knockout mouse

knockout mouse Knockout Mouse 1. Introduction Generally, DNA was first transferred by design into an organism and expressed as protein, therefore the potential of the tool that was being discovered must be found quickly by the scientist. Early experiments were limited to bacteria and viruses, but soon after the field of experiments were enlarged to those on animals and plants. (E.Hill, 2002). This topic, â€Å"knockout mouse† relates to the field of genetic engineering which further delves into a more specific technique called transgenic technology. â€Å"Knockoutscience.com†(2009) analyses that transgenic technology refers to the alteration of a certain genomic DNA of an organism in genetic engineering. As the result, both offspring of a transgenic organism and the parents (homozygous) will share the same genotype. The most common type of transgenic organism used in research is the knockout mouse, thoughknockout rats andknockout rabbits have also been developed. A knockout mouse defines a mouse which is being genetically engineered by turning off one or more genes through a process called gene knockout. â€Å"Genome.gov â€Å"also explains that a knockout mouse is a laboratory mouse in which researchers have inactivated, an existing gene by replacing it or disrupting it with an simulated piece of DNA. The loss of gene activity often causes changes in a mouses phenotype, which includes appearance, activities and other observable physical and biochemical characters. â€Å"Knockoutscience.com† (2009) also elucidates that it has become routine to develop knockout mice with disruptions in specific genes. By observing the resulting phenotype, scientists are able to view the effects of this gene disruption from these knockout mice. It is true to say that the phenotype is a direct result of the gene knockout and can offer evidences as to the biological role of the gene, but rarely the phenotype can also be the result of compensatory or indirect effects of the gene knockout. Sometimes the result obtained in a phenotype can be completely unrelated to the disrupted gene. Additionally, some gene knockouts create alethal phenotypewhere the organism fails to develop in utero, making in vivo studies exceedingly difficult. It was claimed that this technique may help to solve dopamine-related neurological illnesses.(Carol A.T, 1996) The technique allows transgenic animals that lack of a certain gene or its associated protein product to grow. In experiments with mice, researchers were able to knockout the animals dopamine transporters, causing the mice to behave as if they had been given huge doses of cocaine or amphetamine. Walinski.H(2009) states that knockout mice have different way of uses. First, the specific functions of particular genes can be tested and the regulation of these particular genes can be observed. The effects of a particular gene can be determined by examining what is happening in anin vivo model, we are able to determine the effects a particular gene may have. These effects would be impossible to observe in a culture dish. Another useful application of knockout technology is in biomedical research and drug development. Knockout mouse can be used to study the evolution of thousands of genetically based diseases at the molecular level in order to seek for the best medications that act on that gene. For Example, Lili.X and Asok.C (2005 ) both agree that Duffy positive and Duffy knockout mice have revealed both human malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax and mouse malaria parasite Plasmodium yoelii by using parasite invasion. Furthermore, the knockout technology may lead to the discovery of the next generation of blockbuster therapies for curing numerous diseases based on novel targets from the human genome. 2. Background Genetics Timeline for the key events in the history of knockout mouse 1900 Japanese fancy mice became mutant resources for mouse genetics. 1915- The first verterbrate linkage (mapping) was discovered between albino (c) and pink-eyed dilution (p) loci in the mouse. 1923- Discovery of X-ray induced mutations in mouse before the phenomenon was confirmed in fruit-flies. 1980- Specific-locus tests were conducted extensively in the mouse with various chemical mutagens, including N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU). 1981-1991- knockout mice are established. 1981- The first embryo stem (ES) cell was identified in the mouse. Martin Evans and Matt Kaufman in Cambridge, U.K., isolate mouse embryonic stem cells, which can develop into the full range of tissues. 1982-Transgenic mouse technology was established through the generation of the â€Å"giant mouse† mutant. 1985- Introduction of the Cre-loxP system by Brian Sauer act as temporal control of transgenic gene expression. 1987- Mario Capecchis team at the University of Utah describes a method for making knockout mice, as does Oliver Smithiess group at the University of Wisconsin. 1989- First knockout mouse was made by combining ES cell and gene-targeting technologies. 