Statistics Essay: Interpreting Social Data

Statistics Essay: Interpreting Social Data Interpreting Social Data The British Household Panel Survey of 1991 measured many opinions, among otherthings, of the UK population. One of the questions asked was whether thehusband should be the primary breadwinner in the household, while the wifestayed at home. Answers to the questions were provided on an ordinal scale,progressing in five ordinances from Strongly disagree to Strongly agree.Results for each ordinance were recorded from male respondents and femalerespondents. Of survey respondents, 96.75, or N = 5325.162 answered thisquestion of a total survey population of N = 5500.829. 3.2%, or N = 175.667 ofsurvey respondents did not answer the question. In lay terms, this meansapproximately 97% of the survey respondents answered the question, while 3% didnot. The study presents ordinal ranking, or ranking in a qualitative manner, of fivesets of concordant pairs of variables: the male and female count for those whostrongly agree the husband be the primary earner while the wife stays at home,the male and female count for those who agree, the male and female count forthose who are neutral, the male and female count for those who disagree, andthe male and female count for those who strongly disagree. The sexcross-tabulation presents numeric data for responses for each of the tenvariables, arranged in five variable pairs with male and female responses foreach variable pair. Data is presented in terms of number of responses for eachof the ten variables. The counts or number of responses for each variable aredependent variables in the data analysis. We know they are dependentvariables because first, they are presented on the y-axis in the chartgraphically representing the data. Dependent variables are graphicallyrepresented on the y-axis, with independent variables presented on the x-axis.Causally it becomes more difficult to distinguish between dependent andindependent variables at first glance. Dependent variables usually change as aresult of independent variables. For example, if one were studying the effectof a certain medication on blood sugar in diabetics, the independent variablewould be the amount of medication given to the patient. In a test group orcohort of patients, each would be given a set dosage and their blood sugarresponses recorded. One patient may respond with a blood sugar reading of 110when given 20mg of medicine. Another day the patient, again given 20mg ofmedicine, may respond with a blood sugar reading of 240. The amount ofmedicine provided to the patient is fixed, or the independent variable. Theresponse of the patient is variable, and believed to be influenced by, ordependent on, the amount of medicine provided. The dependent variable wouldtherefore be the responding blood sugar reading in each patient. In this survey, independent variables are the fivechoices of answers available to the survey takers. These five possibleresponses are presented to each survey respondent, just as the medicine isprovided to the patient in the example above. The respondent then chooses hisor her reply to the five possible answers, or chooses not to answer thequestion at all. The amount of those choosing not to answer at all, 3.2%, isconsidered statistically irrelevant in the analysis of this data. Data relatedto non-response is not considered from either an independent variable ordependent variable standpoint. The amount of responses or response count for a givenindependent variable in the survey is a dependent variable. The response countwill change, at least slightly, from survey to survey. This could be a due tochange in survey size, response rate or number of those choosing to respond tothe statement, or possible minor fluctuation in percentage response for thefive answer possibilities. Although the statistical results of the responsesshould be similar, given a large enough and representative sample for eachsurvey attempt, some variance is likely to occur. The independent dependentvariable relationship in the Husband should earn, wife should stay at homeanalysis is trickier to get ones mind around than the medical example givenabove. In the medical example, it is easy to grasp how a medicine could affectblood sugar, and the resulting cause-effect relationship. In this survey, thecreation of five answer groups causes the respondents to categorise theiropinion into one of the groups, a much more difficult mental construction thanmore straightforward cause-result examples. Fourexamples of dependent variables in these statistics are the number of men whoagreed with the statement (525), the number of women who agreed with thestatement (520), the number