Interesting and Strange Astronomy Facts

Interesting and Strange Astronomy Facts Even though people have studied the heavens for thousands of years, we still know relatively little about the  universe. While astronomers continue to explore, they learn more about the stars, planets, and galaxies in some detail and yet some phenomena remain puzzling. Whether or not scientists will be able to solve the mysteries of the universe is a mystery itself, but the fascinating study of space and all its many anomalies will continue to inspire new ideas and give impetus to new discoveries as long as humans continue to look up at the skies and wonder, Whats out there? Dark Matter in the Universe   Astronomers are always on the hunt for dark matter, a mysterious form of matter that cant be detected by normal means- hence its name. All of the universal matter that can be detected by current methods comprises only about 5 percent of the total matter in the universe. Dark matter makes up the rest, along with something known as dark energy. When people look at the night sky, no matter how many stars they see (and galaxies, if theyre using a telescope), theyre only witnessing a tiny fraction of whats actually out there. While astronomers sometimes use the term vacuum of space, the space that light travels through isnt completely empty. There are actually a few atoms of matter in each cubic meter of space. The space between galaxies, which was once thought to be quite empty, is often filled with molecules of gas and dust. Dense Objects in the Cosmos People also used to think that black holes were the answer to the dark matter conundrum. (That is, it was believed that the unaccounted for matter might be in black holes.) While the idea turns out not to be true, black holes  continue to fascinate astronomers, with good reason. Black holes are so  dense and have such intense gravity, that nothing- not even light- can escape them.  For example, should an intergalactic ship somehow get too close to a black hole and be sucked in by its gravitational pull face first,  the force on the front of the ship would be so much stronger than the force at the back, that the ship and the people inside would get stretched out- or elasticized like taffy- by the intensity of the gravitational pull. The result? No one gets out alive. Did you know that black holes can and do collide? When this phenomenon occurs between supermassive black holes,  gravitational waves  are released. Though the existence of these waves was speculated to  exist, they werent actually detected until 2015. Since then, astronomers have detected gravitational waves from several titanic black hole collisions.   Neutron  stars- the leftovers of the deaths of massive stars in supernova explosions- arent the same thing as black holes, but they also collide with one another. These stars are so dense that a glass full of neutron star material would have more mass than the Moon. As gargantuan as they are, neutron stars are among the fastest spinning objects in the universe. Astronomers studying them have clocked them at spin rates of up to 500 times per second. Whats a Star and What Isnt? Humans have a funny propensity to call any bright object in the sky a star- even when its not. A star is a sphere of superheated gas that gives off light and heat, and usually has some sort of fusion going on inside it. This means that shooting stars arent really stars. (More often than not, theyre just tiny dust particles falling through our atmosphere that vaporize due to the heat of friction with the atmospheric gases.) What else is not a star? A planet is not a star. Thats because- for starters- unlike stars, planets dont fuse atoms in their interiors and theyre much smaller than your average star, and while comets may be bright in appearance, theyre not stars, either. As comets travel around the Sun, they leave behind dust trails. When Earth passes through  a cometary  orbit and encounters those trails,  we see an increase in meteors (also not stars) as the particles move through our atmosphere and are burned up. Our Solar System Our own star, the Sun, is a force to be reckoned with. Deep inside the Suns core, hydrogen is fused to create helium. During that process, the core releases the equivalent of 100 billion nuclear bombs  every second. All that energy works its way out through the Suns various layers, taking thousands of years to make the trip. The Suns energy, emitted as heat and light, powers the solar system. Other stars go through this same process during their lives, which makes stars the powerhouses of the cosmos.   The Sun may be the star of our show but the solar system in which we live is full of weird and wonderful features as well.  For instance, even though Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, temperatures can drop to a frigid -280 ° F on the planets surface. How? Since Mercury has almost no atmosphere, theres nothing to trap heat near the surface. As a result, the dark side of the planet- the one facing away from the Sun- gets extremely cold. While its farther away from the Sun, Venus is considerably hotter than Mercury due to the thickness of Venus’ atmosphere, which traps heat near the surface of the planet. Venus also spins very slowly on its axis. One day on Venus is equivalent to 243 Earth days, however, Venuss year is only 224.7 days. Odder still, Venus spins  backward  on its axis as compared to the other planets in the solar system. Galaxies, Interstellar Space, and Light The universe is more than 13.7 billion years old and it is home to billions of galaxies. No one is quite sure exactly how many galaxies there are all told, but some of the facts we do know are pretty impressive. How do we know what we know about galaxies? Astronomers study the light objects emit for clues as to their origins, evolution, and age. Light from distant stars and galaxies takes so long to reach Earth that were actually seeing these objects as they appeared in the past. When we look up at the night sky, were in effect, looking back in time. The farther away something is, the farther back in time it appears. For instance, the Suns light takes almost 8.5 minutes to travel to Earth, so we see the Sun as it appeared 8.5 minutes ago. The nearest star to us, Proxima Centauri, is 4.2 light-years away, so it appears to our eyes as it was 4.2 years ago. The nearest galaxy is 2.5 million light-years away and looks the way it did when our Australopithecus hominid ancestors walked the planet. Over the course of time, some older galaxies have been cannibalized by younger ones. For example, the Whirlpool galaxy (also known as Messier 51 or M51)- a two-armed spiral that lies between 25 million and 37 million light-years away from the  Milky Way that can be observed with an amateur telescope- appears to have been through one galaxy merger/cannibalization in its past.   The universe is brimming with galaxies, and the most distant ones are moving away from us at more than 90 percent of the speed of light. One of the strangest ideas of all- and one thats likely to come true- is the expanding universe theory, which hypothesizes that the universe will continue to expand and as it does, galaxies will grow farther apart until their star-forming regions eventually run out. Billions of years from now, the universe will be made up of old, red galaxies (those at the end of their evolution), so far apart that their stars will be almost impossible to detect.

