Critical Analysis Why Education Is Not An Economic Panacea

Critical Analysis: â€Å"Why Education Is Not an Economic Panacea† â€Å"The advice we would offer every halfway intelligent young person with a pulse—go to college—is not, I argue, counsel we can offer a whole generation of young people† (Marsh p.6). John Marsh explores in his article â€Å"Why Education Is Not an Economic Panacea† the correlation between income inequality and lack of higher education. In doing so he finds that education alone may not be a cure all for the problems faced by many low income families. Marsh shares what he had learned through his experience teaching impoverished students and how it is wrong to assume that education will positively effect someones financial outcomes. Marsh intends to open peoples minds to addressing problems such as poverty that may be the reason for a lack of education rather than assuming that deficiencies in education are to blame for the problem. I believe that what Marsh is advocating is a â€Å" living wage† for people in jobs that do not require a degree and he thinks that doing so will solve the problems of economic inequality and poverty (Marsh p.6). Is it wrong to think that increasing wages for unskilled labor or non professional jobs will solve these problems? In recent years it seems it seems there has been a lot of public discussion regarding living wages. This seems like an interesting idea but maybe it’s not very well thought out, how is it accomplished? Who determines what the wages will be? And why is raising wages forShow MoreRelatedIs Corporate Social Responsibility a Myth?620 Words   |  3 PagesResponsibility a myth?† this paper also tries to evaluate what Poruthiyil (2013) eloquently states: Throughout their long history, business ethicists have been aware that theorizations intending to address societal goals can be rendered ineffectual when economic goals are prioritized [Arnold (2010); Marens (2010,2007); Worden (2009); Karnani (2007); Wry (2009); Hartman et al. (2003); Freeman (2000); Boatright (1998)]. Is CSR just a marketing tool? Khurana’s (2012) presentation appears to be very idealistic;Read MoreIs An American College Education Still? Worth It?1465 Words   |  6 PagesIs An American College Education Still ‘Worth It’? One of the realities of the past several decades is that society has come to place an increasing level of emphasis upon the importance of education. Whereas it has been understood for decades that education is an integral component of the overall level of success that a person might hope to experience during their lifetime, the necessity of each and every individual striving for a college degree has been a more and more defining aspects of the driveRead MoreMicrofinance As An Opportunity For Sustainable Development1661 Words   |  7 Pages02/10/2015 Student Name: Patel Nimisha Student ID: S2145218 Article Details This critical analysis is done on the journal study titled Microcredit in Rural Bangladesh: Is It Reaching the Poorest? which was published by the Journal of ESR. The analysis based on the aim of understanding the why the microcredit programs reached rarely to the poor in rural Bangladesh. They found five reasons behind this: supply, demand, NGDO s norms andRead MoreYouth Unemployment and Implication for Political Stability in Nigeria (1999-2011)2162 Words   |  9 PagesAfrican like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya where dictators have held sway for over three decades, people have revolted against the system. Though these countries can say to be less democratic than Nigeria, yet the living condition of the people in real economic terms is better (Abati, 2011a; Abati, 2011b; Adejumobi, 2011). Furthermore, the unemployment rates in these countries are more or less like that of Nigeria (Ojenagbo, 2011). The major concern here therefore is, given the kind of violent agitationsRead MorePursuing An Ms Mis Degree At Mays Business School1761 Words   |  8 PagesEssay 1. Why do you want to pursue an MS-MIS degree at Mays Business School? Response: ‘Life is a gift and I don’t intend on wasting it. 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Babalola †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. xvi Management of Secondary School Education in Nigeria: Problems and Challenges — W.O. Ibukun .........