capacity of 10 Giga watt (GW). They also plan to reach 100 GW overall wind energy output by 2020 as other future wind farms are under construction. By that time it could be the largest capacity wind farm in the world. In the UK, wind energy is being used extensively and more plans have been set in place for the future. They have more plans to build off-shore wind farms instead of on-land ones as well as to increase the capacity of current setup. Another master plan is to build a wind turbine factory, run by the German giant company Siemens and is expected to complete by 2015. Germany is also involved in certain future projects as their current setup is highly dependable on wind farms. Currently around 20,301 on-land wind turbines are located in the German federal areas and the country has plans to build more wind turbine farms and reach a high capacity by 2020.They are planning more offshore wind energy as well and predict a capacity of about 10.000 MW by 2020. Most of these off-shore farms will be erected up to 20-60 km away from the coastline. energy-frozen-fish-wind-farms-turbines_18081_600x450 Figure 11: Modern wind farm in Germany [2] Types of Wind Turbines: Since the development of the wind turbines, numerous designs have been introduced and used worldwide. The difference in these designs was on the basis of size, output power and shape of the wind turbine. The largest wind turbine and the one with the most individual output power up to date is the Enercon-126. Its rated output is about 7 MW and its rotor diameter is 126 meters. Wind turbines can be divided into two basic types and this is determined by the way the turbine spins. One is the horizontal axis wind turbine and is most commonly used (FIG- 12) while the other one is the vertical axis wind turbines (FIG-13). [3]http://www.ecotownforleicestershire.coop/assets/images/masterplanImages/energyreportVertical-axis-wind-turbine.jpghttp://www.aboutgenerator.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/how-to-build-a-wind-turbine.jpg FIG 12 [9] FIG 13 [9] Horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) is the common style wind turbine which has a design similar to that of a wind mill and has blades that look like a propeller that spin on the horizontal axis. The main rotor shaft and electrical generator are at the top of the tower and are pointed into the wind. Small turbines are pointed by a simple wind vane placed square with the rotor (blades), while large turbines generally use a wind sensor coupled with a servo motor. [9] Since a tower produces turbulence behind it hence the turbine is usually pointed upwind of the tower. Wind turbine blades are made stiff to prevent the blades from being pushed into the tower by high winds. Since the turbulence leads to fatigue failures so most HAWTs are upwind machines. Since the blades always move perpendicularly to the wind they help receive power through the whole rotation. [9] Small wind turbines are being used extensively in off-grid systems like street lighting, phone booths, lighting up parking areas and public mobile chargers. These wind turbines are usually used with another device such as solar panels and are part of a setup. They are light, easy to install and reliable in all wind conditions. Green-Column2 Figure 14: Green Column [1] Vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) is when the main rotor shaft is arranged vertically.   The main advantage of this arrangement is that the wind turbine does not need to be pointed into the wind and can be most reliable on sites where the wind direction is highly variable or turbulent. In a VAWT the generator and other main components can be placed near the ground so the tower does not need to support it. It is difficult to mount these type of turbines on towers so they are often installed nearer to the base on which they rest, such as the ground or a building rooftop. The wind speed is slower at a lower altitude which means less wind energy is available so air flow near the ground and other objects can create turbulent flow resulting in issues like vibration. However, when a turbine is mounted on a rooftop, the building will generally redirect the wind over the roof and this doubles the wind speed at the turbine. [9] There are two subtypes of VAWT: Darrieus wind turbines are commonly called Eggbeater turbines as they look like an eggbeater. They are highly efficient but produce large ripple and cyclic stress on the tower which will contribute towards low reliability. They generally require some external power source to start turning because the starting torque is very low. The torque ripple is reduced by using three or more blades which will result in a higher solidity for the turbine rotor. Solidity is measured by blade area over the rotor area and newer models of this type of turbines are not held up by guy-wires but have an external superstructure connected to the top. Savonius wind turbines is a drag type turbine and are commonly used in cases of high reliability in things such as ventilation systems. Because they are a drag type turbine they are less efficient than a common HAWT but they are excellent in areas of turbulent wind and self starting. Wind turbine manufacturers: As wind energy has become a widely used concept, a number of companies have introduced their designs and perfected them. The most popular companies around today are Enercon (Germany), Vestas (Denmark), GE Wind Energy (USA), Siemens Wind Power (Germany), RE Power (Germany), Sinovel (China), Goldwind (China) and Gamesa (Spain). All these companies are famous for manufacturing as per their own HAWT designs and their systems are being used worldwide. Enercon, Germany based company, is the only company to have made the most powerful and largest wind turbine in the world known as Enercon-126. They continue to work on more ideas and increase the output capability of their wind turbine. On the other hand Vestas which is a Denmark based company is the biggest manufacturer of wind turbines in the world. Most of their wind turbines and installed in Europe as well as USA and their orders keep on increasing day by day as per demand and dependence on wind energy. It was stated that most of the designs from other companies are actually modifications to the original design created by Vestas and this influence can be seen in their systems. [10] Other companies like GE Wind Energy and Siemens have made major contributions in the manufacturing and enhancing the capabilities of wind turbines of the present age and they are looking forward to the future for more opportunities to make themselves well known within the industry. [10] Small sized wind turbines made their way into the industry due to the need for smaller and off-grid systems. Marlec Renewable Power is one of the companies that initiated this type of wind turbines and they came up with the idea named Rutland wind turbines. Rutland wind turbines are being commonly used in