Pen Pals: Based On X-files Characters :: essays research papers

Pen Pals: Based On X-Files Characters Forward: This story was written based on the X-Files characters created by Chris Carter and Ten Thirteen productions. In no way this story is being used to infringe or defame these characters or the X-Files television series. The story is based on my speculation of what happened to Agent Fox Mulder's sister when she was a child. According to the writers of the X-Files, this story has no affiliation to what really happened to Samantha Mulder when she was a child, as no one really knows the whole story. As the series unfolds, we will hopefully learn more about what happens. I have submitted my story to the writers & producers of the X-Files via the Internet in hopes they will use my story in a future episode. This story is also available over the Internet on my home page so others can view it at their leisure. The idea for this story has been in the back of my mind before I was assigned this project. I have always loved the X-Files since it premiered and within the past year, I have submitted my stories, ideas, and suggestions to the writers of the X-Files. Unfortunately, none of my ideas have been selected. Lots of activity regarding the X-Files goes on over the Internet, and through discussions are where I get a lot of my ideas for the stories that I write. =============================================== June 8th, 1996 6:58pm- Washington, DC, Scully's Apartment Dana Scully arrived home to find a package sitting in the hallway outside her door. Curious, she picked it up and tucked it under her arm while she let herself into the apartment. Once inside, she set the box wrapped in brown paper down on her dining table and left it there while she hung up her coat and kicked off her high heels. Mulder would be coming over later to discuss the case they were currently working on, but until then, she wanted to relax. She made herself a cup of hot coffee and carried both it and the package with her over to the sofa. She noticed that her mother's return address was on the label. I wonder what this could be? She didn't say she was going to be sending me anything. Dana set her tea down and ripped the paper open. Inside she found a rather old, very familiar shoebox with an envelope taped to the top. She opened the envelope and read the letter her mother had enclosed. Dear Dana, I found this when I was going through some boxes in the attic and almost threw

The Brady Act: Inconsistent but Served a Purpose

The Brady Law which is technically known as The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 was signed as a law under the presidency of Bill Clinton on November 30, 1993. The law requires that whenever someone purchases a gun, he/ she should wait up to five days for a background check. As long as the Federal Bureau of Investigation has undergone the background check and for so long as the Federal Firearm License has not been issued, then a person can never obtain or own a gun (Bowling et al. , 2006).At the same time, it also required the gun dealers in each of the state should begin conducting and submitting background check requirements on their prospective buyers to the authorities to aid the process of authenticating that buyer’s capability and reliability in owning a gun (Ludwig and Cook, 2003). All states should have similar disqualifications for their applicants. These are fugitive status, court restraining orders, mental illness, and other violence convictions. Becaus e of these, of the 12 million applications that were subjected to background check by the National Bureau of Investigation, there were around 1.4 million that were rejected. However, there are also several rejections done by State and local agency background checks which were argued to be a little inconsistent to the FBI requirements (Bowling et al. , 2006). For instance, most state statutes would require firearm purchasers to have a permit or a license or an identification number right after background check to be presented to the seller before they are allowed to buy a firearm. Within these said statute laws, the background check would require around 7 to 30 days.This is inconvenient and inconsistent with the original Brady Bill because it only mandated a background check for only less than a week and 30 days is way too far from that requirement. Other state laws and agencies require that a seller should convey buyer’s information to the authorities either through mail, tel ephone, or e-mail. Accordingly, the local agencies would respond in about 7 to 10 days. The same as already mentioned, this is also a little bit inconvenient because it is only by then that they start their background check.Other than these, there were also instances were the agencies will have to encounter incomplete records of applicants in their databases which will test the capability of the buyer to purchase a firearm. There is also a discrepancy between the state and the local agencies’ reason on rejection. Federal laws would likely to applicants with domestic violence conviction or indictment. On one hand, local agencies would likely to reject applicants that are drug addicts and mentally ill. Moreover, other states provide for appeals, but only seventeen of them.All of these prove that there is discrepancy and inconsistencies in the implementation of this law (Bowling et al. , 2006). However, despite this, I think the law is still very useful in the maintenance of pea ce and security of the country. This is because the law even when it has been implemented inconsistently by the federal and the state government, it still outlines very concrete requirements and methodology in granting and denying the right of every citizen to possess firearms.This law is obviously concerned on the circumstances that would entail the irresponsible handling and owning of a dangerous weapon like the firearm. It mainly aims to secure the safety of very citizen in the United States and to prevent ruthless assassinations. References Bowling, M and Hickman, J. (2006). â€Å"Background Checks for Firearm Transfers, 2005†. Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin. US: US Department of Justice. Ludwig, J and Cook, P. (2003). Evaluating gun policy: effect on crime and violence. USA: Brookings Institution Press.

