Speech on Friendship Essay Example for Free

Speech on Friendship Essay If you think about it, though, we should embrace going back to school. When the day comes that there’s no school to go back to, we’ll miss it more than we think. There is no other time in our lives where we’ll experience anything like what we’re experiencing now. Never again will your biggest worries in life be about that science homework you didn’t finish, or why â€Å"Amirul† is ignoring you, or the horrible possibility of getting a pimple every Monday . Never again will you be a part of a community where an age difference of a year matters so much, and the moving up a grade, from junior to senior, seems so significant. I have some advice . Whether you stepped in , in this school this morning as an incoming freshman , or as a five years student or as a returning to school after 2 weeks of absence , remember this starting today , i always remember the words in a cartoon movie Chicken little , that is â€Å"every day is new day ! †, everyone has those first day butterflies. Who isn’t worried about grades, teachers, drama, or even getting to school on time? The best way to start a new school day right is to be prepared. Here are some tips to help you to make today and everyday as your best one yet . Wake up early, set your goals , meet new people , get involved , get organized and the most important is to have a positive attitude . Dear friends , Our secondary school years are the defining times in our lives that shape who we are, where we are going, and what we are going to do. Aside from this, they allow us to build strong friendships with people. We get to see which people are going to be there for the rest of our lives and those who will just disappear over the years. A friend is someone who is there for you, through it all. Through the pressure, boys, and drama, they are the one constant thing in your life that never fades away. I have realized at age eighteen that friends are not something you should take lightly, if we have found even just a couple of friends we are blessed. They are the people that we sing our lungs out in the car singing â€Å"Set fire to the rain†, the people we cry to, and the most importantly the people who will always have a shoulder to lean on. It is important to evaluate your relationships with your friends. You can see if they are the people you can go to with anything or if they are just another face in the crowd when you have a serious issue going on. Secondary school is the defining time in our life to find ourselves and break loose from our shells Lastly , Nowhere else but in school is there such a community. For despite the separation between grades, despite the clear distinction that comes with being juniors, and seniors, high schools have such a sense of school unity. While to us the grades we’re in make a difference, in the big picture every student at your school belongs to the same institution, is unified under the same name, is roused up by the same mascot at football games and collaborates to beat other schools in sports and academics. Secondary school is a wonderfully unique experience that many don’t appreciate until it’s too late. So instead of dreading the return to school in holidays at the end of the year, get excited about it. Like all of our parents and teachers like to tell us, you only go to high school once. In conclusion , Sure, there’s been sadness, mistakes, and let downs, but you can’t forget the good times, and you can’t ignore the photographs you took. Secondary school is an experience. I believe we should all make the most of it. May Smk Skudai will be the greatest memory of all .

Assessment Of For And As Learning Essay Example for Free

Assessment Of For And As Learning Essay Assessment of learning refers to strategies designed to confirm what students know, demonstrate whether or not they have met curriculum outcomes or the goals of their individualized programs, or to certify proficiency and make decisions about students’ future programs or placements. It is designed to provide evidence of achievement to parents, other educators, the students themselves, and sometimes to outside groups (e. g. , employers, other educational institutions). Assessment of learning is the assessment that becomes public and results in statements or symbols about how well students are learning. It often contributes to pivotal decisions that will affect students’ futures. It is important, then, that the underlying logic and measurement of assessment of learning be credible and defensible. Teachers’ Roles in Assessment of Learning Because the consequences of assessment of learning are often far-reaching and affect students seriously, teachers have the responsibility of reporting student learning accurately and fairly, based on evidence obtained from a variety of contexts and applications. Effective assessment of learning requires that teachers provide  ?a rationale for undertaking a particular assessment of learning at a particular point in time ?clear descriptions of the intended learning ?processes that make it possible for students to demonstrate their competence and skill ?a range of alternative mechanisms for assessing the same outcomes ?public and defensible reference points for making judgments ? Transparent approaches to interpretation ?descriptions of the assessment process ?strategies for recourse in the event of disagreement about the decisions With the help of their teachers, students can look forward to assessment of learning tasks as  occasions to show their competence, as well as the depth and breadth of their learning. ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING Assessment for learning focuses on engaging students in classroom assessment in support of their own learning and informing teachers about what to do next to help students to progress. Assessment for learning is assessment for improvement not assessment for accountability as can be the case with summative assessments (Stiggins, 2002). The keys to Assessment for Learning (AFL) is to use a variety of assessment tools and methods in order to provide ongoing evidence to students, teachers and parents that demonstrates how  well each student is mastering the identified outcomes. This evidence is used to provide descriptive feedback to the students and to enable the teacher to differentiate the instruction to meet the needs of individual students or groups. ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING VS. ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING Gregory, Cameron, and Davies (1997) outline some distinct differences between Assessment for Learning and Assessment of Learning. Educators are using these terms to help distinguish between the teachers role as a learning coach versus the teachers role of judging the extent of a students achievement in relation to an established standard. This assessment is considered summative and is done at the end. 1. Assessment for learning is the big deal, while assessment of learning is the done deal. 2. Assessment for learning is formative, while assessment of learning is summative. 3. Assessment for learning is supportive, while assessment of learning measures. 