UK and Europe these days but further international use has been planned due to the interest shown by foreign investors. Rutland wind turbines have current designs using 3 to 6 blades but they are mini versions of HAWT and no VAWT designs have been introduced up to date. They have mostly been used in off-grid systems and add a good combination to the environment surrounded by wind turbines. [10] Disadvantages of wind turbines: The strength of the wind is not constant and it varies from zero to storm force. Which means that wind turbines will not generate the same amount of electricity all the time as well as there will be times when they generate no electricity at all. Many people feel that the countryside should be left untouched so the landscape could be left in its natural form. Wind turbines are noisy as each one can generate the same level of noise as a family car at very high speed. People see large wind turbines as unattractive structures and not pleasant to look at. They could disfigure the countryside and might seem a horrible sight. Wind turbine construction can be very expensive and costly to the surrounding wildlife during the building and installation process. In some areas of wind farm developments birds have been found dead around the base of turbines. Many people think wind turbines are a great idea, yet a large proportion of these people would oppose a wind farm development close to their home due to their land price reduction as well as noise pollution. Modeling of wind energy and generator In order to develop the prototype circuit in the laboratory, wind energy has to be simulated along with the generator. At first it was decided to use a 12 volt manual generator which can be operated by hand to output 12v so that this can be fed for the rest of the circuitry. A cheap 12v Generator could not be found, very expensive models were available but it was decided not to buy them as it will increase the cost of the product dramatically. Finally, it was agreed that the 12v DC from the power supply will be used to simulate the output of the wind generator. Method Method section of this report throws light on the wind power battery charger circuit used and also explains different techniques used in order to build the prototype. Method section of this report can be sub divided in the following main categories: 1: Research regarding components used in this project 2: Circuit Design and Explanation 3: Circuit Construction Research regarding components used in this project At first it was decided to develop a battery management circuit from scratch by using analogue circuitry, buck converter and 555 timer or microcontroller in order to switch the buck converter, but after some research and investigation it was found that there are some specialized ICs available which can be used for managing battery charging circuits. Different verities of battery management IC were available from Liner technologies, Analogue devices, microchip and National Instruments: but selection criteria for the IC involved: a DIP package for easy prototyping, operating temperature range of -40 to +85à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, supply voltage rating of up to 18v and cheap in price. After some search through different vendor websites, LTC1042 seemed to be a suitable candidate for this particular application. After mutual consent it was decided to use LTC1042 as main charge management IC in this project. Circuit Design and Explanation Looking through the LTC1042 datasheet, it was discovered that this IC can be adopted for the needs of renewable energy resources and can easily manage different load types based on the amount of energy being produced at one particular time. Application notes of LTC1042 suggested a circuit for using this IC for managing wind powered battery charger. In order to prove the concept of the system, it is decided to build this circuit and experiment with it. Chosen Circuit: The circuit to be built is shown in the diagram below: Figure 15: Wind Powered Battery Charger Circuit Circuit Explanation This circuit behaves in a latching manner, i.e. depending upon the voltage being generated by the wind generator different type of load will be on and off. LTC1042 is a CMOS window and manages the turning on and turning off of different loads. This circuit contains two batteries and one load, its operation is summarized in the following lines: 1: If the generator output voltage is below 13.8v, charge regulator circuit is active and Ni-Cad battery will

The Stance of Political Magazine, The Nation :: Media

The Stance of Political Magazine, The Nation The Nation magazine has been in operation since 1865 as the independent voice of America’s people. It is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, weekly political magazine in America and is one of the most popular opinion journals. According to The Nation’s original prospectus, The Nation will not be the organ of any party, sect, or body. It will, on the contrary, make an earnest effort to bring to the discussion of political and social questions a really critical spirit, and to wage war upon the vices of violence, exaggeration, and misrepresentation by which so much of the political writing of the day is marred.(Original Prospectus) It is easy to seen from the articles in the magazine that it is a voice for liberal opinions. Contributors to the magazine consist of such liberalists as Katha Pollitt, Eric Alterman, Alexander Cockburn, Christopher Hitchens, and Patricia J. Williams. Some past contributors include T. S. Elliot, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr., Albert Einstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, H.L. Mencken, Hannah Arendt, W.E.B. Du Bois and Jean-Paul Sartre. Even though the founders intended the magazine to be non-partisan, it is evident that The Nation is democratic. You can really tell that the magazine is democratic from the cover of their November 13, 2000 issue. On the cover is a picture making fun of recently elected President George W. Bush by picturing him as some kind of idiot who accidentally became president. More evidence of The Nation’s political stance is evident in the article â€Å"Nader and the Politics of Fear† by William Greider. In the article, Greider talks about how Ralph Nader and the Greens could be both harmful and helpful to the Democratic Party. Greider first addresses that Nader received 2.7% of the vote in the last Presidential Election that could have ensured Al Gore a clean victory. This has caused a lot of democrats in the party to despise Nader and the Greens. Portraying Nader in this fashion shows that The Nation is not extremely left winged. Later on in the article, Greider talks about how the Democrat Party has â€Å"fallen† in the House and the Senate. He describes how the Democrat Party is now a minority party for the first time since 1950s, and that the party must get used to this fact in order to survive.

