Determining Significant Figures

Every measurement has a degree of uncertainty associated with it. The uncertainty derives from the measuring device and the skill of the person doing the measuring. Lets use volume measurement as an example. Say you are in a chemistry lab and need 7 mL of water. You could take an unmarked coffee cup and add water until you think you have about 7 milliliters. In this case, the majority of the measurement error is associated with the skill of the person doing the measuring. You could use a beaker, marked in 5 mL increments. With the beaker, you could easily obtain a volume between 5 and 10 mL, probably close to 7 mL, give or take 1 mL. If you used a pipette marked with 0.1 mL, you could get a volume between 6.99 and 7.01 mL pretty reliably. It would be untrue to report that you measured 7.000 mL using any of these devices because you didnt measure the volume to the nearest microliter. You would report your measurement using significant figures. These include all of the digits you know for certain plus the last digit, which contains some uncertainty. Significant Figure Rules Non-zero digits are always significant.All zeros between other significant digits are significant.The number of significant figures is determined by starting with the leftmost non-zero digit. The leftmost non-zero digit is sometimes called the most significant digit or the most significant figure. For example, in the number 0.004205, the 4 is the most significant figure. The left-hand 0s are not significant. The zero between the 2 and the 5 is significant.The rightmost digit of a decimal number is the least significant digit or least significant figure. Another way to look at the least significant figure is to consider it to be the rightmost digit when the number is written in scientific notation. Least significant figures are still significant! In the number 0.004205 (which may be written as 4.205 x 10-3), the 5 is the least significant figure. In the number 43.120 (which may be written as 4.3210 x 101), the 0 is the least significant figure.If no decimal point is present, the right most non-zero digit is the least significant figure. In the number 5800, the least significant figure is 8. Uncertainty in Calculations Measured quantities are often used in calculations. The precision of the calculation is limited by the precision of the measurements on which it is based. Addition and SubtractionWhen measured quantities are used in addition or subtraction, the uncertainty is determined by the absolute uncertainty in the least precise measurement (not by the number of significant figures). Sometimes this is considered to be the number of digits after the decimal point.32.01 m5.325 m12 mAdded together, you will get 49.335 m, but the sum should be reported as 49 meters.Multiplication and DivisionWhen experimental quantities are multiplied or divided, the number of significant figures in the result is the same as that in the quantity with the smallest number of significant figures. If, for example, a density calculation is made in which 25.624 grams is divided by 25 mL, the density should be reported as 1.0 g/mL, not as 1.0000 g/mL or 1.000 g/mL. Losing Significant Figures Sometimes significant figures are lost while performing calculations. For example, if you find the mass of a beaker to be 53.110 g, add water to the beaker and find the mass of the beaker plus water to be 53.987 g, the mass of the water is 53.987-53.110 g 0.877 gThe final value only has three significant figures, even though each mass measurement contained 5 significant figures. Rounding and Truncating Numbers There are different methods which may be used to round numbers. The usual method is to round numbers with digits less than 5 down and numbers with digits greater than 5 up (some people round exactly 5 up and some round it down). Example:If you are subtracting 7.799 g - 6.25 g your calculation would yield 1.549 g. This number would be rounded to 1.55 g because the digit 9 is greater than 5. In some instances, numbers are truncated, or cut short, rather than rounded to obtain appropriate significant figures. In the example above, 1.549 g could have been truncated to 1.54 g. Exact Numbers Sometimes numbers used in a calculation are exact rather than approximate. This is true when using defined quantities, including many conversion factors, and when using pure numbers. Pure or defined numbers do not affect the accuracy of a calculation. You may think of them as having an infinite number of significant figures. Pure numbers are easy to spot because they have no units. Defined values or conversion factors, like measured values, may have units. Practice identifying them! Example:You want to calculate the average height of three plants and measure the following heights: 30.1 cm, 25.2 cm, 31.3 cm; with an average height of (30.1 25.2 31.3)/3 86.6/3 28.87 28.9 cm. There are three significant figures in the heights. Even though you are dividing the sum by a single digit, the three significant figures should be retained in the calculation. Accuracy and Precision Accuracy and precision are two separate concepts. The classic illustration distinguishing the two is to consider a target or bullseye. Arrows surrounding a bullseye indicate a high degree of accuracy; arrows very near to each other (possibly nowhere near the bullseye) indicate a high degree of precision. To be accurate, an arrow must be near the target; to be precise successive arrows must be near each other. Consistently hitting the very center of the bullseye indicates both accuracy and precision. Consider a digital scale. If you weigh the same empty beaker repeatedly, the scale will yield values with a high degree of precision (say 135.776 g, 135.775 g, 135.776 g). The actual mass of the beaker may be very different. Scales (and other instruments) need to be calibrated! Instruments typically provide very precise readings, but accuracy requires calibration. Thermometers are notoriously inaccurate, often requiring re-calibration several times over the lifetime of the instrument. Scales also require recalibration, especially if they are moved or mistreated.

