Investigation Of Pit Size Versus Larval Size In An Antlion Essays

Investigation Of Pit Size Versus Larval Size In An Antlion Senior Seminar 20 April 2001 Abstract The purpose of this study was to test whether there was a relationship between the size of an antlion and the size of its pit. Fieldwork was undertaken at UT's Brackenridge Field Laboratory in Austin, Texas. There we selected two aggregations of larval antlions from which to obtain the data. Pit diameter and slope were measured to obtain the pit volume. After pits were measured, larvae were collected and weighted in the lab with an analytical balance. Regressions of larval weight versus pit diameter, slope, and pit volume were obtained. All three variables showed significant coefficients of determination (R-squared * 0.7). These results are then compared to previous studies that found weaker relationships between larval size and pit size. Possible reasons for these differences are discussed. Introduction The antlion got its name from early European scholars who likened the insect to, a small creature, extremely hostile to ants. Antlion larvae are carnivorous predators that feed mainly on small mobile arthropods such as ants, as well as the occasional spider, beetle, fly, caterpillar, wasp, and mite that falls into its pit. Our research was conducted on the species Myrmeleon crudalis, which is from the order Neuoptera. This species lives preferably in sheltered, sandy regions and builds shallow, cone-shaped pits in the surrounding substrate. The larvae use these pits to capture their prey. The insect falls into the pit and is unable to climb up the loose sand on the sides of the pit. The antlion lies buried at the bottom of the pit and catches its prey with its strong, piercing mandibles. The larvae secrete digestive enzymes through the mandibular groove into the prey item. After the antlion sucks out the soft tissues of the prey, the exterior shell is discarded by actively pushing it out of the pit. Although M. crudalis is a pit-building species, not all antlion species build pits. Some species hide under debris, gravel, or wood and wait for prey to pass by in close enough range for capture. The lifecycle of the antlion involves many stages. Adults lay sticky eggs on sandy soil and the eggs become coated with fine layer of dust for camouflage. Larvae hatch from the eggs after few weeks and then undergo three instar stages before pupating. Larvae may even live several years before pupating - lack of food can lead to longer life-span whereas if there is abundant food supply, the larvae may mature much more quickly. The larvae pupate in the soil in a cocoon of sand and silky fibers. After approximately one month of pupating, the adults emerge from the cocoons. Adult antlions closely resemble dragonflies and damselflies, however, unlike the latter two, adult antlions are very weak flyers. During the day, the adults lie perched on camouflaging branches and are only really active in the evenings. The adults can reach approximately 4 centimeters in length, and they can have a wingspan of 8 centimeters.1 The life span of the adult antlion is approximately one month. The one month time span is just enough time for the adults to reproduce and begin the life cycle again. There are approximately 2000 different antlion species distributed throughout the world, however, antlions are mainly found in the warmer climates of Southern Africa, Australia, and the southern United States. The most common species are M. obsoletus in North America, and M. formicarius in Europe. M. carolinus is the most common species found in Florida and other southern states of America. Antlion larvae from the species we studied built conical shaped pits in the surrounding sandy substrate. Larvae build their pits in four steps. First, the larvae move in what appears to be very random, undirected movements just under surface of the soil. Possibly these movements serve to loosen the substrate or test the site for gravel obstructions. The antlion then proceeds to establish the circular boundaries and diameter of its pit. In the next step, the antlion spirals downward to deepen the pit. The antlion moves backward while displaces the sand by scooping it up with its head and mandibles and actively throwing it out of the developing pit. Finally, once the diameter

Narwhal Animal Facts - Unicorn of the Sea