Great Expectations :: Great Expectations Essays

Great Expectations The novel great expectation was finished for the first time in 1860; it was created in weekly instalments in a weekly journal called â€Å"all year round†. The story went on for 36 weeks. This gave the author Charles Dickens few challenges he had to beat to keep the readers interests up. He used cliff hangers and other ways he needed to grab the reader’s attention. Dickens grew up in a small house in Landport, by Portsmouth, on the 7th of February. John his father was a clerk. Charles had a rough childhood, and wasn’t liked by other students due to his fragile body. That’s why he always preferred reading books instead of playing physical games. Much of Dickens hard life is expressed in his novels. The 39th chapter is a pivotal chapter because he uses it as a great changing and turning point. Like pivoting in basketball holding your left foot still on the ground and using your other leg to move around and choose a different direction or move to carry on. Charles uses authoritative and descriptive sentences. In this chapter he builds up drama and creates huge tension. In this chapter he makes the reader remember Pip’s situation. Pip received money but had to leave his family to gain it. Pip moved away and received money on a monthly basis. Dickens reminds us of Pip’s situation the readers feel that an important thing is about to happen. At this point Pip is feeling disheartened and Dickens uses bad climate to project his feelings. When Dickens uses this to project pips situation the reader’s feel sorry for Pip and can comprehend what his going through. Using the weather conditions gives Dickens another aspect on how Pip feels. But they also know he left his family for money making him look slightly guilty. The unsettled weather creates drama and gets the way Pips feels to the readers. Dickens repeats words and uses long sentences constantly this helps creating more tension. Dickens uses academic language and makes the reader more involved using words that can only describe things with the ones his chosen; making the reader involved helps them to interact more with the chapter. The language is altered to the other chapters because this one is filled with tension. As Dickens generates tension the reader’s anxiety and strain also builds up thus making the readers more concentrated into the book. Dickens makes the pressure and tension last a long time using the long sentences and words to keep the readers more intrigued. The atmosphere changes and it becomes silent because no ones ready for what’s about to hit them.

The Manipulative Sirens and Their Victims in Margaret Atwoods Siren So

The Manipulative Sirens and Their Victims in Margaret Atwood's Siren Song In Homer's Odyssey, the Sirens are mythical creatures whose enchanting voices lure sailors to their deaths. These women have fascinated people ever since Homer sung the lines of his epic, inspiring artists of many genres from oil paintings to films. In her poem "Siren Song," Margaret Atwood re-envisions the Sirens to draw a comparison between the myths and modern life. Atwood portrays men as victims of "Sirens" (women) by making her readers the victims. Atwood begins her poem with the speaker mysteriously introducing a secret. Speaking to her audience, the Siren--whose role is played in real life by women and paralleled by poets--attracts attention immediately with her luring phrases and vocabulary: "This is the one song everyone / would like to learn: the song / that is irresistible..." (1-3). Even with the word "siren" screaming, "Warning! Danger!" the loud ringing serves only to catch more notice. Readers respond with interest, wanting to hear this song and wondering why it is "irresistible" (3). Atwood uses colons in this first stanza as her tool for pulling readers into her story. Her colons hint at the revelation of this great secret; readers must read on to discover it. Rather than stopping abruptly, Atwood carries her thought to the second stanza by beginning it with a lower case letter. However the speaker does not continue that thought by telling the secret right away as the reader would expect. Instead Atwood gives the speaker a seductive voice through her description of the enigmatic power of the Siren song. The speaker teases readers with evidence of its strength that "forces men / to leap overboard" (4-5), plunging to their deaths. ... ...t works every time" (27). In "Siren Song," Atwood plays off the mythical idea that Sirens seduce their victims in order to demonstrate the same manipulative tendencies in women and poets-women seduce men; poets seduce their readers. She proves her theory by exercising it and capturing her readers in her own poem. Her carefully crafted language forms a trap for her readers, demonstrating poetry's powerfully seductive nature. Readers become entranced in her story, and, after facing death as the Siren's (Atwood's) victims, her readers agree that this is "the song / that is irresistible..." (2-3) and "it works every time" (27). Works Cited Hamilton, Edith. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. New York: Mentor, 1990. VanSpanckeren, Kathryn and Jan Garden Castro. Margaret Atwood: Vision and Forms. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1988.