of men who disagreed with the statement (688), andthe number of women who disagreed with the statement (997). As describedabove, we know these are dependent variables because they are caused by theindependent variables, the five ordinal answer groups, in the survey. Overall,empirical data for the results is skewed towards the Disagree / Stronglydisagree end of the survey. Three of the independent variables are ofparticular note. Strongly agree is the lowest response for both men and women,with Disagree being the highest response for both men and women althoughaccording to Gaussian predictions the Not agree/disagree variable should have thehighest distribution. Inlay terms, the graphical representation of each of the five possible answersshould have looked like a bell-shaped curve. The two independent variables oneach end of the chart, Strongly agree and Strongly disagree, should have had alow but approximately equal response. The middle independent variable on thechart, Not agree / disagree, should have been the largest response. Thisshould have produced dependent variables of approximately 935 each for both menand women for the Not agree / disagree variable. Instead, the response for menwas 586, or 63% of typical distribution of answers. The response for women was702, or 75% of the typically distributed answers. The mean, or average, of allresponses in this survey is 1065.2, with the mean or average of male responsesbeing 464.6 and the mean or average of female responses being 600.6. Were theresponses distributed evenly amongst all five possible answers, these would bethe anticipated response counts. Inexamining this data, a hypothesis can be put forth that the correlation betweenthe counts on two of the answer possibilities (two of the dependent variables)will be some value other than zero, at least in the population represented bythe survey respondents. This hypothesis can be tested using the ordinalsymmetric measures produced in the data analysis. As Pilcher describes, whendata on two ordinal variables are grouped and given in categorical order, wewant to determine whether or not the relative positions of categories on twoscales go together (1990, 98). Three ordinal symmetric measures, Kendallstau-b, Kendalls tau-c, and Gamma, were therefore calculated to determine ifthe order of categories on the amount of agreement to the question would helpto predict the order of categories on the count or amount of those selectingeach ordinal category. The most appropriate measures of association toevaluate this hypothesis are the two Kendalls tau measures. The Kendall tau-cmeasure allows for tie correction not considered in the Kendall tau-b measure.The results of these measures, value .083 and .102 with approximate Tbof 6.75 indicate there is neither a perfect positive or perfect negativecorrelation between variables. Results do indicate a low level of predictionand approximation of sampling distribution. The correlation between two of thedependent variables is indeed a value other than zero, proving the hypothesiscorrect. Three nominal symmetric measures were also calculated.These showed weak relationship between category and count variables, with avalue of only .096 for Phi, Cramers V, and Contingency Coefficient. Thesewere not used in testing the above hypothesis. Atheory of distribution, Chebyshevs theorem states that the standard of deviationwill be increased when data is spread out, and smaller when data is compacted.While the data may or may not present according to the empirical rule(bell-shaped), Chebyshevs theorem contends that defined percentages of thedata will always be within a certain number of standard deviations from themean (Pilcher 1990). Inthis example, data is compressed into five possible answer variables. The datadoes not present according to the empirical rule, but is skewed towards thedisagreement end of the variable scale. However, Chebyshevs theorem doesapply relating to the distribution of data according to standard deviation fromthe mean for nine of the ten dependent variables. The response count of womenwho Disagree with the statement the Husband should earn, the wife stay at home,was proportionately larger than would be indicated along normal distribution.While the response count for men is also statistically high, it is not beyondthe predictions of Chebyshevs theorem. If the survey had been conducted withfewer independent variables, say three ordinances instead of five, theresulting data would be more tightly compacted. If the survey had beenconducted with ten ordinances, the data would have been more spread out. REFERENCES Pilcher, D., 1990. Data Analysis forthe Helping Professions. Sage Publications, London.

