When water freezes and becomes solid ice, the hydrogen bonds create a crystal structure and there is fixed space between each water molecule. This...

Density is the amount of mass per unit of volume. Most substances are more dense in their solid state than in their liquid state. This is because the particles of most substances become more closely packed in their solid state. 

Water particles are held together by intermolecular forces called hydrogen bonds. Hydrogen bonds occur between the positively charged side of one water molecule and the negatively charged side of another water molecule. When liquid water changes to a solid state, the hydrogen bonds between the water particles result in the formation of a crystal structure with spaces between the water particles. The additional space between the water particles cause solid water to be less dense than liquid water. Because ice is less dense than water, it floats on water. 

Therefore, the answer is b.

I'm having difficulty understanding the specifics of the cathode ray experiment conducted by JJ Thomson. Thomson placed two oppositely charged...

Prior to Thomson's experiment, scientists were aware of how charged particles behaved in electric fields. They knew that a charged particle in an electric field would follow a parabolic path. They also knew that the size of the parabola was dependent on the particle's mass, charge, and speed. The speed of a particle in an electric field could be indirectly determined. 

The cathode ray in Thomson's experiment behaved exactly like scientists would expect it to behave if it contained particles of negative charge. He was able to conclude that the cathode ray contained particles based on previous knowledge of how known particles behave in an electric field. 

Further experiments by Thomson led to the determination of the charge to mass ratio of the particles in the cathode ray. This value indicated that the particles in the cathode ray were much smaller than a hydrogen atom. 

Prior to Thomson's experiment, John Dalton had developed several postulates that he thought described atoms. One of his postulates was that atoms are indivisible. Thomson's experiments showed that this postulate was incorrect. 

In the book The Cay, why does the narrator tell Henrik a fib?

The narrator, Phillip, tells his friend Henrik a fib as a way of gently fighting back against his friend's slight arrogance. To be more specific, Henrik was annoying Phillip by acting like he had privileged information, so Phillip said something untrue in order to make it seem like he, too, knew a lot about what was going on.

This happens in Chapter 1, on page 12:

Henrik said, "My father told me there is nothing left of Aruba. They hit Sint Nicolaas, you know."

"Every lake tanker was sunk," I said. I didn't know if that were true or not, but Henrik had an irritating way of sounding official since his father was connected with the government.

Phillip's fib reveals that he's someone easily annoyed, and someone who doesn't like to be left out of the loop. The whole war seems exciting to him rather than frightening, and he's eager to know everything about which islands have been attacked, which ships have been torpedoed, and so on.

In a way, Phillip's reaction to his friend's statement shows how immature Phillip is; it shows us how he has a long way to go before he can understand why friends deserve respect, and why war should be perceived as something terrible rather than adventurous. The events of the novel will ensure that Phillip learns these lessons well.

What does the large stone represent in Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery"?

While the picking up of the large stone by Mrs. Delacroix during the stoning of Tess Hutchinson can be interpreted in many ways, let us look at what Helen Nebeker, a critic, writes in her article " 'The Lottery': Symbolic Tour de Force," which was published in American Literature (vol. 46, no. 1) in 1974.

The Delacroix family, whose last name is French for "from the cross," already has a symbolic name which elicits thoughts of martyrdom, such as the one experienced by Jesus on the cross. Ironically, the family  shows none of the signs of goodness that often come with the view of a martyr. In fact, the collective attitude of the Delacroix clan, based on their reaction to the lottery, is that of making martyrs out of others, namely, whoever is picked during the drawing. Proof of this is the fact that they are the first family mentioned in the story that is fully engaged in the process of collecting stones, for what will become a macabre and bloody activity later in the day.

Mrs. Delacroix, a friend of Mrs. Graves, speaks quite candidly to Tess before the lottery starts, during it, and always shows kindness toward everyone. When Tess is finally revealed to be the "winner" of the lottery, the Delacroix children quickly step up to the stoning, as they had been collecting rocks from the start. Mrs. Delacroix, however, picks up a stone so large that she needs both hands to lift it. 

The Lottery--Shirley Jackson

...the pile of stones the boys had made earlier was ready; there were stones on the ground with the blowing scraps of paper that had come out of the box Delacroix selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs. Dunbar. "Come on," she said. "Hurry up."

So: Based on the analysis of the Delacroix clan, we can infer a few things. First, that the large stone was picked on purpose by Mrs. Delacroix so that she WOULD NOT be able to hurt Tessie. If she cannot lift it, how can she possibly throw it?

Second, that the large stone is meant to hurt Tessie in the worst way possible because Mrs. Delacroix, like her family, may have psychopathic trends. Weren't they all collecting stones more than avidly from the very beginning?

Third, that the large stone represents duality: Mrs. Delacroix follows and obeys the status quo of the village by participating in the lottery. However, she really does not intend to fully participate and makes herself almost unable to carry the stone. This may show a fragment of humanity still left in her character. 

Therefore, the large stone represents doubt. When one is sure to do something, and do it well, one does not use the hardest or more difficult tools to accomplish a mission...unless one is not fully sure on whether that mission should be accomplished or not. 

In Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, what are some examples of Gatsby being a liar?

When Nick is riding in Gatsby's big roadster in the opening pages of Chapter IV, Gatsby seems determined to make a favorable impression and to dispel any of the dark rumors that have been circulating about him. Gatsby knows that his biggest weakness is in his shady background.

"Look here, old sport," he broke out surprisingly, "what's your opinion of me anyhow?"

In a couple of pages, Gatsby tells Nick an obviously made-up story about his life. He claims to be the son of wealthy parents in the Midwest. But when Nick, who is from that region, asks, "What part of the Middle West?", Gatsby answers, "San Francisco." This answer in itself shows that Gatsby is telling him a bunch of lies. San Francisco is as far west as anyone can go in the Far West.

In one paragraph of fanciful dialogue Gatsby tells Nick about his life after he says his family all died and he came into a good deal of money.

"After that I lived like a young rajah in all the capitals of Europe--Paris, Venice, Rome--collecting jewels, chiefly rubies, hunting big game, painting a little, things for myself only, and trying to forget something very sad that had happened to me long ago."

Nick almost laughs at this story because it sounds like something out of a cheap novel. Venice, of course, is not a capital of any European country, and it would be hard to hunt lions and elephants in Europe. Nick is baffled when Gatsby supports his story with two pieces of evidence: a war medal from Montenegro and a photo of himself with a group of friends at Oxford.

The truth about Gatsby doesn't really come out until Tom Buchanan exposes him in front of Daisy at the Plaza Hotel in Chapter VII. What Tom has to say about Gatsby is completely incompatible with the story Gatsby has told Nick about himself in the car. All that remains unshattered is that Gatsby really did go to Oxford--but only for five months after World War I ended. Tom's uncontested exposure of Gatsby as a criminal is the climax of the novel, the death of Gatsby's dream.

What are some instances that illustrate that Bruno is young and naïve in Chapter one of John Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pajamas?

In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Bruno's naiveté is demonstrated in his first reaction when he sees his things being packed and he believes that he has done something wrong. Then, he does not realize that they are leaving Berlin, nor the reason for this move. 

In addition to these examples of Bruno's naiveté, he seems to only know that his father wears a "fantastic" uniform. His knowledge of the man and woman who visit their home--the "Fury" and the pretty blonde woman who waved good-bye to him as he was sent from the room one day--is very limited, as well.

Further, as he speaks with his mother, Bruno suggests that they need to return soon because he has "made plans" for the summer with his three friends, Karl, Daniel, and Martin. Then, he is shocked when his mother tells him that they are making a rather permanent move and he should say good-bye to the three boys, "as if the making of a boy's three best friends for life was an easy thing."

In Of Mice and Men, what does the death of Curley's wife foreshadow?

Lennie's final isolation is foreshadowed by Curley's wife's death. The young woman who shares her faded dreams with Lennie and her sense of frustrated solitude dies at the hands of a man who has his own dreams. As Candy realizes right away, that dream dies when Curley's wife dies and, for Lennie, this death will result in being cut off from society for good. 

We can see the idea of Lennie's impending exposure to a world outside of society at the end of the death scene in the barn. After Lennie partially covers Curley's wife with hay, he hears the sound of the horseshoe game and "For the first time Lennie became conscious of the outside." Immediately, he begins to recall the escape plan and tell himself to go hide in the brush, evoking his early notions of running away to live in a cave. Lennie is no longer part of society.

While this ultimate isolation takes the form of actual death for Lennie when he is killed by George, part of the power of this turn of events is in its surprise. So, although Curley's wife's death foreshadows Lennie's fate, it does not explicitly indicate Lennie's death. Rather, the murder foreshadows the death of a dream in a way that lets us see Curley's wife's "disappointment speech" as applying perhaps to the whole cast of characters in the tale. 

When she is killed, we know immediately that Curley's wife's death will trigger a few predictable responses and will shape Lennie's doom. The reader understands that George was aware something like this could happen. That is why the he and Lennie make a contingency plan early in the story, agreeing to meet by the Salinas River if anything should go wrong. 

Curley's animosity toward Lennie now is provided with legitimacy, making Lennie a real target of violence.

Lennie himself realizes that the hope for owning a ranch with George and Candy is now lost. This is what he worries about as he reaches the river and waits for George. 

In the odd conversation that Lennie has with himself in his fright (as he talks to a giant hallucinatory rabbit), Lennie worries that George will be upset with him and beat him. 

The rabbit speaks to Lennie's harsh, socialized awareness of what he has done, warning Lennie of the worst. 

"If you think George gonna let you tend rabbits, you're even crazier'n usual. He ain't. He's gonna beat hell outa you with a stick, that's what he's gonna do."

Lennie replies with self-reassurance, saying that George wouldn't do that because "he ain't never raised his han' to me with a stick. He's nice to me."

In this instance, we have a complex and ironic piece of foreshadowing that suggests George will do what is "nice" or right for Lennie when he arrives. In shooting Lennie, George is arguably proving Lennie right and proving the giant rabbit right as well. 

There is no more safe place for Lennie in society now. And this is effectively what Curley's wife's death means for Lennie.