Hoist With His Own Petard

Hoist With His Own Petard Hoist With His Own Petard Hoist With His Own Petard By Maeve Maddox I think Keith Olbermann may have had something to do with popularizing this Shakespearean expression. In July 2005 Olbermann, writing about the London bus bombing, wrote: July 21st may turn out to be the day the terrorists began to blow themselves up - hoist themselves, as the Middle English phrase goes, â€Å"on their own petard.† I cant guess why he called it a Middle English phrase. The expression, meaning blown up by his own bomb, comes from Shakespeares time (1605). By then, Middle English had morphed into Modern English. As recently as Election Eve 2008, Olbermann was still using the phrase: Im trying to give Gov. Palin out there, a couple more seconds to figure out how she managed to get herself, as Shakespeare wrote of people destroyed by their own evil plans, hoist with her own petard.† Keith Olbermann October 31, 2008 Here is how the expression is used in Hamlet (III, iv, 206-208): For tis the sport to have the enginer Hoist with his own petar, ant shall go hard But I will delve one yard below their mines, And blow them at the moon. Hamlet is talking about his old college chums Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Theyve been spying on him for the king, and Hamlet suspects they are laying a trap for him. Hes planning his own preà «mptive strike. A petar was an explosive device. It got its name from the French verb pà ªter, which means to break wind. The Old French noun pet means fart. Shakespeare was making one of his earthy puns here. Note that in the original expression, hoist is a verb in the past tense. Writers who want to use the expression correctly need to keep that fact in mind. The hoist of current English usage retains the same meaning, to raise, to lift up, but in modern usage, the past tense form has been regularized to hoisted. Ex. The crane hoisted the girder into place. Commentators who dont know their Shakespeare get it wrong: The amusing context for this interview, was watching Keith Olbermann hoisted on his own petard. Donklephant, March 15, 2008. I mean who are the REAL victims here? CBS News has been hoisted on its own petard Cecelia, commenting on Dan Rather scandal, January 24, 2005. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Has vs. HadAbstract Nouns from Adjectives25 Idioms with Clean

7 Simple Strategies for Teaching Math to Kids

7 Simple Strategies for Teaching Math to Kids Teaching math to your children is as easy as 112. Go beyond pencil and paper to make math a learning experience thats fun for you and your kids. These quick and easy strategies help you teach your kids math and will turn them into mini mathematicians. Start With Counting Teaching math begins with your child knowing numbers. You can help them learn to count with the same strategies youll be using to teach them math. Children may respond better to memorizing numbers you repeat or may pick up numbers by seeing you count objects from one to ten. A method that may work for one of your children might not be right for another. Gauge each child individually. Once your child begins counting, youre ready to start with some basic math principles. Theyll be adding and subtracting before you know it. Use Everyday Objects You already have everything you need to begin teaching math to your child. Buttons, pennies, money, books, fruit, soup cans, trees, cars - you can count the objects you have available. Math is easy to teach when you look at all of the physical objects you can count, add, subtract, and multiply. Everyday objects also help you teach your child that objects dont have to be identical to be important in math. Counting apples is a great math lesson, but counting apples, oranges, and watermelons together expands the thought process. The child is connecting counting with various objects, instead of running through a routine numbers game of 1, 2, 3. Play Math Games There are plenty of games on the market that promise to aid you in teaching math. Hi Ho Cherry-O and adding dice teach simple addition. The game Chutes and Ladders introduces children to the numbers 1 to 100. Advanced math board games come and go, so check stores for todays hot games. Classics like Yahtzee, PayDay, Life, and Monopoly are always good resources for addition and subtraction. Some of the best math games come from your own imagination. Play a math scavenger hunt. Use chalk to scribble numbers on the driveway and quiz your kids with math questions they have to answer by running to the correct number. Begin basic counting skills with blocks. Math can become an activity they enjoy rather than an educational drill. Bake Cookies Soft cookies make excellent teaching tools. While you can count the cookies you bake for simple math, a fresh batch is also perfect for teaching fractions. With a plastic knife, kids can learn how to cut a cookie into eighths, fourths, and halves. The act of visually seeing a fourth created as well as them getting to cut that whole into fourths makes an impression in a childs mind. Use those small cookie pieces to teach your child how to add and subtract fractions. For example, 1/4 of a cookie 1/4 of a cookie 1/2 of a cookie. Put the pieces together so they can see the cookie half. An alternative to baking cookies is to use raw cookie dough or make your own play-dough. Of course, you cant eat your fractions when youre finished learning math, but you can reuse the cookie dough or molding clay. Invest in an Abacus Even the smallest hands love sliding abacus beads back and forth along the wire. An abacus can be used to teach kids addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. With an abacus, kids develop problem-solving skills. Theres a logic behind using an abacus, so be sure you know what group of numbers each colored bead represents to accurately use it. Test Flash Cards Flashcards can show you what 22 equals, but letting kids get hands-on experience with counting may work better. Evaluate your childs learning preferences by trying both flashcards and hands-on experience. Some children learn better by seeing the answer on a card or counting pictures on a card. Others wont truly get the concept of math until you let them count physical objects. Mix up your math lessons to see which method seems to be working best for your child. Make Math a Daily Activity Use math in your day-to-day routine. Help your child get the most out of your math lessons when you incorporate it into your daily life while setting goals they can achieve. At a red light, how many blue cars do you see?At the grocery store, how many boxes of crackers could we buy if we only have $10?At the doctors office, how many kids will be left in the waiting room when three are called to the back?If we only ate 1/4 of our lunch, how much would we have left?How much will diapers cost if theyre 25 percent off?On the freeway, how much do the numbers on the license plate in front of us add up to?How many shirts are you putting into the washing machine?If you need to divide eight quarters among four people at the arcade, how many quarters would each person get? Once you show your child how much fun math can be, they will gain enthusiasm about learning that you can apply to other subjects. Once children enjoy learning, theres no stopping them.