†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 1 The Organization and ManagementRead MoreRemote Sensing Of Texas Education3194 Words   |  13 PagesRemote Sensing in Texas Education In recent years, Texas education has endured several rounds of reform, advancing, stumbling, bobbing and weaving, attempting to rebound, only to receive another jab at new curriculum standards or a punch in the gut of high school dropout rates. While valiant efforts have been made to generate highly motivated, well-organized, effective classrooms, several rifts remain. New programs, implemented to fight off the fatigue of reform, have only added to the burden, forRead MoreSocial Perceptions Of Csr Line Up With Their Concurrent Expectations From The Company2964 Words   |  12 Pagestoday’s informed and critical consumer; the highest tier of consumers are perceptive, researching purchases in advance offered by businesses proactively engaging with their community. However, this forms a minority of the population studied, with the larger consumer segment, although valuing social and ecological conduct, being less engaged and not as willing to seek out CSR information readily ava ilable. From an investigatory perspective, problems can be found from basic economic theory; consumersRead MoreHow The Chinese Culture Can Affect The Business And Productivity3502 Words   |  15 PagesStrategies (How to reap advantages from the particular economic region or country) We have discussed the opportunities and challenges that may come up in doing business in China. We have also seen how the Chinese culture can affect the business and productivity. A choice of a foreign market like China is favourable when the market there is : Politically stable If it has free market system : highly competitive economy If it has a low inflation rate : so as to be able to finance the business usingRead MoreSocial Life of Coffee2510 Words   |  11 Pageshelp solve all problems with tiredness, depressions, and stress. The effects of coffee were well known since it was found. It was medically proved that coffee stimulates brain activity. People in the 17th century thought that the coffee was almost panacea from most diseases. Every morning, on the way to work, we get a cup of a powerful drink that, we think, will give us strength to finish a day. Because modern society drinks so much coffee, sitting in coffee-houses has become the number one activity

English Midterm Exam 2014 Essay - 1169 Words

Score: ______ / ______ Name: Shawn Hodgins Student Number: JM1409261 Directions: Answer the questions below. Use full sentences when applicable. 1. Give two examples of each of the following elements of fiction and nonfiction from the texts you’ve read in Units 1, 2, and 3. Story of fiction: The Giant’s House Story of Non-fiction: â€Å"Desiderata Characters: Fiction: James, narrator, and Astoria Non-fiction: Elizabeth McCracken Plot: Fiction: In a Library on different days to find a book that James is looking for. Non-fiction: It seems the narrator is at home describing the documented history that she has from her family. Conflict: Fiction: James is looking for a book on tall people and the narrator helps him by looking for him but†¦show more content†¦The narrator tries to treat the character like everyone else but then feels bad and helps him in any way possible to find an answer. Non-fiction: The tone in this essay is somewhat excitement to share all of the history she posses from her family and the love she has in doing so, her passion. Perspective: Fiction: In this story the perspective is that the main character is larger than normal in height, considered a Giant. Non-fiction: The perspective in this essay is that Elizabeth’s family has stories of their own that she would not have known if it wasn’t for these letters that her Grandmother kept from all of her years. Bias: Fiction: I found no sign of bias in this story. Non-fiction: The author describes some frustrations in reading family papers; she shows some bias against her Grandmother’s sisters for being petty and vindictive in an incident from some of the letters. Purpose: Fiction: The purpose of this story was to show the difficulties a person like James go through mentally and physically being the size that he is described, a Giant. Non-fiction: The purpose of this essay was to show how useful a family archive could be yet how frustrating it can be because of not being complete. 2. Argue a case for either the usage of hyperbole or understatement. Which do you think is more effective? More humorous? Explain your opinions, citing examples from the texts. I think the usage of hyperbole isShow MoreRelatedThat Which Is Accepted as Knowledge Today Is Sometimes Discarded Tomorrow†. Consider Knowledge Issues Raised by This Statement in Two Areas of Knowledge.1304 Words   |  6 Pagesin two areas of knowledge. School Name: The International School Candidate Name: Muhammad Jamal Teacher Name: Syeda Sobia Haleem Candidate Code: 001307-0019 Session: 2012-2014 Word Count: 1234 â€Å"That which is accepted as knowledge today is sometimes discarded tomorrow†. Consider knowledge issues raised by this statement in two areas of knowledge. If today, someone came up and saidRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie Sassy Go Going Go 1112 Words   |  5 PagesThere is a particular scene in the beginning of episode eight where Park Min Joon’s mother hovers behind him as he studies. She refuses to leave in case he isn’t going to focus on his schoolwork. She then yells at him to get perfect scores on his English midterm, and warns him not to dare let So-young (first rank at his school) beat him by half a percentage point ever again. His mother repeatedly hovers over him and pressures him to succeed in his academics. Once again, this drama also questions the amountRead MoreRethinking The Color Line, By Jennifer Lee And Frank D. 