Is Lottery a Good Idea - 1189 Words

Is a Gambling a Good Idea? Definition of Gambling Merriam-Webster’s Learners Dictionary defined gambling as â€Å"playing a game in which you can win or lose money or possessions† (Merriam). Origin of gambling in the United States The first lottery was held in the America by the Virginia Company with the permission of the Crown to raise money to finance the establishment of the Colony in 1612. The lotteries were relatively sophisticated and included instant winners. All the original 13 raised revenue through lotteries. The proceeds were used to establish Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Dartmouth, Princeton, and William and Mary. Lottery funds were also used to build churches and libraries. Ben Franklin, John Hancock, and George Washington were†¦show more content†¦Compulsive gambler can cause harm to their families. Parents who gamble may not provide enough care for their children. They may take money meant to feed the children to spend on the machines with intention of winning back the lost bet. Some of them may abuse their children physically or emotionally. Gambling and crime Gambling is often associated with crime. â€Å"When gambling restrictions were relaxed, criminals were the first to open up legal gambling establishments†. Even when there were regulations in Nevada, because they were slack, it did not prevent members of organized crime from openly owning and operating casinos. To some degree, Nevada needed the criminals to make gambling viable because no one else had their expertise and experience† as explained by Gabrielle A. and Reuven Brenner in their â€Å"Gambling: Shaping an Opinion† article. Gambling will always attract criminals because of the large cash involved. In gambling operations, including card rooms, winners tend to accumulate large sums of cash and this create opportunities for people to skim and also launder the money. Also there are opportunities to commit fraud against dealers because while they are working they do not have time to account for their chips and count theShow MoreRelatedis lottery a good idea Essay1781 Words   |  8 Pagesï » ¿Is Lottery a Good Idea? Lottery is one of the best things that has ever happened to human kind especially those that dream high and but their dreams don’t come to life because they don’t have what it takes to make it happen. Lotteries are in various categories such as sweep stakes, scratch off, the Jackpot and even the green card lottery. The lottery that is being focused in this argument is the jackpot one. When individuals or people in general buy the lottery ticket their hopes are high, andRead MoreAdhering to The Lottery by Shirley Jackson1038 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Adhering to Lottery† In â€Å"The Lottery† Shirley Jackson writes about the game lottery, which makes the story very ironic. 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When everyone was present, the heads ofRead MoreThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson Essay1667 Words   |  7 PagesThe Lottery’ by Shirley Jackson portrays a small town trapped in a futile tradition due to superstitious beliefs bringing upon more evil than prosperity. The small town of people are caught following a tradition blindly or to frighten to change their ways leading to serious consequence. some however, do question the lottery but are quickly shut up by old man Warner with the belief that the tradition of the lottery brings a good harvest of corn to the community. As the community continues to followRead MoreThe Lottery : Dissecting Sociological Horrors Essay1551 Words   |  7 Pages The Lottery: Dissecting Sociological Horrors When you hear the word â€Å"lottery†, what do you think? In Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, readers are presented with an ironic, dramatic, bleak tale about a small village gathering for not exactly what one would call a lottery. 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So lottery is not a positive ideaRead MoreTradition Stays Put in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson1053 Words   |  4 PagesTradition Stays Put Easily regarded as one of America’s most beloved short stories, â€Å"The Lottery,† by Shirley Jackson, leaves readers with excitement and perhaps a small sense of doubt. Doubt could be an aspect of the reader’s mind due to the gory fact of the cultural tradition in the small farming town of the story. Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† displays the theme of unwavering ritualistic tradition and symbolism. This means the village is unable to move past their tradition while symbolismRead MoreAnalysis of Against the Odds and Against the Common Good1735 Words   |  7 PagesAgainst the Common Good. States should neither allow nor encourage state-run lotteries. There are five major arguments that people use to defend lotteries. One is that most lotteries are run honestly, but if gambling is harmful to society it is irrelevant to argue if they are honest or not. The second is that lotteries create jobs, but there are only a small handful of jobs th at would be eliminated if lotteries were put out of business. Another argument that would support keeping lotteries is that, otherRead More Essay on Shirley Jacksons The Lottery - Effective Use of Character Names1080 Words   |  5 PagesEffective Use of Character Names in The Lottery   Ã¢â‚¬Å"The common curse of mankind, --folly and ignorance† (Shakespeare).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Were he alive, William Shakespeare might fully endorse Shirley Jackson’s ideas as presented in The Lottery.   The author, Jackson, very distinctly uses symbolic names for her characters to show the ignorance of the sacrificial lottery, which the small village holds year after year.   These sacrifices, which used to be held to appease the god of harvest, have grown meaninglessRead MoreReligious and Traditional Symbols in the Lottery1491 Words   |  6 Pagesmembers. Religious traditions are usually passed on from parent to child at an early age. In The Lottery, Shirley Jackson reveals the tradition of the lottery and how all of the villagers conform to the ritual of a human sacrifice. Growing up with an exceptionally religious father I can relate to way of thinking of the villagers that traditions are accepted without questioning. In The lottery, the children were stuffing their pockets with stones before all of the parents had arrived

Storm Born Chapter Two Free Essays

