The Great Gatsby :: essays research papers

How far a person will go to accomplish a dream has no limits. If it includes self-reinvention, illegal acts, and self-indulgence the dream may not be as a result significant. But that is the case, in The Great Gatsby, by F Scott Fitzgerald, as the narrator Nick tells the accomplishments and wasted acts of the man known as Gatsby. Nick chooses to tell us this story to illustrate the consequences of Gatsby a man who he in the end has a positive opinion of and respects for his courage at attempting to fulfill a futile dream.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nick, the narrator, tells Gatsby’s story to paint a picture of an American Dream and how it becomes so crucial to accomplish a certain part of the dream that one becomes careless; which leads into other outside ambitions that alter the dream and which is therefore never accomplished. Nick summarizes this by saying â€Å"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past† (189). This quote is most significant because it sums up the book and how it can be applied to Gatsby’s life and the life of numerous others. It says â€Å"we† are like boats beating against the current meaning that people struggle to prosper for a dream but never truly achieve happiness. Although people to some extent do prosper they desire more and more that ultimately forget, dim or glorify the purpose of the dream and that leads t them into never attaining happiness. Gatsby’s life is an example of all of this because he reached hig h for Daisy’s love but in the end did not receive it because he was rather immoral in his journey in doing so. The end of Gatsby’s story is full of sad events and the reader must read between the lines. The reader must come to understand that Nick tells us Gatsby’s story as an example of what not to do, so that somehow readers can learn from the mistakes others commit and their own so that humanity can live more of a complete life. From the beginning Nick tells us how he controversially feels about Gatsby. Nick says â€Å"Gatsby who represented everything for which I have and unaffected scorn† (6) later goes on and says â€Å"Gatsby turned out all right at the end† (6). It is difficult for the reader to come to a conclusion as to what Nick’s opinion of Gatsby is.

How American and British towns and cities are preparing for peak oil

Peak oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline. This is expected to happen at the midpoint of depletion, that is, when only half the oil that will ever be produced has been consumed, and the other half is still underground. When oil production starts to decline, the economic impacts will be dramatic. Economic growth is largely dependent upon a growing oil supply. The International Energy Agency has forecast oil demand to expand at a rate of 1.3% annually over the period 2004-2030. This is likely to lead to large spikes in the oil price along with the price of gas and electricity which are closely linked on financial markets. British local authorities are now starting to consider the potential impact of peak oil on their services and communities. The preparations they have made are as follows: Woking Borough Council in Surrey has achieved major cuts in the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of its buildings largely by converting to combined heat and power (CHP), that is, small, local gas fired power stations, which provide both electricity and heats to buildings nearby. CHP is highly efficient because it exploits the large amounts of heat that are normally wasted in electricity generation to provide space heating and hot water. Woking says this approach has cut gas consumption by as much as 30% and emissions by even more which is a great achievement. But although Woking has cut its gas consumptions, its dependency upon gas is now even higher than before because a far greater proportion of its total energy comes from this single source. Woking is now proud that it now generates 82% of its own electricity, and distributes it through a private wire network. The preparations the US cities have made are as follows: In the Arlington County, Virginia, the board has published an environmental initiative called fresh AIRE (Arlington Initiative To Reduce Emissions) This document outlines the aims put in place in the right direction towards preparing for peak oil: – Increase purchase of wind-generated electricity from 3% of the total electricity purchased by the county to 5% – Install solar energy technology (eg: solar water heating) in one or two county facilities to demonstrate its efficiency and effectiveness. – Prepare a strategic energy plan and a climate action plan for County operations and the community. – Plant at least 1,200 trees in 2007. The measures put in place are as follows: – Many transportation options, including transit, and the development of a Master Transportation Plan. – An energy-efficient County fleet, including hybrid-electric vehicles, vehicles running on bio-diesel fuel, and ART buses powered by natural gas. – An aggressive tree planting program, which includes the purchase of wind-generated electricity. – A renewable energy program, which includes the purchase of wind-generated electricity. The document also recommends three things that individuals can do for themselves, which again would also be useful in beginning to mitigate peak oil – Drive a fuel-efficient car, walk, bike, or take transit. If 10 people trade in cars that get 24 miles per gallon for more efficient cars that get 40 miles per gallon, this action alone would reduce CO2 emissions by 40000 lbs per year which is equivalent of taking four of those cars off the road. – Get an energy audit, and implement the recommendations. This year, the county will support 20 demonstration home energy audits. I recently purchased an energy audit for my home and have learned many things I can quickly do to save on energy costs. – Replace one frequently-used light bulb with a compact fluorescent bulb. If every household took this simple step, Arlingtonians would achieve the emissions equivalent of removing 1,000 cars from our roadways and save a million dollars a year. It was suggested by experts that the County should distribute at least 2,000 compact fluorescent light bulbs at public events, to reduce CO2 by 100 tons.

Your Tequila May Contain Methanol

Happy Cinco de Mayo! If your holiday celebration includes tequila, you may be interested to know the American Chemical Society (ACS) has found that some tequila contains methanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol, and 2-phenylethanol. What are these chemicals? In case youre wondering, no, these are not good and desirable chemicals to drink. The alcohol in alcoholic beverages that you drink is ethyl alcohol or ethanol (grain alcohol). Methanol (wood alcohol) and other alcohols are the types that can make you go blind and otherwise cause permanent neurological damage, not to mention give you a nasty hangover. The ACS purposely timed the release of the results to coincide with Cinco de Mayo, to raise awareness of the quality control issue. Tequila made from 100% blue agave tended to have higher levels of undesirable chemicals than other types of tequila (pure agave tequila is usually considered superior). What This Means Does this mean tequila somehow bad? No, actually tequila is one of the best-regulated alcoholic beverages in the world. The results not only point out a potential health hazard for this drink but also indicate other beverages are probably adulterated with contaminants. Its the nature of distillation. The process relies on boiling point differences between liquids, which means good control of temperature is key. Also, the first and last portion of alcohol that is distilled (the heads and the tails) contain other compounds besides ethanol. Not all of these molecules are bad, so a distiller may choose to retain a certain amount. Then, there is a risk of picking up contaminants during the aging process. Its tricky, which is why top-shelf tequila is likely way better than home-grown moonshine, as far as your health goes. Yet, its possible to distill alcohol without unwanted compounds. Why does the problem persist? Its partly a matter of economics, where a distillery determines what level of contamination is acceptable. Increasing purity decreases yield which decreases profit. Its partly a compromise between making a product with premium flavor, color, and scent while keeping toxins to a minimum.