The United Kingdom awarding body Essay Example for Free

The United Kingdom awarding body Essay I have been asked to design a system for the United Kingdom Awarding Body (UKAB), an imaginary exam board. This system is going to be used for the monitoring of its post-examination re-marks. System Specification: The system specification needs to store the following data:   Candidate name Candidate number Centre number   Subject Reference Code   Original mark   Re-mark mark Whether the centre requested the return of the script It was also necessary to store the grade boundaries for each of the subjects. For the system I was asked to build the following table was provided for the grade boundaries of each subject: Subject Reference Grade Boundaries (%) Code A B C D E 01325 75 67 60 54 48 20094 70 60 50 40 30 28181 90 78 66 54 42 54821 85 79 74 64 55 64773 68 60 52 46 40 The system needed to be able to produce hard copies of the following:   A daily list of any re-marks completed where a mark change has affected the grade; A daily list of any re-marks still outstanding, i. e. that have not been completed within a three-week period;   A list of re-marks that have been requested for a particular subject;   A list of re-marks that have been requested from a particular centre. The system also needed to be able to produce documents which could be returned to the centre giving the results of the re-marking. The document needed to show the UKAB logo and also the following details: Centre number (integer)   Candidate name (string) Candidate number (integer)   Subject Reference Code (integer)   Original Mark (integer)   Original Grade (text)   Either the re-mark mark and grade, if changed, or a sentence to say that there has been no change (integer/text) Processes: The user of the system would need to be able to carry out the following processes:   Record information about candidates. Amend/delete information about candidates Record re-marks Query so as to obtain the information for the hard copies which I listed above. Firstly I needed to use the data requirements to start to design the entities and attributes that I would use in the system. Following is a brainstorm of the ideas I used to come to the first draft of the entities and attributes: Initial Entities: After this brainstorming I decided to start with the following 3 entities: Candidate(Candidate Name, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Subject Reference Code, Original Mark, Re-mark mark, Requested) Subject (Subject Reference Code, A, B, C, D, E). Centre (Centre Number, Centre Name, Centre Address) Where the underlined attributes represent the primary keys within each entity. In the candidate entity I decided to use both candidate number and also centre number as a joint primary key as candidate numbers were only unique to their centre. This would mean that there could be multiple candidates with the same candidate number; however the candidate number and centre number combined would always be unique. For the subject entity, subject reference code was the only sensible primary key as it was the only unique attribute in the entity. Centre Number is both a primary key in the centre entity and also a foreign key in the candidate entity. Another foreign key in this initial model is subject reference code in the candidate entity. Data Types: Candidate Name: text: 20 Candidate Number: integer Centre Number: long integer Subject Name: text: 15 Subject Reference Code: long integer Original Mark: integer Original Grade: text: 1 Re-mark Mark: integer Re-mark Grade: text: 1 A: integer B: integer C: integer D: integer E: integer Centre Name: text: 20 Centre Address: 200 For each of the field I altered the length of each field appropriately. I did this by either switching from long integer to integer, or changing the maximum number of characters in each field. In this way I was able to save on the space that the database used. Following is the reasons for choosing the data types for some of the fields I used in the database: Candidate Name: I limited the field length to 20 characters as this would be long enough to cater for any name but yet saves space as less space has to be set aside for each record. Candidate Number: as candidate number is only 4 digits long there would be no way in which it would exceed the maximum length an integer would provide. Therefore I chose to decrease the field length to integer so as to save space. Centre Number: I was not able to decrease the size of this field as Centre Number is a 5 digit number and therefore can exceed the maximum length of an integer of 32768. Subject Reference Code: this field again used long integer as its data type due to it being a 5 digit code. To ensure that the field could start with a 0 I altered the properties of the field as below: Original Grade: I decreased the length of this field to 1. The grade would always only be a 1 letter grade such as, A or B. Therefore I was able to decrease the length of this field to 1 at no consequence. Re-mark Mark: I changed this to integer as it was only a 2 digit number. Centre Address: I changed this to 200 characters as an address can be quite long. However I did not change the data type to memo which would have provided more space as it would make the system slower and the extra space would not have been needed First Normal Form: I realized that having the candidates and also the re-marks in the same table, that I would be unnecessarily duplicating data within