4. Assessment for learning uses descriptions, while assessment of learning uses scores. 5. Assessment for learning happens day by day, moment by moment, while assessment of learning happens at the end. The assertion is that neither one is better than the other, but both need to be used within a  students learning so that the student is able to understand not only the work that is being asked of them, but also how their own learning occurs. Assessment for learning is intended to be both diagnostic and formative to help students improve their learning. Four critical questions that the teacher must ask when planning for assessment for learning: WHY AM I ASSESSING? If the intent of assessment is to enhance student learning teachers use assessment for learning to uncover what students believe to be true and to learn more about the connections students are making, their prior knowledge, preconceptions, gaps, and learning styles. This information is used to inform and differntiate instruction to build on what students already know and to challenge students when their are problems inhibiting progression to the next stages of learning. Teachers use this information to provide their students with descriptive feedback that will further their learning and not as a sumamtive assessment or to report a grade. WHAT AM I ASSESSING? Assessment for learning requires ongoing assessment of the outcomes that comprise the intended learning. In most cases these are the curriculum outcomes. Teachers create assessments that will  expose students’ thinking and skills in relation to the intended learning, and the common preconceptions. WHAT ASSESSMENT METHOD SHOULD I USE? When planning assessment for learning, the teacher must think about what assessment is designed to expose, and must decide which assessment approaches are most likely to give detailed information about what each student is thinking and learning. The methods need to incorporate a variety of ways for students to demonstrate their learning. For example, having students complete tasks orally or through visual representation allow those who are struggling  with reading or writing to demonstrate their learning. HOW CAN I USE THE INFORMA%ON? The information collected in assessment for learning is used to report to the student and by offering descriptive, on time feedback and to provide the teacher with information to allow for changes in instruction for individual students or groups of students. ASSESSMENT AS LEARNING Assessment as learning occurs when students are their own assessors. Students monitor their own learning, ask questions and use a range of strategies to decide what they know and can do, and  how to use assessment for new learning. Assessment as learning: ?encourages students to take responsibility for their own learning ?requires students to ask questions about their learning ?involves teachers and students creating learning goals to encourage growth and development ?provides ways for students to use formal and informal feedback and self-assessment to help them understand the next steps in learning ?encourages peer assessment, self-assessment and reflection. ROLES This assessment model supports the view of today’s learners as actively involved in the learning process. Students are educated on the purpose of assignments and the outcomes they are trying to achieve. Hence the teacher and the student both have critical roles in understanding learning outcomes and modifying learning in Assessment as Learning. Teacher Ensuring assessment methods are appropriate and the purpose is clear to students ensures quality and fair assessment practices as per the Principles for Fair Student Assessment in Canada (1993). Beyond choosing the learning outcomes to be covered, the activities to follow and the assessment methods, in Assessment as Learning, the teacher engages the students in this process. In Assessment as Learning, the teacher is a guide, â€Å"Giving them [students] the tools to undertake their own learning wisely and well. † (WNCP, p. 42) Students learn to monitor their own learning and make adaptations as required. In addition to monitoring learning and guiding instruction through assessment for learning, the teacher is assessing the students’ ability to assess themselves as they learn how to assess their own learning. Teachers can follow the following model in order to practice Assessment as Learning in their classroom: (adapted from WNCP, p. 42-43) 1. Discuss the learning outcomes with the students. 2. Create criteria with the students for the various tasks that need to be completed and/or skills that need to be learned or mastered 3. Provide feedback to students as they learn and ask them guiding questions to help them monitor their own learning 4. Help them set goals to extend or support their learning as needed in order to meet or fully meet the expectations 5. Provide reference points and examples for the learning outcomes Teachers are also responsible for ensuring that students have a learning environment in which they feel comfortable and safe to learn as well as have ample time to practise what is being  taught. Student Beyond completing the tasks assigned to them by their teacher, students move from the passive learner to an active owner of their own learning. Initially, with teacher guidance and tools, students learn to monitor if they have understood the learning outcome being explored and the metacognitive process. Once the metacognitive skills have been acquired, students can independently adjust their learning accordingly and demonstrate the â€Å"self-reflection, self- monitoring and self-adjustment. † (WNCP, 2006, p. 85) Extensive and relevant modeling in the questions below can help students reach this point: 1. What is the purpose of learning these concepts and skills? 2. What do I know about this topic? 3. What strategies do I know that will help me learn this? 4. Am I understanding these concepts? 5. What are the criteria for improving my work? 6. Have I accomplished the goals I set for myself? What is self-assessment? According to Boud (1995), all assessment including self-assessment comprises two main elements: making decisions about the standards of performance expected and then making judgments about the quality of the performance in relation to these standards. When self-assessment is introduced, it should ideally involve students in both of these aspects. Andrade and Du (2007) provide a helpful definition of self-assessment that focuses on the formative learning that it can promote: Self-assessment is a process of formative assessment during which students reflect on and evaluate the quality of their work and their learning, judge the degree to which they reflect explicitly stated goals or criteria, identify strengths and weaknesses in their work, and revise accordingly (2007, p. 160). EXAMPLES OF SELF-ASSESSMENT Self-assessment can take many forms, including: ?writing conferences ?discussion (whole-class or small-group) ?reflection logs ?weekly self-evaluations ?self-assessment checklists and inventories ?teacher-student interviews These types of self-assessment share a common theme: they ask students to review their work to determine what they have learned and what areas of confusion still