...Killing Lizards The short story was published in 1981 and takes place in an English family who have migrated to Africa and lived there for to years. All children seek acceptance, attention and love through their childhood. If a child does not receive acceptance, attention or love, then how can they find the confidence to be them selves? They will be stuck in an insecure world, where they have no faith in them selves and no real identity. How can the children know if they have done something good or bad if no one pays attention or reacts to what they have achieved? These three adjectives are a must to a successful upbringing. Through the story “Killing Lizards” The principal character, Gavin, never achieves the acceptance, attention or love that he is really in need of. Fantasy vs. reality Gavin lives in Africa with his family, his sister is named Amanda and goes to a boarding school in England. He misses Amanda a lot, but when she came back to visit, she was a changed girl, more woman than girl. A woman that would rather go shopping with her mother. Than play with her little brother. A sudden solidarity had appeared between his mother and Amanda, and his father and him self were denied access to be apart of it. On that account Gavin started hating Amanda for being mature and requiring all his mothers time during her visit. As a result Gavin started to fantasize about Amanda being dead, how he would be the only child and how that would change everything. But strangely...
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...killing Lizards Essay According to the Sigmund Freud, there is a stage in every human life called “The Phallic Stage”. During “The phallic stage” children become aware of their own and other bodies. At this stage, children also take course to learn the physical differences between male and female, and the gender differences, experiences that amplifies the psychological dynamics of the relationship between the child and the parents. Freud also believed that boys begin to view their fathers as a potential rival for their mother’s affection. In this story, Gavin discreetly directs his sexual desire upon his mother, and directs jealousy and emotional rivalry against his father. What Gavin is going through is called “The Oedipus Complex”. The Oedipus Complex” is actually based on the Greek myth about Oedipus, who marries his mother after killing his father. Gavin expresses his frustrations towards his father by fantasizing him being killed and that is a clear sign of “The Oedipus Complex”. However, Gavin does not only want his father dead, but he also wants his sister, Amanda dead. His murderous fantasy is shown on (Page 2, l. 16-25)”He wished the plane that was bringing her out to Africa would crash and she would be killed” and… “His father and sister had died in a car crash and Gavin had to break the new to his mother”. These two quotes shows clearly how threatened Gavin feels towards his father and sister. The only thing Gavin eager is to get his mother all by himself but...
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...thank the officials of Perambikulam Forest Division, Kerala for permission and for providing the necessary facilities during collection of teak samples. We are grateful to IMD, New Delhi for providing the meteorological data. Generation of MVA data through image analysis was done in the laboratory of the Wood Biology, Department of Wood Science, University of Hamburg, Germany through funding under the INSA/DFG Scientist Exchange Programme. We thank the two anonymous reviewers for their critical reviews of this paper. Received 30 October 2006; revised accepted 8 August 2007 Ethogram of courtship and mating behaviour of garden lizard, Calotes versicolor Bhagyarekha N. Pandav, Bhagyashri A. Shanbhag* and Srinivas K. Saidapur Department of Zoology, Karnatak University, Dharwad 580 003, India An ethogram of courtship and mating in the garden lizard, Calotes versicolor was prepared by recording these behaviours in outdoor terraria. Courtship behaviour was recorded by video camera and handwritten notes of direct observations in nine encounters. A behaviour inventory defining 25 distinctive postures/ gestures, orientations and simple movements is presented, and these units are grouped into...
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...temperatures can change drastically, during the day temperatures can be as hot as 32 degrees Celsius, but at night temperatures can drop as low as -4 degrees Celsius because when the sun goes down there is no moisture in the air to trap the heat so it escapes into space creating cool temperatures. The organisms that can be found in this ecosystem are the following: Organisms in Ecosystem Cactus Wren | Desert Lark | Fat Sand Rat | Gila Monster | Great Jerboa | Horned Lizard | Rattlesnakes | Roadrunner | Thorny Devil | Camel | Lappet Faced Vulture | Sidewinder | Fennec Fox | Great Mouse Tailed Bat | Addax | There is not much benefit of this biodiversity within this ecosystem. The extremely hot temperatures and the very little rainfall makes it hard for trees to grow. Because there is limited water the few animals that live in this ecosystem have adaptations that help them survive. Major organisms in Ecosystem (P) Producers | (C) Consumers | (D) Decomposers | Cactus | Horned Lizard | Earthworms | Desert Shrubs | Great Mouse Tailed Bat | Millipedes | Soap tree Yucca | Desert Tortoises | Bacteria | Jumping Cholla | Water-holding frog | Fungi | There are three major categories of all living organisms’ producers, consumers and decomposers. Producers, also called autotrophs, in an ecosystem consist of mostly plants and some bacteria and algae that use photosynthesis to catch energy by sunlight, carbon dioxide, water to create carbohydrates. Consumers...