The Physics of Basketball Essays -- Physics Essays

The Physics of Basketball Introduction Any child can pick up a basketball, bounce it a few times, and throw it at the hoop without realizing the complex physics he is involving himself in. However, a greater understanding of the sport can be gained by applying the principles of physics to these actions. Through this paper I will be examining the physics of dribbling and shooting. For the equations, I will use a standard men’s basketball with a mass of 25 oz. (0.7 kg) and a diameter of 9.39†. Dribbling If the basketball was simply dropped from a height of 1 meter with no initial push from the dribbler and rebounded from the floor in a perfectly elastic collision, Mechanical Energy for the system would be conserved (1). However, the collision is not completely elastic and the dribbler pushes the ball with an initial force to ensure that it returns to his hand. To simplify the process I will first consider a situation in which the ball is allowed to fall freely from a height of 1 meter and has a perfectly elastic collision with the floor. After that I will take the true nature of the collision with the floor and the force applied by the dribbler into consideration. Because Mechanical Energy (ME) is equal to Kinetic Energy (KE) plus Gravitational Potential Energy (GPE) and Mechanical Energy is conserved, I know that the initial KE + GPE at 1 meter equals the KE + GPE just before it impacts the ground. If KE =  ½ mv2 and initial velocity is zero, then the initial Kinetic Energy is zero. GPE would equal mass X gravity X height. Assuming mass is 0.7 kg, gravity is 9.8 m/s2 , and the height is 1 meter, then GPE is equal to 7.0 kg * m2/s2. Conversely, the GPE would be zero just before impact because height is zero but KE wo... ...with no spin (1). Therefore, giving the ball backspin decreases the force necessary to propel a basketball a certain distance because it will not fall as quickly. Understanding the physics of shooting and dribbling a basketball may not increase the enjoyment of watching the NBA finals, but it may help improve a basketball player’s skill. If he can find the right force necessary to propel the ball back to his hand when dribbling and realizes the importance of giving the ball a chance to fall down into the rim, he will be better off for the next game. Works Cited 1.Kirkpatrick, L. D., & Wheeler, G. F. (2001). Physics: A World View. Orlando: Harcourt College Publishers. 2.How Things Work. Louis A. Bloomfield. Retrieved April 2003. http://howthingswork.virginia.edu/bouncing_ball.html 3. Spalding basketball - http://www.spalding.com/faq/basketball.html#Q7

Evaluation and Management of Patients with Cardio-Pulmonary

Reliability, Validity and the DissertationThe results of a research project should both be reliable and valid. Reliability refers to the consistency of the results of a test in spite of repeated conduct of such test. In saying that a research measurement or method is reliable, it means that the results yielded are consistent even after several repetitions of the test. If not, then it means that the measurements are not reliable and that the integrity of the research findings may be put into question (Beck & Polit, 2003).Validity, on the other hand, is achieved by a research measurement if it measures the variable that it was supposed to measure. In other words, the measurement should be appropriate for the variable being measured. Face validity is established if a measurement looks as if it is measuring the variable it is supposed to measure. Content validity, on the other hand, refers to the sufficiency of the sample in measuring the variable. In achieving content validity, all the important aspects of the variable should be measured, otherwise, there would be important aspects of the variables of the research that will be overlooked (Beck & Polit, 2003). Whether quantitative or qualitative research methods are used for any study, establishing the reliability and validity of the instruments are very important. Reliability allows other people to replicate the study while validity ensures that the features and aspects of the variables being measured are covered completely.This dissertation, in order to be successful, will aim for attaining reliability and validity. In designing the instruments of the dissertation, it will draw upon the literature already written on the subject and look at the measurements used for similar studies conducted before. There will also be pre-testing of the measurement to ensure reliability. As to the validity of the instruments, all the aspect of the variables and the measures will be explored so as to achieve maximum validity.Interv iew with a Researcher  A friend of this author referred him to a University Professor who has had considerable experience in research. Although the field of Professor Rey Johnson is in the Social Sciences, the insights that can be gathered in research tools and methods are still worth considering.According to the Professor, there are a number of ways that prompts a research project. It may be because of a newspaper or a journal article he read; it may be because of a recent event; or a disagreement over the conclusions of fellow researcher. No matter what the source of the research