The Indigo Spell Chapter Nine

AS JILL HAD SAID, Adrian was more than happy to begin our hunt that afternoon. In fact, when I finally got ahold of him, he offered to pick me up when classes ended, in order to maximize our time. I didn't mind this since it meant I'd get to ride in the Mustang. Admittedly, I would've preferred to drive it myself, but I'd take what I could get. â€Å"When are you going to name the car?† I asked him once we were on the road to Los Angeles. â€Å"It's an inanimate object,† he said. â€Å"Names are for people and pets.† I patted the Mustang's dashboard. â€Å"Don't listen to him.† To Adrian, I said, â€Å"They name boats all the time.† â€Å"I don't really understand that either, but maybe I would if my old man ever fronted me the money for a private yacht.† He shot me a quick, amused look before returning his attention to the road. â€Å"How can someone as cold and logical as you be so obsessed with something as frivolous as this?† I wasn't sure which part bothered me the most – being called cold or obsessed. â€Å"I'm just giving the proper respect to a beautiful machine.† â€Å"You named your car after coffee. That's a sign of respect?† â€Å"The highest1respect,† I said. He made a noise that sounded like a cross between a scoff and a laugh. â€Å"Okay, then. You name it. Whatever you want, I'll go along with.† â€Å"Really?† I asked, a bit startled. True, I'd been badgering him about naming the car, but I wasn't sure I wanted to be the one to wield that sort of power. â€Å"It's a big decision.† â€Å"Life or death,† he said, deadpan. â€Å"Better choose carefully.† â€Å"Yeah, but you're the so-called creative one!† â€Å"Then this'll be good practice for you.† I fell silent for a good part of the drive, struck by the gravity of the dilemma that lay before me. What should the name reflect? The car's sunny yellow color? Sleek lines? Powerful engine? The task was overwhelming. Adrian pulled me out of my thoughts when we began nearing the outer Los Angeles suburbs. â€Å"We're not actually going into the city, are we?† â€Å"Huh?† I'd been waging a mental debate between Summer Wind and Gold Dust. â€Å"Oh, no. We're heading north. Take the next exit.† Mrs. Santos had provided me with two neighborhoods known for their Victorian-style houses. I'd researched them extensively online, even going so far as to look at satellite pictures. I'd finally chosen one that most resembled my vision and crossed my fingers I'd have the same luck as I'd had in finding Marcus's apartment. Surely the universe owed me a few favors. Unfortunately, things didn't look too promising when we finally reached the street I'd been given. It was a peaceful residential area, filled with those same distinctive houses, but nothing that quite matched the one I'd seen in my vision. We drove up and down the street as I scanned each side, hoping maybe I'd missed something. â€Å"Ugh,† I said, slouching back into my seat. No luck. The universe had apparently cut me off. â€Å"We'll have to check the other location, but seriously, it didn't look like a match.† â€Å"Well, it can't hurt to – † Adrian suddenly made an abrupt turn onto a side street we'd nearly driven past. I jerked upright as he clipped the curb. â€Å"What are you doing? Think about your tires!† â€Å"Look.† He made another turn, putting us on a parallel street. Most of it was contemporary California housing . . . but one block had more Victorian houses. I gasped. â€Å"There it is!† Adrian came to a stop on the side of the street opposite from the house of my vision. Everything was there, from the wrapping porch to the hydrangea bush. And now, in the full light of day, I could make out the sign in the front yard: OLD WORLD BED-AND-BREAKFAST. Smaller print identified it as a historic site. â€Å"Well, there we go.† Adrian was clearly very pleased with his find, despite the risk to the car's tires. â€Å"Maybe Jackie's sister is staying here.† â€Å"Odd choice to run nefarious magical activities out of,† I remarked. â€Å"I don't know. Seeing as there aren't any ancient castles in the neighborhood, then why not a bed-and-breakfast?† I took a deep breath. â€Å"Okay, then. Let's go make some inquiries. You sure you can muddle the minds of those who see me?† â€Å"Easy,† he said. â€Å"Easier still if you were wearing your wig.† â€Å"Oh, shoot. I forgot.† I ducked down and retrieved a shoulder-length brown wig that Ms. Terwilliger had supplied me with. Even with Adrian's magic, we wanted to take extra precautions. While it would be good if people were visited by an unmemorable blonde, it'd be better still if they were visited by an unmemorable brunette. I tugged the wig on, hoping no one had seen my transformation. I lifted my head. â€Å"Does it look okay?† Adrian's face showed approval. â€Å"It's cute. You look even brainier, which I didn't think was possible.† We left the car, and I wondered if I wanted to look brainier. A lot of people already thought I was boring. Blond hair might be the only exciting thing I had going for me. Then I thought for a minute about my recent experience scaling a fire escape, breaking and entering, and getting into a fistfight with a fugitive. Not to mention that I was now hunting a powerful evil witch alongside a vampire who could control people's minds. Okay, maybe I wasn't so boring after all. We stepped inside to find a cute little lobby with an ornate desk and a sitting area with wicker furniture. Stuffed rabbits dressed in ball gowns adorned the shelves, and the walls actually had oil paintings of Queen Victoria. The owners apparently took their theme very literally, though I wasn't sure how the rabbits fit in. A girl my age sat at the desk and glanced up in surprise from a magazine. She had short platinum hair and hipster glasses. Tons of necklaces hung around her neck in a gaudy display that went against my minimalist sensibilities. Hot pink plastic beads, a sparkly green star, a gold and diamond locket, a dog tag . . . it was mind-boggling. Even worse, she was chewing gum loudly. â€Å"Hi,† she said. â€Å"Can I help you?† We'd had a whole routine planned, but Adrian immediately went off script. He slung his arm around me. â€Å"Yeah, we're looking for a weekend getaway, and a friend of ours swears this is top-of-the-line romance.† He pulled me closer. â€Å"Our anniversary's coming up. We've been dating for one year, but man, it hardly seems like it.