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The Arizona College and Career Ready Standards (AZCCRS) were officially adopted in 2010Read MoreRetention Policy in College of Accountancy2965 Words   |  12 PagesPUP College of Accountancy Thread Hey PUPian ..   ..post your comments, concerns, and latest information about our college BSA program and incoming CPA board exams. ..You can also share to other BSA students and also prospective CoA students about your experience in the college, information about CoA professors and specific books about your subject(w/ authors and prices) to help other BSA students in surviving the whole program.. ...also you can share your insights for incoming years, you can alsoRead MoreCultural Comparison - Russia and US Education6674 Words   |  27 Pagesï » ¿ A Cultural Comparison of Higher Education in Russia and the United States of America Intercultural Communications August 19th, 2014 â€Å"Inculcation is the gradual coming to know something through mundane processes of training and learning† (Chetro-Szivos, J. Lecture 1). Through inculcation we acquire a set of dispositions that mold the body and eventually become second nature to the actor. Paralleling this concept withRead MorePHL 612: Philosophy of Law5882 Words   |  24 PagesRYERSON UNIVERSITY Department of Philosophy Course No. PHL 612: Philosophy of Law Winter 2014 SECTION ONE (011) Instructor(s): Alex Wellington Office: Room 428, Jorgenson Hall* Phone: 979-5000 ext. 4057 (E-mail address)**: awelling@ryerson.ca OR alex.wellington@sympatico.ca Office Hours Posted: Wednesdays at 2:10 pm, By Appointment Wednesdays at 3:10 pm and at 4:10 pm, Drop In Time Thursdays at 3:10 pm, By Appointment *Other times may be available by appointment Website:Read MorePolitical Science 1 midterm exam Essay3426 Words   |  14 Pagesï » ¿Midterm Exam Section 1: Definition of terms. Authority: the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience. e.g.: In the presidential election, the winning party takes office without a struggle or show of military force because everyone understands the legitimacy of its newly won authority. It is important because the orders made from a government without authority will not be implemented. Power: the political power is the ability to shape and control the politicalRead MorePsy 244 Essay10464 Words   |  42 Pagesï » ¿ Psychology 244 Instructor: L.J. Harris PSYCHOLOGY 244 MIDTERM EXAMINATION Spring, 2014 Study Guide Organization of Examination and Questions From Which Test Questions Will be Drawn All questions on the examination will come from the lectures (Topics I – X) and the assigned chapters and parts of chapters in the textbook. To help frame the questions for you, they will be organized under the same main headings and subheadings used in the Lecture Notes. The only exceptions willRead More_x000C_Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 Pagesundergraduate statistics education. She is a Fellow of the American Statistical Association and an elected member of the International Statistics Institute. Roxy has recently completed ï ¬ ve years as the Chief Reader for the Advanced Placement Statistics Exam and currently chairs the American Statistical Association’s Joint Committee with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics on Curriculum in Statistics and Probability for Grades K–12. In addition to her texts in introductory statistics, Roxy

Birth Control Controversy Free Essays

Contraception is a critical issue for women of all ages and social class because the decision to have a baby impacts a woman’s physical, mental, and emotional health. Contraception is also very costly and is an expense that a woman primarily shoulders. Not every employer’s health insurance plan provides benefits for prescription contraceptives and devices. We will write a custom essay sample on Birth Control Controversy or any similar topic only for you Order Now A personal survey of 50 adults with varying types of insurance plans, asked if their health insurance plans provided coverage for birth control, Viagra, or abortion. Everyone surveyed maintain that his plan provides coverage for Viagra, a sexual enhancement drug, and abortion. The same survey showed that 26% of the insurance plans do not provide benefits for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved prescription contraceptives or devices for the solitary purpose of preventing pregnancy (personal communication, 2010). Not