Abstract
In this article, the writer notes that about once a day, somewhere in the universe a burst of gamma rays appears as if out of nowhere. It lasts a very short time, no more than a few seconds, and then disappears. The writer points out that during the event, the level of radiation from the gamma-ray bursts is so high that it overwhelms any other gamma rays coming from other cosmic sources. It has also been observed that most gamma-ray bursts have an afterglow in the x-ray, and sometimes even optical, wavelengths ranges. The writer maintains that the research into gamma-ray bursts will continue until their nature is finally understood. The writer concludes that while this research goes on, the accumulated information and the intermediate hypotheses are already helping astronomers and cosmologists to better understand the universe, particularly the time when it was just beginning to form.

Outline:
Definition and Description
Research Goals
History
Analysis
Future Research

From the Paper
"Despite the inconsistent nature of these bursts, some patterns have been identified. One prominent distinction is between long and short bursts, those over 2 seconds and those less than that. Analysis of almost 2,000 gamma-ray bursts recorded by the BATSE device on the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory between 1991 and 2000 showed that each falls into one of two groups: the short bursts have closely-spaced high-energy photons; the long bursts' photons appear to have lower energy and are more widely spaced.
"Another pattern that was discovered is related to the degrees of brightening and fading that the bursts exhibit over time in various channels of the measured energy spectra over the life of the burst. This analysis showed that different bursts release their gamma rays at different rates in different energy spectra When plotted, these variations manifested themselves as 5 distinct patterns: flat, crescent (or double-crescent), loop, lobe and island."

Tags:telescope, radiation, universe, black, holes

Abstract
This paper compares the primary, secondary and tertiary premises of Blu-ray and HD DVD to determine which format is superior. The paper discusses how the current format war is only the latest in a string of format battles, most notably the VHS versus Betamax competition, where the generally accepted technically superior Betamax format lost out to the commercially superior VHS format. The paper then discusses how in this current format war, the present market leader is Blu-ray, but present trends show that this dominance is fleeting, and the low cost provider HD DVD may yet prove to be the format selected by the consumer.

From the Paper
"This paper shall compare the current high density video disc format war between Blu-ray and HD DVD. The primary, secondary and tertiary premises of which format is superior as opined by various authorities will be compared. This current format war is only the latest in a string of format battles, most notably the VHS versus Betamax competition. The generally accepted technically superior Betamax format lost out to the commercially superior VHS format. In this current format war, the present market leader is Blu-ray, but present trend show that this dominance is fleeting, and the low cost provider HD DVD may yet prove to be the format selected by..."

Tags:hd dvd, blu, ray, format war

Abstract
An analysis of Ray Kroc's main acclaimed achievement, the establishment of McDonald's. A study of how he did it and what made him successful. The author explains how he was always a salesman so that when he saw a good business opportunity, he seized the chance to make a good product better and to go the distance with a vision. Not only did Kroc introduce a better fast-food restaurant, he found a better way to run any business through his philosophy of quality, service, cleanliness, and value. Much of his tenacity for success had to do with his vision, but most had to do with his natural salesmanship. The paper concludes that Ray Kroc was a genuine twentieth century innovator and American, second to none in his field, or in nearly any other industry.

From the Paper
"Dining at McDonald's is a wholesome American experience. Nothing better represents the values and image of America than a hamburger, french-fries, and a chocolate shake under the Golden Arches. And no other innovators " with the possible exception of Thomas Alva Edison, Henry Ford, and Bill Gates " in the last one hundred and twenty-five years has a greater impact upon American culture and the global economy than Ray Kroc. He was a visionary and an entrepreneur. Most of all: Ray Kroc was always a salesman: when he saw a good business opportunity, he seized the chance to make a good product better and to go the distance with a vision. But when Ray Kroc opened the first McDonald's 1955, he wasn't a restaurateur or self-made businessman. He was a 52-year-old milkshake salesman. But the day Ray Kroc entered a little restaurant operated by two brothers in San Bernardino, California, it not only changed Kroc's life but it changed the world. Not only did Kroc introduce a better fast-food restaurant, he found a better way to run any business through his philosophy of quality, service, cleanliness, and value. Much of his tenacity for success had to do with his vision, but most had to do with his natural salesmanship; and of salesmanship, Kroc said, "The definition of salesmanship is the gentle art of letting the customer have it your way" (Pepin). Ray Kroc is a genuine American success story from humble beginnings to hamburger titan."

Tags:Ray, Kroc, McDonald's, biography, American, hamburger, Golden, Arches

Abstract
This paper looks at the short piece by Ray Bradbury, "The Veldt". It is analytical piece that discusses the meaning of the story, which the writer finds is a criticism of excess technology. The paper examines how Bradbury, instead of embracing the future, uses the story to symbolize his fear of the future divisions between the old and the new.The essay goes through the story in detail to find its deeper meaning and what each character resembles.

From the Paper
"Ray Bradbury's short science-fiction piece The Veldt, at first glance, is the titillating story of how a simple decision to buy a machine to improve a family's comforts can go terribly awry. Ultimately, this machine, which includes a nursery that becomes a virtual reality room, dooms the Hadley parents to their gruesome ends. The nursery, which seems to be stuck on an African veldt setting, becomes the trap that the children lock them in; they are left to the lions at the end. The story could be interpreted as a fable for the forward-looking possibilities of what advances in technology can one day bring us. However, this tale is actually a paranoid narrative, a subtle reflection of the author's fear of tomorrow's society devoid of today's household structure and, therefore, an embrace of the conservative past, not the future."