Critical Thinking – Lionking

SUMMARY The Lion King is an animated film by Walt Disney. The movies entail trust, character, suspense and betrayal. The story presents a story about lion’s race and their kingship story. It began with the story of a lion’s cub journey to adulthood and acceptance of his royal destiny. Simba begins life as a young cub with a promising future of becoming a king when he attains the stage of adulthood. He is the son of King Mufasa.Simba’s happy childhood took a tragic turn when his uncle, Scar strategically murdered the king and blames Simba as the curse of the King’s death and suggests that Simba ran away from Pride Rock in order for him (Scar) to be king. While in exile, the young lion befriends a pair of warthog and meerkat named Pumbaa and Timon respectively and the three combined lived a carefree jungle life. As Simba approaches adulthood, he coincidentally met his childhood friend Nala and the past began to unfold.He also had an encounter with Rafiki, th e monkey, from his past and later on was later visited by the spirit of his father urging Simba to take his place in the circle of life as the rightful king and the true heir to the throne of Pride Rock. Simba was finally persuaded of going back to Pride Rock and confront his uncle Scar for the throne. It was later learnt that Scar was the brain behind king Mufasa’s death and wanted to kill Simba also for the second time but Simba defeated him and reclaim Pride Rock and the hyenas were banished also.The Lion king, Embraced by most children and adults alike, the film spawned hit musics like â€Å"Can you feel the love tonight†, â€Å"The Circle of life†, also entails the likes of Elton John, Tim Rice and Hans Zimmer. In late 2002, the Lion king was re-released in the large screen IMAX format. VAGUENESS: In Critical Thinking, a sentence is considered vague when it is unclear what the messages or the ideas the speakers intend to convey. Vagueness can be caused by u nclear standards, confusion over the context, imprecise choice of words, and regional or cultural causes.In the movie The Lion King, here we have found a few examples of vagueness and our explanations. Vagueness 1:(09. 05) [pic] Yes, Simba’s response tells us that Mufasa is actually making a vague statement, because there is no further explanation afterwards on the statement that he has made. We totally have no idea the exact responsibilities to becoming a king, nor what it takes to be king. In this situation, the vagueness is evoked due to the confusion over the context. For instance, do someone need to be more ruthless? , Or more merciful? to become a king? We never know from what is stated by Mufasa. It at the same time causes ambiguousness here. Vagueness 2 (14. 25) Here comes a concise example for the vagueness analysis in the movie. Apparently, Simba’s and Nala’s reaction shows that they are confused by what Zazu is actually trying to imply. Zazu uses some choices of words that Simba and Nala have difficulty in understanding. These imprecise choices of words causes confusion for Simba and Nala, as they are oblivious to the meaning of the choice of words zazu employed.Both Simba and Nala does not understand Zazu’s use of deep and complicated language. And at last with this simple but easily-understandable sentence, Simba and Nala finally understood the message that Zazu wants to express. Vagueness 3: (03:15) Refer to the Circle of Life scene and Painting scene. In these two scenes, we can see Rafiki is doing the same action which is applying something, looks like juice and sand, on the forehead of Simba. Nothing really explains what Rafiki’s actions unless you have Christian experience that it’s a symbolization of a baptism-like ritual on Simba..As an audience without any Christianity knowledge, you would not have known that Rafiki’s action of putting the sand and coconut juice he collects on Simba’s brow as a ceremonial crown in fact has its hidden meaning. Here it exists that cultural or religious factor 8causes vagueness to a part of audience population. We might be wondering what is the meaning or the messages this scene intends to put across. Furthermore, can we substitute the juice or sand with some other materials? Or must it be specific using this particular material? This indicates the confusion over the context used in the scene.Vagueness 4 (08:52) In this context, a vague standard about Everything that Simba is going to possess in the future is used. Does it mean that as long as there is no more light, such as night time, Simba would then lose the things that he owns? Audience may have difficulty in understanding the standard and then interpret differently what the story actually narrates. FACTS VS OPINIONS: A fact is a specific detail that can be proven as true based on objective evidence whereas an opinion is a feeling, judgment, belief, or conclusion that cannot b e proven true and it is always subjective. Fact 1: (09. 