Narwhal Animal Facts - Unicorn of the Sea The narwhal or narwhale (Monodon monocerus) is a medium-sized toothed whale or odontocete, best known for its long spiral tusk that many people associate with the unicorn myth. The tusk is not a horn, but a protruding canine tooth. The narwhal and the only other living member of the Monodontidae family, the beluga whale, live in the worlds arctic waters. Carl Linnaeus described the narwhal in his 1758 catalog Systema Naturae. The name narwhal comes from the Norse word nar, which means corpse, combined with whal, for whale. This common name refers to the mottled gray-over-white color of the whale, which causes it to somewhat resemble a drowned corpse. The scientific name Monodon monocerus comes from the Greek phrase meaning one tooth one horn. Fast Facts: Narwhal Scientific Name: Monodon moncerusOther Names: Narwhal, narwhale, unicorn of the seaDistinguishing Features: Medium-sized what with a single large protruding tuskDiet: CarnivorousLifespan: Up to 50 yearsHabitat: Arctic circleConservation Status: Near ThreatenedKingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ChordataClass: MammaliaOrder: ArtiodactylaInfraorder: CetaceaFamily: MonodontidaeFun Fact: The narwhals tusk is on its left side. Males have the horn, but only 15% of females have one. The Unicorn Horn A male narwhal has a single long tusk. The tusk is a hollow left-handed spiral helix that grows from the left side of the upper jaw and through the whales lip. The tusk grows throughout the whales life, reaching a length from 1.5 to 3.1 m (4.9 to 10.2 ft) and weight of approximately 10 kg (22 lb). About 1 in 500 males has two tusks, with the other tusk formed from the right canine tooth. Around 15% of females have a tusk. Female tusks are smaller than those of males and not as spiralized. There is one recorded case of a female having two tusks. Initially, scientists speculated the male tusk might be involved in male sparring behavior, but the current hypothesis is that tusks are rubbed together to communicate information about the ocean environment. The tusk is rich with patent nerve endings, allowing the whale to perceive information about the seawater. The whales other teeth are vestigial, making the whale essentially toothless. It is considered a toothed whale because it does not have baleen plates. Description The narwhal and beluga are the white whales. Both are medium-size, with a length from 3.9 to 5.5 m (13 to 18 ft), not counting the males tusk. Males are typically slightly larger than females. Body weight ranges from 800 to 1600 kg (1760 to 3530 lb). Females become sexually mature between 5 and 8 years of age, while males mature at around 11 to 13 years of age. The whale has mottled gray or brown-black pigmentation over white. Whales are dark when born, becoming lighter with age. Old adult males may be almost entirely white. Narwhals lack a dorsal fin, possibly to aid in swimming under ice. Unlike most whales, the neck vertebrae of narwhals are jointed like those of terrestrial mammals. Female narwhals have swept-back tail fluke edges. The tail flukes of males are not swept back, possibly to compensate for the drag of the tusk. Behavior Narwhals are found in pods of five to ten whales. The groups may consist of mixed ages and sexes, only adult males (bulls), only females and young, or only juveniles. In the summer, large groups form with 500 to 1000 whales. The whales are found in the Arctic ocean. Narwhals migrate seasonally. In the summer, they frequent coastal waters, while in the winter, they move to deeper water under pack ice. They can dive to extreme depths up to 1500 m (4920 ft) and stay under water about 25 minutes. Adult narwhals mate in April or May offshore. Calves are born in June or August of the following year (14 months gestation). A female bears a single calf, which is about 1.6 m (5.2) feet in length. Calves start out life with a thin blubber layer that thickens during lactation of the mothers fat-rich milk. Calves nurse for about 20 months, during which time they remain very close to their mothers. Narwhals are predators that eat cuttlefish, cod, Greenland halibut, shrimp, and armhook squid. Occasionally, other fish are eaten, as are rocks. It is believed rocks are ingested by accident when whales feed near the bottom of the ocean. Narwhals and most other toothed whales navigate and hunt using clicks, knocks, and whistles. Click trains are used for echo location. The whales sometimes trumpet or make squeaking sounds. Lifespan and Conservation Status Narwhals can live up to 50 years. They may die from hunting, starvation, or suffocation under frozen sea ice. While most predation is by humans, narwhals are also hunted by polar bears, walruses, killer whales, and Greenland sharks. Narwhals hide under ice or stay submerged for long periods of time to escape predators, rather than flee. At present, about 75,000 narwhals exist worldwide. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies them as Near Threatened. Legal subsistence hunting continues in Greenland and by the Inuit people in Canada. References Linnaeus, C (1758). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Holmiae. (Laurentii Salvii). p. 824. Nweeia, Martin T.; Eichmiller, Frederick C.; Hauschka, Peter V.; Tyler, Ethan; Mead, James G.; Potter, Charles W.; Angnatsiak, David P.; Richard, Pierre R.; et al. (2012). Vestigial tooth anatomy and tusk nomenclature for Monodon monoceros. The Anatomical Record. 295 (6): 1006–16. Nweeia MT, et al. (2014). Sensory ability in the narwhal tooth organ system. The Anatomical Record. 297 (4): 599–617.