PROPOSAL Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

PROPOSAL - Assignment Example The chief question of the peer reviewer was about the measures that can help solving the problem of gender gap in education In response to the peer reviewer concerns, questions and assessment it has been understood that there is essential need of thinking about the solution of the problem rather emphasizing much upon the problem itself. Hence, there are some major changed made in the proposal and considerable portion of material has been added that speak about the strategies and suggestions that can help in reducing the gender gap in education. After making these changes, it is requested from the instructor to have look at the proposal and inform about its contents. 2. Organizing your argument into appropriate sections This assignment follows a report format for formal proposals. You must organize the content of your proposal into four major sections. Each section has a specific task or purpose. (See the assignment outline under the "Drafting your Proposal" heading above.) Using sect ions creates a reader-friendly report that allows readers to access the points of your argument quickly and easily. As you revise, you may need to rearrange some of the content of your proposal. Highlight your rearrangements and revisions so your instructor will see what you've done. Finally, if you are still unsure of what content belongs in which section, ask your instructor questions about the required organization. The proposal has been organized in these sections. Introductions, Problem definition, proposed solution, reasoning, conclusion 3. Completing your research and filling in the gaps By the end of this week, you must have completed all of your research. As you revise your draft, incorporate ALL the primary fieldwork and any secondary research that you plan to use to support your arguments in this proposal. Highlight your additions/revisions so your instructor will see what you've done. There are some adjustments made in the proposal as per the comments of the instructor. The new changes have been highlighted 4. Evaluating your evidence, supporting quotes/paraphrases. Supporting evidence can't speak for itself. Ask yourself: How well-connected is each piece of evidence in your draft—each example, observation, fact, or quote from an interviewee or survey—to your overall claim? You need to add explanation or commentary with each piece of evidence so that readers can see how and why your supporting evidence is significant. Don't leave readers guessing or assume those points of connection are obvious. In each body paragraph of your draft make specific revisions/additions to add explanation for how each piece of evidence you offer is significant to your overall proposal argument. Highlight your additions/revisions so your instructor will see what you've done. The evidenced are supported by the proper references and in-text citations 5. Acknowledging available alternatives and counterarguments In your first draft, you might not have worked ou t how you would address these issues. How much or how little you will need to address alternatives or counterarguments depends on the nature of your proposal topic and on how well received (or not) your solution will be by your intended audience. If you believe that you need to respond to alternatives or counterarguments, the place to do so is in Section 3 of your proposal. Now is the time to consider adding this discussion to your draft of Section 3. Highlight your