string(74) " precautions when you lived in a cave and finally emerged into the light\." Wil Delaney was in his early twenties, with straw-yellow hair in need of a haircut. He had pasty white skin and wore wire-rimmed glasses. When I showed up at his house the next morning, he had to undo about twenty locks before he could open the door, and even then, he would only peek out with the security chain in place. We will write a custom essay sample on Storm Born Chapter Two or any similar topic only for you Order Now â€Å"Yes?† he asked suspiciously. I put on my business face. â€Å"I’m Odile. Lara set up our appointment?† He studied me. â€Å"You’re younger than I thought you’d be.† A moment later, he closed the door and undid the chain. The door opened again, and he ushered me inside. I glanced around as I entered, taking in stacks and stacks of books and newspapers – and a definite lack of light. â€Å"Kind of dark in here.† â€Å"Can’t open the blinds,† he explained. â€Å"You never know who’ll be watching.† â€Å"Oh. Well. What about the lights?† He shook his head. â€Å"You’d be amazed how much radiation lights and other electrical devices emit. It’s what’s making cancer run rampant in our society.† â€Å"Oh.† We sat at his kitchen table, and he explained to me why he thought his sister had been abducted by the gentry. I had a hard time concealing my skepticism. It wasn’t like this kind of thing was unheard of, but I was starting to pick up on Lara’s â€Å"schizo† vibe. It was highly possible that the gentry could simply have been a figment of his imagination. â€Å"This is her.† He brought me a five-by-seven picture showing him and a pretty girl leaning into each other against a grassy backdrop. â€Å"Taken just before the abduction.† â€Å"She’s cute. And young. Does she†¦did she†¦live with you?† He nodded. â€Å"Our parents died about five years ago. I got custody of her. Not much different than how it used to be.† â€Å"What do you mean?† Bitterness crossed that neurotic face, an odd juxtaposition. â€Å"Our dad was always off on some business trip, and our mom kept sleeping around on him. So it’s always just sort of been Jasmine and me.† â€Å"And what makes you think she was taken by gen – fairies?† â€Å"The timing,† he explained. â€Å"It happened on Halloween. Samhain Eve. That’s one of the biggest nights for abductions and hauntings, you know. Data supports it. The walls between the worlds open.† He sounded like he was reciting from a textbook. Or the Internet. Sometimes I thought Internet access was like putting guns in the hands of toddlers. I tried not to roll my eyes as he rambled. I didn’t really need a layman explaining remedial information to me. â€Å"Yeah, I know all that. But a lot of scary people – humans – roam around on Halloween too. And lots of other times. I don’t suppose you reported it to the police?† â€Å"I did. They weren’t able to turn up anything, not that I really needed them. I knew what had happened because of the location. The place she disappeared. That was what made me know fairies did it.† â€Å"Where?† â€Å"This one park. She was at a party with some kids from school. They had a bonfire in the woods, and they saw her wander off. The police traced her tracks to this clearing, and then they just stopped. And you know what was there?† He gave me a dramatic look, evidently ready to impress me. I didn’t give him the satisfaction of asking the obvious question, so he answered it for me. â€Å"A fairy ring. A perfect circle of flowers growing in the grass.† â€Å"It happens. Flowers do that.† He shot up from the table, incredulity all over his face. â€Å"You don’t believe me!† I worked hard to keep my face as blank as a new canvas. You could have painted a picture on it. â€Å"It’s not that I don’t believe what you’re describing, but there are a lot more mundane explanations. A girl alone in the woods could have been abducted by any number of things – or people.† â€Å"They said you were the best,† he told me, like it was some kind of argument. â€Å"They said you kick paranormal ass all the time. You’re the real deal.† â€Å"What I can or can’t do isn’t relevant. I need to make sure we’re on the right track. You’re asking me to cross physically into the Otherworld. I almost never do that. It’s dangerous.† Wil sat back down, face desperate. â€Å"Look, I’ll do anything at all. I can’t let her stay there with those – with those things. Name your price. I can pay anything you want.† I glanced around curiously, taking in the books on UFOs and Bigfoot. â€Å"Uh†¦what exactly do you do for a living?† â€Å"I run a blog.† I waited for more, but apparently that was it. Somehow I suspected that generated less money than even Tim made. Hmphf. Bloggers. I didn’t get why everyone and their brother thought the world wanted to read their thoughts on†¦well, nothing. If I wanted to be subjected to meaningless blather, I’d watch reality television. He was still looking at me pleadingly, with big blue puppy dog eyes. I nearly groaned. When had I grown so soft? Didn’t I want people to think of me as some cold and calculating shamanic mercenary? I’d vanquished a keres yesterday. Why was this sob story getting to me? It was actually because of the keres, I realized. That stupid sexual suggestion had been so revolting to me that I just couldn’t erase the image of little Jasmine Delaney being some gentry’s plaything. Because that’s what she would be, though I’d never tell Wil that. The gentry liked human women. A lot. â€Å"Can you take me to the park she disappeared from?† I asked at last. â€Å"I’ll get a better sense if fairies really were involved.† Of course, it actually turned out that I took him because I quickly decided I wasn’t going to let him drive me anywhere. Having him as a passenger taxed me enough. He spent the first half of the ride slathering some really thick sunscreen all over him. I guess you had to take precautions when you lived in a cave and finally emerged into the light. You read "Storm Born Chapter Two" in category "Essay examples" â€Å"Skin cancer’s on the rise,† he explained. â€Å"Especially with the depletion of the ozone layer. Tanning salons are killing people. No one should go outside without some kind of protection – especially here.† That I actually agreed with. â€Å"Yeah. I wear sunscreen too.† He eyed my light tan askance. â€Å"Are you sure?† â€Å"Well, hey, it’s Arizona. Hard not to get some sun. I mean, sometimes I walk to the mailbox without sunscreen, but most of the time I try to put it on.