2007- International Knockout Mouse Consortium was organized and the Banbury II meeting was held in Brussels, Belgium. Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine was awarded for the development of mouse knockout techonologies. 3. Genetic Technique There are several method to produce knockout mouse, such as gene deletion, homologous recombination method, pronuclear microinjection and gene targeting. However, only gene targeting will be mentioned herein. Gene Targeting is the elimination or alteration of a genes function. One of the advantages of gene targeting is a mutant allele can be mended by substituting a wild-type allele over the mutant one in its normal chromosomal location, and such technique known as gene replacement. In this way, both position effect and the DNA rearrangements associated with ectopic insertion can be prevented, as a single replication of the gene is inserted in its normal chromosomal environmental. (Griffiths.A and Susan R.Wessler,etc, 2008). 4. Social Issues Recently, the evaluation of animal and human welfare as it may be affected by biotechnology is becoming a hot issue. The lack of an conscience and the information of the processes involved is one of the most important fact. ( Marie.B, 1997) Marie.B (1997) also states that the moral evaluation process is complicated by the fact that many techniques and developments in biotechnology are appropriate for patent. Some of the biotechnologists are reluctant to reveal appropriate information is understandable. Therefore, education concerning transgenic animal care and utilize is indeed very importance, involving the careful consideration of the reasons for manipulating the genome of any organism as genetic engineering is a dangerous and sensitive social issue. ( Marie.B, 1997) Pros and Cons of Knockout Mouse Advantages Disadvantages Provides important clues about what that gene normally does because human share many genes with mice. (Genome.gov, 2009) Limitation of the utility of knockout mice as models of human disease. (Walinski.H, 2004) Gives better understanding and observation of the characteristics of knockout mice. ( Genome.gov, 2009) The lack of adult mice limits studies to embryonic development and makes it more difficult to determine a genes function in relation to human health. ( Genome.gov, 2009) Gives information that can be used to better understand how a similar gene may cause or contribute disease in human. ( Genome, 2009) The gene that being examined might serve a different function in adults than in developing embryos, giving a false information. (Genome, 2009) Useful in studying and modeling different kinds of cancer, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, substance abuse, anxiety, aging and Parkinson disease. Fails to produce an observable change in a mouse or may even produce a different characteristics from those observed in humans in which the same gene is inactivated. ( Genome.gov, 2009) Offers a biological context in which drugs and other therapies can be developed and tested. Producing custom knockout mice is very expensive. It can be from 3000 to as much as 30,000 (Walinski.H, 2004) Useful in drug development and helps to discover the next generation of blockbuster therapies for curing numerous diseases based on novel targets from the humane genome. (Walinski.H, 2004) The cost of equipping and maintaining such a facility is usually very high. ( Walinski.H, 2009) 5.0: Conclusion In conclusion, it is clear that knockout mouse offer a lot of benefits for us. Therefore, a thorough discussion of biotechnology issues is needed, as concurrence must be practiced as to protect transgenic animals. The field of transgenic animal biotechnology is likely to rise as the techniques develop further and will link to more applications by using many more animal species. Thus, it is important that the welfare and ethical concerns must continue to evolve. (Marie.B, 1997) In short, technology essentials together with thoughtful ethical decision-making are equally important to maintain the balance of living creatures. 6.0: Bibliography * Connor A.B, 2007, Schematic and Time Line for the Generation of Knockout Mice, Viewed 25 January 2010, http://web.mit.edu/ki/facilities/transgenic/services/timeline-complete.pdf * Davidson, NC 28036, Homologous Recombination Knockout Mouse, Department of Biology, Davidson College, viewed 15 January 2010, http://www.bio.davidson.edu/Courses/genomics/method/homolrecomb.html. * Eisen, Eugene J, 2005, Mouse in Animal Genetics and Breeding Research, viewed 25 January 2010, http://site.ebrary.com/lib/sunway/docDetail.action?docID=10173945p00=knockout+mouse * Garagna, S, 2004, Mouse Genetics after the Mouse Genome, Viewed 25 January 2010, http://site.ebrary.com/lib/sunway/docDetail.action?docID=10070304p00=knockout+mouse * Genome.gov, 2009, Knockout Mice, Viewed 25 January 2010, http://www.genome.gov/12514551 * Genoway ( 2006), Gene deletion, conditional knockout mouse, viewed 11 february 2010, http://www.genoway.com/conditional_knock_out_mouse.htm * Griffiths.A.J, Wessler.S.R, Lewontin.R.C