Service Quality for Retail Banking in the UK - Barclays, PLC Dissertation

Service Quality for Retail Banking in the UK - Barclays, PLC - Dissertation Example Responsiveness is a measure of the willingness to help customers and provide them with prompt service. Assurance measures the competence, courtesy, credibility and security of the service provided, while the empathy is about the caring and individualised service that the bank provides to its customers. This would help the bank in realising whether its customers are satisfied on all grounds and whether there are any gaps in their satisfaction level. We would follow the same standard set by the previously referred authors. A questionnaire survey method will be adopted to measure the service quality of the bank. The study is based on primary data from customers of Barclays and secondary data based on previous studies and shows the different dimensions of retail banking and issues related to service quality and customer satisfaction in case of UK banks. Although Barclays retail bank is considered as an example here, the thesis is to draw a general conclusion on retail banking and the service quality that would be appropriate for customer satisfaction. Several studies and published papers on banking and customer satisfaction and the associated service quality attributes are discussed here. Any research study should not only trace the existing parameters for the variables involved but also provide some future perspective of reference. Within this context, the levels of customer satisfaction could be found out from primary data in which customers are directly required to complete surveys and provide responses on what changes they expect in the future and what kind of services they have encountered in the banks. Their suggestions and recommendations from questionnaires form the basis for... This study is an assessment of how much this change has been implemented or is successful within the branches. The corporate strategy of Barclays has also been analyzed and showed how the bank strategy could or should change from an emphasis on sales to an emphasis on customer service. The attitudes and behaviors of customer service officials have also changed towards customers suggesting that changing of corporate strategy tend to have a direct impact on employee behavior and company functions and performance as well. In conclusion, there are several issues that have been highlighted through this study and shows that after an appraisal and interview and survey of customer attitudes and expectations. Some individuals, however, expressed their problems as seen in the qualitative dimension or analysis of the study and suggested that the bank should be more concerned with individualized attention and improve its services by being prompt and efficient. Improving certain online banking features and international banking features were also considered important for overall improvement of the bank’s functions. This study has shown that although Barclays has been largely known for poor customer services and focuses more on sales rather than customer services, it’s recent change of approach with greater emphasis on improving customer services than improving sales figures seem to have worked for positive results as customers seem to be more satisfied with the services offered by the banks.

Global warming Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Global warming - Research Paper Example As stated, the temperature of the earth’s surface has been slowly but surely rising over the span of a few centuries. This increase in temperature, though assumed to have always been taking place, was first called to attention in the early 1800s. The first Industrial Revolution brought with it coal, railroads, and the cutting down of forests for various projects, all of which prompted the speeding up of greenhouse gas emissions (Weart, 2008). The second Industrial Revolution saw a similar change, and scientists began recording the slightest of changes to the earth’s temperature. However, in the past decade, it has been noted that this increase in temperature has only quickened with time. This is thought to be due to the advancement in technology that has allowed us to create more finite-dependable utilities. Due to global warming, various locations throughout the world are seeing changes to their weather and temperatures that they have never experienced before. While so me places are experiencing unfamiliar, and often unbearable, heat, other places are finding themselves bundling up in attempts to withstand the unusual and unseasonal chill. The greatest change in surface temperature can be found in Alaska and Greenland, where the Inuit tribes are discovering for the first time what it means to have a warm day in a land predominantly made of ice. Similarly, the weather conditions throughout the world have changed, bringing rain to places that are otherwise barren and dryer weather to locations that are more used to rain or snow. The cause of global warming takes place on earth, but the effects primarily take place in the atmosphere. When greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide emissions from deforestation, become trapped in the earth, the greenhouse effect comes as a result. These gases would normally be able to escape from the earth, but when they are unable to they remain close enough to the surface to cause dramatic changes in temperature. Carbon dioxide is the most harmful of these gases as it stays in the atmosphere for an increased amount of time, often exceeding many hundreds of years (Archer, 2007). Even a small buildup of carbon dioxide can cause a significant increase in temperature. The more emissions we allow to enter our atmosphere, the more carbon dioxide that remains. This buildup leads to increased temperatures, and thus global warming. Effects of Global Warming Though global warming is being experienced throughout the world, the most noticeable and drastic changes can be seen in locations where ice caps are great in quantity. As the earth’s temperature increasingly becomes warmer, these ice caps, such as those found in the Arctic, begin to melt. Contrary to popular belief, ice caps melt starting at the bottom, gradually losing size to their bases and slowly moving up as the ice caps become smaller. Approximately eleven percent of all landmass is glacial ice (Houghton, 2009), so the water levels are grea tly effected by the melting ice caps. The ramifications of these melting ice caps may not be immediately noticeable, but as they continue to melt, the sea levels continue to rise, which bring forth further problems. As the sea levels rise, the oceans expand. To make room for all of this excess water, the oceans have no choice but to spill over onto our landmasses, which can result in horrific flooding throughout the world. Any landmass that borders the oceans will be effected by