25)In this part of the story, Mufasa is trying to teach his son Simba a lesson on the biodiversity on the Pride Land. He is conveying a fact to his son, about which how the circle of life goes. This statement is objective and purely based on what happens in the reality of nature. Mufasa does not incorporate his own feelings or perspective in his statement. Besides, this is also a generally known biology fact, whereby we understand our own position in the vast universe, and it is scientifically verified. Thus, the audience can easily understand the statement and accept it, without analyzing if the statement is true or false and valid or invalid.Fact 2 (23:28) According to this statement, Mufasa is just accounting for a fact that has just happened. He points out what is in reality and it is objective. Simba’s misbehaviors have caused him danger and might have killed him when the hyenas tried to hunt him(Simba). And Mufasa stated out what Simba has just done, which is disobeying him, because Simba went to the shadowy place which Mufasa has warned him not to. It can be verified through watching the movie. Besides, we do not see there is use of biased word judging the incident. Opinion 1 (04:48)Scar makes the statement that life is not fair solely because he shall never be the King. This is a self-centered statement which automatically makes it a subjective statement. And it is a rhetorical question, where Scar wants people to agree with him, and thus it is biased in terms of the choice of words used. We can feel the sense of shame that Scar is trying to express when he cannot be the King, in which we can say the statement is loaded with emotion and is purely a personal judgment to the life he has. Opinion 2 (25:41) In this part of the conversation, I hate lions, shows rather much a biased word is used in judging the lions.Apparently, Banzai does not like lions. Banzai makes the statement according to h is own judgment and it is loaded with emotion. The hyenas think that the lions are pushy, hairy, stinky and ugly and that is why they dislike lions. But that does not make more reason for the audience to listen to them and consequently hates lions as well. Besides, every individual has their own point of view on interpreting the reality. Some people may find lions as cute and brave. Hence, these statements are purely based on the hyenas’ opinions and they are subjective, whereby it is an opinion.They are same the lions, Scar and the other lions, but the hyenas have different judgments on them. When Scar states that lions are not all bad, hyenas agree with him and say that it is just Scar the good lion. And this situation vividly depicts that they judge things differently based on their opinions. INTERROGATIVE AND RHETORICAL QUESTIONS: There are a lot of questions in the movie in which we need to analyze whether they are interrogative questions or rhetorical questions so that we can better understand the messages the director of the movie tries to convey.An interrogative question is meant to solicit some information from someone while a rhetorical question is to encourage someone to agree or to act in a certain way. Interrogative Question 1 Scar asks Simba what he has done and supposedly he expects some answer from Simba and thus, Simba answers and tells what has happened to his dad in the stampede. This is a form of interrogative question where the question is meant to get some information from the other person. Rhetorical Question 1 When Scar states that â€Å"what will your mother think? † he does not actually expect an answer from Simba.Instead, he wants Simba to feel guilty of his father, king Mufasa’s death. Scar wants Simba to reprimand himself for that and leave the Pride Land, whereby Scar will subsequently become the King of the Pride Land. And refer to the