and Carroll.S.B (2008), Introduction to genetic analysis, W.H,Freeman and Company, England. * â€Å"Google docs†, 2010, Gene targeting construct, Viewed 25 January 2010, http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:j6mj7wNqd7gJ:tmc.ctrl.ucla.edu/targeting.pdf+history+knockout+mousehl=engl=my * Hudson, 2010, Taconic enters marketing pact with Transposagen Bio for knockout rat models, viewed 25 January 2010, http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=53683sectionid= * Marie.B (1997) Transgenic animlas, viewed 11 february 2010,http://www.ccac.ca/en/Current/Current_Transgenic.htm * National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2007, What is transgenic technology? Viewed 15 January 2010, http://www.knockoutscience.com/ * Research Resources, n.d., Transgenic Knockout Mouse, viewed 25 January 2010, http://www.cellmigration.org/resource/komouse/protocols/mouse_timeline.pdf * â€Å"University of California†, n.d., Transgenic and Gene Targeting Core, viewed 25 January 2010, http://cancer.ucsd.edu/tgm/genetargeting.asp#timeline * Table, http://www.knockoutmouse.org/ * Tamminga, Carol A. Molecular biology, I: a mouse knockout. (molecular technique called gene knockout which allows the development of animals that lack a certain gene and its associated protein product).American Journal of Psychiatry153.11 (1996): 1387.Academic OneFile. Web. 6 Feb. 2010. . * Twyman. R, 2003, Knockout Mice: The inactivation of a specific gene in a mouse, viewed on 15 January 2010, http://genome,wellcome.ac.uk/doc_WTD021038.html * Walinski.H, 2004, Studying Gene Function: Creating Knockout Mice, viewed on 25 January 2010, http://www.scq.ubc.ca/studying-gene-function-creating-knockout-mice/ * Walter E.Hill. , 2002, Genetic Engineering, Taylor Francis, Biddles LTd, Guildford and Kings Lynn, Great Britain. * â€Å"Wikipedia†, 2009, Knockout Mouse, viewed on 15 January 2010, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knockout_mouse * Xu, Lili, and Asok Chaudhuri. Plasmodium yoelii: A differential fluorescent technique using Acridine Orange to identify infected erythrocytes and reticulocytes in Duffy knockout mouse.Experimental Parasitology110.1 (2005): 80+.Academic OneFile. Web. 6 Feb. 2010. . * Y. Gondo (2008), Trends in large-scale mouse mutagenesis: from genetics to functional genomics. Nat. Rev. Genet. 9(10):803-810., http://www.nature.com/scitable/content/Knockout-mice-timeline-6638351, Viewed On 11 February 2010.

Acoustics :: acoustic acoustics sound

The concert hall is one of man's greatest joys; enjoying a fine symphony composed by the worlds greatest, performed by a world class orchestra. For months afterwards, the borgoise attendees will speak of the energy of the conductor, the orchestra responding to him, the power of it all. The crescendoes, the diminuendos, the stark silences between movements, the clarity of the soloist above the rest of the orchestra. Little do they know that were it not for the meticulous consideration of the architect at construction time, the patrons would not feel that they were getting their money's 'worth.' The architect is tapping into the world of acoustics; in this case, achieving the best possible sonic experience through differing techniques : different materials, certain shapes of rooms, sound traps, etcetera. Acoustics and sound, like so many physics branches, starts out relatively simple and quickly becomes a gigantic headache. Massive amounts of planning must go into a large structure such as a concert hall, a dance hall. Even small structures, such as the phonebooth, have hours of careful planning put into their design, in order to achieve the desired effect with the varied sound sources. This page is designed to inform the reader in the basics of acoustics, using the theory behind acoustics and the examples of the concert hall and the dancehall. Technically, the definition of 'sound' is a pressure wave in an elastic medium. This means that our pressure wave can be present in air, water, wood, steel... many different solids as well as air (and liquid). One of the most common units of measurement of sound is intensity, or the rate at which sound energy is being transmitted into the medium. (low sound intensity would be something like somebody clapping between movements, high sound intensity would be the applause after Beethoven's 9th) The unit of intensity is the decibel, or db. We use a logarithmic scale to measure these, as it is difficult to understand the range of the decibel in linear terms. Other units of measurement are the period and the amplitude of the wave. As we see in the graphic, we have the graph of time versus sound pressure, with our little wave traversing it. The amplitude is the highest value the graph reaches before descending again, while the period is the amount of time it takes for the wave to complete a full cycle. Other terms of note for the diagram are compression, which is represented by the parts of the graph in the positive region of sound pressure, and rarefraction, which is represented by negative pressure.