Musical Films In The 20th Century

Musical Films In The 20th Century In this paper I address the development and cultural influence of musical films in the 20th century. My primary motive is to understand how musical films gained such popularity and how they were used for social and economic purposes and resolve problems of religion, race and etc of this period. My concern are the ways in which how musical films became the most characteristic creation of the Hollywood film industry. I will take into consideration of the THE SOUND OF MUSIC which was written by Rodgers and Hammerstein, an influential and innovative American theatre writing team and directed by Robert Wise, the Academy Award winning Director. My central discussion will be around this film, starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, but before this I would like to briefly put some light on how music is essential for a film in general. Music has been a part of film almost since the beginning of motion pictures. Music originally had a practical use to keep the audience from talking and dull the sound of the noisy projector (Buchanan, 1974). At the crudest level, one might say that the music is there simply to keep the audience from becoming distracted (Williams, 1974) When silent film were first introduced the film projector used to make noise, so music was put in order to take over the noise of the projector In musical films the narrative is driven by the characters singing songs to enhance the story. The term Musical is not only the presence of music but a shared configuration of character types and plot patterns. Growth Of Musical Films The period between 1930 and 1960 was the golden age of musical films. Every country in the world started making musical films. In Europe during the 1930s musical films gained much fame. By this time, European directors got quite influenced and began making musicals by the 1940s whereas the British had already made a lot of musicals by then. The British used music hall stars and well known actors in their films. The movie, The Sound Of Music was a big influence for other countries to make Musicals. Robert Wise released his movie in 1965 showing that time of the 1930s which was marked by Nazism and movements opposing it. This movie is about a nun named Maria (Julie Andrews) who was sent away to an Austrian Naval captain, Captain Van Troops mansion, to be the governess for his seven children. Since Van troop had lost his wife and he needed a governess to handle his children. He maintained strict discipline in the house, and provided little fatherly love to his children. As the new governess, Maria tries to bring happiness into the family by reviving music amongst them by teaching the children how to sing Do re me and then later on making the children sing for the Baroness as well as by putting together a little show at the ball party hosted at the mansion. Seeing the lovely display, the Van Troop family is selected to sing at the Salzburg Folk Festival. Being an Austrian patriot, the Captain is strongly opposed to the Nazi takeover and Hitler. The music in the movie which is sung by the principle characters helps to advance the plot. The Hollywood film industry is on the top when it comes to creating musical films. But many countries like France, Egypt, Jamaica and Sweden have adapted the genre of Musical Films. In India most directors have been creating Musical films. India has always been very influenced by musical films. The Indian director Gulzar was highly influenced by The Sound Of Music in 1965 and thus, made Parichay in 1972 which had the same plot as the sound of music. Development of Musical Films Music has been used ever since the beginning of cinema. Before 1920 in America and Europe live musicians used to sing on the sets while the characters performed on the screen . During 1920s and 1930s America had made many music films such as The Jazz Singer(1927) by using new sound technology and creating locations on diegetic music. These directors used every type of music in films such as opera, classical music etc. America made over a 100 musical films in the year 1930. Many Hollywood directors used the same musical melodrama that consisted of a widow, a person unlucky in love or a family problem. By the early 1950s and the late 1960s Musical films were based on the political and economical movement which had taken place earlier. For example, in The sound of music, Captain Van troop was against the rule of Nazis over Austria, and in the second half of the film, the Captain gets a letter from the Nazi naval base, forcing him to come and command their ships. Van troop was escorted by the Nazi forces to the Salzburg Folk Festival, after which he had to be taken to naval base, but instead, after addressing his people here and singing for them for the last time, he