project maybe, as long as there is curiosity and a willingness to pursue and investigate the matter, a research project will be born. After identifying the topic, the main question of the research is formulated and refined. That way, the research has focus and direction.After identifying the research question, the Professor usually summarizes the issues surrounding the issue and looks up related topics in the library and in the Internet. He gets books and journal articles from the library. He then identifies the debates going on in the topic and tries to understand gray areas, as well as the unclear matters in the debate. Consulting books and recent journals helps clarify the issue and presents what has been found out in the last few months or year.Statistics are also helpful in seeking trends in the society, according to the Professor. Since his profession is tied up with the social sciences, statistics such as population growth rate, perceptions of people about certain politicians, and other statistics are helpful for him. This way, he can get a feel of what is going on in the society.Using the library, browsing through books and journal articles have become almost second nature to the professor. If there is one thing that he does not want to lose his years of teaching, it is the love for knowledge and the hunger for it. Although it may be difficult to sustain such passion as th e years go by, the Professor is a certified bibliophile and reads book and articles very quickly. He says that such habit comes out of years of practice. As he continues to complete research project after research project, his facility in handling the research tools he utilizes grows. He also pointed out to the Internet as another tool which greatly enhanced his research. However, there is a danger in using the Internet, he said. It has become very easy for students nowadays to take whatever they find in the Internet, paste those information on their word processors and call them research papers. It is important to be critical of information coming from the internets. What is the source? Who wrote it?For beginning researchers, he only had three advices. The first is for them to read a lot. Most of the topics that interest people nowadays have been explored by philosophers and researchers in the past. Books and journals can greatly enhance the knowledge of a researcher. Secondly, res earchers should develop a curious mind. There are a great deal of issues in the world worthy of a researcher’s eyes and tools. Lastly, they should be critical—they should ask about the source, the measurement and whether the findings of the research are consistent with the methodology and design. As a budding researcher, the advice of the Professor is for this author to spend his time in the library, reading and discovering new takes on old ideas and talking with professional researchers on their way of doing research and the problems they encounter in their fields of work and research.Application to the DissertationAs a result of the interview with the Professor, this researcher will then make extensive use of the library through its books and the research findings published in recent journals. This is to take a look at what have been said in the research question before as well as the debates and gray areas. This way, this research project will be situated adequately and will not simply repeat what has already been found out before. This exposure to previous literature will also give important knowledge to the researcher in ensuring the reliability and validity of the research measurements.The researcher will also become more critical of the sources that he will consult. This is because it is very tempting to get information in the Internet and lift information there without proper citation. In some instances, information from the Internet is not reliable and the source may not be verified. Hence, the temptation for plagiarism will be there. Plagiarism in any instance and in any field of study is never acceptable (De Voss & Rosati, 2002).ConclusionResearch is not always easy. In fact, in order to successfully arrive at the truth or solution of the research problem, the researcher should display rigor, competency, excellence in gathering data and analyzing them, and care in citing ideas borrowed from other authors and researchers. Through these efforts, the body of knowledge of the researcher’s field of specialization will grow. Consequently, the understanding of humans of the particular topic he has chosen to investigate will also grow. ReferenceBeck, C. T. & Polit, D. F. (2003). Nursing Research: Principles and Methods. Wolters Kluwer Health.De Voss, D. & Rosati, A. C. â€Å"It Wasn't Me, Was It?† Plagiarism and the Web. Computers and Composition, 19 (2), 191-203.

Noëls Vocabulary, Traditions and Decorations

