Life on the American Frontier

Daily life in the new settlements that formed as the United States expanded

west to the Pacific Ocean, south to the Gulf of Mexico, and north to Alaska. The

westward movement across the continent began during the colonial era in the

1600s and continued into the 1900s.

Although each frontier posed its own set of problems, all shared certain

characteristics. Settlers on the frontier lived on lands that were sparsely

populated. They faced many challenges—including how to produce food, how to

protect themselves, and how to create a life in the new land. To meet these

demands, they often found it necessary to recast completely the customs and

laws they had brought with them.

The settlers were thrown into close association with nature and had to learn

how to live on nature’s terms. Life along the frontiers was built around survival

and required that people be in good physical condition. Physical strength and

heartiness helped a person survive the rough elements of the frontier such as the

weather and the wildlife. It was also important for people to know how to farm,

cut wood, and handle a gun or rifle.

The frontier settlers often began their new lives with only the basics needed to

survive. When a family first arrived in a new area, they often built a temporary

shelter in which to live while they cleared the land. Later the family might build a

more permanent cabin. Frontier life called on people to be self-reliant. The

settlers had to supply most of their own food, make their belongings last, and

improvise and repair their tools. Once a family had cleared the land to farm, built
a structure to live in, and established their day-to-day existence, they were ready

to improve their situation. They sought (seek) neighbors, then schools and

stores.

Although frontier life demanded (request) self-reliance, settlers often wanted

government help. As the settlers’ lives improved, they turned to the government

to help improve the new region by building roads, recommending crops, running

surveys, certifying claims, and dredging creeks. They also wanted the federal

government to provide protection for them from Native Americans who were

occasionally (usually) hostile to settlers moving onto their lands.

SUMMERY

In the colonial era, the American settlers on the frontier are the people who

build and enlarge the America today. They had faced many challenges in their life

to protect and create new life in new land. Live in nature causes create for them

a good physical condition and self-reliant to live on nature’s terms. They’ll build

houses for their family first and when their life is stable, they’ll seek for other

basic needs.
 Platonic love

Platonic love, in its modern popular sense, is a non-sexual affectionate

relationship. A simple example of Platonic relationships is a deep, non-sexual

friendship, not subject to gender pairings and not excluding close relatives.

At the same time, this interpretation is a misunderstanding of the nature of the

Platonic ideal of love which from its origin was that of a chaste but passionate

love, based not on lack of erotic interest but on spiritual transmutation of the sex

force, opening up vast expanses of subtler enjoyments than sex.

Can platonic relationships between men and women really exist? That’s a

question that’s been asked since the serpent offered the apple to Eve. The

answer will vary greatly depending on who you ask. There are those who say it is

impossible for a man to relate to a woman in a non-sexual way; others, however,

insist that platonic relationships can exist, and can be deeper and more satisfying

than friendships with people of the same sex.

Although most cross-sexual relationships are based on some element of

sexual involvement, sexual relationships are not generally the ideal basis for

lasting friendship. For, once there is a cooling-off in sexual involvement, so the

interest in the partner is likely to become less intense. This is not always the

case, of course, and a deep friendship can develop from a sexual relationship;

but the chance is slight. Platonic relationships can only work if neither the man

nor the woman has any sexual interest in the other, or if other relationships with

people outside the friendship prevent the development of any sexual

involvement. In cases where a truly platonic relationship has been built up,
partners in the friendship have admitted that cross-sexual friendships are usually

intimate, relaxing and meaningful.

On the other hand, friendships between men or between women can be more

stressful: it has been found that women in a group, or men in a group feel they

need to impress their friends; they need to assert themselves, and there is the

feeling that the other partner in the friendship is continually judging appearance

as well as behavior.

Friendship between a man and a woman is not always easy to establish and

maintain, however, Tom and Sarah had been good friends in the platonic sense

for more than a year. They’d been to discos, parties and spent quiet evenings

discussing anything and everything. Then, one night, after a bottle of Italian wine,

Tom made sexual advances towards Sarah. When she rejected his advance, he

accused her of leading him on. Sadly, their friendship ended there.

Summary

Platonic love is a kind of relationships between men and women, and they’re

only close friends, love without sexual. Some people believe that a sexual

relationship is a good basic for a lasting friendship, and platonic relationship can

exist. However, friendships between men or women can be more stressful and a

sexual relationship become less intense, platonic relationships will be more relax

and better. In addition, it is not easy to establish and maintain that relationship, it

is only impossible if the man and woman have sexual relationships with other

and they don’t like more anything except friendship.