escaped with his newly wedded wife, Maria and his children. The Classic Hollywood Musical 1933 was the year of change. Warner brothers began to produce musicals of a new kind. Now an economically viable combination of music a narrative was being attempted. Previously musical films had simply added music to familiar stories, Now it was mostly love making and mostly choreographed by Busby Berkley. Plots with dying children, selfish sisters and enemies were replaced by celebration of young couples love through the energy of song a dance. Warner back stage films, RKO films, Astaire rogers films and MGM films were all musicals examples Gold Diggers of 1935 and Broadway melody of 1936 etc. All of the movies bridged a gap between fancy costumes and distant upper class sets of operetta and the down to earth plots and music of folk traditions. During the mid 1930s the main feature of a musical were a formal narrative with the music and numbers linked through a story line, a romantic couple and the society or a community surrounding them, straight realism and pure rhythm merging, and a mixture of diegetic music and dialogues and dance. There were many post war attempts to build musicals such as Singing in the Rain (1951), The Sound of music (1965) and many more. In the late 1970s there was a strong revival of musicals. The movie displayed renewed ability to integrate contemporary music and more into the traditional structure of a musical genre. Cultural Influences of Musical Films United States of America was mainly represented abroad by the musical films for almost half a century. Their musicals was used for economical, artistic and social purposes. The history of musicals is often linked to the development of sound film technology and the relationship between Hollywood and the United States Music Distribution System. In 1929, In order to reduce the cost of obtaining music for sound films Warner Bros began to acquire music publishing companies. Other studies soon followed suit. In 1950s Columbia financed My Fair Lady which was also a musical melodrama directed by George Cukor. In the beginning public performances of songs helped a lot to the directors to publicise their musical films. Warner Bros used music for their own musicals. When 45 rpm records came, top forty lists and long playing albums also came . For 30 years Hollywood musicals were an integrated part of the lines of the music lovers. Sheet music was a part of families singing sitting together around the piano. Every new musical style was turned instantly to a dance craze and widely practiced in the ball rooms. Courtship and the community were the solutions offered by the musicals for every type of conservative social practices. All problem of religion, race and age were resolved for the central couple through the optimistic approach in the musicals which effected every household. America was recognised by this Americannes abroad, which influenced other media, musical styles and dress patterns around the world. In the late 1960s and 1970s the musicals even influenced the sermons and worship services of the American Protestant Church. At high school graduates as church anthems songs like Climb every mountain from The Sound of Music (1965) were heard. Bible based musicals were also produced such as Jesus Christ Superstar in 1973. Even in the movie Sound of Music the whole story was driven and narrated by music. The youth of these times loved films of Elvis Presley and Beatles. Rock concert films became predominant. The musical films gradually became a part of history, but have evolved in a different way. The 1980s video revolution , The music videos are one such culmination of this filmed recording of a musical spectacle. Conclusion In my discussion I tried to show that how musical films started and what all were the effects of musical films on other parts and other film industries of the world. As I discussed the starting of the musical films I saw how films changed with time, I also saw that there was a huge change in the plot and the story line of the films which were commonly used, Earlier each story consisted of a widow or a person unlucky in love or a family problem and every director used to have a live orchestra and musicians on the set while the actors were on screen and lip singing and then in the late 1960s the plot changed to a story of a romantic couple and the society and they used to take famous musicians like Beatles etc. Musical films helped the people to be aware of the political movements going on and also the economical and cultural purposes. America was the first country to make a Musical Film. Musical films also helped to resolve the problems of human beings such as race, age, religion and etc.Musical Films became one of the most popular genre and was adapted by many directors in the 20th century.