providing coverage for birth control, yet providing coverage for other types of prescription drugs, services, and devices, is discriminatory against women and has a negative impact on an employer’s and the government’s economics. The federal government should mandate that all health care plans provide coverage for FDA approved contraceptives because not providing them is discriminatory against women. Preventive Health Care and Finance Women that plan their pregnancies usually obtain pre-natal care and take better care of themselves and unborn child. Moreover, women who have planned their families put enough distance between each pregnancy so not to put a strain on their physical, mental, and emotional welfare. This is better for both mother and child. Furthermore, to obtain FDA approved prescription birth control, women must first be seen be a licensed physician and have an examination. That examination includes a Pap smear, breast exam, and screening for sexually transmitted diseases. Without the motivation of obtaining contraception, women may not schedule an exam that could detect, and treat, potentially life-threatening diseases. Early detection of disease, such as cervical and breast cancer, is vital to making a full recovery. Family planning devices and prescriptions should be a benefit that all health insurance plans provide because more than half of the pregnancies that occur within this country are not planned. The United States has the highest rate of accidental pregnancies of the entire industrialized world. Of those pregnancies, only half come to term. The other pregnancies end because of spontaneous abortion, also known as miscarriage, or the woman elects to have an abortion (Roan, 2009). With insurance provided birth control these statistics can decrease considerably. Lack of coverage, and the out-of –pocket expense for birth control, is a factor in the high rate of unintended pregnancies because women are going without birth control, or opt for less effective methods for family planning. Women spend approximately two-thirds of their lives in an attempt to avoid pregnancy, but still a majority of women experience an unplanned pregnancy by the time they reach age 45 (Vargas, 2002). Women are primarily responsible for preventing pregnancy and rely on prescribed contraceptives and devices because there is no effective form of over-the-counter birth control available for women’s use. The most effective form of birth control, other than abstinence, is oral contraceptives, which is better known as â€Å"the pill. † With insurance, co-payments for the pill range from $10 to $50 per month (Andrews, 2010). Without insurance coverage, the expense of the pill can range from $20 to $75 per month. Over a 25-year period this could amass from $6,000 to well over $20,000 (Guttmacher, 2010). Therefore, women are paying upwards of 68% higher health care expenditures than their male counterparts (Zolman, 2002). In comparison, the only form of birth control used by men is a condom, and they are available without prescription and not costly. Pictured above are different types of birth control available. All, except condoms, require a prescription and are used by women. Photo courtesy of Dawn Stacey Sexual Discrimination Some health insurance plans exclude contraceptives because it views them as quality of life drug and not medically necessary. If a doctor deems a woman to have a clinical need for contraception, such as recurring headaches, endometriosis, acne, or irregular menstruation, an insurance company may choose to authorize benefits. However, Viagra is one quality of life drug that insurance plans cover without question (Vargas, 2002). Viagra is an oral treatment that a doctor prescribes exclusively to men who suffer from erectile dysfunction. Covering expenses for one quality of life drug, aimed for the improvement of men’s sex lives, and denying benefit of another quality of life drug, intended to prevent pregnancy for women, is undoubtedly discriminatory. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sustain employers are legally bound to provide a full range of family planning options if other forms of preventive health prescriptions and devices are part of their benefits package. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 says it is unlawful when employers â€Å"fail or refuse to hire or discharge any individual, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin† (Zolman, 2002, p. 8). Health and prescription coverage is part of the compensation and terms of employment as mentioned in Title VII. To provide further clarification, the United States government added an amendment in 1978 called the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), and it reads â€Å"†¦women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions shall be treated the same for all emp loyment related purposes, including of receipt of benefits under fringe benefit programs† (Vargas, 2002, p. 9). The current regulations for health insurance governance vary and are subject to different protocol. The Employment Retirement Security Act (ERISA) is a federal law that oversees self-funded insurance plans. A self-funded insurance plan, also known as self-insured, is a plan that an employer provides and pays for from a self-established fund. ERISA oversees the compliance of procedure, such as providing insurance information and instructions on how to file grievances, however; it does not require employers to provide specific benefits (Zolman, 2002). Within ERISA is a loophole that self-funded insurance plans have used to avoid following mandates that may be in effect through state legislation. Fully insured health plans contract through insurance brokers, are subject to state insurance mandates, and are not governed by ERISA (Zolman, 2002). The Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage Act (EPICC) is a federal contraceptive prescription and device mandate that has gone before Congress on several occasions but has not been successful in passing into law. Nevertheless, there have been 27 states that have passed there on version of EPICC since 1998 (Andrews, 2010). However, requirements for coverage vary from state to state and self-funded insurance plans are exempt from complying. Throughout the last decade there have been several lawsuits filed against employers unwilling to include prescription contraception benefits. The first such case was Erickson versus Bartell. In 2001, Jennifer Erickson brought a lawsuit of sexual discrimination against Bartell Drug Company for failing to provide birth control in a prescription drug benefit package. Federal Judge Lasnik determined that Bartell Drug Company was in violation of Title VII and the PDA (HRMagazine, 2005). Sadly, the majority of employers who exclude prescription contraceptives choose to wait for legal action before changing policy. In those cases, society loses as precious taxpayer dollars are spent. Employer Expenses Many people have the misconception that it is expensive for an employer to provided prescription contraceptive benefits and that the employer should be able to limit available benefits to help keep health insurance premiums to a minimum. A study conducted by the Washington Business Group on Health concluded that employers experience greater direct and indirect financial losses when an employee becomes pregnant. The indirect expenses include the employee’s absence for doctor’s appointments, fatigue, or illness. Indirect costs can also include reduced productivity, and the need to train another person to fulfill the pregnant employee’s position when absent. Direct costs can reach well above $10,000 for expenses related to pre-natal care, delivery, and one-year of infant pediatrics (HRMagazine, 2005). How to cite Birth Control Controversy, Papers

Fusion Essay Example For Students

Fusion Essay Fusion reactions are inhibited by the electrical repulsive force that acts between two positively charged nuclei. For fusion to occur, the two nuclei must approach each other at high speed to overcome the electrical repulsion and attain a sufficiently small separation (less than one-trillionth of a centimeter) that the short-range strong nuclear force dominates. For the production of useful amounts of energy, a large number of nuclei must under go fusion: that is to say, a gas of fusing nuclei must be produced. In a gas at extremely high temperature, the average nucleus contains sufficient kinetic energy to undergo fusion. Such a medium can be produced by heating an ordinary gas of neutral atoms beyond the temperature at which electrons are knocked out of the atoms. The result is an ionized gas consisting of free negative electrons and positive nuclei. This gas constitutes a plasma. Plasma, in physics, is an electrically conducting medium in which there are roughly equal numbers of positively and negatively charged particles, produced when the atoms in a gas become ionized. It is sometimes referred to as the fourth state of matter, distinct from the solid, liquid, and gaseous states. When energy is continuously applied to a solid, it first melts, then it vaporizes, and finally electrons are removed from some of the neutral gas atoms and molecules to yield a mixture of positively charged ions and negatively charged electrons, while overall neutral charge density is maintained. When a significant portion of the gas has been ionized, its properties will be altered so substantially that little resemblance to solids, liquids, and gases remains. A plasma is unique in the way in which it interacts with itself with electric and magnetic fields, and with its environment. A plasma can be thought of as a collection of ions, electrons, neutral atoms and molecules, an photons in which some atoms