the system. I therefore decided to split the entity up into two separate entities, candidate and re-mark. So my new entity list looked as below: Candidate (Candidate Name, Candidate Number, Centre Number) Re-mark (Subject Name, Subject Reference Code, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Original Mark, Original Grade, Re-mark mark, Re-mark Grade, Requested) Subject (Subject Reference Code, A, B, C, D, E) Centre (Centre Number, Centre Name, Centre Address) The new entity remark has a composite primary key consisting of, subject reference code, candidate number, and centre number. This was the only combination of attributes within this entity which would ensure that it was always unique. Also in this way I was able to ensure that all of my tables were in first normal form, satisfying the criteria of eliminating duplicative fields within the same table. By making the re-mark table a sub-form of candidate through the use of a one to many relationship between the two, I was able to have multiple re-marks for each candidate without having to break the first normal form which I need to adhere to. Second Normal Form: For a table to fulfill the requirements to be in second normal form, all of the non-key attributes within the entity must be functionally dependant upon the primary key of the table. All of my entities satisfied these criteria so therefore no changes needed to be made. Third Normal Form: For a table to fulfill the requirements to be in third normal form, it must first be in first and also second normal form. On top of the requirements for the first two forms, it must also be ensured that no non-key attributes are dependant upon other non-key attributes. My database already satisfies this requirement and can therefore be said to be in third normal form. As my database fulfills all of the requirements to be in first, second and third normal form my database has now been normalized. Relationships: After designing the entities my table will use while considering the normalization of my tables I have now come up with the following relationships: Above is a screenshot of my relationships that I have created in access. As can be noted there are no many to many relationships as I have eliminated them through the normalization process. Software: For this project I am going to be using Microsoft Access, as well as some coding within Visual Basic which I will implement into the database. I have chosen to use the following combination as it is an easy way to set up tables and the initial database, but also allows me to utilize the power of a programming language such as Visual Basic so I can fine tune and customize the user interface and other aspects of the database. I have chosen to use a package to create the initial database as opposed to programming the whole database as programming the whole database from the start is a larger task which I would not have been able to accomplish with my current understanding of programming. Also for this particular project the extra power that a programmed database could offer was not needed as the solution could be provided in a fairly simplistic form. My other main option for creating this database was to use Delphi, which is a form of Pascal. I have already covered most of the Pascal syntax and it would have been the best alternative choice, however I did not do this for the reasons above. On top of this I wanted to expand my knowledge of systems creation by experimenting with Visual Basic and also Access. Hardware: The hardware which I will be initially creating my solution on is my home PC. This PC was built by me and therefore I am very familiar with the hardware that I will be using. The hardware is of a medium to high specification:   AMD Athlon XP 1800+ (clocked at 1533 MHz) 512 MB DDR PC2100 RAM. 40 GB Hard drive However I wanted to ensure that the software that I was creating would work on a PC of lower specification so that anyone that was using it would not be forced to upgrade their systems to use my database. I therefore did some testing on the PCs at my College which were of a lower specification:   Intel Pentium III 800 MHz   128 MB SD RAM   10 GB Hard drive Design: Tables: Following are screen shots of the tables in my database: Candidate Design View: As can be seen in the properties of the candidate name attribute, I have changed the field size to 20. Also it can be seen that the primary key is a composite one made up of candidate number and centre number. Candidate Table View: Centre Design View: In the above view, the focus is on the centre number attribute, as can be seen the field size is set to long integer, also for the format I have altered it to 00000. This represents the number of digits that I was to be shown at any time, this is a work around of the problem that if a centre number begins with a zero then it will still be kept. The primary key for this entity is Centre Number. Centre Table View: The test data included 3 centres. So as to show the full address of each centre I have had to increase the height of each record within the table. Re-mark Design View: As can be seen for this table the primary key is a composite one comprising of subject reference code, candidate number and centre number. Re-mark Table View: Here is all of the test data for my database, it may be noted that there are more than 15 re-marks (the corresponding number of candidates). This is because I have given some candidates a number of re-marks so as to be able to test the effects of more than one re-mark per candidate. Subject Design View:In the subject table I have given the primary key to the only unique attribute within the entity which is subject reference code. Subject Table View: As can be seen for each grade boundary I have just given the singular value as opposed to the actual bounds for each grade. This is so as to make coding for the user interface easier later on in the solution. Validation Rules: In the specification there were a few rules by which some of the data needed to adhere to, these were: 1. Candidate Numbers are of 4 digits and will be unique within any centre, but not between centres. The solution should ensure that this is allowed for. 2. Centre numbers are allocated within the range 10000 to 80000 and are unique. 