following part of the conversation, Scar persuades Simba to leave the plac e. And this makes the rhetorical question established to encourage Simba to act in the way Scar wants him to. Interrogative Question 2 This is a question whereby Simba asks Scar what he should do. And Scar then replies and asks Simba to run away from the land and never come back again.Soliciting information is thus involved in the statement and makes it an interrogative question. Rhetorical Question 2 In the context, Simba asks Nala if the place is great. Simba does not actually require an answer from Nala as he has assumed himself that the place is nice. He actually only wants to get agreement from Nala that the place is nice. Later on, Nala agrees with Simba regarding the question. Therefore, it shows that the rhetorical question is powerful in convincing somebody to agree with it. Interrogative Question 3 Nala questions Simba why he never went back to Pride Rock.And Simba states his reasons. This is another common form of interrogative question where information is required for t he purpose of asking the question. Interrogative Question 4 : Leading question According to the conversation, Simba asks a question in which he wants to make up his mistake to his father and he kind of directs Mufasa to answer in the way that Mufasa has already forgiven him. In Critical Thinking, a leading question is a question to guide someone to answer in a certain way or in the way that you want. Most of the time, a leading question is framed to be a yes-or-no question.So when Mufasa answers â€Å" Right. †, it means that Simba has succeeded in getting his father’s forgiving. [pic] [pic] [pic] [pic] [pic] ———————– Mufasa: Oh, there's more to being king than– getting your way all the time. {Mufasa starts back down the rock} Simba: {Awed} There's more? Zazu: {Flying down} Oh, just look at you two. Little seeds of romance blossoming in the savannah. Your parents will be thrilled†¦ {He lands in front o f them} †¦what with your being betrothed and all. Simba: Be-what? Zazu: Betrothed. Intended. Affianced. Nala: Meaning†¦? (Continued)Zazu: {As though holding on to his coat lapels} One day you two are going to be married! Simba: Yuck! Nala: Ewww! Mufasa: A king's time as ruler rises and falls like the sun. One day Simba, the sun will set on my time here- and will rise with you as the new king. Simba: And this’ll all be mine? Mufasa: Everything. Simba: Everything the light touches†¦ Mufasa: Yes, Simba, but let me explain. When we die, our bodies become the grass. And the antelope eat the grass. And so we are all connected in the great Circle of Life. Mufasa: {Continue} You could have been killed.You deliberately disobeyed me. And what's worse,- you put Nala in danger! Scar: Life's not fair, is it? You see I — well, I†¦ shall never be King. {exhale lightly} And you†¦ shall never see the light of another day. Banzai: Yeah. Man, I hate lions. Shenzi : So pushy. Banzai: And hairy. Shenzi: And stinky. Banzai: And man are they †¦ Shenzi and Banzai: Uuug-LEE! {They laugh. } (continued) (25:21) Scar: {From his perch we saw in the Hyena chase} Oh, surely we lions are not all that bad. Banzai: Ohh. {relieved from the surprise} Oh Scar, it's just you. Scar: Simba. .. What have you done? (36:99) Simba: {Jumps back, crying} There were wildebeest and he tried to save me†¦ It was an accident, I†¦ I didn't mean for it to happen. Scar: {Embracing Simba, yet still distant} Of course, of course, you didn't. No one†¦ ever means {pulls Simba closer. Simba hides his face on Scar’s foreleg} for these things to happen†¦. But the king is dead. {looking with mock regret at Simba} And if it weren't for you, he'd still be alive. {Simba is crushed, believing his guilt. Another thought â€Å"occurs† to Scar. } Oh! What will your mother think? 37:29) Simba: {Sniffing} What am I gonna do? (37:33) Scar: Run away, Simba †¦. Run†¦. Run away, and never return. Simba: Isn't this a great place? (59:01) Nala: It is beautiful†¦. But I don't understand something. You've been alive all this time. Why didn't you come back to Pride Rock? (59:10) Simba: {Climbing into a â€Å"hammock† of hanging vines} Well, I just †¦ needed to get out on my own. Live my own life. And I did. And it's great! {He sounds almost as if trying to convince himself as well as Nala. } Simba: We're pals, right? (24:32) Mufasa: {Gentle laugh} Right.