 Health Foods

Health Foods, general term for foods and food products that meet certain

criteria during their production and processing. In this article, the term health

foods is used to describe organic foods, natural foods, herbal teas, and food

supplements, including vitamin and mineral pills and products such as lecithin

and kelp.

Interest in so-called health foods accompanied the growth of interest in

nutrition and health that has occurred in the United States since the 1970s.

Demands for organic and natural foods increased as people became concerned

about the presence of chemical additives, pesticides, and herbicides in their

foods and the nutritive value of highly processed foods. More people began to

shop in health food stores, and food co-operatives sprang (spring) up in great

numbers.

ORGANIC FOODS

Organic foods are more correctly termed organically grown foods. They are

grown without using growth hormones, antibiotics, or synthetic fertilizers,

herbicides, and pesticides. Organically grown foods are fertilized with manure

and composts, and alternative methods are used to control pests and weeds.

Some advocates of organic farming believe that organic food is more nutritious

than food produced by conventional farming methods; however, no valid studies

support this claim. A study by the United States Department of Agriculture

(USDA) has indicated, however, that organic farming may have other long-term

benefits. These benefits are derived from the cultivation practices used in organic
farming. They include preservation of the topsoil, improved water quality, and

healthy populations of beneficial insects that keep destructive pests under

control.

Organic farming makes up a small but rapidly growing segment of agriculture

in the United States. Export of organic products is increasing, especially to

Europe, where interest in organic farming is widespread. In the United States,

concern about the labeling and certification of organic foods led to the

establishment of the 1990 Federal Organic Foods Production Act. The act

mandates that all food labeled organic be produced according to specific

guidelines.

NATURAL FOODS

Although no official definition exists for natural foods, many scientists and

consumers agree that natural foods are those that have been subjected to

minimal processing and contain no artificial additives or ingredients. Many

nutritionists refer to these as basic and traditional foods. Interest in natural foods

arose as more and more consumers became aware that refining foods resulted

in a less nutritious product. Refining whole wheat flour into white flour, for

example, removes a great many nutrients and the dietary fiber. Common natural

foods include wheat germ, raw sugar, and unsulfured molasses, whole grain

bread without preservatives and granola.Proponents of natural foods diets argue

that refined ingredients promote obesity, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.

VITAMINS AND OTHER PRODUCTS

 Many claims have been made about the benefits of vitamins, minerals, and

other nutrition supplements. Studies have shown that while some may fulfill their

promise, others have no effect or may even be harmful if misused. For example,

large intakes of vitamins A or D are known to be toxic. Dolomite, sold as a source

of calcium and magnesium, has been reported to contain high levels of other

minerals, such as lead, arsenic, and mercury, which can be dangerous. Although

many people think that herbal teas are beneficial in various ways, their safety has

never been studied.

Many health food users believe that so-called natural vitamins are superior to

synthetic vitamins. Actually, natural vitamins, although isolated from foods, are

chemically identical to those synthesized in the laboratory. The human body is

unable to tell the difference between natural and synthetic vitamins and handles

them exactly alike.

Summary

Health foods are food to improve or maintain health, it is consists of some

different types of food. Organic foods are foods grown without any harmful

chemicals or fertilizers. It is believed that they are higher in nutrient content than

conventional foods, and protect the natural environment and biodiversity. Natural

foods are foods that are minimally processed, and contain no additives such as

preservatives or artificial coloring, it is believed that promote some dangerous

disease. Many claims have been made about the benefits of vitamin, minerals,

herb tea and other nutrition supplements, but it is only useful for health if we

known the instruction for use.

 Electronic Commerce

Electronic Commerce or e-commerce, the exchange of goods and services by

means of the Internet or other computer networks. E-commerce follows the same

basic principles as traditional commerce—that is, buyers and sellers come

together to exchange goods for money. But rather than conducting business in

the traditional way—in stores and other “brick and mortar” buildings or through

mail order catalogs and telephone operators —in e-commerce buyers and sellers

transact business over networked computers.

E-commerce offers buyers convenience. They can visit the World Wide Web

sites of multiple vendors 24 hours a day and seven days a week to compare

prices and make purchases, without having to leave their homes or offices. In

some cases, consumers can immediately obtain a product or service, such as an

electronic book, a music file, or computer software, by downloading it over the

Internet.

For sellers, e-commerce offers a way to cut costs and expand their markets.

They do not need to build, staff, or maintain a store or print and distribute mail

order catalogs. Automated order tracking and billing (ad) systems cut additional

labor costs, and if the product or service can be downloaded, e-commerce firms

have no distribution costs. Because they sell over the global Internet, sellers

have the potential to market their products or services globally and are not limited

by the physical location of a store. Internet technologies also permit sellers to

track the interests and preferences of their customers with the customer’s
permission and then use this information to build an ongoing relationship with the

customer by customizing products and services to meet the customer’s needs.