3. Subject Reference Codes are 5 numeric digits. The following are the validation rules that I used to ensure that my data was correct. 1. For the candidate numbers I used the following validation rule: (0) And (10000). This allowed for the numbers from 0001 up to 9999. 2. For the centre numbers I used the following validation rule: (9999) And (80001). This allowed for the numbers 10000 to 80000. 3. For the subject reference codes I used the following validation rule: (0) And (100000). This allowed for any 5 digit code. Other validation codes that I used include: 1. (=0) And (=100) : for the original mark and re-mark mark attributes. This ensured that every mark was expressed out of 100. 2. (=A) Or (=B) Or (=C) Or (=D) Or (=E) Or (=U) : for original grade and re-mark grade, this ensure that each was a valid grade. Queries: The first query that I needed to create needed to show any outstanding re-marks. Outstanding was defined as 3 weeks after it was received. This led to me needing to change the design of the re-mark table slightly. I needed to add an attribute (date received) so as to keep record of the date that it was received. After this the re-mark entity looked as follows: Re-mark (Subject Name, Subject Reference Code, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Original Mark, Original Grade, Re-mark mark, Re-mark Grade, Requested, Date Received) Forms: Main: To make the design as user friendly as possible, I have split it into 2 sections of input and output. This way it is easy for the user to distinguish between the two uses of the system. For all of my forms I have included an exit button in the bottom right of each form. I have kept this constant to stay in line with the element of least surprise design. New Centre: Similarly to the new centre button, the new subject button opens at a new record. The screenshot is of the subject form. New Re-marks: The new re-mark button unlike the first two buttons does not open at a new record. This is because it is more likely that the user will be inputting a user from an existing centre and therefore it would make more sense for the user to scroll through the centres. A small feature that I have included in this form is to improve the user interface of the system. It will input a code from a subject name or a subject name from a code automatically. I used the following code to achieve this effect. This code changes a subject name into code, it can be noted that this happens on exit of the subject_name field. For the opposite effect I used very similar code: Above is a small clip of how this code works, it follows on similarly for each code. Again this code takes place on exit of the subject_reference_code field. Re-mark Results: For this particular form I have locked many of the fields, this is because it will be used to input the re-mark results from previously submitted papers. The locked fields are coloured in grey. Another feature which is used in this table is an auto-grading system, where the system calculates the grade from the mark entered. This feature also takes into consideration the different subjects as each has different grade boundaries. The code is as follows: End Sub Where the grade boundaries are actually on the table but are hidden as shown: Each of these fields contains the grade boundaries from the subject table. They change in accordance to the subject reference code which is also on the table. This feature is put in place to increase the efficiency of the system for the end user. It may also be noted that when the re_mark_mark field is exited the re_mark_date field becomes equal to todays date. The field was like the grade boundary fields hidden on the form. Reports: The following are the reports which I included to provide hard copies for the end user. Beneath I have listed the names of each of these reports and have also printed out examples of each report. Each example is clipped onto the end of this report; the page number will be included next to the report name beneath:   Grade Changes (pg )   Outstanding Re-marks (pg )   Subject Report (pg )   Centre Report (pg )   Candidate Report (pg ). Each of these reports simply used the queries that I had already constructed. However the candidate report posed a small problem, the specification stated that it would like to show the grade change or if no grade change had been made, then it would like a sentence stating that there was no change. This meant that I would need to create two separate reports and then create some code which could go to the necessary report when I had inputted the details for the report. Test Purpose of test Data Used or Action Taken Expected Result Actual Result 1 Check