Testing Issues in Java Technology

Testing Issues in Java Technology INTRODUCTION: Software testing is the method of examining software, to confirm that it satisfy its necessities and to identify errors. Software testing is an experimental examination which is conducted to afford stakeholders with information about the quality of the product or service under test, with respect to the context in which it is intended to operate. Testing can never entirely establish the exactness of computer software. As an alternative, it provides an analysis or a relationship that compares with the state or behavior of the product against a specification. Over its survival, computer software has sustained to grow in convolution and dimension. Testing in the world of Java technology proposes many distinctive and dissimilar challenges. Todays Java engineers are not only faced with multiple platforms, but also the scalability issues like limited memory, nonstandard input, network traffic considerations which are encountered with an increasing array of Java technology-based computationa l devices—from Java Rings, to telephones, to set-top boxes. Because of dealing with many different platforms, and many different types of devices the tests are written in the Java programming language. An automatic software testing is a software function which is used to authenticate that a particular unit of source codes is running as expected. Software testing can be written as: Unit Tests; Integration Tests; or Acceptance Tests. The report also gives an overview of the role of these technologies in Java testing. (ece.cmu.edu) Integration Testing: Integration tests is used to test integration of several classes as against to testing classes in isolation. Mainly in J2EE environments like Web or EJB container gives a more important functionality, hence integration testing has to be conducted in a container. This would test interaction across different application tiers like access to database, EJBs and also other resources. Integration test is occasionally done by Programmers but not as frequently as unit test. Acceptance Tests: Acceptance Test is explained as the group of tests which guarantee the contract between the application API and end user. These tests are done for the completed and deployed application. It is used to check each use-case in which the application is supported. It provides less test coverage and it is main in testing integration of application tiers such as containers and web servers. These tests are done by Quality Assurance testers and not by developers as test operates on external Application Programming Interfaces. Unit Tests Checking of the Developed Project, Programmers write unit tests to verify their own code. Unit testing vary from integration testing, which works well together, and acceptance testing, works according to the customers requirements. Unit testing is the testing mechanism which is used to test a single unit of code. In the case of Java, a unit testing that frequently connects to a distinct class. A unit test is fully automatic, non interactive, and dual ie, it moreover succeeds or be unsuccessful. By executing the code and verifying the output is not a testing. Neither instead of writing a small â€Å"test driver† that neither drives the code nor allows checking logs to see if its working correctly. Unit testing is the code which is written, as a good thing since it leads to higher-quality code, higher productivity, and lower maintenance with good evolution costs. The following report will analyze various Unit Testing technologies like JUnit, TestNG and JTiger. (devx.com) JUnit: JUnit is a unit testing method which is simple and open source frame work for regression testing released by IBM under common license version 5.0 and to write and run repeatable tests on the Java programming language it was hosted on the source forge.Junit is a instance of Xunit architecture which was used for unit testing framework , XUnit was developed by Erich Gamma and Kent Beck. Knowledge and Experience gained with JUnit is very use full in developing test driven application development, and due to this knowledge of JUnit is in use in test driven development. JUnit is also ported to other programming languages like PHP, C#,python, Fortran, Perl,and C++. It is used as PHPUnit in PHP, Nunit in C#, PyUnit in Python , fUnit in Fortran , Test::Class and Test::Unitin Perl and CPPUnit in C++ . All this unit testing frameworks family is collectively reffered as XUnit. Now recently due to the development of new client frameworks like AJAX, Junit has also been developed for use in java sc ript as JSUnit.Junit improves the quality of code and increases the speed of programming. (en.Wikipedia.org) Junit Features include: API for Easily creating Java test Cases Assertions for testing expected results verify expected versus actual result Test fixtures to share test data commonly Test runners to run tests For forums and mailing lists. Aggregating tests (suites) Junit Mechanics: Define a subclass of TestCase. Override the setUp() tearDown()methods. Define one or more public testXXX()methods Exercise the object(s) under test. Asserts the expected results. Define a static suite() factory method Create a TestSuite containing all the tests. Optionally define main() to run the TestCase in batch mode. JUnit Extensions: JUnitReport -Apache Ant extension task -Uses XML and XSLT to generate HTML Cactus -Simple unit testing framework for server side Java coding JWebUnit -Framework for creating acceptance testing for web based applications XMLUnit Provides an XMLTestCase class which enables assertions to be made about the Content and structure of XML MockObject double agent used to test the behavior of other objects Dummy object which mimics the external behavior of a true implementation observes how other objects interact with its methods and compares actual behavior with preset expectations StrutsTestCase testing code based on the Struts framework (javapassion.com) TestNG: TestNG is an annotation-driven Java unit testing framework inspired by JUnit and NUnit which aims to overcome many limitations of JUnit. TestNG isnt just really powerful, innovative, extensible, and flexible; it also illustrates an interesting application of Java Annotations, a great new feature in JDK 5.0. TestNG is designed in such away that it covers all categories in testing like:   unit, functional, end-to-end, integration, etc(testng.org) TestNG Features include: Annotations; no mandatory naming patterns for test methods or extending classes Also Supports Java doc annotations for Java 1.4 Powerful test-fixture set-up and tear-down options JDK 5 Annotations JDK 1.4 also supports JavaDoc annotations. Test configuration is flexible. Data driven testing support using @Data Provider. Parameters support. Distribution of tests in slave systems is allowed. Execution model is much Powerful no need of Test Suite. It is supported many plug-ins and variety of tools like Eclipse, Maven, IDEA, etc. By Embedding with Bean Shell improves flexibility. JDK functions are available by default for logging and runtime. Methods for testing of application server. TestNG Mechanics: Write the business logic of the test and insert TestNG annotations in the code. Adds informations about the test in testng.xml file or in a build.xml (eg. class name etc). Execute TestNG. JTiger: JTiger is a framework for unit testing and has tools for Java 2 Platform. It gives useful abstraction for writing unit test cases and fixtures. Functionalities provided by JTiger is most desired in unit testing of softwares. Generally Test-Driven Development is encouraged by JTiger development, though it is not mandatory, and any unit testing technique in software development is sufficient. Many features of Java Programming Language 1.5 is heavily used by JTiger like Generics, variable argument lists, annotations, etc,. JTiger also encourages users to do documentation of unit test cases and fixtures to give a robust and easy maintain regression harness and unit test. Published and documented API is provided by JTiger frame work if there is a need for