exist. Although each method differs slightly, all should include enough time for students to consider thoughtfully and evaluate their progress. When students understand the criteria for good work before they begin a literacy activity, they are more likely to meet those criteria. The key to this understanding is to make the criteria clear. As students evaluate their work, you may want them to set up their own criteria for good work. Help them with the clarity of their criteria as they assess their own work. Students observations and reflections can also provide valuable feedback for refining your instructional plan. As your students answer questions about their learning and the strategies they use, think about their responses to find out what they are really learning and to see if they are learning what you are teaching them. K-W-L (KNOW, WANT TO KNOW, LEARNED) CHART. K-W-L (Ogle, 1986) is an instructional reading strategy that is used to guide students through a text. Students begin by brainstorming everything they Know about a topic. This information is recorded in the K column of a K-W-L chart. Students then generate a list of questions about what they Want to Know about the topic. These questions are listed in the W column of the chart. During or after reading, students answer the questions that are in the W column. This new information that they have Learned is recorded in the L column of the K-W-L chart. Purpose The K-W-L strategy serves several purposes: Elicits students’ prior knowledge of the topic of the text. ?Sets a purpose for reading. ?Helps students to monitor their comprehension. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? Donna Ogle asserts that KWL helps students become better readers of expository text and helps teachers to be more interactive in their teaching (Ogle, 1987). KWL charts help students to be active thinkers while they read (Carr Ogle, 1987), giving them specific things to look for and having them reflect on what they learned when they are finished reading. In learning, metacognition involves the active monitoring and conscious control and regulation  of cognitive processes. It involves thinking about thinking, self-awareness, and self-regulation (Flavell, 1979). The metacognitive strategy of self-questioning is used to ensure that students comprehend the text. When students set their own purposes for reading, they are more motivated and active as readers. Each student has a schema, or a framework for how they view the world. Accessing a students prior knowledge is the first step in integrating new concepts into their existing schema. KWL charts help activate background knowledge and provide an opportunity for students to set their own learning objectives.

A Visit To A Jewish Synagogue

A Visit To A Jewish Synagogue Judaism is the oldest and one of the most practiced religions in the world. It was originated when God called Abraham and ordered him to take his people to Canaan, the Promised Land. There, it was signed like an agreement between God and the Jews because they were the chosen people to extend the law of God. It is considered Abraham the father of the Jews and Christians, because he descended from the Jewish people. Another important descendant in the origin of the religion was Moses, who were handed the tables of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. The source of the Jewish doctrine is divine in revelation contained in the Torah. It is also a guide of living. Judaism also has very complex purity laws of food. It is allow to eat all plant products, terrestrial animals if they are all ruminants with cloven-hoofed with the exception of the pork, the hare, the camel, etc. Birds are also allowed, all are permitted except the birds of prey. Also sea animals are allowed but only those fish that have scales and fins. In addition the animals must be slaughtered by an expert killer. He must followed all the rabbinical laws for killing, which require, among other things, the disgorging, for which the animal loses all his blood, food prohibit for the Jewish, and the detailed inspection of certain viscera to verify that the animal has no default to be prohibited. After that he must eliminate certain nerves and the fat. Finally, before cooking the meat it has to be treated with water and salt to miss the last traces of blood. In addition it i s important to separate at the time of cooking and eating, meat products and dairy products, also maintaining separate cooking tools for each group. The rabbi is an expert of the study of Torah, which also has obtained the certification to exercise it. His mission is to ensure that believer follows correctly the cult, ensure the implementation of the procedures and teaching, interpreting, implementing and always studying the Torah. He can occupy the position of spiritual leader of a synagogue, a community or a set of them. But regardless of the position, his authority will be determined not for reasons of hierarchy, on the contrary by the prestige given by his knowledge and recognition of it in Jewish society. The usual place of worship on the Jewish religion is the synagogue. Together with the Temple is the most important institution of Judaism. After the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem the synagogue became the center and central point of the religious Jewish life. It inherited many of the customs and rituals of the Temple but there were some of them that were prohibited because they were exclusive of the Temple, for example the prayer became the substitute for the sacrifices. Since many years ago to the functions of the synagogue as a center for prayer, study and teaching it also became as the center of community and place of meeting for treating all kinds of issues related to the community life. Also, in the synagogue or in its buildings there was everything necessary for the Jewish life, for example the headquarters of rabbinical court, the ritual bath, hospice for hosting travelers, among others. The religious service, established in the Talmud, has remained without basic changes along their 2,500 years of history, and only with time has suffered some extensions that vary between communities to others. In the synagogue it is held three times a day, at sunset, at sunrise and at noon, the prayers community in the presence of a minimum of ten (10) men older than thirteen (13) years. Besides the followers there is present the rabbi, where he reads aloud the texts of prayer. The worship prayers to God are all in Hebrew with some fragments are in Aramaic. They consist in passages of Psalms and other books of the Bible. In the service of Monday, Thursday, Saturdays and holidays it is read the Torah. In each week they read a section so the cycle of reading will be completed in the course of the year. The reading is follows by a passage of the biblical books of Prophets where they are related with the section of the Torah. During the prayer men must cover their head with any hat or skullcap. Also they cover themselves with a kind mantle of rectangular shape usually made of wool, white and blue stripes or black. Within the festive calendar the most important institution of Judaism is the sabat (Saturday), which reminds each