that main form loads Click main form button Switchboard form displayed. Form opened 2 Check New Centre form Opens Click New Centre Button New Centre form at new record Form opened 3 Check New Subject form Opens Click New Subject Button New Subject form at new record Form opened 4 Check New Re-marks form opens Click New Re-marks Button New Re-mark form at first record Form opened 5 Check grade changes report opens Click Grade Changes Button Grade changes report preview Preview opened 6 Check outstanding re-marks report opens Click outstanding re-marks button Outstanding re-marks report preview Preview opened 7 Check subject report opens Click subject report button Pop up box then report preview. After entering criteria, opened 8 Check centre report opens Click centre report button Pop up box then report preview After entering criteria, opened 9 Check candidate report opens Click candidate report button 3 popup boxes then one of 2 reports After entering criteria, opened 10 Check exit button Click exit button Form closes Form closed 11 Check auto grade feature for original mark Insert mark Equivalent grade is generated Grade generated 12 Check auto grade feature for re-mark mark Insert mark Equivalent grade is generated Grade generated 13 Check validation rule for candidate number Insert 5 digit code. Rejection of the code Rejected 14 Check validation rule for centre number Insert number larger than 80000 Rejection of the code Rejected 15 Check Validation for subject reference code Insert 6 digit code Rejection of the code Rejected 16 Check validation for original mark Insert number larger than 100 Rejection of the number Rejected 17 Check validation code for re-mark mark Insert number larger than 100 Rejection of the number Rejected 18 Check validation code for original grade Insert the letter G Rejection of the letter Rejected 19 Check validation code for re-mark grade Insert the letter H Rejection of the letter. Rejected 20 Check auto subject reference code feature Insert word business Generation of the code 20094 Generated 21 Check auto subject name feature Insert code 01325 Generation of word Art Generated 22 Auto date feature Enter date field Generation of todays date Generated 23 Check that Auto grade feature works for alterations Change an existing mark Regeneration of grade to new grade Generated 24 Check validation of dates Insert abc into date received Rejection of date Rejected 25 Check that Duplicate Centre Numbers cannot be inputted Insert 66528 in new record Rejection of data Rejected.

The Probability of a Major Hurrican Hitting New Orleans :: essays research papers

The Probability of a Major Hurricane Hitting New Orleans   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Table of Contents Executive Summary  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3 Introduction  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3 Hypothesis  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7 Analysis & Method  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8 Conclusion  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10 References  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  12 Appendix  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  14 Executive Summary New Orleans, Louisiana lies at the second lowest elevation among major cities in the United States. It is a city surrounded by water, making it almost like an island. To counter this dangerous combination of the low elevation along with the lakes, rivers and swamps surrounding it, the Army Corps of Engineers built a series of levees around the city to foster its protection. It is these very same levees however that might doom the city should a Category 3 hurricane ever hit. Our statistical analyses examined the current belief that there is a 39% probability that New Orleans will be hit by a major hurricane and based on the resulting Z-score, rejected that belief. We did find however that the probability, while not 39%, was still in the 30th percentile range, which should still be a major cause for concern among the leaders and residences of the city of New Orleans. Introduction New Orleans is a city that is rich in culture as well as history. The city is in effect, an island – Lake Pontchartrain surrounds the city to the north, the Mississippi River to the west and south, and a bevy of lakes – including Lake Borne to the east. Surrounding the city is a series of levees to keep these bodies of water at bay. In addition to these levees, the only defense the city has is a series of canals and a very antiquated pumping system. However, the same levees that protect the city, makes it a death trap should a major hurricane make a direct hit to the metropolitan area. The risk of intense flooding brought forth by storm surges of 20+ feet would wipe the city out. New Orleans was founded to be a port to the world – with its intersection at the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico, it was a great location for world trade. However, it was also a cesspool of disease, floods, and other problems. Despite this, the city was a major economic powerhouse and the city grew and prospered despite of the problems. As the city expanded, swampland was reclaimed to expand the city. To protect its citizens, the Army Corp of Engineers built a series of levees around the city. These levees form a bowl around the city. It is precisely this architecture that was meant to protect the city will in effect destroy the city.