extending the functionality. The ability to run the test cases written by using JUint framework is a good example of extending JTiger framework. As a part of JTiger framework JUnit plugin implementation classes are included. (en.Wikipedi a.org) JTiger Features include: JTiger makes every effort to ensure a robust unit test harness by providing a rich set of tools, and a reliable, usable framework on which to develop unit test cases. JTiger is an implementation that is based on improvements in software development methodologies, such as eXtreme Programming (XP), which have matured since their inception. JTiger has been implemented using the same techniques that it encourages, specifically, Test Driven Development. JTiger includes its own unit test and regression harness with 100% method coverage. This aids in new or modified requirements for JTiger that arise in the unforeseen future. The JTiger source code base has been designed to ensure the absolute maximum possible amount of decoupling of components and encapsulation such that future enhancements will not have a negative impact on future versions on JTiger. (userdoc.com) JTiger System Requirements: JTiger requires that tests are executed using a Java Virtual Machine version 1.5 or higher. This does not mean that the code under test must be written using Java 1.5 language features. The software under test may target any JVM version such as 1.2, 1.3 or 1.4. It is merely the test run that must execute under a JVM version 1.5. JTiger is capable of executing test cases that have been written using the JUnit test framework. JTiger Extensions: JTiger future development is being investigated. Some of the features and topics that are under review include the development of a swing GUI interface from which to execute unit test cases, the development of IDE (Integrated Development Environment) plugins for Eclipse, and Intellij IDEA, and the possibility of a mock objects package that mocks J2SE and J2EE core classes. (userdoc.com) Testing Of Java Language Recommended By Other Companies: Microsoft Java Virtual Machine Support: To be familiar with the need is to afford a smooth evolution for present users of the Microsoft ® Java Virtual Machine (MSJVM), Sun Microsystems and Microsoft have agreed to widen Microsofts license to use Suns Java source code along with their compatibility test cases and the test suites. (microsoft.com) Open Quality Program to Improve the Quality of Java Software: Agitar: This Software has declared a new multi-vendor scheme committed to take very careful attention on the testing side to improve the efficiency and the quality of java software packages. Based on the Open Quality Program, Agitar software has published a wide range of unit level testing metrics in its own products, It has even including a formal weekly build results on its future unannounced new products and the new trends over time. The Agitar software has also published these software testing metrics for many popular open source software Java projects, which including JUnit, Hibernate, Cruise Control, Struts, spring, and even lot of other commercial products which is based on the open source such as the Oracles BerkeleyDB Java edition and JasperSofts JasperServer. (qthreads.com) Recent Testing News on upcoming Java products: Java Graphical User Interface Testing Tool Known as Squish is Supporting the New Eclipse Ganymede version 3.4 Five weeks Two days ago(2008-07-08) Germany BasedHamburg( froglogic GmbH )has announced today , to give support for automated the testing of new Java Rich Client Platform the RCP applications which is based on the new Eclipse version 3.4 release code that is named as Ganymede. The Squish GUI for Java is a leading functional Graphical User Interface and also regression testing tool which is enabling the execution, creation and Modification of automated Graphical User Interface tests for Java programming on AWT/Swing and SWT/RCP applications. The Squish GUI, and all the other all tests created with this, are completely made as cross-platform software and work on almost all the top leading operating systems like the Windows Operating Systems, Linux Operating Systems, Unix Operating Systems, and Mac Operating Systems X and even also on the embedded Linux. The support for testing Eclipse Version 3.4 the latest one, RCP Software applications has been completed and it is also available with the just newly released GUI Squish version 3.4. The availability of the third party tools, like the Graphical User Interface testing tools, is very important for the open source Eclipse community to increase it demand. The resent glad news is to see froglogic has very quickly adopting the new Eclipse version releases with its Testing GUI Squish tool, said Mr. Mike Milinkovich, Who is the Executive Director of the Company Eclipse Foundation. The new Ganymede version release is said to be another very important and great release of the Company Eclipse community which has make it even more easy, attractive and flexible for the application developers who uses it. The Quickly integrated support for testing tools on Eclipse software version 3.4 applications with the new GUI Squish tool has been a new and great logical step for the company, said Mr. Harri Porten, platform chief of froglogics company. Squish software offers a multipurpose testing based framework for Graphical User Interfac e (GUI) applications with a base choice of the popular test scripting languages like Perl , Python, Tcl, TSL and JavaScript, VBScript extended by the new test specific functions scripts, lot of new open interfaces, many add-ons, with integrations to the test management tools, a new powerful Integrated Development Environment (IDE) aiding the selecting, creation and finally debugging of the tests and a collection of command line testing tools and the test management integrations facilitating the fully automated test runs on the applications. Contact email: [emailprotected] or visit the URL: www.froglogic.com/squish to get an evaluation pack or to purchase the GUI Squish for the java Application or to know more about the product. Squish GUI tool also supports automated testing of java applications based on GUI technologies like as Trolltechs Qt, Swing-AWT, and Qtopia, also supports Web technologies DOM, HTML, AJAX, DHTML Mac OS X Carbon/Cocoa , JavaScript and other technologies also. (embedded-computing.com) JAVA‘S ENCOURAGEMENT IN TESTING: Todays software manufacturers face a variety of challenges when creating products to meet the increasing demand for software that takes advantage of Java technology. The growing complexity and diversity of softwares—with their varying operating systems, processors, and memory configurations—increases the need for thorough testing to ensure customers will be satisfied. At the same time, service providers and manufacturers face the challenge of managing—and, if possible, lowering—internal costs caused by excessive engineering overhead, disorganized development of test cases, or the impact of new data services on support operations. The Java software Test Suite simplifies quality assurance and reduces time-to-market for Java implementations by providing comprehensive tests and a robust test manager. These enable suite users to evaluate, validate, and verify the quality of implementations on particular software. The Java Test Suite that helps the software manu facturers ensures their reputation for quality, while building customer satisfaction and loyalty. It helps lower engineering costs by standardizing and simplifying testing, and by minimizing the need to write quality assurance tests manually. Java is free and open. So java Testing is an important part of software development because of Open Source Testing Tools which are available in Java for an Effective testing key factor which reduces the total cost of maintenance of any application over its lifetime. Because of the reduced cost and time of development; this can increase savings on quality assurance and of course on sustaining. Without knowing when to invest in better design, in post development quality assurance, in manual tests or