The Great Pablo Picasso Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Great Pablo Picasso - Research Paper Example The paper "The Great Pablo Picasso" discovers his incredible art and shows some facts from life of the famous artist. His mother was Doà ±a Maria Picasso y Lopez and his father was Don Jose Ruiz Blasco, a painter and art teacher. He was obviously influenced and basically trained by his father and he was known to have entered the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona when his family moved there when he was just fourteen years old. Although he was way too young, he was accepted in the school because of an evidence of a real talent however, he proved to be a genius who easily gets bored with the norms so that he rather became infamous in school, skipping classes only to go out to his neighborhood and delve into the real thing. The same happened when he transferred to the Royal Academy of San Fernando in Madrid two years later so that in 1899, as he went around finding the satisfaction he was looking for in expressing himself, he was introduced to El Quatro Gats, The Four Cats, a group of ar tists which became his inspiration for change. Probably one of the reasons that count Picasso among the greats is his experimentation and adaptation of different and thriving types of art throughout his lifetime. As he was trained by his artist father, his first unpublished works were of Renaissance quality to which he referred to in one of his comments when he was passing by children during his old age, â€Å"When I was as old as these children, I could draw like Raphael, but it took me a lifetime to learn to draw like them†.... Most of Picasso’s subjects during this period are about poverty, isolation and anguish, strengthened probably by his feelings when he lost a dear friend to death (bio.com). This probably explains also the use of the color as blue represents a gloomy mood. Another painting known during this period is ‘The Old Guitarist’ which pictures an old man playing with his guitar. What is eye-catching in this portrait is the loneliness that is expressed by the man, with his head bent, seemingly more concentrated on his feelings than his guitar. The man could be said to be poor as seen by his clothe which is a one piece, long, worn and torn shirt. This depicts poverty and the hardships that go with it. Perhaps the most talked about work during the Blue Period is ‘La Vie’ because it spurred rumors that the subject is Picasso’s friend who committed suicide when he was rejected by his lover (de Kooning). ‘La Vie’ pictures three adults and a baby. The two figures on the left are obviously lovers, naked and holding each other as they seem to be confronted by a fully dressed woman holding a baby. Behind them are portraits of nude images that probably help to tell the story more clearly. Although several interpretations were suggested by art critiques, Picasso himself never offered his own interpretations so that the painter’s reactions add to the mystery and popularity of the painting. As expected, blue is the dominant color, ranging from very light hues to darker ones where the darkest color almost reveals a black tint seen especially on the clothes of the woman holding the baby. When Picasso met Fernande Olivier, a model to whom he fell in love with, Picasso’s

Operations management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operations management - Essay Example This efficient and effective manner of doing any business process helps in improving the quality of any product or service offered to the customer. Quality is a major aspect in any product or service that is highly admired by a customer; hence every sane organization strives to keep up their product or service to the highest possible quality in order to be in the good books of their respective customers. According to Peter Drucker â€Å"Quality in a product or service is not what the supplier puts in. It is what the customer gets out and is willing to pay for† (Drucker, 1985). Hence it can be said that quality is a major issue that should be given utmost attention within any organization. There are two systems that assure the quality aspect within a company, quality control and quality assurance. The Tokundu airport faces major quality issues and it is because of these issues that the service of the airport is getting highly affected. If Tokundu is to deliver better service of reasonable quality and standard, it must focus on all the factors that may have an impact on the quality of the airport. As each and every aspect has certain influence upon quality, an efficient and effective Quality Management System should be introduced at the airport enhance the quality of the service offered by the airport. â€Å"Quality Management System is the organizational structure of responsibilities, activities, resources and events that together provide procedures and methods of implementation to ensure the capability of an organization to meet quality standards†(Tricker et al, 2005). Quality assurance and Quality control are two main parts of Quality Management System (QMS). Quality control satisfies quality requirements while quality assurance gives assurance that quality obligations would be satisfied. Quality control is considered pre active whilst quality assurance is considered to be pro active. Quality control involves the use of activities that ensure the