† â€Å"That's for sure,† I said, trying to keep my jaw from dropping. I forced what I hoped was a happy smile. The girl glanced back and forth between us, her expression softening. â€Å"That's so sweet. Congratulations.† â€Å"Can we check the place out?† Adrian asked. â€Å"I mean, if there are any vacant rooms?† â€Å"Sure,† she said, standing up. She spit her gum into a trash can and walked over to us. â€Å"I'm Alicia. My aunt and uncle are the owners.† â€Å"Taylor,† I said, shaking her hand. â€Å"Jet,† said Adrian. I nearly groaned. For inexplicable reasons, â€Å"Jet Steele† was a pseudonym Adrian really liked using. In our rehearsal today, he was supposed to be called Brian. Alicia glanced back and forth between us, a small frown on her face that soon smoothed out. I had to guess it was Adrian's compulsion, confusing her perceptions of us a bit. â€Å"Follow me. We have a few vacant rooms you can see.† With one last puzzled look at us, she turned and headed toward a stairway. â€Å"Isn't this great, sweetie?† Adrian asked loudly as we walked up the creaking stairs. â€Å"I know how much you like rabbits. Didn't you have one when you were little? What was his name, Hopper?† â€Å"Yeah,† I said, resisting the urge to punch him on the arm. Hopper? Really? â€Å"Best rabbit ever.† â€Å"Oh, neat,† said Alicia. â€Å"Then I'll take you to the Bunny Suite first.† The Bunny Suite had more of those well-dressed stuffed rabbits as part of the decor. The quilt covering the king-size bed also had a border of alternating hearts and rabbits stitched in. Several books sat on the mantel above the wood-burning fireplace, including The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Rabbit, Run. Until that moment, I hadn't realized just how absurdly far a theme could be taken. â€Å"Wow,† said Adrian. He sat down on the bed and tested its bounciness, giving it a nod of approval. â€Å"This is amazing. What do you think, buttercup?† â€Å"I have no words,† I said honestly. He patted the spot beside him. â€Å"Want to try it out?† I answered with a look and felt relieved when he stood up. Adrian and beds stirred up too many conflicting feelings in me. After that, Alicia showed us the Morning Glory Suite, the Velvet Suite, and the London Suite, all of which competed to outdo the others in tackiness. Nonetheless, despite the absurdity of Adrian's ruse, the tour had given me the opportunity to take note of the other labeled doors in the hallway. We followed Alicia back downstairs. â€Å"We don't get to see the Sapphire Suite or the Prince Albert Suite?† I asked. Alicia shook her head. â€Å"Sorry. Those are occupied. I can give you a brochure with some pictures, if you want.† Adrian had his arm around me again. â€Å"Angel cake, wasn't the Prince Albert Suite where Veronica stayed? She's not still here, is she?† â€Å"I'm not sure,† I said. This, at least, was similar to what we'd rehearsed. I glanced over at Alicia. â€Å"You probably can't tell us that, huh? If our friend Veronica's here? She's really pretty, has long dark hair.† â€Å"Oh, yeah,† said Alicia, brightening. â€Å"Of course I remember her. She was in the Velvet Suite, actually, and just checked out yesterday.† I resisted the urge to kick the desk. So close. We'd missed her by a day. Yes, the universe was definitely done giving me breaks. I wouldn't be able to cast the scrying spell until the next full moon, which was a month away. â€Å"Oh, well,† said Adrian, still with that easy smile. â€Å"We'll see her for Christmas anyway. Thanks for your help.† â€Å"Do you want to book a room?† Alicia asked hopefully. â€Å"We'll get back to you on that,† I said. I actually wouldn't have put it past Adrian to book one and then claim it was part of our cover. â€Å"We're checking out a few places. A one-year anniversary isn't something you want to make a hasty decision on.† â€Å"But,† said Adrian, giving her a wink, â€Å"I've got a good feeling about the Bunny Suite.† Alicia walked us out, her eyes widening when she saw the Mustang. â€Å"Wow, nice car.† â€Å"It's an amazing car,† I said. â€Å"That's our baby – well, until we have real ones. Don't you think it needs a name?† asked Adrian. â€Å"I keep trying to convince Taylor.† Once again, I had to fight the urge to punch him. â€Å"Oh, definitely,† said Alicia. â€Å"That kind of car . . . it's like royalty.† â€Å"See?† Adrian shot me a triumphant look. â€Å"And Alicia's an expert on royalty. Didn't you see all those paintings?† â€Å"Thanks for your help,† I told her, steering him forward. â€Å"We'll be in touch.† We got in the car, and after waving goodbye to Alicia, Adrian drove away. I stared blankly ahead. â€Å"Much like with the Bunny Suite, I have no words to describe what just happened. I mean, really? Our anniversary? Jet?† â€Å"I look more like a Jet than a Brian,† he argued. â€Å"Besides, that was a much better story than the one about how we wanted to pay a surprise birthday visit to our ‘friend' Veronica.† â€Å"I don't know about that. But it did give us the information we needed. Which isn't good.† Adrian grew serious. â€Å"Are you sure? Maybe Veronica left the area altogether. Maybe you and the other girls are out of danger.† â€Å"That would be good, I guess . . . except, it just means some other poor girl somewhere else would suffer instead, and we wouldn't have any way to stop it.† From my purse, I pulled out Ms. Terwilliger's list of magic-using girls. â€Å"One of these addresses is in Pasadena. We can at least swing through on our way back and warn her.† The girl we sought was named Wendy Stone. She was a student at Cal Tech, which seemed like an odd vocation for a wannabe witch. Of course, Ms. Terwilliger had said these were girls who weren't actively studying the magical path. They simply possessed magical ability, and I supposed the fact that they had no mentors suggested that they might actually be resistant to their inborn abilities – kind of like me. Wendy lived in an apartment near campus that was easy to find. It was a no-nonsense, primarily student residence, but it seemed like a luxury palace after Marcus's building. As we passed busy students carrying backpacks and talking about classes, I felt a pang of longing that I hadn't experienced in a while. Inheriting the Alchemist mantle meant I couldn't go to college. College was a dream I'd held on to for a long time, though enrolling at Amberwood had helped ease some of my longing. Now, in this buzz of academia, a surge of jealousy sprang up in me. What would it be like to have this kind of life? To have your days solely devoted to the pursuit of knowledge, with no intrigue or life-threatening situations? Even Adrian, with his part-time art classes, was able to have some sort of collegiate experience. â€Å"Don't be so down,† he said when we reached Wendy's floor. â€Å"You might get to college someday.