in automatic testing forms a basic difference between successful and unsuccessful software projects in these tough and competitive days. (newsgroups.derkeiler.com) Suns Recommendation for testing Java: Testing Java in an Object-Oriented Way To apply eXVantage (a tool suite for code coverage testing, debugging, performance profiling, etc.) to a large, complex Java application at the implementation and unit testing phases in Avaya. Two open source-based tools that can help to generate workloads for the enterprise application: SLAMD Distributed Load Generation Engine and Sun Java Studio Enterprise software. Container-Free Testing With Mockrunner Fitnesse Testing for Fast-Paced Agile Web Development JUnit Reloaded Using In-Process Testing Metrics to Estimate Software Reliability ECLIPSE IN JAVA SOFTWARE TESTING: Eclipse is a very widely used Open Source Integrated Development Environment (IDE), particularly for Java- and Web-based applications. Its very widely extensible with the use of scores of plugins available to help in developing these applications, so here I would like to discuss some of the plugins available for software testing. Eclipse TPTP (an evolution of Eclipses prior Hyades project) is an Open Source collaborative project that seeks to provide a common platform upon which specialized, differentiated, and interoperable offerings for software test and performance tools are created. TPTP, which stands for Test and Performance Tools Platform, supplies extensible frameworks and services for test and performance tools that are used throughout the application lifecycle, from development through production. It also delivers extensible exemplary tools that verify the utility of, illustrate the appropriate use of, and support the development and maintenance of the platform itself. (fres hmeat.net) TPTP This provides a reference implementation of the recent UML2 Testing Profile based upon the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF). For logging and tracing, TPTP employs the Common-Base-Event (CBE) Format, which defines the structure of events in a unifying format. Data pools are a concept which appears to be innovative for testing in Eclipse. A datapool contains data usable during a test run. Data pools are stored in a comma-separated file and can be displayed as an Excel-alike data sheet. Test cases can load datapools in the setUp() method and use the dedicated iterations to retrieve cell values for evaluation purposes. Separating test data from the tests themselves appears to be new functionality. Test Deployment requires the allocation of test artifacts to test locations. These locations can also be workbench locations. Through the concept of service abstraction, the Automatable services framework introduces a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) concept to TPTP. The framework introduce s a layered architecture in which a client at a lower layer employs a model adapter to employ a service provided at a higher layer. Automation Client Adapters allow normal Java programs to consume Eclipse services. These adapters can launch a headless Eclipse from a specified Eclipse home, and are available through the tptp-automation-client jar. Various properties are made available through this API (e.g., the project property specifying a specific project in the workspace of the Eclipse instance). (freshmeat.net) Solex Web Application Testing with Eclipse Solex is a free open source Web application testing tool built as a plug-in for the Eclipse IDE. It provides functions to record a client session adjust it according to various parameters and replay it later typically in order to ensure non regression of the applications behaviour (with stress testing capabilities being added at a later stage). By recording, we mean that Solex acts as an HTTP proxy and records all HTTP requests and responses going through the wire between a Web client (eg. a Web browser) and a Web server. The task of replaying a scenario consists in sending the previously recorded and eventually customized HTTP requests to the server and asserting each response. Solex 0.5.0 works with Eclipse Release 2.1.2, Build id: 200311030802 and Solex 0.5.3 works with Eclipse Release 3.1.1, Build id: M20050929-0840. (Solex.com) Unit testing Checking of the Developed Project, Programmers write unit tests to verify their own code. Unit testing vary from integration testing, which works well together, and acceptance testing, works according to the customers requirements. Unit testing is the testing mechanism which is used to test a single unit of code. In the case of Java, a unit testing that frequently connects to a distinct class. A unit test is fully automatic, non interactive, and dual ie, it moreover succeeds or be unsuccessful. By executing the code and verifying the output is not a testing. Neither instead of writing a small â€Å"test driver† that neither drives the code nor allows checking logs to see if its working correctly. Unit testing is the code which is written, as a good thing since it leads to higher-quality code, higher productivity, and lower maintenance with good evolution costs. (devx.com) Unit Testing in Eclipse Using JUnit Unit Testing in Eclipse 3.1 move towards through the JUnit mechanism which was constructed in the Workplace. Eclipse permits a quick creation of test case class and also to provide a testing suite class to write the testing codes in. By means of Eclipse, we use a Test Driven Development (TDD) which suit for a very simple mechanism to systematize and implement. The class which we wanted to test is created at 1st and so that the Eclipse finds a class that is underneath test and construct the test case class. The test cases are constructed with the desired trade in and expansion for JUnit to Execute. The test case classes are constructed with the real test case and then it is coded in through the programmer. The formation of test suite in Eclipse is still simpler. By designing a test suite, Eclipse will specify a name for specifying all of the test cases in the scope of the project. The code is to Execute test suites and to add test cases in the created software is added to the test sui tes. (open.ncsu.edu) JUnit Naming Convention: Testing Cases and Classes: Named with [classnames]First.java, hear classname is being tested for the classnames. Testing Cases with Test Methods: Name test [methodnames], where methodnames are the method name to test. Applying Test Suites: Eclipse which has a default name as First.java It is a well known thought-out for a good performance in testing, and to split the test case code from the application code. It is also a good idea which is to separate the JUnit and FIT tests as well. (open.ncsu.edu) EMPIRICAL i.e. STATISTICS AND NON-EMPIRIC TESTING: Empirical testing: Similar to theoretical tests, there is one more test called empirical test; which is being done by computers. As per the computer point of view ‘empirical means ‘experiments with certain PRNG. The generator itself is treated as black box; only the sequence of PRNs is generated and is taken for evaluating the test statistic. In order to find the empirical test, one has to implement the PRNG and the test statistic. The limitations of empirical testing are commonly proposed by the amount of time and memory needed due to the complexity of the computations. (random.mat.sbg.ac.at) Non-empirical testing: Non-empirical testing deals with non-parametric statistical models and non-parametric inference, including non-parametric statistical tests. Nonparametric methods which are often referred as distribution free methods, since they do not rely on assumptions in which the data are drawn from a given probability distribution. Non-parametric statistic can be explained as a statistic (a function on a sample) whose interpretation does not depend on the population fitting any parameterized distributions. The example for one such statistic is order statistics; which plays a vital role in many non-parametric approaches. (en.wikipedia.org) Applications and purpose: For studying populations that has been taken on a ranked order (such as movie reviews