Noà «ls Vocabulary, Traditions and Decorations Whether you are religious or not, Christmas, Noà «l (pronounced â€Å"no el†) is an important holiday in France. Since the French don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, Noà «l is really the traditional family gathering. Now, many things have been said about Christmas in France, and its particular traditions such as the thirteen desserts, but many of these traditions are regional, and unfortunately tend to disappear with time.   Right now, across France, here are seven traditions you could be expecting: 1. Le Sapin de Noà «l - The Christmas Tree For Christmas, traditions asks that you go get a Christmas Tree â€Å"un sapin de Noà «l†, decorate it and set it in your house. Some people would plant theirs back in their yard. Most will just get a cut tree and throw it away when it is dry. Nowadays, many people prefer to have a synthetic tree you can fold and reuse every year. â€Å"Les dà ©corations (f), les ornements (m)† are more or less precious but it is mostly in the US that I’ve heard the traditions of passing on ornements through generations. It is not a very common thing in France. Its not really clear when to set up the sapin de Noà «l. Some set it on Saint Nicks day (December 6th) and remove it on the 3 King Day (lEpiphanie, January 6th). Le sapin de Noà «l - Christmas treeLes aiguilles de pin - pine needlesUne branche - a brancheUne dà ©coration - a decorationUn ornement - an ornamentUne boule - a ball / an ornamentUne guirlande - a garlandUne guirlande à ©lectrique - an electrical garlandL’à ©toile - the star 2. La Couronne de Noà «l - Christmas Wreath Another Christmas Tradition is to use wreaths on your doors, or sometimes as a table centrepiece. This wreath may be done of twigs, or of a fir branch, may have glitter, feature fir cones and if placed on a table, often surrounds a candle. Un centre de table - a centrepieceUne couronne - a wreathUne brindille - a twigUne branche de sapin - a fir branchUne pomme de pin - a fir coneUne bougie - a candleUne paillette - a glitterDe la neige artificielle - artificial snow 3. Le Calendrier de l’Avent - Advent Calendar This is a special calendar for kids, to help them count the days before Christmas. Behind each number is a door, which reveals a drawing, or a nook with a treat or a little toy. This calendar is usually hung in a communal room as to remind everybody of the countdown before Christmas (and keep an eye on the â€Å"door† openings so that the kids won’t just eat all the chocolate before Christmas...) Un calendrier - a calendarL’Avent - AdventUne porte - a doorUne cachette - a hiding spotUne surprise - a surpriseUn bonbon - a candyUn chocolat - a chocolate 4. La Crà ¨che de Noà «l - The Christmas Manger Nativity Another important Christmas tradition in France is the nativity: a little house with Mary and Joseph, an ox and a donkey, the star and an angel, and eventually baby Jesus. The nativity set can be larger, with the 3 kings, many shepherds and sheep and other animals and village people. Some are very old and in the South of France, the little figurines are called â€Å"santons† and can be worth quite a lot of money. Some family make a paper crà ¨che as a project for Christmas, others have a tiny little one somewhere in their house, and some churches would have a live nativity scene during the Christmas mass. Traditionally, baby Jesus is added on December 25th in the morning, often by the youngest child of the household. La crà ¨che - the manger/ nativityLe petit Jà ©sus - baby JesusMarie - MaryJoseph - JosephUn ange - an angelUn boeuf - an oxUn à ¢ne - a donkeyUne mangeoire - a mangerLes rois mages - the 3 kings, the 3 wise menL’à ©toile du berger - the star of BethlehemUn mouton - a sheepUn berger - a shepherdUn santon - manger figurines made in the South of France 5. About Santa, Shoes, Stockings, Cookies and Milk In the old days, children would place their shoes next to the fireplace and hope to get a little present from Santa, such as an orange, a wooden toy, a little doll. Stockings are used instead in the Anglo-saxon countries.   In France, most new houses do not have a fireplace, and the tradition of placing your shoes by it has totally disappeared. Although he does bring the presents on his sleigh, in France what Santa does is not that clear: some think he comes down the chimney himself, some believe he sends a helper or just magically places the gifts on the shoes (if he is an old-fashioned Santa) or under the Christmas tree. In any case, there is no clear tradition of leaving cookies and milk for him†¦ Maybe a bottle of Bordeaux and a toast of foie gras? Just kidding†¦ Le Pà ¨re Noà «l - Santa (or Saint Nicolas in the North-East of France)Le traineau - the sleighLes rennes - reindeersLes elfes - elvesLe Pà ´le Nord - North Pole 6. Christmas Cards and Greetings It’s customary in France to send out Christmas/ Happy New Year cards to your friends and family, although this tradition is disappearing over time. If its better to send them before Christmas, you have until January 31st to do it. Popular Christmas greetings are: Joyeux Noà «l - Merry ChristmasJoyeuses fà ªtes de Noà «l - Merry ChristmasJoyeuses fà ªtes - Happy Holidays (more Politically Correct since not Religious) 7. Les Marchà ©s de Noà «l - Christmas Markets in France Christmas Markets are little villages made up of wooden stalls (called chà ¢lets) which pop up in the center of towns in December. They typically sell decorations, local products and vin chaud (mulled wine), cakes, biscuits and gingerbreads as well as many handcrafted items. Originally common in the North-East of France, they are now popular throughout France - there is a huge one on les Champs Elysà ©es in Paris.