Death of Hector Summary Essay

Except for Hector, the Trojans are inside the walls of Troy. Apollo turns to Achilles to tell him he is wasting his time pursing a god since he can’t kill him. Achilles is angry, but turns around to return to Troy where Priam is the first to spot him. He tells Hector he will be killed since Achilles is much stronger. If not killed he will be sold into slavery as has already happened to others of Priam’s sons. Priam can’t dissuade Hector, even when his wife Hecuba joins the effort. Hector gives some thought to going inside but fears the ridicule of Polydamas, who had given sage advice the day before. Since Hector wants to die in glory, he has a better chance facing Achilles. He thinks about giving Achilles Helen and the treasure and adding to it an even split of the treasure of Troy, but Hector rejects these ideas realizing Achilles will just cut him down, and there would be no glory in that. As Achilles bears down on Hector, Hector begins to lose his nerve. Hecto r runs towards the Scamander River (Xanthus). The two warriors race three times around Troy. Zeus looks down and feels sorry for Hector, but tells Athena to go down and do what she wants without restraint. Achilles is chasing Hector with no chance of reprieve unless Apollo steps in (which he does not do). Athena tells Achilles to stop running and face Hector. She adds that she will persuade Hector to do the same. Athena disguises herself as Deiphobus and tells Hector the two of them should go fight Achilles together. Hector is thrilled to see his brother has dared to come out of Troy to help him. Athena uses the cunning of disguise until Hector addresses Achilles to say it’s time to end the chase. Hector requests a pact that they will return each other’s body whoever dies. Achilles says there are no binding oaths between lions and men. He adds that Athena will kill Hector in just a moment. Achilles hurls his spear, but Hector ducks and it flies past. Hector does not see Athena retrieve the spear and return it to Achilles. Hector taunts Achilles that he didn’t know the future after all. Then Hector says it’s his turn. He throws his spear, which hits, but glances off the shield. He calls to Deiphobus to bring his lance, but, of course, there is no Deiphobus. Hector realizes he has been tricked by Athena and that his end is near. Hector wants a glorious death, so he draws his sword and swoops down on Achilles, who charges with his spear. Achilles knows the armor Hector is wearing and puts that knowledge to use, finding the weak point at the collarbone. He pierces Hector’s neck, but not his windpipe. Hector falls down while Achilles taunts him with the fact that his body will be mutilated by dogs and birds. Hector begs him not to, but to let Priam ransom him. Achilles tells him to stop begging, that if he could, he would eat the corpse himself, but since he can’t, he’ll let the dogs do it, instead. Hector curses him, telling him Paris will kill him at the Scaean Gates with the help of Apollo. Then Hector dies. Achilles pokes holes in Hector’s ankles, ties a strap through them and attaches them to the chariot so he can drag the body in the dust. Hecuba and Priam cry while Andromache is asking her attendants to draw a bath for her husband. Then she hears a piercing wail from Hecuba, suspects what has happened, emerges, looks down from the rampart where she witnesses her husband’s corpse being dragged, and faints. She laments that her son Astyanax will have neither land nor family and so will be despised. She has the women burn the store of Hector’s clothing in his honor.