† â€Å"‘Try,'† he scoffed. â€Å"Does it protect against UVB rays?† â€Å"Um, I don’t know. I mean, I guess. I never burn. It smells pretty good too.† â€Å"Not good enough. Most sunscreens will protect from UVA rays only. But even if you don’t burn, the UVB rays will still get through. Those are the real killers. Without adequate protection, you can probably expect an early death from melanoma or some other form of skin cancer.† â€Å"Oh.† I hoped we got to the park soon. When we’d almost reached it, a traffic light stopped us under an overpass. I didn’t think anything of it, but Wil shifted nervously. â€Å"I always hate being stopped under these. You never know what could happen in an earthquake.† I again schooled myself to neutrality. â€Å"Well†¦it’s been awhile since our last earthquake around here.† Yeah. Like, never. â€Å"You just never know,† he warned ominously. Our arrival couldn’t have come a moment too soon. The park was green and woodsy, someone’s idiotic attempt to defy the laws of southern Arizona’s climate. It probably cost the city a fortune in water. He led me along the trail that went to Jasmine’s abduction spot. As we approached it, I saw something that suddenly made me put more credence in his story. The trail intersected another one at a perfect cross. A crossroads, often a gate to the Otherworld. No circle of flowers grew here now, but as I approached that junction, I could feel a slight thinness between this world and the other one. â€Å"Who knew?† I murmured, mentally testing the walls. It wasn’t a very strong spot, truthfully. I doubted much could pass here from either world right now. But on a sabbat like Samhain†¦well, this place could very well be an open doorway. I’d have to let Roland know so we could check it when the next sabbat rolled around. â€Å"Well?† Wil asked. â€Å"This is a hot spot,† I admitted, trying to figure out how to proceed. It appeared I was zero for two in gauging the credibility of these last two clients, but when 90 percent of my queries were false leads, I tended to keep a healthy dose of skepticism on hand. â€Å"Will you help me then?† â€Å"Like I said, this really isn’t my thing. And even if we decide she was taken to the Otherworld, I have no idea where to look for her. It’s as big as ours.† â€Å"She’s being held by a king named Aeson.† I spun around from where I’d been staring at the crossroads. â€Å"How the hell do you know that?† â€Å"A sprite told me.† â€Å"A sprite.† â€Å"Yeah. He used to work for this guy Aeson. He ran away and wanted revenge. So he sold the information to me.† â€Å"Sold it?† â€Å"He needed money to put down a deposit on an apartment in Scottsdale.† It sounded ludicrous, but it wasn’t the first time I’d heard of Otherworldly creatures trying to set up shop in the human world. Or of crazy people who wanted to live in Scottsdale. â€Å"When did this happen?† â€Å"Oh, a few days ago.† He made it sound like a visit from the UPS guy. â€Å"So. You were seriously approached by a sprite and only now thought to mention it?† Wil shrugged. Some of the sunscreen he’d missed rubbing in showed on his chin. It kind of reminded me of kindergarten paste. â€Å"Well, I’d already known she was taken by fairies. This just sort of confirmed it. He was actually the one who mentioned you. Said you killed one of his cousins. Then I found some locals that backed up the story.† I studied Wil. If he hadn’t seemed so hapless, I almost wouldn’t have believed any of this. But it smacked too much of truth for him to be making it up. â€Å"What did he call me?† â€Å"Huh?† â€Å"When he told you about me. What name did he give you?† â€Å"Well†¦your name. Odile. But there was something else too†¦Eunice?† â€Å"Eugenie?† â€Å"Yeah, that was it.† I paced irritably around the clearing. The second of two Otherworldly denizens to know my name in as many days. That was not good. Not good at all. And now one of them was trying to get Wil to lure me into the Otherworld. Or was it truly a lure? Sprites weren’t really known for being criminal masterminds. If I’d killed his cousin, I suppose he might hope some other motivated creature would take me down. â€Å"So what? Are you going to help me now?† â€Å"I don’t know. I’ve got to think on it, check up on some stuff.† â€Å"But – but I’ve shown you and told you everything! Don’t you see how real this is? You have to help me! She’s only fifteen, for God’s sake.† â€Å"Wil,† I said calmly, â€Å"I believe you. But it’s not that simple.† I meant it. It wasn’t so simple, no matter how much I wanted it to be. I hated Otherworldly inference more than I hated anything else. Taking a teenage girl was the ultimate violation. I wanted to make the guilty party pay for this. I wanted to make them suffer. But I couldn’t cross over with guns blazing. Getting myself killed would do none of us any good. I needed more information before I could proceed. â€Å"You have to – â€Å" â€Å"No,† I snapped, and this time my voice wasn’t so neutral. â€Å"I do not have to do anything, do you understand? I make my own choices and take my own jobs. Now, I’m very sorry about your sister, but I’m not jumping into this just yet. As Lara told you, I don’t generally do jobs that take me into the Otherworld. If I take this one, it’ll be after careful deliberation and question-asking. And if I don’t take it, then I don’t take it. End of story. Got it?† He swallowed and nodded, cowed by the fierce tone in my voice. It was not unlike the one I used on spirits, but I felt only a little bit bad about scaring Wil with it. He had to prepare himself for the highly likely possibility that I would not do this for him, no matter how much we both wanted it. On the way home, I swung by my mom’s place, wanting to talk to Roland. Sunset threw reddish-orange light onto their house, and the scent of her flower garden filled the air. It was the familiar smell of safety and childhood. When I walked into the kitchen, I didn’t see her anywhere, which was probably just as well. She tended to get upset when Roland and I talked shop. He sat at the table working on a model airplane. I’d laughed when he picked up this hobby after retiring from shamanism, but it had recently occurred to me it wasn’t so different from working puzzles. God only knew what stuff I’d find to keep me busy when I retired. I had the uneasy feeling I’d make a good candidate for cross-stitching. His face broke into a smile when he saw me, making laugh lines appear around the eyes of the weathered face I loved. His hair was a bright silver-white, and he’d managed to keep most of it. I was five-eight, and he was only a little taller than me. But despite that height, he was solidly built and hadn’t lost muscle with age. He might be pushing sixty, but I had a feeling he could still do some serious damage. Roland took one look at my face and gestured me to a chair. â€Å"You’re not here to ask about Idaho.