Comparison Essay

Both of Emily Dickinson’s poems are about death. â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Love† is more about the cycle of life than death. â€Å"I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died† relates to the final moment before death. Emily Dickinson’s poems are both centered on death; â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Death† is based more around upbeat and happy scenes, as where â€Å"I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died† talks about the preparation before death. Although both poems have very different meaning, the two poems both focus on the ending of life. In the last line of â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Death† Emily Dickinson says were toward eternity. In Dickinson’s second poem it says, now she waits for the king to come. In the first poem Dickinson refers to eternity meaning after death living for forever. In the second poem waiting for the king to come relates to the end of existence, when the king comes back to take us all. In â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Death† has a happy ending and is a very appealing poem. Dickinson describes a girl being picked up in a carriage for all of life’s journeys. Where Dickinson’s second poem was a serious poem, describing the build up right before death. She mentions the stillness in the air, and breath-gathering firm. One poem is very heart warming and, the other is very serious. These poems ultimately have the same meaning, but both take a different look at death. The first poem contains the process of life before death, and how she is working for a new beginning. Dickinson’s second poem talks about her death being the end of everything, Dickinson even mentions decaying in the grave. The first poem has a positive outlook on death, and the second portrays a rough end to life.

A Cigarette Lighter and a World Away Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A Cigarette Lighter and a World Away - Essay Example I carefully peeled back the label and the years fell away with each new layer of wrapping paper. As I opened the box, my childhood came rushing out and filled the room with a new, yet familiar, aroma. Inside the box was a cigarette lighter. My grandmother had received it as a gift from what she called "an old flame", and it had always held a special place in my grandmother's purse. When I'd visit her I'd always ask, "Can I see the lighter", hypnotized by the mysterious beauty that it held. Now, it had been willed to me and with it came memories and thoughts of my grandmother.The solid silver lighter had been worn by decades of use, yet the hand tooled grooves still held the artistry of the French craftsman that had made it. It had a rugged feel, the sense of armed guards at the royal Victorian court. When I was younger, the lighter filled my small hands and weighed me down, as I'd run through the woods with it held tightly in my clutch. Its weight would pull me down, face first onto the forest floor as the smell of decaying leaves, newly uncovered by the spring thaw, caressed my senses. As the smell of the forest's morning dew faded, a memory of my grandma's "special recipe syrup" filled my mind. It was the aroma of maple syrup cooking in my grandma's backyard as she turned sap into a sweet nectar. She would always let me strike the lighter to light the woodpile that she evaporated the sap on. As the sap evaporated, it left behind the sweetness of pure maple syrup. Risking burning my hair, I would lean over the large pot just far enough to catch a whiff of that natural sweet smell. It would mix with the smoke from the burning wood and linger in my nostrils for hours. As I savored the smell of the maple, I caught another faint aroma, the distant smell of burning, fallen leaves. Fall was my favorite time to visit grandma. There was always the traditional Halloween and Thanksgiving treats, overly sweet with the taste of a bountiful harvest. But I had my best time when I was raking the leaves in the yard. Grandma used to give me fifty cents to rake the fallen leaves in the yard into one big pile. We would then set the pile on fire and marvel at the reds, blues, and purples in the blazing leaves. The smoke would sting my eyes and throat as it chased me around the yard. Grandma always let me light the lighter to start the leaves on fire, and it was one of the few times she ever let me light it. She would let me look at it and hold it but insisted that, "You should never start a fire that you can't put out". I would look for any excuse just to light that lighter. Grandma didn't know it, but I would have raked that yard for nothing just for the chance to see the bright flash of that sparkling flint. The few times I did get to put the lighter into action always made my hands smell of petroleum. This lighter, made way before the electric spark pre-packaged gas models, was powered by flint and lighter fluid. No matter how I tried, everytime I handled the lighter my young hands would be covered with the scent of the fluid. I smelled my hands now and could still smell the strong, yet strangely pleasant odor. I went to wash my hands, but the smell still hung in the air, and along with it others filled my nose. I recognized the smell of burning brush from the summer I helped grandma clean out her fencerows. It was a bonfire that towered over my childhood head, crisp and alive, flames shooting toward the sky as they consumed the tender young branches. I sensed the smell of a Pall Mall as I imagined grandma lighting her one vice, a non-filter mixture of exotically blended tobacco. The smell of a