receiving one to four stars) is called Non-parametric methods. The uses of non-parametric methods may be necessary, when the data has a ranking but no clear numerical interpretation, such as when assessing the preferences. Usually non-parametric methods make fewer assumptions; other than the parametric methods, depends upon their applicability. In particular, they may be applied in situations where less is known about the application in question. Non-parametric methods are more robust due to the reliance on fewer assumptions and simplicity. Non-parametric methods may be easier to use in certain cases, when the use of parametric methods is justified. As per some statisticians, non-parametric methods are not useful because of their simplicity and greater robustness leading to leave less room for improper use and misunderstanding. (en.wikipedia.org) Recommendations: Example of a JAVA Based Application: The Table below represents an example security standard for a Java application; and mentions the type of software testing used in each controls. These Kind of security standard in applications will define how exactly the application security functionalities will behave. TYPE Questions Unit Integration Acceptance Input Validation Whether all the user inputs are proper in length and data type? X X X Authorization of Application Whether the application properly controls the accessing privileges? X X Storage Whether authentication privileges are stored securely? X Manipulation Whether application enforces its access controls? X X Special Characters Whether special characters are handled securely? X X X Error Messages Whether error message generic? X X Legacy data Whether data are removed? X It is clear that the Above Types can be tested more on using functional than, integration testing techniques. Lesser security functionality is tested by Unit tests, as lot of security functionality are provided in other modules like, web server and web container. The following sections will provide more details on performing security based tests in unit test, integration test and acceptance test: Testing in Unit Tests: Testing of classes and methods individually provides a best approach to functionality testing of codes. A unit test has to be performed on classes and methods individually without a any dependency on the other methods and classes. This issue gives limitation to the types of security tests which has to be performed, Hence this is going to test is going to be executed in very early stage of the development process. Testing Independently: Unit tests should only depends on the single independent class and it should not depend on Composition class or any base classes Testing Vulnerability: The number of security Types that are been verified by us

Cultural Impact of Technology Transfer :: Exemplification Essays

Cultural Impact of Technology Transfer Human history has demonstrated that the flow of information is inevitable; cultures across the world have been trading ideas for thousands of years. Dick Teresi claims, however, that "a technology evolves within a culture and its particular demands and preoccupations, intertwined with that society’s particular environment.† (Teresi, 356) While this statement holds true for many innovations, not all technologies are direct products of the cultures using them. As human communications increased, technologies were frequently invented in one culture and transferred to another. The cultures that acquired technologies from outside sources oftentimes utilized them in ways originally not intended. Did these external technologies have positive or negative effects on the cultures that accepted them? The consequences of implanted technologies vary from case to case depending on a number of factors, including environmental and lifestyle differences between the two communities. To hig hlight the networking of these factors and weigh the effects of transferring technologies, I will compare two scenarios: the European’s introduction of guns into Inuit culture and the bringing of horses to the Native Americans by the Spaniards. The story of European small arms begins with the cannon. The cannon, first used in the 1346 Battle of Cressey, was gradually reduced in size over the next three centuries until a cannon small enough to attach to the end of a stick emerged (Ferris, 3). This innovation gave birth to the gun, an invention that revolutionalized European warfare. Because the gun was invented for primarily military purposes, Europeans used it more in battlefields than on hunting grounds, where bows and arrows still dominated (Ferris, 3). When the Europeans introduced small arms into Inuit culture, however, they became instruments of seal hunting. The Inuit’s original seal hunting methods involved harpooning the animals through a hole in the ice. Seal carcass retrieval was difficult, so the Inuit designed their harpoons specifically for efficient recovery of seal bodies. Their engineering was so successful that only one seal body sunk out of every twenty (Ehrlich, 216). Unlike the harpoon, however, the gun was not specially designed for seal hunting. Thus, when the Inuit acquired rifles from the Hudson’s Bay Company and started shooting seals, the bodies would sink before they could be harpooned and retrieved. Hunting efficiency plummeted dramatically; nineteen out of every twenty seals hunted with guns sank (Ehrlich 216). Before long, Inuit hunting began depleting seal populations. The introduction of small arms dealt a blow to both the Inuit community, whose hunting efficiency decreased, and their environment, which suffered a loss of mass numbers of animals.

The Angers of the Rich :: Character Analysis, Buchanan

Paul Krugman discusses topics including anger, wealth, self-pity, and self-righteousness in his article, â€Å"The Angry Rich.† All of these characteristics are reflected in the character Tom Buchanan, from The Great Gatsby. Tom, who depicts himself as an imperious man, puts himself above everyone just because he has money. In The Great Gatsby, money rules the society from where you live, whom you’re friends with, and even the way people look at you. Tom and Daisy both think of themselves as exclusive compared to everyone else and put themselves above the rules. Tom has a mistress, Myrtle, she isn’t the most appealing woman, but it is enough to fuel the fire of Tom’s ego. The Great Gatsby illustrates Tom getting irritated and angry while driving to the city as a result of noticing the relationship between Daisy and Gatsby, and no one informing him of it: â€Å"Did you see that?† †¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"You think I’m pretty dumb, don’t you?†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ He paused. The immediate contingency overtook him, pulled him back from the edge of the theoretical abyss† (121). Tom is starting to catch on that Daisy might be cheating on him with Gatsby, but he has no right to be upset; he is doing the same thing with Myrtle! Tom’s realization also supports his beliefs in rules not applying to him because he is higher than everyone else. Jordan Baker, one of Daisy’s friends, sums up Tom’s feelings toward Gatsby in one statement: â€Å"Listen, Tom. If you’re such a snob, why did you invite him to lunch?† demanded Jordan crossly† (122). If Tom has â€Å"made a small investigation of this fellow† (122); and concludes that he doesn’t like him, then why does he invite him places and attend his party? Before Nick goes to dinner with the Buchanans, he fills us in on Tom’s privileged life: â€Å"Her husband†¦a national figure in a way, one of those men who reach such an acute limited excellence at twenty-one that everything afterward savors of anti-climax. His family were enormously wealthy† (Fitzgerald 6). This passage illustrates Tom’s trouble-free access to masses of money. With this money comes power and obviously this power has made Tom feel like he is at liberty to anything. Paul Krugman also states this in his article: â€Å"And among the undeniably rich, a belligerent sense of entitlement has taken hold† Another one of Tom’s amazing traits is having self-pity.