† I hadn’t really understood their recent vacation choice, but whatever. Giving him a quick kiss, I held my arms around him for a moment. I didn’t love many people in this world – or any other – but him I would have died for. â€Å"No. I’m not. But how was it anyway?† â€Å"Fine. It’s not important. What’s wrong?† I smiled. That was Roland. Always ready for business. If my mom would have let him, I suspected he’d still be out there fighting, right by my side. â€Å"Just got a job offer. A weird one.† I proceeded to tell him all about Wil and Jasmine, about the evidence I’d found for her abduction. I also added in Wil’s bit of information about this Aeson guy. â€Å"I’ve heard of him,† said Roland. â€Å"What do you know?† â€Å"Not a lot. Never met him, never fought him. But he’s strong, I know that much.† â€Å"This gets better and better.† He eyed me carefully. â€Å"Are you thinking about doing it?† I eyed him back. â€Å"Maybe.† â€Å"That’s a bad idea, Eugenie. A very bad idea.† There was a dark tone in his voice that surprised me. I’d never known him to back down from any danger, especially one where an innocent was involved. â€Å"She’s just a kid, Roland.† â€Å"I know, and we both know that the gentry get away with taking women every year. Most don’t ever get recovered. The danger’s too high. That’s the way it is.† I felt my ire rising. Funny how someone telling you not to do something can talk you into it. â€Å"Well, here’s one we can get back. We know where she is.† He rubbed his eyes a little, flashing the tattoos that marked his arms. My tattoos depicted goddesses; his were of whirls, crosses, and fish. He had his own set of gods to appeal to – or in this case, God. We all invoked the divine differently. â€Å"This isn’t a drop-in and drop-out thing,† he warned. â€Å"It’ll take you right into the heart of their society. You’ve never been that deep. You don’t know what it’s like.† â€Å"And you do?† I asked sarcastically. When he didn’t answer, I felt my eyes widen. â€Å"When?† He waved a hand of dismissal. â€Å"That doesn’t matter. What matters is that if you go over in body, you’ll get yourself killed or captured. I won’t let you do that.† â€Å"You won’t let me? Come on. You can’t send me to my room anymore. Besides, I’ve gone over lots of times before.† â€Å"In spirit. Your total time over in body’s probably been less than ten minutes.† He shook his head in a wise, condescending way. That irked me. â€Å"The young never realize how foolish something is.† â€Å"And the old never realize when they need to step aside and let the younger and stronger do their jobs.† The words came out before I could stop them, and I immediately felt mean. Roland merely regarded me with a level look. â€Å"You think you’re stronger than me now?† I didn’t even hesitate. â€Å"We both know I am.† â€Å"Yes,† he agreed. â€Å"But that doesn’t give you the right to go get yourself killed over a girl you don’t even know.† I stared at him in surprise. We weren’t exactly fighting, but this attitude was weird for him. He’d married my mom when I was three and adopted me shortly thereafter. The father-daughter bond burned in both of us, obliterating any longing I might have had for the birth father I’d never known. My mom almost never spoke about him. They’d had some sort of whirlwind romance, I knew, but in the end, he didn’t want to stick it out – not for her, not for me. Roland would have done anything for me, kept me away from any harm that he could – except when it came to my job. When he’d realized I could walk worlds and cast out spirits, he’d started training me, and my mother hated him for it. They were the most loving couple I’d ever met, but that choice had nearly broken them apart. They’d stayed together in the end, but she’d never been happy about what I did. Roland, however, saw it as a duty. Destiny, even. I wasn’t like one of those silly people in the movies who could â€Å"see dead people† and go crazy from it. I easily could have ignored my abilities. But as far as Roland was concerned, that was a sin. To neglect one’s calling was a waste, especially when it meant others would suffer. So he tried to treat me as objectively as he would any other apprentice, fighting his personal feelings. Yet, for some reason now, he wanted to hold me back. Weird. I’d come here for strategy and ended up on the defensive. I changed the subject abruptly, telling him about how the keres had known my name. He cut me a look, not wanting to drop the Jasmine topic. My mom’s car pulled in just then, giving me a temporary victory. With a sigh and a look of warning, he told me not to worry about the name. It happened sometimes. His had eventually gotten out too, and little had come of it. My mom came into the kitchen, and shamanic business disappeared. Her face – so like mine, down to the shape and high cheekbones – put on a smile as warm as Roland’s. Only hers was tinged with something a little different. She always carried a perpetual concern for me. Sometimes I thought it simply had to do with what I did for a living. Yet, she’d had that worry ever since I was little, like I might disappear on her at any moment. Maybe it was just a mom thing. She placed a paper bag on the counter and began putting away groceries. I knew she knew what I was doing there, but she chose to ignore it. â€Å"You going to stay for dinner?† she asked. â€Å"I think you’ve lost weight.† â€Å"She has not,† said Roland. â€Å"She’s too skinny,† complained my mom. â€Å"Not that I’d mind a little of that.† I smiled. My mom looked amazing. â€Å"You need to eat more,† she continued. â€Å"I eat, like, three candy bars a day. I’m not depriving myself of calories.† I walked over and poked her in the arm. â€Å"Watch it, you’re being all momlike. Smart, professional moms aren’t supposed to be that way.† She cut me a look. â€Å"I’m a therapist. I have to be twice as momlike.† In the end, I stayed for dinner. Tim was a great cook, but nothing could ever really replace my mom’s food. While we ate, we talked about their vacation in Idaho. Neither Jasmine nor the keres ever came up. When I finally got back home, I found Tim getting ready to go out with a gaggle of giggling girls. He was in full pseudo-Indian regalia, complete with a beaded head wrap and buckskin vest. â€Å"Greetings, Sister Eugenie,† he said, holding up a palm like he was in some sort of Old West movie. â€Å"Join us. We’re going to a concert over in Davidson Park, so that we may commune with the Great Spirit’s gift of springtime whilst letting the sacred beat of the music course through our souls.