Promoting Unity in the Family Unit in the twenty First century Essay

Promoting Unity in the Family Unit in the twenty First century - Essay Example   Accepting the changes in the family unit that have occurred during the twentieth century can be one of the best methods of achieving harmony in the family. An acceptance on the part of the parents of the changed social codes regarding the manner in which men and women are to conduct themselves in society, an help bridge distances between the two parents in case any clash happens. On many occasions, conflicts arise as a result of the inability on the part of either parent to accept that the gender roles that the other is supposed to adhere to have changed from previous generations. Parents who have grown up seeing earlier models of manhood and womanhood may not be able to adjust to modern lifestyles that demand different definitions of either category of genders. During the twentieth century, the notions of differences between sex and gender that came about primarily due to feminist movements have also caused changes in the structure of the family. The establishment of the differe nces in the sexual and gender roles, that a person is supposed to perform, was explained at length by the French feminist, Simone De Beauvoir in her book, The Second Sex (Beauvoir). A redistribution of jobs within the family may enable different members, whichever sex they are, to feel themselves more a part of the family. This would follow from the fact that they would be able to see themselves not just as members of a family as a result of their crudely reproductive functions but also because of the characteristics as individuals.      Contrary to popular perception gay and lesbian families can actually strengthen family structures since the reproductive aspect of relations that is present in heterosexual families is less a part of homosexual families. The structuring of such families can function as models for units that are distinct from conventional standards of the family. Such standards may enable people of any orientation to bring in more of their individuality into family units as a positive change. To be a part of a united group of individuals that form a unit within a society, one needs to feel accepted within that group. Unconventional models can be the next step in the evolution of the family unit in the twenty first century. Such a process of evolution may lead to models of the family that are stronger and more united than those which were a feature of the past. Strict patriarchal authority that was the driving force of earlier models of

Mismatch Repair Genes and Cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mismatch Repair Genes and Cancer - Essay Example The study attempted to screen for two major types of mutations. One type of mutation that was tested for was the loss of heterozygosity, which is a type of mutation that generates a change in the type of genetic transmission of cells. The other type of mutation that was screened in the study was microsatellite instability. This mutation is usually observed in long sequences that were composed of repeating segments. These two types of mutations were considered to be important in determining whether a certain gene does influence the development of cancer. The study was conducted in a Portugese hospital, wherein approximately 287 patient subjects participants. These patients were already diagnosed to have breast cancer. In addition, there were 547 individuals who also participated in the study as controls, or individuals who were pre-determined to be normal and healthy. The study wanted to estimate the chances of developing breast cancer based on the presence and number of mutations in the MMR genes that were studied. The MMR genes tested in the investigation included the mismatch repair genes of the MSH family, as well as that of the MLH family. The PMS1 and MUTYH were also other genes that belonged to the MMR class of repair genes.