Axolotl Facts (Ambystoma mexicanum)

Axolotl Facts (Ambystoma mexicanum) According to Aztec legend, the first axolotl (pronounced axo-LO-tuhl)  was a god who changed his form in order to escape being sacrificed. The sneaky transformation from terrestrial salamander to a fully aquatic form did not save later generations from death. The Aztecs ate axolotls. Back when the animals  were common, you could buy them as food in Mexican markets. While the axolotl may not be a god, its an amazing animal. Learn how to recognize an axolotl, why scientists are fascinated by them, and how to care for one as a pet. Fast Facts: Axolotl Scientific Name: Ambystoma mexicanumCommon Names: Axolotl, Mexican salamander, Mexican walking fishBasic Animal Group: AmphibianSize: 6-18 inchesWeight: 2.1-8.0 ouncesLifespan: 10 to 15 yearsDiet: CarnivoreHabitat: Xochimilco Lake near Mexico CityPopulation: Less than a hundredConservation Status: Critically Endangered Description Axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum. andrewburgess / Getty Images An axolotl is a type of salamander, which is an amphibian. Frogs, newts, and most salamanders undergo a metamorphosis to transition from life in the water to life on land. The axolotl is unusual in that it doesnt undergo a metamorphosis and develop lungs. Instead, axolotls hatch from eggs into a juvenile form that grows to become its adult form. Axolotls keep their gills and permanently reside in the water. A mature axolotl (18 to 24 months in the wild) ranges in length from 15 to 45 centimeters (6 to 18 inches). An adult specimen weighs anywhere between 2 and 8 ounces. An axolotl  resembles other salamander larvae, with lidless eyes, a wide head, frilled gills, long digits, and a long tail. A male has a swollen, papillae-lined cloaca, while a female has a wider body that is full of eggs. The salamanders have vestigial teeth. Gills are used for respiration, although the animals sometimes gulp surface air for supplemental oxygen. Axolotls have four pigmentation genes, giving rise to a wide range of colors. The wild-type coloration is olive brown with gold speckles. Mutant colors include pale pink with black eyes, gold with gold eyes, gray with black eyes, and black. Axolotls can alter their melanophores to camouflage themselves, but only to a limited extent. Scientists believe axolotls descended from salamanders that could live on land, but reverted to water because it offered a survival advantage. Animals Confused With Axolotls This is not an axolotl: Necturus maculosus (common mudpuppy). Paul Starosta / Getty Images People confuse axolotls with other animals partly because the same common names may be applied to different species and partly because axolotls do resemble other animals. Animals confused with axolotls include: Waterdog: A waterdog is the name of the larval stage of the tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum and A. mavotium). The tiger salamander and axolotl are related, but the axolotl never metamorphosizes into a terrestrial salamander. However, its possible to force an axolotl to undergo metamorphosis. This animal looks like a tiger salamander, but the metamorphosis is unnatural and shortens the animals lifespan. Mudpuppy: Like the axolotl, the mudpuppy (Necturus spp.) is a fully aquatic salamander. However, the two species are not closely related. Unlike the axolotl, the common mudpuppy (N. maculosus) is not endangered. Habitat and Distribution The lake Lago Acitlalin in the Ecological Park (Parque Ecologico de Xochimilco) is a vast nature reserve in the wetlands of Xochimilco in the south of Mexico City, Mexico. stockcam / Getty Images In the wild, axolotls only live in the Xochimilco lake complex, which is located near Mexico City. The salamanders may be found on the bottom of the lake and its canals. Neoteny The axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) exhibits neoteny, meaning it remains in its larval form throughout life. Quentin Martinez / Getty Images The axolotl is a neotenic salamander, which means it doesnt mature into an air-breathing adult form. Neoteny is favored in cool, high-altitude environments because metamorphosis requires a huge energy expenditure. Axolotls can be induced to metamorphose by injection of iodine or thyroxine or by ingesting iodine-rich food. Diet This captive axolotl is eating a piece of meat. Argument / Getty Images Axolotls are carnivores. In the wild, they eat worms, insect larvae, crustaceans, small fish, and