quality of the outputs in any organization, it involves the activities such as supervising; checking and inspecting at all levels within the organization. Quality assurance on the other hand provides a promise that all the relevant activities being performed during the Quality control aspect are working properly and that the relevant quality standard is being achieved. To increase the confidence of customers, organizations tend to obtain Quality certification that give a proof to the customers that the organization is performing reasonably as the quality certification gives a proof to that. Quality certification is not easily attainable as it requires many formalities to be met within an organization and these certifications are provided by recognized quality certification bodies. One of the most important series of certification issued by the International Organization for Standardization is the ISO 9000 standard. ISO 9000 is a set of quality standards that deal with the issues of Quality management Systems within an organization. These standards were amended in the year 2000 and were then know as the ISO 9000:2000 series of standards. The ISO 9000:2000 has three main components which relate to 1) defining the

Manchester City Swot Analysis Marketing Essay

Manchester City Swot Analysis Marketing Essay INTRODUCTION The project is basically about the two football teams from different football clubs. The idea is to make a strategic comparison between the two teams. The names of the football teams that have been taken for comparison include the Manchester City Football club and Barcelona Football club. The team Manchester city is basically from the English premier league whereas the team Barcelona is from the Spanish Division (Barcelona Soccer Institute, 2012). Both the teams have a good reputation in the Football industry around the Globe. The aim of the project is to analyze the mission and vision statements of both these clubs and compare them to analyze the comparative effectiveness of the two. This will provide more information as to who is the better side of the two of them. On the other hand SWOT analysis of both teams will also be conducted and compared to see which team has the most strengths and opportunities available. BACKGROUND AND HISTORY Manchester City Football club is basically an English premier league football club located and based in Manchester. It was founded in 1880 and was initially called West Gorton. Then in 1887 they became Ardwick Association Football club and then they became Manchester City in 1894. Thisclub has played at the City of Manchester stadium since the period of 2003, and have also played for Maine Road from 1923 as well (Wikipedia, Manchester City F.C., 2013). the most cherishing and successful period for the club was in the late 1960s and the early part of 1970s when they managed to win the league championship, League Cup, FA Cup and the European Cup Winners Cup under the management of Malcolm Allison and Joe Mercer. After being defeated in the FA cup final of 1981, the cup actually went into the phase of decline, totally culminating in relegation towards the third tier of English football in 1998. This was the only time in their history that they went so down. After having regained the sta tus of premier league, the club was eventually purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group and the club became one of the wealthiest in the world. In the year 2011 the Manchester city club managed to qualify for the champions league and was able to win the FA cup. In the year 2012 the club managed to win the premier league, which is also referred to as their first league title in the past forty years. On the other hand Futsal Club Barcelona is there from the emergence of their football club in 1899. FC Barcelona, which is also known as merely Barcelona or Barca is actually based in Barcelona Catalonia in Spain (Wikipedia, History of FC Barcelona, 2011). The team was actually founded by a group of English, Spanish and Swiss footballers, and this group was actually led by Joan Gamper. The club has been known to play amateur football in the early years until 1910 in various competitions that were regional. It was also in 1910 that the club participated in the first of their European competitions, and since that time the club has been able to win 10 UEFA trophies and a sextuple. By the year 1928 Barcelona co-founded La liga which is the top tier in Spanish football, and they also found some small string of football clubs as well. Barcelona has never been relegated from La liga and share the same record as one of their competitors known as the real Madrid. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE Corporate governance is basically a system of rules, processes and practices by which the company is controlled and directed. The concept actually involves balancing the interests of the various stakeholders in the company. Looking at the structure of both the football clubs, both are very similar and follow a business format of a public limited company. Manchester city Football club has been having a good time with the management and all the stakeholders of the company are satisfied (Corporate Info, 2012). The main reason behind this is that the management of the football club aims to motivate the football players and fans for the company, on the other hand the players believe in continuous and quality. The main aim of this football club is to fulfill the expectations of their fans and people. On the other hand Barcelona is one of the most successful clubs of the world. The club believes in total quality and promotes many core values like healthy diet, tolerance, and sports for the disabled. On the other hand the club also speaks against racism (Pont, 2011). The management of the company and the players has been facing some problems; therefore Barcelona fails to balance the interests of various stakeholders of the company. SWOT ANALYSIS BARCELONA FOOTBALL CLUB STRENGTHS Barcelona has a strong local Brand name and the best club in Europe and Spain. The Camp Now stadium of Barcelona has a seating capacity in excess of 100000 Barcelona has the best players in the world that are playing for their Team. The brands known as the UNICEF, Qatar Foundation and Nike are associated Brands with the Barcelona Football Club. This means that the team has one of the best brand endorsements in the world. WEAKNESSES The team is known to have a lot of controversies in the football matches. It is basically from the lesser popular and famous clubs as compared to the clubs that are English OPPORTUNITY The club has the opportunity to increase their fan bases from the countries like china, USA and India. If the Barcelona football club is able to focus on more advertising and promotions then this will help the club a lot in building brand equity. THREATS The other clubs that are prevalent in Europe are buying out the good players out of Barcelona. This can be fatal for the club if they do not stop this from happening The club has reported a lot of internal problems between the players and management which can also pose a threat to the wellbeing of the club in the future. The club has been known to have a lot of financial debt because it has been involved in the player transfers of expensive players. This can cause liquidity problems to the club in the future. MANCHESTER CITY SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGTHS The Manchester city football club has a local positioning within Manchester The club has a lot of openness and innovation in the department of culture. They allow players from all cultures to prove their worth and join the club. The club has some of the richest sponsors as compared to other clubs. WEAKNESSES The club has a weak presence in the city of Manchester because many other competitors are also popular over here. The name of this club is not very well established as compared to other clubs. Most of the players playing in this club are average players. OPPORTUNITIES The club should higher better players and make use of the rich sponsors that they have. This will improve of the performance of the club in the future. The club should get more brand endorsements to improve the brand image of the club. The club can higher some of the best coaches around the world given the fact that the club is rich. THREATS Manchester United Football club is better than Manchester City and is more popular in Manchester than any other football club. As the case with other clubs internal problems are prevalent in this club between the management and the Coach. The club should ensure that the problems do not get worse in the future. ICEBERG PRINCIPLES THEORY The iceberg is basically a model that not only considers the visible logical level of the subject, but also explains the invisible emotional level of the subject (GmbH). The logic level of the subject which includes the strategy, structure, functions and processes usually accounts for 10% of the overall human capacity whereas the cultural level amounts to 90% of the human capacity. Following is the sketch for a typical Iceberg Theory. The structure of the iceberg principle and its 5 process levels STRATEGIC LEVEL At the strategic level Manchester city FC aims for delivering the best quality football to its fans. They are basically concerned for high performance and value for the shareholders of the company. On the other hand the Barcelona football club claims to be one of the best in the world and they claim that they are not just a club; they are more than a club. STRUCTURAL LEVEL The management performance for Barcelona has been poor at the structural level because the company has incurred many losses because of expensive player contracts. On the other hand Manchester city has one of the richest management team. The management team rewards its players very well and their goal is quality performance for the fans. PROCESS LEVEL Manchester city claims that its core values include serving the fans of the football club by portraying excellent performance. Their main aim is to create continuous value for its fans and the shareholders of the company. On the other hand Barcelona aims to work about by following the core values including the treatment of sports as the focal point, supporting the strategic plans of the club and exploring the new areas of financing for the club. The club also aims at bringing the members closer to the club in terms of activity and communication. FUNCTIONAL LEVEL The performance level of the employees or the players of Manchester city has been very high in the present. This is because they have recently won the premier league for the first time in the past forty years. Therefore, the performance level of the players has been excellent. On the other hand Barcelona has been