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...The Ecology of Chameleons The chameleon is 1 of the rare organisms that evolved to change its skin color in order to survive, with the ability to hunt from over 11/2 times its body length away. The chameleon is forced to interact with many organisms to survive. All these interactions have formed interspecific relationships with these organisms. Although the chameleon is not limited to one ecosystem, it has different species that have evolved to be in several ecosystems. Because the chameleon has these different branches of the chameleon family over the world, it is unlikely that the chameleon will go extinct any time soon, unless the rapid destruction of their habitats starts to increase. In other words, the chameleon family is a healthy species of reptile that will be able to thrive as long as the environment. A chameleon interacts with all kinds of organisms. It will eat almost any bug that will fit in it’s mouth or get caught by its bullet-like tongue. This is predation where the dominant organisms will take advantage of its prey and hunt it and eat it. This is a (-,+)situation where the prey obviously suffers from dying and being eaten while the predator thrives and survives. Although, the chameleon is not the dominant species. It is hunted by monkeys and other larger omnivores/herbivores. This puts it on the negative side of the predatory relationship. The chameleon helps keep bug species in check while being put in check by other organisms. A couple of the 180 species are...
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...Jurassic Park Michael Crichton Copyright Michael Crichton (c) 1991 All Rights Reserved The right of Michael Crichton to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published in Great Britain in 1991 by the Random Century Group 20 Vauxhall Bridge Rd, London SWIV 2SA Century Hutchinson South Africa (Pty) Ltd PO Box 337, Bergvlei 2012 South Africa Random Century Australia Pty Ltd 20 Alfred St, Milsons Point, Sydney, NSW 2061 Australia Random Century New Zealand Ltd PO Box 40-086, Glenfield, Auckland 10 New Zealand A CIP Catalogue Record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 0 7126 4686 8 Printed in England by Clays Ltd, St Ives plc For A-M and T "Reptiles are abhorrent because of their cold body, pale color, cartilaginous skeleton, filthy skin, fierce aspect, calculating eye, offensive smell, harsh voice, squalid habitation, and terrible venom; wherefore their Creator has not exerted his powers to make many of them." LINNAEUS, 1797 "You cannot recall a new form of life." ERWIN CHARGAFF, 1972 Introduction "The InGen Incident" The late twentieth century has witnessed a scientific gold rush of astonishing proportions: the headlong and furious haste to commercialize genetic engineering. This enterprise has proceeded so rapidly-with so little outside commentary-that its dimensions and implications are hardly understood at all. Biotechnology promises the...
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...Lizard Physiology Derrick Keyser BIO/101 March 17, 2014 Brian Fox Lizard Physiology Lizards once ruled the earth as massive beasts, but over the course of time, evolution has changed them to be much smaller than they once were. While these creatures have been around for millions of years, they’ve had to change to become better suited for the environments that they currently inhabit. The lizards that I am the most familiar with are now living in developed areas, such as rural neighborhoods and urban sprawls. While walking around my house or place of work, I often see the little green Anole lizards scurrying about. These little guys are small because they are naturally inclined to hide from danger. If I move slowly enough, I can catch them out on the sidewalks or the sides of trees sunning themselves. But if I get too near, they hurry away to the nearest hiding spot; under a bush, into a hole in a brick wall, whatever happens to be nearby. If these creatures haven’t evolved to become smaller, they wouldn’t be able to fit where they can now. According to the website published by Joanides (2011) there are upwards of 3000 different types of lizards, each varying in color, size, and location. Many of these lizards primarily eat insects, which helps to keep the insect population under control. Since insects are available virtually everywhere, I can imagine that the Anole lizards in Florida have plenty to eat, even in the urban areas. The majority of lizards are found in tropical...
