Abstract
The paper discusses how anyone living in Canada today might think that the conquest of New France was some kind of epochal catastrophe, which set the country up for the internal tensions that it still faces today. The paper points out that after all, Canada still faces the possibility of Quebec splitting from the rest of Canada, and this possibility reasserts itself as a political threat relatively frequently. Nevertheless, it is argued here that the event itself was merely an incident, such that if all other things had been equal, Canada would now be a harmonious integration of the old New France and the rest of Canada.

From the Paper
"Was the Conquest of New France a "catastrophe" or merely an incident? Why? Anyone living in Canada today might think that the conquest of New France was some kind of epochal catastrophe, which set the country up for the internal tensions that it still faces today. After all, Canada still faces the possibility of Quebec splitting from the rest of Canada. This possibility reasserts itself as a political threat relatively frequently. Nevertheless, it is argued here that the event itself was merely an incident, such that if all other things had been equal, Canada would now..."

Tags:history, canada, french

Abstract
This paper was written for an English class in which we had to research the meaning and the origin of an English word.

From the Paper
"It was not until 1579 that catastrophe first appeared in written English. British poet Edmund Spenser[1] in his poem entitled "The shepheardes calendar" first used catastrophe in the sentence "this tale is much like to that in Aesops fables, but the catastrophe and ende is farre different." According to the Oxford English Dictionary the first meaning of the word catastrophe in English, as used in the quote from Spender's poem, was "The change or revolution which produces the conclusion or final event of a dramatic piece." Over time the word catastrophe grew in usage, but while there were slight changes in its meaning, the word still has the same meaning today as back in 1579."

Tags:bush, english, gore, oxford, shakespeare, simpson, spenser, weiner

Tags:free economics market, health license

Abstract
This paper discusses the diplomatic tug-of-war that followed the January 2000 cyanide spill that began in Romania and entered the Tisza River in Hungary through the greater Danube River system. The paper shows that throughout the affair, both Romania and Hungary emphasized the need for clear, defined international legal agreements that would govern responsibility in the case of a trans-boundary environmental catastrophe. It also shows how, Romania used the absence of such an agreement to defend its position that it was free of liability in the matter.

From the Paper
"The Tisza River catastrophe, aside from yielding irreversible ecological damage to the river basin area, has had severe repercussions for Romanian-Hungarian relations. While Romania and Hungary, both with designs on joining the European Union and attracting increased foreign investment, attempted to create an image of cooperation in dealing with the disaster, relations between the two countries became strained over issues of blame. The Hungarian government was vague in its demand for compensation, noting that it might not be able to hold the Austrian firm involved in the spill directly responsible. Even Hungary's position on whether to sue Romania was initially uncertain. A desire to promote an international image of stability led both countries to downplay the disaster and cloak the international dispute, but at the same time the Hungarian government had to contend with an outraged Hungarian population."

Tags:eastern, europe, Esmeralda, Exploration, AURUL, Baia, Mare

Abstract
The paper graphically describes the level of disaster Hurricane Katrina wrought on New Orleans, southeast Louisiana, and the state of Mississippi. The paper highlights the mismanagement concerning the levees, the communication failures within the city itself, with the state, and with the federal government, and the specific failures involved in the evacuation post-Katrina. The paper further discusses the ineffective leadership, poor advance planning and an unwillingness to devote sufficient resources to emergency management over the long term. The paper argues that after Katrina struck, the pain and anguish went on far too long, and the reason that happened can be contributed to the failure of the government, at all levels, to plan, prepare for and respond aggressively to the havoc. The paper firmly believes that New Orleans is a city still ill-equipped to face future storms.

Outline:
Thesis Statement
Background
Katrina
The Levees - Before Katrina
And the Levees Now
Communication
The Roles of Different Levels of Government
Post-Katrina Evacuation
Law Enforcement
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Often blamed, and rightfully so, for the flooding of over 80% of the city, the levee system
failed. New Orleans is surrounded by three bodies of water: The Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River, and huge Lake Pontchartrain. The city has thrived about six feet below the level of the Gulf, ever since Jean Baptiste La Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, founded it in 1718 as the capital of Louisiana and as a fortress to control the wealth of the North American interior.
"Little known is that fact that the Mississippi actually flows perched on a ridge above most of the city and 10-15 feet above sea level. Much of modern New Orleans is built on muck, with no solid bedrock until a depth of seventy feet is reached below the surface. Finally, New Orleans is built on land that is gradually, in some cases even rapidly, sinking."

Tags:FEMA, Katrina, levees, flooding, storm, government, preparedness

Abstract
The author of the paper states that global warming and climate change are a fact. He contends that the debate now, is whether the causes of these phenomena are natural or man-made. In the paper, the writer examines the evidence and attempts to show that the main cause for climatic changes is the intervention of human being in natural processes and the inability of nature to cope with the large scale changes in the ecosystem that mankind has brought about.