struggling recently because of some clashes between the management and players of the club. On the other hand there have been many player transfers from this team in the recent years which has affected the team chemistry to some extent. However the team has the potential to bounce back from such problems because it is one of the best clubs of the Spanish league. CULTURAL LEVEL At the cultural level Barcelona football club has been committed to promote the society as much as possible. They see children and young people as their main beneficiaries and are also known to promote values and education. The club has also organized many sporting activities for the civilians of the country. On the other hand Manchester city is known to play for the fans. They have highly praised the fans of the football club for their never ending support. On the other hand Manchester city has Donated 500000 pounds to the Royal Manchester Childrens hospital recently and has also been known to perform charity work for the people. Therefore both the clubs have a good relationship with the fans and the society at the cultural level CONCLUSION After all the analysis that has been conducted for both Manchester city and Barcelona, it is true to say that there are some considerable differences in the results. Considering the SWOT analysis of both the clubs, it is evident that Barcelona is no doubt a better side than Manchester City by all means. This is because they have the best players from around the world, and some excellent brand endorsements as compared to Manchester City who are usually ranked as an average side overall. However Barcelona has been facing a lot of internal problems such as the problems between players and management, the frequent transfer of expensive players, and their recent financial crises. Manchester city does not have any such problems and are a more stable side because they have one of the richest clubs in the world. On the other hand the Vision and mission statements of both the football leagues are good. The mission statement of Manchester city is more thorough than that of Barcelona. The corporate governance of Manchester city is better than that of Barcelona, and the Iceberg principle also looks more favorable for Manchester City overall. Therefore Manchester City is surprisingly a more stable side as compared to Barcelona despite the fact that Barcelona has a better football club.

Analysis of Beloved Essay examples -- essays papers

Analysis of Beloved Beloved is actually a quintessentially American story. Its topic slavery however may not seem to be a traditional one in American literature. The novel written by Toni Morrison is an American survivor’s tale, which depicts the collective experience of slavery defined by the identity of the black community in America for years. The topic of slavery continues to be a vital part of the American consciousness today,in addition, slavery as an institution was a part of American culture as a whole until the Civil War, and its repercussions on race relations are still being felt today. The genre of the survivor's tale is one way that contemporary authors can depict and discuss this formative American experience. ‘Beloved’ is the tale of Sethe, a survivor of slavery, and her family. Sethe is an escaped slave who made the split second decision to kill her daughter, rather than have her return to a life of enslavement. The entire novel revolves around this horrific act; the entire story is slowly unraveled through the remembrances of Sethe and others. These memories and "re-memories" do not follow chronological order. However, when they are all pieced together, the whole picture of slavery, Sethe's act, and its aftermath emerges. A universal characteristic of the survivor's tale is the subjectivity and incompleteness of the survivor's knowledge. The author works to provide a more objective view of events by including several storytellers. ...

Educating Essay

â€Å"Individuals venturing into new experiences may encounter obstacles but may also gain significant rewards†. â€Å"Do you agree with this perspective?† In your response, refer to your prescribed text and atleast one other related text of your own choosing. Individuals venturing into new experiences may encounter obstacles but may also gain significant rewards. This is present in the text ‘Educating Rita’ written by Willy Russell and the film ‘The Help’ written by Kathryn Stockett. In this text we see a fairly un-educated woman blossom and find herself through education; the obstacles she faces on her way to knowledge are the stepping stones in finding herself and entering the new world of education. Rita is a typical uneducated woman; her life is already planned out for her consisting of children, cooking/cleaning, pub trips and the overall expectation to be content with this life and not expect any more. However throughout the text we see Rita break away from this lower class/restricting stereotype to blossoming and finding herself in the world of education. The opening scene portrays to us the two completely different worlds in which Rita and Frank live. Rita has enrolled in an Open University course as she sees education as a way of moving out of her world; she feels out of step with her working class background and wants to discover herself first before having a baby and tying herself down for life. Rita’s constant desire to ‘know everything’ makes Frank feel that he is an appalling teacher because he feels he has nothing to offer her. Frank is Rita’s course tutor; he is a very negative and dismal man who is heavily reliant on alcohol to dull his boredom and frustration. Although being a jaded alcoholic he is also a very precise, formal and educated professor who is just on a downward spiral in his life. Throughout the text we see Rita and Frank’s relationship grow as Rita makes him feel as if he has hope again, therefore his drive comes back. In scene one we observe Rita struggling to open the door into Frank’s office; this symbolises her struggle to enter that world, it’s a barrier, however she’s determined to get what she wants – in this case education – therefore almost breaks the door in order to get in. â€Å"You’re the first breath of air that’s been in this room for years† quoted by Frank symbolises the opening up of a new world for him, he’s now got someone new and different to experience. This is a good change for Frank. Scene two beings with Rita oiling Frank’s office door, then handing the oil to Frank. This is symbolic of giving him the key/tool to open up to another world. Rita still doesn’t portray herself as a ‘proper student’ and her self esteem/confidence is still very low. She doesn’t think she is capable of achieving the great essays that the other students write and doubts herself that she will even finish the course. This scene really reveals the cost that trying to change herself is likely to have on Rita. She is dissatisfied with her life and has a desire to change it, yet it would be easier in her opinion to simply stay as she is and continue her boring life of hairdressing and different flavoured beers. Frank assigns Rita 3 novels to read as her hunger for knowledge is starting to grow extremely. The slow change in Rita is starting to become evident as she can read/take on any book presented to her, â€Å"it feeds me inside†. Her hunger is growing and making her slowly discover who she is, â€Å"it makes me stronger comin’ here†. Although Rita feels as if she’s finally accepted in the university and has a place/fits in with the ‘proper students’, she still has barriers to face in her personal life that are important determining points in her progress and choices as an individual. Rita’s husband Denny isn’t accepting nor happy about her doing this ‘whole learning thing’ and forces her to choose between him and education as he doesn’t understand that this is the first time she’s happy and felt a sense of purpose in her life. Denny has made her constantly feel stupid for even considering getting an education and therefore burns all of her books. The burning of the books is symbolic of Denny trying to prevent Rita from moving away. â€Å"You’d think I was havin’ a bloody affair the way he behaves† â€Å"And aren’t you?† symbolises Rita’s affair with education. Although she may not be cheating on Denny, she still desires to educate herself more than spend time with her husband and is happy with this choice as it is her own choice and no one else’s. In scene six we start to see a notable change in the relationship between Rita and Frank. When Rita bursts into Frank’s office excited to tell him that she saw one of Shakespeare’s plays â€Å"it was bleedin’ great†, Frank thought that something serious had happened – which indicates that he is beginning to care for her. After inviting Rita to a dinner party at his house Frank feels closer to Rita – this invite symbolises the change in the basis of their relationship from teacher and student to a more personal one. Throughout the text we have seen Rita grow and shape herself as an individual, no matter what obstacles and new experiences she has encountered with on her way she has got through them with determination and strength, and as a result has been great personal gain. Towards the end of the text Frank presents Rita with a dress; this is symbolic of a dress for an educated woman, she is now one and can wear the dress with pride. Frank decides to leave the university, as he does not feel it is the right career for him anymore and would prefer to spend his time doing something else. Rita and Frank have both grown and found themselves throughout this text which is also evident in the film ‘The Help’ written by Kathryn Stockett. The Help is set in Mississippi during the 1960s, main character Skeeter (Stone) is a southern society girl who returns from college determined to become a writer, but turns her friends’ lives – and the Mississippi town – upside down when she decides to interview the black women who have spent their lives taking care of the richer upper class families. Davis, Skeeter’s best friend’s housekeeper, is the first to open up and be interviewed – to the shock of her friends in the close black community. Despite Skeeter’s life long friendships hanging in the balance, she and Davis continue their partnership and soon more women come forward to tell their stories – and as it turns out, they have a lot to say. Along the way, unlikely friendships are forged and a new sisterhood emerges, but not before everyone in town has a thing or two to say themselves when they become unsuspectingly/unwillingly caught up in the changing modern times. This is relevant to the text Educating Rita as the women find the courage and self confidence to venture into new experiences to help better either themselves or their community.