Carrie Chapter Eleven

Billy offered her a ride home from school one afternoon a week later and she accepted. He was what the other kids called a white-soxer or a machine-shop Chuck. Yet something about him excited her and now, lying drowsily in this illicit bed (but with an awakening sense of excitement and pleasurable fear), she thought it might have been his car – at least at the start. It was a million miles from the machine-stamped, anonymous vehicles of her fraternity dates with their ventless windows, fold-up steering wheels, and vaguely unpleasant smell of plastic scat covers and windshield solvent. Billy's car was old, dark, somehow sinister, the windshield was milky around the edges, as if a cataract was beginning to form. The seats were loose and unanchored. Beer bottles clicked and rolled in the back (her fraternity dates drank Budweiser; Billy and his friends drank Rheingold), and she had to place her feet around a huge, grease-clotted Craftsman toolkit without a lid. The tools inside were of many different makes, and she suspected that many of them were stolen. The car smelled of oil and gas. The sound of straight pipes came loudly and exhilaratingly through the thin floorboards. A row of dials slung under the dash registered amps, oil pressure, and tach (whatever that was). The back wheels were jacked and the hood seemed to point at the road. And of course he drove fast. On the third ride home one of the bald front tyres blew at sixty miles an hour, the car went into a screaming slide and she shrieked aloud, suddenly positive of her own death. An image of her broken, bloody corpse, thrown against the base of a telephone pole like a pile of rags, flashed through her mind like a tabloid photograph. Billy cursed and whipped the fuzz-covered steering wheel from side to side. They came to a stop on the left-hand shoulder, and when she got out of the car on knees that threatened to buckle at every step, she saw that they had left a looping trail of scorched rubber for seventy feet Billy was already opening the trunk, pulling out a jack and muttering to himself. Not a hair was out of place. He passed her, a cigarette already dangling from the corner of his mouth. ‘Bring that toolkit, babe.' She was flabbergasted. Her mouth opened and closed twice, like a beached fish, before she could get the words out. ‘I-I will not! You almost k-you-almost-you crazy bastard! Besides, it's dirty!' He turned around and looked at her, his eyes flat. ‘You bring it or I ain't taking you to the fuckin fights tomorrow night.' ‘I hate the fights!' She had never been, but her anger and outrage required absolutes. Her fraternity dates took her to rock concerts, which she hated. They always ended up next to someone who hadn't bathed in weeks. He shrugged, went back to the front end, and began jacking. She brought the toolkit, getting grease all over a brandnew sweater. He grunted without turning around. His teeshirt had pulled out of his jeans, and the flesh of his back was smooth, tanned, alive with muscles. It fascinated her, and she felt her tongue creep into the corner of her mouth. She helped him pull the tyre of the wheel, getting her hands black. The car rocked alarmingly on the jack, and the spare was down to the canvas in two places. When the job was finished and she got back in, there were heavy smears of grease across both the sweater and the expensive red skirt she was wearing. ‘If you think-‘ she began as he got behind the wheel. He slid across the seat and kissed her, his hands moving heavily on her, from waist to breasts. His breath was redolent of tobacco; there was the smell of Brylcreem and sweat. She broke it at last and stared down at herself, gasping for breath. The sweater was blotted with road grease and dirt now. Twenty-seven-fifty in Jordan Marsh and it was beyond anything but the garbage can. She was intensely, almost painfully excited. ‘How are you going to explain that?' he asked, and kissed her again. His mouth felt as if he might be grinning.' ‘Feel me,' she said in his car. ‘Feel me all over. Get me dirty.' He did. One nylon split like a gaping mouth. Her skirt, short to begin with, was pushed rudely up to her waist. He groped greedily, with no finesse at all. And something – perhaps that, perhaps the sudden brush with death – brought her to a sudden, jolting orgasm. She had gone to the fights with him. ‘Quarter to eight,' he said, and sat up in bed. He put on the lamp and began to dress, His body still fascinated her. She thought of last Monday night, and how it had been. He had (no) Tune enough to think of that later, maybe, when it would do something for her besides cause useless arousal. She swung her own legs over the edge of the bed and slid into gossamer panties. ‘Maybe it's a bad idea,' she said, not sure if she was testing him or herself. ‘Maybe we ought to just get back into bed and-‘ ‘It's a good idea,' he said, and a shadow of humour crossed his face. ‘Pig blood for a pig.' ‘What?' ‘Nothing. Come on. Get dressed.' She did, and when they left by the back stairs she could feel a large excitement blooming, like a rapacious and night-flowering vine, in her belly. From My Name Is Susan Snell (p. 45): You know, I'm not as sorry about all of it as people seem to think I should be. Not that they say it right