week the divine resting in the seventh day. The celebration homeschooling starts before sunset on friday, lighting the housewife in the second house candelas sabbaticals on which should read the corresponding blessing. The meals, such as the remaining festivities, starting with a prayer of sanctification (quidà ºs) on a cup full of wine and another blessing on two loaves of bread. The evening of Saturday, another sentence parallel mark the separation (habdalà ¡) between the holy day just and profane that begins; it aspires the smell of spices stored in a bowl, lights a candle and drink a glass of wine, all accompanied by the blessings. Another of its festivals most famous in the Yom Kippur or Day of Atonement, which culminates the ten days of penitence of New Year (September). It is a day of reflection and repentance in which it must save fasting. The Yom Kippur (Day of forgiveness or of atonement) is the most solemn of the Jewish calendar and with it culminates the ten days of penitence initiated with the new Year. It is a day of fasting, devoted to repentance and to ask forgiveness of sins committed against God, against himself and against the neighbor; for forgiveness for the latter there to repair the damage caused, but without the repair and repentance are sufficient when the neighbor is a non-Jewish. The religious services in the synagogue last throughout the day; it starts with the sentence Kal nidrà ©, in which it seeks the annulment of the votes are not met, and closes with a touch of sofar. Of the ceremonies mandatory of the life cycle, the first is the circumcision (berit milà ¡) of the man jewish eighth day of his birth and provided that the health of the newborn permits, in a sign of the alliance (berit) of the people with God, as ordered Abraham in Gen 17.11-12. In the circumcision is imposed on the child a Hebrew name and must be performed a professional (mohel) with the necessary religious knowledge and skills. A month and a day of birth a firstborn, according to the law should devote themselves to God, performed the ceremony of pidià ³n haben (rescue of the child) the father it is deposited in the arms of a kohà ©n (priest) and then what recalls delivering a sum of money symbolic. The marriage ceremony consists of two consecutive stages: (a) the betrothal, with the consecration (quidusà ­n), in which the boyfriend placed in the finger of the bride gold ring, and the reading ritual of marriage contract and its provisions (cohen), among which are the obligations that the man takes on himself as a husband and compensation to be paid to women in the event of divorce; and (b) the remarriage (nisuà ­n), with the recitation of the seven blessings. During the ceremony the bride and groom remain under a palio (hupà ¡), which symbolizes the thalamus bridal, and the groom must break a glass placed their feet, act designed to evoke the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem. The 13 years the male jewish reaches the age of majority religious, that is, it becomes bar misvà ¡ (subject to the precepts), being from then responsible for their actions. In the holding the child sits for the first time the tallith and the tefilà ­n, and is traditional to be invited to the synagogue to read in the Torah the fragment that corresponds to it.

Jack the Ripper: The Most Famous Killer in History Essay -- History, C

Jack the Ripper is perhaps the most famous serial murder case in the world. Even after over one hundred, twenty years, the case is widely talked about, speculated about, and mulled over (Jones, Jack the Ripper 1888). A lot of the intrigue over the case lies in the fact that it is, to this day, unsolved. Questions still remain over the case. What was Jack the Ripper’s real identity? What was the actual number of victims? The known murders attributed to Jack the Ripper took place between August 7, 1888 and November 10, 1888 (Jack the Ripper Biography). There were five known victims; four suspected prostitutes and another woman, all of whom were severely dissected. Four of the women had their throats slit and organs removed, a kidney in one instance and the reproductive organs in another. The murder of the other victim, Elizabeth Stride, is said to have been interrupted (Cohen). Other murders have been unofficially credited to Jack the Ripper, under the assumption that he had left London. Directly after the last murder in London, there was one in the United States that matched the method of operation exactly, the mutilations also exact to the murders of Jack the Ripper. Other people say that murders in South Africa matched, also, and bore his â€Å"signature† (Cohen). One victim, Mary Nichols, was a 41 year old prostitute. She had been thrown out of lodging earlier for not having the money that she needed, and she stated that she would come back with the money (Jones, Jack the Ripper Photos). She was discovered at almost 3:40 AM on August 31, 1888. Upon inspection, it was found that her skin was still warm, and it was thought that she might have still been shallowly breathing. The man, though, Charles Cross, refused to touch her after... ...ple/jack-the-ripper-9351486 Jones, Richard. â€Å"Jack the Ripper 1888.† Jack the Ripper. 2010. November 21, 2011. http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/ Jones, Richard â€Å"Jack the Ripper Letters.† Jack the Ripper. 2010. November 21, 2011. http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/letters.htm Jones, Richard. â€Å"Jack the Ripper Photos.† Walks of London. 2007. November 21, 2011. http://www.walksoflondon.co.uk/28/jack-the-ripper-photos.shtml Jones, Richard. â€Å"Mary Kelly’s Body is Discovered.† Jack the Ripper. 2010. November 21, 2011. http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/mary-kelly-murder.htm Jones, Richard. â€Å"Mary Nichols- The First Victim.† Jack the Ripper. 2010. November 21, 2011. http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/jack-the-ripper-victim-mary-nichols.htm Mallett, Xanthe. â€Å"Is This The Face of Jack the Ripper?† BBC. August 30, 2011. November 21, 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14207581

Essay --

Revised Bernice Bobs Her Hair F Scott Fitzgerald 3 February, 2014 Kaley Witwer A) As the title already tell the reader, Bernice is the protagonist. She can be very unappealing at times, most because she’s a really boring and predictable character especially when most of her conversations with others lead to talking about the weather, she is also very naive because she doesn’t understand why she is unpopular with people or why boys don’t like her. At the end other the story though we like her because she seeks revenge on her cousin and sticks to her word even though it turns into a disaster. Marjorie, the cousin, at first is looked at as an antagonist because she talks bad about Bernice behind her back (which Bernice overhears), but then she is seen as a foil because she helps Bernice learn the ways to become popular, only to then regret this decision and takes it upon herself to tell everyone that Bernice didn’t actually bob her hair like she said. She then becomes the antagonist again. This shows that Majorie is self-centered becaus e she doesn’t want Bernice to take the ‘limelight’...

Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man Essay -- Ralph Ellison Invisible Man Ess

Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man A twisted coming-of-age story, Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man follows a tormented, nameless protagonist as he struggles to discover himself in the context of the racially charged 1950s. Ellison uses the question of existence â€Å"outside† history as a vehicle to show that identity cannot exist in a vacuum, but must be shaped in response to others. To live outside history is to be invisible, ignored by the writers of history: â€Å"For history records the patterns of men’s lives†¦who fought and who won and who lived to lie about it afterwards† (439). Invisibility is the central trait of the protagonist’s identity, embodied by the idea of living outside history. Ellison uses the idea of living outside the scope of history as way to illustrate the main character’s process of self-awakening, to show that identity is contradictory and to mimic the structural movement of the novel. Ellison’s protagonist asks on the day of Tod Clifton’s death, â€Å"Where were the historians today? And how would they put it down?† (439). With these inquiries he begins to question his own identity and position relative to history. Once the Invisible Man accepts that he too exists outside of history, he steps outside the novel into the prologue and epilogue, a point from which he recognizes, internalizes and verbalizes his invisibility. The Invisible Man never considers that he might live outside of history because he typically identifies with white people who both live inside of history and are the recorders of history. While chauffeuring Mr. Norton, he proclaims, â€Å"I identified myself with the rich man reminiscing on the rear seat†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (39). In contrast to the â€Å"inevitable collection of white men and women in smiles, clear of feature... ...hereas in the main text he blames Clifton for â€Å"plunging outside history.† The framing of the novel reveals the contradictory nature of identity because Ellison uses the prologue and epilogue to show that the main text could not exist on its own. The protagonist’s story must be narrated by a wiser version of himself, showing that each identity is dependent on the other. Finally, despite the Invisible Man’s initial claim to a solid identity, the epilogue does not portray a character who has completely solidified his identity. When the Invisible Man advises that â€Å"the mind that has conceived a plan of living must never lose sight of the chaos against which that pattern was conceived† (580), he warns that it is foolish to attempt to define such fluid concepts as identity in strict and unyielding terms, thus allowing for the contradictions identity presents in the novel.

Second Foundation 8. Seldon’s Plan

MATHEMATICS The synthesis of the calculus of n-variables and of n-dimensional geometry is the basis of what Seldon once called â€Å"my little algebra of humanity†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Encyclopedia Galactica Consider a room! The location of the room is not in question at the moment. It is merely sufficient to say that in that room, more than anywhere, the Second Foundation existed. It was a room which, through the centuries, had been the abode of pure science – yet it had none of the gadgets with which, through millennia of association, science has come to be considered equivalent. It was a science, instead, which dealt with mathematical concepts only, in a manner similar to the speculation of ancient, ancient races in the primitive, prehistoric days before technology had come to be; before Man had spread beyond a single, now-unknown world. For one thing, there was in that room – protected by a mental science as yet unassailable by the combined physical might of the rest of the Galaxy – the Prime Radiant, which held in its vitals the Seldon Plan – complete. For another, there was a man, too, in that room – The First Speaker. He was the twelfth in the line of chief guardians of the Plan, and his title bore no deeper significance than the fact that at the gatherings of the leaders of the Second Foundation, he spoke first. His predecessor had beaten the Mule, but the wreckage of that gigantic struggle still littered the path of the Plan- For twenty-five years, he, and his administration, had been trying to force a Galaxy of stubborn and stupid human beings back to the path-It was a terrible task. The First Speaker looked up at the opening door. Even while, in the loneliness of the room, he considered his quarter century of effort, which now so slowly and inevitably approached its climax; even while he had been so engaged, his mind had been considering the newcomer with a gentle expectation. A youth, a student, one of those who might take over, eventually. The young man stood uncertainly at the door, so that the First Speaker had to walk to him and lead him in, with a friendly hand upon the shoulder. The Student smiled shyly, and the First Speaker responded by saying, â€Å"First, I must tell you why you are here.† They faced each other now, across the desk. Neither was speaking in any way that could be recognized as such by any man in the Galaxy who was not himself a member of the Second Foundation. Speech, originally, was the device whereby Man learned, imperfectly, to transmit the thoughts and emotions of his mind. By setting up arbitrary sounds and combinations of sounds to represent certain mental nuances, be developed a method of communication – but one which in its clumsiness and thick-thumbed inadequacy degenerated all the delicacy of the mind into gross and guttural signaling. Down – down – the results can be followed; and all the suffering that humanity ever knew can be traced to the one fact that no man in the history of the Galaxy, until Hari Seldon, and very few men thereafter, could really understand one another. Every human being lived behind an impenetrable wall of choking mist within which no other but he existed. Occasionally there were the dim signals from deep within the cavern in which another man was