Biography of Larry Swartz, Convicted Murderer

Larry Swartz struggled his whole life, first as a foster care child, then as one of two boys adopted by Robert and Kathryn Swartz. In the beginning, Larry was his parents favorite. In time that changed, and he became their next victim. Robert and Kathryn Swartz Robert Bob Swartz and Kathryn Anne Kay Sullivan met while both were students at the University of Maryland. Soon, they discovered they had a lot in common, most notably childhoods marked by structure and stern discipline. As devout Catholics, neither had been active in the dating scene in either high school or college. After getting married, the couple settled in Cape St. Claire, Maryland. Kay got a job teaching high school and Bob started working with computers. Kay was unable to have children so they decided to adopt. The thought of opening their home to unwanted children fit right in with their active participation with pro-life groups. Lawrence Joseph Swartz Lawrence Larry Swartz was six years old and the first child to join the Swartz family. His birth mother had been a waitress in New Orleans and his father was alleged to have been an East Indian pimp. Larry had spent his life in foster homes. Michael David Swartz Eight-year-old Michael was the second child that joined the family. Prior to that, he had moved from one foster home to another and had developed into a rebellious child. He spent two years on a probationary period in the Swartzes home before being legally adopted. Favoritism Larry and Michael were only six months apart in age, with Michael being the oldest. A bond between the two brothers developed quickly, and they became best friends. Bob and Kay wanted both boys to receive a good education, but their ambitions became a source of family tension. Michael was a smart child and a quick learner. He excelled in his first few years in school, so the Swartzes decided he was under-challenged and insisted he jump from the second to the fourth grade. The change did not work out. Although intelligent, Michael was emotionally immature. His grades dropped and his disciplinary problems increased. He was impulsive and disobedient, often had fits of anger, and did not seem to understand right from wrong. Larry on the other hand was a poor student. His parents became concerned about his academic struggles and had him tested. It was determined that he was learning disabled. He was placed in special education classes, which had a positive effect on his performance. Larry was also a quiet, mild-mannered child who followed the rules at school and at home. He rarely caused any disciplinary problems and had a close relationship with his mother. He was clearly the favorite son. Abuse The mood within the household turned volatile as the boys hit adolescence. Bob and Kay were strict disciplinarians with rigid house rules. They also lacked good parenting skills and were becoming overwhelmed with the challenges inherent in raising two teenagers. Bob and Kay subjected both boys to constant criticism and harsh scoldings, and they often punished their children for even the most minor infringements of the rules. When it came time to deal with more serious problems, like Michael being disruptive at school, the at-home punishments became more severe. During family fights, Larry would try to calm his parents. Michael would do just the opposite. He often talked back and agitated the fighting. Bob had a ferocious temper and zero tolerance for Michaels rebellious behavior. It did not take long for the verbal lashings to turn into physical abuse. Larry managed to escape the beatings, but not the verbal and psychological abuse. The Swartzes were determined not to let Larry end up like Michael, and they kept a close watch on his activities. Being around the constant fighting and the physical abuse took a toll on Larry, and he obsessed about ways to keep his parents happy. Annie Swartz When the boys were around 13, the Swartzes  adopted their third child, four-year-old Annie. She was born in South Korea and had been abandoned by her parents. Annie was cute and sweet, and the entire family adored her. She also became the new favorite child of Bob and Kay, which bumped Larry down to second place. Hit the Road One night Michael asked his parents if he could visit some friends. The answer was no, so Michael snuck out of the house. When he returned home around 10 p.m., he discovered that he was locked out. After knocking failed to get his parents to let him inside, he began to yell. Finally, Kay opened the window and informed Michael that he was no longer welcome at home. The next day Kay reported Michael as a runaway to his social worker. He was given the choice to move into a foster home or go to juvenile court, which would have likely meant going to a juvenile detention home. Michael elected to move into a foster home. As far as the Swartzes were concerned, Michael was no longer their son. Next in Line Michael and Larry remained in touch with one another and talked for hours together on the telephone. They shared their frustration and anger over how their parents were treating them. Larry could not believe that his parents had disowned Michael. It not only angered him that a parent could just throw out their child, but it also caused him to feel severely insecure. He was scared that one day he would also be cast out of his home. Now that Michael was gone, his parents were always on his back about something. Larry couldnt understand why his parents didnt seem to like him. He was popular at school and had a reputation among his peers and his teachers as a nice looking, easygoing, and polite young man. However, his mild manner and friendly nature made little impression on his parents. Just as they had with Michael, Bob and Kay soon began to find fault with everything