Free Essays on A Night In Question

"The Night in Question" There are a variety of themes to Tobias Wolff’s "The Night in Question" that need to be considered in order to understand what the story is truly about. One of the main themes that we need to look at is unselfishness. Throughout the story, Wolff shows a great deal of family bonding and connections. We look at whether it is a good connection between Frank and Frances or a bad bond between Frank and his father. The story also displays a great deal of religious devotion along with testing your faith. We learn in Frank’s story that the main character, Mike, is faced with a decision that he has to make that will affect his life as long as he lives. Mike is faced with the decision of saving his son’s life or sparing the lives of the people on the train that he doesn’t even know and probably will never meet. How can he give up his own son’s life when he knows that his son isn’t guilty of anything, and maybe the people of the train are guilty? This shows how unselfish one can be by Mike’s being willing to save others over his own son. Mike knows that he has very little time to think about this and that he isn’t alone on this decision: "He can’t. Of course he can’t, on his own. But Mike isn’t on his own. He knows what we all know, even when we try to forget it: we are never alone, ever". This is where the religion aspect plays a part. Mike know that he is not alone and that no one is ever alone: "He will not leave us alone. He is with all of you, as He is with me". Frank is talking about God being the He here. He, being God, is always around and is always telling him, but we can’t always go with what his heart is telling him, but we can’t always go with what is in our hearts. Sometimes our feelings have to be pushed aside, and what we know is right has to be done. We have to do what our minds are telling us because it knows what is right. He knows that his decision i... Free Essays on A Night In Question Free Essays on A Night In Question "The Night in Question" There are a variety of themes to Tobias Wolff’s "The Night in Question" that need to be considered in order to understand what the story is truly about. One of the main themes that we need to look at is unselfishness. Throughout the story, Wolff shows a great deal of family bonding and connections. We look at whether it is a good connection between Frank and Frances or a bad bond between Frank and his father. The story also displays a great deal of religious devotion along with testing your faith. We learn in Frank’s story that the main character, Mike, is faced with a decision that he has to make that will affect his life as long as he lives. Mike is faced with the decision of saving his son’s life or sparing the lives of the people on the train that he doesn’t even know and probably will never meet. How can he give up his own son’s life when he knows that his son isn’t guilty of anything, and maybe the people of the train are guilty? This shows how unselfish one can be by Mike’s being willing to save others over his own son. Mike knows that he has very little time to think about this and that he isn’t alone on this decision: "He can’t. Of course he can’t, on his own. But Mike isn’t on his own. He knows what we all know, even when we try to forget it: we are never alone, ever". This is where the religion aspect plays a part. Mike know that he is not alone and that no one is ever alone: "He will not leave us alone. He is with all of you, as He is with me". Frank is talking about God being the He here. He, being God, is always around and is always telling him, but we can’t always go with what his heart is telling him, but we can’t always go with what is in our hearts. Sometimes our feelings have to be pushed aside, and what we know is right has to be done. We have to do what our minds are telling us because it knows what is right. He knows that his decision i...