mollusks. The salamanders hunt by smell, snapping at prey and sucking it in like a vacuum cleaner. Within the lake, axolotls  had no real predators. Predatory birds were the biggest threat. Large fish were introduced into Lake Xochimilco, which ate the young salamanders. Reproduction and Offspring This is a newt in its egg sac. Like newts, salamander larvae are recognizable within their eggs. Dorling Kindersley / Getty Images Much of what we know about axolotl reproduction comes from observing them in captivity. Captive axolotls become mature in their larval stage between 6 and 12 months of age. Females typically mature later than males. The increasing temperature and light of spring signal  the start of the axolotl breeding season. Males expel spermatophores into the water and try to lure a female over them. The female picks up the sperm packet with her cloaca, leading to internal fertilization. Females release between 400 and 1000 eggs during spawning. She lays each egg individually, attaching it to a plant or rock. A female may breed several times during a season. The tail and gills of the larvae are visible within the egg. Hatching occurs after 2 to 3 weeks. Larger, earlier-hatching larvae eat smaller, younger ones. Regeneration Starfish regenerate lost arms, but they are invertebrates. Salamanders regenerate, plus they are vertebrates (like humans). Jeff Rotman / Getty Images The axolotl is a model genetic organism for regeneration. Salamanders and newts have the highest regenerative ability of any tetrapod (4-legged) vertebrates. The incredible healing ability extends well beyond replacing a lost tail or limbs. Axolotls can even replace some parts of their brains. In addition, they freely accept transplants (including eyes and brain portions) from other axolotls. Conservation Status Tilapia added to the lake near Mexico City are one of the main threats to axolotl survival. darkside26 / Getty Images Wild axolotls are headed to extinction. They are listed as critically endangered by IUCN. In 2013, no surviving axolotls were found in the Lake Xochimilco habitat, but then two individuals were found in the canals leading from the lake. The decline of axolotls is due to multiple factors. Water pollution, urbanization (loss of habitat), and introduction of invasive species (tilapia and perch) may be more than the species can withstand. Keeping an Axolotl in Captivity An axolotl will eat anything small enough to fit into its mouth. Argument / Getty Images However, the axolotl wont vanish! Axolotls are important research animals and fairly common exotic pets. They are uncommon at pet stores because they require a cool temperature, but may be obtained from hobbyists and scientific supply houses. A single axolotl needs at least a 10-gallon aquarium, filled (no exposed land, like for a frog), and supplied with a lid (because axolotls jump). Axolotls cannot tolerate chlorine or chloramine, so tap water must be treated prior to use. A water filter is a necessity, but the salamanders cannot tolerate flowing water. They do not require light, so in an aquarium with plants, its important to have large rocks or other hiding places. Pebbles, sand, or gravel (anything smaller than the axolotls head) pose a risk because axolotls will ingest them and may die from gastrointestinal blockage. Axolotls need a year-round temperature in the low to mid-60s (Fahrenheit) and will die if exposed to prolonged temperature about 74  °F. They need an aquarium chiller to maintain the proper temperature range. Feeding is the easy part of axolotl care. They will eat bloodworm cubes, earthworms, shrimp, and lean chicken or beef. While they will eat feeder fish, experts recommend avoiding them because salamanders are susceptible to parasites and diseases carried by fish. Sources   Luis Zambrano; Paola Mosig Reidl; Jeanne McKay; Richard Griffiths; Brad Shaffer; Oscar Flores-Villela; Gabriela Parra-Olea; David Wake. Ambystoma mexicanum. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2010. IUCN. 2010: e.T1095A3229615. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-2.RLTS.T1095A3229615.enMalacinski, George M. The Mexican Axolotl,  Ambystoma mexicanum: Its Biology and Developmental Genetics, and Its Autonomous Cell-Lethal Genes.  American Zoologist. Oxford University Press.  18: 195–206, Spring 1978.Pough, F. H. Recommendations for the Care of Amphibians and Reptiles in Academic Institutions. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1992.