Larry did and the friends he chose to hang out with. His relationship with his mother, which had always been good, began to disintegrate. The more she screamed at him, the harder he would try to figure a way back into her good graces. But nothing seemed to work. Backfire In a desperate attempt to regain his favorite child status, Larry told his parents that he wanted to be a priest. It worked. The Swartzes were thrilled, and Larry was sent to a seminary to begin his first year of high school. Unfortunately, that plan backfired. After failing to make the necessary grade point average after two semesters, Larry was encouraged by the school not to return. The clashes with his parents intensified after he returned home. Drivers Education Most teens start annoying their parents about allowing them to get their drivers license as soon as they reach the legal age to drive. Larry was no exception. For the Swartzes, however, this hinged entirely on Larrys grades. They agreed to allow him to take drivers education if he make all Cs or better on his report card. By the following semester, Larry managed to get all but one C. Bob stood his ground and refused to give in because of the single D. Larry kept at it. The following semester he received two Ds and the rest were Cs. Again, that was not good enough for Bob and Kay. Destructive Criticism Arguments between Larry and his parents became a regular occurrence. They fought with him in particular over his extracurricular activities. They didnt care that their son excelled at sports and was co-captain of the junior varsity soccer team—in fact, they were adamant that sports was a distraction from his studies. He was often grounded and was only permitted to go to school and church and to attend his wrestling matches and soccer events. Socializing with friends was restricted. When Larry did manage to go on a date, his parents unfailingly criticized the girl he went out with. Larrys performance in school deteriorated as a result. At 17, his C average was now a D average. His hopes for a drivers license were completely dashed. In order to numb his pain, Larry began to hide liquor in his bedroom and often got drunk after fleeing to his room after a fight with his parents. As for Michael, he had been court-ordered to go to a psychiatric facility for testing after he continued to get into trouble at the foster home. The Swartzes never wavered in their decision to cut all ties with him, and Michael became a ward of the state. Snap, Crackle, and Pop The night of January 16, 1984, was a typical night in the Swartz home. Larry had been dating a girl that Kay disapproved of and she told him she didnt want him to see her again. Shortly after that argument ended, Bob blasted Larry for messing with his computer, which had erased some work. The fight escalated to ferocious levels. Larry went up to his bedroom and began to drink from the bottle of rum he had hidden there. If he was hoping to squelch his anger, it did not work. Instead, the alcohol seemed to fuel the resentment and rage he felt towards his parents. A Call to 9-1-1 The following morning, at around 7 a.m., Larry placed a call to 9-1-1. The Cape St. Claire emergency workers arrived to find Larry and Annie holding hands at the door. Larry calmly let the paramedics into the house. First, they found Bobs body lying inside a small basement office. He was covered in blood and had several gash marks on his chest and arms. Next, they found Kays body in the backyard, lying in the snow. She was nude except for a sock on one foot. It appeared that she had been partially scalped, and her neck had been deeply lacerated in several spots. Against police protocol, one of the paramedics covered Kays body with a blanket. Larry told the paramedics that Annie woke him up because she could not find their parents. He said that he looked out the kitchen window, saw Kay laying in the yard, and immediately called for help. The Crime Scene When the detectives from Arundel County Sheriffs Department arrived, they immediately secured the crime scene. A search of the home produced several clues. First, nothing of any value seemed to have been stolen. A blood trail led outside, indicating that Kays body had been dragged to where it was found. In addition, a bloody palm print was found on the glass of the patio door. They also uncovered a bloody maul out in a wet, wooded area behind the house. A neighbor alerted the detectives to blood that he saw in the front of his home. Investigators followed that trail, along with a series of footprints, from the neighbors house through the neighborhood and into the woods. The footprints included human shoe prints, paw prints from what was likely a dog, one bare footprint, and one that may have been made by someone wearing a sock. It appeared that Kay Swartz survived her initial attack and managed to escape the house, but was then chased through the neighborhood by her assailant until she was caught and murdered. The Interviews The detectives turned their attention to Larry and Annie. Larry told them the same story he told the paramedics about looking out the window and seeing his mother lying in the snow, except this time he said he looked out of the dining room window, not the kitchen window. He was also quick to implicate his brother Michael as a possible suspect. He told the detectives that Michael hated his parents for disowning him and sending him back to foster care. Larry pointed out that the family dogs knew Michael and probably would not bark at him if he entered the house. He told them that Kay confided to him that she feared Michael, and that Michael had once joked about stabbing their father in the back. Annie told detectives that she heard a voice around 11:30 p.m. that sounded like her father calling for help. She then described a man that