From the Paper
"Seeing that so much of the argument in the case of global warming as a destructive and manmade issue is based on the fact that temperatures are rising, opponents of this idea claim that "for the past decade now, world temperatures have been static or slightly declining and that's according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change" (Durkin 2). Though the factual basis of this argument may be sound, the scope of it is completely distorted- they look at temperatures over the last decade only instead of looking at the bigger picture, which is what really tells the story. In fact, this tendency to focus on the temperature from only this past decade is highly ironic-those who are now wanting to study the decline in temperature over the past decade are the very same people who insisted on a big picture view of climate change in the first place, and claimed that the other side was getting too worried over too small a period in time. This contradiction in arguments weakens the case that global warming is not man made and strengthens the fact that it is."

Tags:global warming, climate change, ecology ice water, greenhouse gases, cancer pollution waste

Abstract
The paper reveals that catastrophic birth defects are found in 3 out of every 100 live births in the United States and are caused by either genetic or environmental problems. The paper goes on to relate how the costs of birth defects are tremendous; hospital care alone comes to $2.6 billion a year and individual costs are much higher. The paper discusses prevention that includes early screening, proper diet, nutrition, avoidance of pollutants, etc.

From the Paper
"Catastrophic birth defects are more common than people realize. Some, but not all are preventable. They have a major impact on families and on society in general. According to the United States Center for Disease Control: Birth defects are conditions that 1) result from a malformation, deformation, or disruption in one or more parts of the body; 2) are present at birth; and 3) have a serious, adverse effect on health, development, or functional ability. ("Hospital Stays...")"

Tags:birth defects, genetics, environmental

Abstract
This essay explores the conventional consensus that the human coping capacity under the stress of catastrophic or disastrous events was determined primarily, if not solely, by the nature of the traumatic event before the twentieth century. This paper examines how this belief failed to take into consideration the fact that different individuals in many instances exhibit very differing reactive behaviors to similar situations. The author contends that this failure to recognize the factors that cause one individual to react one particular way in the face of disaster while another reacts in a widely opposing manner under similar circumstances, tends to group catastrophic reactive behavior into one generic and somewhat narrow category.

Table of contents

The Range of Reactive Behavior
Early Reactive Behavior Research
Early Findings Concerning Coping Ability & Catastrophe
Recent Research - The Full Scope of Reactions Realized
Future Research - Concepts of Control & Counter-Conditioning
Coping With the Twenty-First Century

From the Paper
"In the early decades of the twentieth century, Sigmund Freud introduced the world of psychology to the concept of narcissism as applied to self-esteem and individual equilibrium. Freud was intrigued by the general idea and psychological implications of narcissism, a condition that Sam Vaknin later clarified as not an actual love for one's "true self", but instead one's love of a perceived reflection or image of one's self (1999, PG). In his posited theory of narcissism, first voiced in 1914, Freud presented the idea that it is a necessity for individuals to "maintain a positive sense of self" and that this process was normally accomplished through the act of "engaging in ego-defensive behavior in order to preserve self-esteem" (Brown, 1997, p. 643). "

Tags:conventional, consensus, belief, human, coping, capacity, stress, catastrophic, disastrous, events, nature, traumatic, event

Abstract
The paper examines the societal, governmental and economic factors that are related to the events of 9-11 and relates the issue of disaster that created human tragedy within the literature analyzed in this study. The paper explains how by presenting two passages from each of these novels, one can realize the similarities of the Great Depression and Civil Rights Era issues that create and influence the similar objects of a catastrophe that transformed American society in the present as well as in past historical perspectives.

From the Paper
"This literary study will examine the tragic events of 9/11 and the similar aspects of the human aspects of tragedy in "The Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison and "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald. By realizing the tragic aspects of the Stock Market Crash of 1929 in Fitzgerald's novel, one can also reveal the dynamics of racism that tragically take center stage in "The Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison. "The Great Gatsby" is a novel based on life in the 1930's and the cultural elements of the Great Depression had become the central theme of the callousness of the rich and their lack of care for the classes that lived in poverty beneath them."

Tags:gatsby, race, ellison

Abstract
This paper provides a personal response to the Jeffrey P. Brown essay "Black Body Radiation and the Ultraviolet Catastrophe". The paper examines Brown's underlying philosophies and ideological message, while critiquing his conclusions.

From the Paper
"We live in an era that has replaced the Godhead with a secular focus on empiricism, science and capitalism. Our concerns are largely those of a temporal nature, based on self-interest. As a species of and in nature, we have distanced ourselves..."

Tags:religion, spirit, eternity, self-serving, compassion, sacrifice, disaster, love