A Mothers Biggest Fair :: Essays Papers

A Mothers Biggest Fair One spring afternoon a mother met her greatest fear head-on. Crystal Beck and her three-year-old son Travis were shopping for a new spring and summer wardrobe at a local mall. The mall was very hectic for the middle of the afternoon and to make matters worse Crystal had forgotten her sons stroller at home after taking him for a walk earlier that day. She had told her inquisitive son to say by her side. After visiting a few stores Crystal began to notice that Travis was becoming very anxious. So she made the decision to finish her son’s shopping in JC Penney at the far end of the mall, the two made their way to the children’s clothing section located on the third floor. As Crystal searched through the cluttered racks looking for the perfect outfits for her son, still glancing back at Travis who was looking through a bin of stuffed toys. She looked back to the rack for a split second to find the size she needed, and when she looked back up to check on her son he was gone. Crystal began calling his name, waiting for a response, no response ever came. She called again, but louder this time â€Å"Travis, where are you?† With every call for her son her heart began to beat fast and harder inside of her chest. She could feel herself beginning to tremble and shake, her vision became gray and distorted, she then began running though the store call her son and crying uncontrollably. A salesperson stopped her to try to calm her down and find out what had happened. Crystal explained to her still crying and shaking what had happened. The salesperson assured her not to worry, that he would be found. The girl notified security for the store, they brought Crystal to their office and asked for a description of the boy. She told them that he was a three years old boy, with blonde hair and blue eye, and standing 36 inches in height. He was wearing a blue baseball cap, a red long sleeved shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of white Reebok sneakers. When she was done with the description of her son the security officer offered her a glass of water, but she refused it. Her stomach felt as if there was a solid piece of metal lying at the bottom of it.

Black Death Essay

Around 1330, a horrible plague was reported to break out in China. Trade between Asia and Europe currently was frequent, and in 1347 rat-infested ships from China arrived in Sicily, bringing the disease with them. Since Italy was the center of European commerce, business, and politics, this provided the perfect opportunity for the disease to spread. To the Europeans, it seemed to come out of nowhere and kill everyone in its path. The bubonic plague, as it is called today, continued at 10-year intervals throughout the Middle Ages. It spread rapidly for a variety of reasons. Poor living conditions were probably the number one factor in the passing of this disease. People believed that washing themselves would open their pores and let the disease in, so bathing was rare. This of course, as we know today, only excelled the spread of the bubonic plague. The bubonic plague had extreme effects on the demographics of Europe. The worst epidemic claimed the lives of nearly 25 million people, all in under five years. It took at least two centuries for Western Europe to regain its population. Urban populations recovered quickly, in some cases within a couple years, through immigration from the countryside because of increased opportunities in the cities. Rural population recovered itself slowly, because peasants left their farms for the cities. This time period in which the plague spread and killed so many people was known as the Black Death. The Black Death had major effects on Europe. Wars stopped and trade slowed considerably. People were forbidden to gather in groups and religious services were suspended. Homes of infected people were sealed off to protect others from the plague. Businesses shut down their doors, having a huge impact of the economic aspects of Europe. Many people fled to the country to get away from where they thought was the hot spot for the plague. The bubonic plague changed the political, social, economical, and religious aspects of Europe forever and had an affect on the way things are today. There were many consequences to the increases and declines of population and European society. People fled to the city because everyone around them way dying. So many died, in fact, that it had major effects on the population in Europe, which, in turn had effects on many aspects of society. Farmers who had provided food for people were fleeing and food was scarce. Government, trade, and commerce virtually came to a halt. No aspect of European society was not affected by the coming of the plague and by its duration. The demography of Europe in the late middle ages can be easily related to overpopulation in the modern world. Poor living conditions due to overcrowding led to the rapid spread of the bubonic plague. If a plague was ever to break out in such places like China, Africa, or any other 3rd world country, it would be devastating. In Africa there is a major epidemic or the Ebola virus. It is still running ramped throughout the country, and it is not treatable by antibiotics. Poor living conditions contribute to the deadly position of this virus, and science has no known cure. If it was to ever spread to America the impact would be great and might be similar to the consequences of the bubonic plague in the middle ages. Overpopulation and overcrowding lead to poor living conditions which then lead to the rapid spread of any disease that may happen to come.

Mary Shelley tell us about the education Essay

â€Å"Nothing could exceed in beauty the contrast between these two excellent creatures† – has also learnt to think logically, to reason, given very well laid out reasons as to why they are so beautiful, backing up his argument. The next thing is one of the most important things which VC learns – it is a lesson of morals. He sees â€Å"several times [the younger cottagers] placed food before the old man when they reserved none for themselves†¦ I had been accustomed to steal some of their store, but when I found that in doing this I inflicted pain on the cottagers, I abstained†. This shows that he understands and acts out of compassion. He also â€Å"observes with pleasure† when he sees he has been of help. Still to come are the most important facets of VC’s education; the ability to read, to appreciate the highs and lows of human capability and to appreciate emotion as key to humanity. It is from â€Å"Sorrows of Werter† that VC learns about â€Å"the importance of emotion to any definition of humanity† (the English Review). This is complimented with the violent but apparently glorious history of man which â€Å"Lives† provides, giving VC a varied and balanced view of what beauty there is in human nature, and what horror there is, too. Paradise Lost is another book which VC stumbles upon; though this teaches him little in it self, the parallels which VC draws between it’s key characters and himself are important; he can see different aspects of each in himself. This shows the how VC has learnt to take something from a book and place into a real-life situation (â€Å"I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed†). By far the most important part of VC’s education is his learning to speak. Though it has been proved that it is impossible to learn language in the fashion that VC does, we must remember that this is just a novel. In his learning to speak, VC gains the ability to articulate the feelings inside him, the ability to read and the ability to communicate his dreams. He learns as Safie learns, being taught by Felix. Being taught to speak and listen to speech opens the door to all other avenues of Frankenstein’s learning; his learning about humanity is increased tenfold after this. Whether this is a curse or a blessing, however, is left for us to decide – after learning how to speak and read, VC sees just how outcast he is, just how far outside the circle of love that is there between Safie, Felix, Agatha and the old man. Once he can see the extent of his loneliness, and can grasp what potential there is – once he learns that there is more to life than suffering – he is gripped by an insatiable desire to be a part of society. Society’s rejection of him, it can be argued, is what turns him from a noble savage to an educated murderer. b Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mary Shelley section.