† I looked over at him in wonder. â€Å"How did you know that's what I was thinking?† â€Å"Because I know you,† he said simply, no mockery in his eyes. â€Å"Your aura got sad, and I figured being on a college campus had something to do with it.† I couldn't meet his gaze and turned away. â€Å"I don't like that.† â€Å"What, that someone actually knows what's important in your life?† Yes, that was exactly it. But why did it bother me? Because it was Adrian, I realized. Why was it that a vampire understood me so well? Why not one of my friends? Why not one of my human friends? â€Å"You can be Jet if you want,† I said brusquely, trying to get us back on track and cover up my troubled feelings. After all, this wasn't Sydney's Therapy Hour. â€Å"But we are not posing as a couple again.† â€Å"Are you sure?† he said. His tone was lighter now, turning him back into the Adrian I knew. â€Å"Because I've got a lot more terms of endearment to use. Honey pie. Sugarplum. Bread pudding.† â€Å"Why are they all high-calorie foods?† I asked. I didn't want to encourage him, but the question slipped out before I could stop it. â€Å"And bread pudding isn't really that romantic.† We had reached Wendy's door. â€Å"Do you want me to call you celery stick instead?† he asked. â€Å"It just doesn't inspire the same warm and fuzzy feelings.† â€Å"I want you to call me Sydney.† I knocked on the door. â€Å"Er, Taylor.† A girl with freckles and frizzy red hair answered. Her eyes narrowed warily. â€Å"Yes?† â€Å"We're looking for Wendy Stone,† I said. She scowled. â€Å"Are you from the registrar's office? Because I told them the check's on its way.† â€Å"No.† I lowered my voice and made sure there were no witnesses. â€Å"My name's Taylor. We're here to talk to you about, um, magic.† The transformation was sudden and startling. She went from suspicious and cautious to shocked and outraged. â€Å"No. No. I've told you guys a hundred times I don't want to be involved! I can't believe you'd actually show up at my door to try to convert me to your little coven freak show.† She tried to shut the door, but Adrian managed to stick his foot in and block it. Very manly. â€Å"Wait,† he said. â€Å"That's not what this is about. Your life might be in danger.† Wendy turned incredulous. â€Å"So you guys are threatening me now?† â€Å"No, nothing like that. Please,† I pleaded. â€Å"Just let us talk to you for five minutes inside. Then we'll leave and never bother you again.† Wendy hesitated and then finally gave a nod of resignation. â€Å"Fine. But I'm getting my pepper spray.† Her apartment was neat and tidy, save for a pile of papers and engineering books scattered on the floor. We'd apparently interrupted her homework, which brought back my wistfulness. She made good on her promise to get the pepper spray and then stood before us with crossed arms. â€Å"Talk,† she ordered. I showed her the picture of Veronica. â€Å"Have you ever seen this woman?† â€Å"Nope.† â€Å"Good.† Or was it? Did that mean Veronica might have Wendy tagged as a future hit and was waiting to pounce? â€Å"She's dangerous. I'm not exactly sure how to put it. . . .† â€Å"She finds girls with magic and sucks away their souls,† supplied Adrian helpfully. Wendy did a double take. â€Å"I'm sorry, what did you say?† â€Å"That's not exactly the case,† I said. â€Å"But it's close enough. She seeks out girls with power and takes it for herself.† â€Å"But I don't use magic,† Wendy countered. â€Å"Like I told you, I don't want anything to do with it. There's a witch who lives in Anaheim who's always telling me how much potential I have and how I should be her apprentice. I keep telling her no, and I've never even tried any spells. This soul-sucking lady has no reason to come after me.† Ms. Terwilliger had warned me some of the girls might say this. In fact, she'd said most would have this argument. â€Å"It doesn't matter,† I said. â€Å"That won't stop her.† Wendy looked terrified now, and I didn't blame her. My reaction had been similar. It was frustrating to know the very thing you were trying to get away from might come after you. â€Å"Then what should I do?† she asked. â€Å"Well, avoid her if you can. If she comes to see you . . . I mean, don't let her in. Don't be alone with her.† That was slightly lame advice, and we all knew it. â€Å"If you do see her, I'd tell that witch in Anaheim. In fact . . . I know you don't want to, but if I were you, I'd get in touch with that witch now and try to get her help. Maybe even learn a few defensive spells. I understand you don't want to – believe me, I really do – but it could save your life. Also . . . † I held out the agate charm. â€Å"You should take this and wear it at all times.† Wendy eyed the charm as though it were a poisonous snake. â€Å"Is this some trick to get me to learn magic after all? You come here with this whole act about how if I don't learn, I could get my soul sucked away?† Again, I had to give her points. I would think exactly the same thing. â€Å"We're telling the truth,† I insisted. â€Å"There's no proof I can offer – well, wait. Give me your email address, and I'll send you this article about another girl it happened to.† Wendy looked like she was on the verge of using the pepper spray. â€Å"I think I would've heard if some girl had her soul magically sucked away.† â€Å"It wasn't really obvious to those who don't know about the magical world. Let me send it to you, and then you can make your own decisions. It's the best I can offer.† She reluctantly agreed and wrote down her email address. Adrian stepped forward to take it from her, but he must have moved too quickly because she suddenly thrust the can of pepper spray in his direction. â€Å"Stay back!