located-so that each might grope toward the other. Yet because they did not know one another, and could not understand one another, and dared not trust one another, and felt from infancy the terrors and insecurity of that ultimate isolation – there was the hunted fear of man for man, the savage rapacity of man toward man. Feet, for tens of thousands of years, had clogged and shuffled in the mud – and held down the minds which, for an equal time, had been fit for the companionship of the stars. Grimly, Man had instinctively sought to circumvent the prison bars of ordinary speech. Semantics, symbolic logic, psychoanalysis – they had all been devices whereby speech could either be refined or by-passed. Psychohistory had been the development of mental science, the final mathematicization thereof, rather, which had finally succeeded. Through the development of the mathematics necessary to understand the facts of neural physiology and the electrochemistry of the nervous system, which themselves had to be, had to be, traced down to nuclear forces, it first became possible to truly develop psychology. And through the generalization of psychological knowledge from the individual to the group, sociology was also mathematicized. The larger groups; the billions that occupied planets; the trillions that occupied Sectors; the quadrillions that occupied the whole Galaxy, became, not simply human beings, but gigantic forces amenable to statistical treatment – so that to Hari Seldon, the future became clear and inevitable, and the Plan could be set up. The same basic developments of mental science that had brought about the development of the Seldon Plan, thus made it also unnecessary for the First Speaker to use words in addressing the Student. Every reaction to a stimulus, however slight, was completely indicative of all the trifling changes, of all the flickering currents that went on in another's mind. The First Speaker could not sense the emotional content of the Student's instinctively, as the Mule would have been able to do – since the Mule was a mutant with powers not ever likely to become completely comprehensible to any ordinary man, even a Second Foundationer – rather he deduced them, as the result of intensive training. Since, however, it is inherently impossible in a society based on speech to indicate truly the method of communication of Second Foundationers among themselves, the whole matter will be hereafter ignored. The First Speaker will be represented as speaking in ordinary fashion, and if the translation is not always entirely valid, it is at least the best that can be done under the circumstances. It will be pretended therefore, that the First Speaker did actually say, â€Å"First, I must tell you why you are here,† instead of smiling just so and lifting a finger exactly thus. The First Speaker said, â€Å"You have studied mental science hard and well for most of your life. You have absorbed all your teachers could give you. It is time for you and a few others like yourself to begin your apprenticeship for Speakerhood.† Agitation from the other side of the desk. â€Å"No – now you must take this phlegmatically. You had hoped you would qualify. You had feared you would not. Actually, both hope and fear are weaknesses. You knew you would qualify and you hesitate to admit the fact because such knowledge might stamp you as cocksure and therefore unfit. Nonsense! The most hopelessly stupid man is he who is not aware that he is wise. It is part of your qualification that you knew you would qualify.† Relaxation on the other side of the desk. â€Å"Exactly. Now you feel better and your guard is down. You are fitter to concentrate and fitter to understand. Remember, to be truly effective, it is not necessary to hold the mind under a tight, controlling barrier which to the intelligent probe is as informative as a naked mentality. Rather, one should cultivate an innocence, an awareness of self, and an unself-consciousness of self which leaves one nothing to hide. My mind is open to you. Let this be so for both of us.† He went on. â€Å"It is not an easy thing to be a Speaker. It is not an easy thing to be a Psychohistorian in the first place; and not even the best Psychohistorian need necessarily qualify to be a Speaker. There is a distinction here. A Speaker must not only be aware of the mathematical intricacies of the Seldon Plan; he must have a sympathy for it and for its ends. He must love the Plan; to him it must be life and breath. More than that it must even be as a living friend. â€Å"Do you know what this is?† The First Speaker's hand hovered gently over the black, shining cube in the middle of the desk. It was featureless. â€Å"No, Speaker, I do not.† â€Å"You have heard of the Prime Radiant?† â€Å"This?† – Astonishment. â€Å"You expected something more noble and awe-inspiring? Well, that is natural. It was created in the days of the Empire, by men of Seldon's time. For nearly four hundred years, it has served our needs perfectly, without requiring repairs or adjustment. And fortunately so, since none of the Second Foundation is qualified to handle it in any technical fashion.† He smiled gently. â€Å"Those of the First Foundation might be able to duplicate this, but they must never know, of course.† He depressed a lever on his side of the desk and the room was in darkness. But only for a moment, since with a gradually livening flush, the two long walls of the room glowed to life. First, a pearly white, unrelieved, then a trace of faint darkness here and there, and finally, the fine neatly printed equations in black, with an occasional red hairline that wavered through the darker forest like a staggering rillet. â€Å"Come, my boy, step here before the wall. You will not cast a shadow. This light does not radiate from the Radiant in an ordinary manner. To tell you the truth, I do not know even faintly by what medium this effect is produced, but you will not cast a shadow. I know that.† They stood together in the light. Each wall was thirty feet long, and ten high. The writing was small and covered every inch. â€Å"This is not the whole Plan,† said the First Speaker. â€Å"To get it all upon both walls, the individual equations would have to be reduced to microscopic size – but that is not necessary. What you now see represents the main portions of the Plan till now. You have learned about this, have you not?