Homi Jehangir Essay

Homi Jehangir Bhabha, FRS (30 October 1909 – 24 January 1966) was an Indian nuclear physicist who played a major role in the development of the Indian atomic energy program and is considered to be the father of India’s nuclear program. Bhabha was born into a prominent family, through which he was related to Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Homi K Bhabha and Dorab Tata. After receiving his early education at Bombay schools and at the Royal Institute of Science, he attended Caius College ofCambridge University to pursue studies in mechanical engineering. After taking mechanical engineering, he pursued studies underPaul Dirac to complete the Mathematics Tripos. Meanwhile, he worked at the Cavendish Laboratory while working towards his doctorate in theoretical physics under R. H. Fowler. During this time, he embarked on groundbreaking research into the absorption of cosmic rays and electron shower production. Afterward, he published a string of widely-accepted papers on his theories regarding cosmic ray showers. World War II broke out in September 1939 while Bhabha was vacationing in India. He chose to remain in India until the war ended. In the meantime, he accepted a position at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, headed by Nobel laureate C. V. Raman. He established the Cosmic Ray Research Unit at the institute, and began to work on the theory of the movement of point particles. In 1945, he established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay, and the Atomic Energy Commission of India three Electron-positron scattering was later named Bhabha scattering, in honor of his contributions in the field.In 1936, Bhabha collaborated with Walter Heitler to formulate a theory on cosmic ray showers. They conjectured that the showers were formed by the cascade production of gamma rays and positive and negative electron pairs. The calculations agreed with the experimental observations of cosmic ray showers made by Bruno Rossi and Pierre Victor Auger a few years before. Bhabha later concluded that observations of the properties of such particles would lead to the straightforward experimental verification of Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. In 1937, Bhabha was awarded the Senior Studentship of the 1851 Exhibition, which helped him continue his work at Cambridge until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. In 1939, Bhabha went back to India for a brief holiday. In September, World War II broke out, and Bhabha decided not to return to England for the time being. He accepted an offer to serve as the Reader in the Physics Department of the Indian Institute of Science, then headed by renowned physicist C. V. Raman. He received a special research grant from the Sir Dorab Tata Trust, which he used to establish the Cosmic Ray Research Unit at the institute He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society on 20 March 1941. With the help of J. R. D. Tata, he established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay. With the end of the World War II and Indian Independence, he received a commendation from Jawaharlal Nehru for his efforts towards peaceful development of atomic energy. He established the Atomic Energy Commission of India in 1948. Homi J. Bhabha was also a close friend of Jawaharlal Nehru and he, along with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, had played a significant role for developing the Indian nuclear program as well as education reforms in India. Bhaba founded and directed two major scientific institutions – the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)of India[1]. He represented India in International Atomic Energy Forums, and as President of the United Nations Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy, in Geneva, Switzerland in 1955. Death and legacy He died when Air India Flight 101 crashed near Mont Blanc in January 24, 1966. Many possible theories have been advanced for the aircrash, including a conspiracy theory in which CIA is involved in order to paralyze Indian nuclear weapon programme. The atomic energy centre in Trombay was renamed as Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in his honour. In addition to being a famous scientist, Bhabha was also a painter and a classical music and opera enthusiast, besides being an amateur botanist. After his death, the Atomic Energy Establishment was renamed as the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in his honour. Bhabha also encouraged research in electronics, space science,radio astronomy and microbiology. The famed radio telescope at Ooty, India was his initiative, and it became a reality in 1970. Bhabha has since become known as the â€Å"Father of India’s Atomic Energy Programme†. The Homi Bhabha Fellowship Council has been giving the Homi Bhabha Fellowships since 1967 Other noted institutions in his name are the Homi Bhabha National Institute, an Indian deemed university and the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education, Mumbai, India. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was an Indian nationalist leader who established his country’s freedom through a nonviolent revolution. His beliefs are shown in today’s society as an excellent means of resistance to unjust rule. The life of the Mahatma was a long struggle filled with brutality and hardships. In order to understand passive resistance, we will take a look at his hate-filled upbringing. Gandhi was born in Porbandar in the present state of Gujarat on October 2, 1869, and educated in law at University College, London. In 1891, after having been admitted to the British bar, Gandhi returned to India and attempted to establish a law practice in Bombay, with little success. Two years later an Indian firm with interests in South Africaretained him as legal adviser in its office in Durban. Arriving in Durban, Gandhi found himself treated as a member of an inferior race. He was appalled at the widespread denial of civil liberties and political rights to Indian immigrants to South Africa. He threw himself into the struggle for elementary rights for Indians (Gandhi, Arun). Gandhi was disgusted with the way his people were treated. This paper will discuss his religious and spiritual point of view and the environment which c When Mohandas Gandhi returned to India from South Africa, he saw the British ruling India. The British brought some benefits to India but many costs to the Indian people, such as economic. When the British persuaded farmers to switch from growing crops to growing cotton, there was not enough food for the country and millions of people died from lack of food. The increasing taxes and lack of food made many Indians suffer on account of the B ritish. The Eleven Vows of Mahatma Gandhi-Their Observance and Relevance Kurangi Desai Any of us who has attended a prayer meeting at a Gandhian institute is likely to remember a chant beginning:-â€Å"Ahimsa Satya Asteya –.