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...Evolutionary Diversification of Caribbean Anolis Lizards. In: Adaptive Speciation, eds. Dieckmann U, Doebeli M, Metz JAJ & Tautz D, pp. 322–344. Cambridge University Press 2004. c International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis Please cite as: J.B. Losos and R.S. Thorpe. Introduction. Pp. 322-324 in Adaptive Speciation, reference above 16 Evolutionary Diversification of Caribbean Anolis Lizards 16.1 Introduction Jonathan B. Losos and Roger S. Thorpe The diversification of the lizard genus Anolis on Caribbean islands surely represents one of the best-studied cases of adaptive radiation in evolutionary biology. Over the course of the past four decades, researchers have studied almost every aspect of anole evolutionary ecology. These include systematics; community, physiological, and behavioral ecology; functional morphology; ethology; and demography. Studies have been conducted in the laboratory and in the field, and have included basic natural history, geographic and temporal comparisons of populations, and a wide variety of experimental approaches to the study of phenotypic plasticity, ethology, ecology, and evolution [recent reviews include Losos (1994) and Roughgarden (1995)]. The result is an unusually broad and detailed understanding of the factors that promote and sustain evolutionary diversification and species coexistence. Speciation and adaptation in anoles Two conclusions from the current body of work are obvious. First, the genus Anolis has experienced extensive speciation...
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...vaulting ambition”(1.7). This shows that the only thing that is influencing Macbeth’s actions is his ambition; however, having ambition as his only drive results in him being unaware of the damage he is causing in the world around him. Macbeth’s ambition makes him see anyone who could put his position of power at risk as a threat, one of these threatening figures being Macduff. Macbeth knows that Macduff’s loyalties don't lie with him, so he decides to “kill his wife, his babes and all unfortunate souls that trace him in his line” (4.1). Macbeth wants Macduff’s family dead because Macduff’s children are heirs to the throne; therefore, they are threats who could potentially overthrow him, so killing them only further secured his position. Unfortunately, Macbeth’s malfeasance, the killing of Macduff’s family, resulted in him acquiring an enormous target on his back, specifically from Macduff. Infused with anger, Macduff murders Macbeth, thus ending his iniquitous reign. Macbeth’s death is directly correlated with his ambition, for it was his ambition that led him to infuriate Macduff enough to murder him. Much like Frankenstein, Macbeth’s ambitious actions were what caused his downfall. The differences in the play, Macbeth, and the novel, Frankenstein, are rooted in what drives the title character’s ambition, Frankenstein being motivated by knowledge and Macbeth by power. Throughout his whole life, Frankenstein has had a staunch feeling that he “was capable of a more intense application...
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...Essay on Killings by Andre Dubus The story “Killings” by Andre Dubus highlights the themes of love and revenge. It is a story about the crime committed by the two characters in the story – Richard Strout and Matt Fowler and its consequences. Both committed the crime of murder. The characters, however, had a different motive for committing the crime. In the end, both crimes resulted in a tragedy for the two characters. In this story, Matt Fowler was described as a loving father to his children. He was also a protective father to all his children. He was described as a father who was fearful every time his children go out to swim in the pond or the sea, or when his children attempt to climb the oak in their backyard or when they skate in the ice during the winter season. He was also described as a good husband to his wife. When his wife was worried about their son’s relationship with a married woman he was quick to reassure her that every thing will be alright. He was also described to be a good friend to Willis. His love for his children drove Matt to take revenge against Richard Strout who was the person responsible for killing Frank Fowler. Matt Fowler was devastated when he lost his beloved son. Ever since the killing happened there was not a single day that passed that Matt did not think about taking revenge against Richard Strout. As Andre Dubus wrote, “And beneath his listless wandering, every day in his soul he shot Richard Strout in the face.” He wanted revenge...
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...To Kill or Not to Kill, That is the Question Murderers, killers: A person who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being. When I hear these words, I think to myself, how could a human being just go out and kill another human being? A killer has to be someone who has something going on up in his or her head to make them crazy enough to murder someone. How could a person be that mad enough to even get the motivation to kill another person? Could an individual that has murdered someone not really be considered a killer, but rather the victim? In the story Killings, written by Andre Dubus, and the story A Rose for Emily, written by William Faulkner, I learned that both main characters have a motivation for murder in which they both fulfill in doing. However, after understanding these characters reasons for murder, I do not know if I can really say that they are considered murderers. In Andre Dubus’s, Killings, Matt Fowler’s youngest son, Frank, was shot and killed by Richard Strout. Frank was dating Strout’s soon to be ex-wife, Mary Ann. Strout was not happy about this so he shot and killed Frank right in front of Mary Ann and their two sons. Since Strout shot Matt’s son Frank, Matt then shoots Strout. After understanding the situation as of why Matt shot Strout, one might think that Matt shot Strout simply because Strout killed his son. However, this was not Matt’s only motivation for murder. Matt not only has to deal with his guilt over his son’s death...