† â€Å"Yes, Speaker, I have.† â€Å"Do you recognize any portion.† A slow silence. The student pointed a finger and as he did so, the line of equations marched down the wall, until the single series of functions he had thought of – one could scarcely consider the quick, generalized gesture of the finger to have been sufficiently precise – was at eye-level. The First Speaker laughed softly, â€Å"You will find the Prime Radiant to be attuned to your mind. You may expect more surprises from the little gadget. What were you about to say about the equation you have chosen?† â€Å"It,† faltered the Student, â€Å"is a Rigellian integral, using a planetary distribution of a bias indicating the presence of two chief economic classes on the planet, or maybe a Sector, plus an unstable emotional pattern.† â€Å"And what does it signify?† â€Å"It represents the limit of tension, since we have here† – he pointed, and again the equations veered – â€Å"a converging series.† â€Å"Good,† said the First Speaker. â€Å"And tell me, what do you think of all this. A finished work of art, is it not?† â€Å"Definitely!† â€Å"Wrong! It is not.† This, with sharpness. â€Å"It is the first lesson you must unlearn. The Seldon Plan is neither complete nor correct. Instead, it is merely the best that could be done at the time. Over a dozen generations of men have pored over these equations, worked at them, taken them apart to the last decimal place, and put them together again. They've done more than that. They've watched nearly four hundred years pass and against the predictions and equations, they've checked reality, and they have learned. â€Å"They have learned more than Seldon ever knew, and if with the accumulated knowledge of the centuries we could repeat Seldon's work, we could do a better job. Is that perfectly clear to you?† The Student appeared a little shocked. â€Å"Before you obtain your Speakerhood,† continued the First Speaker, â€Å"you yourself will have to make an original contribution to the Plan. It is not such great blasphemy. Every red mark you see on the wall is the contribution of a man among us who lived since Seldon. Why†¦ why-† He looked upward, â€Å"There!† The whole wall seemed to whirl down upon him. â€Å"This,† he said, â€Å"is mine.† A fine red line encircled two forking arrows and included six square feet of deductions along each path. Between the two were a series of equations in red. â€Å"It does not,† said the Speaker, â€Å"seem to be much. It is at a point in the Plan which we will not reach yet for a time as long as that which has already passed. It is at the period of coalescence, when the Second Empire that is to be is in the grip of rival personalities who will threaten to pull it apart if the fight is too even, or clamp it into rigidity, if the fight is too uneven. Both possibilities are considered here, followed, and the method of avoiding either indicated. â€Å"Yet it is all a matter of probabilities and a third course can exist. It is one of comparatively low likelihood – twelve point six four percent, to be exact – but even smaller chances have already come to pass and the Plan is only forty percent complete. This third probability consists of a possible compromise between two or more of the conflicting personalities being considered. This, I showed, would first freeze the Second Empire into an unprofitable mold, and then, eventually, inflict more damage through civil wars than would have taken place had a compromise never been made in the first place. Fortunately, that could be prevented, too. And that was my contribution.† â€Å"If I may interrupt, Speaker- How is a change made?† â€Å"Through the agency of the Radiant. You will find in your own case, for instance, that your mathematics will be checked rigorously by five different boards; and that you will be required to defend it against a concerted and merciless attack. Two years will then pass, and your development will be reviewed again. It has happened more than once that a seemingly perfect piece of work has uncovered its fallacies only after an induction period of months or years. Sometimes, the contributor himself discovers the flaw. â€Å"If, after two years, another examination, not less detailed than the first, still passes it, and – better still – if in the interim the young scientist has brought to light additional details, subsidiary evidence, the contribution will be added to the Plan. It was the climax of my career; it will be the climax of yours. â€Å"The Prime Radiant can be adjusted to your mind, and all corrections and additions can be made through mental rapport. There will be nothing to indicate that the correction or addition is yours. In all the history of the Plan there has been no personalization. It is rather a creation of all of us together. Do you understand?† â€Å"Yes, Speaker!† â€Å"Then, enough of that.† A stride to the Prime Radiant, and the walls were blank again save for the ordinary room-lighting region along the upper borders. â€Å"Sit down here at my desk, and let me talk to you. It is enough for a Psychohistorian, as such, to know his Biostatistics and his Neurochemical Electromathematics. Some know nothing else and are fit only to be statistical technicians. But a Speaker must be able to discuss the Plan without mathematics. If not the Plan itself, at least its philosophy and its aims. â€Å"First of all, what is the aim of the Plan? Please tell me in your own words – and don't grope for fine sentiment. You won't be judged on polish and suavity, I assure you.† It was the Student's first chance at more than a bisyllable, and he hesitated before plunging into the expectant space cleared away for him. He said, diffidently: â€Å"As a result of what I have learned, I believe that it is the intention of the Plan to establish a human civilization based on an orientation entirely different from anything that ever before existed. An orientation which, according to the findings of Psychohistory, could never spontaneously come into being-â€Å" â€Å"Stop!