† she exclaimed. At the exact same moment, I sprang in front of him, terrified he was about to get a face full of pepper spray. I cast the first spell I could think of, a simple one that created a flashy – but harmless – show of colored light. A shielding spell would've been much more useful, but I hadn't practiced any yet. That would have to be rectified, in case our future errands involved more pepper spray. â€Å"You back off,† I warned. As I'd hoped, the brilliant display was terrifying to someone anti-magic like Wendy. She retreated to the far side of her apartment and thankfully didn't use the spray. â€Å"G-get out,† she stammered, eyes full of fear. â€Å"Please take precautions,† I said. I set the charm on the floor. â€Å"And please wear this. I'll email you the article.† â€Å"Get out,† she repeated, making no move toward the charm. As Adrian and I walked out of her building and into the sun, I sighed loudly. I was dismayed enough that I didn't even have the chance to feel down about being at a college. â€Å"That didn't go so well,† I said. He thought about it, then grinned. â€Å"I don't know, Sage. You threw yourself in the line of pepper spray for me. You must like me just a little bit.† â€Å"I – I figured it'd be a shame to ruin your pretty face,† I stammered. In truth, I hadn't been thinking of anything that specific. All I'd known was that Adrian was in danger. Protecting him had been instinctual. â€Å"Still, that spell was kind of badass.† I managed a small smile. â€Å"It was harmless, and that's the thing. Wendy didn't know any better. The reason Veronica goes after these girls is that they don't have any magical protection – and that's exactly why they probably can't stop her. I don't think pepper spray will help, but maybe the article will convince her. Oh, shoot. I'll have to make a fake email address for Taylor.† â€Å"No worries,† said Adrian. â€Å"I already have a Jet Steele one you can use.† This actually made me laugh. â€Å"Of course you do. For all the online dating you do, right?† Adrian didn't comment one way or the other, which bothered me more than it should have. I'd meant it as a joke . . . but was there truth to it? If rumors – and some of my own observations – were true, Adrian had experience with a lot of women. A lot. Thinking of him with others upset me, far more than it should have. How many other girls had he kissed with that same intensity? How many had been in his bed? How many had felt his hands upon their bodies? He couldn't have loved them all. Some – probably most – had been conquests, girls whose faces he forgot the next morning. For all I knew, I was just the ultimate conquest for him, a test for his skills. You probably couldn't find a greater challenge than a human with hang-ups about vampires. And yet, thinking back on all the things said and unsaid between us, I was pretty sure that wasn't true. No matter how crazy this romantic entanglement was, he loved me – or thought he did. I was no superficial conquest. It'd probably be better if I was, though. Without an emotional connection, he'd eventually give up and easily find comfort in someone else's arms. This would probably be a good time for me to suggest he do that anyway. But I stayed silent.

Effect of Light Color on Plants

Introduction Living organisms have been classified by humans according to several different characteristics, one of them being the manner in which they obtain nutritive organic molecules (1), in other words, their food. Plants are denominated as autotrophs, organisms that can produce their own food from abiotic sources surrounding them, such as light, carbon dioxide and water (2). Plants use these three factors in photosynthesis to convert light energy into chemical energy, which is then stored until the plant needs it, or used right away (3). The process of photosynthesis takes place on organelles (substructures inside eukaryotic cells) called chloroplasts, more specifically, on the membrane of the thylakoids inside the chloroplasts, where protein complexes known as photosystems are situated. It’s these complexes that are responsible for the photosynthetic processes. Because this is the main way in which plants obtain their food, and light energy is the base of said process, light is absolutely essential for their growth. Sunlight contains many different wavelengths which, when isolated, present different colors of visible light. Plants cannot use all wavelengths of light, however, because the different chlorophylls (pigments in the plants’ chloroplasts, also responsible for photosynthesis) absorb and use only certain wavelengths of light ; the rest is reflected back out, unused (4). Exposed to sunlight, plants have available to them, a range of wavelengths wider than the light spectrum visible to us, from which they utilize only a select range for photosynthesizing. This essay will investigate the effect light color/wavelength has on plant germination and rate of photosynthesis. Cellophane sheets of different colors (red, yellow, blue, green) and clear plastic wrap were used to provide these limited wavelengths . The experiments dealing with germination consisted of different seeds being planted separately from other species and being covered by the different colored cellophane or the clear wrap; they were then watered and monitored for a week, taking note of any growth. The plants used were the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), brown mustard (Brassica juncea), and common oats (Avena sativa). For the photosynthesis rate experiment, same sized Brazilian waterweeds (Egeria densa) were inserted in eudiometer tubes filled with water and then placed in a beaker half-filled with water. Each test tube was wrapped with a different color, and the volume of oxygen produced, through photosynthesis, by each of the plants was compared. Beans, specifically all the plants under the genus Phaseolus, are amongst the fastest growing plants and are said to germinate within a week. To make them germinate faster, it’s usually recommended to soak them in water before planting because hydrating the seeds stimulates germination. (5) They also benefit from warm temperatures because they are native to more tropical climates (6). They need to be planted in well drained soil because they aren’t tolerant to water excess. Mustard is also among the fastest sprouting plants, but its growth afterwards is relatively slow as it’s meant to grow flower buds five weeks later. It does better in cool conditions than warm and can usually withstand short periods of mild drought with little to now consequences. In addition, it too, is not tolerant to