First 3 Religion Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

First 3 Religion Journal - Essay Example The main questions worried modern religious leaders are s Should "practicing" Christian homosexuals, bisexuals, and transgendered people be allowed to serve as ordained ministers? Should the unions of gay and lesbian couples be recognized as legitimate marriages in the eyes of God? These and other questions rend congregations, denominations, and sometimes even our families. One side asserts that people should be welcomed into churches, into the ministry, and into our understanding of the American family regardless of their sexual orientation; the other side insists that any sexual preference other than heterosexuality is a sin and should be proscribed by all faithful Christians. No apparent solution to these disagreements lies on the horizon (Rudy 54). The presence and social acceptance of homosexuality challenges the concept of a God who is known solely or primarily through gender. By their very existence, gay people, and particularly gay Christians, contest the notion that human be ings are meant to live in nuclear, heterosexual families. As a result of their desire to be faithful to and known by God, conservative Christians today are producing an environment in which theological reassurance, salvation, American exceptionalism, homophobia, and political involvement have become gravely interdependent. The marriage doctrines of the Bible demonstrate that conservatives wholeheartedly support sex in instances that uphold the overarching structure of gendered theology. The vicious animosity directed toward homosexuals, along with other aspects of the family values, keeps women at home and dependent on men and thus guarantees every Christian man, woman, and child a relationship with God. Recognition that the bifurcation is not simply between "flesh" and "spirit" brings into sharp focus how hard conservative sexual ideology and the campaign for family values work to keep women in their place. The current struggle over homosexuality in the church, then, is not only a struggle about the morality of sexual preference; it is a conflict rooted in Christian identity and the nature of God (Rudy 51). The struggle among contemporary Christians over the moral acceptability of homosexuality is directly related to who God is perceived to be and how believers think God relates to us in the world tod ay. While the Christian Right championed and developed an extensive discourse about the value of the family and the sinfulness of homosexuality, mainline Christian denominations failed to issue clear, unambiguous statements on these issues. Even progressive Christians marshaled no counterpart to conservative rhetoric. In part this is due to the fact that the belief that the heterosexual nuclear family was both superior to other configurations and in need of protection was hard to escape. It was advocated not only by religious conservatives, but also by an assortment of scholars, journalists, and cultural critics who asserted the family's superiority on sociological or psychological rather than religious grounds (Rudy 54). Homosexuality violates traditional institution of marriage as a core of the society but religious believers have no right to blame or reject homosexual men. In religious tradition, the family is the source of values necessary for resistance to power and tendencies in the modern world. Another Christian justification of homosexuality rests on the idea that homosexual activity is no less moral than intentionally heterosexual activity; that is, homosexuality is morally equivalent to the use of birth control. 2. One of the nine fruits of Spirits is "Goodness". I suppose that goodness is important for every person because