she saw in the backyard. His back was to her, but she could see that he was tall, with dark curly hair, and that he was wearing jeans and a gray sweatshirt. She went on to describe a bloody shovel that he was carrying over his shoulder. For as young as she was, she remembered a lot of details. When asked if the man was as tall as Michael was, Annie answered yes. Michael was over six feet tall and towered over Larry. Michaels Alibi But Michael had an alibi. According to him and the staff at the Crownsville Hospital Center, Michael had been locked inside the dormitory during the night. One of the staff members confirmed that hed seen Michael around 11:15 p.m. Based on the time that Annie said that she saw the man in the yard, that would have given Michael only 15 minutes to get to the house and kill his parents. The detectives knew that there was no way that Michael was the killer. He could never have made it to the Swartz home that quickly. Cool, Calm, and Overly Helpful Everyone who came to the Swartz home that morning—the paramedics, police, and the detectives—remarked on Larrys emotional state. For a kid who had just found his parents murdered, he was amazingly cool and calm, to the point of appearing disconnected to the horror that had gone on inside his house. The detectives were also suspicious of his attempt to make Michael look like a suspect. There was also the batch of papers concerning Michaels legal problems, which had conveniently been left in open view in the living room. The Arrest The detectives knew that if they found out who left the bloody palm print on the glass door, they would probably find the killer. It did not take long for the FBI to make a match. The palm print matched Larrys palm print, a fact that did not surprise any of the detectives. Larry was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder. His bail was set at $200,000. Annie went to live with family friends in Annapolis. A Confidential Confession Three days after his parents funeral, Larry confessed to his lawyers that he was the killer. He outlined the events prior to the attack, describing the arguments hed had with his parents. He said he went to his bedroom, started drinking, and then went downstairs, passing his mother, who was watching television. She asked him about some tests he had taken at school that day, and Larry told her he thought he had flunked one but done okay on the others. According to Larry, Kays response was sarcastic and belittling. In response, Larry picked up a nearby wood-splitting maul and smash it over her head. He then stabbed her multiple times in the neck with a kitchen knife. Bob came in to see what was going on and Larry plunged the knife into his chest. He continued stabbing Bob around his chest and heart multiple times. Once Bob and Kay were dead, Larry busied himself trying to make it look like a crime that was committed by someone who had broken into the house. Someone like Michael. Final Act of Revenge—Humiliation Larry explained how he dragged his mother out through the patio door and across the snow in the backyard and laid her out near the swimming pool. He removed her clothes and then in a final act to humiliate her, he moved her body into an obscene position and then assaulted her with his finger. He then got rid of the murder weapons and his bloody clothing by throwing them into the wet, wooded area behind his house. When he returned inside he went to Annies room. She had woken up during the commotion, but Larry assured her it was a nightmare and told her to go back to sleep. Larry did not mention anything to his lawyer about chasing Kay through the neighborhood. When asked about it, Larry said he had no recollection of that happening. The Trial Larry sat in jail for 15 months before going to trial. On the day before it was to begin, his lawyers and the prosecutor reached a plea bargain. Judge Bruce Williams questioned Larry on the witness stand, verifying that he understood that he was going to plead guilty to the two counts of murder. He then announced his sentence. Judge Williams referred to the murders as one of the most tragic events in the history of the county. He showed compassion when speaking of the trouble that went on in the Swartz home. He said although Larry appeared normal, his court-ordered psychological testing showed that the teen was in great need of treatment. He sentenced Larry to two concurrent 20-year sentences and suspended 12 years from each. Freedom Larry was released from prison in 1993, after serving nine years of his sentence. Inexplicably, a family who had read about his case adopted him as their son. He lived with his new family for several years before leaving. He moved to Florida, married, and had a child. In December 2004, at the age of 38, Larry had a heart attack and died. The case was the inspiration for the best-selling book by Leslie Walker, Sudden Fury: A True Story of Adoption and Murder. In addition to the book, a movie based on the murders was made in 1993 called A Family Torn Apart, which starred  Neil Patrick Harris of Doogie Howser, M.D. as Larry Swartz. Michaels Unhappy Ending Michael continued to get in trouble, and as he got older his criminal behavior became more severe. At the age of 25, he was given a life sentence without the possibility of parole, for participating in robbing and murdering a man. His bounty? A jar of coins. Teens Killing Parents A number of articles about children who kill their parents have been published over the years, many of them in Psychology Today. Most experts agree that its the fastest-growing form of family homicide, committed primarily by males between 16 and 19 years of age. The reasons are unknown, although some doctors posit the high divorce rate may play a role. It is an area of crime that continues to be studied in great depth.