E-commerce also has some disadvantages, however. Consumers are

reluctant to buy some products online. Online furniture businesses, for example,

have failed for the most part because customers want to test the comfort of an

expensive item such as a sofa before they purchase it. Many people also

consider shopping a social experience. For instance, they may enjoy going to a

store or a shopping mall with friends or family, an experience that they cannot

duplicate online. Consumers also need to be reassured that credit card

transactions are secure and that their privacy is respected.

Summary

Electronic commerce is a system used to conduct business like the traditional

way, but it is transactions of buying and selling goods and services over a

computer network. Buyers can suffer web to visit “store” anytime to compare

prices and make purchases anywhere they are. In addition, sellers can save

money when they built a virtual store and expand their markets unlimited in the

internet, they can easy get information from the customers and product follow

customize. However, some people want to enjoy go shopping with their friends or

family and directly buy goods with their experience.

 Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein was born in Ulm, Germany, on March 14, 1879. He grew up in

Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. Einstein taught himself geometry when he was

12 years old. Schools bored him because it required endless memorizing and

reciting. He often skipped classes to study on his own or to play his violin. Yet he

graduated from college in 1900 and earned a Ph.D. degree in 1905. From 1902

to 1907, Einstein worked as a clerk in the patent office in Zürich, Switzerland. His

job left him plenty of time to think.

Einstein thought about the rules that govern the way the world works. For

example, he explained why small particles in liquids wiggle around, a movement

called Brownian motion. He said that the particles were being bumped into by

tiny bits of matter called atoms that are too small to see.

He also thought about light and electricity. Einstein knew that light shining on

metal sometimes causes electricity to flow. He explained this result; called the

photoelectric effect, by saying that light is made of tiny bundles of energy called

photons. Photons hitting the metal knock particles called electrons away. Since

electricity is simply moving electrons, he had solved the mystery of the

photoelectric effect. In 1921, Einstein won the most famous prize in science, the

Nobel Prize, for this work.

Another thing Einstein thought about was time. He said that time does not

always flow at the same rate. He proposed that motion affects time. He called

this idea the special theory of relativity.

 Einstein then came up with his general theory of relativity. This theory has a

new explanation for gravity. Einstein said that gravity comes from curves or dents

in the fabric of space. Objects make dents in space the way a bowling ball makes

a dent in a mattress. The Moon falls into the dent made by Earth and rolls around

the Earth. Scientists later proved that the dent a star makes in space-time bends

light as the light passes by.

Einstein changed physics by showing that new ideas could come just from

thinking. Before Einstein, most new ideas in physics had come from experiments

in the laboratory.

Einstein also said that matter and energy is the same thing. He expressed

this relation in a famous equation: E=mc2. This equation says that energy (E)

equals mass (m) times the speed of light squared (c2). Energy can therefore be

changed into matter, and matter into energy. The ability to turn matter into energy

led to the development of the atomic bomb and nuclear power.

Einstein’s theories made him famous, even though few people understood

them. He became a university professor and director of a physics institute in

Berlin, Germany. After the Nazis rose to power in Germany, Einstein left. In 1933,

he came to the United States, where he lived the rest of his life. Einstein died in

Princeton, New Jersey, on April 18, 1955.

Einstein’s last great idea was that every force in nature is part of one master

force. Physicists are still working on this idea, which they call the theory of

everything.
 As a keen and talented violinist, music was one of Einstein’s life-long

passions. Music was not only a relaxation to Einstein it also helped him in his

work. His second wife, Elsa, gives a rare glimpse of their home life in Berlin. “As

a little girl, I fell in love with Albert because he played Mozart so beautifully on the

violin, “she once wrote. “He also plays the piano. Music helps him when he is

thinking about his theories. He goes to his study, comes back, strikes a few

chords on the piano, and jots something down, returns to his study.”

In the last two decades of his life, Einstein was an indefatigable paladin for

world peace. Militant nationalism he deemed the bane of civilization. As the

sanguinary history of belligerents attests, wars rarely procure lasting peace. They

customarily exacerbate enmities and perpetuate cycles of retributive violence.

Typically, the motives for war are labyrinthine and morally opaque. Belligerents

are prone to demonize the enemy and to invoke self-defense.

Summary

Albert Einstein (1879-1955), German-born American physicist and Nobel

laureate. He is the most well-known scientist of the 20th century. He is known for

proposing the theory of relativity, a physical theory of gravity, space, and time;

explaining the photoelectric effects and Brownian motion. He is not only a great

scientist, but also a man who loves peace, music and has youthful character, with

full humorous and modest.