Challenging Leopold Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Challenging Leopold - Essay Example King Leopold II was Belgian King between 1865 and 1909. Under Leopold II control, the regime became notorious for forced labour used to gather ivory, palm oil and rubber. It killed so many locals in turn, until its misdoings were eventually exposed and widely reported by the Congo Reform Association, which had been established by Edmund Dene Morel, after which King Leopold was forced to transfer control to the Belgian government. Edmund Morel discovered that the trade in Congo was based on slave labor while in the course of duty at the Shipping Company where he worked. He realized that most ships landing were laden with valuables: ivory, rubber and minerals. However, the ships departing to Congo mainly carried soldiers, ammunitions and other weapons of destruction. There was only one conclusion from the discrepancy: slave labour was ongoing in Congo. Chapter 1 Henry Morton Stanley was an American journalist and an explorer, who was born in Wales. He explored through the Congo River a nd Basin and vast lands of the present DRC. He teamed up with resource hungry King Leopold II to establish the Congo Free State. In Europe, explorers were respected and treated in awe. This explains why many European countries competed to send explorers. The motives of British Exploration in Africa were several. Importantly, it was to acquire resources and new market for its product. Secondly, it was as result of political reasons as major European nations were competing for colonies. Importantly, Britain desired to spread religion, open up the region and stop slave trade. The targets of anti-slavery fervor in the 1960s were mainly Arabs operating mainly from East Africa. Dr Livingston was a Scottish born explorer, famous for his works in Central Africa. His initial aim was to spread Christianity and commerce in the region. While in Africa, he developed illness and was not heard from for a long time prompting his search. Henry Morton Stanley is famous for having found Dr. Livingston e in Africa. This was after being commissioned by the New York Herald to go and search for him. His search for Dr Livingstone was important to his future career because after finding Dr Livingstone, he preceded with exploration in the Congo Basin and River, and it his findings which prompted him to team up with Leopold to establish Congo Free State. Chapter 2 Leopold was obsessed with making Belgium an imperial power, succeeding at what his father did not. Edmund Dene Morel account describes him as a cruel, greedy yet with a charming personality. Leopold believed that one of the key to building a powerful, imperial Belgium was to through colonial expansion. One of the core reasons why he wanted a colony was to establish recognition: he felt that he was not truly in charge of Belgium because of Parliament. Therefore, he wanted a colony in order to establish his recognition, and create a profit to build monuments. He promoted his interests in Africa through creation of Congo Free Stat e, which was a privately held state. The Brussels Geographical Conference took place in September 1876 at the request of Leopold and its agenda was to discuss Europe activity in Africa. H invited several experts and explorers to the conference. He used this conference to rubber stamp his interest in Africa,

The firsts in your life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The firsts in your life - Essay Example There were a total of nine participants including me in the course. As far as the theoretical parts go they were easy. A total of seven hours of theoretical teaching lead in the culmination of an exam in which the minimum pass percentage was cent percent. That means anyone wishing to pursue skydiving further than theory was supposed to obtain a score of 100 out 100. Eventually the day arrived. In the dressing room we put on our diving overalls, parachutes, altimeters (gadget that keeps track of the altitude), helmets, gloves and goggles. Last minute reminders, tips, tricks, prayers in short there was a general buzz of excitement around; an excitement that reverberated with a tingling sensation in my spine. All the divers queued up and boarded a twin otter double engine aircraft. The aircraft taxi, takeoff, and eventual ascension to nearly 12,000 feet seemed something irrelevant compared what was coming. "Of course who can force me to jump if I don't want to" that was the thought running in mind during the time of the flight. It's odd how some silly reasoning like not wanting to disappoint your instructor could be a factor in one's resolve when death seems more than just a possibility, but it did. Finally when the plane reached approximately 12,500 feet the rear ramp was opened. In an instant my goggles smoked up, after the smoke cleared I was shocked to see the plane empty of the sky-divers. The only ones left behind were instructors and jump facilitators, all with a brooding grin on their faces. It was my moment of truth, no excuses. Those few seconds, my toes peeping over the edge of the plane, all I heard was my instructors command, "Now!", and I jumped. With the earth nearly twelv e thousand five hundred feet below, those few seconds became the defining moment of my life. (Skydiving.com) The first few seconds, I had a sense of falling, and falling fast. Those initial few seconds nearly took the life right out of me quite literally as during the first few seconds (till one is stabilized) breathing is strained. Suddenly everything became peaceful, calm, as if one was falling through emptiness into oblivion. The speed and that sense of falling were gone; replaced by what some would call weightlessness; I was floating for all I could say. Keeping an eye on the altimeter which showed nearly 6,000 feet (meaning I had dived nearly half the distance) I braced for opening the parachute. At soon as the altimeter crossed the 5,500 mark I pulled the ripcord. The parachute ballooned without any problems. The great anti-force slowed me with a jolt. The canopy flight, of course, was to take more time than the free fall. This was when I began getting a good look at my surroundings; the view was simply breath-taking. (Skydiving.com) Ever heard the word "On top of the world" I'm sure it refers to the sky-diving experience and nothing else. After taking in the scenery for a while it was time to get the bearings right for the landing. The tension mounted again as I neared the landing area, piercing the clouds. But maneuvering the chute proved to be easier than I considered it to be. Eventually I landed,