Tags:Ray Bradbury, the veldt, science fiction, technology

Abstract
This paper is a book review of Ray Bradbury's book "The Martian Chronicles." Looking briefly at the societal influences behind the book, the review continues on to focus on four themes throughout the story: issue, rule, application, and conclusion. Using thematic comparisons to the constitution and even Edgar Allan Poe, the writer concludes that "The Martian Chronicles" is a narrative on behavioral dynamics and power were majority rules.

From the Paper
"The majority must have its way even if it means pillaging the land it wishes to conquer and / or inhabit. It is about "might makes right," especially if the majority wants it that way. The minority will just have to step aside or be crushed beneath the weight of the majority.
"In the seventh chapter of The Martian Chronicles ("And the Moon Be Still as Bright") the powerful will of the majority butts up against the values and perseverance of the individual. In fact there is a violent clash between archaeologist Jeff Spender and Captain Wilder, both on board the Fourth Expedition to Mars. Spender is outraged at the actions of his crewmates after they land on Mars. Parkhill, Biggs, and other crewmembers want to party so they open up bottles of liquor and proceed to make fools of themselves on the surface of Mars. They majority on this mission proceed to regurgitate on tile floors and throw empty wine bottles into a clear blue canal. Eventually, Spender is fined by Wilder, and after Spender kills off several crewmen for their bad behavior, Wilder has to come to terms with this: is he (Wilder) punishing Spender because Spender is wrong, or is he (Wilder) simply unable to identify with Spender's individuality and rejection of the will of the majority?"

Tags:ray bradbury, martian chronicles, literature, science fiction

Abstract
This paper uses three examples from three of the short stories in Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man to show how consumerism affects people's lives. In two of the examples given, people become greedy and desirous of consumer goods for the sake of owning them. This has negative affects on these individuals. In the third example, a father buys an old rocket in order to give his children a once in a lifetime chance to "travel" through the universe, thus providing an example of using a consumer good in a positive way.

From the Paper
The Effects of Consumerism in Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man is a collection of short stories gathered together under the guise of describing the many different tattooed people on the title character, the Illustrated Man's, body. One of the threads that connects these short stories in the theme of consumerism in the imagined worlds Bradbury creates. Consumerism implies the purchasing of new items, be they home goods, technology, clothing, transportation vehicles, for the sake of owning the object itself; in other words, people don't always buy items because they need them, but often because they want them and the act of purchasing and owning things

Tags:ray bradbury, consumerism, short stories

Abstract
This paper discusses the leadership of New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin during and after Hurricane Katrina. The paper examines Nagin's mayoral career and his personality. The paper studies Nagin within the context of a tranformational leader, asking whether the mayor exhibit those characters. The paper concludes with a discussion of the reasons for his leadership failure in managing the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.

From the Paper
"Mayor Ray Nagin of New Orleans swept into office some three years ago, intent on eliminating corruption in the city, reforming a dramatically underperforming school system, creating new jobs and economic opportunities, and..."

Tags:Ray Nagin, leadership, Hurricane Katrina

Abstract
This paper traces the origins and current history of the consumer electronics battle between Blu-Ray and HD DVD. It compares and contrasts the current struggle in the market place to previous infamous struggles, specifically, the engagement between Betamax and VHS. The paper compares the formats and the relative technical strengths of each and places them in context of past consumer electronics conflicts. The paper also relates the historical development of the consumer products.

From the Paper
"This paper shall trace the origins and current history of the consumer electronics battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD!. It shall contrast the current struggle in the market place to previous infamous struggles, most relevant the engagement between Betamax and VHS. It shall compare the formats and the relative technical strengths of each and place them in context of past consumer electronics conflicts. The historical development of the consumer products shall also be related. The next generation of home entertainment media is currently embroiled in..."

Tags:blu, ray, dvd, technical

Abstract
This paper discusses the Ray Copper Mine in Arizona. Arizona is the largest producer of copper in USA. There are some other states where copper reserves have been discovered but Arizona by far remains the leading copper-producing state accounting for 65 percent of the total US copper-production. Copper and its by-products represent over 80 percent of Arizona's nonfuel mineral value.

Tags:ray, copper, mine

Abstract
This paper explains that Henri Cartier-Bresson and Man Ray made fundamentally different but important contributions to surrealist art. The author points out that Cartier-Bresson's work captured the surreal in the everyday; Man Ray, instead, created the surreal out of the ordinary. The paper relates that Cartier-Bresson captured the minutia in reality and converted them into surrealism, while Man Ray manipulated reality through techniques like solarization to distort reality into surrealism.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Man Ray
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Unlike Man Ray, Cartier-Bresson relied little upon the processes of development in his art. Instead, he remained true to his small 35-mm camera, which he regarded as unobtrusive, and quickly became "an extension of (his) eye". Further, Cartier-Bresson believed that to be effective, photography should be as instantaneous and natural as possible. As a result, Cartier-Bresson worked almost exclusively with natural light in order to capture the essence of his subject."

Tags:rayographs, solarizations, ordinary, minutia, manipulation