† The two verses beginning with these words enumerate the eleven vows that Gandhiji considered almost mandatory for the inmates of his Ashram, in Sabarmati as well as in Sevagram. The eleven vows are: (1) Satya-Truth, (2) Ahimsa-Nonviolence, (3) Brahmacharya-Celibacy (4) Asteya-Non-stealing, (5) Aparigraha or Asangraha-Non-possession (6) Sharira-Shrama; Physicallabour or Bread Labour. (7) Asvada-Control of Palate, (8) Abhaya-Fearlessness, (9) Sarva-Dharma-Samanatva- Equal respect for all Religions, (10) Swadeshi-Duty towards Neighbour and (11) Asprishyatanivarana – Removal of Untouchability. Of these eleven, the first five are found in most of the religions of the world and are called ‘Pancha Mahavratas’ – the Five great Vows. The remaining six are somewhat new ideas that have been given the importance of vows to fulfill the need of the time. The image of Gandhiji in the minds of his contemporary Indians was that of a political leader – of one who brought Swarajya. Essentially, however, Gandhi was a Sadhaka, one who was in search of God. His ultimate goal was Moksha or the realization of God. Since he believed that service of man was the best way to realize God, he lived and died in the service of India, which in a mircrocosm, was the service of Mankind. That was his pilgrimage towards realization. In this context, the eleven were very important to him. They were a part of ‘Tapa’ Austerity and Self – denial for Purification. Tapa is considered necessary in all religions for elevating oneself spiritually, for control over desires, as a check upon an unruly mind and for paving the way to sacrifice for others – all these leading to Moksha. But Gandhiji was a ‘Sadhaka’ with a difference; his ‘Sadhana’ did not end with himself. He wanted to include society in his spiritual efforts and so he gave a new dimension to the Five Great Vows and extended them into the remaining six. Let us have a closer look at these vows and their observance: 1. Satya -Truth Truth is the most important vow, being the very basis of all the others. The word ‘Satya’ is from ‘Sat’, which means ‘Being’. On ‘Sat’ depends true knowledge, known in Sanskrit as ‘Chit’ and Bliss that is ‘Ananda’. The three together form the word ‘Sachhidananda’ which is one of the epithets of the Supreme Being. According to Gandhiji, Truth is God. Satya, therefore, was the pivot of the life of an Ashramite. Observance of Truth was expected not only in speech but also in thought and in action. One may wonder what one should do if what appears to be truth to one person does not appear to be truth to another. Gandhiji suggests that after due deliberation and humble consideration of the opinion of the other person, if one still feels his own truth to be truth for himself, he should follow it according to his own light. In order to be convinced about one’s ability to understand truth, one s hould use as the measuring rod those who have suffered for Truth and should himself be ready to suffer similarly. 2. Ahimsa – Non-Violence Truth and Non-Violence are like the two sides of a coin – one cannot exist without the other. Using another imagery, Ahimsa is the path along which one reaches truth. Violence leads to more violence and hampers the clear vision which is essential for the pursuit of Truth. At a personal level; Ahimsa consists in not only forbearing from physical violence; in order to achieve non-violence it is necessary to remove from the mind all hatred, all jealousy and all desire to harm even those who harm us. The next step would be to extend our love to all living beings, including living beings like snakes, tigers, etc. At a social level, the goal of Ahimsa is to create a society where there would be no need to act in an anti-social manner and hence no need for any punishment. This can happen only when the economic differences between the classes get considerably narrowed down and when the erring members of society are considered as their own brothers by the righteous. Top 3. Brahmacharya- Celibacy or Chastity Brahmacharya normally connotes a rigid control over sexual urge. An unmarried man who shuns sex is called a Brahmachari. According to Gandhiji, however, this is a very narrow meaning of the word. ‘Brahmacharya’ really means ‘Moving towards, Brahma’ that is, towards truth. For such a person, a control over all senses is necessary. So also, it is necessary to keep himself away from attachment to social connections. In achieving this end, control of sex is perhaps most helpful, because sex is one of the strongest temptations to cause one to stray from the narrow path of truth. Again marital relations are the cause of the strongest social bond, that of the family. Hence the importance attached to the control of sex, which became synonymous with Brahmacharya. Control of sex, can also help the Sadhaka to gain control over his other senses. Gandhiji believed that a celibate life was most congenial for the pilgrim to truth. However, married couples could also tread that path by subtracting sex from their marital life. Such a step would free them from undue attachment for each other and free them for service of mankind. It is obvious that Brahmacharya, like truth and Non-violence, should be adhered to not only at the physical level, but also at the level of thought. To harbour a passion in the mind, while practicing physical control of the senses is not really Brahmacharya. On one point, however, Gandhiji differed radically from the orthodox believers in Brahmacharya – he did not believe that a Brahmachari should shun the company of women. He wanted the Brahmachari of his Ashram to live a life of service to society; so it was inevitable that he would come into contact with women social workers. In Gandhiji’s opinion a Brahmachari should keep his public contact with women workers and learn to look upon them as sisters and mothers. If someone could adhere to Brahmacharya only when there were no women around, according to Gandhiji, he was not a real Brahmachari. While laying all this stress on Brahmacharya, Gandhiji was not unmindful of the difficulty experienced by the Ashramites in its day to day observance.. We are told by persons near to Gandhiji that he was completely aware that a number of the Ashramites were only partially successful in their attempts at Brahmacharya. Since Gandhiji himself never claimed complete success, he was satisfied that the Ashramites sincerely tried their best. 4. Asteya – Non Stealing In an ordinary sense, very few people actually steal anything from others, partly because of the social stigma attached to stealing. Gandhiji, however, gave a far wider connotation to stealing. According to him those members of the family who help them-selves to better facilities depriving the other members, are thieves. Even those who enjoy luxuries not available to the lower strata of society are also thieves. So, a person who wishes to apply Asteya in his life ought to lead such a simple life that he takes for himself from society only his minimum requirements. In the Ashram, one aspect of Asteya, namely avoiding waste, was strictly observed. Nothing was to be wasted-food, water, clothes or even paper. As a matter of fact, Gandhiji would reply to a letter in the blank half; he used to open addressed envelopes on all sides, gum them up inside out and use them again; the idea was something more than mere frugality – he wanted to use as little of the people’s money as p ossible for his own purpose and thus be as little indebted to society as possible. It was on this principle that he did not allow Kasturba the personal use of the gifts she received in South Africa for his public service. 5. Aparigraha – Non-Possession Aparigraha is almost a corollary of Asteya. In order to follow the dictum of non-thieving one must have as few pos-sessions as possible. For Gandhiji, Non-possession was also a proof of one’s faith in God. He used to quote instances of devotees who did not believe in keeping back a little food even for the next meal. Aparigraha also helped one in slowly giving up the attachment towards wordly possessions, an essential condition of a seeker of truth, which every Ashramite was expected to be. And yet Gandhiji realized that giving up possessions was no easy matter. So, for non – Ashramite she propounded the ideal of trusteeship. Possessions, particularly in the form of business assets or land, could not be given up without complications. So he suggested that businessmen and landlords should consider themselves not owners but trustees of their property. A trustee is expected to use the income of the trust solely to the advantage of the beneficiaries. In the case of wealthy people the beneficiaries are all the employees and underlings connected with the wealth. So, all income from the business or the land should be shared-with the employees or tillers of the land. The owner turned trustee should avail himself of the bare minimum, thus narrowing the economic gap between himself and his dependants. The concept of trusteeship can be called a, slightly diluted social extension of both Asteya and Aparigraha. These, then, are the interpretations of Panch Maha Vratas. Let us now turn to the other six vows, which project the social application of these five. Top 6. Sharirashtrama – Physical Labour