† The First Speaker was insistent. ‘You must not say ‘never.' That is a lazy slurring over of the facts. Actually, Psychohistory predicts only probabilities. A particular event may be infinitesimally probable, but the probability is always greater than zero.† â€Å"Yes, Speaker. The orientation desired, if I may correct myself, then, is well known to possess no significant probability of spontaneously coming to pass.† â€Å"Better. What is the orientation?† â€Å"It is that of a civilization based on mental science. In all the known history of Mankind, advances have been made primarily in physical technology; in the capacity of handling the inanimate world about Man. Control of self and society has been left to chance or to the vague gropings of intuitive ethical systems based on inspiration and emotion. As a result, no culture of greater stability than about fifty-five percent has ever existed, and these only as the result of great human misery.† â€Å"And why is the orientation we speak of a nonspontaneous one?† â€Å"Because a large minority of human beings are mentally equipped to take part in the advance of physical science, and all receive the crude and visible benefits thereof. Only an insignificant minority, however, are inherently able to lead Man through the greater involvements of Mental Science; and the benefits derived therefrom, while longer lasting, are more subtle and less apparent. Furthermore, since such an orientation would lead to the development of a benevolent dictatorship of the mentally best – virtually a higher subdivision of Man – it would be resented and could not be stable without the application of a force which would depress the rest of Mankind to brute level. Such a development is repugnant to us and must be avoided.† â€Å"What, then, is the solution?† â€Å"The solution is the Seldon Plan. Conditions have been so arranged and so maintained that in a millennium from its beginnings – six hundred years from now, a Second Galactic Empire will have been established in which Mankind will be ready for the leadership of Mental Science. In that same interval, the Second Foundation in its development, will have brought forth a group of Psychologists ready to assume leadership. Or, as I have myself often thought, the First Foundation supplies the physical framework of a single political unit, and the Second Foundation supplies the mental framework of a ready-made ruling class.† â€Å"I see. Fairly adequate. Do you think that any Second Empire, even if formed in the time set by Seldon, would do as a fulfillment of his Plan?† â€Å"No, Speaker, I do not. There are several possible Second Empires that may be formed in the period of time stretching from nine hundred to seventeen hundred years after the inception of the Plan, but only one of these is the Second Empire.† â€Å"And in view of all this, why is it necessary that the existence of the Second Foundation be hidden – above all, from the First Foundation?† The Student probed for a hidden meaning to the question and failed to find it. He was troubled in his answer, â€Å"For the same reason that the details of the Plan as a whole must be hidden from Mankind in general. The laws of Psychohistory are statistical in nature and are rendered invalid if the actions of individual men are not random in nature. If a sizable group of human beings learned of key details of the Plan, their actions would be governed by that knowledge and would no longer be random in the meaning of the axioms of Psychohistory. In other words, they would no longer be perfectly predictable. Your pardon, Speaker, but I feel that the answer is not satisfactory.† â€Å"It is well that you do. Your answer is quite incomplete. It is the Second Foundation itself which must be hidden, not simply the Plan. The Second Empire is not yet formed. We have still a society which would resent a ruling class of psychologists, and which would fear its development and fight against it. Do you understand that?† â€Å"Yes, Speaker, I do. The point has never been stressed-â€Å" â€Å"Don't minimize. It has never been made – in the classroom, though you should be capable of deducing it yourself. This and many other points we will make now and in the near future during your apprenticeship. You will see me again in a week. By that time, I would like to have comments from you as to a certain problem which I now set before you. I don't want complete and rigorous mathematical treatment. That would take a year for an expert, and not a week for you. But I do want an indication as to trends and directions.*** â€Å"You have here a fork in the Plan at a period in time of about half a century ago. The necessary details are included. You will note that the path followed by the assumed reality diverges from all the plotted predictions; its probability being under one percent. You will estimate for how long the divergence may continue before it becomes uncorrectable. Estimate also the probable end if uncorrected, and a reasonable method of correction.† The Student flipped the Viewer at random and looked stonily at the passages presented on the tiny, built-in screen. He said: â€Å"Why this particular problem, Speaker? It obviously has significance other than purely academic.† â€Å"Thank you, my boy. You are as quick as I had expected. The problem is not supposititious. Nearly half a century ago, the Mule burst into Galactic history and for ten years was the largest single fact in the universe. He was unprovided for; uncalculated for. He bent the Plan seriously, but not fatally. â€Å"To stop him before he did become fatal, however, we were forced to take active part against him. We revealed our existence, and infinitely worse, a portion of our power. The First Foundation has learned of us, and their actions are now predicated on that knowledge. Observe in the problem presented. Here. And here. â€Å"Naturally, you will not speak of this to anyone.† There was an appalled pause, as realization seeped into the Student. He said: â€Å"Then the Seldon Plan has failed!† â€Å"Not yet. It merely may have failed. The probabilities of success are still twenty-one point four percent, as of the last assessment.†