water clogging in the soil (7). Oats are native to warm, sub-tropical regions and can manage well in poor soils (8) but they also require good water draining . The Experiments Germination Fifteen equally sized plastic containers (cylindrical in shape, approximately 8cm in diameter and 6cm in height) were filled with the same amount of soil. Five of them were allotted to each plant species; making sure to add the same amount of seeds in each segment (comparing to the same species, since the size of the beans and oats is much greater than the brown mustard seeds and would therefore be unreasonable to compare their numbers). Each of the containers was covered with cellophane of a different color (red, blue, yellow, green, or clear plastic wrap) and secured with a rubber band so that each species had a sample exposed to each different light color. They were watered with normal tap water, placed next to the same windowpane for a week and monitored every day. The cellophane secured with the rubber band created a seal that was too tight, preventing excess water from evaporating which overloaded the plants with water and deprived them of enough oxygen. Towards the end of the week, the plants were left covered by the cellophane, but unsecured by the rubber band so that the water was able to evaporate, to provide the dry mass of the samples, which were on average 0. 06g lighter than at the beginning of the week, when they were planted . The mass measured included the seeds, soil and plastic container. Even though an unknown type of fungus started growing in the containers because of the high humidity and warm temperature, some shoots were visible (Table 1). Cellophane ColorQualitative Data Red Some oat and mustard shoots, fungus growth Yellow Fungus growth, no shoots visible Green Oat and some mustard shoots visible, some fungus growth Blue Some oat and few mustard shoots, fungus growth Clear Fungus growth, no shoots visible These samples were discarded and a new method was devised: A cardboard egg container was cut into fifteen separate segments (for the five colors for each of the three species) which were to be used instead of the plastic containers to allow excess water to evaporate through the porous walls and bottom of the cardboard. These segments were then loosely filled in with cotton-wool. After the first experiment, where seeds drowned and fungus started to grow instead because of the excess of water, cotton seemed the best substitute for soil; it would allow for even dispersal of water, a lot of more light would be able to reach the seeds, it would be easier to observe the germination process, and since the cotton didn’t weigh practically anything, it would be easy to measure the change of plant mass on a scale. The segments were weighed once they had the cotton and seeds in them; their mass was noted down individually. A thin layer of cotton was placed on top of the seeds so they would retain moisture above them as well as below, but still allowing light to reach them. Then, the segments were watered with a handheld sprayer until the cotton was thoroughly moist and then were weighed again. To provide the different light coloring, one sample of each species was placed underneath a handmade cover fashioned out of bamboo and cellophane. These covers (Figure 1) provided the needed space for the plants to grow, free flow of air, and control of light shining on the plants. The cotton wool wasn’t a good substitute for soil since it retained little water and evaporated too quickly for the plants to take it in; it mostly bled into the cardboard, which, because of its porous nature, allowed for further evaporation of water. The results are shown in the following table: Color of CellophaneQualitative Data Red Few mustard shoots + very few oat shoots Yellow Very few mustard shoots Green Mustard shoots* + oat shoots ~4cm Blue Mustard shoots* + oat shoots ~3cm Clear Mustard shoots* + oat shoots ~6cm New cardboard segments were cut out and filled in with soil this time. Care was taken to add the same amount of soil (~ 4. 25g) and water (2. 0g) to each container at the beginning of the experiment. The following three days, the amount of water was altered from day to day to find the adequate amount of water that could be retained by the soil without too much bleeding into the cardboard container (since this would weaken its structure and remain unused by the plant); the conclusion was derived that the amount of water should be of the same mass as half of the soil in the container in order to maximize water intake by the plant: about 2. 5g. The results can be seen in Table 3 on the following page. Color of CellophaneQualitative Data Red Mustard sprouts* Yellow No growth Green Mustard sprouts * + oat shoots ~5cm Blue Mustard sprouts* + oat shoots ~8cm Clear Mustard sprouts* + oat shoots ~8cm Photosynthesis Rate The rate of photosynthesis was measured through the volume of oxygen produced in a set amount of time. To do this, six eudiometer tubes were wrapped with different color cellophane (one was left bare, to be the control) and filled with tap water. Next, six strands of Brazilian waterweeds were cut to the same size, each inserted into an eudiometer tube and then placed in a half filled beaker. The eudiometers were held with clamps on a stand and left next to wide windows to photosynthesize at their own rate. The oxygen produced by the plants floated to the surface creating bubbles that could then be measured and compared to each other. The sunlight provided was insufficient however, and the oxygen produced was too little to be measured accurately, but there were clear differences between the different samples; the waterweed in the red light was the one the produced most oxygen, followed by the green, then the blue, yellow, and clear. The control, the one without any cover, was the one that produced the least oxygen. After the experimentation, the data collected was reviewed to determine the most beneficial color for plant germination and photosynthesis rate. Taking the data from each week, the cellophane colors were arranged in order of effectiveness, to make it easier to compare the results (Table 4). Germination Photosynthesis Rate Week 1 Week 2Week 3 Red Green* Clear* Blue* Green Red* Green* Clear* Blue Blue* Blue* Green* Yellow Clear Red Red* Clear YelllowYellow Yellow No cover