out; they're the ones who always say how dreadfully sorry they are. That's usually just before they ask for my autograph. But they expect you to be sorry. They expect you to get weepy, to wear a lot of black, to drink a little too much or take drugs. They say things like: ‘Oh, it's such a shame. But you know what happened to her-‘ and blah, blah, blah. But sorry is the Kool-Aid of human emotions. It's what you say when you spill a cup of coffee or throw a gutterball when you're bowling with the girls in the league. True sorrow is as rare as true love. I'm not sorry that Tommy is dead any more. He seems too much like a daydream I once had. You probably think that's cruel, but there's been a lot of water under the bridge since Prom Night. And I'm not sorry for my appearance before The White Commission. I told the truth – as much of it as I knew. But I am sorry for Carrie. They've forgotten her, you know. They've made her into some kind of a symbol and forgotten that she was a human being, as real as you reading this, with hopes and dreams and blah, blah, blah. Useless to tell you that, I suppose. Nothing can change her back now from something made out of newsprint into a person. But she was, and she hurt. More than any of us probably know, she hurt. And so I'm sorry and I hope it was good for her, that prom. Until the terror began, I hope it was good and fine and wonderful and magic †¦ Tommy pulled into the parking lot beside the high school's new wing, let the motor idle for just a second, and then switched it of. Carrie sat on her side of the seat, holding her wrap around her bare shoulders. It suddenly seemed to her that she was living in a dream of hidden intentions and had just become aware of the fact. What could she be doing? She had left Momma alone. ‘Nervous?' He asked, and she jumped. ‘Yes.' He laughed and got out. She was about to open the door when he opened it for her. ‘Don't be nervous,' he mid. ‘You're like Galatea.' ‘Who?' ‘Galatea. We read about her in Mr Evers' class. She turned from a drudge into a beautiful woman and nobody even knew her.' She considered it. ‘I want them to know me,' she said finally. ‘I don't blame you. Come on.' George Dawson and Frieda Jason were standing by the Coke machine. Frieda was in an orange tulle concoction, and looked a little like a tuba. Donna Thibodeau was taking tickets at the door along with David Bracken. They were both National Honour Society members, part of Miss personal Gestapo, and they wore white slacks and red blazers – the school colours. Tina Blake and Norma Watson were handing out programmes and seating people inside according to their chart Both of them were dressed in black, and Carrie supposed they thought they were very chic, but to her they looked like cigarette girls in an old gangster movie. All of them turned to look at Tommy and Carrie when they came in, and for a moment there was a stiff, awkward silence. Carrie felt a strong urge to wet her lips and controlled it. Then George Dawson said: ‘Gawd, you look queer, Ross.' Tommy smiled. ‘When did you come out of the treetops, Bomba?' Dawson lurched forward with his fists up, and for a moment Carrie felt stark terror. In her keyed-up state, she came within an ace of picking George up and throwing him across the lobby. Then she realized it was an old game, often played, well-loved. The two of them sparred in a growing circle. Then George, who had been tagged twice in the ribs, began to gobble and yell:- ‘Kill them Congs! Get them Gooks! Pongee sticks! Tiger cages!' and Tommy collapsed his guard, laughing. ‘Don't let it bother you,' Frieda said, tilting her letteropener nose and strolling over. ‘If they kill each other, I'll dance with you.' ‘They look too stupid to kill,' Carrie ventured. ‘Like dinosaurs.' And when Frieda grinned, she felt something very old and rusty loosen inside her. A warmth came with At. Relief. Ease. ‘Where'd you buy your dress?' Frieda asked. ‘I love it.' ‘I made it.' ‘Made it?' Frieda's eyes opened in unaffected surprise. ‘No shit!' Carrie felt herself blushing furiously. ‘Yes I did. I †¦ I like to sew. I got the material at John's in Andover. The pattern is really quite easy.' ‘Come on,' George said to all of them in general. ‘Band's gonna start.' He rolled his eyes and went through a limber, satiric buck-and-wing. ‘Vibes, vibes, vibes. Us Gooks love them big Fender viyyybrations.' When they went in, George was doing impressions of Flash Bobby Pickett and mugging. Carrie was telling Freida about her dress, and Tommy was grinning, hands stuffed in his pockets. Spoiled the lines of his dinner jacket Sue would be telling him, but fuck it, it seems to be working. So far it was working fine. He and George and Frieda had less than two hours to live. From The Shadow Exploded (p. 132): The White Commission's stand on the trigger of the whole affair – two buckets of pig blood on a beam over the stage – seems to be overly weak and vacillating, even in light of the scant concrete proof. If one chooses to believe the hearsay evidence of Nolan's immediate circle of friends (and to be brutally frank, they do not seem intelligent enough to lie convincingly), then Nolan took this part of the conspiracy entirely out of Christine Hargensen's hands and acted on his own initiative †¦ He didn't talk when he