What happens when Nat tries to bury the birds at the beach in "The Birds"?

It is interesting that nature itself seems to try to conspire against Nat's attempts to dispose of the corpses of the birds with his man-like logic, perhaps indicating the larger conflict between nature and man at play in this terrifying short story. Note the reference to the intense cold that Nat experiences when he goes to the beach and the way it is described as being colder than he had ever known. The description of what happens follows:

He crunched his way over the shingle to the softer sand and then, his back to the wind, ground a pit in the sand with his heel. He meant to drop the birds into it, but as he opened up the sack the force of the wind carried them, lifted them, as though in flight again, and they were blown away from him along the beach, tossed like feathers, spread and scattered, the bodies of the fity frozen birds. There was something ugly in the sight.

Note the way in which nature temporarily resurrects the corpses of the birds, giving them flight once more throught he wind, which could perhaps foreshadow the relentless way that the birds attack the humans in spite of the high cost in terms of their lives. Either way, Nat finds something abhorrent in the sight, indicating the unnatural way in which the birds have behaved.

A typical silo on a farm has many bands wrapped around its perimeter. Why is the spacing between successive bands smaller toward the bottom?

This has to do with pressure.  If you think about it, where is there going to be the most pressure on the walls of a silo?  It's going to be at the bottom.

The reason for this is that there is going to be all the silage at the top of the silo that will be pressing down on the silage at the bottom.  So the stuff at the bottom is really being pressured and it will push outward much more strongly than the silage farther up.

Because of this, you need more bands lower down to counteract the extra pressure.

What does Nick mean in chapter 4 when he says: "There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired"?

Nick's thoughts reflect the angst of modern life.  As he holds the superficial Jordan in his arms, he wonders why any of the pursuit of love, riches, and so-called "happiness" are worth anything at all. 

Break this quote down into pieces and it is much more understandable.  For example, the "pursued" are Daisy by Gatsby, and Tom by Myrtle.  The pursuing are Gatsby, trying to "capture" Daisy, and Myrtle trying to snare Tom.

I would argue that "the busy and the tired" include all of the characters.  These traits, again, are indicative of the shallowness of modern life.  It seems that no one really wants to play the game of predator and prey, yet no one truly wishes to give up the thrill of the hunt either. 

But thrill is temporary, and its promises of pay-off illusory.  In the end, the characters lack rest and contentment, a price they have paid for the more temporal benefits of a quick fix (that is, parties, false camaraderies, fleeting fame.) 

Who are the round and dynamic characters?

When the wall is almost finished, Montresor shows a moment of concern for Fortunato, when the prisoner does not answer to the call of his name. Montresor throws the torch over the wall. Is he having second thoughts? Has he learned something from this conflict? At this moment Montresor seems to venture near the line of becoming a dynamic character, but then he returns to his wall-building and exacts his revenge, staying firmly in the realm of being a static character. As for being round or flat, we learn very little about either character, though a bit more about Fortunato. He is seen as a Carnival reveler, but we also learn that he is a wine afficionado and seems to have Montresor's respect in that regard. So, we do learn a little about who he is outside of what is happening to him in the story. As for Montresor's character, it seems as flat as can be: he is a person relaying the story of an incident that happened to him many years ago - as if it were yesterday. His character seems very flat.

Why did the coachman call Lyddie "a chip of Vermont granite?"

The coachman introduced Lyddie to his sister, who runs a boarding house in Lowell, Massachusetts, as "a chip of Vermont granite." Lyddie was from Vermont, and granite is a very hard rock; the name was a tribute to Lyddie's intelligence and physical strength, which she had had to demonstrate along the way from her home in Vermont to her new destination.

There had been a number of haughty gentlemen riding the coach with Lyddie. When the coach had gotten stuck in the mud, the coachman, irritated with the gentlemen's pompousness, tried to have a little fun at their expense and ordered them to get out and push. The men complied, futilely trying to extricate the coach by simply pushing from behind. Lyddie, watching the men, became frustrated by their ineffectual demonstration, and stepped in to show them the proper way to get the coach out of the mud. Taking off her shawl and tucking up her skirts, she stepped forward and placed a flat stone under the mired wheel, then put her own shoulder against the rear wheel, ordering the others to join her and push in unison. The men had been embarrassed at having had to be rescued by "a slip of a farm girl," but the coachman, amused, was impressed by her efficiency and strength. He told Lyddie "you're a hardy one, you are," and later, expressed his admiration again, saying "You're a stout one." He said it would be a pleasure to help her out by introducing her to his sister and finding her a place to stay, and called her "a chip of Vermont granite" in recognition of her hardiness and spirit (Chapter 7).

What do the various people/groups in the book symbolize?

In Ralph Ellison’s novel “Invisible Man,” a cast of characters symbolize societal outcasts who are disillusioned and truth telling. Ironically, the people with a clear view of the world are those who are looked down upon by society as outcasts. Trueblood, the vet and blueprint man illustrate this point, the price one pays for knowing and telling the truth is removal from society.

The protagonist completes the circle. The prologue begins with the end. The reader learns the protagonist lives in a hole.  Battle Royal and other situations demonstrates his position in society, subservient and enraged. The circle is completed in the epilogue, when he decides to live in a hole.

The prologue begins with “I am an invisible man” (3). He is invisible “because people refuse to see [him] (3). He finds “a home or hole” to live.  Although Trueblood and the blueprint man were ridiculed during their brief appearances, they shows us verity.  The epilogue provides the protagonist with understanding as to why he is “in a hole.”  His experiences “showed [him] the hole [he] was in” (572). In the hole, he meditates, and is in a state of contemplation.  Throughout the novel, Ellison stresses that while legitimacy is valuable in society, it seems unattainable unless one sacrifices their responsibility to humanity.  The protagonist desires to become one of the symbolic disillusioned and truth telling outcasts, similar to Trueblood, the vet and blueprint man. 

What impact does Miss Maudie have on the children's life in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Miss Maudie has an especially strong impact on Scout's life, teaching her the ways of the world from the point of view of a woman not as deeply entrenched in traditional southern notions of womanhood as other women, such as Scout's aunt.  Also, Maudie has known Atticus for a long time, and therefore can explain certain things about him (such as his ability to shoot) that no one else would.  Maudie is outspoken, has values similar to those of Atticus, and can bake fine cakes to boot, all three attributes comprising a type of nourishment that the children need.  Here's an example:  Not long after the trial, Scout is participating in a missionary ladies' party that her aunt gives, and Miss Maudie is there.  Scout is called upon to act "like a lady" in ways she abhors, and even worse, tease her about goiong to court and sitting with Negroes during the trial.  She wants to lash out, but then Maudie reaches over and quietly holds her hand, consoling her and silently advising her to say nothing.  "Miss Maudie's hand closed tightly on mine, and I said nothing," Scout reveals.  She is one more example of womanhood which contributes to several other (her aunt, her teacher, Cal, Miss Stephanie, etc) against which she defines herself as she grows up.  More than the other female characters, Maudie fills in the vacuum of "mother" in Scout's life.