† â€Å"No thanks,† I said, brushing past him and going straight to my room. A moment later, he followed sans girls. â€Å"Oh, come on, Eug. It’s gonna be a blast. We’ve got a cooler of beer and everything.† â€Å"Sorry, Tim. I don’t really feel like being a squaw tonight.† â€Å"That’s a derogatory term.† â€Å"I know it is. Very much so. But your bleach-blond posse out there doesn’t deserve much better.† I eyed him askance. â€Å"Don’t even think about bringing any of them back here tonight.† â€Å"Yeah, yeah, I know the rules.† He flounced into my wicker chair. â€Å"So what are you going to do instead? Shop on the Internet? Work puzzles?† I’d actually been thinking of doing both those things, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. â€Å"Hey, I’ve got stuff to do.† â€Å"Fuck, Eugenie. You’re becoming a hermit. I almost miss Dean. He was an asshole, but at least he got you out of the house.† I made a face. Dean was my last boyfriend; we’d broken up six months ago. The split had been kind of unexpected for both of us. I hadn’t expected to find him screwing his real estate agent, and he hadn’t expected to get caught. I knew now I was better off without him, but some niggling part always wondered what about me had made him lose interest. Not exciting enough? Pretty enough? Good enough in bed? â€Å"Some things are worse than staying home alone,† I muttered. â€Å"Dean is one of them.† â€Å"Timothy?† one of the girls called from the living room. â€Å"Are you coming?† â€Å"One moment, gentle flower,† he hollered back. To me he said, â€Å"You sure you wanna hole up here all night? It isn’t really healthy to be away from people so much.† â€Å"I’m fine. Go enjoy your flowers.† He shrugged and left. Once by myself, I fixed a sandwich and shopped on the Internet, exactly as he’d predicted. It was followed by a puzzle depicting an M. C. Escher drawing. A bit harder than the kitten. Halfway through, I found myself staring at the puzzle pieces without seeing them. Roland’s quiet, fierce words played over in my head. Let Jasmine Delaney go. Everything he’d told me had been true. Dropping this was the smart thing to do. The safe thing to do. I knew I should listen to him†¦yet some part of me kept thinking of the young, smiling face Wil had shown me. Angrily, I shoved some of the puzzle pieces aside. This job wasn’t supposed to be about gray moral decisions. It was black and white. Find the bad guys. Kill or banish. Go home at the end of the day. I stood up, suddenly no longer wanting to be alone. I didn’t want to be left with my own thoughts. I wanted to be out with people. Clarification: I didn’t want to talk to people, I just wanted to be around them. Lost in the crowd. I needed to see my own kind – warm, living and breathing humans, not undead spirits or magic-infused gentry. I wanted to remember which side of the fence I was on. More important, I wanted to forget Jasmine Delaney. At least for tonight I threw on some jeans and the first bra and shirt I could find. My rings and bracelets always stayed on me, but I added a moonstone necklace that hung low in the shirt’s V-neck. I brushed my long hair into a high ponytail, missing a few strands. A dab of lipstick, and I was ready to go. Ready to lose myself. Ready to forget. How to cite Storm Born Chapter Two, Essay examples

IEP Case Study Sample - Addressing Legal Issues and Components

Question: Describe about the Addressing Legal Issues And Components of an Iep (A Case of Toby)? Answer: IEP for Toby 1. Discussion on present levels of performance The individual assessment of the students done by the IEP team, helps to determine the special educational needs of the students. The present levels in Tobys IEP must include two levels namely the functional level and the academic level. AS per the norms of IDEA Toby is entitled to receive special education facility since he is diagnosed with developmental disability, autism, emotional or behavioral disability and also speech and language disability (Kelley, Bartholomew Test, 2011). Present level of academic performance of Toby Toby faced difficulty in recognizing numbers to 20 however; he had accurate skills in solving puzzles The classroom reports shows that he also encountered problems in identifying diphthongs and blends and pronunciation difficulty in case of vowels related words (Kitchen et al., 2012) The use of the HESI-R confirmed that Toby also had deficiency in phonic analysis, structural analysis and comprehension The analysis revealed that Toby failed in his independent reading level scoring at percentage equal to a fourth grade level and also in his instruction level scoring at a fourth grade level (Huefner Herr, 2012). Present level of functional performance of Toby On assessing the classroom behavior of Toby it is seen that although he is eager to try new tasks however he his highly inattentive and distracted. Toby was prescribed medication in order to control his inattentiveness however, the absence of medication lead him to behave differently. The mental condition of Toby was also hyperactive because of peer humiliations. 2. Annual goals Given proper instructions, practice and visual supports Toby will develop social understanding skills and will engage in co-operative play and social interactions to improve his behavior. Given visual and verbal prompts Toby will further participate in tasks and complete the same with appropriate behaviors With the help of audio prompts like radio, audio books, podcasts and peer conversations Toby will be able to develop receptive language skills Further with the help of language learning communities, writing clubs, [private journals etc Toby will improve his writing skills (Kauffman Hallahan, 2011). By incorporating games like Champion director, Radar focus and musical chairs Toby can be helped to increase his attention skills 3. Reporting of student progress Goals Procedures for goal measurements Time of giving periodic reports Toby will improve his reading comprehension skills of 5th grade passages to 90 words accuracy in a 500 words passage (Lentz, 2012). oral readings will be weekly done where Tobys use of decoding strategies will be recorded, log