are being ionized simultaneously with other electrons recombining with ions to form neutral particles, while photons are continuously being produced and absorbed. Scientists have estimated that more than 99 percent of the matter in the universe exists in the plasma state. All of the observed stars, including the Sun, consist of plasma, as do interstellar and interplanetary media and the outer atmospheres of the planets. Although most terrestrial matter exists in a solid, liquid or gaseous state, plasma is found in lightning bolts and auroras, in gaseous discharge lamps (neon lights), and in the crystal structure of metallic solids. Plasmas are currently being studied as an affordable source of clean electric power from thermonuclear fusion reactions. The scientific problem for fusion is thus the problem of producing and confining a hot, dense plasma. The core of a fusion reactor would consist of burning plasma. Fusion would occur between the nuclei, with electrons present only to maintain macroscopic charge neutrality. Stars, including the Sun, consist of plasma that generates energy by fusion reactions. In these ?natural fusion reactors? the reacting, or burning, plasma is confirmed by its own gravity. It is not possible to assemble on Earth a plasma sufficiently massive to be gravitationally confined. The hydrogen bomb is an example of fusion reactions produced in an uncontrolled, unconfined manner in which the energy density is so high that the energy release is explosive. By contrast, the use of fusion for peaceful energy generating requires control and confinement of a plasma at high temperature and is often called controlled thermonuclear fusion. In the development of fusion power technology, demonstration of ? energy breakeven? is taken to signify the scientific feasibility of fusion. At breakeven, the fusion power produced by a plasma is equal to the power input to maintain the plasma. This requires a plasma that is hot, dense, and well confined. The temperature required, about 100 million Kelvins, is several times that of the Sun. The product of the density and energy confinement time of the plasma (the time it takes the plasma to lose its energy if not replaced) must exceed a critical value. There are two main approaches to controlled fusion ? namely, magnetic confinement and inertial confinement. Magnetic confinement of plasmas is the most highly developed approach to controlled fusion. The hot plasma is contained by magnetic forces exerted on the charged particles. A large part of the problem of fusion has been the attainment of magnetic field configurations that effectively confine the plasma. A successful configuration must meet three criteria: (1) the plasma must be in a time-independent equilibrium state, (2) the equilibrium must be macroscopically stable, and (3) the leakage of plasma energy to the bounding wall must be small. A single charged particle tends to spiral about a magnetic line of force. It is necessary that the single particle trajectories do not intersect the wall. Moreover, the pressure force, arising from the thermal energy of all the particles, is in a direction to expand the plasma. For the plasma to be in equilibrium, the magnetic force acting on the electric current within the plasma must balance the pressure force at every point in the plasma. The equilibrium thus obtained has to be stable. A plasma is stable if after a small perturbation it returns to its original state. A plasma is continually perturbed by random thermal noise fluctuations. If unstable, it might depart from its equilibrium state and rapidly escape the confines of the magnetic field (perhaps in less than one-thousandth of a second). A plasma in stable equilibrium can be maintained indefinitely if the leakage of energy from the plasma is balanced by energy input. If the plasma energy loss is too large, then ignition cannot be achieved. An unavoidable diffusion of energy across the magnetic field lines will occur from the collisions between the particles. Exemplification: Separation of Church and State Essay Neutron bombardment would activate the walls of the containment vessel, but such activated material is shorter-lived and less toxic than the waste products of a fission reactor. Moreover, even this activation problem may be eliminated, either by the development of advanced, low-activation materials, such as vanadium-based materials, or by the employment of advanced fusion-fuel cycles that do not produce neutrons, such as the fusion of deuterons with helium-3 nuclei. Nearly neutron-free fusion systems, which require higher temperatures than D-T fusion, might make up a second generation of fusion reactors). Finally, a fusion reactor would not release the gaseous pollutants that accompany the combustion of fossil fuels; hence, fusion would not produce a greenhouse effect. The fusion process has been studied as part of nuclear physics for much of the 20th century. In the late 1930s the German-born physicist Hans A. Bethe first recognized that the fusion of hydrogen nuclei to form deuterium is exoergic (there is release of energy) and, together with subsequent reactions, accounts for the energy source in stars. Work proceeded over the next two decades, motivated by the need to understand nuclear matter and forces, to learn more about the nuclear physics of stellar objects, and to develop thermonuclear weapons (the hydrogen bomb) and predict their performance. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, research programs in the United States, United Kingdom, and Soviet Union began to yield a better understanding of nuclear fusion, and investigators embarked on ways of exploiting the process for practical energy production. This work focused on the use of magnetic fields and electromagnetic forces to contain extremely hot gases called plasmas. A plasma consists of unbound electrons and positive ions whose motion is dominated by electromagnetic interactions. It is the only state of matter in which thermonuclear reactions can occur in a self-sustaining manner. Astrophysics and magnetic fusion research, among other fields, require extensive knowledge of how gases behave in the plasma state. The inadequacy of the then-existent knowledge became clearly apparent in the 1950s as the behavior of plasma in many of the early magnetic confinement systems proved too complex to understand. Moreover, researchers found that confining fusion plasma in a magnetic trap was far more challenging than they had anticipated. Plasma must be heated to tens of millions of degrees Kelvin or higher to induce and sustain the thermonuclear reaction required to produce usable amounts of energy. At temperatures this high, the nuclei in the plasma move rapidly enough to overcome their mutual repulsion and fuse. It is exceedingly difficult to contain plasmas at such a temperature level because the hot gases tend to expand and escape from the enclosing structure. The work of the major American, British, and Soviet fusion programs was strictly classified until 1958. That year, research objectives were made public, and many of the topics being studied were found to be similar, as were the problems encountered. Since that time, investigators have continued to study and measure fusion reactions between the lighter elements and have arrived at more accurate determinations of reaction rates. Also, the formulas developed by nuclear physicists for predicting the rate of fusion-energy generation have been adopted by astrophysicists to derive new information about the structure of the stellar interior and about the evolution of stars. The late 1960s witnessed a major advance in efforts to harness fusion reactions for practical energy production: the Soviets announced the achievement of high plasma temperature (about 3,000,000 K), along with other physical parameters, in a tokamak, a toroidal magnetic confinement system in which the plasma is kept generally stable both by an externally generated, doughnut-shaped magnetic field and by electric currents flowing within the plasma itself. (The basic concept of the tokamak had been first proposed by Andrey D. Sakharov and Igor Y. Tamm around 1950.) Since its development, the tokamak has been the focus of most research, though other approaches have been pursued as well. Employing the tokamak concept, physicists have attained conditions in plasmas that approach those required for practical fusion-power generation. Work on another major approach to fusion energy, called inertial confinement fusion (ICF), has been carried on since the early 1960s. Initial efforts were undertaken in 1961 with a then-classified proposal that large pulses of laser energy could be used to implode and shock-heat matter to temperatures at which nuclear fusion would be vigorous. Aspects of inertial confinement fusion were declassified in the 1970s, but a key element of the workspecifically the design of targets containing pellets of fusion fuelsstill is largely secret. Very painstaking work to design and develop suitable targets continues today. At the same time, significant progress has been made in developing high-energy, short-pulse drivers with which to implode millimeter-radius targets. The drivers include both high-power lasers and particle accelerators capable of producing beams of high-energy electrons or ions. Lasers that produce more than 100,000 joules in pulses on the order of one nanosecond (10-9 second) have been developed, and the power available in short bursts exceeds 1014 watts. Best estimates are that practical inertial confinement for fusion energy will require either laser or particle-beam drivers with an energy of 5,000,000 to 10,000,000 joules capable of delivering more than 1014 watts of power to a small target of deuterium and tritium .