Blacks Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Blacks - Assignment Example In the 1870’s about 80% of American Blacks lived in the southern rural American area where there was large scale exploitation of laborers by wealthy American land owners (Sampson 1464). This started to change in the late 1800’s when the Blacks in the south started to migrate to better cities in the south and to the north for a better life especially during the American industrialization. This change brought about a great change in the life of Black Americans in the Unite d States of America socially, politically and economically. The Black ghettos did not just emerge, but were occasioned by among other reasons, a systematic arrangement of the Whites to prevent the Blacks from acquiring proper urban housing in certain areas and to segregate them. Socially, Blacks were considered to be inferior to Whites and were created to serve the Whites, a mentality which was strengthened by the Jim Crow laws. Though small areas that were occupied mainly by Blacks had existed before, Black ghettos started to emerge in the north with the migration of Blacks to the United States of America during the First World War, the Second World War and the 1920’s. ... Blacks were systematically removed from areas considered to be White neighborhoods due to this ideology. There was also the scenario where people who engaged in communal violence were singled out and confined to certain places and for the Blacks; this was in the ghettos (Douglas and Nancy 17). This practice mostly targeted Blacks who were considered to be violent in nature. In the period around 1920, there was also what was referred to as targeted violence which was mostly directed to the Black middle class by their White counterparts, which also gave rise to the expansion of the Black ghettos and relegation of Blacks to what were considered as Black neighborhoods. The Whites would collect money to buy out middle class urban dwellers from their neighborhoods with threats of dire consequences for non compliance, which gave rise to the concentration of Blacks to certain neighborhoods. Those Blacks who could afford to live in White neighborhoods were attacked and their houses looted or burnt just because of the color of their skin. The neighborhoods especially in the south were characterized by large avenues which housed Whites and small streets and poor dwellings which housed Blacks, with the Blacks working as house helps and farmhands in the White neighborhood dwellings. The mentality of Master /slave had been replaced by master/servant relationship but the Black was still seen as subservient to the White. Incase of arrests for the offences, the culprits would be the Blacks instead of the White attackers. The Whites considered Blacks no matter their social, economic or educational standing to belong to the Black neighborhoods, with the support of the state through the Jim Crow laws and other segregate

Politics course work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Politics course work - Essay Example The Prime Minster basically looks upon the policies that have been formulated by various members, such as the minister of transportation or minister of defense, and he decides what should be sent to the House of Commons to be presented as a bill, or if a draft should be passed or not. Election took place in the UK in May 2010 and it was between the Conservatives, headed by David Cameron, Labour headed by Gordon Brown, and Liberal democrats headed by Nick Clegg. This was the first time that all three candidates, none of the leaders had led a general election campaign. In 2010 after the election in which the conservative party emerged victorious, there arrived a situation in which conservatives were not of an overall majority. It needed twenty seats to form an overall majority (General Election 2010: the top 20 Conservative target seats, 2010), thus it resulted in hung parliament and so there were talks of a coalition government. (Election 2010: First hung parliament in UK for decades, 2010) After Gordon Brown’s resignation following the humiliating defeat in the elections (Gordon Brown resigns, 2010), Queen Elizabeth invited David Cameron to form a government. since he was already short of twenty-two seats he decided to form a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats. the reason behind David Cameron opting to form a coalition government with Conservatives was the manifesto of the conservatives, which was extremely anti ­-labour. Here the role of liberal democrats was extremely important since it did not agree with both the parties on a majority of issues; it was in a catch-22 situation as to with whom they shall form the government. After the invitation by Queen to David Cameron to form the government, there were coalition talks between Liberal democrats and conservatives as to what shall be the strategy to form the government or if they should just go ahead forming a hung parliament. The problems of forming a coalition government with the conser vatives were regarding their manifesto. If they formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats they will not be able to fulfill their party manifesto. But at this point in time they had no choice because if they became part of a hung parliament, every other resolution would be vetoed by a joint action of labour and liberal democrats. And if they formed a coalition government with liberal democrats, they would have to follow a policy of give some and take some. The coalition dialogue took a total of five days and in the end David Cameron came out and successfully announced that the coalition talks have been â€Å"overwhelmingly approved†. Both the coalition parties agreed on the basic 11 principles on which they would act in one voice and there shall be no compromise on the following issues (Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition deal, 2010): - 1. Deficit Reduction The deficit would be reduced and a total of 6 billion pounds worth of cuts would be made to decrease the budget d eficit. 2. Spending Review - NHS, Schools and a Fairer Society National Health Service would be looked into to increase the benefits it gives to the people who need them the most, as well as a review of the replacement of the trident system for the British defense (Trident replacement decision 'after 2015 elections', 2010). This

Atallah Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Atallah - Essay Example She says â€Å"I could not resist the soldiers because they might kill me. So what else could I do?† (Henson 36). She had to endure all the hardship together with other women who had been abducted. The Japanese Imperial army had set up com garrisons which housed sex slaves or comfort women, a term commonly used to refer to these women. Slavery as commonly known, the victim is always taken against their will and forced to work or perform acts against their will. Comfort women did not have any control over their sexual activity as all they had to do was to follow orders. These women had to endure painful ordeals of being raped and hit by soldiers. The trauma Maria experienced as a comfort woman affected her for the rest of her life. She notes that one day while she was hanging some clothes to dry, she heard a woman on the radio talking about women who had been raped and her body shook all over (Henson 83). Sexual slavery is a very profound theme in this book and given that it is a woman’s firsthand experience, one gets to see just how much it affects the