observations about classroom readings Monthly phone or through email Written progress report Toby will increase his attention level and will increase self control Toby will use large motor activity 80% of the time to increase the focus of the work. Toby will raise hands in need of expressing any urgent need 80% of the time (Darden, 2013) Monthly phone or through email Written progress report Toby will attend group listening activities and will try to concentrate for at least 10 minutes in around 4 opportunities from majorly 5 opportunities (Pierangelo Giuliani, 2009) Small group discussions, individual story telling activity Two times per month though personal contact or personal visit Recording of IEP notes on a quarterly basis Toby will increase his use of language by using 4-5 word sentences during adult conversation in 75% opportunities Every three months interval a language sample test will be conducted Data will be recorded to mark the use of negative sentences (Ed.gov, 2015). Inform parents 3times per month Inform though phone calls Inform though personal mails Record progress report 4. Accommodations, modifications and support services As per Americans with Disabilities act 1990, North central University's Academic Integrity Policy will provide Toby with the following accommodations by the Student Success Centre (SSC). Read and reread directions Student appears for test in a small group setting Extra time is given for assignment completion Exam proctoring service (Cohen, 2009) 5. Related services, Frequency and duration of services Frequency is the number of sessions that the educational institutions will provide during the time as per the supplementary services. Duration denotes the amount of time within a time period where a service will be provided. Location of the service denotes the environment in which the student will be provided with the required special services (Spinelli, 2012). Tobys related services needed to benefit from special education including frequency, location and duration. Applicable related service Frequency and duration Location Speech / language 40 minutes per week General education school and community settings Transportation Daily between home and school Home and school Supplementary aids and supports provided to Toby 2 days per week In classroom settings Social skills instruction To be scheduled for 45 minutes twice in a week Special education classroom Classroom materials on tape, audio CD or electronic text reader Assignments on literature and academic subjects General education classroom Speech language therapy Once every week including 30 minutes session per week Special therapy room for special classes Small group interactions on spellings, grammars and comprehension practices Twice per week for 30 minutes session each day (Sugarman, 2011) Special education classroom Least restrictive environments The following are the least restrictive environments that will be organized for Toby keeping in mind his present physical and mental condition. Toby is not diagnosed with any physical disabilities hence he will be allowed to participate in full time education facility with non-disabled peers in regular education classes in appropriate age groups (Cho Kingston, 2012). Toby will also be able to participate in extracurricular activities and non-academic activities with non-disabled students with supplementary help from adults (Wendt, Quist Lloyd, 2011). However, Toby will not be able to participate in general learning classes since he has to be provided with supplementary aids and services that a general learning school cannot solve properly and adequately. If Toby is not provided with social skills and small group academic, instructions in a separate one to one setting then it will not be possible to develop reading skills of Toby. The following table shows the supplementary aids and services provided to Toby Supplementary aids and services Frequency Location Oral tests for language check Tests having more than 4 questions or 10 words per question General classroom settings Additional time to complete writing assignments Assignments requiring more than 5 sentences General classroom settings Classroom materials on audio text reader Literature and subject content General classroom settings 6. Participation in state and district wide assessments District wide assessments Toby will be provided with district wide assessments List of district wide assessments for Toby District Reading and Math test Toby will be considered in 5th grade when concepts examination criteria reference tests are given Toby will be taking written tests for all content areas required at this grade level Participation criteria Tobys academic curriculum should be made up of normal 5th grade academic requirements, knowledge and skills Tobys present level of academic and functional performance should be relevant with significant program modifications Toby is facing difficulty in the academic curriculum because of learning disabilities and not any other issues (Branding, Bates Miner, 2009) 7. Transition services As per the IEP norms, the transition services must be included in all IEPs of the students aged 16 years. Barnard-Brak Lechtenberger (2009) has referred transition services as the co ordinate set of activities that promote movement of the student from school to post school, post secondary education, vocational training etc. The following transition questionnaire on Toby will help the special educators to understand the future career plan of Tobys parents Student name : Date: Social security number: Birth date: Current address: Current telephone number: Expected date of graduation/ school completion: Parents name: What career path would you like the student to follow completion of graduate degree? What kind of jobs seems most interesting to the student? What kind of vocational trainings due you prefer? In what kind of vocational education classes would you like the student to enroll ? What further education would you like to provide to you son after his completion of school? What kind of help on campus will the student need ? What responsibilities would you like the student to take at home? What recreational activities would you like your son to participate? What are the possible financial needs of the student in future circumstances? 