Tourette Syndrome Essay examples -- Biology Essays Research Papers

Tourette Syndrome I have been intrigued by this disorder since I met a beautiful little girl named Sarah. Sarah's father recently told me that doctors have informed him that Sarah may have Tourette Syndrome. I had visions in my mind of a little girl shouting profanity uncontrollably with arms flailing about, although the times that I have been with Sarah have never been marked by these actions. I set out to find more information to satisfy my own curiosity and to make myself a resource for Sarah's father. Tourette Syndrome (TS) was first officially described over 100 years ago by a French neurologist named Gilles de la Tourette, a pupil of Charcot's and a friend of Freud's. He described nine patients, primarily Madame de Dampierre, by saying: At the age of 7 (she) was afflicted by convulsive movements of the hands and arms. . . She was felt to be suffering from overexcitement and mischief, and . . . she was subjected to reprimand and punishment. It soon became clear that these movements were indeed in voluntary. . . involved the shoulders, the neck, and the face, and resulted in contortions and extraordinary grimaces (1). Soon after the motor tics developed, Dampierre developed vocal tics consisting of screams and cries. Until her death at 85, she was forced to live in seclusion (2). Between 1920 and 1960, TS was all but forgotten, and psychiatrists and psychoanalysts treated the symptoms as suppressed aggression, which proved ineffective (1). When drugs such as haloperidol were able to alleviate symptoms in the 1960's, however, Giles de la Tourette's initial observations were reevaluated. Dr. Oliver Sacks notes, "Tourette's was regarded - in a sudden reversal - as a chemical disease, the result of a neurotransmitter, dopamine... ...ourette Syndrome. http://neuro-www2.mgh.harvard.edu/TSA/AboutTS/faq.html 7. Definitions and Classification of Tic Disorders. The Tourette Syndrome Classification Study Group. http://tsa.harvard.edu/TSA/medsci/definitions.html 8. Personal Health: Living with the Mysteries of Tourette Syndrome. Brody, Jane E. The New York Times, March 1, 1995. http://tsa.mgh.harvard.edu/TSA/whatshappening/brody.html 9. An Early Warning for Tics?: Faint Signals, Sensory Urges, and Momentary Relief. Leckman Ph.D., James F. National TSA Newsletter - Spring 1996. http://tsa.harvard.edu/TSA/medetter/spring1996.html 10. The Facts about Tourette Syndrome. Alternative Health. http://members.tripod.com/~tourette13/ 11. Scientists Brainstorm to Find Cure for Tourette Syndrome. Weizmann Institute of Science. http://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/site/EN/weizman.asp?pi=372

Nuclear Weapons: Good or Bad?

Reaction Paper: Nuclear Weapons – Danger or Necessity? The use of nuclear weapons has been under much debate from the moment the world witnessed their destructive power. As seen in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the aftermath left by these weapons is utter chaos, having a profound effect on both victims and witnesses lives. However, author Kenneth N. Waltz advocates the necessity of nuclear weapons as a balance of power between countries. Another author, Robert S. McNamara stands in favor of eliminating nuclear weapons for good, bringing reassurance of peace for a fearful world. As debates over nuclear weapon use rage on, the threat is still present and must be handled carefully to avoid a man made apocalypse. McNamara and his stance on eliminating nuclear weapons is sensible, primarily due to the common man and woman agreeing with his logic. Nuclear weapons in today’s world have no purpose but to scare opposing countries from complete warfare, a purpose that hopefully stays that way. While they were an everyday occurrence during the cold war years, concerns with the growth of existing nuclear stockpiles are no longer front page news. In an era where the security agenda is topped by fighting terrorism, we are more worried that terrorist organizations or rogue regimes might acquire nuclear weapons and inflict unspeakable damage to the targeted countries. McNamara argues that â€Å"The countries of the world should try to eliminate their nuclear arsenal because of the utter devastation these weapons can inflict on humanity† (p 147). McNamara also states that â€Å"By intensifying its efforts in sustaining, modernizing, and improving its nuclear stockpile while refusing to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, the United States sends a message that it is not serious about nuclear non-proliferation† (p 147). In order for complete nuclear disarmament, all cards must be playing the same game. Kenneth Waltz is one of few advocators in favor of nuclear weapons, but he does have a solid argument. Leading scholars of international relations and policymakers share in the belief that the sheer destructiveness of nuclear weapons prevents them from being used by friends and foes alike. The deterrent effect of nuclear weapons is rooted in their possession rather than in their use. Waltz argues that â€Å"Nuclear weapons make states cautious and less likely to engage in reckless behavior† (p 156). He also states that â€Å"While the enormous destructiveness of nuclear weapons makes them excellent weapons for defensive purposes-the weapons have no offensive rationale† (p 155). Though Waltz does not advocate widespread nuclear armament, he does submit that nuclear weapons are great contributors to stability in the international system. After reading and analyzing the arguments of both authors, I take my stance with McNamara and his view toward eliminating nuclear weapons. Recently in an article on NY Times, the US and Russia agreed on a nuclear disarmament treaty that shows progress in eliminating nuclear weapons by dismantling the two biggest stockpiles of nuclear weapons in the modern world. This, I believe, is just the beginning of the end for nuclear weapons around the world which would keep humanity much safer and hopefully create long lasting peace.