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...Written in 1916 by Susan Glaspell, Trifles is a one-act play of a murder investigation of a farmer named John Wright. In the kitchen of the Mr. and Mrs. Wright, to help in the investigation Sheriff Henry Peters and his wife are being accompanied by Lewis Hale and his wife. Also in attendance is the county attorney Mr. George Henderson. Within this story, during his sleep, Farmer John Wright was killed having a rope tied around his neck. Now the murder suspect is not unknown in fact it was Minnie, Mr. Wright’s wife who committed the murder. Martha Hale as previously said is the wife of farmer Lewis Hale. Mrs. Hale is a type of woman that absolutely resents the stereotypical view of women that most men had in these times in society. At the first sign of Mrs. Hale’s dialogue in the story she is already somewhat combatant when defending her fellow women stating “There’s a great deal of work to be done on a farm”, “Those towels get dirty awful quick. Men’s hands aren’t as clean as they might be” (Glaspell. Speech 32 & 34). This moment in the play is part of a small exchange between Martha and the attorney. Towards the end of the play, Martha Hale begins to become sympathetic towards Mrs. Wright. Although all evidence points to Mrs. Wright being the killer, Mrs. Hale remembers Minnie Wright as a sweet, lovely and cheerful girl, “She-come to think of it, she kind of like a bird herself-real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and-fluttery. How-she-did-change.” (Glaspell. Speech...
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...“The Killing of Laura” In “The Killing of Laura” Carolyn Weaver asserts that in Laura’s romance relationship with John O’Neil, Johns will is what killed Laura and defeated her will of power. In this case of murder there were two factors that led to Laura’s death, cultural and personal. Traditional male socialization provoked the killing and Laura’s attitude and insecurity towards life made her an easy target. Social attitudes facilitate domestic violence. On the twenty-fourth day of October, 1977 Laura Ellen Weaver was murdered by her ex-boyfriend, John Oneil. Laura was dressed in her pajamas, in her parents’ kitchen, sitting at the table trying to sort out the details of her numerous attempts to end her relationshoip with John, her past lover and aggressor for the past year. Her previous attempts were unsuccessful. Laura had informed her friend the day before that she was bad at confrontation, and so this is why she was in such a predicament. Her contemplation was inteerupted by a tap to the window caused by John. She opened the door to talk to him; having broken up with the man, she still cared for him as a friend. Laura had no notion that hidden in John’s jacket pocket was a knife he had taken from his home. Laura’s father went downsatirs to turn off the kitchen light, unaware anyone in his home was awake. He stumbbled upon John and Laura’s conversation. He told John to go home and talk to Laura tomorrow, for it was far too late in the day. Her father returned upstairs...
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...Theme of Revenge in Homer's Odyssey Homer’s The Odyssey is not just a tale of a man’s struggle on his journey home from the Trojan War, but of his struggle from the consequences of revenge. The Odyssey weaves in different characters’ tales of revenge from the gods and what impact revenge actually had on those characters. Revenge is an important underlying theme in The Odyssey because, in essence, it explains why Odysseus’ journey was so prolonged and treacherous. A few examples of revenge in the poem include Orestes’ revenge on Aegisthus, Zeus’ revenge on Odysseus and his men, and Poseidon’s revenge on Odysseus. These different examples of revenge in The Odyssey show the importance of the gods’ revenge in the epic journey of Odysseus. Orestes’ revenge is the first important example of the gods’ revenge in the poem. In Book 1, Hermes told Aegisthus, “’Don’t murder the man,’ he said, ‘don’t court his wife. Beware, revenge will come from Orestes…” (Homer 260). King Nestor delivers the story of Orestes’ revenge to Odysseus’ son Telemachus, while Telemachus is visiting Nestor to discover answers about his fathers’... The Character Medea's Revenge in Euripides' Medea Medea is a tragedy of a woman who feels that her husband has betrayed her with another woman and the jealousy that consumes her. She is the protagonist who arouses sympathy and admiration because of how her desperate situation is. I thought I was going to feel sorry for Medea, but that quickly changed as soon...
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...tasks. To fill out the remaining parts of his life he hangs out at bars finding comfort for the lack of substance in his life at the bottom of endless pints of beer. One might almost describe Stolpestad’s trivial life as a never-ending déjà vu, where the days are just passing by indifferently. When Stolpestad is called out to the boy with the injured dog however, he suddenly gets an opportunity of moving on with his life. He is asked to end the misery of the dog and the dog thereby becomes a symbol of progress in his life – a challenge about his future. If he can overcome this challenge, he can finally move on with his life and end the long-lasting cycle of stagnation in which he has been for all of his life. But as the moment of the killing of the dog approaches it soon becomes evident...
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