What is the universal theme of The Diary Of Anne Frank?

One interpretation of the universal theme in 'The Diary Of Ann Frank' is the way her book survives forever as a lasting testament to the idea of 'Good.' Yes, evil was seen to win out against Ann's family and thousands of others throughout the world in the short term, but Ann was blessed also to see good done in her short lifetime - sacrifice,risk,offering refuge,moral support and kindness. Sadly, in the end these small and great acts of bravery weren't enough to save her but they happened and shine out as beacons forever in the fight against power corruption and evil. This is important because humankind needs the concept and emotion of 'Hope.' Without it, we would be consumed in a whirlpool of despair and never have the courage to stand up against tyrants. In the end, evil always hurts it's perpetrators as they are like scorpions boxed into a corner and stinging themselves to death - they damage their own personalities/souls. Ann's diary as a testament to the power of good versus evil in terms of infinity,not just the short-term of a life-span, stands out in it's incorrigible and bright presentation of the truth of the good that is in humankind.

What are some advantages of the metric system over the British system?

Metric system has came in existence and now the system international units have become much popular .Tt is arithmetic friendly as the calculations are easy. It is friendly with decimal system. The terminology is also easy to remember there is uniformity in it and in naming the fundamental units also. We can see that there is certain easy way it sounds when we say a kilometre or a kilogram. A kilogram is 1000 gram , a kilometer is 1000 meter and therefore, without strain to mind  we can conclude that a one thousand litre can be called a kilolitre. Despite some variations in metric system over time, it is easy to adopt it.Just look at one example how the length is measured in both systems.Kilometer =1000 metres,Hecto meter =100 met, Deca met = 10 met , decimetr =0.1 met , centimeter =1/100 meter. The conversion here is easy as it goes in ten's power with our popular decimal system. In British system these day today using measurement of length is mile =8 furlong, 1 fulong =220 yards, 1yard =3 feet , 1 feet =12 inches. The naming of the different units difficult remember. Conversion of 1 unit to another unit require invariably difficult as you have remember the chart or keep the chart before you. Similar is the difficulty in case of other fundamental units.

In "The Devil and Tom Walker," how does Tom know the man he meets in the forest is the devil?

Irving offers several clues in his description of the man in the forest so that Tom and readers know that he is the devil.

1. The man seemingly lives in the forest when Tom meets him.  Puritans from the story's setting believed that the devil roamed the woods around their communities, waiting to tempt humans into signing his black book. The devil even ask Tom what he is doing on "his grounds," revealing that the dark forest is his domain.

2. He is called "the black man," but Irving is not describing his race with that description.  He goes on to write:

"His face was neither black nor copper colour, but swarthy and dingy and begrimed with soot."

The soot suggests that this creature spends most of his time near fire (hell-fire).

3. When the devil and Tom are finished talking, he presses his thumb against Tom's forehead, and Tom cannot remove the black, sooty mark when he gets home.

4. Finally, the devil is in the process of burning trees (which represent people's souls) when Tom comes upon him. Only a supernatural creature like the devil would have such power.

In the book The Road to Memphis, how old are all the characters?

The central characters of The Road to Memphis, the Logan children, are all in their teens or early twenties during the time of the narrative. Cassie Logan, who is attending school in Jackson, Mississippi, is seventeen years old. Cassie is readying herself to go on to college, determined to further her education despite the roadblocks against her advancement as a black woman living in the Deep South during the World War II era. She remains feisty and opinionated as always, unafraid to stand up for what she believes is right. Despite attempts to make her into a lady, Cassie is still a tomboy at heart, reveling in her ability to keep up with the endeavors of her male friends.

Cassie's older brother Stacey is twenty, and works at a box factory in Jackson. He is "a handsome young man, tall and slender," who enjoys dressing up and has managed to save up and actually buy a car. Stacey has grown up into his own element, and has developed into a leader who takes special care to look out for his friends.

Christopher-John is fifteen, strong yet reserved as he has always been, even as a young child. Christopher-John has a "keen ear," and is perceptive and cautious, tending to believe that the best way to stay out of trouble is to avoid it altogether.

The youngest Logan child, Little Man, is fourteen now. His real name is Clayton Chester, and as he grows older, he insists more and more on being called by his real name. Little Man is a handsome boy, slightly built, "with reddish-pecan brown skin...and Indian-like hair combed straight back." Ever fastidious, he takes great care to look neat and "cool" at all times (Chapter 1).

The pressure acting on a surface is 10 Pa. What does this mean?

The pressure acting on a surface is 10Pa means  a force of  one 10 Newton  exerts on every square meter of area . Also if the a force of F is exerted on an area A , then the  pressure P on the area is given by:

P = F/A Pascals,

Thus Pascal is the measure of the unit of pressure and its dimension is N/m^2 or as per dimensional analysis  pascal has the indices if mass, length and time expressed like: MLT^-2/L^2  or [ M^1] [L^-1][T^-2].

Nomally pressure per unit area or the unit of pascals are used of mentioning air pressure, liquid pressure , tensile stress , shearing sress etc.

What American stereotypes do you see in "Rip Van Winkle"?

Strangely enough, Rip represents a very modern American stereotype.  He is the typical hen-pecked husband.  Americans are accustomed to seeing his type of character on many old and new "family" sit-coms.  The wife is always on his case about something, whether it's work, his behavior, or his socializing.

He also represents the lazy man.  While his character is not representative of all men, Irving certainly must have observed his type enough to characterize Rip as such.  If Rip had his way, he would spend all day at the tavern or out in the "wilderness" away from people telling him what to do.  He simply wants to be left alone.

Why was Marguerite sent to work at Mrs. Cullinan's house in I KNow Why the Caged Bird Sings?

Marguerite was sent to work at Mrs. Cullinan's because

"Negro girls in small Southern towns, whether poverty-stricken or just munching along on a few of life's necessities, were given as extensive and irrelevant preparations for adulthood as rich white girls shown in magazines...learning the mid-Victorian values with very little money to indulge them."

In other words, it was expected that such girls learn the delicate skills of "refined" culture, such as embroidering, crocheting, and tatting, as well as table setting for formal dining, and cooking whether it was practical or not.

At the age of ten, Marguerite was sent to the home of Mrs. Viola Cullinan to complete this part of her education. Mrs. Cullinan was "white, fat, old, and without children." She was from Virginia, and had reputedly "married beneath her;" she lived in a three-bedroom house which was run with an exactness which was "inhuman." Mrs. Cullinan was a foolish woman, whose bigotry towards Negroes was clearly evident. She showed her complete disregard for Marguerite's humanity by renaming her "Mary" for her own convenience, having decided that the young girl's real name was "too long." Marguerite responded to her "mentor's" callousness and disregard by purposefully breaking her favorite dishes, thus ending her tenure at the lady's house (Chapter 16).