8. Legal issues that may arise during Tobys IEP meeting Summarizing the facts about Toby, it may be suggested that the following legal issues may arise during the IEP meeting of Toby Legal issue concerning the physical disability of Toby Issue concerning the degree of physical disability of Toby Legal issue concerning the mental condition of Toby The issue concerning the legal composition of the members in an IEP team meeting The parents of Toby may also face legal issues concerning the adoption of alternative assessment criteria for Toby and hence to avoid the same they should consult some of the previous court cases The legal issue may also arise concerning the availability of all educational information of Toby The legal issue will also arise concerning the evaluation of Toby hence Tobys parents should maintain a charting statement of Tobys progress. Before filling of a proposal for IEP meting Tobys parents are required to request the school administrator to evaluate Toby for special services. After meeting of the formal request, the school district must respond within a specific time and analyze the metal condition of Toby with the help of a psychologist. To avoid any legal restrictions Tobys parents may bring a doctor or professional along with them in the meeting to prove the disability of Toby. The IEP team will review the assessment of the district school council and discuss the recommendations and findings with Tobys parents. However if Tobys parents are not satisfied with the recommendations of the IEP team then they can legally opt for a second opinion. Tobys parents may also face problem in respect of equal participation in the IEP team meeting. The law states that the parents, the school personnels and the IDEA members all have equal rights of participation within the team meeting in deciding the fate of the student. Further, the rate of disability determines the types and extent of supplementary services that will be provided in the IEP program. Since Toby is diagnosed with learning disability and autism, hence he should be provided with learning supplementary services as well as social and community learning services in ord er to improve the present learning condition of Toby. IEP ream members should also include the following persons compulsorily Tobys parents Toby At least one of Tobys general education teacher At least one of Tobys special education teachers A school district representative An expert who can interpret Tobys evaluation results A translator Since Toby has encountered interaction sessions with only the general educator Mrs. McDonald in his preschool hence Tobys parents may face a problem in the IEP meeting. The IEP team should include the presence of one of the special educators of Toby. Hence, before attending an IEP meeting Tobys parents should consult special educator in order to review the current intellectual level of Toby (Hulett,2009). Secondly, the IEP team should also include an advocate from Tobys parents side and a friend for emotional support. To avoid any kind of legal disputes Tobys parents can appoint a legal representative who would support the disability contents of Toby and help them to successfully avail the IEP services. Reference list Barnard-Brak, L., Lechtenberger, D. (2009). Student IEP Participation and Academic Achievement Across Time.Remedial And Special Education,31(5), 343-349. doi:10.1177/0741932509338382 Branding, D., Bates, P., Miner, C. (2009). Perceptions of self-determination by special education and rehabilitation practitioners based on viewing a self-directed IEP versus an external-directed IEP meeting.Research In Developmental Disabilities,30(4), 755-762. doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2008.10.006 Cho, H., Kingston, N. (2012). Why IEP Teams Assign Low Performers With Mild Disabilities to the Alternate Assessment Based on Alternate Achievement Standards.The Journal Of Special Education,47(3), 162-174. doi:10.1177/0022466911435416 Cohen, M. (2009).A guide to special education advocacy. London: J. Kingsley Publishers. Darden, E. (2013). What's So Special about an IEP?.Phi Delta Kappan,94(6), 66-67. doi:10.1177/003172171309400617 Ed.gov,. (2015).Home | U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved 11 February 2015, from https://www.ed.gov/ Huefner, D., Herr, C. (2012).Navigating special education law and policy. Verona, Wis.: IEP Resources. Hulett,K..E. (2009) Legal aspects of special education. IEP Case Study of Toby. New Mexican Government. https://www.ped.state.nm.us/seo/dl09/triAnnual/CaseStudyIEP.pdf Kauffman, J., Hallahan, D. (2011).Handbook of special education. New York: Routledge. Kelley, K., Bartholomew, A., Test, D. (2011). Effects of the Self-Directed IEP Delivered Using Computer-Assisted Instruction on Student Participation in Educational Planning Meetings.Remedial And Special Education,34(2), 67-77. doi:10.1177/0741932511415864 Kitchen, J., Johnson, S., Kraft, T., Mayo, C., Rosenberg, K., Teague, J., Van Buiten, G. (2012).Special education law. [Concord, N.H.]: New Hampshire Bar Association. Kowalski, E., Pucci, G., Lieberman, L., Mulawka, C. (2005). Implementing IEP or 504 Goals and Objectives into General Physical Education.Journal Of Physical Education, Recreation Dance,76(7), 33-37. doi:10.1080/07303084.2005.10609310 Lentz, K. (2012).Transformational leadership in special education. Lanham, Md.: Rowman Littlefield Education. Northcentral.edu,. (2015).Academic Integrity, Progress, Support | North Central University. Retrieved 11 February 2015, from https://www.northcentral.edu/academics/academic-information/academic-integrity-progress-support Pierangelo, R., Giuliani, G. (2009).Assessment in special education. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Merrill Publishers. Rehfeldt, J., Clark, G., Lee, S. (2010). The Effects of Using the Transition Planning Inventory and a Structured IEP Process as a Transition Planning Intervention on IEP Meeting Outcomes.Remedial And Special Education,33(1), 48-58. doi:10.1177/0741932510366038 Spinelli, C. (2012).Classroom assessment for students in special and general education. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson. Sugarman, D. (2011). A special relationship? American influences on English legal education, c. 18701965.International Journal Of The Legal Profession,18(1-2), 7-57. doi:10.1080/09695958.2011.630899 Wendt, O., Quist, R., Lloyd, L. (2011).Assistive technology. Bingley: Emerald Group Pub. Yun, J., Shapiro, D., Kennedy, J. (2000). Reaching IEP Goals in the General Physical Education Class.Journal Of Physical Education, Recreation Dance,71(8), 33-37. doi:10.1080/07303084.2000.10605189