drove; he liked to drive. The operation gave him a feeling of power that nothing could rival, not even fucking. The road unrolled before them in photographic blacks and whites, and the speedometer trembled just past seventy. He came from what the social workers called a broken home; his father had taken off after the failure of a badly managed gas-station venture when Billy was twelve, and his mother had four boyfriends at last count. Brucie was in greatest favour right now. He was a Seagram's 7 man. She was turning into one ugly bag, too. But the car: the car fed him power and glory from its own mystic lines of force. It made him someone to be reckoned with, someone with mana. It was not by accident that he had done most of his balling in the back seat. The car was his slave and his god. It gave, and it could take away. Billy had used it to take away many times. On long, sleepless nights when his mother and Brucie were fighting, Billy made popcorn and went out cruising for stray dogs. Some mornings he let the car roll, engine dead, into the garage he had constructed behind the house with its front bumper dripping. She knew his habits well enough by now and did not bother making conversation that would simply be ignored anyway. She sat beside him with one leg curled under her, gnawing a knuckle. The fights of the cars streaking past them on 302 gleamed softly in her hair, streaking it silver. He wondered how long she would last. Maybe not long after tonight. Somehow it had all led to this, even the early part, and when it was done the glue that had held them together would be thin and might dissolve, leaving them to wonder how it could have been in the first place. He thought she would start to look less like a goddess and more like the typical society bitch again, and that would make him want to belt her around a little. Or maybe a lot. Rub her nose in it. They breasted the Brickyard Hill and there was the high school below them, the parking lot filled with plump, glistening daddies' cars. He felt the familiar gorge of disgust and hate rise in his throat. We'll give them something (a night to remember) all right. We can do that. The classroom wings were dark and silent and deserted; the lobby was lit with a standard yellow glow, and the bank of glass that was the gymnasium's east side glowed with a soft, orangey light that was ethereal, almost ghostly. Again the bitter taste, and the urge to throw rocks. ‘I see the lights, I see the party fights,' he murmured. ‘Huh?' She turned to him, startled out of her own thoughts. ‘Nothing.' He touched the nape of her neck. ‘I think I'm gonna let you pull the string.' Billy did it by himself, because he knew perfectly well that he could trust nobody else. That had been a hard lesson, much harder than the ones they taught you in school, but he had learned it well. The boys who had gone with him to Henty's place the night before had not even known what he wanted the blood for. They probably suspected Chris was involved, but they could not even be sure of that. He drove to the school minutes after Thursday night had become Friday morning and cruised by twice to make sure it was deserted and neither of Chamberlain's two police cars was in the area. He drove into the parking lot with his lights off and swung around in back of the building. Further back, the football field glimmered beneath a thin membrane of ground fog. He opened the trunk and unlocked the ice chest. The blood had frozen solid, but that was all right. It would have the next twenty-four hours to thaw. He put the buckets on the ground, then got a number of tools from his kit. He stuck them in his back pocket and grabbed a brown bag from the seat. Screws clinked inside. He worked without hurry, with the easeful concentration of one who is unable to conceive of interruption. The gym where the dance was to be held was also the school auditorium, and the small row of windows looking toward where he had parked opened on the backstage storage area. He selected a flat tool with a spatulate end and slid it through the small jointure between the upper and lower panes of one window. It was a good tool. He had made it himself in the Chamberlain metal shop. He wriggled it until the window's slip lock came free. He pushed the window up and slid in. It was very dark. The predominant odour was of old paint from the Dramatic Club canvas flats. The gaunt shadows of Band Society music stands and instrument cases stood around like sentinels. Mr Downer's piano stood in one corner. Billy took a small flashlight out of the bag and made his way to the stage and stepped through the red velvet curtains. The gym floor, with its painted basketball lines and highly varnished surface, glimmered at him like an amber lagoon. He shone his light on the apron in front of the curtain. There, in ghostly chalk fines, someone had drawn the floor silhouette of the King and Queen thrones which would be placed the following day. Then the entire apron would be strewn with paper flowers †¦ why, Christ only knew. He craned his neck and shone the beam of his light up into the shadows. Overhead, girders crisscrossed in shadowy lines. The girders over the dance floor had been sheathed in crepe paper, but the arm directly over the apron hadn't been decorated. A short draw curtain