or Bread Labour Gandhiji got the idea of Bread labour from Tolstoy. The idea is that everyone must put in some physical labour to earn his daily bread. An intellectual or an artist or a person with any other ability should utilize that ability for the service of society, while bread should be earned through physical labour alone. Economic differences in society can be mitigated in this way. Even those professions essential to society-those of a teacher, a doctor, a pleader-the wages of the professional should not be more than those of a physical labourer. Gandhiji modified this idea into the concept of shrama-yagna. He suggested that even those who earned their livelihood through other professions should devote at least one hour every day to some kind of physical labour performed in the spirit of oneness with the poor. At the time when Gandhiji presented this concept to India, cheap foreign cloth was being dumped in the country by the British rulers to the detriment of our indigenous industry. So, Gandhiji revived the art of spinning and decided that spinning the Charkha should be the symbol of Shrama-yagna. The Ashramites were expected to spin for an hour every day without fail. This exercise was called Sutrayagna. Over and above this, he made it a rule that all domestic chores should be performed by the Ashramites themselves, including a reformed method of scavenging – the last out of respect for the ‘Bhangi’, whom he later called ‘Harijan’, the lowest of the low in the Hindu caste system. 7. Asvada – Control of Palate Palate being one of the senses, its control is obviously a part of Sadhana of the pilgrim to Truth. Gandhiji gave it a special place as a separate vow because he believed that control of the palate was inevitable for Brahmacharya that observance of Brahmacharya became easier if taste was conquered. Besides, conquest of taste was helpful in the conquest of other senses too. The most important condition of Asvadawas the conviction that food is meant only to sustain the body for service of others. So, to indulge the taste by a variety of culinary delicacies was against the spirit of Asvada. This vow was adhered to rather rigidly in the Ashram. The food in the common kitchen was as simple as possible, without any condiments, some times even without salt. Individual families who cooked at home did not always develop Asvada to the extent desirable. All the same most of these families had their own rules regarding simple diet more or less in keeping with the concept of Asvada. 8. Abhaya – Fearlessness Psychologists tell us that fear is a natural reflex in all living beings on par with hunger, sleep and the sexual urge. How then can one vow, â€Å"I shall not experience fear† ? And yet fearlessness is the backbone of most other virtues. Gandhiji appreciated the importance of fearlessness partly because he used to be a timid child, full of all kinds of fears. Later on he consciously trained himself into fearlessness. The Gita places Abhaya at the head of divine attributes. Many poet-devotees sing the praises of fearlessness in spiritual life. Fears are innumerable. All of us are afraid of disease, injury, death; of loss of wealth, loss of prestige, loss of loved ones; of displeasing our dear ones, of displeasing the boss, of displeasing society and so on. Some people can get rid of some of these fears, others struggle to conquer other fears. In order to realise truth, it is necessary to remove all fear, which is hardly possible. A Sadhaka should, therefore, endeavour to rid himself or herself of as many kinds of fears as possible. The fear of God, which in other words means the fear of wrong doing, is one fear which no one should give up. This fear keeps us on guard against further growth of unwholesome traits of the mind and perhaps helps us in going beyond ordinary fears. Top 9. Sarva-Dharma-Samanatva- Equal Respect for all Religions This is a very important vow in a multi-religious country like India. One has a natural respect for one’s own religion, and rightly so. But that respect need not lead one into disrespect for other religions. All religions help their adherents to proceed towards an ideal life. All religions have had devotees who realised God in their own way. And yet no religion is perfect. Quest of truth being the moving spirit behind all religions, they are always subject to a process of evolution and re-interpretation. So one should never consider one’s own religion to be the only perfect religion. On this ground, Gandhiji was against conversion unless it was desired by some one through conviction. All should study first one’s own religion and then as many others as possible and appreciate the good points of all of them. In the daily prayers of the Ashram, there were chantings from the Koran, the Buddhist prayer, the Bible and so on. In South Africa a bhajan was being sung which said â€Å"Dear to me is the name of Rama.† A Parsi friend once suggested, â€Å"Why don’t we sing ‘Dear to me is the name of Hormuzd?† The congregation took up the idea. That was the spirit generated by Gandhiji’s ideal of Sarva-Dharma-Samabhava. 10. Swadeshi – Duty Towards the Neighbour As early as 1909 Gandhiji had found that India was filled with items of every day use imported from England. This was one of the main causes of the impoverishment of the country. Then again, it was necessary to induce Indians to be proud of their country. In order to achieve this, Gandhiji after returning to India in 1915,researchedon Khadi, reestablished the forgotten Charkha and unfolded his theory of Swadeshi, for the rejuvenation of Indian economy and Indian self-respect†¦ But then, Gandhiji was never satisfied with only the economic or political aspect of ideas. He gave Swadeshi a deeper significance based on an ancient ideal which says that one’s first duty was not one’s neighbours. Fulfilled in the spirit of love, that duty was not to at variance with one’s duty to mends further away either. It was in this light that Gandhiji said that the Swadeshi movement was not harmful to the British mill hand, as it saved him from exploitation of his Indian brethren. This spirit of love made the labourer in Manchester his mend when Gandhiji went there even though Gandhiji was instrumental in bringing about unemployment of the British textile labourer. 11. Asprishyata – Navaran- Removal of Untouchability This vow meant that Ashramites would mix as freely with so called untouchables as with all other people. This was, perhaps the vow most difficult to be practiced. Among the Ashramites themselves all were not free from the age-old Hindu belief that a person born in certain castes pollutes others by his touch. For Gandhiji ever since his twelfth year the ideal that any human being was inferior to another was not palatable. He always resisted the very basis of untouchability. He called it a cancer of Hindu Society. He had already started practicing the removal of untouchability while in South Africa. Then, soon after he returned to India he accepted an untouchable family in the Ashram. Several of the inmates, including Kasturba were quite upset at this step; the financial aid that the Ashram was receiving all but stopped. Gandhiji, however did not flinch from his decision. The resentment soon died down and sympathetic friends solved the financial problem as well. Later on Gandhiji gave the name ‘Harijan’ to the untouchables and gave a great deal of his time to their amelioration. So these were how the eleven vows were observed in Gandhiji’s Ashram. They were quite well known in his lifetime. Even non-Ashramites studied them and tried to follow some of them to some extent. People ask us: â€Å"Are Gandhiji’s vows relevant today?† My husband once asked a counter question: ‘Is a lamp relevant in darkness?† The eleven vows cover such a vast canvas of life that one cannot say enough about their relevance today and tomorrow. In ending this resume we hope that these spiritual lamps would shed enough light on the paths of the people of India, nay on the paths of the people of the world to enable them to make this poor troubled Earth a better place to live in.