How would you explain the following quotation from Ayn Rand's Anthem?"To be free, a man must be free of his brothers."

A central theme of Anthem is that a person must live for himself and be an individual. The society that Ayn Rand sets up is one that focuses on brotherhood, unity, and conformity. It is the epitome of the collectivist society. Therefore, when Prometheus (formerly Equality 7-2521) discovers that he is in fact an individual, the only way to truly be free is to stop living for others. Rather than live his life in a job that was chosen for him for the supposed good of society (his brothers), he makes the decision to choose his own path and do what fulfills him as an individual, whether that benefits the “brotherhood” or not. Not only does he realize here that he does not need to live for his brothers, but he also realizes that he does not need to depend on them; he can be self-sufficient, and this, too, can give him freedom.  He says in Chapter 12:

I shall live here, in my own house. I shall take my food from the earth by the toil of my own hands. I shall learn many secrets from my books. Through the years ahead, I shall rebuild the achievements of the past, and open the way to carry them further, the achievements which are open to me, but closed forever to my brothers, for their minds are shackled to the weakest and dullest among them.

Now that he is no longer “shackled” to his brothers, Prometheus has discovered a power within him, as an individual, to live freely and in doing so to make his contribution to society without having to be told how to accomplish that.

Is the Bermuda Triangle really a mystery, or just a conspiracy?

An examination of the happenings in and around the Bermuda Triangle show that this supposed mysterious area is not necessarily a myth or a conspiracy. In fact, the happenings in the Bermuda Triangle are not much different from the events that happen in other parts of the ocean. 

However, it is true that there has been much more discussion about the mysteries and unexplained circumstances at the Bermuda Triangle. For the most part, this can be explained by the publication of multiple books in the early 1970s that capitalized on some of the "mysteries" surrounding the Bermuda Triangle.

In 1975, author Larry Kusche published the book The Bermuda Triangle Mystery: Solved in which he debunked many of the findings from earlier books. Kusche claimed that some of the "mysterious" disappearances weren't actually mysterious at all. Kusche also asserted that some of the cases discussed in other books had never even happened.

Despite the publication of this book, the damage had been done by the assertions made in prior books that talked about the "mysteries" of the Bermuda Triangle. To this day, many of the conspiracy theories and debunked mysteries continue to be quoted and referenced, even though they have largely been discredited. 

The following should be remembered as well: the area in and around the Bermuda Triangle is often traveled by inexperienced sailors and small ships. Sometimes, the wrecks and unfortunate circumstances that happen in the area are simply due to user error.

In politics, what is meant by the terms "hawks" and "doves"? How do these positions differ?

The terms "hawk" and "dove," to the best of my recollection, came into frequent use during the late Sixties, when protest against the war in Vietnam began.  These are metaphorical terms that represent people who are pro-war and people who are anti-war.  A hawk is a fierce bird that represents the warring faction, while the dove has always been a symbol of peace and love.  Both had certainly been used prior to the Vietnam War, even hundreds of years earlier, but began popping up all the time in the media and in regular conversations when large factions began to disagree with one another about this war. The war was meant to avoid a Communist takeover in the area, based on what was called "the domino theory," another metaphor.  Like a line of dominoes, if Vietnam fell to the Communists, all the other countries in the area could as well.  This was during the Cold War, which is yet another metaphor, because politicians in the McCarthy era had stirred up the populace to believe that Communism was an existential threat to America.  Today, I don't see the terms used all that much, but they could be applicable now.  Those who want to go full force with ground troops to fight terrorism or to torture prisoners are hawks, while those who seek diplomatic solutions to problems instead are the doves.  That is, of course, a great oversimplification of the issues involved, but the metaphors still serve fairly well. 

Which sociological theory is most effective in approaching social issues: the symbolic interactionist perspective, the functionalist perspective,...

Each sociological perspective has potential to be effective, depending on which aspect of society is being analyzed.

The functionalist perspective argues that the different aspects of a society are all interconnected and self-regulated to promote social equality. This view would be effective in analyzing whether social institutions are functional or dysfunctional, and how these institutions create or impair social harmony.

The conflict perspective posits that society consists of power struggles between groups competing for limited resources, so it would be most effective for analyzing the source and effect of socio-economic inequalities and how social institutions create hierarchy.

The symbolic interactionist perspective examines micro-level interactions to examine how interactions create meaning, and how this influences inter-group behavior. This micro-sociological perspective would be most effective for analyzing the sociology or social psychology of small group interactions, and not broad societal trends.

Was Banquo from Shakespeare's Macbeth a real person?

According to modern historians, Banquo is a sort of "mythical figure" who probably was not real. Shakespeare used, as is well known, the famous Chronicles written by Raphael Holinshed, published in the sixteenth century. In Holinshed's version, the author relates in three or four lines the story of Macbeth's ascent to the throne and the tale of the "weird sisters" that foretold the future:

The words...of the three weird sisters, would not out of his mind, which as they promised him the kingdom, so likewise did they promise it at the same time unto the posterity of Banquo...

Holinshed goes on to say that Macbeth has Banquo murdered, but that his assassins fail to kill his "son named Fleance." Having fled to Wales, Fleance fathered a son named Walter Steward with the daughter of the Welsh prince. Fleance was subsequently murdered, and Walter Steward then fled to Scotland, where he married into royalty. The new king of England when Shakespeare's version of Macbeth was first performed was James I of the Scottish house of Stuart. James traced his lineage to Banquo and Fleance, and so Shakespeare portrayed Banquo, the supposed father to a line of Scottish (and eventually English) kings, as a noble man who was treacherously murdered by the tyrant Macbeth. Holinshed, on the other hand, claims that Banquo was among Macbeth's "trusty friends" that "promised aid" to the usurper in his plot to murder the king. In any case, Banquo does not seem, according to historians, to have been an actual historical figure. 

What is the link between operations management and strategic planning?

Operations management can be summarized as planning, organizing, controlling, and performing all activities necessary to turn inputs into outputs. Its main function is to ensure the business processes are performed efficiently by utilizing minimal resources and effectively to produce the output that the customer needs and expects.

Strategic planning is responsible for setting the priorities and focusing all resources available towards achieving the business’ goals and objectives. Its main function is to ensure the best decisions are made with regards to the customer, resources, and business activities.

Operations management is related to strategic planning because planning is a key function of operations. Strategic planning is necessary for ensuring business processes are focused on the intended goals and objectives. It will also eliminate waste of resources and improve the effectiveness of business processes, which is key to operations management.

I am an exchange student from the US studying in Costa Rica. I am currently working on a research project investigating how the culture of the...

Here, I think that the key structural issue with which you are struggling is focus. In other words, a good paper needs to be have a narrow topic and a clear sense of how you are approaching that topic. There are several ways you could focus your paper:

• History of ecotourism in Costa Rica: With this focus, you could look at the evolution of ecotourism in Costa Rica from the 1980s to the present. You would begin by defining ecotourism and then survey its evolution chronologically, highlighting the ways in which Costa Rica has differed from other regions in its level of environmental commitments and policies. 


• Compare and contrast: In such a paper you might compare and contrast ecotourism and environmental policies in Costa Rica with those in other islands in the region. In such a paper you would begin with an overview of ecotourism in Costa Rica and compare and contrast it with each of three or four neighboring nations, organizing the main body of the paper by nation.


• Marketing: If you are studying business, you might write a paper about the market potential of ecotourism and how Costa Rica's unique level of environmental commitment can attract tourists. You could organize such a paper two ways, either by type of activity or type of tourist (broken down by demographic groups).