Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), one of America’s all-time major authors, had many disappointments in his literary career. Being of a melancholy nature, he was 26 to become gloomy about his future as a writer. Pessimism was Hawthorne’s bitterest foe. Three different times in his life Hawthorne had to give up writing as a livelihood and take a government job. At such times he had not been 27 his understanding wife Sophia he might very possibly have abandoned literature altogether. 

    On one especially discouraging occasion, Hawthorne returned home with the announcement that he had just lost his government position. “What will we do now, Sophia?” he sighed in 28 . “This is the end.” American literature is beholden 29 Sophia for what happened next. Instead of 30 her husband for losing his job, she went to the cupboard, took down pen, ink, and paper, and placed them on the table. Then, caressing her husband affectionately, she smiled and said, “Just think of it! Now you’ll be completely free to write that book you’ve had in mind and couldn’t find time for.” 

     Sophia’s positive attitude caused Hawthorne to master up enough courage to sit down at the table and begin work. The result was The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne’s finest novel and one of the most valuable contributions to American literature.

    There has been an 33 in the past few years of fashion designers incorporating Islamic fashion into their designs. The international retail clothing company H&M 34 an advertisement showing a Muslim model in a hijab, while Dolce and Gabbana launched a line of hijabs aimed at wealthy Muslim customers. 35 , not everyone is happy with the hijab entering mainstream fashion. Some say the new designs are bordering on being un-Islamic. The real essence of Muslim dress, according to Dr. Eva Nisa, a professor of Islamic Studies, is to wear something decent and to be modest.

   Biofuels are a wide range of fuels which are in some way derived from biomass. The term covers solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases. With the recent rise in oil prices, along with growing concern about global warming caused by carbon dioxide emissions, biofuels are gaining increased public and scientific attention. 

   One type of biofuel, blended with much of the gasoline in the United States, is called bioethanol. It is the same stuff as in alcoholic drinks, except that it's made from corn that has been heavily processed. There are various ways of making biofuels, but they generally use chemical reactions, fermentation, and heat to break down the starches, sugars, and other small particles in plants. 

   On the face of it, biofuels look like a great solution. Unlike underground oil reserves, biofuels are a renewable resource since we can always grow more crops to turn into fuel. Unfortunately, it's not so simple. The process of growing the crops, making fertilizers and pesticides, and processing the plants into fuel consumes a lot of energy. It's so much energy that there is debate about whether ethanol from corn actually provides more energy than is required to grow and process it. Also, because much of the energy used in production comes from coal and natural gas, biofuels don't replace as much oil as they use.