obscured the girders up there, and they were invisible from the gym Floor. The draw curtain also hid a bank of lights that would highlight the gondola mural. Billy turned off the flashlight, walked to the left-hand edge of the apron, and mounted a steel-runged ladder bolted to the wall. The contents of his brown bag, which he had tucked into his shirt for safety, jingled with a strange, hollow jolliness in the deserted gymnasium. At the top of the ladder was a small platform. Now, as he faced outward toward the apron, the stage flies were to his right, the gym itself on his left. In the flies the Dramatic Club props were stored, some of them dating back to the 1920s. A bust of Pallas, used in some ancient dramatic version of Poe's ‘Me Raven,' stared at Billy with blind, floating eyes from atop a rusting bedspring Straight ahead, a steel girder ran out over the apron. Lights to be used against the mural were bolted to the bottom of it. He stepped out on to it and walked effortlessly, without fear, over the drop. He was humming a popular tune under his breath. The beam was inch-thick with dust, and he left long shuffling tracks. Halfway he stopped, dropped to his knees, and peered down. Yea. With the help of his light he could make out the chalk lines of the apron directly below. He made a soundless whistling. (bombs away) He X'd the precise spot in the dust, then beam-walked back to the platform. No one would be up here between now and the Ball; the lights that shone on, the mural and on the apron where the King and Queen would be crowned (they'll get crowned an right) were controlled from a box backstage. Anyone looking up from directly below would be blinded by those same lights. His arrangements would be noticed only if someone went up into the flies for something. He didn't believe anyone would. It was an acceptable risk. He opened the brown bag and took out a pair of Playtex rubber gloves, put them on, and then took out one of two small pulleys he had purchased yesterday. He had gotten them at a hardware store in Boxford, just to be safe. He popped a number of nails into his mouth like cigarettes and got the hammer. Still humming around his mouthful of nails, he fixed the pulley neatly in the corner above the platform. Beside it he fixed a small eyehole screw. He went back down the ladder, crossed backstage, and climbed another ladder not far from where he had come in. He was in the loft – sort of a catchall school attic. Here there were stacks of old yearbooks, moth-eaten athletic uniforms, and ancient textbooks that had been nibbled by mice. Looking left, he could shine his light over the stage flies and spotlight the pulley he had just put up. Turning right, cool night air played on his face, from a vent in the wall. Still humming, he took out the second pulley and nailed it up. He went back down, crawled out the window he had forced, and got the two buckets of pig blood. He had been about his business for a half hour, but it showed no signs of thawing. He picked the buckets up and walked back to the window, silhouetted in the darkness like a farmer coming back from the first milking. He lifted them inside and went in after. Beam-walking was easier with a bucket in each hand for balance. When he reached his dust-marked X, he put the buckets down, peered at the chalk marks on the apron once more, nodded, and walked back to the platform. He thought about wiping the buckets on his last trip out to them – Kenny's prints would be on them, Don's and Steve's as well – but it was better not to. Maybe they would have a little surprise on Saturday morning. The thought made his lips quirk. The last item in the bag was a coil of jute twine. He walked back out to the buckets and tied the handles of both with running slipknots. He threaded the screw, then the pulley. He threw the uncoiling twine across to the left, and then threaded that one. He probably would not have been amused to know that, in the gloom of the auditorium, covered and streaked with decades-old dust, grey kitties flying dreamily about his crow's nest hair, he looked like a hunched, half-mad Rube Goldberg intent upon creating the better mousetrap. He piled the slack twine on top of a stack of crates within reach of the vent. He climbed down for the last time and dusted off his hands. The thing was done. He looked out the window, then wriggled through and thumped to the ground. He closed the window, reinserted his jimmy, and closed the lock as far as he could. Then he went back to his car. Chris said chances were good that Tommy Ross and the White bitch would be the ones under the buckets; she had been doing a little quiet promoting among her friends That would be good, if it happened. But, for Billy, any of the others would be all right too. He was beginning to think that it would be all right if it was Chris herself. He drove away. From My Name Is Susan Snell (p. 48): Carrie went to see Tommy the day before the prom. She was waiting outside one of his classes and he said she looked really wretched, as if she thought he'd yell at her to stop hanging around and stop bugging him. She said she had to be in by eleven-thirty at the latest, or her momma would be worried. She said she wasn't going to spoil his time or anything, but it wouldn't be fair to worry her momma.

The Battle Of The Civil War Essay - 924 Words

Of the number of different battles of the Civil War, there are only three that will be mentioned in this essay. The purpose is to expand the knowledge of the three battles and provide a better understanding behind the reasoning of the Civil War. In addition, the wars, which consisted of bloody combats and unique strategies, provided a settlement for who controls the United States of American and its future. The three main battles that changed the course of history are the following: the Battle of Bull Run, the Western Theater, and the Virginia Front of 1862. The result of the war, of course, was the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery, permitted the Union to gain control over the South, caused over 600,000 casualties, and provided a victory for millions of African American slaves. Indeed, the war also resulted in Lincoln’s final draft of the Emancipation Proclamation. The two armies, the Confederates and the Union, fought their first major battle in northern Virginia. It w as known that the Union had over 30,000 men under General Irvin McDowell’s control just outside of Washington. The Confederate, on the other hand, were located approximately thirty miles away at Manassas. The smaller army was under P. G. T. Beauregard. The first clash between the two happened on July 21, 1861, when General Irvin McDowell led his inexperienced army toward Manassas. Thus, the First Battle of Bull Run, or also called First Battle of Manassas, began. Toward the end of the battle,Show MoreRelatedThe Battle Of The Civil War1127 Words   |  5 Pagesshaken by the Civil War because some states wanted to separate themselves from this unity that had lasted for approximately 100 years. The American Civil War is a historic affair and one of the bloodiest battles in history of the US (Engle, Krick, 2003). It is considered one of the bloodstained happenings in the history of the US because more than 600, 000 people died. A majority of this number were soldiers. This fat al battle happened between the years 1861 to 1865. The Civil War emerged becauseRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War Essay1424 Words   |  6 PagesThroughout the years 1861 to 1865 the American Civil War took place and it is known as Americas bloodiest war. The cause of the Civil war was the debate between free states and slave states over the government trying to prohibit slavery. In 1860 Abraham Lincoln became president of the United States and ran on the platform to keep slavery out of the new unclaimed territories of the United States. Once Lincoln became president seven southern states seceded from the Union ultimately creating the ConfederateRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1666 Words   |  7 PagesThe Civil war was one of the biggest turning points in United States history. The nation’s failure to compromise on the subject of slavery led to an outbreak of war. Battles such as Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and Shiloh led to what we know of today as a free nation. Great technological advancements in weaponry led to mass c asualties among both north and south, often making death inevitable. Those who bravely served and those who were forced to serve lived a life of fear, starvation, and commitment toRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1191 Words   |  5 PagesWhen the Civil War started both sides thought the war would be over by Christmas. But little did they know this small war would turn into the deadliest war in American history. The Civil War was fought between the Confederacy and the Union. The Confederacy was consisted of Southern states that did not agree with the views of the Union states. After years of sectional differences in the United States between the north and south, tension between the states grew and a war between the north and southRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1073 Words   |  5 PagesThe Civil War was a war that was thought to would have lasted no longer than ninety days. After all was said and done, the war lasted more than four years and claimed tens of thousands of li ves of both The Union and The Confederate States. There were several battles fought on Northern and Southern soil, battles that forced bloody mortal combat between brothers in the fight for equality amongst all men. It tested the strength of the foundation that the United States was built upon. The Civil War wasRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War960 Words   |  4 PagesHave you ever wondered why the Civil War happened or why it was so substantial to American History? What was the battle that changed it all; that made it the history it is today? Many people have made speculations on the causes of the war and what the major turning point was, but cannot really narrow it down. In James McPherson’s Crossroads of Freedom: Antietam he points out the pivotal moments in American history that led up to and changed the Civil War, so that the reader can get a better insightRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1197 Words   |  5 PagesMarianna, FL. The battle will be virtually unkno wn in the history of the Civil War, but its success marked the longest successful incursion of Union troops into Florida (Cox, 2014). This raid had two goals; the first was to rescue the reported Union prisoners and the second was to liberate and enlist any slaves that were found along the route (Calvin, 2014). The prisoners were not located, but more than 600 slaves were liberated along their route (Cox, 2014). The subsequent battle did not last longRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1163 Words   |  5 Pageshad already decided to secede from the Union. Those 7 states started the Confederate States of America, run by their own President, Jefferson Davis. This same issue was the catalyst for the Civil War which started on April 12, 1861. One of the major and well-known battles of the Civil War was the Battle of Gettysburg. It was on this backdrop that Abraham Lincoln delivered a speech that is â€Å"universally recognized by historians and scholars alike as the most famous and most important speech everRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1233 Words   |  5 PagesIt is evident that the Civil War helped shape America into the country it is today. The strong factional division -based on slavery- between the Union and the Confederacy guaranteed certain achievements of both sides. Much of what we consider history today remains a part of the outcome from these multiple bloody battles. Activist John Muir of the Civil War-era stated, â€Å"the traces of war are not only apparent on the broken fields, burnt fences, mills, and woods ruthlessly slaughtered, but also onRead MoreThe Battle Of The Civil War1133 Words   |  5 Pagesfierce battles were fought to secure the rights and freedom of both men and women, irrespective of their religion, gender, and race. Of all of the battles, the American Civil War stands out. Divided into the Union and the Confederacy, the American civil war broke out after the southern states seceded due to slavery that spread in many parts of the country. The Civil War began in the year 1861 and ended four years later. The end result was the Union becoming victorious in 1865. The Civil War was a